Still here!!!

Been a While...

I know it's been a while. Believe me when I say, I'm still here. As I'm sure none, maybe one, of you are aware, I'm several weeks away from leaving the country for yet another deployment with my National Guard unit. I do have my camera with me. When time permits I seek out dramatic photos and whatever else looks cool. This one below is a perfect example of that. Camera on a tripod, 10 second timer, awesome lighting and me running to the bus bench in time to get caught in the exposure. The end result...

Packing for another deployment...

Nothing to crazy going on with this photo. This is a self portrait of me packing my bags for yet another deployment. Camera went on a tripod, timer was set and I made my way back to my chair. Some of the color effects you see are sepia, color splash and a see-through piece of stained paper creating the aged worn look. Until next time...

Yes, I'm still here...

Hello all who have a mind to check out my blog. For those of you just joining us, here you'll find photos that don't quite fit on my website. A plus to viewing my photos here compared to my facebook page is that I take the time to explain each photo is some way shape or form. This image, above, I shot just a couple hours ago while myself and many others awaited the arrival of the bus to take us home from a drill weekend. The weekend was a long one, but many things were accomplished. Because of the busy schedule (and overall lack of anything interesting) I was unable to shoot as much as I would have liked to. It didn't come to me right away, but after a while of sitting outside by this flower bed I noticed a potential photo. After I shot the first one I noticed yet another, so on and so forth. I have a saying for this...sometimes the fire may be difficult to start, but once you get it going...
I used an aperture of F2.8 to achieve the blown out background.

By stepping several feet to the left from the photo you see above this one I was able to compose the shot you see here. The twisted shape drew my eye to what you see in the foreground. The rest fell into place fairly quickly. F2.8 again.

I learned real quick that macro photography with a rapid moving subject requires a flash. I did have one in my bag at the time, but the bees moved from flower to flower to quick and I didn't want to miss a shot. So instead of nailing a tack sharp bee, this time, I focused on the center of the flower. The colors, lines and shape are a plus too.

I wasn't a hundred percent sure I would keep this one, but the colors, lines and overall composition are too interesting to toss. What do you think?

A slight over exposure mixed with a huge aperture results in the style of image you see here.

Car show season

I'd say about half of people who bring cars to car shows like to open the hood and trunk. This was just the case with this one. If you at a car show and you have an idea that requires the hood or door to be closed, or perhaps for someone to move, DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK!!! You may very well be giving up a chance to take an awesome photo! Being a photographer means sometimes stepping outside your comfort zone. I asked the owner of this corvette if he would close the hood so I could take a photo. I also told him I'd be more than happy to e-mail him some copies. Car guys love pictures of their cars. I've yet to be turned down when free photos for them are on the table. Who knows, maybe they'll want to buy actual prints.

Same thing here as with the one above. The owner, Terry, had the hood and trunk open. I asked if he'd close them and he was more than happy to do so.

There are a ton of little details here and there on cars. I could easily have spent an entire day shooting this one, especially if it were a paid gig. Car guys generally pay great attention to detail and would expect nothing less of the photos of their creations or restorations. This photo focuses on the blue jewel taillight.

I absolutely love these types of cars, T-buckets, Roadsters, rat rod, whatever you want to call 'em. I'm all about the small amount of body and huge amount of engine and the overall mechanical look.

This one would definitely qualify for the "rat rod" title. Rusted body on a rusted frame. Lime green painted wheels, oh yes, every aspect fit the bill. Still looked awesome.

I was actually working overnight security at the Iola car show when I shot this one. My partner and I had gone back to our vehicles to throw on some bug spray when I saw this image waiting to be captured. The semi in the background, Big Red, the largest in the world (I think) was playing a movie and the all the other pieces fell into place fairly nicely. While I was waiting for my partner to finish I set up the camera and took a couple shots.

Iola car show again, but this time before I started working. When I was shooting this it started to down pour; very little warning. Had I been outside I'm not sure I would have had time to cover up my camera. This T Bucket was under a large white tent. Lucky me.

The Freakin Creepy Carnival

Hello to all once again. I know it's been a few days. Over the weekend I was working security at Wausua's 66th annual 4th of July Celebration. In some of my off time I took advantage of the photographic opportunities. I've never shot a carnival, fair, whatever you want to call it, before. I found that some of the coolest shots came after the park closed. Since I was part of the crew working security I was able to wonder through the area freely and photograph til' my hearts content. Of the four nights I was there I only shot during one of them. Long days, let me tell you. I was tired.

For this shot I wanted to show the emptiness of the park. Walking around I couldn't help but be reminded of Left for Dead, the zombie video game. One of the levels takes place in a carnival.

I almost fell flat on my face when I jumped that fence. Funny part is the gate was open...which I discovered on my way out. I love the shadow "e" figures, if you haven't guessed by now. It adds a sense of mystery and perhaps some overall creepiness. Either way, I like 'em.

Interesting story behind this sunset shot. On that particular day the clouds were awesome all day. There was lots of them and they had a great texture. Needless to say that I knew I'd be shooting the sunset that evening. When the time came I had no idea where I wanted to shoot. I jumped in the truck about 45 minutes from "go time" and drove off into the middle of nowhere. About 30 minutes later I found this swamp marsh area. I loved the reflection in the water, so, enduring the bugs I set up and took a few shots. My composition is based on the "rule of thirds". The sun falling into one of the cross hairs (you'll understand this if you know what the rule of thirds is).

Tomorrow I'm leaving again for several days. Hopefully I'll return with more photos for you. Until then, get off your ass and go shoot something (photographically speaking)!!!

The Greenville Zoo!!!

The family and I went to the Greenville Zoo today. Not a bad place at all. Awesome variety of animals and cages close enough for you to actually get a really good look. I wish there was a way around the bars in some of the photos. Short of talking with the owners and getting inside I think we're stuck with 'em.  

They had a petting zoo area. My six month old, Eli, loved it. He was all smiles and laughter. This shot was pretty straight forward. After dialing in the exposure (frickin sun was all over the place, shadows and whatnot) I set the lens to 28mm and held the camera down in front of the pig as it walked toward me. 

They had a nice aviary (walk-in bird cage). Still, the best part was how close it is.

Eli and wife. Even if you headed to a place you don't think you'll get any good photos from, bring the camera anyway and shoot everything. Practice makes perfect. I had a great opportunity to practice exposure settings in harsh sunlight one second and shadows the next.  

 Again, wish those cage wires weren't everywhere, but what are you gonna do? It is a zoo after all.

Put the camera on the tripod, set the timer and ran to join my family on the bench. Not a bad way to spend the possible last day at home. I should be leaving tomorrow for Ft. Leonard Wood for two months of schooling. If I end up going I'll be leaving you all for a while...two months. My camera will be with me, but my computer will not. I use a custom built desktop, so, not hauling that down. Thank you for checking out my blog thus far. Trust me when I say that there is lots more to come. 

Comments

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Creepy Old House

Original Photo*

This is an abandoned house off of Highway 41. I've passed this place so many times, finally, about an hour and a half ago, I drove out to it and took some photos. Haunted? Not sure. Didn't go in. Most of the windows were smashed out...not to mention all the doors I saw were wide open. The grass...weeds were easily three feet tall. When I first arrived I wasn't entirely sure if anyone lived here or not. You never know. I half expected to get shot or stabbed by a hobo or something. I did managed to get eaten alive by mosquito's. I'm itchy as hell right now; not fun. Anyway, I hope you like the photo. HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!

I WON THIRD PLACE!!!

I WON THIRD PLACE!!! The Fox Cities Magazine recently held a photo contest for all NE photographers making less than 50% of their income from photography, soooooo that would be me. I spent about four hours at this park thinking of different ways to shoot the sailboats. Finally I came up with the idea of taking a photo of me reflecting on "Another Day" (as this photo is entitled) and it won me third place! My image will be in their August issue, along with the other winners.

My sons first half birthday!!!

Happy six month birthday Eli! It's no secret my National Guard Unit is set to deploy this Fall. Got a call a few days ago. I'm leaving much sooner than we originally anticipated...by that I mean Monday. I'll be headed to Ft.Leonard Wood for two months of training. From there I'll come home for about three weeks then leave again, that time for a year. Anyway, due to my leaving we decided to throw Eli a six month birthday.
                                                                                                                 

Some damn good cake.

If you can manage to look past how I appear to be dumping water on myself you'll notice the foggy tree picture hanging on the wall. That's a photo I took several years ago in front of the EAA museum on an awesomely foggy day. I created this photo because I thought it was cool that this person liked my picture enough to spend a good chunk of cash to have it professionally framed. To my knowledge this is the first large print of mine to have that done to. What's the deal with the "clone" water prank? Had I of shot this without three of me distracting you I feel it wouldn't have been as interesting of a photo to check out. How did I do it? This photo is comprised of four different shots. One of each of me and one of the water coming from the bucket. I shot the water picture outside...but perhaps we'll not tell my mother-in-law that and let her think I dumped water all over her living room; after all, that's her house (haha!). I did my best to blend the water photo. It's ok, but like everything in life there's always room for improvement. Everything has a slight blur to it on purpose to draw your eye to the foggy tree picture which, as I'm sure you've noticed, is in focus. Hope you like the photo. If you are interested in decorating your walls with a photo, or two, of mine feel free to contact me. Thank you for checking out my blog!!! alex@dreammachinefilms.net

Originals:

                                                                           

                    

                                                                              

I had to act



So there I was, lying in bed minding my own business. From the outside you'd say I looked pretty comfortable. Gaze deeper, past my skull and into my brain, and you'd see that I was racing at a thousand miles an hour. I was trying to think of cool locations to shoot when the severe weather comes in tomorrow. That's when it hit me. I had been to the train track bridge before, during the day, but it always seemed to be missing something. Turns out it was just the opposite. The shot had too much light. I needed to go at night. So about an hour ago I went. I rose from bed, threw on my clothes and out the door I went. I used a tripod, 15 seconds of open shutter, ISO 100 and f4 aperture. For the shadow figure I simply walked very slowly while balancing on the rail. I did not edit this photo aside from adding the logo.

Digging up old goods

I was digging around my pictures folder when I came across this photo. I shot this through a glass display box inside the poorly lit (photographically speaking) Ripley's believe it or not. Tons of neat stuff in there.

Good Morning...even though it's 12:30

I can't help but ask myself, as I sit here in front of the computer, what image do I want to capture/create today? So many possibilities; endless really. I need coffee. I think I'll make some. In the mean time here's something to think about. What kind of photos would you take during a zombie outbreak? Bonus points to whoever creates such an image and posts it.

More of my favorites. Which one(s) is yours?

Originals*

This image, above, I shot during a drill weekend in my hotel room. I had the idea to make myself dead and have my ghost staring at my lifeless body thinking "huh, now what?" Basically I set the camera up on a tripod, "gently" placed the lamp on the floor, tossed around the contents of the room as if a struggle or something took place, measured the light and had my roommate push the button. I took two photos, one of me dead and one of me as a ghost. Later in photoshop I stacked the images and erased certain parts of the top image. Because the camera never moved I was able to lower the opacity of the top image (me as a ghost) and erase the areas around the ghost me. The end result was me appearing to be transparent. I did some other editting to add the "look" the image has. This type image (me dead with my ghost visible) is the first in a series of similar shots I'll be doing. Stay tuned.

This is my son, Elijah. For this shot I attached a large plush blanket to a backdrop stand and set up a single soft box to the upper left side of him. You have to be on your toes with children, especially babies. Eli never stopped moving...and I never stopped shooting. Trial and error, the best teacher.

My family and I waited for nearly two hours at this park for everything to be just right. I feel like the majority of people think photography is a quick "point and shoot" and move on type thing. It's not. Amazing images are generally achieved by finding that awesome location, composing the shot and waiting for the perfect lighting conditions. Occasionally you'll come across everything at the right time, but please understand this isn't always the case. Patience. Also, I entered this shot in a local photo contest. The winners will be announced in their August magazine issue. I'll let you know.

I try to always always ALWAYS have my camera on me. I was visiting friends with my wife when one of them carried out this tiny puppy. The first thing that came to mind was "holy crap I'll get my camera." A few shots later I asked for a coffee cup and the shot I wanted came "into focus"...so to speak. The point is, you never know when an opportunity will come your way. Be ready for it.

Here's another one of my favorite wedding shots. For this I asked the couple to go in for a kiss slooowwwllyyyy. Later in photoshop I added the dreamy effect.

This shot sat in my pictures file for nearly six months before I did anything with it. I took this in Virginia Beach during the day. I "turned on the lights" in photoshop. With the lights off I felt the image was missing something. Not super amazing or anything but it's my first pier shot. Just because the photo has been taken doesn't mean your creativity with it ends. Photoshop or any editting software can push the envelope with some stuff; though you don't always have to use it. Like any tool, sometimes it's appropriate, sometimes it's not.

I got the idea for this one from a photography magazine. I used black felt for the background and a single stick of incense for the smoke. I colored it in photoshop with a rainbow gradient layer style. Photo magazines are great places to get ideas. You should always seek to learn something new or try a technique in a different way. Who knows what it could lead to?

Here I am in Florida...in the middle of nowhere...conducting training for Iraq in the middle of the woods, lol. I handed off the camera to a friend and instructed them how to compose the image I wanted. Later in photoshop I removed my face. Something different. This was awhile ago. I returned from Iraq in spring 2010. I'm currently a SGT in my unit.

Fast forward to Iraq and we find ourselves inside the "victory over America" palace. Note how it's been bombed. Victory over America my ass. I had some awesome opportunities to photograph the inside of this place. A tripod and a long shutter speed made this image possible. Even if your out shooting during the day, you never know when you'll step inside somewhere you might need a tripod to get that tack sharp shot.

Rewind to before Iraq. I took this when my wife and I were traveling through the Guadalupe Mountains on our way to the Carlsbad Caverns. Man meets nature...or mountian...whichever.

There's an old building downtown that I was fortunate enough to be able to photograph it's basement. There's was some neat stuff down there, such as these pipes.

Interesting story behind this photo. I shot this through a dirty truck window (I was the passenger) while going around a turn during a snow storm. Man did I ever get lucky.

Towards the end of my deployment in Iraq...and also close to Christmas...I shot elevan photos, cut and arranged them to create this "star wars" style movie poster of my squad. I had a print made for each of them for Christmas. I'm the guy on the left above the top truck (RG-33 MRAP) with the sunglasses.

Here's another shot from the basement of that old building. I used my speedlite, camera mounted, to light this (same with the other one).