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Simple Clicks – Goose Head

May 19, 2012 | in Simple Clicks, Wildlife | 1 Comment

It seems like Canadian Geese (along with their droppings) are everywhere I look in Northeastern PA this year — all of the usual water spots I frequent, such as Lackawanna State Park, Ford’s Pond and Merli-Sarnoski Park. I’d pretty much taken to ignoring them in search of more elusive targets like eagles and herons, but when this one struck up a pose nearby, I decided to get a closeup portrait.

Head Game

With an extremely bright background, he appears almost monochromatic; the little bit of background detail came from a little post-production adjusting. I was very happy with the sharpness and the eye glint seems to impart some character. I guess the moral here is don’t discount any opportunity for a shot, even with a familiar subject.

Oh Venus…

May 19, 2012 | in Personal | Leave a Comment

Whatever role the goddess Venus plays in the fortunes of love, as Frankie Avalon’s song suggests, the planet Venus makes a lovely astronomical object that dominates the night sky, outshining everything other than the moon and the sun. Venus at its brightest has prompted reports of UFOs and other celestial phenomena.

Venus at Twilight

I took this picture of the celestial queen on the grounds of Keystone College’s Cupillari Observatory as the twilight began fading. Overall, the balance of the lighting and the framing are acceptable, but next time I will be trying to make improvements. This was a 25-second exposure at f4.5, ISO 200. Venus is blazing at -4.46 magnitude, overwhelming the nearby star Elnath in the constellation Taurus, which is shining at a rather pedestrian +1.62 magnitude.

Simple Clicks – Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4

May 17, 2012 | in Equipment, Simple Clicks | Leave a Comment

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[Click to view larger

This isn’t a review – I’ll one of those at some point in the near(ish) future. What this is is a quick sample of photos and a few preliminary thoughts on this lens, which arrived a week ago. It’s a hard lens to get, as all the major retailers keep running out of stock. I’m glad I pounced on it when I could. It is nothing short of amazing!

Simple Clicks – Twilight Fields

May 17, 2012 | in Simple Clicks | Leave a Comment

Twilight across the fields by the Keystone College Observatory near Fleetville, PA, on the evening of 11 May 2012.

Just a pair of HDR landscapes shot at sunset/early twilight with the kit lens. Both images are composed of a three-stop series, merged and processed in Photoshop. I was – again – very pleased with how well they came out, and especially how well the detail and subtlety was maintained in them.

Shooting info: E-M5 + 14-42mm, tripod mounted, ISO 200, f/8

Twilight across the fields by the Keystone College Observatory near Fleetville, PA, on the evening of 11 May 2012.

Sunset across the fields by the Keystone College Observatory near Fleetville, PA, on the evening of 11 May 2012.

This last one is a single exposure, taken almost an hour earlier with the same setup. I just can’t resist good evening light!

Aisle Seat

May 17, 2012 | in Wildlife | Leave a Comment

It can be difficult to photograph birds, being that they are so wary — for the most part. I had previously had no luck trying to get close enough on foot to a killdeer to get a decent shot with my 75-300mm, but while wrapping up a recent session at the Abington Park with Brent, we came across several specimens that seemed unconcerned by our car.

Brent edged the car close enough for him to start shooting, but there I was trapped in the passenger seat trying to shoot around him and through the open window with the engine running (thanks, Brent).

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Review: Astrophotography

May 15, 2012 | in Equipment | 2 Comments

Astro-landscapes taken at the Keystone College Observatory near Fleetville, PA,

This wasn’t one of the planned reviews, but after spending several hours shooting the night sky on Friday, I knew that I had to change the plan a little and say something about the E-M5’s capabilities in this arena. I realize that astrophotography is a pretty niche application and I don’t know how many of you really play around with it on a regular basis. But for those of you who, like me, enjoy spending a warm night outside with the camera, watching the universe turn, you’re in luck.

The image above is the pinnacle of my Friday night. It’s a composite image, built from three separate one minute exposures, imported into Photoshop as layers and stacked together using the Screen blend mode. (Using three shorter exposures instead of one long exposure keeps the noise down.) This was shot from a tripod, obviously, and only shows a short amount of trailing in the stars. But apply the same method forward, with 15-20 shots in sequence, and you’ll have a pretty awesome image.

Simple Clicks – Assorted Nature

May 15, 2012 | in Simple Clicks | Leave a Comment

Killdeer at Abington Area Community Park on the afternoon of 27 April 2012.

As I wrap up the outdoor and wildlife segments of my E-M5 review, I have a few photos left that didn’t make it onto the blog yet, but are still worth sharing. For starters, here’s a Killdeer, one of a series shot out the car window. Killdeer are skittish and I could never get this close on foot, but in the parking lot they are strangely unafraid of cars, and allow a close approach. A head-on shot is a little unusual for birds, but it’s that very fact that makes me like this one.

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Review: Wildlife

May 12, 2012 | in Equipment, Wildlife | 4 Comments

Canada Geese at Archbald Regional Park on the morning of 29 April 2012.

While portrait and commercial shooting is my professional niche, wildlife photography is my personal addiction. The challenge of finding critters, of learning their habits and behaviors, and then pulling it all together to make portraits of them in their wild environments is a rush. On a good day, at least. (On a bad day, when the light stinks and the critters are hunkered down somewhere else, it can be frustrating as hell.)

I got into wildlife photography about three years ago and as my interest in it increased, so did my investment in longer, faster telephoto lenses, finally culminating in the Canon 300L f/4 IS, which wasn’t the ideal solution, but the best compromise in terms of usage and affordability.

Enter the m4:3 system. One of its initial appeals for me was its potential as a wildlife photography rig. The biggest benefit? The smaller sensor and it’s 2x effective crop, which while damaging on the wide end of the spectrum, is a huge bonus on the long end, making my Panasonic 100-300mm lens an effective 200-600mm.

Simple Clicks – Low Angles

May 12, 2012 | in Equipment, Simple Clicks | Leave a Comment

Kennedy Creek at Lackawanna State Park on the evening of 06 May 2012.

Making good use of the EM-5′s tilt screen on my last outing. I’ll admit, I was not a fan of tilt screens when they first appeared, especially ones like are on the Canon 60D. To me, they seem like one more component that’s not only likely to break, but is all too easy to snap off entirely. But I’m coming around. The EM-5′s screen is only a tilt – no swivel or fold-out capability. And it seems solid and well-engineered.

But most of all, it makes life easier. Which I guess is the hope behind most new features on anything. Call me lazy, but instances where I’d previously have to lay down in the creek/sand/mud/rocks/etc, I can now tilt the screen down and hold the camera at ground level and shoot away. Using the touch screen’s touch-to-shoot feature makes this even easier. Read more »

Simple Clicks – Afternoon Light

May 10, 2012 | in Personal, Simple Clicks | Leave a Comment

Just a few clicks from Sunday afternoon’s hike at Lackawanna State Park. It was one of those perfect afternoons – warm, slight breeze, not too many people. I’ve always found retreating into the woods therapeutic, a good way to clear my head and find some balance when it’s lacking. Making images works into that easily, especially when there are no goals and no expectations. Just me, the camera, and whatever comes along. Read more »

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