Sunday, February 7, 2010

Winter Wonderland

OK, I will admit it. After today, I dislike the snow and winter a little bit less. Went out into the woods to create photographs with a good friend, and we had a great time! Got a bunch of good photos, too. I don't usually post this many photos at once, but it was a good day :)



Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/200 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/2000 sec, f/8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/200 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/400 sec, f/6.3, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/320 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, levels




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/200 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/200 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/320 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/1250 sec, f/8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/100 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/160 sec, f/9, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves




Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200mm VR, 1/500 sec, f/5.6, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves



Snowpocalypse

I'm not a fan of snow, generally speaking. I hate digging my car out, I hate being trapped in the house, and I hate being cold and wet. But sometimes you have to set the bad parts aside and remember that everything (many things, anyway) has a good side. So in 14 degree weather, I popped out of the house for a bit to document the 30+ inches of snow we got here over the last two days.

Understand, though, that I was only out for about 15 minutes. My poor little fingers froze to bits. Maybe I'll go out again this afternoon when it's a bit warmer. Oh, wait, I need to spend three hours digging my car out. Never mind.



Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200 VR, 1/320 sec, f/13, ISO500
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves



Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200 VR, 1/2500 sec, f/5.3, ISO500
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves



Nikon D300s, Nikon 18-200 VR, 1/250 sec, f/10, ISO500
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

No Equipment = No Problem (almost)

This morning there was a lovely snowfall here in Northern Virginia, and by the time I got to work (and the day was becoming a little light), I was regretting not bringing my camera bag with me. Not being one to let anything just go at that, I remembered I had my little Canon Point and Shoot with me.

I little point and shoot? To try and capture snow? You must be crazy! The exposure! The lack of control! Are you mad? Well, it was either that, or come away completely empty-handed. I went outside in front of the office building and, using the little Canon along with the few exposure adjustments it provides, I was still able to get a few shots of the snowy setting.


Canon SD850 IS
Adjustments: size, curves


Canon SD850 IS
Adjustments: size, curves


Canon SD850 IS
Adjustments: size, curves


So if you're facing a complete (or nearly) lack of equipment, it's better to improvise with what you have than miss out. And *then* rememebr to bring your camera bag next time.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

impressionism techniques

A reader asked me a while back, "How can I get impressionist results from my camera?" I listed a few techniques (hopefully helpful ones). I'd like to add one to that list. For the purposes of this discussion, let's classify these techniques into two categories: in-camera, and out-of-camera. In-camera techniques are those you can use in the field with only your camera, such as changing the focus, using a slow shutter speed to blur the image, etc. Out-of-camera techniques are post-production alterations to the image done with software.

What I've discovered lately is that in-camera techniques used to achieve impressionist results are much more effective. First, you can see the results in the field. Second, they look more natural and less "gimicky." Out-of-camera effects are also usually easier to spot, making them feel very artificial.

In the end, though, being analog, natural, and honest, in-camera techniques and the results they reproduce feel better and look better. You even feel better about producing them. And using them is photography, while out-of-camera techniques feel more like manipulation, of both the photograph and the person viewing it. And, as a friend of mine puts it, overly manipulated photographs leave you cold.

I'll share an in-camera technique I developed recently and like a great deal. Here is a photograph I took this morning down at the river using this technique.


Nikon D200 (IR), Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 at 200mm, 1/320 sec, f/8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, curves, b&w conversion
Geotag: N 39° 3' 42", W 77° 22' 23"


This photograph displays some natural, sharp detail, but combines it with an ethereal feel, resulting in a sense of both reality and the surreal. Granted, part of this is due to the fact that it is an infrared photograph, but that's only a small contribution. You'll need a camera that can perform multiple exposures, like the Nikon D90 or D200.

The basic idea is to take multiple exposures of the same thing, but at different focus levels. Follow these steps:
  1. Set your camera to manual focus.
  2. Defocus your scene or subject until it's pretty blurry, and there are no recognizable details.
  3. Set the camera to multiple exposure mode (this photo was done with 4 exposures).
  4. Shoot your first exposure.
  5. Shoot the remaining exposures, moving the focus each time a bit more towards being in focus, making sure the last one is in sharp focus.
Once your camera combines all the images, you should get a result similar to the one above.

This technique was used here in a nature photo, but that's because I happened to be at the river at the time. I plan to try this with portraits, still life, and other subject matter. Who knows what will benefit from this interesting surreal look?

One more for your impressionism toolbox. Experiment with it and see what changes to the technique work well. If you achieve any interesting results with this, let me know. I'd love to see them.

Monday, April 6, 2009

photo of the day no. 36

Took my first real hike of the year this weekend on the Maryland side of Great Falls National Park. Found a nice little pond back from the river and shot this photo.

Also learned that the connector for the Nikon GPS unit on the D90 is in a very bad place on the camera body. Just a simple hike carrying the camera around resulted in a broken connector. It got knocked loose, and now the GPS won't work any more on that camera. Afraid to ask what it would cost to repair the body. Live and learn.



Nikon D90, Nikon 18-200mm VR f/3.5-5.6, 1/1600 sec, f/4.2, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves, b&w conversion

Sunday, March 22, 2009

photo of the day no. 35

Spent the afternoon and early evening yesterday out at Great Falls Park Maryland side. Not only had a great time with my pal Warren, but got quite a few photos with which I was pretty happy (see the rest at www.tonymartinphotography.com in the Infrared Photography section).

I decided to show this one to make two points. First, if you're shooting infrared photography, one of the nice benefits is that IR picks up more detail in clouds, things you and a normal visible light camera can't. Second, when capturing a sunset, you need not stick to color. Black and white skies can be just as dramatic and beautiful.

So with this infrared sunset, I one more time delve into my photographic obsession: capturing and presenting for the world that which the human eye cannot see.


Nikon D200 (IR), Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5, 1/125 sec, f/6.3, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask, curves, b&w conversion
Geotag: N 39° 0' 3.60", W 77° 14' 55.20"

Thursday, March 19, 2009

photo of the day no. 34

Just a quick one today. This caught my eye last night sitting at a friend's house. 90 seconds later, I had this nice abstract.


Nikon D90, Tamron 90mm f/2.8, 1/40 sec, f/4.5, ISO200
Adjustments: size, unsharp mask

Sunday, March 15, 2009

photo of the day no. 33

Hi again. Back from a short break. Spent the morning (a cold morning at that) on the Potomac River at Riverbend Park. Every now and then, you do something and realize that much of your life is spent surrounded by the artificial - living room, office, strip mall, even the car. When you get out into the woods and stop to take a look, it feels real like so little else. What a great sensation.

Got this IR shot while I was out there. Still have some research to do with the IR camera and specific lenses, but getting there. IR photography is not simple and not a speedy process. Can't wait 'til spring!


Nikon D200, Nikkor 18-70mm f3.5-4.5, 1/2500 sec, f/13, ISO200
Adjustments: size, slight level adjust, B&W conversion
Geotag: N 39 1' 15.0", W 77 14' 41.4"

Thursday, March 5, 2009

photo of the day no. 32

Big day today - the D200 came home from Lifepixel, the place that converted it permanently to infrared (IR). So I ran out into the street when I got home, literally, and shot a few test photos. Lesson for today: converting your camera to IR takes care of some of the problems you encounter using an IR filter, but it still has many challenges. Learned about two of them today:
  1. You can no longer use autofocus and have to not only focus manually, but make guesses about how much to change the focus.
  2. Fast shutter speeds may be too fast for IR photography, resulting in images with the shutter still in the way.
More on these in another article about IR as I learn more.

For now, I'll post a photo I shot in both IR color and converted to B&W. I'll post some photos in the near future that take more advantage of the IR. However, note that the wood pole lying in the snow was actually green, but in IR, it came out blue.


Nikon D200, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4, 1/125 sec, f/8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, slight level adjustments




Nikon D200, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4, 1/125 sec, f/8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, slight contrast, B&W


Whoa! Bonus photo for today! I shot this one as well, and it really struck me, though I'm still figuring out all the "why."


Nikon D200, Nikkor 50mm f/1.4, 1/500 sec, f/2.8, ISO200
Adjustments: size, slight level adjustments, B&W


This is gonna be fun!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

photo of the day no. 31

Stopped by the park on the way home to test out the new Nikon GP-1 GPS unit for the camera. We'll have a short review of that thing in the near future. As a result, from now on, I'll be posting geotag information for each photo of the day. Granted, they'll all probably be from relatively nearby, but you never know.

Today's photo, taken in the mud amongst obnoxious geese and lots of sticker bushes (ow). Let me know which you like better in this case: normal color (which is fairly subtle) or the b&w version. And, if possible, why. Thanks!



Nikon D90, Nikkor 18-200mm VR f3.5-5.6 at 60mm, 1/2500 sec, f/13, ISO200
Adjustments: size, slight level adjust, minor color balancing
Geotag: N 39° 1' 5.83", W 77° 24' 18.58"




Nikon D90, Nikkor 18-200mm VR f3.5-5.6 at 60mm, 1/2500 sec, f/13, ISO200
Adjustments: size, b&w conversion, minor contrast
Geotag: N 39° 1' 5.83", W 77° 24' 18.58"