So not to disappoint, here is a photograph from my archive entitled - Love the Mixtape
Showing posts with label photograph. Show all posts
Showing posts with label photograph. Show all posts
Monday, 14 February 2011
Music For Love
OK, so I had been planning on a love / romance based photograph for today (Valentine's Day) but I've been too busy to come up with anything :(
So not to disappoint, here is a photograph from my archive entitled - Love the Mixtape
So not to disappoint, here is a photograph from my archive entitled - Love the Mixtape
Tuesday, 14 December 2010
Random Self Portrait
Haven't used my camera much recently so took it along on a trip to see some family at the weekend.
Took this random self portrait in the wing mirror on the way!
Took this random self portrait in the wing mirror on the way!
Sunday, 3 January 2010
Another Year Gone
So that's it then...the festive period is over. It's official now in my house as the tree and decorations came down yesterday and it's back to work tomorrow!!
Hope that you all had a good New Year and now we can look forward to what 2010 has to offer.
Here is my naked tree shortly before being dragged outside then chopped, drawn and quartered!
Hope that you all had a good New Year and now we can look forward to what 2010 has to offer.
Here is my naked tree shortly before being dragged outside then chopped, drawn and quartered!
Thursday, 20 August 2009
Pillar of the Community
With the ever declining trend of sending letters these days in favour of email and other digital forms of communication, I thought I'd photograph a pillar box before they are all taken away!
This was taken this evening at dusk. It was pretty dark so I used a 20 second exposure and an off camera flash.
Kept meaning to find more time to get out with the camera and tonight I finally did so look out for more posts from this evenings shoot coming soon.
This was taken this evening at dusk. It was pretty dark so I used a 20 second exposure and an off camera flash.
Kept meaning to find more time to get out with the camera and tonight I finally did so look out for more posts from this evenings shoot coming soon.
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Monday, 6 July 2009
Rockin' Robin
In my back garden this summer, I have been getting very regular visits from a local Robin. He (or she) seems pretty tame and continually drops in to the garden whilst I'm out there. He will even let you get within a foot or so before flying off.
Whilst out working in the garden at the weekend I managed to get a quick photo with the new telephoto lens.
Whilst out working in the garden at the weekend I managed to get a quick photo with the new telephoto lens.
Friday, 5 June 2009
Infrared With Canon EOS 450D - Part 3
Right, here we are with the final installment of infrared photography with the Canon EOS 450D.
Here I will cover the questions that I've been asked on this topic.
Q: I'm playing with IR too but I having problems with noise?
A: If your ISO level is set to automatic I would manually set it down to something like 100 to help reduce noise.
Then try taking a shot with a smaller aperture / slower shutter speeds. It will take some experimentation but should reduce noise. I always use a tripod for IR shots due to the long shutter speeds.
Your photo editing software should have something like a digital noise reduction filter which may also improve the image but sometimes this may also reduce the clarity of the image.
Q: I'm pulling my Hair out trying to do some IR photography. No matter how hard i try it doesnt work at all.... i just get a horrible red and black image.
A: Sounds like a white balance issue. Follow the suggestions in Part 2 which should help to correct this.
Q: My images are coming out very blue and overexposed?
A: When using slow shutter speeds in sunlight it is important to cover the viewfinder to stop extra light entering through to the sensor.
Q: Can you take IR shots in cloudy weather conditions?
A: Cloudy weather can work with IR too, it just may mean longer exposures and larger apertures (lower f/ numbers) to allow more light in. Here is a shot on flickr which inspired me to get an IR filter. As you can see, I've still got some way to go!
Q: Would you suggest a modification of the Canon EOS 450 to remove the factory shipped IR cut filter?
A: I have seen the process to remove the factory fitted IR cut filter on sites like ghonis2.ho8.com but it is not something that I would carry out on my 450D at the moment.
With some experimentation, you can get some good results on the 450D without the modification.
Q: Do you have any other tips?
A: I've found that looking at other IR photos can be of help (especially when you can see all the camera settings that were used). There are some good IR shots in these Flickr groups....
www.flickr.com/groups/infrared
www.flickr.com/groups/55027594@N00
Also, some other good tips can be found here
Please use the links below for the other 2 parts of this topic.
Part 1
Part 2
Here I will cover the questions that I've been asked on this topic.
Q: I'm playing with IR too but I having problems with noise?
A: If your ISO level is set to automatic I would manually set it down to something like 100 to help reduce noise.
Then try taking a shot with a smaller aperture / slower shutter speeds. It will take some experimentation but should reduce noise. I always use a tripod for IR shots due to the long shutter speeds.
Your photo editing software should have something like a digital noise reduction filter which may also improve the image but sometimes this may also reduce the clarity of the image.
Q: I'm pulling my Hair out trying to do some IR photography. No matter how hard i try it doesnt work at all.... i just get a horrible red and black image.
A: Sounds like a white balance issue. Follow the suggestions in Part 2 which should help to correct this.
Q: My images are coming out very blue and overexposed?
A: When using slow shutter speeds in sunlight it is important to cover the viewfinder to stop extra light entering through to the sensor.
Q: Can you take IR shots in cloudy weather conditions?
A: Cloudy weather can work with IR too, it just may mean longer exposures and larger apertures (lower f/ numbers) to allow more light in. Here is a shot on flickr which inspired me to get an IR filter. As you can see, I've still got some way to go!
Q: Would you suggest a modification of the Canon EOS 450 to remove the factory shipped IR cut filter?
A: I have seen the process to remove the factory fitted IR cut filter on sites like ghonis2.ho8.com but it is not something that I would carry out on my 450D at the moment.
With some experimentation, you can get some good results on the 450D without the modification.
Q: Do you have any other tips?
A: I've found that looking at other IR photos can be of help (especially when you can see all the camera settings that were used). There are some good IR shots in these Flickr groups....
www.flickr.com/groups/infrared
www.flickr.com/groups/55027594@N00
Also, some other good tips can be found here
Please use the links below for the other 2 parts of this topic.
Part 1
Part 2
Friday, 29 May 2009
Baby Spiders Again
I posted last year here about baby spiders in my garden.
Well, a year has passed and another batch have arrived. With the help of the macro light I was able to get these shots.
A view of the gate to give some perspective on how small the spiders were
Closer
Closer still
Well, a year has passed and another batch have arrived. With the help of the macro light I was able to get these shots.
A view of the gate to give some perspective on how small the spiders were
Closer
Closer still
Thursday, 21 May 2009
Oh Deer
Returning home last night after an evening out I was in the kitchen making a drink when I heard a lot of noise coming from my next door neighbours garden.
At first I thought that it was just a hedgehog trying to get in the rubbish but when I popped my head over the fence a startled deer was looking back at me before it bolted and tried to jump a 12' wall (which it failed). The garden next door is completely enclosed and surrounded by high walls and fences so I've no idea how the young stag got in to the garden.
I decided to go inside so I didn't scare it more than I had already but did manage to take a quick shot from a bedroom window.
By this point it was about 1.30am and I didn't really want to knock and wake up the neighbours so decided to leave it till morning as it couldn't come to any harm in the garden.
When I got up this morning and looked out the window there was a broken plant pot next door, a knocked over pot my side and my back gate was open. There were also droppings on my decking which weren't there last night. I can only imagine that it vaulted the fence over in to my garden (which is a good 6' high from their side) and then somehow opened the gate which was latched!!! What a clever creature!
I spoke to next door this morning and they had noticed the broken pot but hadn't heard a thing the night before and were amazed at what I saw as we are not really in too much of a rural location here. I'll print them a copy of the photo to keep.
At first I thought that it was just a hedgehog trying to get in the rubbish but when I popped my head over the fence a startled deer was looking back at me before it bolted and tried to jump a 12' wall (which it failed). The garden next door is completely enclosed and surrounded by high walls and fences so I've no idea how the young stag got in to the garden.
I decided to go inside so I didn't scare it more than I had already but did manage to take a quick shot from a bedroom window.
By this point it was about 1.30am and I didn't really want to knock and wake up the neighbours so decided to leave it till morning as it couldn't come to any harm in the garden.
When I got up this morning and looked out the window there was a broken plant pot next door, a knocked over pot my side and my back gate was open. There were also droppings on my decking which weren't there last night. I can only imagine that it vaulted the fence over in to my garden (which is a good 6' high from their side) and then somehow opened the gate which was latched!!! What a clever creature!
I spoke to next door this morning and they had noticed the broken pot but hadn't heard a thing the night before and were amazed at what I saw as we are not really in too much of a rural location here. I'll print them a copy of the photo to keep.
Sunday, 19 April 2009
Monday, 13 April 2009
Clarendon Palace Ruins
On the outskirts of Salisbury within the medieval deer park of Clarendon Estate sits the ruins of the former royal residence, Clarendon Palace.
English Heritage and the Clarendon Estate have in recent years been involved with the reclamation and preservation of this site which was once home to Henry II.
The ruins, setting, and wonderful views over Salisbury and the surrounding countryside make this one of the best kept secrets of the whole of Wiltshire and the South according to this BBC article from back in 2005.
The end wall of what was once the Great Hall of the palace.
View through a small hole in the wall.
English Heritage and the Clarendon Estate have in recent years been involved with the reclamation and preservation of this site which was once home to Henry II.
The ruins, setting, and wonderful views over Salisbury and the surrounding countryside make this one of the best kept secrets of the whole of Wiltshire and the South according to this BBC article from back in 2005.
The end wall of what was once the Great Hall of the palace.
View through a small hole in the wall.
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Monday, 6 April 2009
Infrared With Canon EOS 450D - Part 2
I have noticed that the most popular entry page to my blog is my post on infrared photography with the Canon EOS 450D (Digital Rebel XSi in the US). I have also been asked via email and blog comments various questions on this topic so I thought I would write some follow up posts on the subject.
I am by no means an expert in this subject but will attempt to cover the steps I take when shooting infrared photographs using the 450D.
Infrared photography is a lot harder on the Canon EOS 450DCanon 450D than on my Canon Powershot S2 point and shoot. This is mainly due to the 450D having a factory fitted IR cut filter which reduces the infrared light entering the camera. Because of this, slower shutter speeds are required to allow the smaller amount of infrared light entering the camera to show up.
Here is a step-by-step guide of how I take IR photos using a dSLR.
1. Setup a tripod and the camera then compose a shot with AF switched on. Depress the shutter release button half way so that it automatically focuses then release
2. Attach the infrared filter with the lens AF still in the On position - This reduces the movement on the focusing ring when screwing on the filter as it is locked when the AF is switched on
3. Remove viewfinder eye piece from the back of the camera (this just slides off upwards) and attach the rubber cover that is on the neck strap. This will prevent additional light entering via the viewfinder
4. Switch the AF on the lens to the Off position as the camera will not be able to auto focus with the filter attached and we have already composed and focused the shot
5. Set the camera to M (manual) mode then adjust the settings for shutter speed and aperture and take some test shots until you are happy with the amount of light in the shot. Once enough light is coming through you will notice that the shots are very orange or red in colour. That is nothing to worry about - we will rectify this in the next steps
6. With the same camera settings and the filter still attached you will need to take a photograph of something completely white. A white sheet of paper held in front of the camera for the duration of the exposure will do the job fine
7. Press Menu on the camera and go to Custom WB then press Set. The photo that you just took of the white sheet of paper should appear so press Set again to confirm. You may get a warning stating that the 'Correct WB may not be obtained with the selected image' - Just override this and select OK then exit the menu
8. Press the WB button on the back of the camera and select Custom
9. Now you are ready to take some shots. If you have a remote or cable release then use it to avoid any camera shake when you press the shutter release. If not then just set the auto timer to 2 or 5 seconds so that you are not touching the camera when the shot is taken.
10. You now have the perfect shot!
This will still involve a lot of trial and error but I've found it to be a good basis. You can also substitute different colours for the custom white balance (other than white) to get various results.
The example infrared shots below were taken with the standard 19 - 55mm kit lens and a 58mm Kood infrared filter.
Here is the shot without the filter. Pretty boring!
Here is the IR shot straight from the camera - Taken using 30 second exposure, an aperture of f/4.5 and ISO set to 100.
Here is the same image again but with some post processing I have swapped the red and blue channels (something which seems to improve infrared shots taken on the 450D). I have also carried out some manual colour correction to make the grass and shrubs look lighter and increased the hue to brighten up the sky.
Here is another example shot using the same camera settings and post processing methods.
Part 1 of this post can be found here and I will also soon publish Part 3 where I will cover the common questions which I have been asked so far.
I am by no means an expert in this subject but will attempt to cover the steps I take when shooting infrared photographs using the 450D.
Infrared photography is a lot harder on the Canon EOS 450DCanon 450D than on my Canon Powershot S2 point and shoot. This is mainly due to the 450D having a factory fitted IR cut filter which reduces the infrared light entering the camera. Because of this, slower shutter speeds are required to allow the smaller amount of infrared light entering the camera to show up.
Here is a step-by-step guide of how I take IR photos using a dSLR.
This will still involve a lot of trial and error but I've found it to be a good basis. You can also substitute different colours for the custom white balance (other than white) to get various results.
The example infrared shots below were taken with the standard 19 - 55mm kit lens and a 58mm Kood infrared filter.
Here is the shot without the filter. Pretty boring!
Here is the IR shot straight from the camera - Taken using 30 second exposure, an aperture of f/4.5 and ISO set to 100.
Here is the same image again but with some post processing I have swapped the red and blue channels (something which seems to improve infrared shots taken on the 450D). I have also carried out some manual colour correction to make the grass and shrubs look lighter and increased the hue to brighten up the sky.
Here is another example shot using the same camera settings and post processing methods.
Part 1 of this post can be found here and I will also soon publish Part 3 where I will cover the common questions which I have been asked so far.
Thursday, 2 April 2009
Unemployment
First of all, let me apoligise about the lack of blog posts recently. Things have been pretty busy me me over the past few weeks. I finished my job on Tuesday so I am now officially unemployed!
Started looking for work on Monday afternoon and had my first interview yesterday. I've also looking at a few other positions so hopefully it will not be too long until I am back working again.
It was very strange leaving the company that I've worked at since I was 20 (nearly 11 whole years!) and finding myself back in the job market. I had many kind wishes during my farewell tour of the company and the same on my leaving card. It's good to know that the work I've done over the years was appreciated and I've made many good friends which I will definitely keep in contact with. I also received a generous collection from the remaining staff at the company which I have already spent, putting it towards a Samsung NC10 Netbook with an extra 2GB of RAM!!
Started looking for work on Monday afternoon and had my first interview yesterday. I've also looking at a few other positions so hopefully it will not be too long until I am back working again.
It was very strange leaving the company that I've worked at since I was 20 (nearly 11 whole years!) and finding myself back in the job market. I had many kind wishes during my farewell tour of the company and the same on my leaving card. It's good to know that the work I've done over the years was appreciated and I've made many good friends which I will definitely keep in contact with. I also received a generous collection from the remaining staff at the company which I have already spent, putting it towards a Samsung NC10 Netbook with an extra 2GB of RAM!!
Friday, 27 March 2009
Surplus to Requirements
After 11 years with my current company I've recently found out that I am getting made redundant at the end of the month! It's something that has been on the cards for a while now so not a huge shock. I haven't got anything else lined up as of yet but will start looking properly next week once I've finished.
So, with that in mind I have been clearing out my desk out getting ready to leave!
As you can see in the picture below, my desk looks a little different (and a lot clearer) than it did in this previous post.
So, with that in mind I have been clearing out my desk out getting ready to leave!
As you can see in the picture below, my desk looks a little different (and a lot clearer) than it did in this previous post.
Monday, 23 March 2009
Thursday, 12 March 2009
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Pick up a Penguin
More fun with the DIY light box - This time with a stuffed toy. I will soon post some pictures of my light box setup...that will make you laugh as it's far from professional!
Monday, 2 March 2009
Creative Zen X-Fi
One of my Christmas presents was a Creative Zen X-Fi 16GB MP3 Player which is available from Amazon.
This is a great small flash memory based player with outstanding sound quality. It plays all the usual sound file formats (MP3, WMA, AAC5, WAV) as well as MJPEG, WMV, MPEG-4 (including DivX and XviD)video formats.
You also have the ability to to view photographs and the X-Fi even has a SD slot for extra storage or backup of photos to the main player. The only downside is that when a SD card is inserted it is seen as a additional storage so any music or files on it are not seen / integrated in to the main interface - You need to access it from a separate menu option. Hopefully this will be rectified in the future with a firmware update but is only a slight drawback (until I run out of storage space that is!).
The player also features wireless LAN functionality to connect either to Creative's content servers on the Internet or to your your own computer which can act as a media server using Creative's supplied software.
Battery life is excellent (over 25 hours in my non scientific tests!) and all in a package weighing in at just 69g. If you are in the market for a new MP3 player and are looking for something for its good functionality and excellent sound quality (as Creative players always are) rather than jumping on the iPod bandwagon then this is well worth a try.
Oh...and you can also customise the menu backgrounds etc to feature your own images. The pencil image below is one of my pictures featured in a previous blog post
This is a great small flash memory based player with outstanding sound quality. It plays all the usual sound file formats (MP3, WMA, AAC5, WAV) as well as MJPEG, WMV, MPEG-4 (including DivX and XviD)video formats.
You also have the ability to to view photographs and the X-Fi even has a SD slot for extra storage or backup of photos to the main player. The only downside is that when a SD card is inserted it is seen as a additional storage so any music or files on it are not seen / integrated in to the main interface - You need to access it from a separate menu option. Hopefully this will be rectified in the future with a firmware update but is only a slight drawback (until I run out of storage space that is!).
The player also features wireless LAN functionality to connect either to Creative's content servers on the Internet or to your your own computer which can act as a media server using Creative's supplied software.
Battery life is excellent (over 25 hours in my non scientific tests!) and all in a package weighing in at just 69g. If you are in the market for a new MP3 player and are looking for something for its good functionality and excellent sound quality (as Creative players always are) rather than jumping on the iPod bandwagon then this is well worth a try.
Oh...and you can also customise the menu backgrounds etc to feature your own images. The pencil image below is one of my pictures featured in a previous blog post
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
