Joshua Tree National Park

Combined a business trip with vacation time out west recently. It was a departure from the landscape in the areas of Tennessee and Arkansas of which I photograph. There is just something peaceful about the desert and it’s beauty. Although desolate, it has its own charm.

One of the destinations I sought out was Joshua Tree National Park, located in Southern California. You could spend days in this park and not see everything. 800,000 acres slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island. I drove in from the North entrance, and  continued to drive through the park and realized that I was more than 1/2 way through, so I continued to drive out the South entrance. That was 56 miles!

The name Joshua tree was given by a group of Mormon settlers who crossed the Mojave Desert in the mid-19th century. The tree’s unique shape reminded them of a Biblical story in which Joshua reaches his hands up to the sky in prayer. Ranchers and miners who were contemporary with the Mormon immigrants also took advantage of the Joshua tree, using the trunks and branches as fencing and for fuel for ore-processing steam engines.

These images were processed in Lightroom 4. Then I used Nik Software plugins. I’m a big fan of Nik Software and their filters. They have a variety of software plugins. I used the following filters on these images in Nik.

• Viveza2
• Color Efex Pro 4
• Bleach Bypass
• Detail Extractor
• Image Borders

What’s your take on the Nik Software Plugins?

Memphis International Blues Challenge 2012

The IBC has evolved into the nation’s biggest and most respected showcase for Blues musicians ready to take their act to the national stage. The IBC is a judged “Battle of the Bands” in which competitors take the stage and play a short set for a panel of judges. The acts are judged based on an established set of criteria.

The IBC represents an international search by The Blues Foundation and its Affiliated Organizations (mostly blues societies) for the Blues Band and Solo/Duo Blues Act ready to perform on a national stage, but just need that extra break. Each Affiliate of The Blues Foundation has the right to send a band and solo/duo act to represent the organization at the IBC Semi-Finals on Beale Street in Memphis, TN.

The list of current blues artists that have competed in the IBC over the years is impressive indeed: Slick Ballinger, Barbara Blue, Fiona Boyes, Eden Brent, Keith Brown, Michael Burks, Sean Carney, Albert Castiglia, Tommy Castro, the late Sean Costello, Albert Cummings, Delta Moon, Larry Garner, Joey Gilmore, Diunna Greenleaf, Zac Harmon, Homemade Jamz Blues Band, Richard Johnston, Joe Moss, Jason Ricci, Robin Rogers, Matthew Skoller, Super Chikan, Patrick Sweany, Susan Tedeschi, Teeny Tucker, Watermelon Slim, the late John Weston and Michelle Wilson.

Sean Carney and John Del Toro Richardson play the blues at the jam session, Memphis International Blues Challenge 2012. This photograph was taken at the New Daisy. This was taken with a flash, and is always challenging to get the lighting, colors and white balance correct. Here are some photographs of the event taken last year here in Memphis of the Memphis Int’l Blues Challenge.

Photograph taken at New Daisy during the Memphis Int’l Blues Challenge this year. Now that is one heck of a saxophone.

Photograph of this event was taken in color and converted to Black & White in post processing using Nik Silver Efex Pro 2.

Photograph taken at the New Daisy Theater. Photograph of the event was taken in color but converted to black and white in post processing using Nik Silver Efex Pro 2.

Photographing this event is always fun, and challenging. Lighting inside with dark walls, ceilings, and variety of lights makes the mood more interesting.

Do you prefer photographs in color or black and white?

Macro Photography in Memphis Part II

Photographing in Memphis can be fun. Memphis Botanical Gardens allows for quite a bit of macro photography. You need to know the various times of year to go and when flowers are in full bloom.

This macro photograph was taken of the inside of these bright yellow and red tulips. Needed to get real close for this one.

Photographing right after a heavy rain can give you some vibrant colors. This macro photograph was challenging in trying to get the right composition, because these kinds of photographs can be very busy.

I like the macro photograph of this flower at Memphis Botanical Garden. However, what would have made it a better image is to have a more muted background. Unfortunately that’s not always the case in doing macro. You find a great potential composition to photograph and there are distracting elements in the background. A couple of thoughts, some people will have a premade backdrop that is small to put behind the flower that will blend in nicely. Others who are good in post processing will drop in a background in Photoshop.

In photographing macro, remember to strive for a level plane to minimize softness and increase sharpness. Depending on what you want your final composition to be, you  might have to open up your aperture. Use a tripod to minimize shake, and some cameras today you can use Live view or Mirror Up to reduce shake as well. Another tip, use a cable release which helps with focus.

Springtime is a great opportunity to get out and do some Macro Photography. What do you like to photograph?

Macro Photography at Memphis Botanical Gardens

Macro photography is close-up photography, usually of very small subjects. Classically a macro photograph is one in which the size of the subject is greater than life-size.  Likewise, a macro lens is classically one lens capable of reproduction ratios greater than 1:1, although it now refers to any lens with a large reproduction ratio, despite rarely exceeding 1:1.

Macro lenses of different focal lengths find different uses:

• Continuously Variable Focal Length — suitable for virtually all macro subjects
• 45–65 mm — product photography, small objects that can be approached closely without causing undesirable influence, and scenes requiring natural background perspective.
• 90–105 mm — insects, flowers, and small objects from a comfortable distance.
• 150–200 mm — insects and other small animals where additional working distance is required.

I prefer to use a longer lens giving me more distance between the subject and camera. However, there are times when I will use a 50mm macro, but I need to be up really close. The challenge in macro photography is to always consider the background behind the subject. Numerous times you would have a great composition, only to be ruined by distracting elements behind the subject.

In the case of the white flowers above, the background worked out in my favor. However, most of the time that is not the case. Sometimes people will bring small backdrops to put behind the subject.

Extending the distance between the lens and the film or sensor, by inserting either extension tubes or a continuously adjustable bellows, is another equipment option for macro photography.

• The further the lens is from the film or sensor, the closer the focusing distance, the greater the magnification, and the darker the image given the same aperture.
• Tubes of various lengths can be stacked, decreasing lens-to-subject distance and increasing magnification. Bellows or tubes eliminate infinity focus.
• They can be used in conjunction with some other techniques (e.g., reversing the lens).

Cheer for the Kids

Cheer for the Kids is a nonprofit group, headed up by Ashley Nations. Recently they held a fundraiser for Make A Wish Foundation, at Arlington High School. Cheerleading groups and Dance teams from surrounding states competed in this all day event. Cheer for the Kids raised a record amount, $30,ooo for Make a Wish Foundation.

I had the pleasure of photographing the event. Lighting in indoor gyms is always a challenge, and having to post process white balance for the amount of images takes some time. Here are some photographs from the event.

Cheer for the Kids

Arlington Special Elite

Arlington Hip Hop

Lexington High School Dance

Sixwire Band Video Slideshow

Photographing events in and around Memphis is fun and challenging. Being able to photograph outside of Memphis is also something I look forward to. Recently I had the opportunity to photograph the band Sixwire at the Grand Ole Opry Hotel.

I’m always looking at creative ways to utilize photographs to tell a story. I’ve been creating for myself video/slide shows of some of the different events, etc. that I’ve photographed. Based upon feedback from several individuals, I’m launching this new product/service for business, as well as individuals.

The challenging and time consuming steps are:

• Taking the right kind of photographs.
• Editing down the number of photographs.
• Choosing the right kind of music. Cannot be copyrighted, so you are limited to Royalty Free music.
• Choosing the timing, syncing the music.
• Transition and effects.

Here is the finished product. Let me know your thoughts.

Photographing the Band Sixwire Part II

In photographing indoors, especially bands with all the different colored lights, you need to work on white balance in post processing. In the Digital Photography world, almost all photographs need to be color corrected and white balanced with software in post processing.

Understanding White Balance

If you come from the world of films, you may remember using filters to correct for incandescent or fluorescent lighting. Most people don’t bother and their indoors pictures invariably come out with a yellow/orange or bluish cast. In the digital world, these correction filters are no longer necessary, replaced by a feature found in most — even the entry-level — digital cameras called, “White Balance.”

Light Color Temperature

The reason that pictures turn out with a yellow/orange cast in incandescent (tungsten) lighting and bluish in fluorescent lighting is because light has a color temperature. A low color temperature shifts light toward the red; a high color temperature shifts light toward the blue. Different light sources emit light at different color temperatures, and thus the color cast.

By using an orange or blue filter, we absorb the orange and blue light to correct for the “imbalance” — the net effect is a shift in the color temperature.

In digital photography, we can simply tell the image sensor to do that color shift for us. But how do we know in which direction of the color temperature to shift, and by how much?

Manual White Balance

This is where the concept of “White Balance” comes in. If we can tell the camera which object in the room is white and supposed to come out white in the picture, the camera can calculate the difference between the current color temperature of that object and the correct color temperature of a white object. And then shift all colours by that difference.

Most advanced digital cameras therefore provide the feature to manually set the white balance.

By pointing the camera at a white or gray card (angled so that it is reflecting light from the room) as a neutral reference, filling the screen completely with it, then pressing the White Balance button (or set it in the menu), the camera does its WB calculation.

From then on, any picture taken will have its color temperature shifted appropriately. It’s quite simple, really, and you should not be afraid to try it out and see your indoors pictures improve considerably (assuming there is enough light for correct exposure).

[A "neutral" gray is 18% gray and will reflect all colors equally.]

One product that is very helpful in post processing for white balance and color balance is The Color Checker Passport, made by X-Rite.

Andy Childs and Sixwire

Steve Mandile of Sixwire

Chuck Tilley of Sixwire

John Howard of Sixwire

Photographing the Band Sixwire

Photographing bands with all the crazy lights, colors and action going on is a challenge. Thought I’d share some photographs of that nights event when they played at the Grand Ole Opry Hotel back in October.

Andy Childs of Memphis lives now in Nashville with his band called Sixwire. Appropriately named in reference to six strings in a guitar. In the Next Great American Bands, of which 10,000 participated, they came in 2nd.

Andy Childs and Sixwire Band

Andy Childs of Sixwire

Andy Childs and Sixwire Band

Most of these were shot with a Nikkor 12-24mm wide angle lens which gives a different look. This last image I converted to Black and White for a different effect.

Photographing a Simpler Life

Photographs of a much simpler life, out in the woods amongst the beautiful scenery, slower pace. Somewhat appealing in this fast paced world. Always good to get away and recharge.

Here are some more photographs from the Smokey Mountains of East Tennessee.

Smokey Mountains Cabin

Photographed these at ISO 200, F22 for depth of field, 1/60 of a second exposure, on a tripod, mid morning.

Smokey Mountains Cabin

Photographing in the Smokey Mountains

I had business over in Nashville at the Grand Old Opry recently. In visiting with the staff, the flooding last year reached the 2nd floor. Unbelievable…however it took them only 6 months to be back in business.

Being so close to the Smokey Mountains, I decided to head that way for a couple of days, knowing full well that the colors had not reached their peak. I still had fun photographing landscape and nature images, which is a break from my sports, action and event photography. Now I need to spend some time in post processing…I seem to enjoy photographing more than the post processing, how about you?

Cable Mill in Cades Cove

There were some great winding roads with some awesome colors, but…the traffic as many of you know was brutal. I wanted so badly to plant my tripod straddling the double yellow line and take some landscape photographs, however I wouldn’t be here writing this blog. I was still tempted, so this was the best I could do without a tripod, and very quickly at that. The birch trees had vibrant yellows at this elevation.

The Smokey Mountains are a magical place, and it draws 7+ Million visitors each year, but it is tough on photographers and LEAVE LOOKERS!

Waterfalls were crowded at all times of day. However, got this flower in front of the waterfall for a different effect. 30mm, F4, ISO 800, Shutter 1/100 which allowed me to capture the flower that was blowing, and yet show the waterfall more smoothly.