Re-post October 2011
Todays post is from the Auburn Cord Duesenburg Automobile Museum. I’ve posted pics from here before. I’m still amazed of the quantity and quality of cars in their collection. If you are ever in Northeast Indiana, it’s definitely worth stopping in.
Re-post June 2011
As all of you are aware, my wife gave birth to a beautiful baby girl 2.5 weeks ago. Like all parents, we are taking plenty of pictures and videos. Recently, I took this picture after her bath. I love how her hair is standing up and how she is looking towards her mommy. Even though, she is still too young to focus in on objects, you can tell she already has a tight bond with the people that love her.
Happy Easter!!!
Re-post September 2011
If you have not noticed, I don’t stick with one photography genre very well. My last 10 posts have been a combination of portraits, HDR’s, sunrises, sunsets, black & white, wildlife, etc. I’ve always been someone who likes to explore, try new things, and have many interests that have no relation. Probably my only constant enjoyment is my wife (I’ve been with since junior high). For example, I am a foot and ankle surgeon by day, an avid photographer by night, I enjoy playing basketball 2-3 times a week, I weight lift, enjoy politics (but don’t talk about it openly), and have a very strong interest in anything technology related (I’ve always been the go to guy with computer repair or technology related questions). I’ve yet to find anyone with similar interests (it’s usually one or the other).
Having all these interests have made me well rounded. I feel as if I can find some association with all people I talk to, and credit my broad interests in allowing me to do so.
In keeping with my theme or I guess “no theme” todays post is taken at the cemetery that I wrote about a few days ago. What really caught my attention was this large Jesus crucifixion on the east side of the cemetery. It set on a large slab of concrete about 4 feet off the ground and all that could be seen behind it was the sky. I felt it would be a great place to take an HDR or time lapse shot but after attempting this many times I really didn’t like the angle (I wish I was at eye level with Jesus). I decided to put up my 28mm summicron and take a few shots with my 50mm summilux wide open. After taking this shot I realized I was wasting time with my 28mm summicron. The 50mm summilux with it’s beautiful bokeh was definitely the way to go!
Repost: 8.13.2011
One of the goals of a photographer is to try to get a three dimenional feel of there pictures. In this pic, which is probably my favorite street shot while visiting Chicago, I tried to capture this. The subject is framed by two bystanders in the foreground which help draw you into the subject. The lady and and cars in the background add depth to the pic.
Repost 8.21.11
Yesterday morning I was heading into work on a road behind our subdivision. It was foggy and as I was driving I found the light coming through the trees with the combination of fog to be very interesting. I stopped in the middle of the road and opened my door and shot a few pics.
This image was created using my Leica M9-P and 50mm summilux. I initially edited the picture with Nik Software Silver Efex Pro 2. It has a slider that allows for you to selectively bring back colors. I did this to the road and really liked the look. Unfortunately, I didn’t like the rest of the pic thus I decided I would go back to my original file and process it through OnOne Softwares Perfect Layers. Once I did this I felt I was on to something. I then opened up Photoshop CS 5 and layered the two pics. Next I extended the sun rays and added a sepia tone to give it a more warm feeling.
Repost July 2011
I find flowers nice to look at but don’t typically consider them good enough subjects to take pictures of. Probably, because so many people already take pictures of them.
Another reason why I don’t like taking pictures of flowers is because of the composition. Composition is a combination of what you have included in your picture and the way or perspective you took it. For example, when taking pictures of flowers almost always, you stand over them and point down towards the ground. This allows for the flower to be in the foreground and dirt in the background. Dirt obviously is not very eye pleasing and rarely allows for enough contrast between it and the main subject.
One way to change the composition is to be creative an attempt pictures from different vantage points, one in which you typically don’t see. The picture below is an example. Near our driveway we have an island of landscape that is elevated. Because of this I was able to lay down and allow for the sky to be used as my background. This allowed for the tulips to really stick out.
As my skills as a photographer have improved, I find my self looking at the world around me differently. For example, this weekend I was in Chicago for a street photography workshop given by Steve Huff. We were all standing at Crown Fountain in Millennium Park taking pictures and this couple were having their pictures taken by a professional photographer. As I stood and watched, I looked down and liked the reflection of the couple, photographer and background. Therefore, instead of taking a picture the couple I decided to focus on the reflection.
I have to admit, I didn’t come up with this one but I really like how it turned out. I wanted to get one great out of place picture or pictures that would really stick out. I found a picture of someone who took a self portrait of themselves in a old, 70’s style bathtub while wearing dress clothes.
My sister’s house is very nice and one of their spare bathrooms has a shower and tub that fits a 70’s style theme. I talked my nephew into wearing his dress clothes and getting into the water and letting me shoot a few portrait shots. Personally, I think they turned out great!
There’s nothing wrong with traditional portrait photography but after a while I feel like I’m seeing the same thing over and over again. That is why I asked my nephew if he would be ok with shooting some non-traditional senior pictures. He was a great sport and I felt we got many great pictures.
Both of these pictures were taken in the country near their home in Madison, Wisconsin. Madison and the surrounding country side is beautiful. It’s full of many rolling hills, with great winding roads and old barns and buildings. We walked along a hiking path and came to this wide open field and thought it would be great for a few pics with his tie, white shirt, and black slacks.
Once we were done shooting at this location we decided to drive around and we came across this old church that was built in the late 1800’s and had this old outhouse.
Both of the these pics I really like because of how out of place he is in comparison to his surroundings. I think this is what makes the pictures interesting?
P.S. You should ask him about all the wasp above his head at the outhouse some time 🙂
