Posts Tagged ‘Photography’

January Photo Gallery: Abstracts

Monday, January 4th, 2010

This month’s photo gallery features abstracts. Many of these images are close-ups from nature, including bark patterns, lichen, and fungi. The detail and complexity you can find when looking closely can be amazing; I often try to remember this when I find myself in one of those “there’s nothing good to photograph here” moods.

For close-up pictures — depending on your subject — a macro lens is often essential. For a long time I used a Tamron 90mm f/2.9 macro, which gives excellent results for the price.

These days my go-to macro set-up is a Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 coupled with a Canon 500D 77mm Close Up Lens. This combo gets me very close, but gives me adequate working distance between the subject and lens (so I don’t accidentally knock those dew drops off the branch). It also provides more flexibility in framing and composition compared to a fixed focal length lens. Once I position the camera in range I can use the zoom to make minor adjustments in framing, which is much easier than trying to carefully move the tripod forward ¼ in over rough ground.

For more info on shooting close-ups, you might check out John Shaw’s Closeups in Nature, which is what I cut my teeth on.

Abstract photos don’t have to be close-ups of course. Anything has the potential to become an abstract photo when the surrounding context is removed, forcing the viewer to concentrate on the patterns and shapes instead of the overall scene.

View all my abstract and pattern pictures »

December Photo Gallery: Dogs in Snow

Friday, December 4th, 2009

Pictures of dogs playing in the snow is the theme for this month’s photo gallery. Taking good pictures of snow scenes can be challenging if you rely too much on your camera’s meter, since the meter is trying to make everything 18% gray. The solution? Make the snow white by “overexposing” a reading of the snow by 1.5-2 stops. Piece of cake.

New Photos Added Nov 2009

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

I’ve added a bunch of new photos to the website, including a pictures from trip to the tattoo shop, nature & landscape images, and, of course, pictures of dogs.

A trip to the tattoo shop

A big shout out to Justin Shaw of Faith Tattoo in Santa Rosa, CA, who let me photograph him at work creating a tattoo. My wife has been wanting an ankle tattoo for years, and finally took the plunge. Justin took her ideas of what she wanted and created a custom tattoo of just what she had imagined.

Justin Shaw of Faith Tattoo works on an ankle tattoo

Justin Shaw of Faith Tattoo works on an ankle tattoo

The photography for me was pretty different than my normal work, with extensive use of flashes to create the lighting. I used a Nikon SB-800 strobe in an umbrella for the main light, and another SB-800 behind Justin for rim lighting. Both were triggered wirelessly with the built-in flash of a Nikon D300 on commander mode, which let me remotely adjust the power of each flash as I went. Very cool.

Eastern Sierra

Another recent highlight was a camping trip to the Eastern Sierra Nevada in California, where we attempted to camp with two dogs for the first time. Here’s a tip: two adults and two full-size dogs do not fit in a two person tent. (And make sure to bring a towel – check out the shot of the muddy dog outside the tent. Not pretty.)

Morning alpenglow in Wolf Creek area of Toiyabe National Forest

Morning alpenglow in Wolf Creek area of Toiyabe National Forest in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, California

A muddy dog lies in the dirt waiting to get into a tent

A muddy dog lies in the dirt waiting to get into a tent

We had a great trip nonetheless, with stops in the Wolf Creek area of Toiyabe National Forest, and Highland Lakes in Stanislaus National Forest.

Half Moon Bay

There are also a group of pictures from Half Moon Bay, on the bluffs at Pillar Point. The wildflowers were out and the sky was typically foggy, which is a great combo for photos. I was able to get some photos of lupine, walking the dogs, and pictures of dogs among the wildflowers.

A golden retreiver rests in a field of wildflowers on the coastal bluffs of Pillar Point, Half Moon Bay, California

A golden retreiver rests in a field of wildflowers on the coastal bluffs of Pillar Point, Half Moon Bay, California

See the latest batch of new photos »

November Photo Gallery: Mushrooms

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

The wild mushroom season here in Northern California is picking up, so I thought mushrooms would be a good theme for this month’s photo gallery. This selection of fungi photos comes from California, Oregon, and even Arizona.

See the gallery version (no slideshow) »

When you’re walking through the woods looking for pictures this fall and winter, don’t forget to look down at your feet — there’s an amazingly diverse world of mushrooms down there.

See the full gallery of mushroom pictures »

Autumn Vineyard, California

Monday, September 21st, 2009

Wine grape leaf in the fall, Sonoma County, California

Autumn is coming, and often overlooked locations for great fall color are vineyards, especially in the California wine country. This photo of an autumn wine vineyard is from Sonoma County, California. (Please note that vineyards are private property. If you don’t have permission from the vineyard owner to be on their property, stick to shooting from the road.)

Photo Location: Sabino Canyon, Tucson, Arizona

Sunday, September 6th, 2009
Sabino Canyon, Coronado National Forest, Arizona

Sabino Canyon, Coronado National Forest, Arizona

Sabino Canyon Recreation Area (part of Coronado National Forest) sits on the Northeast side of Tucson, Arizona, tucked into the base of the Santa Catalina Mountains.

Surrounded on three sides by the Pusch Ridge Wilderness, the terrain ranges from relatively flat to rugged canyons and mountainsides. Miles of hiking trails and even a paved road (closed to traffic) allow easy access and provide ample photo opportunities.

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