Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 18mm, 1/20 sec at f/16. ISO 100. RAW processing Adobe Camera Raw.

Thanks for stopping by!

- Bill

Here's another I converted to black and white...

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM, 1/20 sec at f/8. Image Stabilization on. ISO 100. RAW processing Adobe Camera Raw, B&W conversion in Silver FX (mouseover for color version).

- Bill

Well, I finally made it through the rest of the photos from Hocking Hills. Honestly, this last set is where all the gems are, so I'll get right to the one that I think turned out the best. I liked this one as a color image, but then decided to try it in B&W - I ran it through the Antique Plate preset in Nik Software's Silver FX, and the result is just stellar I think...

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 49mm, 1/30 sec at f/5.6. ISO 100. RAW processing Adobe Camera Raw, B&W conversion in Silver FX (mouseover for color version).

There is still more to come, so stay tuned.

- Bill

Ever been out taking photos and there are just so many people around that you just can't seem to get a photo without some random person in the shot?

Well, that was definitely the case most of the time we were in Hocking Hills; however, I employed a little technique that would give me a clean result after a little Photoshop work...

Image #1
Image #1
Final Image

All you have to do is have your camera mounted on a tripod, take multiple images (sometimes - like here - you can get away with as few as two) making sure that as the people move around, you get enough photos where eventually any given area is free of people. Then, in Photoshop, simply bring all of the images into a new combined image, use the eraser tool to remove the people, leaving the image beneath it with no people in that spot showing through. This way, you can easily create a final image that doesn't have any random people left.

The best part? Even someone with rather limited Photoshop "skills" can do this technique because it doesn't have to be the most detailed and precise work, plus since you're not creating any content - only removing distracting elements to show a different version of the same image - it looks very natural.

- Bill

Ok - I really haven't been motivated to process photos or post on my blog, but Anya and I took a trip to Hocking Hills in Ohio this past weekend, so perhaps that will provide the necessary push. Though I am sure it will still take me a while to get through them all.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 18mm, 5 sec at f/32. ISO 100. RAW processing and cropped in Adobe Camera Raw.

Landscape photography is not my strongest skill, so it took me about a day or so to actually start putting together some nice photos. This one, obviously, is not one of them. I share it mainly because it is in the first set (processing chronologically) and as an example of the magnitude of the geology we were in (I'm not always good about putting a model into my scenes for scale).

Stay tuned, more (better) to come.

- Bill

Shot this one at the same location as the last one... Not as photogenic as the previous one, but I still like it for its gnarly looks.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 45mm, 1/400 sec at f/8. ISO 100. RAW processing and cropped in Adobe Camera Raw.

- Bill

On our trip to Latodomi Nature Center, we saw this tree out in a field all by itself. I instantly knew it would make for some great photos. I intend to visit several times and try to capture the same scene repeatedly during different seasons. Here is the first...

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 25mm, 1/400 sec at f/8. ISO 100. RAW processing in Adobe Camera Raw.

It has been a while since we've had a poll, so go ahead and cast your vote for which version you like better...

- Bill

Ok - as promised, we're digging deep into the archive with today's post. These date back to the days of my (well, technically it was Anya's) first DSLR, and when I was still shooting in the automatic program modes... It seemed like things were more based in luck back then, but it did help to have an eye for nice shots. These days, I sometimes think I'm a bit overly critical and possibly even over think things.

Technical Data: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 49mm, 42mm, and 22mm respectively, 1/130 sec at f/9, 1/400 sec at f/16, and 1/500 sec at f/16, ISO 100, 400, and 400. No post production.

I think it might be time for a trip back to Hatteras sometime soon.

- Bill

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, 1/100 at f/8. ISO 100. Raw conversion in Adobe Camera Raw.

Ok - a quick break from the dive photography today.

Last Saturday, I led a MeetUp event to the Allegheny Cemetery. The idea was to get some spooky photography for Halloween, so here's a selection of what I came back with...

Happy Halloween!

- Bill