how do you do slopes?

[night86mare]

i don't really think it helps here. if you remove the people, using a wa lens or not, makes no difference.

as opposed to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/visbeek/3534867765/

in general, being on the slope itself is not very useful if you wish to show its steepness.

 

[scubasimon]

looks like the only way is to show from the side then? hmm...is anyone going to bt timah? can take some to show? i'll go back there soon to try again

 

[catchlights]

looks like the only way is to show from the side then? hmm...is anyone going to bt timah? can take some to show? i'll go back there soon to try again

hope you can get the picture by seeing this photo.

 

[Lolrence]

Put an object (bottle of water for example) on the slope, which means the bottle will tilt downwards.

Otherwise, bring into the frame a pathway that's flat, and use that as a point of contrast to the slope.

 

[scubasimon]

thanks for the suggestions!

i think that there are constraints at bt timah hill because of the narrow width of the path and the particular phone camera that i am using. i can definitely see how going to the side will help but it really isn't an option for the situation. as far as i can remember, that path doesn't afford for much side-to-side play. maybe it really is a situation where nothing much can be done?

which is why i was asking if somebody has pictures of that place...or a similar tight, steep slope, with a narrow field of view. hahaha...now that is a challenge

 

[night86mare]

thanks for the suggestions!

i think that there are constraints at bt timah hill because of the narrow width of the path and the particular phone camera that i am using. i can definitely see how going to the side will help but it really isn't an option for the situation. as far as i can remember, that path doesn't afford for much side-to-side play. maybe it really is a situation where nothing much can be done?

which is why i was asking if somebody has pictures of that place...or a similar tight, steep slope, with a narrow field of view. hahaha...now that is a challenge

won't know until you try,

but yes, contrary to popular belief, no one can do something they want to do anywhere they want to do that something.

 

[scubasimon]

@night86mare: very cheem...but i think i know what you mean

 

[Anthony Lee]

It's all about perspective. If a slope is steep, you can see it from very near and get the sense of height pictorially if you shoot your photo at the bottom of the slope. But if it's gradual, you must be very far away from the slope to sense it. Try and take your photo from the bottom of the slope and get both references, near you and at the top of the slope in your frame.

 

[Inverse]

= =, instead of trying to show the slope is steep, how about capturing that the subjects are moving down the slope fast?

Use slow shutter to get the effect. =P

The blur also can have a reference of the slope steepness!!!

 

[scubasimon]

@Anthony: seeing the height? what do you mean? if i point the camera perfectly horizontally, sure, i will see the road behind them. but the effect is very similar to me pointing the camera down on a perfectly horizontal road, no? a sample picture would really help me understand what you mean here. taking from the bottom might work...but i'd still be confronted with the same slope, no?

@Inverse: i do have some with the blur effect...but that isn't what i am after.

the picture is to show others that my boys conquered the hill. so it is important to show them on the slope...ARGH!

 

[Anthony Lee]

@Anthony: seeing the height? what do you mean? if i point the camera perfectly horizontally, sure, i will see the road behind them. but the effect is very similar to me pointing the camera down on a perfectly horizontal road, no? a sample picture would really help me understand what you mean here. taking from the bottom might work...but i'd still be confronted with the same slope, no?

@Inverse: i do have some with the blur effect...but that isn't what i am after.

the picture is to show others that my boys conquered the hill. so it is important to show them on the slope...ARGH!

If the slope is gentle, you can only see the slope a few hundred meters away. I realised this when I was doing my 6 km walk yesterday. When you are on the slope or near the peak and too close to your boys, how can you see a slope?

 

[scubasimon]

ah...i know what you mean now. but if you go up bt timah hill, you will see the slope while you are standing on it. it is VERY steep at some parts. however, the picture does not show up that way...which prompted my initlal question.

also, if you see that picture i posted on page 1, it is rather narrow. i will try next time to see if i can point the camera from the left side so i can include more of those pegs on the right...but i doubt i can get enough of an angle. worth a try i suppose

 

[coolthought]

hi simon.

fancy "meeting" you here.
You are using a camera handphone to take photos? what happen to your dslr?

Just summing all what have been discuss and with reference to all the previous posted photos in this thread.

Usually, when you are in the scene itself, your senses will let you know steep the slope is. Like you are about to roll down the slope real quick or it will be a tough climb upwards....

In a photo, most of these won't work except the visually ones only.
To get a correct sense on the perception of the steepness of the slope. The photo have to have reference lines or plane like the vertical trees, vertical building, vertical humans or the flat sea. These references allows one to "sense" how steep a slope is by looking at the relative angle of the slope and the references. The greater the relative angle looks in the photo, the steeper the slope looks. Other reference can be like a similar steep looking cliff in the distance...

So, if the photo lack of such visual ques, a steep slope will look flat. With this understanding, you can even make a flat ground look really steep by altering these references. One of the classic trick in altering perception is having someone "climbing" or crawling on the ground and rotate the camera in such a way that this person looks like he is climbing a really steep slope.

on the contrary, a lack of "suitably angled"(vertically) reference(s) will make a steep slope looks flat.

 

[coolthought]

thanks for the suggestions!

i think that there are constraints at bt timah hill because of the narrow width of the path and the particular phone camera that i am using. i can definitely see how going to the side will help but it really isn't an option for the situation. as far as i can remember, that path doesn't afford for much side-to-side play. maybe it really is a situation where nothing much can be done?

which is why i was asking if somebody has pictures of that place...or a similar tight, steep slope, with a narrow field of view. hahaha...now that is a challenge

errr... how about going real low on the ground and use the frame (of the photo) as the vertical and horizontal references? Can work????:think:

 

[scubasimon]

hahaha! i knew i recognized that nick

yeah, i will have to give the suggestions a try the next time i am there. i did see a photo from a stock photography site that had a picture taken like your last suggestion, only that one was taken from above a steep flight of stairs. it did show the steepness