Puerto Angel Vacation Photos

As you may or may not have noticed, the blogging schedule has sort of gotten re-aligned again.  I had slipped from the 5-day schedule down to a 2-day schedule, but during a recent getaway, I was able to get things back on track.  Hopefully there won’t be any more changes to what is now a Mon-Wed-Fri setup, but news-breaking or other earth shattering info may trump the normal order of the universe!  In any case, during the break, I happened across a few really good photo ops.  Some gorgeous vistas and scenery, plus an occasional animal sighting from the trip to Puerto Angel Mexico (you’ll get more info if you subscribe to the free PhotographyBB magazine as a full-length article with many more photos is due out next month).

Nevertheless, since photos have not been at the forefront, I wanted to dedicate an entire post to sharing some photos from the trip here with you.  So, without further ado, some selects from the trip!

Water and Light

The idea of writing with light is nothing new to photography, the very word itself means to paint with light (from the Greek photo, meaning light, and graphos meaning write), the most successful photographers through time are ones that have incorporated an effective use of light in their work.

While reading through the Sept. issue of Rangefinder, I found myself re-visiting the subject yet again, and with artists who I’ve seen and admired before, including Clark Little and Eric Curry (you may have seen Eric’s work featured over on David Hobby’s Strobist site periodically…brilliant lighting setups!).  The whole idea gave me a moment of pause – how much of my own work has been cognizant of the power of light? (It was a very Joe McNally/National Geographic type of moment if such a moment could be attained by an aspiring one rather than successful ones like those mentioned above.)

Nevertheless, taking cue from their inspiration, I perused my own portfolio for the theme of light.  It was actually quite extensive, so much so that another theme had to be incorporated to pare things down further.  Since Clark Little’s work has always been a source of inspiration and envy, I decided to go with a water pairing.  How have I managed to capture both water and light effectively?  The exercise was a good one, and looking at your archives with a new vision or perspective has always been one I encourage.  So, without further ado, here’s my take on combining the themes of water and light:

As inspiring as it was for me, take this cue as a source of inspiration for yourselves…pick a theme (or two), and peruse your archives (or go shoot with the theme in mind), and see where your creativity will take you.  Got ideas for creativity along these lines?  Share ’em in the comments too, as ideas for inspiration are all around us.  Check out what everyone says in the comments section below!

Happy shooting all, and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

Cultures Colliding – a Podcast with Martin Bailey!

On this week’s show, we’ve got a lot to talk about including a couple of particular news stories to note, with a little insight from the crew, we’ll be taking your questions and answers on the show and the special guest of the week for this show is none other than the well-reknowned Martin Bailey!

Photo News

  1. 3rd Annual Worldwide Photo Walk has been announced by Scott Kelby, and details are here.
  2. Lightroom 3 was announced last week Monday – and is available to purchase and download…you can also download a 30 day trial for free from Adobe here (or buy via the sponsored link in the sidebar!)
  3. New Plugins available for LR – Pro Show Gold, a popular slideshow and movie creation software set.  Info here

Martin Bailey

  1. Photography and Culture in Japan: Laws or hassles shooting in public?
  2. Workshops and your development in photography
    • Workshops
    • Development/Inspiration
  3. X-Rite Colorati
  4. Martin on the web

Links: http://www.martinbaileyphotography.com/
Blog: http://blog.martinbaileyphotography.com/
Podcast: http://www.martinbaileyphotography.com/podcasts.php
Workshops: http://www.mbpworkshops.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/MartinBailey
Folio: Martin Baily Photography

Q&A

  • Professional Critique
  • Cost of Printing
  • Starting Camera Suggestions

Martin was also kind enough to share a sample selection of his portfolio with us here on the show.  These are the low res versions, to see things super nice, head on over to his folio link provided above.  In the meantime, enjoy the photos, the show, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow for the latest in photography reviews!

Snow Monkeys

Bathing Snow Monkeys

Snowy Hands

Distant Dance

Scene from Hokkaido

Soft Arched Wings

Honking Dance

Kussharo Lake Swans

Eagle Eye

Sunset Flight of the Cranes

Stag in Element

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Nothing But the Tail Lights

In the course of pursuing creative inspiration, I’ve often found that just picking a subject and sticking with it can be a good exercise in creativity.  Taking something and focusing (no pun intended) on that subject and only that subject can help you see things differently.  The exercise is good whether your subject is flowers, thumb drives, coffee mugs (which I’ve done in the past), or in this case – tail lights!

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As you can tell, some of the shots are pretty cool, others – well, not so much.  Some are out of focus, some are boring, but a few just pop and stand out.  Also note that I’ve not done any post processing of these.  I just imported into Lightroom 3, re-sized for export uniformity, and boom! – done.  While I grant you it’s not always showcasing the “best of the best” of your work, it’s is important though not to eliminate shots from the project, at least initially…because these “throwaways” can help you identify what works and what doesn’t work.  What makes certain shots stand out and why?  These are all things to look at when doing little mini projects like this.  So, pick a subject and fire away!  Feel free to share your own thoughts on what works and what doesn’t in the comments, and hopefully this will help kick-start some other projects!  Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here again tomorrow!

May We Salute You

The May pool of photos that everyone contributed to was quite stunning – the listening and reading audience is quite a talented group and some of the images on here were really incredible.  Full of vibrance, vision, color and passion – it was really hard to narrow things down – but I give you here just a few from the wonderful month of May.  There really is no better way to say it than: Continue reading “May We Salute You”

A dash of splash

First up – another web gallery of water drops – this time with a neutral black background that I developed in Lightroom.  I am tellin’ ya – this product is just too cool!  Photo management, editing, tagging, and gallery production all in one – what’s not to love?

Also up today, a little shout out to Dave Zarzacki, who owns a like new Canon XSi in mint condition, but just doesn’t need it in his gear bag (he’s trying to round out his collection with an SLR that will take all his current lenses).  It’s a great deal which includes the following:

  • XSi body (black) – $640 value from B&H
  • Canon 18-55 IS lens – $60 value as part of above kit from B&H
  • Tiffen UV filter – $7 value from B&H
  • 2 4GB SDHC cards – $25 value from Amazon
  • Gary Fong Puffer flash diffuser – $20 value from B&H
  • M-Rock Yellowstone bag ($54 value)

Individually, this would sell for over $800 easily, and Dave is only asking for $650 plus shipping.  I know the guy personally and can say that he knows how to take care of gear – this stuff will not have a scratch or scuff and will work as though new.  A great deal for someone starting out!  Any takers?  Drop me a line to get his email address and information.

Finally, for today, the Sigma lenses are in, and I can’t wait to start the review process on these this weekend!  Already found a few features that are just too cool for school!  Some other gear review items are on deck too – but I want to hear from you!  What do you want to learn more about in the way of products, gear, accessories, and such?  Sound off in the comments or with me via email!

Happy shooting all and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Grab the feed

Another Photo Finish Friday

With another Friday coming to an end, I am squeaking this one in under the wire too. After a deluge of rain delayed dinner and a few other odds and ends, I find myself finally sitting down to write the Friday post at 10:47 pm. Thankfully, the details are all worked out in advance so it really requires no additional work on my part.

As promised, my latest web gallery is up and viewable on the photo site directly at this link here: A Day in the Park, but a few previews of the ones I really loved have lightbox versions below:

One of the boys

Another One of the boys

Also of interest, and just in time for the weekend, the latest installment of the TOP test has been compiled and published. I still have a few questions to finish, and 2 of these I am culling from my image library for samples, so you will have to examine pictures this go around – so it’s real life shots that need evaluation, not just textbook definitions…although there’s plenty of that too. Hopefully this one will be a little more challenging, so take it and share your scores today: Top Test – Advanced Photography Exam

The portal page is also new, and the original exam page has almso moved relative to the folder structure movement from outside CB to inside CB (makes tracking easier)…Enjoy the exams and let me know if you have any ideas (An Expert or Pro level exam is also something I am considering compiling but I really would need some pros help in putting that together).

Until Monday then, here’s your weekly installment of WTD;

What The Duck

Until Monday, then, enjoy the weekend, happy shooting, and watch those apertures!