Photography Class - First Assignment

When Claire was born, Robert gave me a gift certificate to use for a DSLR, and shortly thereafter I bought a Canon xTi. Automatically I felt like I was getting better pictures, but I knew I was no where close to utilizing the capabilities of the camera. I wanted to learn how to shoot in manual mode and have a better understanding of the technical side of photography, but it's hard to find time as a full-time working mother of a toddler.

I started searching for a good class to take several months ago and finally signed up for a class at the Southwest School of Arts and Craft with one of my friends from Junior League. Our first assignment was to take some abstract photos (lines, textures, design, balance, etc.) while shooting in manual and focusing on the proper white balance. We brought in 4 to 10 photos each for critique, and it was interesting to see everyone's choices. Here are a few of my favorites of the ones I brought in. The first one is the only one I edited (I thought it was more interesting in B&W), while the rest are straight out of the camera.