I appologize for the quick post, wi-fi is touch-n-go on the Lido Deck.
Over the last month or so I have been testing out the Nikon D5000. For me, it is a great back-up camera as well as a light travel companion. If you are looking to upgrade to a digital SLR, or wanting to get started in photography, this camera is a great option. In order to complete the review I thought it would be interesting to hand it off to my wife for a trip up to Alaska. She has the eye of a photographer, but lacks the patience to deal with all the various dials and settings. So I put the camera in program mode, set the auto ISO, and put her in front of grizzlies, glaciers, whales, moose, and mountains. You will see other images from her portfolio in the final review. For now I thought I would share this one. No question about it, she didn’t let this one get away!
That Anchorage Museum exceeded all my expectations. We visited it while wait for our Motor Coach (bus) to take us south to pick up our ship. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but one thing I wasn’t expecting was full gallery dedicated to HDR photography. Pretty darn progressive! I wonder if we will ever see an HDR image in Nat Geo? If you are ever in the Anchorage area, make sure you stop by the museum. The architecture alone was worth the visit.
No kidding, this was the neighborhood grocery store where we were staying at in Bordeaux. If this was my local grocery store, I don’t think I would ever keep anything in the pantry at home. I would visit it everyday, shoot some photos, and grab a piece of fruit and coffee on my way to work. In the evening, this hub of commerce flashed back to the days of the Salon when the local youth would come out to enjoy the surrounding cafes and discuss the day’s topics. It was the heart of the neighborhood, and just the down the street from our hotel.
Travel Guides: When I get back from visiting a town, I try to put together a quick travel guide that usually includes a map of photo locations and a quick list of things to do, places to eat, and where to stay. You can find all my travel guides, including the Unofficial Definitive Guide to Cozumel, over here:
http://www.lightasmagic.com/travel/
I hope to be publishing my guide to France very soon. Stay tuned!
Sorry for the quick post, but I am spending a bit more time behind the camera this week than the computer. I hope the new images next week will be worth it. The lesson I learned from this image…be courteous and honest with security guards when photographing private property and they might let you photograph a fertilizer plant.
I had big plans for this image. I love making images that contain captivating light and massive reflective surfaces. If you have ever visited Denver, you know the Denver Performing Arts Center (DCPA) fits the bill quite nicely. One thing I didn’t account for was it being closed. I’m not sure why I thought it was open to the public at night? It must be the Utopian in me……
This is another image from my visit to the local rail yard last year. You can see a previous composition from the same location here. It was one of those days where I knew I was going to pass something interesting on and errand, so I decided I would grab my gear and tack on 30mins to my commute. I wonder how much memory my brain is wasting trying to efficiently plan photo errands? I should formalize a documentation strategy so I can save space for things like remembering to mow the lawn.
I just want to take a second to thank everyone who visits here on a regular basis. LightAsMagic.com is now over a year old and growing everyday. I always appreciate the feedback from those out in the community. I hope to add some new features and content this year that will benefit everyone. If you like the photography, the adventure, or both please pass along the site to others who might enjoy a bit of levity in their day. I can’t spread the word without you. In honor of this milestone, I thought I would take a look back at the very first post from July 31, 2009.
iPhoneography: I have a BIG iPhone Friday planned for next week. Let’s just hope the weather cooperates!
Reviews: Every now and again, if I have used a piece of gear or software long enough, I will take the time to write a review of it. I just added a review of my DX workhorse lens, the Nikon 16-85 VR II. If you are looking for a great all around DX lens, check out my review here. Some of my favorite photos from this lens are included.
Songs For Post Processing: August’s play list is here! Just click the image below and let iTunes do its thing. I hope you like the new tunes.
When I first starting using the Nikon 45mm PC-E, the doors of creativity were first shrunk, then busted wide open! I really couldn’t get enough of the creative possibilities that this lens had to offer. Not only are you able to control the depth of field, you can actually control where the plane of focus is within your composition. I hope you are enjoying this lens as much as I am, if not, please bear with me as I wean myself off of it….hang in there, it shouldn’t be too long.
It seems like summer is just getting started. The calendar tells me it is over halfway gone. We are trying our best to take advantage of what summer has left to offer. No better way than an evening hike in the hills near our house. As you know, I have been putting the Nikon D5000 through its paces, and I am pretty darn surprised by it. If you can get over the fact that it has only one command dial and get used to doing your adjustments in the menu system, you have yourself a very capable camera. One thing that I have been wanting to test is the exposure bracketing feature. The D5000 will only allow 3 brackets, but the nice thing is you can bracket by 2 full stops. 2 stops is usually enough for most of my HDR work. For very high contrast scenes (think super bright light out the window of a room) you need more than 2 stops on either side of the anchor. However, for most of my bracket sequences, the D5000 is proving to be a great companion.
For the non-photographers out there, that interested in knowing more about this ‘photographer speak’, feel free to drop me a line. I would be happy to help you get started making images!
A couple weeks back I decided to schedule up solo photo-walk. I hadn’t been out on one lately, and I was itching to get out and explore. If you remember from a previous post, photo-walks are a big component of my ‘Creative Scheduling’. These are great ways not only to create, but to relax as well. Something goes on the in the creative brain the tends to silence all other stresses that are begging for your attention. So I checked the weather, charged the batteries, put together a route, and quieted my mind.
A pretty mediocre showing with the iPhone this week. I’m not sure if my eye was lazy or I was just too busy. Either way, I am very proud of one of my images. You can probably guess which one. Yep, 31:49! I wasn’t sure if I should include it or not, but I decided I would purely for the inspiration factor. Four years ago a good buddy and I started running a triathlon every Thursday at lunch. Our best times back then were in the 45min range. Now, 4 years later and 35lbs lighter, I just set my personal best time of 31:49 over a course that includes a 125mm open water swim, 6 mile mountain bike ride (with a brutal climb), and a 1.3(ish) mile trail run. Lesson learned….keep working at your health long enough, and you will get there. Next season, I will break the 30min barrier. Guaranteed!
Note: For all you Triathletes out there, it is only showing lap 4 because I missed a split at the T1 transition. The total time is accurate.
Twitter: If you missed me on Twitter this week, you can catch up by checking out some very compelling minimalist images and a talented photographers here.
News: I will be publishing a couple new reviews this weekend, so keep an eye out. One of them will be of my new favorite lens, the Nikon 45mm PC-E. Its not as complicated as it looks!
Another addition to my Spaceship Suburbia project. After reading Christian Cantrell’s Containment (a great sci-fi read I might add), I started looking around for an image that resembled a polymeth structure from a remote planetary colony. I found it; a fragile atmosphere contained within the conventions of humanity.
I hadn’t been down to Denver lately so I decided to glance at the weather and schedule a solo photo-walk up. It turned out to a nice evening and quite an adventure. Right before I made this image, I grabbed a quick photo of a newly engaged couple out taking some engagement photos. I passed the photo of their photo shoot along to them, and I think they were quite happy. Remember a previous tip (rule) of mine? If you promise someone a photo, make sure you get it to them. Don’t give us photographers a bad rap!
Tip: It is subtle, but I wanted to keep the focus on the structure and blur the right side of the image. I did so by using a Nikkor 45mm PC-E lens and adjusting it so that the tilt was left to right, then I tilted the lens slightly away from the subject.
Probably not what you were expecting based on the title. The Pepsi Center, here in Denver, is affectionately known as the ‘The Can’ by locals. It hosts the Avalanche, Mammoth, and Nuggets. It has also provided the stage from many a concert. Red Rocks is still the better venue for concerts. However, if you are a stadium rock band, the ‘The Can’ is where it’s at. Well, unless you are U2, then you have to look at 80,000 person arenas….not too many bands like that left.
As you have noticed lately, I am pretty big on using a Nikon 45mm PC-E lens. I don’t really use it for its indented purpose, which is to increase depth of field, and help reduce converging lines in pictures of tall things. I will be going into more detail when my review of the lens hits the blog next Sunday. As for this image, I wanted to test the Perspective Correction feature of the lens. With any other lens, because you would have had to point the camera up at the building, you would have seen the straight lines getting closer towards the top of the photo. Not with the Nikon 45mm PC-E lens! You simply keep the camera (film/sensor plane) parallel with the building and raise (shift) the lens up. It is hard to visualize, but the difference is incredible to witness. That is only one of its tricks. It is a finely tuned, razor sharp, optical engineering wonder!
