Wonder and Light » Photographs

Hanging beekeeping gloves

fir — Tue, 05 May 2009 15:20:37 +0000

We’ve been selling off our beekeeping equipment in preparation for becoming nomadic. The other day Nicole pointed out some beekeeping gloves hanging over the top of the shower after having been washed. I think it was the way they were shaped like hands that caught her attention. Myself I was more caught by the light, the rich colours of the leather, and the fine detail.

Hanging beekeeping gloves

I worked with them for half a day or so. This one got closest to satisfying me.

Beekeeping gloves

I worked it a little, burning in the upper right hand corner and reducing the tonal range of a small area of the bottom where the shower door was presenting some distracting sparkles, but ultimately I think the composition is just not what I was looking for.

Beekeeping gloves, processed a little bit

That Familiar Itch

fir — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 15:55:32 +0000

That old itch to be making photographs has been growing again. Here’s one I’ve been eyeing for a couple weeks but only just made today.

Happy New Year!

fir — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 20:42:46 +0000

I had a lovely, peaceful New Year’s Eve. It was just Nicole and I, a bottle of dealcoholized wine, and a few donuts. Earlier in the day we began a little game we’ve played before … I choose some interesting foods and she creates a meal with them (adding whatever she likes). This time she’s got a celery root, a mango papaya, some wonton wrappers, lily sprouts, sliced water chestnuts, and some jalapenos to work with. Tomorrow I’ll see what she comes up with. I imagine it will be wonderful … it always is.

I brought the new year in with a new image.

Begonia Leaf

fir — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 18:08:39 +0000

Here’s the latest in a series of abstract leaf photographs I’ve been working on for a few months now.

Begonia Leaf

As usual, I’m all about the details. Here’s a closer look…

Begonia Leaf Detail

Drowning in Sugar

fir — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 22:25:11 +0000

The delicate appearance of my model’s skin here is exacly the sort of thing I was looking for when I decided to start shooting infrared.

Is too much sugar killing us?

Careful, she shoots back!

fir — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:59:07 +0000

Alexis shoots back

Agh! You cleaned the sink!

fir — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:58:22 +0000

“Agh! You cleaned the sink!”

This is not a terribly surprising exclamation in our home. Just the day before I accused Nicole of getting the sink wet, if you can imagine such a thing! Whatever was she thinking?

I’d spotted a couple hairs that had arranged themselves in a pattern that caught my eye, and I wanted to make a photograph….

Fortunately, my good wife is amazingly tolerant of my eccentricities and remained calm, as she always does. She is accustomed to me making photographs from all manner of things, including this ice cream bowl that had been set in the sink to soak before washing.

Ice cream bowl with spoon

This will probably become a portfolio photograph when I’ve taken it through print-adjust-repeat process.

Goofy self portrait

fir — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 19:54:52 +0000

Well, I did go back to that tree yesterday, but I’m not satisfied with the results yet. I’ll go again tomorrow morning to catch some different light and try slightly different composition.

In the meantime, a goofy IR self-portrait.

Informal self portrait

Infrared reveals form

fir — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:34:59 +0000

One of the things I am really enjoying about IR photography is the way that it separates the tonal values of tree trunks and foliage, revealing the form of the trunks and branches.

Dark branches against light foliage makes for dramatic compositions

Here’s another good example. It would be very hard to separate the trunks and foliage this way with conventional colour photography.

Wide tree with bench

This is actually a crop from a different composition. I’ll definitely return soon to shoot this from a bit farther away in order to eliminate the distracting background.

Derelict Bus in HDR

fir — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:25:15 +0000

I spent some time yesterday processing some more photographs of a derelict bus I discovered a couple weeks ago. Here is a nice example of how HDR techniques and tools can allow you to combine photographs to capture an enormous dynamic range.

Inside a derelict bus

The ground outside the bus was perhaps 5 stops brighter than the interior, so there is no way I could have captured all this detail with a single exposure. On the other hand the same tools can be used to create something a good deal more dramatic and less natural looking as well.

Dramatic HDR photograph of a derelict bus