Friday, April 30, 2010

Documentary in Six or Less Photos



























Whew

Dan






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2 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Nicely done, Dan :). And just under the wire, too.

For everyone: It is sometimes difficult to know the real order of the pictures, unless you post them with "none" as the alignment. They will then appear left justified in sequential order.

--Warren

Saturday, May 1, 2010 at 8:17:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Like LIke Like! This could be the 'commute to work' documentary which would show a great alternative to burning billions of gallons of gasoline in millions of cars.. And point out that we can all, in effect, contribute to preventing terrible oil spills *ahem* by lowering the demand for it! LIKE LIKE LIKE.. :) Wooo! Okay, End rant. Nice set of pics. loving those california poppies :D

Sunday, May 2, 2010 at 10:41:00 PM PDT  

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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Documentary in Six or Less Photos

So I guess the pictures are supposed to speak for themselves ... ummm... I'll see what you all think about them before saying what I had in mind.

Thanks!








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4 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Lea, thank for playing :) It's okay to title the series (to give us a clue). I really like the first picture, such an idyllic setting, the swans seem to be talking to each other. Then, BOOM!, sudden intrusion by humans (for better or worse), and now the swans are annoyed and upset by being tagged.

It seems that everyone is MIA again. I'm okay with the "shadows" idea for May. Let's see if anyone else speaks up.

--Warren

Friday, April 30, 2010 at 8:28:00 AM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Hey Lea, this is great. I say courtship is the theme for me. Something about swans that evokes romance. Maybe because they mate for life.

Great shots

I like the shadow game. That will be fun.

Dan

Friday, April 30, 2010 at 5:10:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

So... Lea, what did you have in mind? :)

--Warren

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 11:34:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

What I was thinking about was the bird's ability to show off its dislikes... It seems like a well timed tag-biting, doesn't it?

In the first social "chatty" picture, it's like they don't notice anyone but themselves. They carry on as usual but when I came in closer, they're pretty quick to point out that these yellow things aren't so nice. Trying to bite it off.

And the last shot really looks like the swan gives up on its efforts to convince me, and when I leave it will return to shot #1, carrying on as usual. Until the next person comes around.. ;)

I guess it's just visual commentary on the swans and their tags.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 1:08:00 PM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Maiden Lane

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 14-45mm

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Friday, April 23, 2010

A Bridge in Yosemite

Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 85mm f2.0

We went to Yosemite last weekend for a few days. The weather was perfect. I had an opportunity to practice a bit more with the G1. I'm beginning to know the camera better now, but I still have a way to go before knowing it completely. For this trip, I brought 3 lenses, 2 were native M4/3 lenses (Lumix 20mm and Lumix 14-45mm), and the 3rd was my Nikkor 85mm f2.0 to give me something on the telephoto end (170mm equivalent).

This is one of my shots taken with the 85mm. I'm also beginning to get more comfortable with using adapted lenses on the G1. The operating procedure is: 1) open to full aperture for optimum focusing 2) press the buttons that bring up the magnified live view for focusing (if necessary) 3) set focus 4) choose preferred aperture (if necessary) 5) compose and shoot. It sounds cumbersome, but with practice, this routine becomes second nature, and can go fairly quickly. The silky smooth focusing ring action on my 85mm Nikkor is a joy to use, and these M4/3 camera bodies give new life to all vintage lenses from any manufacturer, as many photographers have already discovered.

I would be interested to know what feelings or emotions this image evokes from you. It's okay if it doesn't evoke anything, and you can tell me that too :).

By the way, April is almost over, and nobody else (besides myself) has posted anything related to our April Project. For those of you who promised to participate, I hope you've been busily shooting for the project :). It's also time to talk about the May Project too. Any suggestions? As I said at the end of last month, we can also give it a rest for a while too, to put less pressure on ourselves :).

--Warren


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2 Comments:

Blogger Ted M said...

Hi Warren, the bridge looks very sharp and symmetrical. The forest behind reminds me of a scene from the Twilight series. It's an interesting shot.

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 10:27:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

ZOOOOM. We're all getting sucked into another dimension if we cross that bridge!

I think you could crop it further to have even more "zoom". I like the textures and even the cool colors surrounding the bridge, which is without a doubt the center of attention :)

Yes I am on board the April Project train now too! I'm pretty sure I was one of the promisers. lol.

As for Mayyyyyy... how about shadows. Indoors. Outdoors. Under the door. Wherever you find them. Just one photo per entry. Yeah? No?

Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 9:00:00 PM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Heavenly Spotlights

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 20mm f1.7, Nikkor 85mm f2.0

Yesterday, after work, I looked out our back window and saw a spectacular cloud and light formation. For a brief moment, I contemplated rushing outside, but I realized that I had to catch the scene before it changed forever. It's a true, special moment in time, that will probably never be repeated the same way ever again. I had my Lumix G1 handy, and immediately took some shots with the 20mm that happened to be on the camera. I then looked on my desk for the right telephoto to use. I decided on the Nikkor 85mm, and it already had the M4/3 adapter mounted on it.

By any chance, did any of you folks in the SF area see this yesterday? If so, I hope you had a camera with you :)

--Warren











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9 Comments:

Blogger Ted M said...

Hi Warren, yes, we saw this just before sundown while flying from SJC to Sacramento. My daughter has some great shots from the sky. I will try to post one tomorrow.

Thursday, April 22, 2010 at 12:19:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Steve said...

Warren,

That is spectacular! All the reason to have small high quality cameras always ready for a moment like this.

Steve Fong

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 10:04:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Ted M said...

Hi Warren, here is a link to a photo my daughter Meg took on the same day as yours. We're somewhere NW of SF, on the way to Sacramento around 7pm-ish.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=177837&id=504326530&l=aef681a6ab

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 11:51:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Ted, thanks for the link to Meg's picture. It's very interesting to see a different perspective.

--WT

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 12:01:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Hi Steve, thanks for the comment. It's been a while since we heard from you. How have you been? Still concentrating on videos?

--Warren

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 9:58:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Steve said...

Hi Warren,

I'm still doing video and photos, just have a tendency to get seriously sidetracked.

I went out and did some shooting with Jack Lam last week.

How do you like the 4/3rds format? I'm intrigued by the portability and the stunning video capabilities of the Panny GH1.

I just got a new camera and some nice lenses last week so don't be surprised if I return from my long period of absence.

BTW, I have a D2X and D70 that I need to sell if you know anyone interested

Steve

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 8:51:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Hi Steve,

Let me know when you want to come back to post again, and I'll put you back on the contributor roster. Let me guess, you are now into full-frame digital, right? Which camera did you buy? D3x? D700?

I really like the M4/3 format. I chose to get into it mostly because of the portability factor. And I'm surprised to say it, but I have not taken a single picture with my 7 years old D100 since I got the G1. I will shoot the D100 again, but I want to get to know the G1 thoroughly right now.

--Warren

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 6:49:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Forgot to mention, the other reason that I got into m4/3 is the lens adaptability factor. I'm able to use all my Nikkor and Leica lenses on the G1!

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 6:51:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Steve said...

Hi Warren,

I shoot a lot of basketball and have no need for more mega pixels but the low light capabilities and dynamic range were my main criteria so I got the D3S.

So far, I am amazed by the high ISO quality. 3200 looks as good as 400 on my D2X and 6400 looks excellent. 12800 looks far better than the D2X 800.

I'll let you know when I'm ready to post anything.

Steve

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 10:31:00 PM PDT  

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Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Photo Archaeology

Man By TracksHere's a scan of a 37-year-old negative. If I remember correctly, I tried to print this one back in the day, but never got a good image out of it. The negative actually is fine, with a lot of detail. If I had to guess, I didn't have paper that was high enough contrast to do it justice.

I took this picture one Sunday at Penn Station in Baltimore, back in the days when you could wander around the platforms without causing anyone any anxiety. It was just a few days after I bought a Leica IIIc and a Canon Serenar 50mm f/1.8 lens.

Tonight, I scanned this negative, along with some others, on my Epson V500 scanner. I've only used the scanner for documents up until now, but its raw specs implied it would do a good job on negatives and slides. I cranked up the resolution to its maximum, 4800 dpi, and it yielded a 28-megapixel file. I noticed in Photoshop that it was 26" x 17" at 240 dpi. Just a little manipulation in Photoshop to adjust the blacks was all it needed to make a compelling image. I didn't even apply any sharpening, as the scanned image just didn't need any.

On-screen and on the web, I think the image looks great. I'll have an 18x12 print made from this file to see how that looks, but for the time being, I'm very happy with the film-scanning ability of the V500.

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7 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

The scan looks great. Re: the image, a really nice use of converging lines, and a nice, vintage feel overall. It could have been a scene from the 40's :).

--Warren

Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at 5:05:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Steve, are you still printing enlargements at home? Just curious.

--WT

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 9:24:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

Hi Warren,

Not lately - I want to calibrate my screen and printer - I have the equipment and software, but just haven't gotten around to it yet :-(

Meanwhile, when I need a really good print I go to my local Costco - they do an excellent job, up to 12"x18".

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 10:59:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Steve, just curious, is 12x18 a standard print format? I haven't had big prints made lately, so I'm out of touch with reality on this :).

The sizes I know from the old days are:

4x6
8x10
11x14
16x20

are there more modern equivalent standard print sizes, and are standard frames available for the new sizes?

--Warren

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 11:07:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

forgot to mention 20x30...

I had a 35mm image blown up to 20x30 before too.

--WT

Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 11:23:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

Hi Warren - 12x18 happens to be the size of paper they use at Costco. Before I blew up my larger Canon printer, it printed up to 13x19 - that seems to be a standard paper size you can get nowadays for inkjet paper.

Monday, May 3, 2010 at 5:46:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

Oh, I forgot to answer your question about frames for this size.

I took a $25 class a few years ago where I learned to cut my own mats. What I do with the 13x19 or 12x18 prints is to use a 24x18 frame (easy to find,) cut a 24x18 piece from a standard mat board you can buy at art supply places (I think they're typically 32x40 or so,) and cut a "window" for whatever the size of the image is.

Monday, May 3, 2010 at 5:52:00 PM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Coffee Shop Reflections

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 14-45mm

Do you recognize this location? I'm sure some of us have been there a few times :)

--Warren

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4 Comments:

Blogger dan in marin said...

Need more of a clue Warren. Nice image brings mystery along with your test of where this is from.

Dan

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 8:11:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Dan, it's related to your Zip Lining picture, but now that I said that, it will be too easy :).

--Warren

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 9:49:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Eric said...

Wow, man, I really like this. It's very artsy.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 8:43:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Thanks for the comments. I guess there are no guesses :). This is at Peets Coffee in the Ferry Building. The windows look out to the ferry terminals.

--WT

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 9:15:00 AM PDT  

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Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Zip Lining


Caught these two guys on the way to my ferry boat the other day

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Sunday, April 11, 2010

Wet Mockingbird

Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 500mm f8 Reflex

We had a brief period between today's rain showers, and I saw this mockingbird flying around in the backyard trees. I quickly mounted the 500mm onto my G1 and snapped a few shots before it flew away.

He really blends into his surroundings :).

--Warren

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Friday, April 09, 2010

Me Abstracted

Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 50mm f1.4

Another byproduct of my continuing experimentation with adapting lenses to the G1 body, and also pushing limits of the format in terms of exposure and sensitivity. This is a handheld, low light, and highly cropped mirror shot, so that's my left eye/left side. Lots of apparent noise/grain, but hopefully the content and composition offsets it a bit. :)

--Warren

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2 Comments:

Blogger Eric said...

You look like you are looking around a corner and getting ready to kill someone.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 8:45:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

I don't look THAT scary, do I? :)

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 9:13:00 AM PDT  

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Thursday, April 08, 2010

Egg Yolk Sunset


Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 500mm f8 reflex, on monopod

Tonight's sunset, looking out my back window.

--Warren

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4 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

Wow nice 'space' gradient! Provides a very smooth transition from near to far.

Friday, April 9, 2010 at 12:13:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Dolph Brust said...

Warren,

Nice use of lines and shapes. The fog does a nice job of cutting off the bottom of the sun.

**Dolph

Friday, April 9, 2010 at 9:27:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Eric said...

That is a nice composition. The sun really catches your eye.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 8:46:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Thanks for the comments, it was fun making this shot.

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 9:13:00 AM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 07, 2010

Twilight at Stow Lake

Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 24mm f2.0







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2 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

I like this post! the time shared among the set (twilight) keeps it unified while the differing locations of the lake make each image unique and important.. What is my favorite thing is the feeling of being impossibly at all locations at once. it is like you set four cameras for the same time to *click* .

Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 1:53:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Thanks Lea! You're very perceptive, I was indeed working very fast yesterday evening, hurrying from location to location before the light completely faded out. :)

--Warren

Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 6:59:00 AM PDT  

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Aquatic Park Piers

1 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Oops! I went over the limit on number of pictures to include. I forgot that it was supposed to be max of 6.

--WT

Wednesday, April 7, 2010 at 8:40:00 AM PDT  

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Tuesday, April 06, 2010

Retired Marquee

Canon G11

I'm finally getting to some shots that I made while testing out Dennis F.'s Canon G11. I have a few more to post soon.

--Warren

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Sunday, April 04, 2010

School Assignment
























































4 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Very effective! You must have had fun doing this assignment :)

--Warren

Sunday, April 4, 2010 at 10:59:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

the clouds look amazing in the landscapes. but the raining one is my fav :)

Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 5:15:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Thanx guys. I had trouble with the rain shot. Warren, the TA in my class said the old trick is to do a double exposure of the rain and use a flash on the second exposure. Seems interesting.

Dan

Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 8:06:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Hi Dan, I have not done much shooting in the rain, but that flash trick would be fun to experiment with someday.

--WT

Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 9:50:00 PM PDT  

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Friday, April 02, 2010

Backyard Cat

Panasonic DMC-G1, Nikkor 500mm f8, monopod

I was testing my G1 with my Nikkor 500mm Reflex lens (1000mm equiv. in 35mm), and I saw a convenient subject sunning himself across the way in my neighbor's back porch. This was taken through a window. I look forward to using this combo for some extreme telephoto shots outside one of these days.

--Warren

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3 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

plotting to break out it looks like! hehehe.

Friday, April 2, 2010 at 5:34:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Ted M said...

Wow, that is extreme reach Warren! The SF Zoo should be fun, I ran out out of reach many times there with 400mm (35mm equivalent).

Is the 2nd-3rd post supposed to be painted grey, or is it an artifact?

Friday, April 2, 2010 at 8:10:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

The grey bits are the door grey painted door frame. It was a coincidence that it matched the color of the cat :).

--Warren

Friday, April 2, 2010 at 9:49:00 PM PDT  

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Thursday, April 01, 2010

Windmill

Windmills seem to be a favorite for landscape images perhaps it brings about a nostalgic memories, and this silhouette struck me as dramatic. Shot in West Marin with the s90 at 7:45 PM. Did some noise work on it but that is pretty much the extent of post processing.

1 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

Beautiful sky! I love the variety of cloud shapes and colours and distances. Really makes it pop out, even with half of the image being a silhouette.

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 9:58:00 AM PDT  

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Pool Hall


Was waiting for the bus and turned around one early morning and thought this was interesting. Handy to have the s90 in your pocket.
Dan

4 Comments:

Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

This is great, Dan! A wonderful "found composition" that you isolated and beautifully executed. And you got the image because you had your camera handy.

I agree, I tend to take my S90 everywhere - I'm switching to all cargo pants so that I have plenty of room in my pockets ;-)

I use the little Tyvek® envelope the camera came in to protect it from scratches while in my pocket. I just keep the envelope closed by putting a hefty rubber band around it. I tried some commercial cases, but the camera/case combination then ends up being too bulky.

When my envelope eventually wears out, I'll make a new one from a recycled manila folder and duct tape.

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 9:05:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

That's a standout! Interesting shapes and lighting and lines ..and setting! Very original :)

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 9:54:00 AM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Thanx Guys, good idea Steve, I have not been happy with the commercial case, as you say it kind of defeats the purpose of a shirt pocket camera. I will rig something up in the same manner as you have.

Dan

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 4:30:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Good eye, Dan. At first glance, this reminds of the drawn swords at a military wedding. I also like the opposing "v" shapes that the overhead lights make.

--WT

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 11:39:00 PM PDT  

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