Tipton Canal and Community Festival in pictures

There were narrow-boat rides down the canal. I don't go on boats! I don't even get too close to the water, despite often photographing the miles of canals around the Black Country.

I took this photo when the sun came out. It makes the water more blue despite the grey cloud. To the left you can see the park where the main event was held. I had to park my car on the opposite side of the canal, but I got interesting photos anyway.

Overcoming camera shake is always a consideration. I was able to lean on the bridge for these shots, but often a faster shutter speed at events is a good idea.

The tree in this picture creates depth and makes for a better scene. Focusing a shot like this is a matter of compromise, you can't get the whole picture sharply in focus. A narrow aperture, gives depth of field for landscape shots.

The standard lens that comes with most DSLR cameras is 18 – 55mm. The 18 – 105mm lens that I bought a few weeks ago is a better quality as it allowed me to zoom in from the bridge for a better shot of the narrow-boats.

Candid shots like this using the zoom are always interesting. It can be worth changing the lens to a longer lens part way through the event. I got this shot with the 18 – 105mm lens. I did see other photographers using much longer lenses.

I really like this smoky picture. The sun was behind the clouds or I would have been shooting directly into the sun. The light and the smoke give us an impression of the essence of the event and the nature of narrow-boat living.

There are more photos on my Facebook page. All the photos were edited, and when the light is poor, editing is essential as many of the photos can be quite dark.

You can also follow me on Twitter @Mike10613 and see my tweets about other events.

See the original blog post on Mike's site Mike10613.