"There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept." - Ansel Adams
Blog
"Which of my photographs is my favorite? The one I'm going to take tomorrow." -Imogen Cunningham
Welcome to the blog! The most updated section of this site, showing some of my latest and greatest. If you see something that interests you, please comment, like, and share.
Quote of the Day
"Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst." - Henri Cartier-Bresson
Quote of the Day
"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the the viewer." - Ansel Adams
Quote of the Day
"A portrait is not made in the camera, but on either side of it." - Edward Steichen
Quote of the Day
"Beauty can be seen in all things, seeing and composing the beauty is what separates the snapshot from the photograph." - Matt Hardy
Erik Johansson's Amazing Photography
For a little photograhy/composite inspiration today: Erik Johansson's TED talk on "Impossible Photography." I love looking at what this guy can do with a camera, photoshop, and a HUGE imagination.
To see more of Erik's work, visit his site at http://erikjohanssonphoto.com/
Enjoy your Wednesday, go create something!
Quote of the Day
“You don't make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” - Ansel Adams
A Walk In The Park
My mission yesterday was to get away a little bit from the architectural photos that I've been doing lately and do more street photography style. So I headed off to Balboa Park, a great place to see people of all kinds. Here's a little of what I saw during my walk in the park.
I hope you enjoy. Please like, comment, and share.
Santa Fe Station, San Diego
Last weekend I took a ride downtown to SD's train depot, Santa Fe Station. It is a great building and I already have plans to go back to do some more shooting. Most of these were done with the wide angle lens I was borrowing from BorrowLenses as I was testing it out. I think it did very well, indeed.
Please like, comment, and share.
Happy Saturday All.
Portraits of Strangers
I can't imagine running around with a full crew, lights and everything, doing this - but it's an interesting idea.
Splitscreen: A Love Story
This is such a cool idea!
Quote of the Day
“Always seeing something, never seeing nothing, being a photographer” - Walter De Mulder
Broadway Street Pier
Shootin' Wide
I got the Tokina 12-24 from BorrowLenses yesterday, and decided to take it out for a test drive. My original goal was to head down to the beach and shoot something for my 52 Week Project of sunsets, but sadly San Diego decided it would be a foggy cold day at the beach. I still got out and took a few shots, and then headed back to University Heights and just walked around a bit. So far, I'm liking the lens. I have two events for Giving Back Magazine tonight, and I'm taking it with me. Check in tomorrow to see how that goes!
Here are a few images from yesterday. Feel free to comment, like, and share. I'd love to know if anyone else has shot with this lens and their feelings on it.
Happy Saturday.
Photographing Abandon Places
I love images of abandoned buildings and places. I'm on the look out for some cool (and safe) spots to do some of this shooting in San Diego, but it seems many places are tore down or reinvented with a quickness around here. I came across this article and that desire has sparked once again. If you have any ideas of cool places to shoot in and around San Diego, please pass them along!
Quote of the Day
“A picture is a secret about a secret, the more it tells you the less you know.” - Diane Arbus
Testing Gear
Recently I've decided that I need a wide angle lens. There are so very many opinions on the internet about which lens is best, and for every "This is the best lens EVAH!" there is a "Focus was off. Do. Not. Buy." So I've taken to trying out lenses first. This Friday I have the Tokina lens coming. It will be my first non-nikon try, but I'm excited about the prospect.
If you're looking at buying any new gear, I suggest a tester from Borrowlenses.com. I've rented from them before and renting is easy and fast. Click the link below and check them out. Today.
Go on! What are you waiting for?
Do I need Photoshop?
Recently I've had a lot of friends that want to dip into the photography world, and after the inevitable "what camera do you have" discussion, and after they buy a fancy camera comes the Photoshop question. Do they need it, how much is it, do I use it, how do you use it... on and on. My response usually includes the phrase, "you don't need Photoshop to take great photos," which is true. I started taking photos long before I ever got my hands on Photoshop, long before I had a fancy camera. However, the answer to that question is, "yes, I use Photoshop .. for somethings." More than Photoshop, I use Lightroom. It's capabilities are all anyone would ever need at half the cost of Photoshop. The straight to the point answer from me would be - if you want to do extensive retouching, HDR processing, and compositing then spend the money for Photoshop. If you want to take beautiful pictures and have the ability to adjust things like exposure, saturation, and have the option for simple effects like split toning, then buy Lightroom and enjoy!
All that being said, if you're shooting jpeg and just want to be able to crop or apply a few effects try something free or cheap like Picasa, Gimp, iPhoto, or the web based Photoshop Express. Don't get bogged down by what equipment or software you need. Just go out and shoot!
Quote of the Day
“No matter how much crap you gotta plow through to stay alive as a photographer, no matter how many bad assignments, bad days, bad clients, snotty subjects, obnoxious handlers, wigged-out art directors, technical disasters, failures of the mind, body, and will, all the shouldas, couldas, and wouldas that befuddle our brains and creep into our dreams, always remember to make room to shoot what you love. It’s the only way to keep your heart beating as a photographer.” - Joe McNally
Portrait of a Lady
I'm very grateful to my friend Andrea, who allowed me to photograph her this weekend for some portrait practice. We made a make-shift studio in my favorite corner of her house. These are all natural light (I'd kill for the light that comes shining through her front windows!) with a little fill using diy white reflectors. I'm still working on my eye for portraits but with a subject like this one... how can you take a bad photo?! Thank you, Andrea.
(Click on each photo to see a large version. If you like what you see, please like, comment, and share!)
