Road Trip

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on August 9, 2014
Posted in: Thoughts. Tagged: , , , , . 1 Comment

I recently went on a road trip to Oshkosh, WI to attend Experimental Aircraft Association’s [EAA] Airventure Airshow.  It was a good trip!  The total number of pictures from the two days I spent at the show is 720, and I am working on whittling that down to the good ones.  I am now at 216.

The trip was also a good opportunity to catch up with friends and relatives.  Actually, I owe all of them a huge thank you for their hospitality, as the trip would not have been possible without them.  It was also a good trip to reflect on good times and look forward to more things to come!

Some of the highlights, for me, from the road trip include: the hospitality of all my friends and relatives along the way, flying RC planes with my friends, seeing the US Air Force Thunderbirds for the second time, getting Amelia Earhart’s autograph, the night airshow, and the good food.

I am reflecting on the trip as I go through the pictures, and am already wanting to go on another!  Who knows where the next place will be?

In a Flash

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on July 9, 2014
Posted in: Thoughts. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments

Wow, where has the last month gone?  It has been busy with numerous photography projects along with the Fourth of July and relatives visiting for the summer.  I have managed to take my DSLR out for a few of my first portrait sessions.

I am still learning the art of flash photography.  It is tricky, but I am actually enjoying the results.  The macro ring-lite has been out for a few flower sessions, including some: Pasques, Wild Iris and Calypso Orchid pictures.  I also used my reflector/diffuser kit for some of the Calypso Orchid pictures to soften the harsh sunlight.

   

As I mentioned, I did my first family portrait session during the last weekend of June.  I used my flash to fill in some of the shadows on faces and to give a little bit of a catch light in the eyes.  I definitely learned a lot and enjoyed the challenge.  I can see things to improve upon or do differently next time I have a portrait session request.  However, I am really pleased with the results!

My sister came to visit for the Fourth of July, and I did a few portraits for her using the fill flash, also.  There again, I see things to improve upon, but am happy with the results.

I made a comment, to my sister, that it is actually nice to have the iPhone with its built in camera.  It is great for taking the fun, silly and more casual documentary pictures!  I felt more freedom and relaxation using the iPhone than when using the DSLR.  I think I put pressure on myself to get a quality photo when I carry the DSLR around.  I don’t see it as a tool to be fun with.  It really does “intimidate” people to see that kind of equipment [the DSLR] and that makes me feel like I need to be more professional with it.

I had another great break through with the iPhone earlier this month.  I have been using the Eye-Fi card in my camera for some time now.  It automatically sends photos to another device over a wi-fi connection which I have been using as a way to back up photos.  I was having some difficulty syncing the Eye-Fi card with my iPhone until I figured out what was causing the glitch.  The Eye-Fi card was trying to send photos to my iMac over a different network.  This was taking priority over the direct mode network required to connect to the iPhone.  Once I turned off the network connection to my iMac, the photos then synced over the direct mode connections to my iPhone.  How is this a big deal?  Now I can instantly show clients pictures of photos on my iPhone without having to awkwardly show them on the back screen LCD of my camera!  I also downloaded the Adobe Lightroom Mobile App, which means that I can do some minor tweaking to photos right on scene.

It has been a busy, but enjoyable month!  I will try to post again, soon.

Simplicity – “Happy Accident”

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on May 30, 2014
Posted in: Behind the Scenes. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Sometimes, the photos that are “happy accidents” turn out to be good.  I was using a lens combination that I normally don’t use – the Vivitar 400mm telephoto lens with a 2x extender on my Canon EOS 5D III with a lens adapter.  There were rain showers in the area, but I just had the bug to throw this lens combination on the camera to take a few deer pictures.  This deer picture is just for giggles.  It is a happy rain deer – deer in the rain.

_D8A9502

Since it is a “prime” lens, I was explaining the process of zooming involves moving the entire camera forward or backward, then refocusing the lens.  In the process, I snapped a few photos just to get a feel for the minimum focus distance.  This one actually turned out rather neat.  It is simply rain falling in front of a pine tree.

Rain falling in front of a pine tree.

Red – The Way to a Hummingbird Photo

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on May 26, 2014
Posted in: Behind the Scenes. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

Last year, I took some hummingbird photos that are close to what I would like to get of a hummingbird in flight.  These are some of my favorite photos, to date!  I am unsure if I will be able to achieve photos quite like these, again.

However, there is always room for improvement and different lighting that allows for different settings.  I am still attempting a similar shot of the hummingbirds in flight with a little bit more depth of field and a little bit more of the wing tips frozen in motion.  This requires enough light and balancing the exposure triangle [aperture, shutter speed, and iso] for the desired result.

My first attempt at the refined settings was this morning.  I am using the same camera body, tripod, lens and lens hood as last year.  I also made the discovery that red really is the key to capturing a hummingbird!  This is the reason for the red t-shirt draped over the camera equipment.  I am sure, as the season progresses, that the hummingbirds will become more comfortable to the clunky camera equipment draped with red, and myself standing behind with an eager shutter finger!

This really is a behind-the-scenes look at how I setup to take the hummingbird-in-flight photos!

Image

Tourist in the Park – Plus HDR Images

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on May 17, 2014
Posted in: Behind the Scenes. Leave a comment

Today was fun!  I have not played tourist in the park for a little while.  I had that opportunity, and was able to take some pictures of Great Horned Owlets and their mom.  Plus, I forgot how much detail can be pulled out of High Dynamic Range [HDR] images.  This is one of the HDR images that I took today.  I am glad that I decided to follow my hunch that HDR would work well for the last few pictures!

This is the view of Longs Peak and Meeker from Many Parks Curve.

Longs Peak from Many Parks Curve. *HDR image

Light in the Dark

Posted by JUST PhotographIN' on May 3, 2014
Posted in: Devotional. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

Genesis 1:1-5 and 14-19 (NIV) “1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.  3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.”  “14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. 16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. 17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, 18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.”

Genesis chapter one is one of my favorite stories in the Bible.  There is so much content in such a short story.  As my welcome page indicates, it is part of my inspiration for photography in that photography is a way to witness that story [and many other Biblical stories].

One of my growing passions within photography is the area of astrophotography.  The reason why is that many people fear darkness.  To me, I see it differently.  I see the light shining in the darkness.  The moon and the stars are set above us as a reminder of the story that began in Genesis.  We can mark our calendars and set our clocks by the movement of the sun, the moon and the stars.

Later on in the Bible, there are references back to this incredible story.  Jesus, himself, says He is the light of the world.  John 8:12 (NIV) [Dispute Over Jesus’ Testimony] When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

That is why I am inspired to go out at night with my camera to take astrophotography pictures.  There is no darkness.  There is always light, even on the darkest of nights.  Walk outside and take a look up at the stars.  Lay down or sit in a lawn chair to look up at the stars above.  Watch for meteors and “shooting stars” to wish upon.  It is okay.  God is the light in the darkness.  He will hear the prayers, and given time will shine His presence back down.  Just have open eyes to see [witness] the light in the dark!