Color of the Year 2010 Turquoise

Posted by Mark on Dec 19, 2009 in nature photography | 14 comments

Turquoise beaches

Something I have made somewhat of a tradition is paying attention to Pantone’s color of the year for the past couple of years.   I find it interesting to see what they will pick next, the explanations they offer behind it, and to see if I have any photographs that might make some good matches.   From the business side of things, I can’t say it has drawn much of a business increase because of these colors, but I find it an interesting exploration of my photo archive by color if nothing else.   I rediscover new images that I haven’t looked at in awhile, and perhaps even some common themes relating to color.   For 2010, they announced recently that it will be Turquoise, or PANTONE® 15-5519.
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Bear power

Posted by Mark on Dec 8, 2009 in nature photography | 17 comments

BE9147 Brown Bear freighter

What??!!  A week has gone by and I haven’t posted about any bears?  :-)   Well, this post certainly breaks that bad streak.   Of course I am still editing and processing images from Alaska.   This particular image has a lot of qualities that I like about it.

• Perspective – although I was not in the river with this bear, but on a small bluff outcropping into the river – it certainly looks that way.
• Power - Have you ever seen the way water builds up in the front of a freighter when it is moving against the current?  The water build up in front of the bear reminded me of that here, showing the raw power of these animals moving against a fast moving river in search of salmon.
• No #^$%@$! seagulls!  Ok, only distant blurs in the background.  :-)
• Palette – I happen to like the color palette in general.   The blues are somewhat tranquil.   The gold of the grasses are complimentary.  Wait, I think I just wrote about complimentary colors!

This image was captured using a Nikon D700, 200-400 f4 lens, ISO 1250 at Geographic Harbor, Katmai National Park, Alaska.  Post processing by Lightroom 2, Photoshop CS3 using luminosity masks and Topaz Detail.   Topaz Detail just released their 1.1 update which works much faster and addresses one of my complaints in my previous review.

Digital photography standards

Posted by Mark on Dec 7, 2009 in nature photography | 8 comments

I picked up on a new website while listening to Jim Goldstein’s interview with Lightroom project manager Tom Hogarty.   I haven’t gone through it completely, but certainly appreciate what I have seen so far.

dpBestFlow.org

dpBestflow.org is a site that looks simple on the initial page, but do a little poking around and you will find a wealth of information on best practices and workflow suggestions for digital photography.   The website is a result of a project by ASMP who was contacted by the Library of Congress to develop a variety of best practices and guidelines revolving around a digital workflow.   Here is the purpose statement from their website;

The purpose of dpBestflow is twofold:

To create guidelines for refined production workflows, archiving methods, and best practices for digital photography based on a variety of capture methods and intended image use. The guidelines will be developed on the basis of research, analysis of software products and other tools targeted at professional photographers.

To publish the dpBestflow as a website open to the public. The adoption of the dpBestflow guidelines will be promoted to the professional photography community and the public through programming at industry trade shows and a nationwide series of training events at ASMP chapters, trade shows, and educational institutions

Complimentary colors

Posted by Mark on Dec 5, 2009 in nature photography | 10 comments

Complimentary Colors

This is one from the archives – a leaf photographed by the side of river at Bridal Veil falls in Tinker’s Creek Gorge in Ohio.    This is a pretty cool area to work in because the shale creates all sorts of interesting lines, shapes, and surfaces.    The bigger bonus was having some blue sky reflecting in the water to act as a complimentary color to this leaf.

Complimentary colors to me are a bonus find in nature.   They create a special dynamic relationship in an image.   My eyes wander back and forth between the leaf and the blue reflecting water – almost as if there was an attracting and opposing force between the two like magnets.   The lines of the shale help contribute to that dynamic.

I plead guilty to not being very systematic about how I tag my posts – haphazard would be a a more fitting term.   I am trying to do better!   I have now created a post tag called “artist favorites.”   This tag will link you to some of my favorite posted images over the last year.  Eventually I will spend time to go back further and tag those.  I encourage you to check it out and see if you missed something.

The perils of choice

Posted by Mark on Dec 2, 2009 in nature photography | 10 comments

Life everywhere

I was thinking about how sometimes when I go into the woods I develop the photographers’ version of writer’s block.   When there isn’t specific wildlife in front of you, or some grand scenic, when you simply have a wooded forest, it can be difficult to concentrate on one particular composition.   There is actually abundant subject matter here.   Life is everywhere.  New compositions by the inch.  If you bring an arsenal of lenses, it somewhat compounds the issue in that you also have a variety of lenses to approach any particular subject with.   There are any number of ways to photograph almost everything in sight.   It is like having a 8 foot long dessert table in front of you – it’s all good, but you can only eat so much.    If you don’t have any particular craving, sometimes it can be crippling to have so much variety.

Generally if I find myself in this state, I just pick a lens and start photographing something – anything.   It helps get my brain seeing and thinking about compositions.   Gradually after snacking on this or that, I start narrowing down what I am interested in.   I will settle on something that tastes just right.   Some people will just go out with one lens, or to solely photograph sticks – just to limit the amount of choices available.   What are some techniques you use to limit the perils of choice?