Check this out! You can own the entire Nik Collection of awesome plug-ins for only $149! See my Save on Plug-in page for info. You'll find great deals on other plug-ins on that page, too. Above: Nik HDR Efex Pro.
Above: Nik Silver Efex Pro.
Above: Midnight filter in Nik Color Efex Pro.
I'm a big fan of plug-ins, as readers of my blog know. Plug-ins can help you awaken the artist within.
Above: Nik Dfine.
Explore the light,
Rick
My product pick this week is the Wacom intuos5 Small Pen Tablet. I am using the USB model. A wireless kit is sold separately.
I've been using Wacom tablets at home for years. Now I take this small, compact and lightweight model on the road with me when I'm teaching my digital photography workshops and giving my seminars.
If you work (and play) in Photoshop or Lightroom, and burn and dodge, and selectively adjust specific areas of an image, the Wacom Pen Tablet is the way to go - because you can use the pressure-sensitive Pen like an artist uses a paintbrush and the Tablet like a canvas. That's how I enhanced the above image, which I took during a workshop in Venice, Italy.
What's cool about the Wacom Pen Tablet is that you can customize the controls - like an artist mixes paints. But there's more: you can actually use your fingers on the tablet for additional creative control (including zoom, pan and tilt). Note: the ghost image of a painting that you may see in the above image is an image I'm working on for a project.
As I mentioned, I have the Wacom Intuos5 Small Pen Tablet. For at-home, all-the-time use, check out the Large model.
Here's another image that I enhanced with the help of my Wacom Pen Tablet. Try signing your name on an image with a mouse. :-)
Explore the light,
Rick
P.S. Both of the subjects in these images were lit with the same equipment: Canon Speedlite in the Westcott Apollo Softbox. All my gear is listed on My Gear Page.
Rick – thanks for inviting me to do a guest blog for you. As a fellow blogger and friend, I am honored to be featured on your site.
When people ask me what I like to shoot, I use one of my favorite quotes, which is “I specialize in not specializing”. Yep – I stole that from you, but I love it and I live it!
In the past 8 years, I have had the chance to photograph some amazing subjects and travel the globe seeing what the world has to offer my camera and lens. But, even though I photograph events, portraits, landscapes , night shots and so many other types of photography, my most special photographic moments come every two years. This is when I join an elite group of photographers to capture the Olympic Games.
Opening Image: Bird’s nest image (Canon 1Ds Mark III, 16-35mm lens at 19mm, ISO 100, f/8, 2 sec)
This photo is really special to me, since it was taken during the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. It was my first Olympic experience and this shot combined that event with another favorite of mine, night photography. I had numerous photographs with fireworks in the shot, but I love the simplicity of this shot with the lights coming off the buildings to the side of the Bird’s Nest. (The negative space in this image also makes it perfect for my business card, where text can easily be placed and not obscure the main subject of my photo.)
Above: Olympic rings image (Canon 1D Mark IV, 150mm, ISO 2500, f/5, 1/100 sec, Exposure comp -0.7)
Coincidentally, another opening ceremonies shot, but this time from the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Above: USA Hockey fish eye image (Canon 5D Mark II, Sigma 15mm Fish Eye lens, ISO 1250, f/2.8, 1/2500 sec,)
As a photographer, it is always good to push yourself to do something different. I had photographed hockey many times before this Olympics, but I had never used a fish eye lens for this sport, until this day. I primarily shoot hockey with a 70-200 lens, but after using the fish eye lens at the Olympics, I now have a second camera with a 15mm fish eye lens, so that when the action comes close to me, I can put down the camera with the longer lens and grab the camera with this ultra wide angle lens.
Above: Gymnastics trials image (Canon 1D X, 70-200 lens at 73mm, ISO 6400, f/4, 1/1250 sec)
Before heading off to the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, I photographed the USA Gymnastics Olympic Trials in San Jose, CA. This photo shows the advantage of using a camera that can shoot at 12 frames a second. I shot a large burst of images, and was really happy to capture this gymnast at the peak of her jump. I could have shot this at f/2.8 but changed the settings to f4 to show a little more of the Olympic Trials sign in the background.
Above: Water Polo tight image (Canon 1D X, 200-400mm lens at 526mm using the 1.4 teleconverter, ISO 3200, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec)
In London, I was the official photographer for USA Water Polo, and photographed every one of their games. I came away with a lot of high-action shots, but this tight shot, showing just the tattoo and matching logo on the ball was one of my favorite images from that assignment. I knew that this was a special shot when the Associated Press photographer saw this on my computer and said “damn – I wish I had gotten that shot.” And trust me, I saw plenty of photos on his computer which I didn’t get.
Left: Equestrian image (Canon 1D X, 300mm, ISO 640, f/2.8, 1/8000 sec)
This was my first time ever shooting any Equestrian sports, and I was bound and determined to get a good shot of horse jumping.
I saw this gate with the Olympic Rings and parked myself at this location for at least 30 minutes waiting for the right moment to capture.
Luck is also part of photography, and everything worked in my favor for this photo. The horse was the right color (not too dark so that you can see the details in it’s muscles), the rider was looking to my side of the horse, the angle of the jump was just right, the rider was wearing a bright red jacket. All I had to do is capture it!
And thanks to people like you, Rick, I am continually inspired to shoot more and get better at my craft.
To see more of my images, click on over to my blog. And please join
my Facebook page. You can also check out my web site.
Artistic image.
Got a creative eye? Got Photoshop? Got Plug-ins? Want to shoot and process more creatively? Then my "Think Like a Painter, Shoot and Process Like an Artist" digital photography workshops may be for you.
Straight shot.
We'll shoot in and around Croton-on-Hudson, NY, where I run my Rick's Backyard Workshops. We'll process our images and experiment with different creative effects.
We'll also learn how to paint with light and create dramatic black-and-white portraits.
Artistic image.
I teach artistic imaging on all my workshops, but this workshop will focus more on processing images in Photoshop and using creative plug-ins. So you'll need your laptop, Photoshop and the following plug-ins: Nik Collection by Google, Topaz Adjust, Topaz Perfectly Clear and Photomatix by HDR Soft. Info on these plug-ins on my Save on Plug-ins page.
Straight shot.
Of course you can also use Lightroom if you are skilled at importing and exporting images to plug-ins and back. This is not a computer class. :-)
New Croton Dam.
I am looking at dates for Spring 2014. Shoot me an email if you are interested in joining a small, fun group for a creative weekend. Private shooting/processing lessons in Croton-on-Hudson are also available. Private on-line portfolio reviews - my Tough Love sessions - are also available.
Stay tuned for info, dates and cost.
"Sunset in the park with Rick" - taken in my "backyard" along the Hudson River.
Explore the light,
Rick
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"I have more than a million followers on twitter."
"I have a gazillion+ hits on a Google+ picture"
"My facebook fan page is liked by thousands of people around the world."
More and more, I am hearing these types of comments. Same with you?
I think there is a tendency for some photographers to get too hung up with social media - and to forget about the art and craft of photography - the magic of capturing and sharing an image.
I'd like to hear your take. Leave a comment if you like.
P.S. I photographed this man in a train station in India. Eye contact makes the picture for me.
• • • • •
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