July 24, 2008
Clouds on High
Sometimes I think the High in HDR reflects the state of mind of the engineers who invented it. Of course, the clouds didn't look like this to the human eye. My interest in HDR is the capability to merge multiple exposures of high contrast scenes blending the best exposures from the individual images, and less in the sometimes dramatic, surreal visual effects. I think with practice I can tune out the drama with adjustments in Photomatix and Photoshop and create more realistic imagery. But, my imagery is about art more than realism or photography, so I reserve the right for some dramatic, poetic license.
Posted by fletch at 8:26 AM | Comments (2)
July 23, 2008
HDR'ed It Through the Grapevine
The recent images of cloudy skies I've been taking makes for severely underexposed areas as you can see in the last two posts. Some of the underexposure can be corrected in Photoshop, but the old-fashioned way is to use graduated filters and/or multiple exposures. I figured if it came to multiple exposures I might as well take a dive into HDR, high dynamic range. HDR is basically multiple exposures processed by some fancy software to create a balanced image, sometimes with dramatic visual effects and colors. This image is my first attempt with HDR using software from Photomatix instead of Photoshop. Photomatix is easy to use and doesn't take forever to process large files, which are about 21 megabytes for each jpg file that makes up the composite image. My camera can take several images per second automatically changing the exposure by one stop for each capture, so recording multiple images of the same scene isn't too bad. In fact I'll probably start shooting all images this way from now on altho it does eat up the disk space and strain my old laptop to its limits when processing them. The image above is 120 megabytes before optimizing for web display. Shooting for HDR is going to require changing old habits at capture time and the workflow on the laptop, so it's a learning experience. The image above is soft and blurs on the edges so I'm not pleased with it. I'll probably be posting more HDR imagery hopefully showing signs of improvement over time.
Update: Image below is the same scene posted a few days ago. The colors are more saturated and the light is more balanced, but still not as sharp as it could be. I'll have to work on that (as long as I don't have to use a tripod).
Posted by fletch at 9:42 AM | Comments (4)
Shelling
After many days of sweltering heat and humidity, this morning a cool sea breeze returned, with thunder rumbling and showers in the distance. The beach and all the creatures who live there were in a good mood. I did NOT want to leave the beach this morning. It was just too grand to behold. I wish you could see these images on a very large monitor or poster-size print. Photography is a moment in Spirit, paralyzed for sharing.
Posted by fletch at 8:03 AM | Comments (1)
July 22, 2008
Summer Swelter
The exposure was set for the very bright sunny sky to capture the cloud detail resulting in the foreground being very underexposed, creating a silhouette of the spanish moss covered live oak. I like this one.
Posted by fletch at 7:47 AM | Comments (2)
July 21, 2008
Green Grass and High Tides
Now if I let you see this place where stories all ring true
Then will you let me past your face to see what's really you
It's not for me I ask this question as though I were a king
For you have to love, believe and feel, before the burst of tambourines takes you there
Green grass and high tides forever
Castles of stone, soul and glory
Lost faces say we adore you
As kings and queens bow and play for you
-- The Outlaws
Posted by fletch at 7:44 AM | Comments (0)
July 18, 2008
Friday Bird Blogging
A seagull leaves a contrail as it flies at very high altitude to avoid flak. Ok, that's pretty lame but goes well with a lame pic. Have a good weekend.
Posted by fletch at 7:42 AM | Comments (0)
July 17, 2008
Still Life
Blog buddy Alice noted that some scenes in yesterday's video would make decent pics. I went back this morning with the SLR and snapped these two.
Posted by fletch at 7:56 AM | Comments (2)
July 16, 2008
Morning Commute
Ok, have mercy on me. Inspired by my blog friend Beth at Too Much Sugar for a Dime, I've made my first attempt at a moving picture for the blog, taking you for a brief excursion on my walk this morning. I definitely need to work on my enunciation and speaking clearly; my southern drawl slur with a lisp is sometimes hard to understand. It's not easy speaking publicly and improvising about whatever comes to mind and eye. I have a new found respect for actors, screenwriters, and editors who can create and carry a story on film. It ain't easy.
Posted by fletch at 10:20 AM | Comments (4)
Wordless Wednesday
Posted by fletch at 7:37 AM | Comments (3)
July 15, 2008
Plasticware
Posted by fletch at 8:08 AM | Comments (1)