Dream Tomorrow, Live Today, Cherish Yesterday

NYC Series - Day One

Leica M9

As most of you know I went to NYC last November. It was a great trip, and I did a lot of "street photography." In this series I'm going to alternate days of stree photography and other city scenes.

And... I like this one.

Framelines

Leica M9

Hey photographers! Especially you street photogs... Gotta know your framelines, right?

Wordless Wednesday - Downramp

On Wordless Wednesday, you tell the story...

Topaz Tuesday - The Old Barn

Canon 6D, 70-200mm F/2.8

Have to be quick this morning... breakfast meeting.

I shot this old barn and while I like the color version, I didn't think it really conveyed the age and character present in the scene. In Topaz Black & White Effects, I used the Dynamic II Grunge preset and voila!

Check out the original with the Continue link below...

Model Monday - Fun with Sophie

Leica M, vintage Nikkor 80mm F/3.5 lens

I got the opportunity this weekend to shoot an amazing camera, the Leica M. This is basically like my M9, but it shoots only in monochrome, thus the sensor is adapted to capture an amazing array of greys, e.g white to black, since it doesn't have to contend with colors.

In this shot, the camera is fitted with an adapter that allows the photographer to use vintage Nikon lenses. These provide for a unique look, something you don't typically see with today's digital gear. Many thanks to my friend Ashwin for lending me this gear.

Not to mention the lovely little model Sophie! A budding photographer herself as you can see. Somehow I think my picture is cuter than the one she's about to take, LOL.

Fun Friday in Seattle

Leica M9

How much do I love the sights of Seattle? Ummmm, a lot!

Wordless Wednesday

On Wordless Wednesday, you tell the story...

Topaz Tuesday - Mt St Helens

Sony NEX-7, 18-200, f/10, 1/1250, iso 200

I flew to California last weekend for a business trip, left early in the morning. Luckily I sat on the right hand side of the plane and I had a tremendous view of Mt. St. Helens. The Sony is my "light travel camera" so that's what I had on me. I fired off several frames, aiming for a high shutter speed, given we were scooting along at 425mph or so.

When I looked at the image on the monitor, the blown out mountain was spectacular, but overall the image had that dull cast one gets when shooting through miles of atmosphere (not to mention a pair of plastic & glass airliner windows).

Could Topaz B&W Effects II come to my rescue? I was looking for a dramatic scene, and I settled on the Dynamic Grunge II preset, then visually worked a couple of sliders (contrast in particular) to zero in on my perceived treatment. I played around with the exposure, I didn't want it to look like a nighttime scene. But OTOH, this was 7 am in early Spring.

This Topaz BWE software is fantastic. As much as I love Lightroom and live there all the time, for B&W, Topaz really does it for me.

Compare for yourself, the SOOC image is on the Continue link below. Comments happen to be free today, so help yourself!

Well hello there!

She said to me sweetly...

(I can imagine, right?)

Topaz Tuesday - Broken Nose

Canon 6D, 24-70mm F/2.8, f/3.5, 1/1250, iso 800

In the junkyard, every car is injured, beat up or mangled in some way. This particular car though, gave me a bit of a giggle. Like an amateur fighter, where mostly he looks pretty good except.. what is it? Oh yes, that broken nose!

Felt like a black and white treatment would emphasize the nose not to mention the beautiful lines of our old warrior. In Topaz BW Effects, I ended up with a Platinum preset, then increased contrast, did some protect highlights to take the sheen off the hood, and gave it a bit of detail boost.

I find working in Topaz BWE to be by far the easiest way to achieve the black and white looks I have in my mind when I see a color image. Speaking of white, the color version is on the Continue link below. Let me know how you like this one?