The Big Photography Thread

[wjwilcox]

Very nice, Richie.

[KenElevenShadows]

Very cool!!

 

And that's what it wasn't here yesterday.....we had a faulty A/C during the first day of my 2-day Star Trails and Light Painting Photography Workshop out here in the very hot desert of Borrego Springs, CA. Whew, was that HOT!

 

Thankfully, this has been resolved, though. The whole thing is very very FUN, though, with a lot of enthusiastic learning and conversation and fun going on. We also went out into the field. Hot night, as it didn't cool off much, but a lot of good photography stuff going on.

[Brettymike]

Not too much in the way of fireworks going on round here tonight, Mike. However, I can supply some flierworks instead.....

 

This was taken recently out at sea off of the north coast of Scotland, on my trusty iPad. It is not zoomed or cropped.

 

Coastguard Rescue by xxKnuckles, on Flickr

 

What an Awesome photo! , also Richies fireworks photo - Great .

Very interesting tricks information with the long exposures etc Ken - Thank you .

Great photo's as well wilcox .

 

Brett

[KenElevenShadows]

You're welcome, I hope they help.

 

~~~~

 

What's pure bliss? Night swimming at 3 am while gazing up at the Milky Way arcing over palm trees. Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh........

 

The Star Trails and Light Painting 2-Day Workshop has come to an end. I could not ask for better participants. So much fun.

 

And after a night of photographing enormous battling dinosaurs in Borrego Springs with the Milky Way as their back drop, what better way to cap it off than by floating in a swimming pool while looking at the starry night sky?

[xKnuckles]

Mike! I am overwhelmed and in shock - (and very delighted) - at your reaction to my photo! Thank you so much!! Thank you also Bill, Richie & Brett. No I wasn't being rescued..... Makes you wonder, though, if they have ever rescued someone who then whipped out a camera and couldn't resist using it....

[xKnuckles]

Absolutely stunning fireworks shot Richie!! Is it essential to have a tripod for that sort of picture?

[xKnuckles]

Ken, you make your star trails workshop sound very appealing. Love the idea of the night swim. If I lived closer I would definitely come to one of your workshops. Glad it went well.

[RichieP_MechE]

Thanks all!

 

Is it essential to have a tripod for that sort of picture?

Yes (or at least something sturdy to rest your camera on). Fireworks pictures require long exposures (I consider a long exposure to be 1 second or greater). The shot I posted was a 2 second exposure.

 

I suppose you could crank up your ISO and use a wide aperture to get a handheld exposure. Rule of thumb: your shutter speed should be at least the reciprocal of your focal length to avoid camera shake. For example, a shooting with a 200mm lens requires a 1/200 second or faster exposure. However, if your lens has image stabilization (IS) then you can get away with slower shutter speeds.

 

My fireworks image was shot at a 24mm focal length, so if I wanted, I could have done a handheld shot at about 1/30 second. But consider fireworks themselves - it takes couple of seconds from the initial launch to the full expansion of the explosion. Shooting with short shutter speeds means you would need very precise timing to capture the firework at just the right moment. Using a long exposure allows you to capture the full lifespan of the firework itself, and multiple fireworks in the same frame, which gives a better result IMO.

 

I also used a wireless shutter release to take these images. This was actually very beneficial in this particular scenario. I was on a bridge with a lot of foot traffic, so I set my tripod right up against the bridge railing, then stood back and triggered the camera as people walked by. I would have been in the way otherwise if I were using a wired shutter release or standing next to the camera pressing the shutter button.

 

[wjwilcox]

Back in the day when I was shooting Kodachrome, the rule of thumb was with K-64 to set aperture at f5.6 and let 2 or three bursts of fireworks explode, then close the shutter. Worked pretty well if you could spot the launch of the first device.

 

[KenElevenShadows]

Ken, you make your star trails workshop sound very appealing. Love the idea of the night swim. If I lived closer I would definitely come to one of your workshops. Glad it went well.

 

It really did, it went really smoothly (except for a faulty A/C - the first day was HOT in the room!!!) and was a lot of FUN!!!!!! Thanks! We go out into the field, and I walk around and help them with settings so they can put their new knowledge to practical use. It's really quite enjoyable, and I have had people drive in from as far as Arizona to take my workshops in Borrego Springs, CA.

[ChiefDanG]

Recently saw a movie on Netflix called "The City Dark". It talks about light pollution and its effect on urban dwellers. There are some fantastic images and very interesting facts/theories. I bet you shutterbugs on this thread would love this movie.

[xKnuckles]

Thanks very much for the info Richie & Bill. Will prove extremely useful when / if I get a proper camera.

 

Your film sounds interesting chiefdang - will have to try to get hold of it. Thanks. I am fortunate in living somewhere where there is very little light pollution, and would hate to have to put up with perpetual light.

[Guven Ilter]

Gümüslük Sunset by Guven Ilter, on Flickr

 

 

[xKnuckles]

Beautiful image Guven.

[xKnuckles]

Here are a couple of pictures of a monument in the a highlands of Scotland.

 

Highland Monument by xxKnuckles, on Flickr

[xKnuckles]

Highland Monument #2 by xxKnuckles, on Flickr

[KenElevenShadows]

 

Arches National Park, Utah, underneath the Milky Way.

[RichieP_MechE]

Gümüslük Sunset by Guven Ilter, on Flickr

 

Welcome, Guven! That's a lovely silhouette image.

[Mike Martin]

From Summer NAMM: Downtown Nashville.

 

http://ppcdn.500px.org/76838593/8e67fb2ac91a994f193d688bf38d5f5237bfc1f2/4.jpg

Nashville Sky by Mike Martin on 500px

[RABid]

Nice Mike. This thread makes me want to travel.

[wjwilcox]

Not the best angle for shooting, but this is a music forum, sooooo:

 

Nigel Mooney Quartet at the Whitaker Music Festival. by wjw0608, on Flickr

 

....and before anybody asks, the fourth member is an unphotogenic (!) pianist to the left. Meanwhile, over at the reflecting pool, it's not easy being green:

 

Tropical water lily pads and frog. by wjw0608, on Flickr

[KenElevenShadows]

 

A night sky long exposure photo I took out in the Nevada desert last week. I light painted the interior as well as the exterior during this single exposure shot. All colored light work was done during the exposure, and is not a Photoshop creation.

[Mike Warren]

Inspired by your amazing night work, Ken, I had a try a couple of nights ago. I learned a lot and should be able to do better next time. It's hard to find suitable locations here, with all the rainforest.

 

I only had one night available in Cooktown. The moon was out and there were many strong wind gusts.

 

Nikon D90 - Tokina 11-16mm f2.8

 

Here are the first couple of photos and a short video.

 

 

 

 

http://mike-warren.net/site201201/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/M20140719054314-web.jpg

 

http://mike-warren.net/site201201/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/M20140719040405-web.jpg

 

http://mike-warren.net/site201201/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/M20140719035005-web.jpg

 

 

[Mike Warren]

This is the view over the Endeavour River, Cooktown at sunset.

 

http://mike-warren.net/site201201/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/M20140718175513-web.jpg

 

[Joe Muscara]

Nice job, Mike!

[wjwilcox]

Excellent photos, Mike!

 

[KenElevenShadows]

Me three! Excellent! Those night photos are addicting!!!! Good job!!!

[xKnuckles]

Wow everyone - another feast for the eyes. Mike M. that photo would make a perfect advert for Nashville.

 

Love the frog Bill - or is it a chameleon?

 

Amazing bus Ken. I can't begin to imagine how you did that, but it certainly looks cool.

 

Nice photos. Mike W. I especially loved the video. How much time does it cover?

 

 

 

[Mike Warren]

Thanks guys. The video covers about 1 hour and 10 minutes.

[KenElevenShadows]

Amazing bus Ken. I can't begin to imagine how you did that, but it certainly looks cool.

 

Thanks.

 

It's all a single exposure using light painting. All the color work, the light, is done during the exposure and is not a Photoshop creation.