My Photography Setup | Food Photography & Stop Motion

In this episode I take you behind-the-scenes on my photography setup for food photography and stop motion!

Old Setup

Before I purchased surfaces and lighting for my food photography and stop motion kit I used natural light from my kitchen window, some kitchen boards to act as surfaces, and an old desk part to create a backdrop.

I’m a huge believer in using what you have to start and build what you need slowly.

New Setup

Surfaces

After a month of using this setup and loving stop motions I decided to spend a little money to level up my game. The first item I bought was some surfaces and clamps.

Previously when I was taking photos I was taking notes on what I could have done better or if anything hindered my process and the surface of my kitchen counter was a problem for me - it was really reflective so it reflected my kitchen window, the overhead light in my kitchen, the door when my camera sat at a certain angle.

Thus, I decided to purchase some surfaces from Amazon. I originally wanted to buy some Ink & Elm surfaces but I had issues at checkout shipping to Canada so I bought these affordable surfaces that came in a pack of 4 for $50.

I also bought these clamps from Amazon so I could firmly attach the surfaces to either my kitchen table or other surfaces.

Lighting

After I did my Highlights from Athens stop motion I decided to purchase some lighting for my food photography, stop motion and my YouTube videos. It’s really important for stop motion you use even lighting because you’re taking several photos over a course of a long time (maybe hours!).

Buying some lighting has been on the list for me for quite some time - all of my YouTube videos up to this point has been with natural light but with being in winter the day is much shorter. Because of the shorter days I was having a hard time creating when I wanted to create so it was time to buy some lights.

I did look into purchasing a Godox off-camera flash or a continuous light from Godox but I ultimately decided to purchase a more affordable softbox set by Neewer on Amazon for $150.

Images Taken Using the New Surfaces & Neewer Softboxes

Final Thoughts

The only larger item that is on the horizon for me to buy is a new tripod that is better suited for food photography and stop motion. The current tripod I have is great for travel and landscape photography but it poses its challenges when doing food photography and stop motion in that I can’t position the camera to do a flat lay.

Thank you for joining me today in a behind-the-scenes of my photography setup for food photography and stop motion!

Personal Photography Projects | Benefits, Planning & Sharing

In this episode we discuss personal photography projects what are they, their benefits, how I find inspiration and plan the project and what I do with the product afterward!

Whether you are a hobby photographer, professional or aspiring professional…whether you do landscape, travel, food, portrait…personal photography projects hold benefit and value for you!

What are Personal Photography Projects?

Personal photography projects are any kind of photography projects you do for yourself and for your own reasons! These projects can vary in length and complexity - they could be short and sweet that takes an afternoon to complete or they could be long and extensive taking months to months to finish.

These projects can also stand alone as a single photography project or they could be strung together as part of a series or collection.

When I was doing a lot of landscape photography in the summer some of my photography projects were visiting and documenting new locations around the Okanagan - this was a long and extensive photography project that strung together to create a collection.

Currently, I’ve been doing a lot of food-related photography projects involving stop motion. These have been short and sweet photography projects that stand alone.

Benefits

Create Your Own Opportunities

There are two main benefits to personal photography projects - the first is it creates your own opportunities. I am a huge believer in creating your own opportunities and through personal photography projects it could lead to being featured, a job offer, a future or bigger idea or project.

You never know who is watching you, following your work, etc.,

Practice, Learn and Grow

The second benefit is it allows you to practice your skill, learn and grow!

A few weeks ago I made my first ever stop motion animation with marshmallows forming the word 2021…it wasn’t the greatest. In-between then and now I have done a few more stop motions to practice and I created another one this week featuring a yogurt parfait.

Personally, when it comes to working on a personal photography project I want to make sure its fun for me, it interests me and if possible it can benefit another person.

Planning

Finding Inspiration

To find inspiration for a personal photography project I like to peruse on Instagram and Pinterest. If I’m on Instagram and I see something that interests me and want to refer back to later I’ll bookmark it. If I’m on Pinterest I’ll pin it to my photography board.

Inspiration is one of those things that sometimes I’ll look for directly and other times it will come to be in another way from another idea.

Tracking Ideas

I also like to keep a physical copy of my ideas and check them off as I complete them. If I’m on the go when an idea comes to me I’ll jot it down in my notes app and transfer it to my physical notebooks later.

Planning the Project

Once I have an idea for a personal project I like to flesh out the idea in my notebook - the supplies I’ll need, the concept for the shoot, composition ideas and tasks.

Sharing Afterward

After I’ve executed on the project I like to share behind-the-scenes on my Instagram stories and with the final product I’ll either create a post on Instagram, create a blog post or make a YouTube video on it (or a combination of the 3).

Back in December when I was reviewing my plans for 2021 I decided I wanted to not only create but document and share what I create (good or bad). On Instagram you see so often these perfectly curated feeds of branded colours, perfect images and I love seeing them but I also knew that it wasn’t me. So I decided to take a different direction. Posting my creations is a way for me to document my journey and my development as a photographer.

Final Thoughts

Personal photography projects are so important and valuable to me. It keeps my creativity alive and whenever possible it provides value to others.

Let me know on the YouTube video or Instagram if you’re working on any personal photography projects and what!

Volcanic Hills Estate Winery | West Kelowna Winery

Volcanic Hills Estate Winery is a local winery in the Okanagan situated in West Kelowna on 2845 Boucherie Road. It sits on the southeast slope of an old dormant volcano - Mount Boucherie which inspired their name for the winery.

I travelled to this local winery in the fall to celebrate my 25th birthday and did a wine tasting with my family. When we visited the atmosphere was cozy, the service was great, they had a good wine selection and we walked away with this wonderful bottle of rose!

At my local Starbucks they were selling these heart-shaped sugar cookies so I picked up a few of those to further style and set the tone for a sweet and romantic session.

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Drink Photography Info:

Wine: Volcanic Hills Estate Winery 2018 Rose // @volcanichillswi

Sugar Cookies: Starbucks (Seasonal) // @starbuckscanada

Wood Charcuterie Board: Home Sense Canada // @homesensecanada

Pink Marble Board: Home Sense Canada // @homesensecanada

Pink Heart Fabric: Home Sense Canada // @homesensecanada

Splash Photography on the Olympus EM1 Mark II | Create with Me

I tried splash photography for the first time!

Before Christmas I was perusing the aisles of Home Sense when I came across these clear glass mugs and I knew they were perfect for some splash photography!

In this episode we discuss what is splash photography, how to setup Pro Capture on your Olympus camera, and what I learned from this experiment!

Splash Photography

Splash Photography is in the name - you create splashes involving a secondary object and capture them.

You can do splash photography like I did with some liquid in a mug or glass or you can involve a product - let your imagination go wild.

For my first time I wanted to keep the concept simple so I used a clear glass mug, some coffee and some ice cubes/carrots to drop and create the splashes.

Pro Capture & Sequential High

On the Olympus you can capture movement like this via Pro Capture or Sequential High.

Pro Capture is a feature on some of the Olympus cameras that capture moments that last really briefly - by enabling Pro Capture your camera starts recording images when you half-press the shutter but doesn’t write until you fully click the shutter.

To enable Pro Capture go to your Super Control Menu (for me I click the center “OK” button on my camera) and where it usually shows a single frame you can scroll and change it to Pro Capture - High or Low.

If you want to adjust the settings within Pro Capture you can by going into your Menu -> Settings -> C1.

Here you can adjust your Maximum FPS, your Pre-Shutter Count, and your Total Frame Count.

An alternative to using Pro Capture is enabling Sequential High on your camera. You can get to Sequential High by going back into the Super Control Menu and selecting Sequential High.

Learnings from this Experiment

1. Play with your liquid level: I wanted a real messy splash of liquid spilling from the glass when I did my splashes so I found by filling the glass almost completely to the top I ensured I would get that super messy splash. If you have a glass with less liquid then you won’t get as much spillage unless you play with your drop height, object, and post-processing.

2. Play with your drop height: I found that if I dropped by object from a greater height then it allowed for greater height and volume of the splash. The issue with going higher with your drop height becomes…aim.

3. Play with the object you drop: At the beginning I used ice cubes as my object to drop because it would disappear into the glass, however, I did want to experiment with the object (shape and size) that would get dropped so I started dropping baby carrots into my glass. I found that the shape of the object did contribute to different looking splashes! See below, for the image on the left I used a carrot and dropped it pretty horizontally and you can tell by the splash that is created. For the image on the right I used two ice cubes stacked.

4. Play around with Pro Capture & Sequential High: I played around with my settings within Pro Capture and I found it tricky to time myself - when to half-press the shutter, drop the object, fully-press the shutter. I found by switching to sequential high I had an easier time catching my shot because of the feedback I received from the camera.

5. Splash photography is really messy so have towels/paper towel handy: Splash photography can be really messy (especially if you want real messy splashes like I did) so make sure you have lots of towel or paper towel handy to clean up the mess and you’re using a surface that is forgiving (cleans up nicely vs. leaving a stain or mark).

Stop Motion with the Olympus EM1 Mark II | Create with Me

To start 2021 off I thought I would try a really fun photography project - stop motion!

I was introduced to the idea of stop motion by Joanie Simon at The Bite Shot and I thought it was so cool that I had to give it a try and that’s what we do in todays episode!

After watching a lot of tutorials and reading blog articles these are some tips that I heard and were recommended:

Tip #1 - Create a Story Board

A story board lays out what you envision for your stop motion - it doesn’t have to be fancy just sketch out your idea.

When I sketched out my story board for this stop motion I originally wanted the objects to start scattered and form the word “2021” but then after I shot and edited the frames together I liked the other way around.

The more complicated your stop motion the longer and more complex your story board will be!

Tip #2 - Create Even Lighting

You’ll want to create even lighting so every frame is the same. I don’t own any studio lighting so I had to make do with what I had so I used my phone to cast a light source.

Yes, the light was too harsh. I tried diffusing it with some parchment paper but I didn’t like the effect.

If you have studio lights, great! If not, use what you have or try it with natural light to see what happens (I’ll be experimenting with that in the future).

Tip #3 - Use a Tripod

You’ll also want to use a tripod or find a way to keep your camera super steady and still.

You don’t want your frame moving every time you take a picture and the only movement should be the intentional movement you are making in the animation.

Tip #4 - Start with the Final

A tip that I heard was to start with your final product and work backwards - I’m not sure if this works for every stop motion animation but in many ways it makes sense.

I wanted the final product to be the word “2021” formed so I started with that.

Tip #5 - Make Small Changes

With stop motion animation you want to make very small changes to your movement, you don’t want a drastic shift.

This does however make the whole process very long and tedious.

Editing in Lightroom and iMovie

After I took all the photos I imported them all into Lightroom and did some light editing - playing with exposure, shadows, highlights, contrast, etc.,

I then took all the photos into iMovie and strung them together. You can do this with any video editing software or an online tool but I use iMovie to edit all my videos with so that’s what I tried.

At first I made each clip as short as possible (.10 seconds), I then ordered the photos how I wanted the clip to play out. After, I exported it as one clip and re-imported. I then played with the speed of the entire clip started at 120 speed and ended with 130 speed.

In each software you use this process will be different so experiment with what works for you!

Final Thoughts - What I Would do Differently Next Time

1. I would shoot in my kitchen the next time. The flooring in my living room is unstable and it can shift when you walk on it so every time I approached the tripod it did shift underneath slightly - slightly enough that it moved the frame every time.

2. I would use the Olympus Share app on my phone to remote control the camera. The above problem with my floors could have been mitigated if I had controlled my camera with my phone but I was using it to create a light source.

3. I would get better lighting or experiment with natural light. Using my phone light casted a sharp light and created harsh shadows so investing in a different light set up or experimenting with natural light is on my list.

4. I would test out a more complex idea. I was originally going to use an assortment of fruit to create the 2021 effect but the morning I was going to pick up the fruit, film and shoot the stop motion my car battery died so I couldn’t make it to the grocery story. So I made due with what I had! I would love to experiment with cupcakes and stop motion!

I hope you enjoyed todays episode making a stop motion animation! If you create a stop motion animation be sure to share your creation on Instagram and tag @beautifullywander in it so I can see what you create!

Happy Creating!

Making Shaped Bokeh | Holiday Edition with the Olympus EM1 Mark II

Have you ever seen photos with the beautiful bokeh in the background in shapes like hearts?

That’s what we make in todays episode, however, holiday edition!

How to Make

To make these DIY lens filters you need some paper or cardboard, and either a pair of scissors or exacto knife (depending on what you are cutting).

Step 1: Take your lens cap and trace a circle that you will eventually tape onto the outside of your lens

Step 2: Outline the shape that you’re going to cut

Step 3: Cut (if you’re using cardboard you might want to use an exacto knife instead)

I’ve seen other variations where people create sleeves to go on the outside of the lens then attach their shape cut-out, I’ve also seen people create legs that get taped to the outside of the lens. I went super simple and just taped the DIY filter to the outside of the lens.

Putting your Filter in Action

Before I went out to the Tree of Hope I did do some test shots at home in front of my Christmas tree. I discovered that it took a number of attempts before I got the right SIZE of shape for my lens.

Once I fiddled around with the filters/stencils I finally found the size that worked for the M.Zuiko 40-150 F2.8 PRO.

I did a mix of shots - manually focus and putting a subject in focus.

The following are manual focus shots where I didn’t put a subject in focus:

I then brought this toy Christmas decor with me to get some sample photos of putting an object in focus!

I then wanted to try finding a location where I can elevate the subject and get an unobstructed view of the tree but there was fencing everywhere so the best I could find was this post:

It was pouring at the Tree of Hope so I decided to come back home and do some more test shoots in front of the Christmas tree:

Today we went from regular bokeh to shaped!

Final Thoughts

The concept of making these DIY filters is quite simple, however, the tricky part is getting the SIZE of the shape right for the focal length and lens you are using.

You can definitely get creative and try some different shapes - letters, numbers, icons, etc.,

Have fun with this and if you do your own creation and share on Instagram tag @beautifulywander so I can see your creation - I would love to see them!

Christmas Food Photography with the Olympus EM1 Mark II and the iPhone | Photography Experiment

Lets experiment with some festive food photography and Christmas baking!

Right now over on Instagram Olympus has been releasing a series called the 12 Days of Christmas and one of the days was a video with Gavin Hoey featuring festive food photography and I was so inspired to try it out!

So in todays episode we made Christmas Bark and experimented with 5 tips in food photography on both my Olympus EM1 Mark II and the 12-40 F2.8 PRO lens and my iPhone XR!

After I photographed the Christmas Bark I edited all images in Lightroom (both EM1 Mark II and the iPhone).

Tip #1 : Lighting

In the video they discuss the concept of lighting (flat light vs. adding intentional shadow). Thus, I decided to do this photoshoot by my kitchen window primarily using natural light.

With the placement of my tray and the window it created a natural shadow to the left, adding more dimension and interest to the photo.

Olympus EM1 Mark II // M.Zuiko 12-40 F2.8 PRO// ISO 500 f/8 1/15

Edited: Lightroom

Taken on the iPhone XR

Edited: Lightroom

Tip #2 : Styling

They also discuss in the video the concept of styling your food with festive props that add interest to the overall image. In my photo I used what I had in my home and styled the bark with some leftover red and green M&M and crushed candy canes.

Olympus EM1 Mark II // 12-40 F2.8 PRO // ISO 500 F2.8 1/100

Edited: Lightroom

Taken on iPhone XR

Edited: Lightroom

Tip #3 : Continuity in Shape but Different Sizes

My intention was to create star shapes with the Christmas Bark but due to their thickness and fragility I wasn’t able to, so I selected like-shapes with different toppings.

This would have been better had I worked with cookies in different sizes with different patterns and colour (but when I made cookies last year they were hard to make and turned out really ugly!)

Olympus EM1 Mark II // 12-40 F2.8 PRO // ISO 500 F8 1/20

Edited: Lightroom

Taken on iPhone XR

Edited: Lightroom

Tip #4 : Use a Container

Another tip that I found about photographing baked treats was putting them into a container (while also creating layers). I had this old gingerbread house Christmas tin from last year and I put all my Christmas Bark inside and styled the lid to the side.

Olympus EM1 Mark II // 12-40 F2.8 PRO // iSO 800 F8 1/20

Edited: Lightroom

Taken on iPhone XR
Edited: Lightroom

Tip #5 : Incorporate a Person

For this I set my Olympus EM1 Mark II on a tripod and set it to continuous shooting at 5 frames with 5 seconds in between. I picked up the tray and held it in front of the camera and chose my favourite.

***Unfortunately, I did not have a way to capture this version of the photo with my iPhone XR. This does require you either have a tripod for your phone or another person to take the photo for you.

Final Thoughts

In todays experiment we tried 5 different techniques when photographing food. Out of the 5 I would say my favourite was just styling the food, incorporating a person takes it a step farther and the runner up would be putting your items in a container.

I’ll be carrying out this conversation about which was your favourite over on my Instagram!

If you try out some festive food photography tag @beautifullywander! I would love to see your creations!

Olympus 40-150 F2.8 PRO | Introducing My New Lens!

NOTE: Please note that I did receive this lens from Olympus from a collaboration I did with them previously, but this post/video itself is not a paid promotion, I was not asked to make this post/video, the photos and thoughts are my own.

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A few weeks ago I collaborated with Olympus to write an article for their Olympus Learn Centre about Intimate Landscape Photography! From that collaboration I received the M.Zuiko 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO.

In todays short episode we look at the basic details of the lens, the benefit of zoom lenses, and why I chose the 40-150 f/2.8 PRO!

Basic Details

The Olympus 40-150 f/2.8 PRO weights in at 1.67 pounds, and has a focal length of 40-150mm (80-300mm full frame equivalent).

The maximum aperture is f/2.8 and the minimum is f/22. The length of the lens without the lens hood is 6.30” and 3.13” wide.

The lens is splashproof, dustproof and freezeproof! It also has a retractable lens hood and internal zoom so no matter if you use it at 40mm or 150mm the length of the lens does not get any longer.

Benefit of Zoom Lenses

I know there are many die hard prime lens users out there, however, I found with my photography and what I want to create investing in zoom lenses was better for me - I prefer to focus on intimate frames and landscapes.

With zoom lenses like the 40-150 you have a wide array of focal lengths at your disposal.

And due to this it allows you to have a lightweight and compact setup - the power of this lens and the size of it is one of the reasons why I invested in Olympus in the first place!

Why I Chose the 40-150mm f/2.8 PRO

When I was deciding which lens to receive I knew deep down that it was going to be the 40-150mm f/2.8 even though I did have my eye on the 7-14mm as well.

I gravitated towards the 40-150mm because of the photography I was doing and saw the benefit over the long term. There were so many times before I got this lens that I wished I had it for its extra reach.

So far it’s been an AMAZING lens! It produces really sharp images, but it is a little heavier than what I am used to with my 12-40mm.

I’ve struggled finding a comfortable way to carry the lens - my Ona Bowery Bag can fit both my 12-40 and the 40-150 with the camera body but it gets tricky. It fits better if the 12-40 is on my EM1 Mark II body and the 40-150 is off to the side, but it doesn’t fit as nicely if the 40-150mm is on my camera body. I have a camera backpack but I find my stuff rolls a lot in the compartments which I don’t like.

I like using this lens when I am trying to capture something specifically far away and I can’t physically get any closer. For example, if the clouds over the mountains are doing something cool across the Okanagan Lake.

Or when I am trying to capture something in the distance at a longer focal length so it fills the frame quite nicely but I still want to incorporate some foreground interest

Photos Taken on the 40-150 F2.8 PRO

This is a photo of the Kelowna Firehall Downtown - to frame it creatively I used the light post to create some foreground interest.

ISO 200 | f/2.8 | 1/200

This is a photo of the gondola’s at Big White going up and down - on this day it was particularly foggy so it added interesting dimension and atmosphere to the photo!

ISO 250 | f/3.5 | 1/400

In this photo I created a reflection of the Dolphin Statue at Rhapsody Plaza in Kelowna by using a puddle that was in the middle of the parking lot!

ISO 250 | f/2.8 | 1/400

In this photo I fell in love with the light, shadows, and lines of the golden sand at the beach so I decided to get my camera really low to capture the golden peaks!

ISO 64 | f/8 | 1/50

Final Thoughts

The M.Zuiko 40-150mm F/2.8 PRO has been a great lens so far! I can’t wait to take it on many more adventures!

Tripod vs. Handheld Photography | Why I DON'T Like Using a Tripod

I shoot 90% of the time handheld on my Olympus EM1 Mark II!

In this episode we chat about tripod vs. handheld photography:

• Pro’s and con’s of using a tripod

• Pro’s and con’s of going handheld

• Why I don’t like using a tripod

• 5 things to consider before purchasing a tripod

My Current Tripod

The current tripod I use is the Manfrotto Element Traveller Tripod Big. I purchased it when I was in Fort McMurray from Foto Source for about $130.

What I like about the tripod is it’s light and compact - it weights on average 2 pounds and when compact it’s only about 15-inches long. I can easily carry it around or I can slip it onto my backpack or onto my purse if I want to be hands free.

The main thing I dislike about the tripod is the clasps. This tripod has rotating clasps so you have to rotate the clasp to unlock and rotate again to lock and you have to do this for every single extension for every leg.

This setup makes it extremely cumbersome and time-consuming to setup, takedown or move.

Pro’s and Con’s of Using a Tripod

In my experience of using the tripod there has been three main benefits:

The first benefit is for long exposure photography. I find with the image stabilization in the Olympus I can go up to 2 seconds before camera shake becomes an obvious problem so having a tripod handy for moments that require a longer shutter speed is great!

The second benefit is for low-light photography. I don’t tend to do a lot of low light photography - the latest I am typically out photographing is 30-45 minutes after sunset and there is still some light in the sky. However, if you do a lot of low-light photography then a tripod is a must!

The third benefit is for capturing motion or movement. When I captured the picture below at Gyro Beach I used a tripod - I was on the beach for over an hour, sprinkling leaves in front of the camera so the tripod made the process easier than trying to do it handheld.

The biggest con I have experienced in using a tripod is its restriction on my movement and creativity. I find with a tripod I get anchored to one spot, and due to the fact that its cumbersome to setup and takedown I don’t like moving it a lot so I find I become very static with the use of the tripod and I’m the kind of photographer that likes to get low to the ground, get behind bushes and tree’s and really do some photography yoga to get the shot!

For this photo I stood at corner across from the Paramount Theatre sign in Kelowna. I wanted to get a motion shot of cars passing by - this was shot handheld at 1.3 seconds!

In this photo I opted to use a tripod - I positioned my tripod on the beach and sprinkled leaves in front of the camera until I got the shot. Because I was positioned there for over an hour using a tripod made better sense than going handheld.

Pro’s and Con’s of Going Handheld

The biggest benefit of going handheld with my photography is it’s impact on my movement and creativity - like I said earlier I like to get low to the ground, change up my composition, get behind bushes and tree’s and using a tripod doesn’t work well for that. Without a tripod I can move around a lot more and get creative with my photos!

With this photo (bottom left) I had to get my camera extremely low to the ground (almost touching) and that would have been very difficult had I been trying to use a tripod.

The second benefit with going handheld is you’re carrying less equipment. I greatly despise carrying tons of equipment and I like feeling light so I can quickly move around. So if I don’t have to carry a tripod I won’t!

The biggest con I have experienced not having a tripod is the moments when I need one and I don’t have one. For this photo (bottom right) I used the park bench to stabilize my EM1 Mark II when its shutter was open past 2 seconds.

The restriction of a tripod on my movement and creativity is the biggest reason why I don’t like using a tripod.

Other times when I went handheld with my photography:

5 Things to Consider Before Purchasing a Tripod

Here are 5 things to consider before purchasing a tripod:

1. Size and Weight: If you’re backpacking around Europe then you’ll want to invest in a lightweight, compact tripod that can fit nicely on your backpack. If you are mostly photographing in a stationary place without too much movement then you can probably go for a heavier and larger tripod.

2. Height: How tall do you NEED your tripod to be? When I purchased my tripod I thought I wanted the big version that had the extra height, however, I’ve actually never required it so I could have gone with the smaller version.

3. Clasps: The tripod I use has rotating clasps that require me to rotate each extension to extend the leg and then rotate again to lock which makes setting up time-consuming and cumbersome. I have found since using my dads tripod which is also by Manfrotto that having the pop-up clasps makes setup so much easier.

4. Sturdyness: Depending on your camera equipment you’ll want to consider the weight-bearing capacity of the tripod - can the tripod you are looking at hold your current setup and any future equipment you might purchase?

5. Cost: What is the budget for your tripod? There are some expensive tripods on the market so really consider what your budget is for your tripod.

Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed todays article about tripod vs. handheld photography.

90% of the time I do handheld photography because I don’t like the restriction on my movement and creativity that a tripod imposes on me but of course, there are times that using a tripod makes my workflow easier.

Photography Books for Beginners | FAVOURITES

NOTE: None of the links in this blog post are affiliate links.

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When I started my photography journey I scoured the internet for everything and anything photography related - I read blog posts, listened to podcasts and watched SO MANY YouTube videos!

In this episode I show you three photography books that are my favourite which I used to start my photography journey - the first two books are great for beginners and the last is a photo book that pumps me full of travel inspiration.

Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs - Henry Carroll

The first book I ever picked up in my photography journey was Henry Carroll's Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs. It's a short read at 125 pages but its packed with great information, quotes and 'photography philosophy'.

The books takes you through basic composition, exposure, working with light, the different kinds of lenses, and seeing not looking.

I was able to finish this book in one evening but it's a great read if you're a beginner photographer or you're looking to add to your photography book collection.

What I liked about the book was that it touches on photography composition and the technicals (i.e. Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, Framing, etc.) but it focuses more on YOU.

Creative Vision - Lisa Michele Burns (The Wandering Lens)

The second book that I picked up in the summer was Lisa Michele Burns (The Wandering Lens) Creative Vision ebook. This book is also a short read at 60 pages but its full of great advice, journal prompts and exercises that you can try. I was able to read in a morning but it took me a couple days to complete some journaling and exercises.

Lisa also focuses more on your creativity and your creative eye than the technicalities.

It's a great book if you're a beginner to photography or you're looking to get serious into your photography career.

Dame Traveler: Live the Spirit of Adventure - Nastasia Yakoub

The last book that I want to show you is Dame Traveler's Live the Spirit of Adventure photo book.

This is a beautiful photo book full of travel photos from several different women travelers. It's split into four sections: Architecture, Water, Culture and Nature.

Along with absolutely beautiful photos you'll also read stories from these different women.

During the early parts of COVID-19 when it was just beginning to hit Canada I picked up this book because I couldn't travel but I wanted to consume travel inspiration. To this day I still flip through it when I need some travel inspo!

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Final Thoughts

I bought the first and last book on Amazon (see the titles for links) and the second one off Lisa's website.

Other books on the horizon for me is Thomas Heatons Landscape Photography Photo Book and Renee and Matthew Hahnel Roaming Ameirca: Exploring All the National Parks.

As well, I wouldn't mind reading Use This if You Want to Take Great Photographs and Read This if You Want to Take Great Photographs of Places.

EXPLORING LOCAL | How I Find Photography Locations & Tips on Exploring Local

With COVID-19 in its current state and international travel even domestic being suspended for the unforeseeable future we all have to turn to more local travel.

In todays episode I wanted to shed some light on a section of the website I don’t talk about very often ‘The Okanagan’ where I document photography locations around the Okanagan, with details and photos! I also wanted to show you how I discover places to photograph and give some tips on how I became a tourist in my own city!

The Okanagan

I created The Okanagan section of my website because when I travel anywhere I always look for things to do but also great photography locations. I wanted to help serve other photographers or visitors to the Okanagan by giving them ideas on where to photograph.

The idea is that you can filter by what you are looking for - beach, park, viewpoint or garden. As I explore the Okanagan more I hope to add a city filter so you can toggle between Kelowna, Vernon, Lake Country, Penticton, etc.,

I’ve gone in and tweaked each post to add further details to each location such as the type of location, address, parking available, direction it faces, amenities and difficulty level.

I’ve barely scratched the surface when it comes to exploring locations but it’s definitely a start.

How I Find Photography Locations

I find most of my photography locations on Google Maps. If I am looking to explore a particular area of Kelowna like Southeast Kelowna, Mission, etc., then I will spend more time in those areas but I am generally looking for beaches, parks and light hikes that I can do.

If I want a different perspective I will turn on ‘Satellite’ or open up Google Earth.

I also like to open up the photos that people take and add on Google Maps to get an understanding of the area and if it interests me.

Other ways I will find photography locations is through Instagram or Pinterest.

Tips on Exploring Locally

Here are a couple tips that have helped me become a tourist in my own city:

Commit to Yourself (Make a Promise)

Before I moved away I didn’t appreciate Kelowna as I do now. I didn’t explore that often and I often said I was going to visit somewhere or do something and wouldn’t. So when I moved back to Kelowna, BC I made a promise to myself that I was going to explore more and live life more fully and so every week I try to explore a new location in Kelowna and do something new.

Make a List

I made a list of everything I wanted to do or explore in the Okanagan back in the Spring when I moved back. From there I just slowly tackled items on that list - being very specific in carving out time for myself and Max to spend time together and get out of the house!

Some of those items on my list were:

• Visit the Kelowna Art Gallery

• Visit Okanagan Wineries

• Go to a Pumpkin Patch (I went to Davison Orchards and McMillans)

• Get outside of Kelowna and visit other areas of the Okanagan

Create a Project

Make a project out of exploring so you can have a tangible end product that you can work towards!

I love my Instagram, my blog, my YouTube channel, and my photography as creative outlets to share what I discover and learn.

Final Thoughts

Documenting and sharing more local travel related content is something I would like to include more here, on my Instagram and YouTube.

Subscribe to Beautifully Wander on YouTube to get notified of my weekly videos and follow over on Instagram for regular updates!

Adding CREATIVITY to your Intimate Landscape Photography

Yay! We’re at my favourite part in intimate landscape photography - getting creative!

In today’s episode I share 3 ways that I like to add creativity to my photos.

If you haven’t seen already I have two previous blog posts about Intimate Landscape Photography:

• What is Intimate Landscape Photography and Why I Love It

• 15-Minute Photography Challenge that will help train your eye and mind to hunt for details

Reflections

One of my first tips for adding creativity to your photos is utilizing reflections.

Often people look for reflections in water - a puddle after it rains or a calm lake. However, I don’t often have access to these calm waters all the time so I use my phone to create a reflection!

It can be time consuming and tricky because depending on the subject you are photographing you need to be the right distance away and achieve the right angle with the phone.

When creating reflections with your phone it is important to blend that phone line! I like to zoom in with my Olympus M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO lens and use a wide aperture of f/2.8 to blend the edge of the phone line.

Foreground Blur

The second way that I always use to add creativity to my photos (if you follow me on Instagram you know I use this technique all the time) but it is incorporating foreground elements.

I use a variety of objects to create this effect - branches, leaves, man-man structures, tree’s, bushes, etc.,

All you do is frame yourself/your camera behind your object (tree, leaf, branch, etc.,) and shoot with a wide aperture.

Double Exposures

Creating double exposures is a relatively new technique that I have added to my photography workflow.

I have an Instagram Reel over at Beautifully Wander on how I do a double exposure but increasingly I gravitate towards capturing these on two occasions - when I photograph a mountain range and when I overlay a pattern on another object.

On the Olympus Camera it’s called ‘Multiexposures’ under Camera 2.

Motion

Adding motion to my photos is not something I do often but it is something I want to incorporate more of!

For the photos you see below I slowed my shutter speed down and waited for vehicles to pass - the vehicle on the right had lights on the top which added a cool effect!

I’ve always been intimidated about adding motion to my photos but it was a lot of fun to see the results!

Sun Stars

If I am photographing at sunset I will always try to get a sun star! For this I change my aperture to anywhere between f/14 and f/22.

Sometimes I will try to create a sun star on the horizon when the sun is setting, sometimes I will create it by looking for an object like a tree to diffuse the light ray but still create the effect.

Final Thoughts

There you have it! Those are 3 ways (+2 extra’s) that I like to do to add creativity to my photos!

When I started photography I didn’t try tackling all these techniques at the same time. I focused on one technique at a time until I was comfortable with all in my workflow.

15 Minute Photography Challenge ft. Intimate Landscapes

Last week I posted a video about intimate landscape photography! In this week’s episode I thought we would try a 15-minute photography challenge also focusing on the topic of intimate landscape photography:

The Challenge

The idea here is to visit a new location (or one that you’ve been to many times) and give yourself 15-minutes to photograph anything.

With intimate landscape photography you don’t need sprawling landscapes you can photograph any beauty within a landscape - line, shape, colour, texture, light, etc.,

Look for details within a scene that you love, are interesting, catches your eye or tells a story about the characteristics of the land.

Why this Challenge?

An exercise like this I believe can help you train your eye and your mind to hunt for details within a scene - an activity that is good if you are trying to practice more intimate landscape photography!

The Photos

From afar this area doesn’t look like much! But let’s look at what details we can find when we get closer!

I loved this lone tree off to the side of the beach. To make it more interesting I positioned the camera behind some leaves and used it as foreground blur.

On this day at the beach it was extremely windy so it was causing ripples in the lake.

On the side of the beach was this fallen tree. It had rough wood texture on the bottom of the tree and smoothe texture on the top that was interesting.

On the other end of the log you it had this marble like pattern that was a detail I loved!

All the tree’s on the side of the beach were slanted which I thought was interesting. To make the photo more creative I used some leaves that had fallen on the ground to add some foreground blur and further frame the slanted tree.

This was the last photo I took in the 15-minute challenge. This view was from the beach and I liked the shading of the land masses and the clouds in the horizon. If I had a tighter zoom I would have used it but I only had my 12-40mm to work with.

Let me know over on the YouTube video if you’re going to try the 15-minute photography challenge!

Intimate Landscape Photography | Why I Love Photographing Intimate Landscapes

For a few months now I have been practicing intimate landscape photography (sometimes referred to or related to minimalism in photography).

In todays episode we delve into what is intimate landscape photography, why I love it, and how to practice it!

What is Intimate Landscape Photography?

Intimate Landscape Photography in a nutshell is when you don’t try to cram everything of the scene into the frame.

You focus on a specific element of the scene - line, shape, colour, texture, light, etc.,

Why I Love Intimate Landscape Photography?

I find with intimate landscape photography it forces me to slow down, focus and see the landscape differently.

Instead of trying to see everything I can pin point something specific about the scene that I love or catches my eye and focus on that.

You can also practice intimate landscape photography anywhere and anytime. I would love to photograph the epic sprawling landscapes of Iceland but with intimate landscape photography I can capture beautiful moments in my own backyard or hometown.

How to Practice Intimate Landscape Photography?

The next time you go out for a walk, visit a local park, or explore a new location try to pick out details that you love about that place and focus on that.

For example, a few times a week I go for an evening walk along Lakeshore Road and on my evening walks I always pass these houses that I especially love in the fall because the trees are this vibrant orange colour.

It’s the colour of the trees that catch my eye and make this scene beautiful to me so I’ve focused my frame on that.

Here are some more examples:

I took this photo at Gyro Beach in autumn. I wanted to focus on the juxtaposition of the beach hut against the autumn leaves.

This photo was taken at Okanagan Mountain Park the site of the 2003 fire. Here I wanted to focus on the contrast between the regrowth and the charred tree stump.

The following leaf photo I took at Mission Creek Park in Kelowna. I wanted to focus on the bleeding of the autumn colours from orange to yellow to green.

This photo was also taken at Gyro Beach and I loved the spherical bubbles that would sometimes form and the line that was drawn in the sand when the wave would come in.

Lastly, this photo was taken at Kasugai Gardens in Kelowna, BC! A common feature in Japanese gardens are these stone lanterns so I decided to focus on this beautiful stone lantern for the photo.

Intimate Landscape Photography can be really fun and creative!

I would love to hear if you ever tried intimate landscape photography and if you liked it or not - so comment on the YouTube video!

PHOTOGRAPHING FALL IN KELOWNA, BC

It’s fall here in the Okanagan! At the start of October the leaves were starting to change colour but every week it gets a bit cooler and the fall foliage appears even more!

In this episode I take you with me as I photograph fall foliage in a number of locations in Kelowna, BC!

Check out the photos from each location!

Gyro Beach

For this photo I collected a bunch of leaves that had fallen on the beach and sprinkled them in front of the camera. I like the blurred effect of the leaves so I kept my aperture to f/2.8 but I wanted to capture the placement of the leaves in the frame so my shutter speed stayed between 1/1000 and 1/2000 sec.

I think adding the falling leaves adds a creative element to the photo and I loved the juxtaposition of the beach hut against the fall foliage (photo on the right).

Tugboat Beach/Waterfront Park/Downtown Kelowna Area

I had a pleasant fall stroll from Tugboat Beach to Downtown Kelowna capturing all those autumn colours!

For this picture below I framed the dolphin statue with an orange leaf I found on the ground and the trees above. When you park in the parking lot this is the first picture-spot you’re going to want to capture!

A little further down Waterfront Park is your second picture-spot! If you cross the pond you’ll see a gorgeous set of autumn coloured trees. To make the photo more interesting I used my phone to create a reflection!

When you continue walking down the boardwalk to downtown Kelowna you’ll see more beautifully coloured fall trees! I just can’t get over how vibrant they look when the sun hits them!

I was looking for a perfect way to capture these fall trees and I’m so glad I found it! I loved these little boats in front of the fall trees and to capture it more interestingly I used my phone to create a reflection shot where the water was.

Of course I couldn’t resist trying to get one double exposure shot! For this (photo on the right) I took a photo of the dolphins, then in my Olympus EM1 Mark II I went into Menu -> Camera 2 -> Multiple Exposures -> Set ‘Number of Frames’ to 2f -> Set ‘Overlay’ to ‘On’ -> Selected a photo from the library -> Took a close-up photo of a leaf.

Mission Creek Greenway

Mission Creek Greenway is suppose to turn this gorgeous yellow colour along the river and I was a bit too early to capture this. When I visited a couple weeks ago it was primarily green, about 40% of the trees have turned but I will visit again in a couple weeks (end of October) to see how the fall foliage is progressing!

I hope you liked the vlog about chasing fall foliage in Kelowna! If you haven’t already please consider subscribing to Beautifully Wander on YouTube and following on Instagram!

Cheers to chasing fall foliage!

OCTOBER DIARIES: VISITING DAVISON ORCHARDS

For the first weekend of October we decided to make the drive up to Davison Orchards in Vernon, BC! It had been years since we had been here so it was the perfect fall activity for the sunny weather we’ve been having.

Our first stop was to the Davison Country Village, where you can pick up your pumpkin, go shopping at the gift shop, or stop at Davison Cafe for some snacks, lunch or a pumpkin latte!

I’ve never seen so many different kinds of pumpkins before!

I was in love with these little odd-shaped pumpkins!

After we walked around the orchard and checked out the pumpkins we visited Davison Farmhouse Cafe! I tried the Pumpkin Latte and Max tried the Applelanche.

It was a nice little cafe to stop and have something light.

It also had this adorable front display!

Our last stop was through the shop. It’s a cute place to pick up gifts for family and friends or treat yourself to some tasty treats like kettle corn!

We came to pick up an apple pie! Ever since fall has hit the Okanagan I have been OBSESSED with eating pie!

We don’t have kids yet but we would love when the day comes to bring them here for some family fun!

HOW TO ENJOY BAD WEATHER PHOTOGRAPHY

NOTE: Please at all times consider your own health and safety + practice at your own discretion.

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Now that we're getting into fall in the Okanagan the weather is going to start changing.

About a week ago smoke covered the valley for 7-10 days, and now cloudy, overcast skies might start dominating.

The other day we had this storm pass through (there wasn't thunder or lightning) but there was some rain and high winds.

It gave me the idea to film a video about bad weather photography!

In today's episode I cover how I enjoy bad weather photography and provide 3 tips that might be able to help you!

Tip #1: Find some inspiration -> go out and try to recreate it -> and new ideas will come!

I was really loving these cool atmospheric shots of fog in the forest so when we had smoke fill the valley I thought it was perfect to try and get some atmospheric shots.

I had the intent that I would capture a line up of trees with the smoke atmosphere fading each tree but then when I went out I had the idea to do some comparison photos of what the valley looked liked before the smoke in the summer and now.

I posted these photos to my Instagram stories.

On the stormy day I thought I would go out and get some choppy waves photos. I ended up being interested/inspired by the clouds in the sky - the different shapes, lines and shadows. As well, the lonely trees that I've recently been obsessed with.

I often times get inspired by an image, go to recreate it with my own twist but then find other ideas to create!

Tip #2: Consider getting close/intimate with a part of the scene

For the past couple weeks I have been interested in intimate landscape photography. Getting close and personal with a part of the scene (focusing on a shape, line, texture, color of the scene).

Earlier this week I went to Cedar Creek Park in southeast Kelowna to hopefully get a stunning sunset.

By the time the sun was getting low in the sky some weird clouds had rolled in that added distraction to the image more than anything.

I switched focus and instead did some intimate landscape photography - this is one of my favourite images from the trip:

Yes, its of a rock! But I loved how the waves were crashing against the rock causing water droplets to spew upwards.

This is another image I like that I produced when the sky was super smoky - I liked how the water created lines in the sand and the little bubbles that would form.

When the weather is bad it's good to consider getting close to the subject and focusing more on lines, textures and color.

Tip #3: Try out abstract photography

Abstract photography isn't for everyone but it's fun to try - especially when the weather is bad!

Here's a photo that I posted a few weeks ago on my Instagram which was a camera pan of the sunset. I used a long shutter speed and swung the camera side to side.

I did it again when I visited Cedar Creek Park.

Here are some abstract photos that I haven't posted yet - the first one is at Cedar Creek Park of the lake and the second is the clouds on that stormy day at Gyro.

Your Camera System

It can be tricky to do bad weather photography if your camera can't handle it.

I use an Olympus EM1 Mark II which is dust-proof, splash-proof and freeze-proof so I don't worry too much if the weather is bad.

This however, is completely up to your own discretion and what you feel comfortable doing with your gear.

Niche & Voice

I have also found that narrowing down on my photography niche, finding my photography voice and doing photography more for myself and what I'm interested in has also helped in my creativity and motivation.

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I hope you were able to take something away from this post on bad weather photography and I'll see you in the next time!

Robynne | Beautifully Wander

5 LESSONS I LEARNED THIS SUMMER IN PHOTOGRAPHY

In this episode I share 5 lessons I learned this summer in photography.

This episode doesn't discuss learning composition, learning fine camera details like shutter speed, aperture or ISO, it doesn't discuss camera tech.

This episode takes a deep dive into the other side of photography.

Lesson #1: Action Brings Clarity

When I was contemplating leaving Fort McMurray in the Spring and pursuing photography I was unsure about it. So for the months I was there I pursued photography on the side (in the evenings and weekends). When it came actually time to make a decision I decided to go for it because I knew I would never find out if this was the right path unless I TRIED IT!

Then in the summer when I was trying to figure out which niche I wanted to focus on action continued to help bring clarity. I tried portrait photography, pet photography, product photography. I trialed any niche that peaked my interest.

Now I knew from the beginning there were some niche's that didn't interest me - newborn photography, maternity photography, birthing photography, wedding photography.

The one thing that has always brought me joy, that I have always loved doing - travel and landscape photography.

It was through action that I found clarity in what I really wanted to do.

Lesson #2: Every Photographer is Unique

One of the limiting beliefs I had when I started and sometimes still fight with is that there is no room for me in photography, I couldn't produce a different image, I can't be unique when the market is this saturated.

I picked this up from Marie Forleo but anytime I have a limiting belief like this I...

1. Take out my journal and write what the belief is

2. Draw a line through what I had just written

3. Write b******* next to it

4. Below it write why they are b******

To give an example this is an actual limiting beliefs I wrote down on February 22, 2020.

"It's already been done/there's tons out there so nobody would be interested" B******

Every human is different. Every person has a different story to tell. Every soul has a different perspective. because of our differences there is always room for us in the creative world.

YOUR different perspective, YOUR different life story, how YOU interact with the world, how YOU interact with your subject is going to be completely different than how someone else does. YOU are different. YOU are unique.

Lesson #3: Build Community Over Competition

Similar to the limiting belief about the saturated market of photography is competition.

I would scroll on Instagram and think to myself "there is no way I could produce a beautiful image like that".

I would compare my photos to other photographers that have been doing this for years and I would get stressed.

I would think how am I suppose to compete, be unique and be seen?

How do I get from this "bloody red ocean to a clean blue ocean"?

It wasn't until I started seeing photography through the lens of community and showing up to social media and the world as authentically me that everything changed.

Now I strive every day and every week to put the community first over myself, be part of the community, help build each other up, and provide inspiration.

Lesson #4: Understanding Why I Click the Shutter and Why I Compose

In photography there are tons of rules...

• Rule of Thirds

• Balance out your elements

• Direct the eye with leading lines

• Offset the subject

However, when was the last time you stopped and emotionally thought why you clicked the shutter?

I clicked the shutter in this photo for a couple of reasons:

1. I loved the setting sun in the background

2. I loved the orange, pink and purple colors in the sky

3. I loved the little waves the Lake was creating

When I click the shutter it has to look and feel right to me, I need to be in tune with my emotion and feelings and feel my most creative.

I think that is why this last session at the beach was the best session I have felt in a long time! I was overwhelmed with happiness and emotion.

At the beginning I used to point my camera at whatever caught my eye. Eventually I started to photograph more what I thought people would want to see and like.

I've recently started to gravitate towards photographing with my emotion first.

Lesson #5: Importance of Creating your own Photography Values

What values do you have as a photographer? Do you have them written down somewhere? Do you try to embody those values in your work?

Earlier in the summer I started drafting what values I want to embody as a photographer.

• What is important to me?

• What do I want my work to stand for?

• What guides my photography?

• What attracts me to other photographers?

• What drives me on how and why I do things?

Coming up with these values has helped provide clarification on my content and who I want to be as a photographer.

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If you learned any lessons about photography this past summer leave a comment on the YouTube video!

Thanks everyone for reading and have yourself an amazing day!

xoxo

Robynne | Beautifully Wander

ONA BOWERY CAMERA BAG | FIRST IMPRESSION

When we were in Vancouver, Canada a couple weekends ago I bought the Ona Bowery Camera Bag! In this episode I’ll show you up-close what the bag looks like and give you my first impressions!

Regularly on the Ona website the bag is $259 US. I bought this jewel at Broadway Camera in Vancouver for $309 CAD (before taxes).

The Ona bag has 2 front pockets, 2 side pockets, 1 large back pocket, and 1 main compartment with 1 re-adjustable insert.

My First Impressions:

• The material of the bag feels good and high-quality, however, the bag seems to scratch easily (I do find this adds to the texture and style of the bag)

• The leather will feel stiff at first but after a couple weeks of use it’s softened

• The push clasp is nice for securing the bag instead of a magnet, however, it can be tricky opening and closing the bag with one hand

• The bag is roomy in that it can carry all of my essentials, however, it can probably carry at most a camera body and 2 lenses

• Sometimes I wished it had a top handle for easy picking up and putting it in the car

• You can “make shift” carry a tripod by inserting the camera bag strap in-between the tripod legs and resting it horizontally on the bag, however, doing this makes it hard to access the bag

P.s. this post is not sponsored by Ona! I have wanted this bag personally for a long time and bought it with my own money when my fiance and I visited Vancouver, Canada.

OLYMPUS 12-40MM F2.8 PRO - AWESOME VERSATILE LENS

NOTE: These are my own thoughts. This not a sponsored post. I just love my Olympus!

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In this episode we discuss why the Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 is a great overall lens! I love this lens for food, street, landscape and portrait photography! 

Technical Details

• 12-40mm (24-80mm equivalent)

• Weather resistant 

• Durable

• Made from high quality material

• Maximum aperture is f/2.8

• Constant aperture of f/2.8 throughout the zoom range

• Minimum aperture of f/22

• Approx. $1350 CAD (before taxes)

• 382 grams 

If you want more technical details on the lens go check out Olympus website! 

Travel Friendly!

The Olympus M.Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO is extremely lightweight weighing at 382 grams. Due to its lightweight and compact size it makes the camera pretty discreet for travelling around the city and eating in restaurants. 

I’ve taken this camera lens (and body) everywhere with me! 

Versatile Lens!

The 12-40mm focal length makes it also super versatile. I can easily capture delicious food shots, streets, landscapes, portraits and close ups!

Food Photography:

Street Photography:

Landscape Photography:

Portrait Photography:

Close-up:

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