Pins and Needle

I like the way this one turned out, but I think it would have benefited from tripod treatment instead of being hand held. Hard to say, the shutter speed was pretty fast… but on a tripod, I could have closed the aperture just a little more, and perhaps sharpened up the needle ever so slightly (pardon the pun).

Comments

  1. The way I look at the picture, the beauty seems really to lie on the composition as a whole, with the blurred colorful balls contributing most to the overall picture than the focused needle. Subtle and beautiful.
    James Moralde recently posted Photo Fun- Toying with Cheap Lighting

  2. Andreas @ håravfall says:

    For some strange reason, this picture reminds of space… all of those dots are the planets. Don’t know what the needle should be representing though…

    /Andreas.

  3. Henk says:

    It is a great shot and if this was not on tripod it shows a steady hand… I also think it is a good test of your lenses… I am going to try something similar.
    Henk recently posted Canon EOS 600D Rebel T3i vs 500DT1i- 550DT2i- 60D and 7D Review

  4. Pretty good for a hand held. I don’t think that it would have been much of a difference with a tripod. Great job.

  5. Convincing use of bokeh. I see so many pictures where people are more interested by the bokeh of their lens than by what they put in this bokeh. But this picture is definitively a clever and artistic use of bokeh.

  6. I like it the way it is. I always used to get in trouble in art class for never having a distinctive line- as mine would all have slightly blurred edges. But something about it always makes it seem unfinished- and like it has more of a story to tell. So, you can look at it like your needles are just trying to jump out and sew more.

  7. Maggie @ Managed Hosting says:

    It kind of looks like a child’s solar system project, in an obscure, left-field sort of way. I like the blurriness though; it kind of makes it quasi-3D.

  8. Alex @ Tax Accountant says:

    Someone above said something about space and planets! I got the same feeling :)

  9. TJ McDowell says:

    Are you using a macro lens for this shot? 100mm maybe? Just curious.
    TJ McDowell recently posted ProShow Web – Producer Review

  10. James Lee says:

    I wish! I have my eye on the NIKKOR 100mm macro, and so far just haven’t been able to justify the cost.

    I took this with a nifty fifty – an inexpensive prime lens, with a Quantaray close-up filter. The filters allow me to get closer than I could otherwise, but they also shrink the depth of focus.

    Thanks for all the comments, everyone!

  11. Carol @ Can Can Dancers says:

    Yes maybe the tripod would have improved the sharpness a tad, but I think this is still a masterpiece! I could see this enlarged and framed on my front room wall!

  12. Becker @ Paintballing Sussex says:

    With or without the tripod, who cares? It looks great! I’m sure you all agree with me.

  13. I am a photography have only a 18 – 135mm canon kit lens at my disposal. I wanted to take macro shots but can’t really afford a macro lens right now. One very optimistic goal of mine is to capture a single snow flake this winter.

  14. Lisa @ Baby Monitors says:

    Yes definitely planets! It has a futuristic feel about it.

  15. Anonymous says:

    This is a wicked image!

  16. Andrew @ Fraud Solicitors says:

    That’s a very creative photograph. You’ve managed to photograph just some needles and turned them into a very creative and colorful image.

  17. Toby @ Flight Simulator says:

    Very galactical. I could have that on my wall and stare into it and see a different story every day. Wonderful

  18. Love this picture!

  19. Do you have any more like this?

  20. James Lee says:

    This one is one-of-a-kind in my collection.

  21. Daniel @ Cairns Web Design says:

    How did you set up your camera so that in only focused only on the needle, while it kept the pins in the blur?

    • James Lee says:

      I set the camera so the shutter opened as wide as possible. When you do this, items that are different distances from the lens become out of focus. In this case, because I was so close to the pins, the effect is exaggerated.

  22. Francois @ Immigration Solicitor says:

    Nice photograph. The pins really look like the solar system. Too bad you did not have a larger pin so that it looked like the sun :)

  23. The photo is fantastic

  24. Andrew @ SEO Manchester says:

    Love the photo! It’s an interesting point of view :)

  25. You’re quite a photographer!

  26. WOWWWW… that is all I can say… Love it
    Liewilyn Baynosa recently posted How to add a logo for your photos

  27. Chelsea @ Down or Just Me says:

    I LOVE this! The colors are great! I’m huge fan of close-ups, probably why I like so many of your shots, but this might be one of my favorites!

    • James Lee says:

      Thanks, Chelsea. It’s important to me to be able to get close… part of why I added a new lens to my bag. I’ll have to be careful not to get TOO close… stay tuned!

  28. Pins and needles looks so pretty. their color and their shadow look so beautiful Iall people like this type of colorful life then this picture teach us a lot……….

  29. Daniela says:

    Those images looks very nice.Even the texture is a bit blurd but still it shows a very awesome and powerful content.
    Daniela recently posted November 04, 2011 – Azhar & Azhar Law Firm Secures Termination of Deportation in Dallas Immigration Court

  30. Karen @ Los Angeles SEO says:

    Love the caption on this picture. When I ready it as first I was expecting something voodoo related or a foot fallen asleep, it was a pleasant surprise to see such bright colors and almost gumball like essence.

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