Pics of the week 7/20

Well, ok, I'll admit it's saturday in KS, but it's Sunday SOMEWHERE already, so I'm going w/ that start time. (Taiwan, anybody?) Well,

I'm a couple hours away from having no internet access for a few days (stupid hospital...can't keep up w/ the world...) so I want to get this

out before I have to focus on getting real work done.

 

I know you've all seen stuff from these weddings before, but since I'm finally getting to do some PP work, I figure it still counts! This one

first, since matt FINALLY got around to showing me how to do this. Goober.<div></div>

Whoops! Sorry I forgot to put these on line first. Oh well. This one I was just goofing around liked the way the roses

(bright red, btw) looked like black velvet<div></div>

Last one. I think this is going to turn out to be one of my favorites. I'm still trying to decide what other effects to try w/ it -

just to see.. Very glad I turned it b&w (w/ either a yellow or green filter, I forget which). This is the same bride as above, on

her way to change out of this dress & into a traditional Vietnamese wedding dress.<div></div>

Those are great, Maria! I like the "first try" a lot. That effect can easily be overdone but I think yours is a nice application of it. Do you use filters on the lens, or later? The first seems a premature commitment to black and white, although I suppose film "old hands" are used to it. I bought a whole bunch of color filters on clearance right before I bought my DSLR, and have never used them.

 

All I've got this week are flowers and photos of my kids. (Rarely do I post anything else, I know). And lately there's been some general disdain for flower shots... so here's me and Eliza, playing with an off camera flash cord I picked up as a side benefit in an auction. I have no idea what I am doing. But these were kind of fun.<div></div>

Trying for an effect, and getting more than I bargained for:<div></div>

And lastly... of course SHE had to hold it for a while.<div></div>

Nick, other than a UV filter (or the "star" for candles, etc), the only filters I've ever used on a lens was a red filter for b&w

film, but not for any of these shots. Anymore, any b&w seen from me is all in Aperture or Photoshop. The top pic is a

color layer under a b&w layer & parts of the b&w layer erases, all in Photoshop. The 2nd 2 were both done in Aperture,

because aperture has a super easy control for that. Monochrome filter: red (or yellow, orange, green, or blue, or even

custom). Or if I'm feeling lazy, I can just desaturate, but I'm liking the filters. Gives the same look as popping one of those

on a camera loaded w/ b&w film.

WOW, I was waiting till at least midnight.

<P>

I'm gone all day tomorrow to Vermont, a 15 mile hike is planned so it's now or never.

<P>

First quintessential rural Vermont (um, isn't all of Vermont rural??)...I've been spending a lot of time hiking

there because 1) I haven't hiked there much 2) my car is designed for that type of driving (curvy winding

mountain roads, and the XX miles of dirt roads we cut through on a typical weekend as shown in the photo) 3) VT

gas is about 20 cents cheaper than NY which means nothing other than it's a bonus since I was headed there anyway.

<P>

<a title="Country Roads - Vermont, USA" href=" ><img

src="http://static.flickr.com/3175/2683500391_e59037d23f_d.jpg" border="0"/></a>

<P>

Next Hurricane Mountain from a 2 day backpack a few weekends ago. We did this and the Nundagao Ridge over two

days, a nice moderate weekend with some excellent views and hiking. This one needs a bit more burning in the

clouds but almost a finished product.

<P>

<a title="Hurricane Mountain Fire Tower - Adirondacks, NY"

href=" ><img

src="http://static.flickr.com/3241/2670937656_9ba86c420b_d.jpg" border="0"/></a>

<P>

And finally a family portrait on the Nundagao Ridge taken with the K20D, and if you look at my hand, it's that

pesky little $3 Amazon "Remote C" that arrived at my door back in February for $8 shipped. It definitely needs a

new battery, and I need to work on hiding it better but it sure beats getting up 5 times till we get everyones

eyes open!!! I used what my brother calls a "ghetto" Pentax flash diffuser and balance for the background. The

"ghetto" diffuser is a cut in half film cannister (maybe that is where my 3rd cannister was for so long). My

brother claims Canikon probably has something specially made for the camera while Pentax users have to resort to

this sort of ghetto looking thing.

<P>

<a title="Family Photo On The Nundagao Ridge" href=" ><img

src="http://static.flickr.com/3112/2683510887_9f224d765a_d.jpg" border="0"/></a>

Yeah! It is now nearly Sunday midday in Taiwan, and I was getting ready to post as I need to go play rugby in a few

hours time.

<P>

Maria - black velvet indeed! I love the look!<br>

Nick, the "Best of em" is really nice and natural. Off camera flash rocks.<br>

Justin, Hurricane mountain looks really good. I would love to see that large. The clouds as they are seem nice and

detailed to me.

<P>

Ok, so here are some from me. Fortunately the Typhoon only rolled in on Thursday, so I have stuff from earlier in the

week to post.<br>

My first is an attempt at an O Shiva kind of feel. Just seemed right for this wooden abstract:<br>

<a href=" title="Wood grain by Garry Young, on Flickr"><img

src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2392/2683590127_34aa10300c.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Wood

grain" /></a>

<P>

The second is a 2:1 macro of grass seeds:<br>

<a href=" title="Grass seeds by Garry Young, on

Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/2684410506_83c5f4c16d.jpg" width="500" height="333"

alt="Grass seeds" /></a>

<P>

And the third is of course two colleagues clowning around in my office, I love that they love the camera!<br>

<a href=" title="Jessica and Irene by Garry Young, on

Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3228/2683595471_0b4dc73e30_b.jpg" width="683" height="1024"

alt="Jessica and Irene" /></a>

<p>Garry - Love that abstract. I'm a sucker for textural abstracts and the processing on that one makes it shine.</p>

 

<p>I have a tough time shooting strangers so I spent this past week making a real effort to get out on the

streets and shoot people. I definitely had a lot of deletes, but I think these worked out pretty well.</p>

 

<p><b>Turning the corner</b></p>

<a href=" title="Turning the corner by TravisTruman, on

Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3007/2675150251_f1a77aab23.jpg" width="500" height="357"

alt="Turning the corner" /></a>

 

<p><b>Untitled</b></p>

<a href=" title="Untitled by TravisTruman, on Flickr"><img

src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3038/2675151231_ae5fcf9e32.jpg" width="500" height="358" alt="" /></a>

 

<p><b>Don't get around much anymore</b></p>

<a href=" title="Don't get around much anymore by

TravisTruman, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3185/2683423255_671875f619.jpg" width="500"

height="357" alt="Don't get around much anymore" /></a>

Travis, those people street shots are great! You have captured a great perspective/emotion with each one.

Maria, Great PP work especially the first...

Nick, That first image is a winner...Beautiful kid!!!!!

Justin, You need to post up something bad to show us your human :) .....

Garry, Love the black and white, I love the grain :)

Travis, You nailed it with the street photography...Those are my fav types of images...

 

Nice work all..Can't wait to see what else crops up...

Today was the first day in a while that I was able to get out and shoot and it was only because my Son was

bugging me to go out...I have been to busy having to work so I have not had time to go out and shoot..., but once

he grabbed his camera and gave me that smile and lets go dad, I could not resist, hence I called in sick

today......and my wife gave me the day off....While I took a bunch of pics today (mostly film) I enjoyed shooting

candids of my son...Well except for the one where he is on the bench making goofy faces.....

 

<a target='_blank' title='ImageShack - Image And Video Hosting' href='http://imageshack.us/'><img

src='http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/2448/clonenv7.jpg' border='0'/></a>

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Since I got a nearly mint *istD this week I can send my K10D finally for repair of the card slot. So expect some true retro

style TTL flashback photos next week, I'm already experimenting with my Metz, Braun's and Pentax TTL flashes :-)<div></div>

A little window shopping in the old city part of Zurich with my "new" Pentax *istD body.<div></div>

the first one with the Pentax *istD and the Pentax A-24mm F 2.8<div></div>

goodbye poor little K10D - hope to see you soon in good shape :-) Pentax A-50mm macro & Olympus a-macro close-up

lens<div></div>

I hope everyone will forgive me for not commenting, but I am in Vegas for a few days, and will be travelling for the next month or so. I have a couple of photos from last week, and if I get anything good I'll try and post it. I hate typing on the tiny laptop keyboard.<div></div>

I have never seen so many bees on a single flower. At one point there were 6 on there all jostling for position..<div></div>

Neighbor's patio .. wind chimes maybe?<div></div>

Maria, the wedding shots are great, especially the last one. Javier nice to see a budding photographer in the making. Haig,

I can't believe the bee shot, and all in focus. The wind chime shot is my fav. I decided to include some BW this week. I

wasn't happy with the focus in the second pic. It is a part of a flower (bird-in-paradise), I wanted the focus at the base and

thought I had it but I must have moved slightly. The shot of the old house, well, I just liked the way it came out.<div></div>

Bird-in-paradise<div></div>

an old house (or something)<div></div>

I love that first pic, Maria. Great treatment.

 

This past week, our city played host to the Canadian and Chinese-Taipei national junior baseball teams. They played three games each against each other and a local allstar team as a warm up for the world championships that start this week in Edmonton. It's also a warm up for us too. We host the next Worlds in 2010. I volunteered to help out and took a couple of days off work. I was assigned to take some photos. The four days kept my shutter finger busy as I snapped approximately 2,200 photos. Here are a few of my favourites.

 

 

First is Carter Bell fielding a groundball at short.

 

 

<a href=" title="A Hop, Skip & a Throw! by Fnawzm, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3277/2669580375_2a1119a6c9.jpg" width="500" height="334" alt="A Hop, Skip & a Throw!" /></a>

Brett Lawrie was the featured player from Team Canada. He was drafted 16th overall by the Milwaukee Brewers. I believe that it is the highest that a Canadian position player has been selected in the draft. He didn't disappoint. He blasted a home run in each game and put on some incredible shows in batting practice. Here's a shot after his first home run.

 

<a href=" title="Brett Lawrie by Fnawzm, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3047/2677105095_4d29cf3b84.jpg" width="500" height="334" alt="Brett Lawrie" /></a>