Spreading the News

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Nikon 28-105
f/14 at 1/250
ISO 100

I went out at 6:30 this morning to take some pictures. It was cold and very windy. There were lots of clouds at the horizon so I had to wait a while before the sun rose above them.

On my way to Richmond to check out the new Olympic lights by the airport, I passed by a section of stores on Fraser Street. Obviously wind is not something newspaper people are used to. There were bundles of papers in front of many stores and some of the bundles were open allowing the wind to steal them page-by-page and spread them down the street.

After dealing with a faulty battery problem in my camera, I mounted my camera on a tripod and chose a slow shutter speed. I wanted to capture some blur as the papers were thrown about. Back at home when I processed the image, I felt it looked best as a black and white image.

Where Have all the Houses Gone?

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Nikon 18-70
f/16 at 1/20
ISO 100
Manfrotto 055 tripod

I took a day off work one day and went for a bike ride with my camera gear on my back and a tripod strapped to a carrier. I chose to tour around an industrial area of East Vancouver. The area seems to have once been mostly residential but over several decades has slowly seen its houses replaced by cement square boxes.

The day I took this shot, this house was still inhabited. But, it is now sitting empty and surrounded by construction fencing. I think it will be gone soon unless this recession stops development. I guess every neighbourhood is in some sort of transition phase whether it’s moving from houses to warehouses, warehouses to condos, or condos to………?

Phantom Power

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Tamron SP90 Macro
f/22 at 2.2
ISO 100

Once again I used the “Invert” function in Photoshop to produce this image. I like it because it has been transformed from a simple photograph of some batteries to a graphic representation of the same.

Turn it Up

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Tamron SP90 Macro
f/16 at 25.0
ISO 100

This image came about as I searched for something around my house to shoot on a rainy day. The end result was a picture that seemed to be missing something. I decided to use the “Invert” function in Photoshop to produce the image you see above. If I am not mistaken, that function produces a negative out of a positive. I will post another tomorrow using that same function that I think is a stronger image with more visual impact.

Self-Portrait 2

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: Nikon 18-70
f/8 at 1/350
ISO 200

Some might look at this picture and ask, “What Photoshop filter did he use?” This was actually done in camera. Some experienced photographers will recognize the technique. It is nothing overly complicated. For those who don’t know I will keep you in suspense for a later posting.

Was it a good effect for a portrait? That could be debated. As a self-portrait I felt it worked. I think we all have a side to ourselves that is easy to see and read. Sometimes we have a side we want people to see. Presenting a typical in-focus picture of a person smiling may work to show this side of someone’s personality. However, we all have a side that is obscured, that is difficult to see, or that we try to hide.

Perhaps it would be good try to capture or rather suggest the darker corners of a person’s character and using some not so typical camera techniques may help to do this. What do you think?

Man on the Tube

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: 70 – 300 Nikon VR
f/7.1 at 0.6s
ISO 100
Manfrotto 055 tripod

One day when I was at home playing around with my camera, I started snapping shots of the TV. I did not do it with intention rather just as an experiment. I only took a few shots one of which is presented here.

I think this could be worth experimenting with a little more. A TV could be seen both as a source of light and subject matter. The biggest problem I can see is there are definitely copyright issues to consider.

We live in a time where watching TV is a huge part of our lives. Incorporating this device in some photographs with a purpose to make a statement about our generation could be worth exploring a little further. Creating the imagery presented on the TV to be photographed would eliminate the copyright issue.

Defiance

Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: 70 – 300 Nikon VR
f/32 at 2s
ISO 100
Manfrotto 055 tripod

This was taken at Queen Elisabeth Park in Vancouver last winter. I think it speaks for itself. In terms of the shutter speed I chose, I wanted there to be something of interest other than the message itself. The slow shutter speed allowed some blurring that suggests movement.