Friday's Fab Photographer: George Stark

in


This week's Friday's Fab Photographer is George Stark Take it away George!



Photographing anything is my passion.

I love the rush of taking the shot and the process of sitting at the computer bringing the image to life!  I still get giddy waiting for the print to roll out of the printer.

There were so many times when I'd be driving through the countryside and see something that was a great shot, but I'd keep on driving, only to have the image haunt me forever. So I started slamming on the brakes. I consider myself to be a "Just off the Road" Photographer. Not that I have anything against hiking, but I find the majority of my shots are taken with my rear end hanging over the roadway not far from the car.

I enjoy the challenge of taking the shot at a location anyone can drive up to and finding "My Shot" in the viewfinder.

The images here were taken . . .  "Just off the Road"

Above:
Driving through Eastern Washington I hit the brakes.  My tripod was inches off the highway.
Three shot bracketed HDR, Lightroom 3,  Photomatix, and CS5.

Above:

Set up the tripod just off Hwy 101 Gold Beach, Oregon.
Slow shutter speed 0.7secs  blurring the water. Processed in Lightroom 2 and CS4.

Above: 

Near a parking lot in Santa Monica, California. The wavy fence caught my eye.
A tripod, three shot bracketed HDR processed with lightroom 3,  Photomatix, CS5, and little Topaz Adjust Plug-In


Above:
On my way into a local restaurant in down town Seattle on a sunny day. The windows just caught my eye.
Leaning on a parking meter for this shot. I processed with Lightroom 3, CS5, and a little use of theTopaz Adjust Plug-in.

What I love about photography is there is always something new to learn and experience!

The next time you see that shot "Hit the Brakes" 

Thanks to Rick for the privilege of appearing on his Blog!

Cheers,
George 


P.S. For info on Topaz, see my Creative Plug-ins Page.


Light Illuminates, Shadows Define

in , , ,

Light. That's really what photography is all about.

First, we need to learn how to see the light:
• the contrast range in the scene;
• the direction of light;
• the quality of light;
• the color of light.

Check out the light in the above image compared to the image I posted a few days of the same scene. What's the difference? Better light!

Light is one of the main things I talk about on my workshops. Speaking of which, I am still in Costa Rica teaching a workshop with my friend Rob Knight. Good fun!



Once we learn how to see the light, we need to learn how to control the light - on site and in the digital darkroom.

Because the sunset sky had a pastel quality to it, I applied the Pastel Filter in Nik Software's Color Efex Pro to my photography. For a discount on Nik's plug-ins, and all the plug-ins I use, click here.


I look for light. You should look for light.

Most often, natural light is the best light. Both of the pictures above were taken using only natural light. I got a good exposure by checking the histogram on my camear's LCD monitor. Always check your histogram. It's you light meter.

Don't ya just love this tiny flower, about the size of a pinky fingernail, that looks like a ballerina!


Light illuminate, shadows define. Shadow can be your friend. Shadows are the soul of the picture. Shadows add a sense of depth and dimension to a picture.

Sure, we need how to see the light, but we also need to learn how to see the shadows.

Explore the light,
Rick


Mastering Daylight Fill-in Flash in Costa Rica

in , , ,

Today we talked about mastering your flash - for flower photography, which is basically the same as mastering your flash for people photography.

Here is the basic concept for daylight fill-in flash:
• Put your camera on Manual exposure. Don't use a shutter speed higher than 1/200th sec.
• Set the exposure for the background.
• Turn on your flash.
• Set the flash to TTL.
• Adjust the flash output to properly illuminate the subject.

Sure, you might get a decent flash exposure if you set your camera on the Av mode and flash on TTL. With this technique, however, you can control the background light independently from the light from your flash.

I will go into more detail on this technique in a future post. Gotta get back to shooting.


This is just one of the techniques I teach on my Master Your Flash workshop in Croton on Hudson, NY.

Explore the light,
Rick

Always look - up, down and back

in


Today's tips from Costa Rica:
• Always look up - and down and back.
• To get the starburst effect in a photo, set your aperture to f/22.
• Carry a fisheye lens for fun shots.
• The name of the game is to fill the frame.

Explore the light,
Rick

The Incy Wincy Spider . . . Helped Make a Nice Photograph

in , ,

Here's today's favorite shot from Costa Rica. Here's what's going on: the larger golden weaver spider is the female; the smaller spider is the male. The male wants to mate. If the female is not in the right mood, she may have the male for breakfast, lunch, dinner - or just a snack.

Photo tips:

• Blur the background to make the subject stand out in the frame - especially when the background is very distracting, as it was here. To blur the background, I shot at a wide aperture (f/5.0) using my Canon 70-200mm f/4 lens - on my Canon EOS 7D.

• You don't necessarily need a macro lens to shoot close-ups. Telephoto lenses can be used, too. Extension tubes will get you even closer.

• See the light. When I first encountered these spiders, they were backlit, and were silhouetted. So, I waited two hours until the light was just in the right place.

• Learn about the subject. It makes making the photograph more fun, as well as sharing the story with your family and friends.

More pictures to come.

Explore the light,
Rick