From the Hip – 3/52

This week’s 52 on Friday theme is “From the Hip.” It was a huge challenge for me!  What exactly do I mean by “from the hip?”  Well, Iris was pretty sure I meant the same thing as “attached at the hip.”  She spent most of our mini photo session practically standing on my feet.  While not quite what I was going for, she was pretty darn cute!

In photography, shooting from the hip means shooting without looking through the viewfinder.  It’s a popular technique in street photography because by not putting the camera up to their face, the photographers can really capture natural, candid expressions and situations.  No one is posing if they don’t know your taking their photo!

It’s also a technique used by some of my favorite pet photographers.  Covering your face with a camera can make some pets nervous.  By not putting the camera up to your face, you can naturally interact with your pet while still shooting.  It’s also a technique that I never use.  I admit it, I’m a control freak (aren’t all artists?)  I like to see exactly how I’m composing a photo before I click the shutter.  But shooting from the hip can produce some really fun, quirky photos.  It’s something that takes a lot of practice to get used to, and I’d really like to get better at it.

I admit, there were a lot of practice photos that I deleted but there were also a few where the composition just “worked.” Something about the unplanned angle becomes unique and beautiful.

I don’t know about you, but my favorite part of the week is getting to see how all of the other pet photographers interpreted this week’s theme.  If you’re ready to see everyone’s photos, start by heading over to Chase and Snap Photography.  Be sure to follow the links in each blog post so that you can see all of this week’s photos before ending up right back here.