virtual tour: The Orton Effect - Dreamy Image Making - 03/17/10 03:53 AM
 
 
The Orton Effect - Dreamy Image Making
 
The Orton Effect is a technique in which the resulting image has both very high, and very low detailed area within the same photo. First used by Michael Orton, (thus the name), the effect has a dreamy, artistic, and somewhat surreal feel to it.
The technique is achieved by blending two exposures, one in sharp detail, and the other out of focus. But let's say you have only one shot. How do you achieve the same effect with that? Well, there are a few different options. Here is one. And it's … (51 comments)

virtual tour: The Hayman Fire - Eight Years Later - 03/14/10 05:52 AM
 
The Hayman Fire - Eight Years Later
On June 8, 2002, a Forest Service worker burned a letter from her estranged husband in a campground fire ring within an area designated for 'No Fires' due to a long period of severe drought in Colorado. Her action resulted in the largest wildfire in the history of the state of Colorado. The fire burned 138,000 acres across four counties, from Lake George in Park County, all the way to Denver. It caused nearly 40 million dollars in damage, burned 133 homes, and over 5,300 people were forced from their homes. It burned … (42 comments)

virtual tour: The Facebook Bandwagon - 03/12/10 01:08 AM
 
 
The Facebook Bandwagon
OK. I finally climbed aboard. I've been fighting this, kicking and screaming all the way. Where on earth does the TIME for all this come from? But Rain Camp convinced me that this is the way to take things to the next level.
So, not wanting to be left in the dust.... For the past two days, I have been dedicating my time to getting all this set up, and struggling from time to time with what for many of you probably came easily... (yes, go ahead and brag!)
Honestly, I have not found this to … (50 comments)

virtual tour: Get Your Google Juice Here! - 03/09/10 03:25 PM
 
 Get Your Google Juice Here! I had to get up at 5AM to be in Denver for Rain Camp this morning. No small feat for a girl that stays up late and sleeps in - and likes it that way. I was surprised how many people are up and about, and even out on the roads so early in the morning. What are they thinking???? Good grief. The sun was barely up....   But - NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, IT WAS SOOOOOO WORTH IT! A tremendous amount of very valuable information was shared with us, I had the opportunity to … (36 comments)

virtual tour: Photographic Compostiton - Negative Space - 03/05/10 01:33 AM
 
 
Photographic Compostiton - Negative Space
 
My recent post on Smoke Art got me thinking about 'negative space'. So, what is it? Negative space is that area around an image that is 'empty' and surrounds the 'postive space', or the subject.  When negative space surrounds or outlines the subject, it helps to define it, and draw the eye to the main subject.   Calling the negative space 'empty' doesn't necessarily mean 'blank' space, but rather the area that surrounds the subject of your image. This is what you think about when composing a photograph, and you are aware that … (51 comments)

virtual tour: Potato + Flashlight + Incense= Smoke Art - 03/03/10 01:32 AM
 
 Potato + Flashlight + Incense = Smoke Art
 
 
This little experiment was SO MUCH FUN!  I hope you enjoy the images, they're different :)
I used incense sticks stuck in a baked potato, a black matte board behind it, and a flashlight to shine light on the smoke in order to create these images. The camera was on a tripod and they were shot with a small aperture, high speed, and low ISO (pronounced eye-so).  I used a remote shutter release to avoid camera shake. I took them in a darkroom (my kitchen at night!).
What … (68 comments)

virtual tour: Best LCD Monitors for Photography - 03/02/10 03:24 AM
 
Best LCD Monitors for Photography
 
I have a photographer friend who is in the market for a new monitor. You might know her, Ms. Gail McMillan :) I really had not considered the effect of a lousy monitor on viewing photos until:
I had quite a shock yesterday when I opened my most recent post on a computer monitor that was not my own. My photos looked HORRIBLE! I was stunned. I'm not kidding, it was SERIOUSLY BAD.
My monitor is a few years old, 2 or 3 I think. It's an HP w2207. And I really like … (18 comments)

virtual tour: Catch Light - Specular Highlights in Photography - 02/28/10 04:06 AM
 
 
Catch Light - Specular Highlights in Photography Specular highlights are the bright spots of light found on shiny objects when lit by a light source. Catch light refers to that specular highlight in the eye of the subject. It can come from a natural source, such as the sun, or from a flash or lightbulb, or anything else that is reflected in the surface of the eye. Catch lights draw attention to the eyes of the subject, as seen below:
 

What you see reflected in the squirrel's eye is me. The blue is my jeans.

 
… (49 comments)

virtual tour: "If Your Pictures Aren't Good Enough, You're Not Close Enough" - Robert Capa - 02/26/10 02:02 AM
 

"If Your Pictures Aren't Good Enough, You're Not Close Enough" - Robert Capa Robert Capa was a legendary wartime photojournalist born Andre Friedmann, in Hungary in 1913. His assignments took him all over the war torn world in the years between the 1930's and the 1950's. He lost his life, ironically, in Vietnam in 1954 after stepping on a land mine. There is such a thing as "too close", I guess... While these words are said by some to have been attributed to his girlfriend, rather than himself, they are known and repeated by photographers everywhere. Whether you are … (86 comments)

virtual tour: What's in YOUR Backyard? - 02/24/10 01:58 AM
 
What's In YOUR Backyard? OK, I decided to stop whining about the weather, and go out and try to make it work for me. It was 17 degrees, with a light snow and the sun came out for a little while, so I went out to my backyard (bravely, I thought) to fool around and see what I could do to alleviate my boredom.
Sometimes, Mother Nature comes up with the most pleasing of surprises, providing something magical when we least expect it.
 
I'm pretty sure that if I had gone out there with a mind to … (50 comments)

virtual tour: Basic Image Post Processing Workflow In Photoshop - 02/22/10 02:45 AM
Basic Image Post Processing Workflow In Photoshop

I have written a few tutorials on different methods for optimizing images in past posts, but lately have gotten a few questions on the subject.  I do not mind at all sharing my methods and ideas with others that want to learn more about optimizing their images.

So, while everyone uses different methods to acieve their goals in post processing, and the final result is always a matter of personal preference, I have outlined my basic post processing method using Photoshop CS3. I also use Nik Software's Capture NX2 for post processing, … (37 comments)

virtual tour: Kool Kats From The Kalahari - 02/21/10 01:32 AM
 
 
Kool Kats From The Kalahari Meerkats, of course! These rambunctious little creatures are about the size of squirrel, and live in burrows in the Kalahri Desert and in parts of South Africa. They often share their burrows with mongoose, (whose family they are a part of), and ground squirrels.
 
They live together in colonies known also as 'clans' that average 20-30 members. They are very social, and work as a team to protect the clan, and raise and train their young.  They have been seen to engage socially in wrestling (play fighting), and even having races. One … (38 comments)

virtual tour: High Dynamic Range Images - Playing with Before and Afters - 02/19/10 01:42 AM
 
 
 High Dynamic Range Images - Playing with Before and Afters
 
High Dynamic Range Imaging, or HDR, allows for a greater dynamic range between the lightest and darkest parts of an image. In other words, it allows you create an image that looks alot more like the scene you actually saw, with more detail than the image straight out of the camera.
It is my opinion that every DSLR photo out of the camera needs some tweaking. Especially sharpening, as digital photos are inherently 'soft'. (For a tutorial on Sharpening Images, click here). For this purpose, I … (43 comments)

virtual tour: Animals and Emotions - 02/17/10 01:53 AM
 
 
Animals And Emotions  Anyone with pets would be hard pressed to say that their animals do not have emotions. But what about animals in the wild? Scientists tell us that wild animals express emotions just as humans do. They may not analyze them as we do, but the experience is the same.   In 1976, the Gorilla Foundation in Maui, Hawaii was founded with the primary purpose of teaching American Sign language to two lowland gorillas, Koko and Michael, and "bringing preservation, protection, and well being to gorillas through communication, research, and education". Koko was born 1971, and has … (49 comments)

virtual tour: Some Crummy Predictions From Economists - No Sugarcoating Here... - 02/15/10 12:59 AM
 
Some Crummy Predictions From Economists - No Sugarcoating Here...January of this year showed an increase of 15% over foreclosures in January of last year, and economists claim that while subprime loans were the issue originally, it appears the fastest growing foreclosure sector now is that of homeowners with good credit and conventional fixed rate loans.It is estimated that the figure of 2.8 million homeowners facing foreclosure last year, will rise to up to 3.5 million this year. This due to unemployed homeowners, or those with reduced income, that can no longer keep up with their mortgage payments. And since the … (32 comments)

virtual tour: The Wild Side of Valentine's Day - Yeah Baby! - 02/14/10 02:22 AM
 
 
                    The Wild Side Of Valentine's Day - Yeah Baby! Because we are who we are, we tend to think of Valentine's Day as a day special only to us. But, it's not necessarily so. Who says we have the market on this special day? A day for showing appreciation to our mates and significant others, a day for showing we care in ways we usually neglect to do on a regular basis. A day for saying, you are special to me, and "I Love You". No. We are not alone in displaying our innermost feelings. Even the toughest, … (49 comments)

virtual tour: Here Comes The IRS- 1099-C On Short Sales - 02/13/10 04:18 PM
 
 
Here Comes The IRS: 1099-C On Short Sales  Are you counseling your short sale sellers to seek tax advice before moving forward with their short sales? Are you making them aware that a 1099-C could soon be in the mail from IRS? If the debt is cancelled or forgiven, the forgiven amount could still be taxable, because the IRS considers that cancelled debt as income. Possible exemptions made by the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 (HR 3648), and in place through 2012 would be: Bankruptcy in which the property was included Proof of hardship (insolvency at the … (17 comments)

virtual tour: A Joey Is Not A Bear - 02/12/10 02:08 AM
 
 
A Joey Is Not A Bear
Koalas, contrary to popular belief, are not bears. They are marsupials, as are kangaroos, wallabies, and possums. A baby koala is called a "joey", and although they look soft and cuddly, their fur actually feels more like the wool of a sheep. They are born naked, and don't have all their fur until they're about 6 months old.
Eucalyptus leaves are the koala's only food, and while this may sound boring, there are about three dozen different varieties on the koala's favorites list.
A koala's lifespan is about 10-15 years, they are … (49 comments)

virtual tour: The FBI Wants Access To Your Browsing Habits - 02/09/10 01:22 AM
 
Big Brother
 
62 years ago, a book was written that, even if you haven't read it, you've certainly heard of it, or at least you've heard the phrases that became common in our everyday language since the publishing of the book. Does 'Big Brother' ring any bells with you? Written in 1948, George Orwell's "1984" has become a classic read, still mandatory in many classrooms. In the book, we learn of the horrifying consequences of losing our freedom to the need for a safe and peaceful society. The people are convinced that their loss of freedom is a small … (29 comments)

virtual tour: Do You Print Your Photos? Something You Should Know About Aspect Ratio - 02/07/10 01:25 AM
 
Do You Print Your Photos? Something You Should Know About Aspect Ratio
 
Have you ever printed a digital photo to frame, only to find it didn't fit the frame properly? This is why.
Traditional 35mm cameras have an aspect ratio of 3:2. This is the the ratio between the width and height of the photograph. Photo frames are sized, 4X6, 5X7, 8X10, according to this ratio. Digital cameras, however, have an aspect ratio of 4:3, so if you wanted a 4X6 sized photo for a frame, the digital will print at 4X5.3, and that means, when you try to … (31 comments)