Pew Pew!

Why are lasers in old sci fi films always green? Or green for the goodies and red for the baddies? I always thought blue made more sense as a laser colour than green. Electric blue? No? Well anyway. Maybe its something to do with little green men, or alien ick or something. All that cornflour gunge they like to throw around. Or maybe I'm just spouting crap because its one am. Who knows?

Wheelie issue of the day: How does one take macro (really close up photographs) when one cannot kneel down to an object? The answer to this one is complicated, its a multiple choice. Really, unfortunately, one has to accept that there are going to be limitations. I could take the photo from the chair, using a zoom. I've done this, but zooming so far normally means any unsteadiness with effect the picture quality; and holding a camera makes my hands shake. There's clever use of cropping in an editting programme like Photoshop... But it tends to blur the photo if it isn't perfectly sharp. Again, with the shaking mine tend not to be. Of course, you could get an assistant to take the shot, but this seems a bit like cheating to me.

Often the best answer is to the move the object. It does mean you can't photograph it in situ, but it also means you can get the shot you really want. Its also possible to reconstruct the sort of environment you want around the object sometimes, but you have to be prepared to be a bit of a magpie, and often take things home with you.

Having a fixed point to work from does mean that your photography is often from a similar perspective. I've seen a lot of people taking photos from up there or down here or hanging over this or that. At the end of the day, its best to accept that it adds character to the work and move on... And take it into account. Don't set your heart on a shot you can't manage, and instead look for the killer angle everyone else is missing for the obvious close up.