3/30/08 - A Morning in Maine

A Morning in Maine

The first morning of a much needed vacation. I'm up before the rest of the family. Coffee, book, and camera are in hand as I walk down to the dock nestled in a bend on the Damriscotta River, Maine. "ET Bugaboo", the boat I spent a good year building, is sitting quietly on the glass smooth water. There is a slight chill in the air, but it is warming quickly. The result is a blanket of fog covering the water. I know a photo opportunity when I see it.

This is another image taken about 4 years ago with a 3MP point-an-shoot. I like the simplicity of this image and the feeling of isolation. My only wish is that I the lobster boat to the right wasn't there. Now that I've improved my PS skills, I may try to clone it out.

3/26/08 - Lil' Dux

"Lil' Dux"

This image was taken on a foggy October morning about 4 years ago. Surprising to some, it was captured with a 3MP point-and-shoot digital. The end product is the result of my introduction to Noise Ninja. Out of the camera, the image was very grainy. However, one pass through Noise Ninja and the image was recovered.

This has always been one of my favorite images in my portfolio. I like the relatively bright yellow of the boat interior set off against the dreary mood of early morning fog. I also think the tonal qualities of the grass also works well in this image. However, it has never been one of my more popular images. I must confess that I've never understood this, but such is the subjective world of art. It is possible that my opinion of the image is tainted by the significant effort I put into capturing and finishing it.

3/4/08 - More Catch-Up

A few weeks ago, Erick Johnson and I embarked on a photography day-trip into the city (Boston). My goal was to attempt to capture the spirit of the city while avoiding some of the more touristy shots. I found it wasn't as easy as I had hoped.

Before even deciding on a plan of action, we noticed an opportunity with the unique window panes of the Park Street T station.




Next we putz'ed around the Public Gardens. Of course, being mid-February there were no flowers and little color. In fact, the only color I found was a red balloon stuck in a tree. I decided to capture it with the Berkley and Hancock Towers in the background



We then made our way over to Fanuel Hall, grabbed a coffee and then proceeded over to Haymarket to hopefully capture the sights of this energetic outdoor market. For a photographer, it can be sensory overload.



From Haymarket, we crossed under the Expressway and checked-out the North End. It didn't take us long to find a great bakery.

3/2/08 - Playing Catchup

I need to do some catching up.

In January I took a course on capturing personalities with portraits. There was more info than I care to try and repeat in this blog, but the essence of it focused alot on the eyes and waiting for the right moment. "The eyes are window to the soul" and in photography, this is even more the case since the audience does not have the benefit of engaging the subject in conversation or watching the subjects actions. As the photographer, it is our job to attempt to capture what we perceive is the subjects personality and/or mood in 2D. Capturing the eyes at the right moment is one approach.

There was also a wealth of information related to using natural light with screens and reflectors. Since I enjoy environmental portraits, this was very helpful to me. Two pieces of knowledge I can pass on are: 1) When in doubt about which reflector to use with a portrait, try a gold reflector specked with silver. This reflector tends to provide the least harsh, yet still warm reflective light. 2) You almost always what your reflector to be at a direct opposite angle as your light source for the most even coverage.

3/1/08 - SSCC Shoot

A few of the members of the South Shore Camera Club gathered at Mary Beth's house to play around with our camera's and be creative with various lighting situations and objects. Since I don't do this kind of shooting often, it was a good opportunity for me to stretch my imagination and get out of my comfort-zone. Many thanks to MB for allowing us to invade her home and pick her brain.

2/29/08 - Damon's Point

I have been working on the post-processing of some images I captured off Damon's Point on Presidents Day. It pretty much poured the entire day except for a period of about an hour and a half when a break appeared. I happened to be home when I noticed that the rain was settling and the sky lightening. I took advantage of the opportunity to drive over to Damon's Point and see if I could catch some good lighting. I was rewarded for my efforts

12/24/07 - Morning Light

Yesterday morning was forcasted to be foggy due to the snow on the ground and temperatures in the 50's. With this in mind, I went out looking for dramtic fog shots. Unfortunately, the fog never came. However, the day was slightly overcast with light filtering through the clouds, so I took what was given to me. On the Southern side of Bluefish River is a perfectly symmetrical tree next to a million+ dollar home. Whenever I drive by, I always look for opportunities to shoot this tree. Yesterday morning was no exception.

12/17/07 - Mt Monadnock

Last weekend Erick and I did a day hike up Mount Monadnock. The trail was snow-covered and icy, but the wind was down and the temperature moderate until we reached the summit.

Erick Negotiates the Snow-Covered Trail


Steven


Erick Nears the Summit

11/23/07 - Flash Technique

I've begun expanding upon my flash technique. I own a Canon 580EX that does a really nice job. However, there is more to flash photography than turning on the flash then pointing and shooting. Aperature, shutter speed, and even ISO factor into the end result of the image, as does the exposure mode (I prefer manual). The goal of using a flash is to create an image that looks like a flash wasn't used. There are many tricks of the trade for accomplishing this (ex: bounce flash, filtered flash, fill-flash, etc.)

Here are a few of the "messing around" images I've taken while experimenting:

11/20/07 - Another New Lens

I'm on a roll.... spending $$$ I don't have on new equipment. This time it's a 24-70mm f/2.8. Like the 100mm, it is a nice piece of glass. Here are some samples:

11/9/07 - New Lens (cont.)

The other nice feature of the lens I mentioned in my previous post is it's 1:1 macro capability. This enables me to get in close for shots while maintaining a real life perspective.

A JUVENILE PICKEREL


GETTING ARTSY

11/5/07 - New Lens

I recently purchased a Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro. My first capture with this new lens was of the kids. Immediately, I was very impressed with its sharpness and clarity. Now I want to get rid of my EFS 17-85mm f/4.0 -5.6... it doesn't even compare.

10/27/07 - More Portraits from World's End

10/26/07 - Portraits @ World's End

Recently, I had the opportunity for a photo shoot at World's End in Hingham. We were hoping for some nice autumn color, but due to the lack of recent rain, the leaves were still mostly green. However, we still got some nice shots that I hope the client will be pleased with.

10/24/07 - Lighting Opps. in Nature

As many photographers know, Mom Nature will sometimes present opportunities that, unless you take advantage, you may never see again. Such was the case this past weekend. The first clue was when, while talking to my wife on my cell, she informed me that it was dark and overcast in Marshfield. Meanwhile, one town over, I was experiencing a bright and clear day.

As I continued to drive towards Marshfield, I observed the cause. I quickly pulled into the Driftway in Scituate, and captured the moment.





The cloud cover above and the sun lighting the grass from the right makes this a dramatic image that would have been tough to capture otherwise

10/23/07 - Fall at Daniel Webster Sanctuary

Here in New England, the fall foliage has been a bit disappointing due to the exceptionally dry few months we have had. However, I was able to track down some color at the Daniel Webster Sanctuary this past weekend.

10/11/07 - A Better Black and White

I found some great tips in John Beardsworth's "Advanced Digital Black & White Photography". I strongly recommend it for any serious photographer wishing to produce high-quality B&W's. The most significant "take-away" for me was the ability to make better use of color channels to illustrate seperation of color in a purely grey-tone image.

Compare the above image to it's color version in my previous post http://sdrimages.blogspot.com/2007/10/10807-fall-portrait.html

10/8/07 - Fall Portrait

An overcast fall day is an opportunity to introduce some colorful background to your portraits

10/6/07: A Week in the Whites

This years family vacation was a week in the White Mountains of NH. Any time of year, the Whites provide ideal photo opportunities. Granted these images were from a few months ago. But, since I didn't have a photojournal at the time...

We spent much of the 90 degree days floating down the Saco River


Sunset behind the Whites


Diana's Bath was a nice Refresher




The Mount Washington Cog Rail


Snow in July????