From My Lightbox: Still Out

I’m still out on various projects – related to photography, family, and work (too bad work isn’t photography – how does one get there?) – but wanted to quickly post links to some of the most inspiring photography I’ve seen lately.

Ridiculously amazing capture of Yosemite. Timing, lighting, and environment were perfect. The fact that it was captured on large format is all the better. (QT Luong)

I love the colors in this one. I’m not sure why, but they look fabulous to me. It also inspires a serenity that most other photos do not. (Gary Crabbe)

This shot of a tree in Kenya shows some great timing. That sunrise is awesome. (Rick Sammon)

The foreground waves in this shot really make it. I can’t imagine how many shots were taken to get that timing just right, but it was worth it. The story behind the photo is equally great. (Ian Plant)

From My Lightbox: Google+ Domination

Google+ continues its domination as a source for finding inspiring photographs. I wish photographers were posting links to their own site that I could reference rather than posting the photo directly to Google+, but that seems to be the preferred method of late. Where I can easily find it, I will link to the photographer’s own site. Until then, Google+ it is!

The most inspiring photos I’ve seen of late:

I have always been a fan of good portraits, largely because I do them poorly, so my friend’s monochrome portrait with just a slight splash of color is inspiring (Blake Beus)

I’m generally not a fan of HDR but I really like the action in this shot of a horse being trained in a corral (Eric Leslie)

My favorite part of photography is simply being out in nature. This shot makes me want to get out and be there. (Giuseppe Basile)

Death Valley plus beautiful lighting, water, and reflections. Amazing. (Jay Patel)

This photo is gorgeous. Makes me wish I had just climbed out of my tent to this vision. You can taste the fresh, clean air. (Varina Patel)

Probably the coolest cityscape I have ever seen. (Manik Photographe)

I love the colors and lighting in this shot – layers of lighting. Simply stunning. (Peter Lik)

Out on a project

I’ve been out working on various projects that have taken me from any sort of phone or Internet access, which accounts for the lack of posts of late. I’ve got a bunch of photos to process and still more to come so hopefully there are some good captures among the pile. We’ll see…

From My Lightbox: The Social Media Revolution

I’ve decided to implement an idea I have been kicking around for some time, inspired somewhat by the flood of photos I see in various social networks each day. I decided to curate and filter that flood into some of the main photos and other types of content that I have really appreciated over the past week, naming it “From My Lightbox” as an ode to the awe I used to feel when viewing a beautiful slide exposure on the lightbox.

This week I wanted to point out that all but one of these links points to a social media site (Facebook or Google+) as the location of the photographer’s content. When I see something on that photographer’s social site, I do not have a corresponding link to it on their personal site, leaving me to link to the social media site and creating an ever-increasing dependence that photographer has on Facebook, Google+, etc. I am finding that photographers are posting to social media before they even post to their own site, placing them at the mercy of the social media organizations. It is a great way to share, but I hope it doesn’t have unintended consequences.

Unbelievably beautiful colors, grand sky, and even a rainbow in this desert shot (Guy Tal)

Great mood and color tones in this shot of San Francisco and the Bay Bridge (Patrick Smith)

Amazing shot of a climber in Lofoten Islands, Norway. This looks surreal! (Henrik Johansson)

Monsoon over canyon country (Guy Tal)

Winter sunrise on Resurrection River, Seward, Alaska (Ron Niebrugge)

One of the most beautiful highway shots I’ve ever seen. It just makes me want to be there. (Gary Crabbe)

A discussion on Google+ about the post frequency sweet spot (Colby Brown)

Salt Lake City in Miniature

Not too long ago I took my kids to a model train set convention. My kids, as almost all kids do, really dig trains so I figured they would appreciate the model train sets on display at the convention. While they did enjoy the model train sets, I kept my kids very close to me. Have you ever seen the folks at model train set conventions? Fat, greasy, social-retards are the norm. I thought, “Good grief, I don’t want my kids to turn out like these guys. Let’s get out of here.” I like the miniature look, though. Perhaps I can enjoy the same miniature model look to photos without rubbing shoulders with Grizzly Adams?

I have always been intrigued by the miniature effect that can be had through the use of tilt-shift lenses. Unfortunately I don’ t own one, though I am considering purchasing one, primarily for the infinite focus they provide for landscape photos. Perhaps I’ll rent one someday.

Anyway, I like the miniature effect, where a photo looks as if the subject was actually a scene from a model train set rather than of the real world. It’s a cool effect but won’t work on just any photo. I realized that I could get a very similar look through some Photoshop effects so I decided to head to Salt Lake City and give it a try.

I think Photoshop recreates the effect pretty well and I had a lot of fun trying to find subject matter that would look good as miniature. I’ll definitely give it another try sometime.