League City Photography Meet Up – 01.06.11

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I attended the January 2011 League City Photography Meet up this past week.  There was a great turnout of over 30 attendees.

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Announcements

Theme for January is Black & White

Upcoming Events in January

4th Annual Sporting Clays Tournament – Jan 28th & 29th – at the American Shooting Center       (call 281-727-6786 with questions)

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Topic – Night Photography

Al S. gave a great presentation on Night Photography. Below are the high points I gleaned.

The Mindful Eye is the site referenced throughout the presentation.

There are three Twilights

    • Civil - 1/2 hour prior to sunrise
    • Nautical – 1 hour prior to sunrise
    • Astronomical – 1 1/2 hours prior to sunrise

Required Supplies

    • DSLR with Bulb Mode
    • Wide Angle Lens
    • Tripod
    • Remote Release
    • Flashlights

High-Speed ISO Test

    • Set camera at the highest ISO
    • Aperture Prioity
    • Open lens all the way
    • Turn noise reduction off
    • Take shot
    • Check histogram - highlights need to be as far to the right as possible

ISO 3200/200 = 16    16 x 10 seconds = 160 seconds

ISO 3200 ISO 200
f/4.0 f/4.0
10 sec 160 sec

Almost same result between the two, but less noise.

Goal = perfect exposure @ the lowest ISO

Focus

    • Focus to infinity
    • Manual focus mode
    • Limit objects in the foreground

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Additional Information & Links

Photos from the Group

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"Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” -Aaron Siskind

My 365 Project

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Okay, I have decided to start a 365 Project, which means I take at least one photo everyday. I enjoy photography so much that I do not think I will have a problem taking one photo per day. Especially since there are so many tools that I can use on my iPhone...and that thing is with me 24/7. It will likely be an even split between my D90 and iPhone. Every now and then I will throw in a photo from my Holga (providing I learn to use it) and my husband's old Pentax Film SLR.

My 365 Project

Some different 365 Project sites -

This should be FUN!

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“Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas. It is a creative art.” -Ansel Adams

Photography Links of the Month for DEC 2010

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A Weekend to Remember Others

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I spent some time at Houston National Cemetery this passed weekend. The Wreaths Across America event was on Sunday, December 19th; however, the placement of the wreaths on each and every grave occurred over the last couple of weeks. It was an awesome site to see.

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I lost my Mother in 1982 and I try to visit her grave site on her birthday each year. On Monday, December 20th, she would have been 74 years old. While I was there I shot a few photos of a chapel that I have been seeing my whole life each time I go out there.

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Here is a link to all the photos in my Not Forgotten Flickr Set.

It was an emotional weekend.

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"Photography can only represent the present. Once photographed, the subject becomes part of the past." -Bernice Abbott

Presentation Recap: Color It's All In Your Head

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I attended a great presentation on color at the Houston Center for Photography (in November). Photographer Scott Campbell provided some great information in this talk.

Below are the notes I gathered from the talk

Challenges, as photographers, of all the color reproduction systems

  • Human Eye - sees 7-10 million colors
  • Camera/Scanner - 3 million colors
  • Modern day LCD monitor - 2 million colors
  • Slides/Transparencies - 17,000 colors
  • Ink Jet printer - 10,000 colors
  • Printing press (to magazine) - 6,000 colors

Nature of Human Vision

What is color? Phenomenon of light

Phenomenon - thing as it appears or is constructed by the mind.

5 phenomenon: taste, smell, hearing, seeing , feeling

We have the worst memory of sight

In order for color to happen there must be 3 things present

  • Observer
  • Object
  • Light

Characteristics of light (the physics)

Electromagnetic spectrum

electromagnetic spectrum

Red, Green and Blue (RGB) are the primary colors of white light

  • Red light + Green light = Yellow light
  • Green light + Blue light = Cyan light

Characteristics of the eye

  • Lens - gathers light
  • Retina
  • Fovea - color is created

The Fovea contains rods that are sensitive to contrast/luminosity and cones that are sensitive to color.

Women have more cones than rods which mean they see vibrant colors better than men.

Men have more rods than cones which mean they see more contrast and luminosity than women.

Some colors are created by a sensation in the brain. For example, when the green and blue cones in the fovea become stimulated, electrical pulses go to the brain and the mind creates the sensation of cyan. Same with a banana, the red and green cones become stimulated creating the sensation of yellow.

Magenta is a made-up color that is created when the red and blue cones are stimulated. Magenta is the inverse of green.

R + G + B

   Y    C

      G

      M

There is no Magenta in the rainbow; however, two prisms overlapped can create Magenta.

Problems to Overcome with Color

  • Chromatic Adaptation
  • Color Adjacency
  • Fovea Fatigue

5000 Kelvin = Pure White Light

Different kinds of light (incandescent, florescent, etc) affect the way you see colors.

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Photos To Look At - Beautiful Eagles

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Paul Randall has posted a set of articles containing some AWESOME eagle photos that he and Kimberly Tripp have been taking in Alaska.

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Bald Eagles in Alaska (Part 1)

Bald Eagles in Alaska (Part 2)

Bald Eagles in Alaska (Part 3)

Bald Eagles in Alaska (Part 4)

I thoroughly loved looking at the beauty of these mystic birds. I do plan to make it to Alaska one day.

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“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” ~ Dorothea Lange

League City Photography Meetup – 12.02.10

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I attended the December 2010 League City Photography Meet up this past week.  There was a great turnout of about 35 attendees.

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Announcements

Upcoming Events in December

Topic – Various Tips

George McBroom informed us of the return of the Baytown Eagles and recommended we try to make it out to see them. Directions to the Eagle’s nest. Thanks George!

George also gave a great presentation on some sharpening methods in PhotoShop.

Trudy LeDoux and David Paulissen talked about their experience at Art Crawl Houston in November. They were invited to include their work at the event. [Photos]

Robin Binder talked about the services her company provides for other photographers.

I provided a handout containing an interesting article that I had run across earlier in the week titled 7 Tips for Better Architectural Photography.

Additional Information & Links

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Photos from the Group

pblog

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"Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever... it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” -Aaron Siskind

Photography Links of the Month for NOV 2010

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This is the latest installment of photography-related links that I have found interesting in the last month.

My flickr photo picks for the month (ie Other People's Photos That I Like)

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Links for the month 

These links are also listed as a category on my weekly installment of links on RhondaTipton.Net.

Other Photography Link Collections

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“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” ~Dorothea Lange

League City Photography Meet up – 11.04.10

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I attended the November 2010 League City Photography Meet up Group this past week.  There was a pretty good turnout of about 17 attendees.

Announcements

Upcoming Events in November

Topic – Various Tips

David Paulissen reviews a couple of articles that go into various tips for photography.

The first article he reviewed was Five Tips for Better Wildlife Photos by Andrew Goodall.

The article goes into depth on the below tips -

    • Tip #1. Get to the subject's eye level.
    • Tip #2. It's All In The Eyes.
    • Tip #3. If The Background Doesn't Help, Get Rid Of It.
    • Tip #4. If Your Background Is Working For You, Use It Well.
    • Tip #5. Capture your subject in the best possible light.

The second article dealt with how to hold your camera. (could not find a link to that, but it was some good information.

The last article that David reviewed was 12 Ways to Never Miss a Photo Opportunity by Jim Goldstein.

There are several really good tips in the article.

    • Have a camera bag that enables you to easily and quickly access your camera
    • Be sure to have not just (1) one fully charged battery but (2) two
    • Be sure to clean the front and rear elements of your lens to minimize spots (optionally cleaning your camera sensor)
    • Before heading out make sure you have CF cards in your camera that are empty or have lots of free space
    • Pre-set your camera settings for the type of subject you’re aiming to photograph
    • If you have a camera with image stabilization or vibration reduction set your lens appropriately for the subject
    • Have needed filters on your lens or take filters off your lens as necessary before heading out.
    • It may sound obvious but take off your lens cap.
    • Head out with a notion of what you’d like to photograph and how, but always keep your eyes open for new subjects and the unexpected
    • Have your camera on and your hand on your camera bag
    • Stay focused
    • Don’t Chimp

Again, the article goes into detail on each point.

Additional Information

Another tip that was given was on White Balance. Try using the Cloudy WB setting when shooting outdoors. Also, if you shoot in RAW, you can batch fix any White Balance issues.

At the table I was sitting at, someone, Diego I think, mentioned that the Smithsonian was holding online photo contests. Below is the link I found.

The 8th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

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Photos from the Group

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"A photograph is usually looked at - seldom looked into."  -Ansel Adams

Book Review: National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide to Photography

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The National Geographic Ultimate Field Guide to Photography is an all-encompassing intro to everything photography. It touches on just about every topic in photography that I, as an amateur, can think of. Things that range from Buying your digital camera to scanning and archiving your photos. Some other topics covered include the digital darkroom, film photography and doing projects.

The basics of Aperture, Shutter Speed, etc are also covered.

The book also goes into detail on the different types of lenses and photography.

Types of Lenses

Wide Angle Telephoto Fisheye
Zoom Macro Tilt/Shift
Standard Split field  


Types of Photography

Portrait Landscape Wedding
Wildlife Macro  

The book even goes into how to shoot better with your mobile phone/device.

In closing, I enjoyed reading this book and reviewing the photos with awe. I highly recommend checking it out, especially if you are a beginner wanting to learn photography.

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“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” ~ Dorothea Lange

Photography Links of the Month for Oct 2010

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This is my latest installment of photography-related links that I have found interesting in the last month.

My flickr photo picks for the month (ie Other People's Photos That I Like)

Links for the month

These links are also listed as a category on my weekly installment of links on RhondaTipton.Net.

Other Photography Link Collections

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"A photograph is usually looked at - seldom looked into."  -Ansel Adams

Lie-Nielson Hand Tool Event

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My husband attends the Lie-Nielson Hand Tool Event every year. This year I thought I would tag along and photograph the show. There were quite a few objects of interest, so I had a lot of fun taking photos.

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 My Husband did a detailed write-up of the event and I have published it below

I attended the Lie-Nielsen Hand Tool Event on Saturday October 23, 2010. The event was hosted in a large metal building by BC Woodwork in Houston, TX. Massive logs surrounded the building and filled the lot across the street. Inside the building were piles of stickered lumber, looks like they keep it in order as it was sliced from the log. If you are planning on building a large piece of furniture I would check this place out.

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Back to the event. It was hosted by Lie-Nielsen who setup two workbenches with two representatives demonstrating their tools and giving everyone a chance to test drive any tool. The two reps were very knowledgeable and it was laid back with a friendly atmosphere; no pressure to buy anything. I test drove their small, medium and large shoulder planes and was pleased with the feel of the tools and results when put to wood.

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Glen-Drake Toolworks had a bench setup and Kevin Drake was demonstrating his tools and let everyone give them a test drive. He has a unique way of cutting dovetails. I thought I had seen every technique but this was new to me. It involves a dovetail saw, Tite-Mark marking gauge, off-set feeler gauge and a kerf-starter that matches the kerf of the dovetail saw. I tried out his new saw and it worked as advertised. I was able to cut a straight line using the indention created by the Kerf-Starter.

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Joe Slack from Homestead Heritage had a booth setup displaying some examples from his Guitar maker class. I did not see any demonstrations from Homestead Heritage this year. Last year Frank Strazza gave some excellent demonstrations. Maybe Frank will be back next year.

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I met Matt Adams who makes custom spoons and kitchen utensils. He is very passionate about woodworking and I think his favorite tool is the spokeshave. He showed me his spoons and wooden hand planes. He does very nice work.

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I thoroughly enjoyed the event and I think anyone interested in hand tools should attend one. I love hand tools and plan on going again next year.

My wife was kind enough to photograph the event and here is a link to her photos:

http://picasaweb.google.com/rtipton12/LieNielsonHandToolEvent

Video describing Hand Tool Events from Lie-Nielsen:

http://www.youtube.com/user/LieNielsen#p/u/15/d_iIRirhGFs

Offset-Layout Technique for Dovetails:

http://blogs.popularwoodworking.com/editorsblog/content/binary/Glen-Drake%20Technique.pdf

New Saw From Glen-Drake Toolworks:

http://blogs.popularwoodworking.com/editorsblog/New+Saw+From+GlenDrake+Toolworks.aspx

Homestead Heritage:

http://www.homesteadheritage.com/index.html

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“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” ~Dorothea Lange

Brazos Bend & A Wood Stork Migration

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On Saturday, we decided to jump in the car and start driving without any plans. We started down 288 toward Lake Jackson and came across the exit to Brazos Bend State Park and decided to take it. Yes, we've been to Brazos Bend a lot, but it is a hard place to get tired of.

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This time we were in for a real treat. We had been there about two hours and were about to leave when we decided to take one more drive around the park. We happened across these trees filled with large birds. I am not a birder, so at the time I had no idea what they were, I was just amazed at the sheer number. One of the park attendants came through and told us that they were Wood Storks and they come through here once a year on their way to Mexico. About fifteen minutes later, they started getting restless and in about another twenty minutes they were all gone. The mass exodus was simply amazing...it is the only words I have to describe it.

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Additional Information

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Photograph:  a picture painted by the sun without instruction in art.  ~Ambrose Bierce

Texas Photo Festival - 2010

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Last weekend, I attended the Texas Photo Festival in Smithville, Texas. It is a yearly event that offers numerous photographic opportunities such as a marching band, skate park, dog park, dragsters and "small-town" sites in general. There was also a train ride through the historic district that provided even more photo ops.

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There was also a PhotoShop class instructed by Suzette Allen that I was not able to attend.

My [Texas Photo Festival] Photo Set on Picasa

My [Texas Photo Festival - Smithville] Photo Set on Flickr

League City Photography Group [Texas Photo Festival in Smithville] Photo Set

From Houston, this was an easy day-trip. I will definitely make an effort to attend this event each year.

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When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs.  When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.  ~Ansel Adams

League City Photography Meet up – 10.07.10

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I attended the October 2010 League City Photography Meet up Group this past week.  There were a few new faces and lots of information changing hands.

Announcements

Themes for this month

  • Panning
  • Shoot the Moon (best 125-250 @ f8-f11)

Topic

ISO basically turns up sensitivity on your sensor to shoot in low light. The tradeoff is noise.

Here are a couple of links that have some good information on ISO -

Auto ISO might be an alternative to remembering to change the ISO all the time. If you do not use Auto ISO, this article suggests that if you make it a habit to change the ISO back to 200 when you are finished shooting for the day, it may help prevent ISO disasters created from forgetting that your ISO is set on 1000+ when you are shooting outdoors in sunny conditions.

Additional Information

Noise Reduction Software

UPDATE: I ran across a good article from Light Stalking titled What Every Photographer Should Know About Reducing Noise in PhotoShop.

Zenfolio (now a sponsor - 15% off for the first year for the group)

Other Links

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"A photograph is usually looked at - seldom looked into."  -Ansel Adams

Mobile Phone Photography

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I love to take photos and I use whatever is at my disposal to do it even if it is my mobile phone.  I have heard so many photographers say "It's the photographer, not the camera." - I am working toward taking cool photos whether it's my iPhone, point-n-shoot or DSLR. Heck, I am even considering buying one of those disposable cameras from Walgreens to see what I can do with it.

Here are few photos that I have taken recently with my iPhone -

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Full iPhone Shots Set on Flickr

My favorite iPhone apps at this point in time are Camera+, Hipstamatic and PhotoShop Express.

Below are some great links that I have run across on the subject of mobile phone photography. 

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"There are always two people in every picture:  the photographer and the viewer."  ~Ansel Adams

Photo Day at the Houston Zoo

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We attended Photo Day at the Houston Zoo this past Saturday (9/25/2010). It was the first time I have done a Photo Day and I had a blast! It does cost to attend ($40/adult - non-member), but it was worth it to me. I was able to get some cool shots before the crowd started rolling in. It was awesome. They basically let you in the gate, give you a cup of coffee, kolache and run of the zoo grounds for two hours. Awesome!

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Full Houston Zoo Set on Flickr

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"If I could tell the story in words, I wouldn't need to lug around a camera."  ~Lewis Hine

Photography Links of the Month for Sep 2010

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2010 Xtreme Hummingbird Xtravaganza

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The Xtreme Hummingbird Xtravaganza took place on September 11th and 18th at the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory in Lake Jackson, TX.  The events and booths were open from 8AM-Noon and offered some pretty cool photo opportunities. The area is a great habitat for birds, alligators and other reptiles. There was a booth where young hummingbirds were being banded. This was an amazing process to watch.

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Picasa Xtreme Hummingbird Xtravaganza Set - Flickr Southern Brazoria County Set

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"A good snapshot stops a moment from running away." -Eudora Welty