Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Deja Vu

This is another image from Lucca, Italy made in September of 2009. 

I've been going through some of my unused images from the past 3 years in an attempt to find a diamond in the rough.  As time rolls by, we learn new techniques and acquire new software that help us process more challenging images.  It's the reason we don't discard less than perfect images.

This image is a perfect example of waiting until the best processing application is available.  Nik Silver Efex Pro has been available for a couple of years now but until recently wasn't a top priority purchase for me.  I'm very interested in this monochrome (black and white) media now and no software that I've found does more to help produce a quality black and white image than Nik.  On this image, I used the "High Contrast" preset to darken the shadows creating an image with more drama.

I'm new to this whole B&W thing, but I can already see that it's going to be an interest of mine for a long time.

Friday, October 15, 2010

The Mittens of Monument Valley

I had hoped for some thunderclouds to form the afternoon I made this image but as you can see, nothing but blue sky and endless desert.  As a huge western movie fan, I felt as if I had just entered one of John Ford's epic movie sets and a small part of me expected John Wayne to ride up from the valley below to greet me.  O.k., that didn't happen but the memory of this day in Navajo country will stay with me forever, just like those classic western movies.

Polaroid Pansies

I named this image after the method I used to process it.  After cropping the photo into a square format, I used Nik Color EFEX Pro 3.0 to give a simple subject a little more edge.  I didn't want to go wild or anything, I just wanted a little creative pop.  Something that would stand out.  So, I chose the Polaroid preset.  It gave the image a softer, less focused look and added the "ripped" edges for a subtle nod to the pre-digital days of Polaroid photography. Hope you like it.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Torrey Pines- A View From The Clouds

Torrey Pines, near San Diego, California is a terrific place to watch hanggliders and paragliders soar high above the cliffs and the pacific ocean far below.

I can't begin to imagine the feeling of puting all your faith in a bunch of material and rope.  It's a long way down if you have a problem.  Standing on the edge of the cliff was enough for me. "Top of the world, Ma".

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Lucca in High Dynamic Range

HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography is a process where more than one image is blended to expand the exposure range past the capability of modern cameras.  This image was processed a little differently.  I only had one image and the courtyard area at the top of the frame was blown out and overexposed.  So I made a copy of the image in Lightroom and underexposed the second image until the courtyard looked a little better.  I then ran both images through Nik HDR Pro software and blended the two into one.  I think it saved an otherwise spoiled shot.

This image was made in Lucca, Italy in September of 2009.