The Digital Photo Guy

Alyssa in LBD (Little Black Dress)

I’ll be working with Alyssa at the end of November on a 3-theme shoot at a junkyard. In this series, she was wearing one of the LBDs (little black dresses) she owns. At the junkyard, she’ll either wear this or another one that’s a bit more formal. She’s very professional and knows how to flow from one pose to the next, making it seem effortless.

The first photo above has a bluish cast on my laptop that’s not on my large monitor. Normally, I would attribute that to the fact my laptop isn’t calibrated but the other two look fine on the laptop so I’m not sure where the cast is coming from.

The photos were made with a Canon 5D MkII and Canon 24-105/4L IS USM. Post-processing was in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, Photoshop CS4 and Portrait Professional. I like how PP makes Alyssa’s eyes “pop” in the first photo.

Annual Fall Eastern Sierra Trip

I hope to be in Ancient Bristlecone Pines NF around the middle of October if the weather cooperates. So far, it’s been almost as hot up there as it is in Arizona. From there, I’ll head to Bishop to photograph Sky Rock in the early morning light. Due to its remote location, I’ll be tent camping near Sky Rock to be in position at Oh-Dark-Thirty. Finally, if there’s a chance of snow, I’ll head to Bodie to try for more photos of Bodie in snow. As always, anyone who’s interested in joining me can send an e-mail and I’ll send you my phone number.

If the weather is uncooperative, I may head to Deming, NM to get some work done on my RV and then head back to Douglas, AZ to photograph sandhill cranes.

Finding Models in Arizona

I had the opportunity to photograph Alyssa this past week. She’s an experienced model who’s finishing a Masters at ASU. I found her to be pleasant, professional and very good at striking a pose on cue. It took us a few moments to get used to each other but, within minutes, we were both pretty comfortable. I’m hoping to work with her on the “Arizona Surfer Chick” project I’ve been thinking about for the past 18 months.

I used my standard “go to” rig – Canon 5D Mk II with the 24-105/4L. This was in a studio so I used their Alien Bee strobes triggered by some generic wireless triggers. There was a 48″ octobox as a key light and a smaller (24″?) softbox to camera left. I set the 5D to Manual and dialed in f/10 at 1/125, ISO 200. Lest you think I used some magic formula to set my exposure, I simply “guesstimated” and fine tuned with two test shots. I won’t embarrass either Alyssa or me by posting my first test exposure!

The photos were brought into LR4 and cropped, levels & WB adjusted and a few skin blemishes removed. Then, I used Topaz Labs Clean3 to smooth out her skin, not that she really need it. I just wanted to play with Clean3. As always, any comments or questions are welcome.

Good Golly, Miss Molly, It’s Been Two Months

I can’t believe I haven’t posted in two months! All the usual excuses apply including a 2+ hour presentation I prepared for the Desert Caballeros Western Museum show, West of Center 2014. I spent about 40-50 hours preparing my presentation on Compositional Style. You can find an article about the presentation HERE.

Some of you may remember the Tom T. Hall song “Faster Horses” from which the title of this post has been blatantly ripped off. If you don’t know, the full refrain is, “It’s faster horses, Younger women, Older whiskey, More money.” Last week, I had an opportunity to photograph an MSA (Mounted Shooters of America) event. The light was high and harsh but I managed to make the following photos. The women were the most fun to photograph.

The first image is SOOC (straight out of camera.) The rider hit a barrel and the horse was highly annoyed. The rest were processed in LR4, exported to Topaz Adjust 5 and “tweaked” using the Spicify preset as a starting point and brought back to LR4 where some were given a final tweak using the HSL panel to tone down the green background. The 5th image of the horse with all 4 hooves off the ground and visible muzzle blast was the only one where I did some PS4 trickery. The muzzle blast was in the previous frame where the horse’s legs were in a less dynamic position. I “cut & pasted” the muzzle blast from one photo to the other. I didn’t feel that was cheating since the two frames were in sequence during a high speed burst.

I handheld my Canon 7D with the 70-200/4L set to Aperture Priority and ISO 200. The AF Point Selection was set to expanded and I moved the zone left or right depending on the direction the horse was moving. The AF Shooting Mode was set to AI Servo so the lens would constantly update focus as the rider moved. For more details about these AF Modes, follow this link.

Beware of “Gurus”

Recently, I’ve overheard people advising beginners to “do it this way.” I’d caution anyone, newbie or advanced, to be wary of people who claim their way is the right way. As most of you know, the answer to most photography questions is, “It all depends!”

Upcoming Photoshoots

In mid-October, I’ll be headed back to the Eastern Sierra for my annual shoot. This year, I intend to concentrate on Sky Rock around Bishop and arches in Alabama Hills. I’ll go to Bodie if there’s snow but otherwise plan to stay south of Mono Lake. As always, feel free to contact me if you want to join me.

In November, I’ll be at Arizona Shootout, a nude & glamour workshop in the desert near Wickenburg. I’m not going to embed a link to the site because it contains nudity but if you’d like to join me, Google is your friend. The cost is ~$350 for both Sat & Sun or ~$175 for either day. These are Playboy level models with lots of experience and some top glamour photographers.

In late Dec or early Jan, I hope to make it back to Whitewater Draw near Douglas, AZ to photograph sandhill cranes. The schedule isn’t yet firmed up but stay tuned for details. While in the area, I’ll also go to Bisbee to photograph more hippies and cool art.

In February, I hope to make the 7th Annual Lake Havasu Rockabilly Reunion to photograph a boatload of pin-up models.

Miscellaneous Photo from Past 6 Weeks

Surviving 6 weeks in a 25 foot RV with a wife and an 18 lbs cat has been an interesting experience. Amazingly enough, we’re all still talking to each other and no one has tried to kill anyone else! “T” the Cat is so ready for this adventure to be over so he can get back to his catio on the back patio where he can survey his kingdom. Tomorrow (Sunday, 6/29,) Mary’s retreat is over so we’ll meet up in Petaluma, CA for the ~800 mile drive back to Wickenburg. I had planned to stop in Oatman, AZ to photograph wild burros but Mary (and T) pointed out the temps will be in the low 100s. I’ll plan Oatman for a winter visit.

I went back over the ~1700 images from the trip and found several that could benefit from PP (post-processing.)

These top four were various rock formations around Bishop and Big Pine. The first two are, obviously, HDR using Photomatix Essentials. The last two are SOOC (straight out of camera) with cropping, levels/saturation/contrast adjustments and sharpening. I’m still trying to go easy on HDR because, deep down, it feels like cheating.

The above three are from the Laws Railroad Museum near Bishop, CA. In lieu of HDR, I’m trying more BW and I’m finding more images that “feel” like good candidates for conversion. In the above trio, I think the last two might also work as BW. I plan to try that when I get home.

The last two are mules from Bishop Mule Days. The light colored mule seemed to have such deep, expressive eyes that looked right through me. The big, brown guy was a handsome mule who seemed curious.

All photos were processed in Lightroom 4.4 with HDR taken out to PhotoMatix. Some were also processed in Topaz Labs Adjust 5. The first 2 were made with a Canon 7D and 24-105/4L while the rest were with a Canon 5D Mark II and 24-105. The belts at Laws RR Museum photographed with my Canon EOS-M mirrorless. I’m beginning to love that camera and will try other lenses in the future.

Wickenburg Photography Group Summer Unmeetings

The Wickenburg Photo Group is dormant during the summer but I’ve been trying to schedule activities to keep members and potential members involved. These blog posts are meant to give people ideas for photo trips as well as techniques and gear. If you have any questions, feel free to post a comment.

On Saturday, July 19 from 9AM to Noon, I’ve scheduled a model session at the Wickenburg Art Center. The model is Chy Von Sweets, an alternative-style model who does Pin-Up, Rockabilly and High Fashion. As you can see from her portfolio, she’s a mix of Bettie Page, Punk and Vogue. I’ll have my backdrop and lights for anyone who wants to try studio model photography. The cost is $20, payable via PayPal at dp-guy@thedigitalphotoguy.com.

On Saturday, August 9 from 1PM to 4PM at the Desert Caballeros Western Musuem, I’ll show you how to define and develop your own compositional style. To quote Ansel Adams, “The so-called rules of photographic composition are, in my opinion, invalid, irrelevant and immaterial” or, more succinctly, “There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.” I’ll, hopefully, demonstrate how you can stop worrying about rules and start making good photographs.

Finally, in September (date TBA,) if there’s enough interest, I’ll conduct a 2-3 hour printing seminar at Wickenburg Art Center. I’ll haul my 45 lbs Epson 3880 printer to the center and demonstrate how to prepare your photos for printing and how to fix common printing problems.

The WPG meetings start again on Monday, October 6 from 6:30PM to about 9PM depending on the agenda. We’ll send out an e-blast agenda to WPG members in Sept.

Oregon is a Fun State

We’ve been stuck in Klamath Falls, OR for the past 4 days while our toad (towed vehicle) is repaired. The 1993 Geo Tracker has been bulletproof but, after 21 years, things are bound to fail. This time, the electronic ignition control module died at Crater Lake so we towed it into Holmes Four Wheel Drive in KF. They diagnosed it ASAP but the part was nowhere to be found locally. Hopefully, the correct part will arrive tomorrow, Monday, 6/9 and we’ll be able to get back on the road. In the meantime, we’ve been parked at the Klamath County Fairgrounds where I photographed cowgirls competing in barrel races. Here are a few of the better photos.

I ran the flag bearer through Topaz Labs Adjust and added a crinkley border just as an exercise in using TLA. Let me know what you think. The 2nd photo is titled, “Her mane looks better than mine!” I like the expression in the horse’s eye. The 3rd was the eventual winner. You can see how hard her horse cuts the corners. I love the girl coming off the saddle in the 4th. The focus and intensity is awesome in the 5th rider and I was happy to get the bull with all four hooves off the ground.

Crater Lake

Before arriving in KF, we were at Crater Lake. It’s hard to make a photo that doesn’t look like the gazillion other photos taken by a gazillion other tourists so I did what I could by making a panorama of reflections on fairly still waters.

Prior to that, we were at Junipers Reservoir RV Park outside Lakeview, OR. That was a beautiful place. The park is inside an 8000 acres working cattle and timber ranch. I got a chance to photograph some ranch hands rounding up and driving cattle to a different area. For the first time in my life, I want to learn to ride a horse so I can keep up with the cowboys instead of driving my 4WD through brush. Of course, modern cowboys are different from cowboys of old. One was talking on his cellphone while driving cattle.

The photo of the 2 cows crossing the trail is titled, “Quick, while he’s not looking!” The last 2 photos are SYFs (small yellow flowers) covering a field near the reservoir. Notice how each uses a different compositional style. Be sure to attend my lecture at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum on August 9 from 1 to 4 PM to learn how and why I composed both.

Art Deco in Klamath Falls

At first blush, KF appears to be a down-on-its-luck, podunk town but we found a vibrant Old Town area that has been revitalized through art and culture. The 10 block stretch of beautiful art deco buildings is bookended by 2 wonderful museums, the Klamath County Museum at the north end and the Favell Museum of western art at the south end. A 3rd museum between the two, the Baldwin Hotel Museum, is reportedly another excellent venue but we didn’t have time. There was a bustling Farmers’ Market as well as numerous restaurants in that 10 block stretch. We ate at the Thai Orchid Cafe and were suitably impressed with the taste, quality and prices.

What most caught my eye were the amazing art deco buildings along this 10 block area. I don’t know if the buildings were restored or facades were applied after the fact but they were beautiful.

We got to the Farmers’ Market around noon and several of the vendors were already on the verge of being sold out. As for the buildings, I wish I had my 17-40/4L but all I had was my 24-105 on the Canon 5D MkII and my EOS-M mirrorless. I didn’t even have my tripod with me. However, the Lens Correction tool in Lightroom 4.4 got a workout with these photos. I simply liked the “Hot & Cold Water” sign on the Crater Hotel. The last was simply a photo that made me laugh.

The thing that I most enjoyed about KF is that everyone is pleasant and polite. I know it’s not nice to stereotype but I was blown away when a tattooed, skinhead wearing a heavy metal T-shirt opened the door for Mary and me, smiled and said, “Have a great day!”

Model Shoot on July 19 at Wickenburg Art Center

Remember to reserve your spot for the WAC Model Shoot. Chy Von Shweets will be our rockabilly, high fashion model (think Bettie Page with tattoos meets Vogue.) The shoot is $20 in advance to pay the model for gas, makeup supplies and lunch. There will be room for just 6 photographers. If you’ve been interested in studio work, this is a low-cost way to see if this is for you. You can send the $20 via PayPal to dp-guy@thedigitalphotoguy.com.