Posts from the ‘Nikon D1X’ Category
It was the final time trial of the 2004 Tour de France. I had be lugging around a Nikon 80-200 AFD for the last week, just hoping for one great image of Lance. The Mona Lisa (dropping the hammer) of my cycling photography career. I didn’t have media access at the tour, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me. On the previous mountain stages, I was too busy being a super fan to focus on photography. I dressed in all yellow and tried to run along side of the peloton waving a yellow flag made from a queen sized bed sheet with the number 6 spay painted on it. I say I tried because after carrying that sheet on the plane, packing it around the French country side, and finally getting into position to run with the leaders….I chickened out under the pressure. Visions of crashing Lance, and being solely responsible for his 1st tour loss, haunted me. My dream of running along side Lance waving a oversized banner of support and being broadcast across the world ended with me hanging my flag in a tree and politely clapping as he rode by. Bad for me, but in the long run, good for Lance.
Anyways, back to the photo. I knew that without media access, the one shot I had at making an image of Lance in the tour was the individual time trial. The start/finish is always too crowded for a decent photo. I knew I had to be on the course. After a quick map reconnaissance, I decided a round-a-bout 2km from the finish was going to be my best position. Setting out in torrential rain, I found my spot and waited…waited…and waited some more. As riders past, I would refer to the start list to see where we were in the race. Hincapie….Kloden…..Basso…..all the big names were rolling by. Another minute or two and Lance would be headed right at me. Sure enough, the next rider to fill my view finder was Lance Armstrong. They say, when you wear the yellow jersey, you ride with the strength of 10 men. When the yellow jersey fills your viewfinder, it takes all your focus (pun intended) and experience to walk away with an image. I don’t know if I will ever make an image like this again. An image where you have spent an entire year preparing, with only a single second to make it. I will be there again this year, lets just hope Lance is in yellow when he fills the viewfinder!
I hope you have enjoyed the images of Lance leading up to this years Tour. It will be an epic battle, fought on the high mountains of France. Whether Lance wins on not, he is ready, and riding for all of us. Please help to support him though your support of the Live Strong Foundation.
Good luck Lance!
If this isn’t the definition of living strong, I’m not sure what is. Another image from the New York City Criterium in 2002. It was rare site to see a Tour de France champion racing what was essentially a domestic industrial park crit, but Lance was there, mixing it up with the best of them. I wouldn’t say he was out of his element either. His element is aerobic competition in whatever form he can find it. I’m looking forward to a possible run at an Ironman from him. 2 days left until the tour!
Tip: Before you attempt a high speed panning shot of one of your heros, get to the race early and practice your rhythm and technique before it is game time.
As promised, we are going all LA all week. I also promised some tour predictions. Stage 3 of this year’s Tour is going to be critical to the overall general classification. There is close to 13km of cobblestones that the riders must navigate. The cobblestone roads are narrow and dangerous. A crash or a flat tire could mean the difference between winning and losing the tour. Back in 2004, Postal Service riders Viatcheslav Ekimov and George Hincapie dropped the hammer on the cobbles and broke the race apart. Hopefully team RadioShack and do it again. I can’t speak for the riders, but as a fan, I can’t wait for it!
Following Lance Armstrong’s tweet today, announcing that this will be his final Tour de France, I decided to pay tribute to him by dedicating the entire week leading up to the tour to the man, the myth, the legend. This image is from the New York Criterium in 2002. The race itself took place on Wall Street. I will never forget seeing the streets of NY shut down, only to see a cycling legend take the stage. It was a spectacle that those who were in attendance will never forget. Our country was still recovering, and Lance did what he could to answer the call. Over the next week I will share more stories, images, and Tour predictions. Until then, Lance, good luck in the Tour. We are all pulling for you!
Capture Notes:
Nikon D1X
Nikkor 80-200 AFD
Nikon SB-80 DX
Processing Notes:
Capture – 1 Image
Adobe Camera Raw
Sized for web
LightAsMagic.com
Tip: A technique I commonly used to isolate my subject when shooting sports events was to set my flash to +1EV, and my camera to -1EV. That way your background would be a bit darker than the subject in the foreground. It worked to give your image a little extra pop.
Lance Armstrong showed some impressive form this weekend by placing 2nd in the Tour of Switzerland. Because the Tour is less than a month away, and I have thousands of bike racing photos in my archive, I decided I would start posting them to celebrate the world’s greatest bike race.
This image is from the 2003 US Pro Championships in Philadelphia, PA. I wanted to get a large group shot. As a bike racer, I knew the peloton would break up in just a few laps, so I identified a location that would work early in the race. I set up on a median in the middle of the course, and shot with a long lens to exaggerate the close proximity of the riders. I got lucky when Victor Rapinski decided to stand up to stretch his legs.
Capture Notes:
Nikon D1x
Nikkor 300 AFS F4
Bogen Monopod
Exposure:0.001 sec (1/1000)
Aperture:f/4.0
Focal Length:300 mm
Exposure Bias:0 EV
Processing Notes:
Photoshop – Curves adjustment
Photoshop – Slight vibrancy boost
Sized for web
LightAsMagic.com
Tip: Cycling photography is a very unique and demanding enterprise. Ensure that you are familiar with the course. If you can, make sure to drive or walk it and plan your shot locations. The race will be fast and furious and you won’t have time to improvise.
There are a bunch of things technically wrong with this image (lens flare being a big one), but because it reminds me of the start of summer, it is sooooo right. Summer is close! Opening day was Friday, and as my good friend said, “Mother Nature set the thermostat to AWESOME!”. I am feeling very inspired, and I hope you are too.
I shot a couple photos from the iPhone while out enjoying the AWESOME…wish I had my 300mm when I ran by a couple of elk.
http://bestc.am/photographers/15879
Note: I will be posting a new video tomorrow. It it geared towards those just getting into photography. I hope to answer the question that new photographers are commonly faced with….”Why don’t my pictures look like that?” Quick answer: Pixel pushing! Also, tomorrow night I will be shooting a local wine bar where I will be having a spring show, so stay tuned for the details.
Capture Notes:
Nikon D300
Tokina 11-16 ATX Pro (no lens hood)
Gitzo Traveler
Aperture: f/11.0
Focal Length: 11 mm
ISO Speed:400
Processing Notes:
Capture (9 images @ 1ev)
Photomatix (HDR/Tonemapping)
Nik Sliver Efex Pro (High Structure – luminosity layer)
Nik Color Efex Pro (Pro Contrast)
Nik Color Efex Pro (Tontal Contrast – selective to the concrete)
Resized for web
LightAsMagic.com
Tip: As I mentioned in the critique above, lens flare was a serious problem in this image. Sure, I didn’t have a lens hood with me, but I doubt that would have solved it . Had I not been trying to dodge the errant foul ball, I might have tried this slick technique from a fellow photographer. Jump on over to his site to see a neat solution to lens flare.
I am a sunset guy, and I love them all. However, there are 3 sunsets in my life that I will always remember. One while driving through Idaho on my way back from Oregon, another with my wife while we were walking through the marina in Xtapa, and this one. I had a camera with me for two of them. Not bad! What fascinates me about sunsets is the fact that I don’t remember visual details, I just remember experiencing something greater than myself. I know the one that I witnessed in Idaho was so powerful I had to pull over and sit down on the side of the highway to watch it. I didn’t even wait for an exit ramp. I couldn’t tell you what color it was, or how long it lasted. I just know it moved me. The only reason I remember the one in Xtapa was pink was because I had my camera. This one, from my Uncle’s farm in southern Nebraska, has many fond memories associated with it.
Nikon D1x
Nikkor 80-200 2.8 D
Exposure: 0.003 sec (1/400)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 200 mm
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
ISO Speed: 800
Processing Notes:
Capture
Adobe Camera Raw
Photoshop (Curves Adjustment)
Photoshop (Vibrance/Saturation slight boost)
LightAsMagic.com
By no means do I consider myself a wildlife photographer, I don’t have the patience for it. If you want to see great wildlife photography visit Moose Peterson’s site. His name says it all. I discovered this little fox, along with his brothers and sisters, on my way to the post office. I had my camera with me and thought I would try my hand at ‘Dancing with Wolves’. After a deliberately slow approach, I settled into a seated position and waited. I would yawn, blink, look away, etc; Everything you might learn from watching episodes of the Dog Whisperer. The one thing I didn’t do was immediately start shooting. After about 20 minutes, a reluctant mom let her kits out of the den. She didn’t let them walk up and sniff me, but they were allowed to make eye contact and observe me from a distance. I stayed there as long as a 1 gig CF card would let me (in 2002 that was a boat load of memory). Actually, I stayed a bit longer than that. It was an experience I will always remember.
Nikon D1x
Nikkor 80-200 2.8 AFD
Processing Notes
Capture
Photoshop (Curves Adjustment)
NIK (Sharpen selective to the eyes)
LightAsMagic.com
Tip: In a situation like this you might be tempted to open your lens up as wide as it will go to try and soften the background and emphasize your subject. However, at 2.8 in this case I was barely able to get the eyes in focus if I was focusing on the bridge of their noses. I think f/3.2 – 4 might have been a better choice.
One from the archive! My college teammate and I visited the Tour in 2004. We considered going in 2003, but we were confident in Lance’s abilities to win a record breaking 6th TDF. This image was made on stage 19, the decisive individual time trial in Besancon. We had walked 2 miles in the rain for a position on a round-a-bout that would provide us a clear line of sight. The anticipation grew as we watched rider after rider racing by. As the names on the start list were dwindling, we knew that Lance would be charging by shortly. It was Jan Ulrich we saw first, followed shortly thereafter by the man in Yellow. What a dream come true. We were front row for one of the greatest records in cycling history! Lance is racing again this year. Keep your fingers crossed!
Nikon D1x
Nikkor 80-200 AFD
Note: I have been getting some questions about what kind of gear I carry. If you hadn’t noticed, you can visit the site and click on the camera bag to find out.
Telluride CO is to a landscape photographer, like a an exotic bird show is to a cat. Not only are the Grandscapes accessible, the food is great. This photo of the Bridal Veil House is a reminder for me to go back. Last time I was there I was mountain biking, hiking, and dining. I didn’t bring the photographer’s focus with me.
Nikon D1X
Nikkor 80-200 AFD 2.8
Processing:
Capture
Photoshop (Levels Adjustment)
Nik ColorEFX (Tonal Contrast)
Nik Sharpen (Display adaptive 30%)
Tip-A telephoto lens isn’t only good for bringing the subject closer to you, it is a great tool for bringing subjects closer together. Shooting images with a telephoto lens will provide the effect of compressing the elements of the image. It the above image, you can see this compression effect adds drama to the scene as the cliff appears to be imposing on the house.
One from the archive. I made this image of a surfer hiking up from Black’s Beach in 2002 with my trusty D1X. Digital photography was in its infancy then, and the D1X was a big investment at the time. It has however proved to be an invaluable learning tool. The instant feedback digital photography provides you is critical to accelerating your learning curve. Nowadays, you can get some fantastic gear at a very reasonable price. I got my D1X back then from a great camera store in Indiana. I have never visited it, but every time I call to place an order I ask for Ed! If you are looking to establish a long term relationship with a camera store, let me recommend Roberts Imaging. When you call, ask for Ed and tell him Justin from Colorado sent you!
The holidays are a great time to catch up with friends, family, and digital asset management. Recently I have been going through some archival images I made years ago with my trusty D1X as I toured Europe following the Tour De France. After chasing Lance Armstrong around in 2004 we decided to spend the last weekend of our ‘European Vacation’ in Sitges Spain.
Looking at these images, I would really like to go back.
Nikon D1X
Nikon 80-200D
Aperture -> Nik (Tonal Contrast) –> Nik (Sharpen for Display) –> LightAsMagic.com
Tip: The Tonal Contrast filter available in the Nik Color EFX 3.0 suite is a great filter to use to bring out the textures of older buildings.
Going back through some archival footage, I found this gem. After we had traveled the French countryside chasing Lance Armstrong around, we decided to take a much needed break in Sitges Spain.
Sitges is a sleepy coastal town about 35km south of Barcelona. It is full of great food, art, and casual night life.
On our way, a couple of young ladies had struck up a conversation with us on the train and suggested we meet them on the beach. After checking into our hotel, we made our way to the sea for the rendezvous. When we found our friends, unknown to us ‘Americans’, they greeted us topless. The ice was broken so I took off my shirt and blended right in. Well, as best as I could for being a pale white male not wearing a Speedo.
Camera: Nikon D1X
Lens: 80-200 D
Villard De Lans, originally uploaded by LightAsMagic.
My first experience of the French countryside was a fast paced hike through the high mountain meadows of Villard De Lans as I raced to see the finish of my first stage of the Tour de France. This was also the first stage that Lance Armstrong won in the 2004 Tour de France. LA went on to win the remaining decisive stages and complete his record breaking 6th consecutive TDF win. He would go on to win the Tour again the following year.
After we had witnessed the beginning of a historic record breaking TDF we hiked back down from the ski village where the stage had ended to eat dinner with thousands of our closest French friends. What a time! It was on this descent that the crazy cycling fan in me had subsided and I was able to experience the beauty that was surrounding me. The TDF is the most scenic sports event on earth. I suggest to everyone that you visit France and let the race be your guide.
Camera: Nikon D1X (yep, you read it right!)
Lens: Nikon 20mm 2.8
