Kings Park is both one of the world’s largest and most beautiful inner-city parks.
It’s the perfect place to take visiting friends and relatives and brag a little about what a great place Perth is.
The amazing views of the Perth skyline and the botanic garden, which displays more than 3000 species of the State’s unique flora, offer a unique insight into Perth and WA via the bushland walk trails and immaculate gardens.
I, like many Perthites, love the place and visit regularly. Sometimes it’s a cycle through the park, other times it’s for a family picnic at one of the excellent playgrounds or a cuppa at one of the cafes.
Today I’m visiting to capture a little picture story about the place — just like I would if I was visiting an attraction elsewhere.
Setting yourself a little photographic assignment at a familiar place can make you see it in a different light — but it’s also an excellent way of training yourself to see pictures and tell a story with them.
Kings Park is a very picturesque place with an almost endless amount of photographic opportunities. In this case, because I’ve been so often, I have tried to look for something a little different but also something that captures what the park is all about.
TIPS FOR CREATING A PHOTO STORY
Once you’re at your chosen location, put your photographer’s hat on and start looking for pictures.
Set the scene: Look for a nice establishing shot that shows where you are.
Keep it simple: Identify a key element in the shot and use composition techniques like leading lines, frames or rule of thirds to draw attention to it. Simple, easy to understand pictures are always best.
Keep it clean: Eliminate unsightly elements in the frame by changing your point of view or focal length.
Mix it up: A mix of wide and deep pictures or a close-up or detail shot in a series can add some variety
Pick your time: When we travel we aren’t always at a location at the best time for photography. The soft light and long shadows around sunrise and sunset are always nice, so if you can, time it so you are there for the “golden hours” to really make your pictures pop.
Once you’re home: Edit your pictures hard. Quality beats quantity. If you have taken lots of pics from a place, you may end up with several sets. Group them together like chapters in a book.
