chicago part 2 ...

a few extra shots from chicago trip, ferris wheel almost looks photoshopped - i think if i test a few different crops on that picture it might be more interesting. post processed the trees to oversaturate, brightening up the greens as much as possible. and two perspectives on the last shot, i can't decide which i like better the color or b&w version...

chicago part 1 ...

it's been quite a busy last month and change. i've spent a lot of time in an airplane, can't say i've been anywhere that exciting, normal jaunts to la, chicago, nyc and the like, that and the small hop through london to get to bahrain in a weekend. lots of pictures though during this time, just haven't had time to process and post them up as well as write about them. this is of course on top of work and photog-clients. here's a start from the chicago trip, this is a 3-frame rough stitch of the chicago skyline. post processing included color correction, saturation, contrast bump, warming polarizer. click for the full-large version which is 11,000+ pixels wide (and 20mb).

fall weddings in new england ...

one of the best things about new england and fall are the colors that spring up just as the air is getting brisk. it's a perfect time to shoot as well as practice some hdr photography also.

f/2.8 @ 24mm, 1/60sec-exposure, iso400, +1/3ev


f/4.5 @ 50mm, 1/80sec-exposure, iso400, 0ev


f/2.8 @ 24mm, 1/10sec-exposure, iso400, 0ev


i was also fortunate enough to catch a few random bits of hdr moments ... none were photoshopped, just straight out of the camera into photomattix to be combined. 3-frame +/-2/3ev.

f/2.8 @ 18mm, 1/10sec-exposure, iso400, -2/3ev :: 0/6ev :: +2/3ev


f/2.8 @ 35mm, 1/10sec-exposure, iso400, -2/3ev :: 0/6ev :: +2/3ev

nyc at night ...

i've always loved being in nyc, regardless of what i say out loud, secretly it's a great place to be at night, during the day, there's always something to look at and it's amazing the diversity that can be seen from one block to the next. i can't say i was in the nyc for fun, as it was a terribly hectic weekend of which i spent a total of 22.5 hours behind the wheel hurling from boston to dc area back to nyc and then home back to boston. all for the sake of some digital data.

i was able to take about 20 mins to snap a few shots from my hotel room before completely passing out ...

two-frame stitch out the window (original is very very wide)... lighting dramatically changes as the camera is turned from one angle to the other side of the window ...

both shots of this composition were taken at f/8 @ 18mm, 30sec-exposure, iso200, 0/6ev


at the same time, i decided to also try a long exposure hdr shot ... i like the result, may be my new background for the week ...

f/8 @ 18mm, 30sec-exposure, iso200, +2/3ev :: 0/6 :: -2/3ev

view from the office ...

a view out the window of the conference room across the charles river to boston/beacon hill ...

photoshopped slightly to add some contrast.

f/6.3 @ 50mm, 1/160sec-exposure, iso200, 2/3ev

a drive up to lynn at sunset ...

it's been a crazy weekend, but in keeping with my previous post with boston at night, this afternoon i took a ride into boston for dinner and brought along the camera gear. after dinner, i took a ride up through nahant and up to lynn right in the nick of time for sunset. i was able to take a number of non-hdr as well as hdr shots and am very happy with the results. a few notes:

• not specifying settings for each shot ... posting a lot of pics today, you can see the full-sized images as well as additional images in my flickr set
• the wides with a slightly blurred background is probably due to me swapping out the sigma for the straight nikkor 50mm. it's all manual, and the highest f/stop i can get with the d300 and the lens is f/13 ... am thinking about getting a 2nd one, or maybe a 60/65mm to supplement
• the last of the non-hdr images are long-exposures with the shutter on bulb and released for 1-min+; streaks of light in the sky are ufo's ... aka ... flights landing at logan
  
• hdr images are 3-shot bursts, -1/3ev, 0, +1/3ev ... all shots at iso200, f/22 (or f/13 on the 50mm), various shutter times
• no ps post-processing was done on the hdr's (before or after hdr'ing) ... photomattix took the raw images and this is the result ... i tried a second attempt at photo-adjusting and then hdr'ing and the results were an /epicfail (over-saturation, highlights and shadows were all off, it was an utter mess) ... don't mess with perfection
  

this shot is a tribute to my cousin lan ... 'cuz thats how she rollz






(there's even one taking off)




and then similar shots, except this time with 3-frame hdr ...

snaps of the sea ...

time, rocks and a single lonely sailboat.

f/5 @24mm, 1/100sec-exposure, iso640, 0/6ev sharpened.


f/14 @ 40mm, 1/800sec-exposure, iso1000, -1ev, de-saturated and sharpened


f/9 @ 50mm, 1/320sec-exposure, iso640, 0/6ev, colorized

a trip to maine ...

the drive up to maine from boston is only about 50 mins, or maybe from my house that is. a great drive, along the coast there's always something to stop and enjoy.

f/8 @ 38mm, 1/250-second exposure, iso640, 0/6ev


f/9 @ 18mm, 1/320-second exposure, iso500, 0/6ev