Dream Tomorrow, Live Today, Cherish Yesterday

Topaz Tuesday - Cannery Pier Hotel

Canon 5D Mark II, 85mm F/1.2, f/5.6, 1/800, iso 100

Photography is all about the light, that's the first thing you learn. I have learned that I have a favorite type of light. It's when the sun is low, and there are big dark clouds overhead. The sun is peeking through, and the rays must bounce between the land and the clouds, and for me, this light is magical.

On this morning I had left our hotel (in Astoria, Oregon) to get some boat shots at the marina. At sunrise. I wasn't real successful with the boat shots. As I walked back to the hotel, the morning sun lit up the hotel and I just stopped in my tracks. This is the magical light. I quickly switched lenses and fired several frames before the light was lost.

(If you ever find yourself in Astoria, this is the place to stay!)

I thought Topaz Adjust would bring out some interesting character in the pilings and buildings. I noted the sky though, and often Adjust will render a sky like this in an unnatural way. So in Photoshop, the first thing I did was make a duplicate layer. Then in Adjust, I started with the Spicify preset. Probably because of the intense sunlight, the building was over saturated. No problem, just grab the saturation slider and back it off some.

And yes, I didn't like the sky one bit. Back in Photoshop, I clicked the layer mask button, selected a paintbrush, and just painted away the Adjust sky. The original sky was revealed and I'm a happy post processor.  As always, the original image is on the continue link below.

Honoring Memorial Day

Canon 1D Mark III, 70-200mm F/4, f/4, 1/200, iso 320

Count me as one very lucky American who has counted on those that serve in the military to protect our freedom. These are a special breed of people that will lay down their own life if necessary for the promise of America. You have my admiration and thanks.

I took this shot back in 2009 in Norfolk, VA. Was with my great friend Cliff on board his boat Oasis, and we did quite a bit of exploring of the shipyards. Have always thought this was quite a nice image.

Congrats to 2011 Graduates

There is my son Nick, graduating high school. He sure got mom's good looks, right?

This was a great ceremony, with nearly all the speakers doing a fantastic job. My favorite was Mrs Daniels, a teacher voted by the students to be the representative staff speaker. Several years ago she developed an "inoperable brain mass" and was told she had a few months to live. Well, things didn't quite work out that way, fortunately.

She gave an impassioned and relevant speech about living life. Last week I watched the last Oprah show. I thought it was quite good, and that she really did sum up what she has learned about people over the 25 years. But Mrs. Daniels was even better. Just her, her experiences and thoughts. She was talking to the students, but I felt every parent ought to be listening as well. We have less time left.  I'm hoping her speech ends up on youtube. If it does I'll post a link here.

Afterward we got to see Nick with some of the kids he played soccer with back when he was 6 years old. It was like completing a circle, and it really felt good. Now it is time for him to move on. And so it is with me and my wife, which you'll hear more about shortly.

I saw and talked to a lot of wonderful young adults yesterday, from this community. 90% of the 500 or so grads are going to college.

I offer my congrats to everyone graduating this year. Junior High, High School, College. Cheers to your hard work. And good luck with what is next for you - make a difference.   (And to you parents that put your kids there as well!)

Trees and Me

Canon 5D Mark II, 85mm F/1.2, f/4, 1/1600, iso 100

So I am a big fan of trees, you already know that if you are a frequent visitor to the blog. And I often mention that I feel very challenged to come up with interesting images of trees, no matter how much I like them. In fact, mostly I'm pretty lousy at tree shooting!

I also enjoy shadows. When I saw this particular scene, I thought it was worth a shot. A nice interplay of textures. What do you think of this one?

Fun Friday - Classy Bikes

 

Canon 5D Mark II, 14mm F/2.8, f/7.1, 1/125, iso 100

On Fun Friday, I try to lighten things up a bit. Maybe not a fine art photo, but something that makes me happy. Nostalgic in this case. This was in Astoria, Oregon. Our hotel had these cool bikes to borrow. Was out here for the sunset and just tried to get creative.

PACE Through Series, Day Six

Copyright © 2011, Jerry Dodrill, All Rights Reserved

I saved the image by Jerry (www.jerrydodrill.com) for last - today is the last post in this series. Jerry is easily the most energetic of our group. Not only is he younger than most of us, he's a mountain climber! Yes, he hangs off of rock faces. Free climbs too. The rest of us are older, wiser, and a just a bit more brittle. So we leave all that to Jerry. But he does bring back some amazing images.

Jerry leads workshops, and has assisted with many of the famous names in the business. Yet he never takes himself too seriously, has a great sense of humor, and can absorb any amount of playful kidding.

I said a few days ago I can't pick any favorites in our group, but Jerry definitely brings consistently excellent images for every assignment. He even wowed us one time with images of items from his refrigerator. He totally made it work. A very creative photographer for sure.

Like Tania and me, Jerry decided to shoot "through" a car window. But he used a radical technique. As the car was driving forward, he shot with a slow shutter and panned backward. As you can see, the effect is quite dramatic. I chose this one from his series because I liked the tree area on the right so much. (This technique was what I used on a few posts recently.)

He then desaturated the image so it's all about movement and forms. I love this one every time I see it. Jerry has a wide array of beautiful images on his site, and you can buy them there too. If you are thinking about a landscape photography workshop, you should check out his workshop page. Jerry also does private photography workshops, a great way to jumpstart your photography knowledge.

PACE Through Series, Day Five

Copyright © 2011, Diane D. Miller, All Rights Reserved

Today is Wednesday, and I picked this image for today because it would make a great Wordless Wednesday image. But that wouldn't be fair to the photographer, my friend Diane Miller (www.dianedmiller.com). Diane always has a couple of images in her assignment that really standout to me - nailing the assignment. Like this one. Through the fog.

As you have heard me say before, I'm attracted to images with just a few tones. I also find this one really well composed. There is a very harmonious balance to it. It wouldn't be the same without those little reeds poking up on the lower right. And that tree! So lovely.

Diane has travelled the world making images. She and her husband restore antique airplanes, so she shoots a lot from the sky at low altitudes, you know how I like that. She also creates great tutorials, check out her site and you'll easily find them.

Great work on this image Diane. If you appreciate this image, leave a comment for her here on the blog - thanks.

Topaz Tuesday - PACE Through Series, Day Four

Copyright © 2011, Tim Fleming, All Rights Reserved

Tim Fleming (http://www.timfleming.com) is another one of the very talented members of the PACE Group I'm fortunate to belong to. For review, we get together once per month to share images, food and great conversation about photography.  We determine monthly assignments, and then each go off and do our own interpretation photographically.

(I featured one of Tim's creations a while back in this "Friends on Friday" post.)

I was really blown away by Tim's "through" images. Not only because they were spot on with the theme (each image looking through doorways, windows, etc), but the setting was so over the top. He told us these were from Mare Island (Vallejo CA), which I subsequently visited and then posted several images.

For these images, Tim used an HDR process (he uses Photomatix). He then often hits up his images with Topaz adjust for extra detail. Here is what Tim says about Topaz Adjust:

Topaz gives me the ability to add texture and detail to an image, as well as a bit of drama, in a precise and predictable way.

As you know I like breaking the rules, and that's one reason why I selected this image from the ten he showed. To me, there are two subjects, the peeling wall on the left and the room/doorway to the right. They work together, but are quite different. It's working for me. Great work Tim.

Model Monday - Constructing Megan

Canon 5D Mark II, 70-200mm F/4.0, f/4, 1/2000, iso 400

Okay, here I go again. I'm interrupting the PACE Group Through series, for the second time. Well, I can't help myself - I just love this picture. My niece Megan was over last weekend. There is a bit of construction going on near my house so I said "let's head over there and see what we can do?"

And we created this. I don't usually pat myself on the back, but I have to say I feel like I have really progressed with shooting models. I haven't done it much, but I like what I have come up with. Here I chose the setting, and posed her in nearly every way (of course having someone beautiful and talented like Megan doesn't hurt, right?).  Then I started noticing the wind, and waited just for the right moment. It's just a little construction site, but it is working for me in this shot.

There are a lot of little things about posing models. I know I'm still a beginner, but I have been learning quickly. I'm a fanatic about hands. They need to be relaxed and natural. See that bent elbow? I learned that from my buddy Tim Engle - don't lock joints! And the more uncomfortable the pose is for the model, the more interesting the photo. Here I worked with Megan's posture quite a bit.

Thanks Megan, not to mention the other models and photogs I have worked with shooting people. Let me know what you think of this one?

PACE Through Series, Day Three

Copyright © 2011, Jane Baron, All Rights Reserved

Often times with our PACE Group assignment, we are able to work shoots into trips or other shoots we already have planned. Such was the case with Jane Baron (www.janebaron.com) as she had a trip to China planned while we had our Through assignment. 

A wonderful thing about my group is that I could never pick a favorite photographer or person. Each one has qualities that appeal to me on both sides. Take Jane. Now you'd think that someone that drives a Prius and is a vegetarian is not going to have much in common with yours truly. She has more "social sensibilities" than say I do. Yet we share a lot and I like how practical she can be. She told me a story once about being in a foreign country, being invited over for dinner. The hosts knew she was a veg. So they figured no meat, they would serve veal instead! Jane told me "I figured what the heck, it isn't going to kill me. And you know, it really was tasty!" 

I look forward to every session and every meal with Jane. (Hey Jane, we need to do a shoot together??)

Her images are always thought provoking, well conceived, shot and processed. I recall an image of hers where we were having a hard time coming up with how it was done. "Oh, about 50 layers in Photoshop," she replied.

Several of her Through images involved incense or in this case steam. And showcased the people that she met. This one was my favorite of her ten. The angle really makes it for me. Emphasizes the enormity of pot, and the timeliness of it really got to me. Probably in use for generations. It is a simple scene and photograph, but it really tells a story. Check out Jane's website for many more incredible images of China and her other work. Love you girl!

(ps: There are other veg's in our group and I have really enjoyed making some veg dishes for the first time in my life!)