TWIP Sunset and God

I do love a good sunset.  Over the last week we have had a couple.  Being a busy dad, there hasn't been much opportunity to get out and shoot a sunset especially this summer with it running into the evening ours and night time routines.  Plus the NBA finals are on, so spending time with my sports loving son is much more important.  

Earlier last week, there was a doozy of a sunset coming our way and I thought it best to make an attempt to photograph it.  It was after all something I really enjoy, even if it is for 10 minutes.  

I stopped by a church in as I thought it would make a great backdrop for the sunset and started snapping away.  Having forgot my tripod, I had to work on my steadiness to make an HDR of this evening.  Filters were not available, so I was just working with the bare lens.  I shot a couple set of HDR with the Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 and then another set with the Canon 17-40mm f/4L just to get a little variety. 

Here are my two final images after running the 5 shot exposures through the now dead in the water Nik filters.  Hopefully I am still able to use these after the recent announcement by Google that they were no longer updating or supporting the filters that are so very popular amount the photography enthusiast.  

Top photo is taken with the Rokinon, bottom with the Canon.  As always, click on the photo to get a larger version.

Wide Angles

So, I have been neglecting my blog for the past couple of months.  It hasn't been on purpose, just super busy.  I am going to try to start posting every Friday something new or old that I have shot in the missing month.

So, today, I am going to tell you about the amazing little lens with a huge front element called the Rokinon 14mm f/2.8 lens.  I primarily wanted this lens to shoot some landscapes, HDR, and Night photography.  Landscapes and HDR have been some of the most common shots for this lens over the course of the last couple months and I look forward to giving it all its due when it comes to night photography once the mosquitoes die off for the fall.  Always better shooting when you don't have to worry about those pesky little things.  Only problem is the Milky Way is best viewed from our area June through September.  So, we will have to see what the fall and winter have in store.

This lens is really wide and really sharp.  I have caught myself a couple of times having the tripod legs in the photo, that is how wide this lens it.  It does however produce some stunningly wide shots and handles sun flare and chromatic aberrations very well.  It is definitely a favorite in my bag and goes with me everywhere.

Here is a sunset shot late in August.

Calming Reflections

Noticing that the clouds were starting to break, I thought I might have an opportunity to catch an amazing sunset.  The wind was calm and the situation wasn't right for filter painting.  I decided to pull out the trusty Rokinon 14mm for this.  The reflections from the sky turned out to be amazing.  There were some fishermen nearby so I wasn't able to get down close to the water like I had planned, but I really liked the spot I picked out.  I used luminosity masks to bring out the colors in this file.  I have really enjoyed learning how to use luminosity masks and think they are an amazing tool to use for landscape photography.

Filter Painting

It has been a little while since I had the time to sit down and actually gather my thoughts long enough to write something on my blog.  It is nice to be able to put some thoughts down on paper (or computer if you will).  Something I have been wanting to do for the past couple of months is write a post about something I really enjoy doing.  I have stated in the past that I have always enjoyed photographing sunsets.  Sitting there watching the sun leave the horizon puts thoughts at ease if only for a moment.  Listening to nature, the rustling of leaves, the wind whistling through branches of the leafless trees, birds chirping, provides a calming effect.

One way I make the experience more enjoyable is a technique of using filters to increase the exposure time of your shot.  This way you capture all of the movements associated with the setting sun and clouds as they pass.  Having said that, I usually only come back with a handful of images due to the length of time it takes to capture the photo, but the quiet of sitting and listening is worth it.  I don't know how many of you are old enough or have caught reruns of a show on PBS I use to watch called "The Joy of Painting with Bob Ross".  When I was growing up I use to watch it just before I took a nap and being out during a sunset reminds me of that show.  So quite and peaceful.  Yet, when the day is done you have something beautiful.  This is why I call my long exposure sunsets, "Filter Painting".

Once I am home and have viewed what I captured that day, I then begin the fun part of the picture taking experience, Post Processing.  Most people do not like this portion of the picture taking experience, but I really enjoy it.  In fact, I see many photographers skip this portion all together.  I shoot all of my photos in RAW format.  This means that the file you have contains all of the RAW data from the photo and you can use it as you will.  If you shoot JPEG format, the camera cooks the image for you in the cameras processor and spits out what it thinks your photo should look like.  I like the control I have over my images in RAW.  This way, I can make the photo how I saw it when I was there not the way a computer decided it should look.  I usually take 20 minutes a photo when adjusting landscapes.  You really have to pay attention to the details of the photo.  If you happen to over look something, blowing it up on print will bring out your mistakes and landscapes more than not are going to be printed large.

Enough talk for the day, here are a couple of my recent Filter Paintings.

Ominous Outlook

Dreary days bring out some of the best clouds during daylight hours.  They are very pretty to look at, but are very difficult to photograph.  Many times, I have tried and failed to take a picture and have it look the way I saw it with my own eyes.  I imagine a day in the future where the dynamic range of a digital sensor will be up to par with the range the human eye can see.  I imagine that camera will cost a pretty penny, but it would be a very awesome tool to use.  Having said that, we use the tools we have to make the best of what we see.  I have witnessed many times photos of trees stretching into the shadowy clouds giving a very ominous view of the world.  I haven't really tried anything like this in the past, but with my wife's urging, I ventured out to see what I could capture.

Once I was on location, finding the best trees was a difficult task.  Once I found some strangely fingeresque trees, I placed my camera in position and began snapping away.  I tried all types of angles and determined that vertical photos showed what I was seeing the best, but I had to have the camera very close to the ground.  So I laid down beside the camera and let the magic happen.  I shot a couple with one lens.  Then switched over to the fisheye for a little different effect.  It provided a unique perspective that I feel has been missing in the photos I have seen.  I really enjoyed photographing this scene and will definitely have to go back to see what other interesting things I can find.