An evening trapped in bland Albuquerque architecture
Dream of Flight – Albuquerque International Sunport, New Mexico
My flights to California have been, for the most part, trouble-free. My last trip, however, ended up taking a lot longer than usual. I was trapped all evening in an architectural limbo that would tax the most dedicated photographer.
Midway between Dallas and San Francisco, a passenger had an issue with his heart. We made an unscheduled landing in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The paramedics rushed in as soon as we landed and escorted the older man to a nearby ambulance. Luckily, he was at least upright and walking with assistance. A planned quick landing and refueling took longer than expected. A lot longer.
Our landing damaged one of the tires. Something about being heavier than normal — since we had more fuel — which caused the problem. Apparently, 737 tires are not very common in Albuquerque and had to be flown in. I guess a trip to the local Discount Tire wouldn’t suffice. We need to wait at least 5 hours to get the replacement. If all went well, we’ll be ready to leave by 10pm.
My usual desire to explore airport architecture would do no good here. The 80′s or 90′s era airport had all the charm of a shopping mall on the wrong side of town. The kind that’s past its peak and clearly hasn’t been updated in a while. The place was clean and well maintained. It was just oppressively boring. The muted southwestern colors and long featureless utilitarian architecture was not worth the click of a digital photo. Dynamic modern architecture is nice but just give me interesting. If it was some old, run down 50s or 60s era structure, at least there would be some character.
This dynamic sculpture, at the mid-point of the airport, was the only worthwhile photo opportunity. Called “Dream of Flight” by Santa Fe artist, Lincoln Fox, notice it’s surrounded by the best in 80′s mall design. Perhaps its simple lines purposely intending to contrast the textured sculpture. Long ago, before cost benefit calculations, public places had grandeur. A sense that a shared space like a train station, library or courthouse should be something special. Somewhere we lost this. Things are looking up though. Newer airports that I’ve visited are investing in better architecture. I think people realize that the airport is the gateway to the city. A cheap airport reflects poorly on the host city.
We were all boarded at 10:30 and ready to go but then an engine wouldn’t start. Somehow, I made it to SFO at 1:30am and to the hotel by 2:30am (4:30am Texas time). I was originally scheduled to land at 5pm. Ultimately, a memorable but not too terrible experience. I had a nice dinner and talk with a guy from Scotland. I also created a souvenir photo of an important piece of art — one that has the difficult mission of adding character to a large generic box of an airport.
Finally, I think about the old man with the heart condition. Hopefully he is resting comfortably and the flight detour was in time for him to make a strong recovery.
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The new American, a photo comparison
The New American – DFW Airport, Texas (HDR)
Continuing with the Airport travel theme, I wanted to show off the new American Airlines branding on their new Boeing 777.
As I took the Skytrain at DFW airport, I noticed two 777s parked at Terminal D with the new American Airlines color scheme. Conveniently, my flight to San Francisco was also leaving from D. I found a good view of one of the new planes and shot it with my Olympus XZ-1. This XZ-1 point and shoot has become my entertainment during my travels — a fun, convenient way to snap interesting compositions.
I’ve hoped for a couple of months to get a nice photo of the new American plane and I decide to use my Olympus E-PM2 to create a higher quality image. I also did a hand-held HDR to further add dimension. The first image is my HDR. As you know, my technique tends to be on the light side, generally opting to enhance the color and texture only somewhat. A little bit more saturation, a bit of grittiness in the details and a bit more shine off the metal. I’m rarely heavy-handed in my HDR approach.
The photograph below is one frame (the middle exposure) from my trio of photos use to create the HDR. I think it looks decent but a bit washed out. I’ve post-processed it to increase the saturation, texture and contrast but it still doesn’t match the HDR for detail and depth. The effect is subtle but look at the engine and the shadow under the plane. Also notice that the HDR has more texture and reflections off the surface of the plane.
The New American – DFW Airport, Texas (Olympus E-PM2)
The last photograph was shot with the XZ-1 point and shoot. The framing is not the same but you can tell the colors and details are a bit more muted. There is a dull feel, almost like a grayish layer over the image. It’s still nice and most people will be happy with it but there is a difference between it and the Olympus E-PM2. Not surprising given the E-PM2 has a much larger and higher quality sensor along with a high quality prime lens.
The New American – DFW Airport, Texas (Olympus XZ-1)
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The challenge of seeing something new
A wild night on 6th Street – Austin, Texas
If you follow my blog, you know that I go on a lot of photowalks. Some by myself, others with a couple of friends and once in a while, with a huge group. Many of these walks happen in Austin, my home town. The problem is, there’s not a lot of places to shoot urban landscapes in Austin.
For all the national attention Austin seems to get these days, it is a medium-sized city at best. Sure it has 1 million plus people in the 5 country area but the central core is pretty small. The good news is that the downtown is growing and the fabric and texture of the city continues to improve. Never the less, this is no New York, San Francisco or Tokyo, nor does it have the wonderful old details of even a smaller European town. The result, if you shoot urban landscapes and architecture like I do, Austin poses a big challenge.
But like most challenges, taken positively, it strengths you. It hones your skills. I believe the dearth of interesting subjects in this city allows me to dig deeper, see differently and try new things. I try to discover new shapes and angles. I’m constantly in search of unique situations that may give a new perspective to an overshot scene. I also change-up lenses or cameras that give me new capabilities.
What this means is when I get to a big city, the visual possibilities are almost overwhelming. My brain seems like it’s going to explode with the 1000s of frames that I see around me. Trained for sparse visual conditions, the mind becomes drunk with overstimulation. In a place like New York City, I think I could shoot 8 hours a day, everyday for a year and not exhaust the urban material. Perhaps, some day I will get that opportunity.
I went on yet another photowalk this past Friday. A different group of people from a week ago but in the same general area. I almost didn’t go — I’ve been to this place so many times. But I wanted to meet my friends, which is a big part of the fun of these things. I’ve been on a HDR kick lately, enjoying my new-found freedom with my new, light weight Olympus setup. I saw color. I saw reflections. I created this festive shot in Austin’s famous entertainment district, 6th street. The image for me represents the sometimes wild, party atmosphere of this place.
It’s a new angle, one that I’ve never seen before.
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Missing Flickr and losing track of friends
Silicon Laboratories Headquarters at Sunset – Austin, Texas
I started my online presence on Flickr. Things were a lot simpler, social media wise, back then. A bunch of local Austin photographs kept in-touch via this photo sharing site. I had a pretty large following and there was only one place to post my photos.
Then things changed. People started shifting more to their personal blogs, Facebook, 500px and even Google Plus. The cohesive community started to break down. I am guilty myself. Despite my best efforts, after expending energy on my blogs, I found it increasingly difficult to stay active on Flickr. I let my presence diminish and I regret that now. I’m starting to post sporadically again but my friends have either left altogether or busy looking at other people’s work.
I’m reminded of the simpler days and the confusing array of online sites today, when a Flickr friend visited from Germany. He contacted Jim as he passed through Austin. I met Jim, Kay and his wife in downtown Austin for a Flickrwalk a week ago. We did our typical tour for out-of-towners. Start at the Driskill Hotel on 6th street. Walk up Congress Avenue for a tour of the State Capitol. Down Congress to the river just in time for sunset. Finally shoot the Austin skyline during blue hour. I captured the photograph above, at sunset, just as I crossed the river. An old-fashioned HDR, for old times sake (though I shot it with my small mirrorless camera instead of a DSLR)
This get together reminded me of the best part of Flickr. An easy way to meet a world-wide, friendly group of photographers. Facebook and Google Plus aren’t the same — there is too much noise. I want a place to interface with people through photography. I don’t want to know about their religious, political and social viewpoints. I may have to go retro and go back to Flickr. I am, however, staying with my smaller mirrorless cameras. Some trends are here to stay and the move away from the DSLR is one of them.
By the way, my Flickr account is atmtx
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Buy a great lens, get a camera free
I noticed this deal from Adorama. You can get a Panasonic GF3 with the 14mm f2.5 lens for $279.00. The GF3 is no slouch, though not as good as the newest Olympus E-PM2 that I use. The 14mm lens, though, is the real star of the deal. The lens by itself runs at over $300. That means that you can buy the lens at an extra good price and get a great camera for free.
The Panasonic Lumix 14mm f2.5 is one of my favorite micro 4/3 lenses and I use it often. The image quality is very good, not quite as good as the Lumix 20mm f1.7 or the magical Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4, but if you like the wide 28mm view, it is a wonderful lens to have. The nice thing about this uber compact lens is that you can also attach several different lens adapters to it. I have the wide-angle adapter that I use frequently.
Here are photographs I took with the Panasonic 14mm f2.5 lens
Here are photographs I took with the 14mm lens and wide-angle adapter
These types of deals typically last a very short time and the price will be back to normal, quickly. So if you want it, jump on it fast.
Note: The 14mm on a micro 4/3 system is equivalent to 28mm in the standard 35mm format. The wide-angle makes it a 22mm equivalent.
SXSW Photowalk: A black and white exploration
Trey Ratcliff addresses the Crowd, SXSW Photowalk – Austin, Texas
I wanted to do something a bit different for this post. I’m using all black and white photographs. While I certainly love color, usually the more color the better, I have an appreciation for black and white. In fact, recently, I’ve done more black and white conversions. I took these photos on the SXSW Photowalk from this past Monday. I’ve posted my favorite color photograph from the event, earlier this week. But for today, we are going strictly monochrome.
We started the photowalk on the steps of Austin City Hall. There were 200+ participants and I was one of a dozen “coaches” who helped people with questions about photography. I brought two cameras with me, the Olympus E-PM2 with the 14mm lens and the wide-angle adapter. The other camera was my Olympus E-P3 with the 25mm f1.4. My smaller E-PM2 was attached most of the time to a light weight tripod for doing long exposures and HDRs. The other camera was perfect for street photography. Most people used traditional DSLRs but many looked at my gear with curiosity. Some even commented that they wanted to downscale, weight-wise to a mirrorless camera.
The SXSW Photowalk Crowd – Austin, Texas
Trey Shoots Nicole, SXSW Photowalk – Austin, Texas
How do I decide when to go black and white? This will probably make purists cringe but the short answer is I use black and white when I think it looks better. Subjective certainly, but as I gain more experience, I’m beginning to get a better idea of when to axe the color. Here are some of my simple rules.
1. I often use black and white to emphasize shapes and texture. This works great for architecture and cityscapes, especially if the color pallet is simple.
2. Sometimes, a black and white can add more mystery and moodiness to an image, especially when there are a lot of dark areas.
Hidden Blackberry, SXSW Photowalk – Austin, Texas
3. Black and white can also be used to simplify the image especially when similar colors blend into a similar shades of gray. If you have distracting color in the background, getting rid of the color can also simplify. There are at times when black and white can work in reverse and make at image too busy. If you have too much non-repeating texture from trees and bushes for example, it can overwhelm your composition. Make sure your subject is not overshadowed by the increase in texture.
4. When you can’t get those nice blue skies because it is overexposed, turning the image to black and white may better harmonize with the subject. The lack of a blue sky is no longer a negative, it just becomes a non-issue.
5. If the color in the photograph is blah and boring, I find a B&W conversion is worth a try. With black and white, I can usually increase the contrast more than in color. In boring, uninspired light, the stronger contrast can bring out interesting details and add more dynamism.
The Astronaut Among Us, SXSW Photowalk – Austin, Texas
6. I’ve also converted to black and white when the color cast of a photograph is particularly nasty. People’s skin color is especially important and in mixed lighting conditions or indoor lights with poor, limited spectrum lighting, getting rid of the color can be an easy way to make a better picture of people.
7. I’ve converted to B&W when I want that “traditional” street photography look or when I try to emulate a particular old-time style. This is perhaps just a gimmick but I do admit to doing this.
8. Finally, you can convert to black and white, just because. You are the photographer and you can do what you want when in pursuit of your art.
The Corner of 6th and Congress – Austin, Texas
The first 5 photographs are a straight forward black and white conversions using Apple’s Aperture 3 software. The last three photographs are black and white HDRs. I created a HDR out of 3 exposures and then converted the resulting image into a black and white. I think the increase in texture and dynamic range adds to a level of detail that changes the feel of the image. To my eyes, it simply looks different from a typical digital photograph. The last 3 photographs were also taken on 6th street which is normally packed with cars. The street was pedestrian only during SXSW so I had a unique opportunity to shoot the street life without the interference of parked cars or worry about getting run over.
Roppolo’s and Ritz, 6th Street – Austin, Texas
Bars of 6th Street – Austin, Texas
Museum of the Weird, 6th Street – Austin, Texas
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Seeing beyond the church at Mission San Jose
Tree with Character #1, Mission San Jose – San Antonio, Texas
Mission San Jose is one of the 5 missions that are located in San Antonio, Texas. They were founded by the Spanish Missionaries in the late 18th century. While the Alamo is the most famous of the missions, Mission San Jose is known as the “Queen of the Missions” and is the most impressive.
I went there last week on a 4th grade class trip. While I did photograph the famous church itself, I was drawn to the bare trees that stood by the old mission walls. I love the structure of these “trees with character” and its contrast to the highly textured stone walls. I’m back on a HDR kick of sorts and I took my tripod and my Olympus E-PM2 to create these images.
I’ve been doing more HDRs recently for several reasons. First, it allows me to be deliberate, encouraging me to more precisely frame a photograph. Using a tripod, setting it up and waiting to take 3 exposures takes a bit more work than my recent free-form style. It’s not quite as exacting and precious as film but it does get me to slow down. Also, the look of HDRs is different with its simulated dynamic range and increased detail. I get a richness and color that a regular exposure does not produce. Finally, with my newest Olympus E-PM2, I now have a truly light weight setup that creates photos with, a no compromise, HDR quality. No need to lug my Canon 7D and bigger tripod with me.
Tree with Character #2, Mission San Jose – San Antonio, Texas
This is my third time at this mission. On the first two occasions, I made the obvious photos. Multiple angles of the church exterior. The requisite shot down the middle aisle towards the altar. Sure, I shot those again, just in case. But I feel most proud of these alternate shots. The less obvious ones that perhaps not everyone would see. As I train my eye and improve as a photographer, I’m trying to create the less common photographs. Not totally unique, maybe, but something that breaks the “me too” mold. Not an easy task given that there are some many good photographers taking more photographs than ever.
Note: The last photograph is a black and white HDR. They don’t have to be in color and the HDR processing brings out more texture and detail. I didn’t like the color in this photo and the ground was much too cluttered and distracting. I found that the black and white conversion created a more compelling image.
Tree with Character #3, Mission San Jose – San Antonio, Texas
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A view from the Hotel Valencia
A view from the Hotel Valencia – San Jose, California
Sometimes everything falls into place — the sum of the parts being greater than the whole. This photograph, that I shot last week in San Jose, is an example. One that the Santana Row Tripod Police could not stop. I shot it off the 5th floor balcony of the Hotel Valencia, where I stayed.
I shoot enough HDRs that, usually, I have a good idea how they would turn out. I was pleasantly surprised by this one though. The orange color you see on the horizon is not the sunset. The sky was already quite dark but the long exposure brought out the details. I increased the saturation and tweaked the color temperature and got this wonderful deep blue with the orange, which I suspect is created by the glow of the city’s lights.
As usual, I shot 3 exposures two stops apart. The new Olympus E-PM2 now conveniently has a HDR bracket which helps you take the photographs. It does not, however, create the HDRs in camera — you still have to post process them on the computer. I used Photomatix Pro to create the HDR, did some manual layer blending and did the final adjustments using Apple’s Aperture 3.
More than any of my other photographs, this one gives the feeling of Santana Row. The place really does do a nice job to simulate a city, even though it really is a shopping mall. Austin has “The Domain” which is a similar kind of development. I hope someday, will fill out as nicely as this one.
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I’m a Professional because I use a tripod
Sino Reflection, Santana Row – San Jose, California
I took these photographs last week in San Jose, California at a place called Santana Row, an upscale, city like development. The detailing there was terrific and I decided to use a tripod to take my usual night-time urban landscapes. Just as I setup my tripod, a security guard came over and dashed my plans.
“I’m sorry you can’t take photographs here”, she said nicely but with some hesitation. I was a bit confused because I’ve shot there many times without interference. Then I realized that she was taking issue with the tripod. Yes, “You have to get permission first” before taking professional photographs. I smiled and played dumb and said, a professional, with this camera?, as I pointed to my Olympus E-PM2. For the uninitiated, the E-PM2 is a small camera barely larger than a point and shoot.
This kind of incident is actually fairly common for tripod photographers. Police and Security are trained, for ease of identification, that people who use tripods are professional photographs and must be dealt with in a different manner. They usually give bogus reasons such as “protecting privacy” to restrict tripod use which, of course, is equally an issue with photographs shot freehand.
Vintage Wine Bar, Santana Row – San Jose, California
I didn’t make a fuss in this case. You see Santana Row, despite looking city like is, most likely, private property. It is basically a shopping mall development wrapped in a faux-city fabric. Kind of ironic since, in many ways, Santana Row looks more urban than the real downtown San Jose. On private property, the owners can impose photography restrictions. Undeterred however, I complied with the no tripod request but still took my long exposures by placing my camera on tables and railings. I was a bit restricted on the compositions that I could create but I still managed to take the type of photographs that I wanted.
Pinkberry, Santana Row – San Jose, California
Unlike my previous outings where I shot free hand, I wanted to do some HDRs this time, which require multiple images precisely aligned. A tripod is usually best for alignment but as you can see, there are ways around this. The general aversion towards tripods is a source of frustration for photographs and especially people who like to shoot HDRs. It is one thing for private property owners to restrict use but It is more distressing when public cities also limit tripods. I’ve heard cities such as Washington DC and New York are not very tripod friendly.
What’s been your experience? Have you been asked not to use tripods? Share your thoughts below.
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Colonial Williamsburg: The U.S. history theme park
Governor’s Palace, Colonial Williamsburg – Williamsburg, Virginia
Colonial Williamsburg was a puzzle to me. I’ve heard about the place but never went there, even though I lived on the East Coast. I heard conflicting reports that it was a made up place while some claimed it was a real town. So when I had the chance, I decided to start our winter vacation there. And even after looking at their website and brochures, I still didn’t understand Williamsburg until I actually got there and started exploring.
Colonial Williamsburg is sort of like a theme park for American history. Buildings have been moved and rebuilt to simulate life in the American colonies around the time of the American revolution. But it is also the real deal — the town really did exist from way back. The Governor’s Mansion and Capitol, the centerpieces of Williamsburg, were rebuilt on their original foundations as close as possible to the original specifications. The Courthouse and The Magazine, where they kept the arms, are original structures.
Virginia Colonial Capitol – Williamsburg, Virginia
While there are actors in costume, in fairness to Colonial Williamsburg, this is no ordinary theme park — there are no cute mascots and amusement rides. It’s more of a living museum to American History. Also, unlike a typical amusement park, you can get in and walk around in the town without a ticket. Paying the entrance fee entitles the visitor to tours of the trophy buildings and seeing the demonstrations of the craftsman, such as the blacksmith and wig makers. There are no blatant food stands but there are restaurants in recreated Taverns that line Duke Of Gloucester, the main street.
In Costume, Governor’s Palace – Williamsburg, Virginia
In Costume, Virginia Capitol – Williamsburg, Virginia
Next to Colonial Williamsburg, there are the Market Square Shops, a shopping area done in the Neo-Colonial style. And beyond that, lies the College of William and Mary. Colonial Williamsburg buses, that allow ticket holders to get on and off at several places, make it easy to get around. The main Visitor’s Center complex is where you can buy the tickets. It also has additional shops, restaurants and is the logical place to get started. Everything is done in a classy way and I have come to realize the price of admission is well worth it.
Merchant Square Shops – Williamsburg, Virginia
Colonial Williamsburg Bus – Williamsburg, Virginia
We spent 2 relaxed days there but there is more than enough to fill 3 days. There are resort style hotels right next to the historic buildings but we opted to stay in a more conventional hotel several miles away. The greater City of Williamsburg is like any small city with the usual sprawl. Drive down Richmond Road and you can find a large selection of standard, new restaurants with modern 21st century food.
The DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art museums, both under the same roof, are surprisingly good. The museums are included as part of the general admission ticket. Entrance to the museum was a bit confusing — you can enter the primarily underground complex through the Public Hospital of 1773. Since we were during the winter vacation, there was a magnificent Christmas Tree in the restaurant area.
Christmas Tree, Rockefeller Folk Art Museum – Williamsburg, Virginia
Big Cat, Rockefeller Folk Art Museum – Williamsburg, Virginia
Exhibits, Rockefeller Folk Art Museum – Williamsburg, Virginia
Colonial Williamsburg is a must for history buffs especially if you are into early American History (the Historic Jamestown settlement is also fairly close). I think the 13-year-old was old enough and knew enough history to appreciate the place. For my 9-year-old, it was more of a stretch. He liked the optional Tavern Ghost Tour we took at night and he was mesmerized by the blacksmith’s handicraft. There are activities geared towards kids that we didn’t strictly follow. Perhaps if we did, our younger son would have like it even more. The Fife and Drum parade down Duke of Gloucester, while not exactly the Disney Electric Parade, did add a nice closure to our stay.
Blacksmith, Colonial Williamsburg – Williamsburg, Virginia
Fife and Drum Parade, Colonial Williamsburg – Williamsburg, Virginia
Of course for me, any new place is a chance for photography. I enjoyed Williamsburg and its history but I like the architecture the most. It’s not the big city and there are no shiny lights but finding texture and compositions entertained and challenged me. If anything, I would like to spend more time shooting photographs deliberately but the family schedule didn’t allow for that. My small bag carried two cameras with lenses attached. My new Olympus E-PM2 with the 14mm f2.5 and the Olympus E-P3 with the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4. That’s it. I also had a Panasonic wide-angle adapter that I can attach to the 14mm but I had no other lenses. This kept the photography gear to a minimum and let me enjoy the experience without being weighed down.
The Carriage and Courthouse – Williamsburg, Virginia
The Magazine, Colonial Williamsburg – Williamsburg, Virginia
Historic Jail Cells – Williamsburg, Virginia
Reflection on Duke of Gloucester Street – Williamsburg, Virginia
Sunset at the Capitol – Williamsburg, Virginia
My wife, who doesn’t know much American History, also enjoyed Colonial Williamsburg. We vowed that sometime in the future, perhaps when we are retired, we will return to this place. We can take our time and savor the details especially since we won’t have young kids in tow. Sounds good to me since I’m always up for more photography. I wonder what kind of camera I’ll be using in the distant future.
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The Olympus E-PM2 and the 4 city East Coast tour
Staircase, Peyton Randolph House – Williamsburg, Virginia
Happy New Year!
I hope y’all had a wonderful holiday season. I got back from my big East Coast trip several days ago. I needed a few days to recuperate from my vacation, which sounds strange but I’m sure you know what I mean. After a whirlwind 4 city, 6 state tour with my family, I needed some time to unwind. I’m happy to report that everything went off without a hitch after an initial worry due to a flight delay in Austin. We made our connection in DFW with 10 minutes to spare and a bit of good luck since our next plane to Richmond was delayed a few minutes too.
Arches, Library of Congress – Washington DC
So where did we go? The photographs on this post reveal the answer — they are from our 4 major destinations. After we landed in Richmond, Virginia it was a quick one hour drive to Williamsburg. We stayed there two nights. Despite living on the East Coast for a while, I never visited that place before. I was quite familiar with the 3 other places. We stayed in Washington DC for 4 nights, Philadelphia for 2 nights and New York City for 4 nights.
Bourse Interior – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
First and foremost, this was a family trip so I made sure we did family fun activities but I did manage to take a bunch of photographs, both for my blogs as well as family snapshots. In fact, I got my latest camera, the Olympus E-PM2 with this trip in mind. After 4000+ photographs with the E-PM2, I know the ins and out of this camera quite well. For the most part, it worked well. There were, however, a few things that didn’t work as well as expected. I will do a full E-PM2 review soon.
Skinny Dinosaur, Museum of Natural History – New York, New York
Over the next few weeks and months, I’m sure I’ll post a bunch of photos from this trip. There is a lot of architecture and urban landscapes, of course, as well as some street photography in New York. If this was a pure photography oriented trip, I could have easily shot for 2 weeks or more at each place. Instead, I squeezed in shots as we travelled between museums, activities and the 4 cities.
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The Driskill Bar, a cozy, holiday filled corner
Cozy and Festive Corner, Driskill Bar – Austin, Texas
As I mentioned in my post several days ago, I been shooting the main Driskill Hotel Christmas tree for four years now. But this year, I shot another one, tucked back in the corner on the other side of the hotel. It’s in the Driskill Bar right near the 7th street entrance.
The place was quite dark and I had some doubts if this would come out. I used my Olympus E-PM2 with the 14mm lens on a table top tripod and put it on a cushy ottoman. I shot three photographs at 2 stops apart and use the HDR bracket option that is new to the E-PM2 — this isn’t available on the E-P3. Just to be clear, the HDR bracket feature just takes the photographs, it does not do any in-camera HDR processing.
I used my standard, subtle HDR processing technique to get it just right. I wanted the Christmas tree lights be bright and festive but still wanted to keep the moody, wood-paneled bar feeling. I’m happy with the way it came out.
I hope everyone has a great Holiday Season. I’m shutting things down here and packing up for a family vacation to the East Coast. I may have one more post coming before I go for the rest of the year.
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2012 Driskill Hotel Christmas Tree
2012 Driskill Christmas Tree – Austin, Texas
It’s become a mini-photo tradition for me to photograph the Driskill Hotel Christmas Tree — this is the fourth year. I’ve posted images of the tree from 2009 and 2010 and part of a three tree set last year. I went downtown a couple of nights ago with my friend Mike to capture this year’s tree.
While the position of the Christmas Tree remains constant, every year the shape of the tree and the decorations vary. I’ve also used different cameras and techniques over the years. In 2009, during the beginning of my HDR phase, I shot the tree as a 3 image blend with my Canon 20D with a 29mm equivalent. The 2010 and 2011 trees were simply shot with the Sony NEX-5 with 24mm equivalent lens, down low with a table top tripod. This year, I used the Olympus E-PM2 with a 22mm equivalent lens (the Panasonic 14mm f2.5 with a wide-angle adapter) with the same table top tripod.
I decided to go back to a lightly-processed HDR technique this year and blended 3 photos. It enabled me to capture the detail in the stained glass and keep the rest of the exposure bright. I also altered the white balance to more of a warm red just to change my artistic interpretation. I’ll post more Christmas decorations from the Driskill, Austin’s grandest old hotel, over the weekend.
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Attending Drink and Click, a festive photowalk
Aigerim at Spider House – Austin, Texas
Last week, I attended my first Drink and Click, a new social photography group started in Austin, Texas. I’ve meant to go for a while but my schedule just didn’t work out. Juan Gonzalez, who started the group, has done a heck of job and many chapters have opened around the world. He is a friendly guy and I had good time talking to him. Juan along with Lotus Carol run the group, both very popular photographers on Google Plus.
I’ve gone on many photowalks but this one has a slightly different dynamic. While other photowalks tend to be very photography oriented with a bit of social tacked on, Drink and Click seems like equal parts photography and socializing. Like a group of people out to have fun that just happen to take pictures. But don’t let all the socializing fool you, there were some outstanding photographers. It’s just that they don’t take themselves too seriously. I’m going again because I found it refreshing.
Beer, Tattoo, Spider House – Austin, Texas
Hotel Reno, Spider House – Austin, Texas
We started at 37th and Guadalupe, an old neighborhood with eclectic holiday lighting. We then headed over to Spider house a few blocks down for some more clicking and some drinking. I’ve never been to Spider House and it was fantastic — my kind of place with wild decorations, neon, and a whole mess of lights. It’s the kind of place where you might find holiday lights up in August. Of course, we were there at night, which is my favorite time of the day for photography. I’ll post photographs from 37th street another day but today it’s all about a very Austin looking joint.
Bar Neon, Spider House – Austin, Texas
Warm and Eclectic, Spider House – Austin, Texas
I had my new two camera Olympus setup with the Panasonic Leica 25mm f1.4 attached to my new E-PM2 and the 14mm attached to the E-P3. I’m really liking the combination of the 50mm and 28mm equivalents. They give me enough focal length variety to take my urban landscapes, architecture with the 28mm and I like to use the 50mm for portraits and capturing details.
Crazy Lights, Spider House – Austin, Texas
Spider House Lamp Post – Austin, Texas
Time flew quickly and the gathering was going strong when I left at 11pm. I’ll need to go back to Spider House again. It’s the kind of place where I can spend hours shooting. And I will certainly go to another Drink and Click for some more social photography. You can check this rapidly growing list for a local Drink and Click chapters near you. Photography tends to be an individualistic activity but you might have a good time shooting with a fun group.
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The Best Photo of Crestview Station
Crestview Station Blue Hour – Austin. Texas
Last week I went to dinner with my friend Mike. Just before we walked into the restaurant, my attention was distracted by some festive hanging lights and a beautiful blue sky. Yes, it was the peak of blue hour and as usual I was drawn to it. My apologies for talking about blue hour again but you know how much I like this special time of the day for photography. I excused myself for few minutes so I could explore. Mike is also a photographer so I’m sure he understood. It’s not so easy with non-photographers or the family, however. They seem to be more disapproving when you go off wandering, just before dinner.
The blue sky was nice but the hanging lights were only so so; I shot some frames but wasn’t too excited. Then close by, I saw the gleaming new rail station just sitting there. It was nicely lit up and isolated with the brilliant blue as the backdrop. I always talk about glow on this blog. The glow of made-made lights and other beautiful light sources. When you find the right subject and the warm yellow lights with its contrast to the deep blues, it makes for an image that I find hard to resist.
Like my image in the previous post, this architecture photo may not be exiting to some. But it’s right up my alley. The kind of imagery that makes a modest train station come alive. And like my previous post, I think there is a sculptural quality about this structure too. There it sits, all by itself with its curvy roof. It’s warm and inviting yet the lack of people makes it seem impersonal. It’s a simple, minimal composition and with few distractions — the train station takes center stage.
The problem with photography, especially with the kind that I do, is that you never know when and where you’re going to get that next favorite shot. I was lucky I had my Olympus E-P3 with me. I tried carrying my tiny Sony TX5 before as my “capture the moment” camera. But as good and convenient as it is, ultimately the TX5 did not meet my picky image quality standards, though for the general Facebook crowd it is more than enough. Despite loving my Olympus Pen series, part of me is secretly waiting for that tiny camera that crosses that magical image quality boundary. What makes my situation worse is that I need that high quality in marginal light, the kind of environment that I most enjoy shooting. Hence my fixation with high quality high ISO performance, The small cameras are rapidly evolving. The Lumix LX7 and the Sony RX100 are the latest salvos in this area. And until that special camera arrives I will carry around my Olympus Pens and just hope that all the stars align for my next favorite image.
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A beautiful photo of a parking lot
Winchester Garage Glow, Santana Row – San Jose, California
As I head off on a 5 days business trip to California, I remembered a photograph I took on my last trip out there. It’s not a photograph of any thing famous or noteworthy. It is simply a parking structure that I saw at the Santana Row Shopping Area in San Jose. A mundane, utilitarian structure that I saw as I walked toward the car after my dinner. But I like this image a lot and maybe you might find it interesting to hear my thoughts behind it.
What attracted me to this scene? I first saw the rich glow of warm lights. I saw the warm reflections off the black street. I like the repeating geometric structure which comes from my love of architecture. Glow and reflections are what I seek these days, which only appear as the day turns to night. I post-processed this image to accentuate what I like. Upon closer examination, I love the bold, black horizontal lines that match the black of the night (one of the rare times I like a black sky more than my beloved deep blue, blue hour skies). I notice that the warm color is created by both a deep red and yellow paint scheme on the building. My post-processing increased the color saturation and the glow of the lights and reflections.
I actually shot several photos and the other frames had people in them. I didn’t like those versions as much. I like this image because the geometry and light makes the structure look somewhat sculptural, like a piece of art rather than a utilitarian building. Having people in the frame broke this illusion. I realize that I’m starting to sound like an esoteric art critic. You might not see what I see and you might not like this image at all. And that is totally OK, because I like it. Many see beauty in flowers and nature. Often times, I see beauty in structure and order. As I explore more of photography, I’m seeing things in a different way. I’m deriving pleasure in finding beauty and interest in the mundane. I’ve learned that it is also OK and in fact it is preferred to see the word differently from others. After all, the world would be a boring place if everyone liked the same things.
As I mentioned, I will be traveling to California this week. I suspect that I will not be posting as often has I have recently. I will try to maintain my one image per day postings on mostlfyfotos, just in case you need a blog fix from me. If all goes well, I may have a few more photos and a few more stories from my travels. Hopefully something juicy for a future blog post.
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A bit of magic at Milton and South Congress
Hey Cupcake Trailer Closeup, SoCo – Austin, Texas
The corner of Milton Street and South Congress Avenue transforms itself into a magical place at a certain time of the day. It is one of my favorite spots to shoot and take in the atmosphere. On this corner, a silvery airstream sells cupcakes and a musician serenades the customers. When the sun sets and the sky turns a deep blue, for a few minutes the combination of warm lights, silvery reflections and the friendly Austin people make for really neat place to photograph.
I’ve shot here many times before, aways trying to time my image captures around the blue hour. I love those bare light bulbs, in series that adorns this small patch of ground. I frequently talk about the contrast between the blue and the man-made warm lights, the glow and reflections that can found at the right angles. All of these elements come together here when you time it right. And though the cup cakes may be tasty and the people friendly all the time, these magical images can only be made minutes after sunset.
Customers at Hey Cupcake Trailer #1, SoCo – Austin, Texas
Customers at Hey Cupcake Trailer #2, SoCo – Austin, Texas
I’ve talked about my recent South Congress photowalk several times in my recent postings (here, here and here) but the focus of this photowalk was the blue hour. And for the blue hour, I decide to shoot it here on this corner. The blue hour, in Central Texas, only lasts for at most, 15 minutes. About 10 minutes after sunset, the sky starts turning a vibrant blue and continues to darken as the minutes tick by. At some point after 15 minutes, the sky is more black than blue and you realize that another blue hour has slipped away. For this reason, you really don’t have the luxury to move around and photograph many things during this time. It helps to have an idea or place in mind and be ready before the color turns. But the blueness of the sky depend on the direction you face; it does not evenly turn to black. Shoot towards the west and you can eke out some great color for a bit longer.
Performance at Hey Cupcake, Soco – Austin, Texas
I used my 14mm Panasonic Lumix lens for all but one. I also used the wide-angle adapter that attaches to 14mm for many of the images too. The EXIF data does not show the use of the wide-angle so I’m not a 100% sure on which images I used the adapter. You’ll think that it would be easy to distinguish between a 22mm equivalent and a 28mm but I seem to find it a challenge. I shot a bunch of images of the guitar player and this one that seem a bit soft but nicely dreamy. I used the 45mm f1.8 shot at 1/30 second at ISO 800 for this shot. Not the ideal conditions hand-held but I was happy I created a moody image.
Performer at Hey Cupcake, Soco – Austin, Texas
Finally the last two images shows the scene toward the end of blue hour. You can tell because the electric blue has been replaced by a deeper, mature blue. The total elapsed time between the first and last image, 8 minutes. The peak color only lasts for a few minutes and I was facing east so the sky color darkened quicker. After this, I was off shooting other things, and no longer using the sky as a key element. I find that in most cases, a black sky is not nearly as interesting. Once this magical time passes, I change my subjects and concentrate of other things or I go to dinner like I did that night. Part of the group already headed to Wahoo’s for some fish tacos. I was going to meet them too but only after I squeeze the most out of my favorite blue hour.
Hey Cupcake Trailer Closeup #2, SoCo – Austin, Texas
Hey Cupcake at Blue Hour, SoCo – Austin, Texas
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SoCo neon and focal length experiments
Heritage Boot Co. Neon, SoCo – Austin, Texas
My newest and most underused lens is the Olympus 40 – 150mm f4 – 5.6. I bought it before I went to Japan, just in case I did some nature photography and wanted its range and its telephoto abilities. I didn’t use it much. Last weekend I took the zoom on a photowalk to get to know it better. I posted More Abstract Agaves of SoCo where I did some closeups with the lens and I also captured some nice looking cloud formations too. During the SoCo outing, we congregated at a corner of Congress Avenue and Nellie Street, where we socialized and waited for the blue hour. I started playing with my 40-150 zoom and my wide-angle 14mm; switching between the two and experimenting.
I’ve shot a lot with my 14mm (28mm equivalent). Of the 10,000 images I took in Japan, up to 80% were shot with this lens. Previous to this, I used the Lumix 20mm (40mm equivalent) as my only lens for 10 months. So I’m quite familiar with lenses from a moderate wide-angle to normal point of view. I find telephotos a lot more of challenging. The image above was shot with the 14mm. I managed to exclude all the visual clutter and created a simple composition. The telephoto versions of the Heritage Boot Neon sign are my experiments with this 40-150 zoom. I didn’t shoot these all from the exact same position so this is not a focal length comparison. Rather, I was attempting to make interesting compositions, from different angles, using various focal lengths.
Heritage Boot Co. Neon Closeup (148mm equivalent)
Heritage Boot Co. Neon Closeup #2 (256mm equivalent)
After shooting so much with the 14mm, I now see compositions very easily at this focal length. That is one of the advantages of non-zooming prime lenses. You are locked into a certain way of seeing things and that helps you to create compositions before you shoot them. Being “locked into seeing things” seems like a bad thing in photography, where you want to be creative and flexible. However, the irony is the constraint of using a prime strengthens the eye and the brain. Counterintuitive I’m sure but it’s helped me. I think the 28mm focal length works nicely for architecture in these urban environments. Wide enough to be inclusive but not so wide that objects become too distant. That’s the challenge when using super-wide lenses such as the 16mm to 18mm. The distance between you and the subject looks so far away that the point of interest looks tiny. For super-wides, you need to have foreground and mid-ground elements to make a balanced photograph. This is not not the case with the 28mm. I also found using the Lumix 20mm (40mm equivalent) often times feels a bit constraining for architecture, especially when shooting on the diagonal.
But there are disadvantages to a moderately wide lens too. There are always disadvantages. If I wanted to include the Blackmail and Heritage Boot Neons signs together, it may not be possible to exclude unwanted elements. While the lone neon sign at the top of the post works well because of a simple, uncluttered composition, the one below with the two signs does not work as well. There is too much clutter and other distracting elements that weakens the image. You can tell that the first image up top is obviously about the neon sign even if it was taken with the same 14mm lens as the image below. The cluttered image below has two neon signs, another sign cut off, and a window among other things. To me it’s not clear what the focal point is. Compare that image to the last one on the post. The 80mm equivalent on the zoom lens allowed me to exclude more elements and concentrate on the neon signs. Clearly the photo is about the two neon signs and their interplay.
Blackmail and Boot Neon, SoCo (28mm equivalent)
Blackmail and Boot Neon Closeup, SoCo (80mm equivalent)
I certainly need more hands on time with this telephoto zoom. I don’t think as easily in telephoto but perhaps with more practice I will get better. I may think more in wide-angle but there are always advantages for each focal length. Perhaps some walks in downtown Austin, pointing my zoom as the new high rises would be a good way to start.
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It’s all about the clouds
Tesoros Sunset – Austin, Texas
Yesterday’s South Austin photowalk was the perfect way for me to get back in sync with my photography friends. I was only in Japan for 3 weeks but somehow the radical change in lifestyle made me think that I was away a lot longer. Alex Suarez, who organized the last big walk at the University of Texas campus organized this one too, with a suggestion from my friend, Tony. We met at 7pm for a SoCo Blue Hour walk and finish up with food and drinks at Wahoo Fish Tacos. Turnout was great, we probably had about 20 people including Jerry, the owner of the local, last remaining, full service camera store, Precision Camera.
Soco Photowalk Sunset – Austin, Texas
The challenge I find in Austin is that despite Austin’s notoriety and cool factor on the national scene, it is at best a medium size city. There is only a limited number of places to do urban photowalks. I’ve been to SoCo (South Congress, an area of Austin just south of downtown) many times on photo excursions. I went on this photogathering more to meet my friends and not do serious photography. That said, it is always nice to create a few frames that are new and unique. And arguably going back to the same places over and over and trying to see different compositions is the mental challenge required to become a better photographer. Yesterday turned out to be better than expected. The weather cooperated and created wonderfully expressive clouds and a brilliant sunset that you only get once in a while.
Home Slice Sunset – Austin, Texas
I brought along my usual trio of Olympus cameras, the same set that I used in Japan, 2 E-PL1s and 1 E-P3. Lens wise, I had my usual 14mm f2.5 and 45mm f1.8 but left my 20mm f1.7 at home. I decided to try out my 40mm – 150mm zoom lens that I purchased just prior to my Japan trip. I didn’t use that lens very much in Japan but at $159 factory refurbished at Cameta Camera, it wasn’t very expensive. Many photographers have a favorite focal length and I’m beginning to think that I like the wide angles more. A long telephoto like the 40mm – 150mm (80mm to 300mm equivalent) is not what I end up using for the type of photographs I usually take. However, I end up creating two exposures last night, closeups of the clouds, that made it worth while. As you can see below, the telephoto really isolated the clouds and produced an abstract feel. They were both taken at 150mm (300mm equivalent) and it would not been possible with my usual suit of lenses.
Abstract SoCo Clouds #1 – Austin, Texas
Abstract SoCo Clouds #2 – Austin, Texas
Beyond my two telephoto images, I took the rest of the photos with my 14mm and 45mm primes lenses. The primes produce a higher quality than the zoom and because of the larger apertures, I was able to use these prime lenses well into the night, without using a tripod. The explosive color muted to a rich blue as the blue hour approached. I’ll post these blue hour shots as well as some more photos from this walk in a future post. For today, it’s all about the clouds.
Blue Clouds over SoCo – Austin, Texas
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Olympus OM-D the good and not so good
Olympus OM-D at Yodobashi Camera – Osaka, Japan
I’m sure most serious micro 4/3 shooters have looked at or considered the new Olympus OM-D. I certainly have. For those who are unfamiliar, the OM-D E-M5 (a stupid name, in my opinion, why not call it the OM-D5?) is Olympus’ newest and highest end camera. I’ve played with the camera a couple of times in Austin and in Japan all the camera stores have it on display. I saw multiple OM-Ds tethered safely to the table at the big camera stores such as Yodobashi and Bic. You are free to play with the cameras for hours if you desired. I’ve slipped into these camera stores in multiple cities for some relaxation time and for some future equipment dreaming — do I really want to get yet another Olympus micro 4/3 camera? Logically, when thinking of spending $1000+ on yet another camera, you start thinking if it’s worth the expense. What additional capabilities will this camera give me that I don’t already have? Readers of this blog might remember that I already own 3 Olympus cameras as well as a Sony NEX-5 and a Canon 7D. Do I really need another camera? No. But do I want another camera? Maybe.
There are many reviews of OM-D E-M5 out there and the camera has received accolades from all the reviews I’ve read. Some people have said it’s the best micro 4/3 camera out there, and equal to the best mirror-less cameras from any manufacturer. From the research I’ve done, the Olympus now has RAW high ISO image quality that is on par with my Canon 7D. The JPEG quality is even better. Most say the dynamic range is better than the Olympus E-P3 that I currently use and the high ISO quality seems to be at least 1 stop better. So getting decent quality images at ISO 3200 would certainly be exciting to me. In addition, the 5 axis advanced image stabilization will also help for those low light shots as well as for video. There are a host of other features that seem neat. I like the tilting LCD screen. I have one on my Sony NEX-5 and I really like the feature. However, as cool and feature packed as this camera is, I’ve noticed a few things that are less than stellar. With all the positive reviews, here is an alternate perspective. Negative observations that I’ve made that aren’t show stoppers but do take a bit of the shine off the camera, at least for me.
Size and Design
The OM-D5 is a really small camera. My first reaction when I saw it in person is that it looked toy like. Toy like, not in build, but in size. The design mimics a classic SLR but since it’s smaller it just looks unexpectedly strange. The OM-D is about the same size as the E-P3 except for the pentaprism mimicking hump that contains the EVF. For people who have no history with the original Olympus OM SLR, the design reference of the OM-D might be lost. While the sculpted and distinctive look of the OM-D is neat, especially compared to the boring, generic, black and lumpy DLSR designs, ultimately I think the OM-D design is a bit contrived. I prefer the simplicity and the smooth lines of the Olympus PEN line, much more. The button placement on the OM-D is also very cramped. The play and function 1 buttons, in particular, feel like they were added as an afterthought; they are hard to press. Despite being about the same size, I find that the E-P3 buttons are better placed. I also wish the E-M5 retained the same control wheel as the E-P3, that way there is an interface consistency for people who are moving up from the PEN line. Also with a control wheel, instead of arrows, the E-M5 would have 3 controllable dials like the Sony NEX-7 Tri-navi interface. That would be the ultimate in flexibility and quick access.
I find it easier to grip the E-P3 compared to the E-M5, though the hard rubber thumb rest on the E-M5 is well placed. Many reviewers highly recommend the optional $300 2 piece grip that does make the camera a lot easier to hold. However, for me, one of the main reasons for moving to the mirrorless camera design is to have a small camera. I’m loathed to add grips that makes the camera larger and paying an extra $300 for the privilege.
EVF and Flash Placement
While the EVF (Electronic View Finder) placement in the center hump nicely mimics a traditional SLR, I find that the hump adds enough bulk to make it tight in my camera bags. When the separate flash is added, the bulk increases even more. I rarely use flash and usually only in emergencies. Because of this, I’ll probably use the camera with the flash detached but I will inevitably be out of luck for the rare times I need to use it. The Sony NEX-5 also has a separate detachable flash and I find it a pain to keep around. One more thing that can be misplaced or gets in the way. On the E-P3, the small flash folds into the body so it is always available. I wish that the EVF was placed similar to the Sony NEX-7 and the flash was designed to pop up. You can see that the Sony NEX-7, even with a larger APS-C sensor, is smaller than the Olympus OM-D. So if Olympus wasn’t trying to go retro, they probably could have built this thing with a flush top that contained a viewfinder and a flash.
Proximity Sensor and Touch screen
I really like the articulated LCD design. I can also imagine using the touch screen and the tilted out LCD to shoot at waist level. However, I’ve noticed that when I do this, my finger accidentally triggers the proximity sensor of the EVF and the entire LCD turns off. With practice, I may be able to use the tilted touch screen without running a foul of the proximity sensor but this is something I’ve noticed when playing with the camera.
Camera Color
Both the retro silver or the black versions of the OM-D look terrific when you only look at the body, however, when you add a lens and the mismatch begins. In general, I think the retro silver body integrates better with the selection of lenses, but, for some strange reason Olympus’ lenses come in different shades of silver. Compare the silver color of the Olympus 45mm f1.8 and it is a different silver color from the Olympus 12mm f2.0. And I think the 17mm f2.8 might yet be another slightly different color. I don’t think it is an issue of plastic vs metal build since I’m sure either material can be made to match each other in color. Look at the metal silver color of the OM-D body, it is a different color from the metal 12mm lens and more similar to the color of plastic 45mm. You play a premium price for a magnesium bodied camera and a nice metal lens and the colors don’t match. I’ve looked at the camera with these lenses and the mismatched shades of silver just don’t look right. It’s the little aesthetic details that are important and Olympus does not have details right. Keep in mind that these devices are sold to photographers, people who are especially in tune with color. Color mismatch is not a good thing.
It may be a bit better with the black version but here there are also design issues, I think. The black OM-D body, unlike the E-P3, is almost entirely black. There are a few shiny accents on the top control wheel but that’s about it. When you add a silver lens to the black body, I think it looks disjointed. There is too much of a contrast between the all silver lens and the all black body. On the my black E-P3, there are a considerable number of silver accents that better integrates with a silver lens. There is a silver or chrome accent that runs around the perimeter of the camera, for example. Am I being too picky here, perhaps. But I cite Apple as an example; a very successful company with a great design sense. If Apple made cameras, do you think they would make lenses with multiple shades of silver or camera bodies that didn’t exactly match camera lenses?
Conclusion
Despite some of my negative observations, there is no question that the OM-D EM-5 is a fantastic camera. None of my picky design “complaints” are show stoppers that would prevent me from getting the camera. It’s just that it makes a terrific camera a bit less perfect in my eyes. Of course nothing is perfect and my “complaints” may be a non-issue for you; just me being over picky. What makes the OM-D purchase question more enticing is that I now have the funds to purchase one, if I desired. With all of its features, I know that if I get the OM-D I would create better quality photographs however, it will not make me a better photographer. Yes, my technical image quality will increase but it would not improve my “vision” for my photography. So is it worth paying the big bucks for yet another camera? Good question. I’ve decided to think about this some more.
There are rumors of a E-P4 coming out in the August to September timeframe. I will see what Olympus does with this new PEN. If they add the same sensor and the 5 axis IS that is in the OM-D, maybe I’ll get another PEN instead. The smaller form factor maybe more to my liking. Time will tell. My next big trip is scheduled for the East Coast at the end of the year. That would be a perfect time to get another camera, if I decide to pull the trigger.
I took this photograph with my Olympus E-P3 with the Panasonic Lumix 14mm f2.5. Please make sure to click on a photograph to see a larger image and hover over the photo to see the exposure details.
See more images taken with the Olympus E-P3 at mostlyfotos, my one photograph per day photo blog.
What to do on an 11 hour layover in NYC
Interior, 1917 Lo-V Subway Car – Brooklyn, New York
I’m finally back home in Austin after a 3 week vacation in Japan. I took a flight from Tokyo’s Haneda airport into JFK airport in New York City. I landed at 6am and my connecting flight to Austin was at 5pm. So what do you do when you have an 11 hour layover in New York? Well I hopped on the subway and headed into the city.
Howard Beach – JFK Station – Howard Beach, New York
Rockaway Blvd Station – Ozone Park, New York
11 hours seems like a long time but it’s not as much time as you might think, especially when you factor in all the wait time for the subway. Flying directly into NYC from Tokyo is a jarring experience. The old and dirty New York City subway system is quite a contrast from Tokyo’s clean and fast train system. After touching down at 6am, it was 7am before I got through customs, checked in my luggage and took the Air Train from the Airport to the Howard Beach subway station. There I waited 30+ minutes until the A train arrived. Surprisingly, it was nearly 9am until I got the World Trade Center station in lower Manhattan. Chalk it up to a couple of detours and transfers to get around some subway maintenance.
Fulton Center Construction – New York, New York
Given how long it took to travel downtown, I decided to give at least an hour to get back to the airport and I wanted to arrive at 3pm for my 5pm flight. I now remembered that it always seems to take a lot longer to do stuff in New York that other places. There is always the unexpected traffic jam or a break down on the subway system that, if you don’t leave an adequate buffer, you may end up missing an important flight. That only left abut 5 hours to do what I wanted to do. I decided to confine myself to lower Manhattan around the 9/11 Memorial Site and I also wanted to spend some time at the New York City Transit Museum in Brooklyn.
Men at Work, Lower Manhattan – New York, New York
Picture wise, this will give me a chance to shoot some architecture, do street photography and capture vintage subway trains at the museum. Along the way, I was planning to eat a quick-lunch at some, hopefully, decent New York pizzaria. I checked my clothing at JFK but I still had my technology bag full of all my cameras and electronics. My small mirror-less Olympus cameras didn’t weigh much but when you combine that with all the extra stuff I pack such as the chargers, hard drives and the 15″ MacBook Pro, that bag got pretty heavy, quickly. Maybe 15 + pounds. After 5 hours of walking and riding the subways, I was pretty exhausted. That was on top the 12+ hour flight from Tokyo and the 90 degrees of NYC heat. Nevertheless, the chance to shoot for a bunch of hours in New York City was worth it. Despite my complaints about the mass transit system, NYC is such a great place, especially for photography. I could probably shoot continuously for a year there and not get bored.
Patriotic Boxer, Lower Manhattan – New York, New York
9/11 Memorial, Tower 1 – New York, New York
After spending time at the 9/11 memorial and shooting around Wall Street, I hopped the train to Brooklyn. I found a decent neighborhood pizza place but not outstanding by New York standards. I could have gotten a better NY Style pizza in Austin (Hoboken Pie or Home Slice for example) , but I was tired and hungry. Then, close by, I spend about an hour at the transit museum. The timing worked perfectly and I was back at the airport on time. I also decided to treat myself to another local favorite, a combination pastrami and corned beef sandwich at the airport. Lots of shooting and eating some local New York food, not a bad way to spend my long layover in the Big Apple.
My Little Pizzeria, Street scape – Brooklyn, New York
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7,000 and counting – Shooting in Japan
Kokeshi on Display, Store Window – Kyoto, Japan
My blog posts have been a lot more sporadic these last couple of weeks, as you may have noticed. I’m currently in Japan and want to maximize my time making images rather than creating lengthy blog posts. I’ve been to Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo and Yokohama. I’ve shot about 7,000 photographs these last couple of weeks so I know I’m going to fall even more hopelessly behind in my image post-processing. I have a little less than 1 week left in Japan so we will see what the final image count will be.
I’m shooting all Olympus this trip. I thought about bringing my Sony NEX-5 like I did to India and Singapore but I decided use my Panasonic Lumix 14mm as my wide-angle lens. I picked up the, still rare, Panasonic wide-angle adapter in Japan for the 14mm which basically makes it a 11mm. With the conversion factor, I now have a 22mm on my Olympus Pen cameras. Not quite as wide as my 18mm equivalent on the Sony, but the Panasonic lens quality is a lot better. So, I brought 3 cameras with me. Two of my Olympus E-PL1s and my newer Olympus E-P3. Lens wise, I have the Panasonic Lumix 14mm f2.5 plus the wide-ange adapter, the Lumix 20mm f1.7, the Olympus 45mm f1.8 and the Oympus 40-150 zoom. While I have to juggle a few cameras, the weight is not bad at all. The 3 cameras and lenses together weight about the same as my Canon 7D with the wide-angle Sigma 10-20 lens. A bit more camera juggling but no lens switching required. I find it faster getting my images and I don’t have to worry about getting dust on the sensor.
I’ve already started posting images from Japan on mostlyfotos, my one photo per day site. I’m trying to have a mix of modern and old Japan for a nice slice of life here. Please take a look if you have some time. I will start posting longer form entires and talk about my experiences once I get back.
I took this photograph with my Olympus E-P3 with the Panasonic Lumix 14mm f2.5. Please make sure to click on a photograph to see a larger image and hover over the photo to see the exposure details.
See more images taken with the Olympus E-P3 at mostlyfotos, my one photograph per day photo blog.
Harley as Art
Chrome Engine #1, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
The last couple of posts were about HDR. It can be subtle or wild but I made the case that HDR is a merely a technique. A way to get closer to the internal “vision” for the image you wanted to create. Today, it’s all about black and white. A way to set a different mood; less color than HDR but equally dramatic. It can have such an artistic feeling, simple and dramatic at the same time. And with a long history of monochrome, it is an established photographic look. I’ve used black and white before to emphasize texture but this time, it is to simplify. To get an interplay between the dark and light.
Shiny Tank, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
Before the ROT (Republic of Texas) Rally parade, I searched for Harley art, the sublime curves of the rumbling beast. The participants take pride in their vehicles and most are shined and buffed to perfection. The black and white, mutes the colors and makes the chrome pop. The engine is a natural centerpiece and a work of art. I saw several designs, all beautifully sculptural.
Chrome Engine #2, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
The dials and gauges are another focal point; nicely symmetrical circles. Some are the height of minimal design, a single speedometer. Others took on more of a cockpit aesthetic.
Speedometer, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
Harley Cockpit, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
Finally, the front wheels in formation, captured as a row of bikes were parked by the curb. I used a telephoto lens to compress the distance between the wheels.
Wheels in Formation, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
So whether you use black and white or HDR, they are both in service to your photography. Two very different looks on the same subject.
To be continued…
Please make sure to click on the photographs to see a larger image and hover over the photos to see the exposure details.
ROT Rally bikes sparkle with wild HDR
Dynamic Duo, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
I talked about HDR in the last post — subtle, gentle HDR. Many photographers have a distaste for HDR, because they claim it does not look real. I find it curious though that the same people who poo poo HDR because it doesn’t look real, accept and even embrace black and white photography. Of course, black and white photography is no more real than, HDR. So what is it about HDR that makes it not look real? Perhaps they are reacting to badly done HDRs. If you read my previous post and looked at my example photograph, hopefully you are convinced or at least slightly more open to the notion that HDR can be done in elegant ways. I argue that HDR is just a tool and it can be applied in many ways. It can make photographs look artistic, surrealistic, realistic and everything in between. So today, I present to you some wild HDR; amped up more than usual, but given the subject, I think it’s fun. It’s the brash side of me jumping up and shouting a little.
Electric Blue, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
I see more colorfully lit bikes these days; probably made popular with the advent of tiny LED lights. Even without the HDR enhancements, the colors of these motorcycles can be quite vivid, especially as they bounce off the shiny chrome. HDR techniques are used to enhance dynamic range (or apparent dynamic range, really) but the technique also has a side effect of emphasizing texture or making shiny things even shinier. And emphasizing the shine is what makes these images fun. These techniques also work great on the gaudy and fanciful interiors of Las Vegas hotels too.
The first two images were taken on 6th street. They are basically different angles on the same bikes. I’ve done this kind of effect before at previous ROT Rallies but this year I went light and used my Olympus E-P3. Last year, for example, I used my Canon 7D with a super-wide angle lens. This year, I had a modest setup with a 28mm equivalent lens. As you can tell, you don’t need fancy DSLRs to do HDR. My Olympus E-P3 works great, just as good as my 7D.
Three on Congress, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
After an evening of shooting with my friends, I headed back to my car via Congress Avenue. The street was a lot quieter, several hours after the parade and I captured a few more HDRs. The Panasonic Lumix 14mm lens that I was using was surprisingly capable of doing this kind of photography. It doesn’t have the super-wide angle view but it still worked well enough that I might use it more often for urban HDRs. Wide-angle distortion can be fun but I’ve realized that if it’s not done properly, it can really be wonky and gimmicky. The 14mm which is equivalent to 28mm in the 35mm world gives a wide enough view without extreme distortion. It renders a more realistic point of view.
Lined Up on Congress, 2012 ROT Rally – Austin, Texas
So there you have it. Two examples of HDR. Wild and colorful on this post and tame and realistic in the previous post. Each being used to service my “vision” of the type of photograph I wanted to create. So HDR should not be an end goal. You shouldn’t necessarily use it for every shot; I know I was guilty of that when I was just starting out. Now I use HDR for a specific purpose. It’s not my trademark style, it’s just one more tool in my arsenal. The key is knowing when to use it. For my next post, I’ll change it up again and use a different technique to set a different mood.
Please make sure to click on the photographs to see a larger image and hover over the photos to see the exposure details.
