Tall Ships photography Post-Processing

Tall Ships photography Post-Processing

SailBoston 2017 - USCG Eagle
SailBoston 2017 – USCG Eagle

I first began photographing tall ships during SailBoston 2000. Since then, I have photographed tall ships many times from Philadelphia PA to Camden ME. SailBoston 2017 was not to be missed, being the largest gathering of tall ships in the northeast since 1976.

As the weather for the grand parade of sail was a big foggy, the resulting images were low contrast. If your camera is capturing JPEG images, then you might change the camera settings to increase the contrast. But for those of us who are sticklers for image quality and therefore capture RAW images, the camera setting for contrast doesn’t actually do anything. Here’s how I post-processed RAW images using Adobe Lightroom.

Original low-contrast image before post
Original low-contrast image before post

(click on the image to see the full-resolution image.)

When lighting is low contrast, you have a choice of keeping that or compensating for it. If you choose to compensate, the most important step is usually to lower the black point. Essentially, low contrast implies that the darkest parts of the image render as a lighter tone and the brightest parts of the image render as less bright. Dark isn’t particularly dark and bright isn’t particularly bright.

With the original settings shown on the left, notice that the histogram at the top shows none of the image information extends to the far left. None of the image falls into the leftmost one third, the region of darkest possible tones. To pull the dark tones to the left, use the black clipping slider control. The settings on the right show the modified histogram.

Adjustments in Adobe Lightroom
Adjustments in Adobe Lightroom

 

Lightroom divides tonality into five regions, black, shadow, midtone, hightlight, and white. If you hover your computer cursor over any of the five relevant slider controls, the corresponding region will be highlighted in the histogram.

Dragging the black point to -60 is relatively heavy-handed and tends to drag the shadow areas down. Although I have raised the shadow brightness here, that is primarily to hold the shadows closer to the original brightness, compensating for the drag of the -60 black point.

Further increasing the overall contrast, I have raised the overall exposure brightness and the highlights. And I have made minor adjustments in color, to compensate for a slight green cast and slight yellow cast.

In addition to the overall image adjustments, I have made a few local adjustments. The hull of the Eagle was bit dark, due to the angle of the sun; so I brightened the hull slightly. The sails of schooner Adventure picked up a slight blue cast from the environment; so I moved that color slightly toward yellow. The white stripes of the American flag also picked up a bluish cast; so I moved that color slightly toward yellow, reduced the color saturation, and added a touch of brightness.

Finally, the foreground water appeared to be less bright, perhaps due to shallow depth. I applied a gradient filter to the foreground and bumped up the brightness to match the rest of the image.

Maybe these adjustments seem like a lot of work. But the overall image adjustments can be quickly and easily copied to other images. If the natural light of the day hasn’t changed, these adjustments are appropriate for many images, not just the one. Wherever the light did change, I have to make small adjustments and then apply that set of adjustments to a group of images.

With more than fifty ships in the parade of sail, I shot 250 images. I don’t give detailed attention to every single image. Duplicating adjustments to a group of images is a necessary time saver. And, of course, I will give the most attention to my favorite images, those that might be submitted to publishers or printed for wall decoration.

If you are in the Boston area during August 2017, stop by Boston City Hall and check out my exhibit of tall ship photography at the Mayor’s Neighborhood Gallery (2nd floor).

Tulips at Boston Public Garden

Tulips at Boston Public Garden

The tulips at Boston Public Garden. are an annual rite of spring.  They are fun to photograph and I wanted to share some techniques with you.

BPG-1320

This first image was shot at 7am on a Saturday morning.  Early morning may be the only time when the garden isn’t swarming with people.  To visually compress the distance, I used a 200mm lens.

tulips-5273

This next image is different for several reasons.  Of course, this is a closer view.  Using a 100mm macro lens at an aperture of f/7, the depth of field is shallow.  I chose to fill the frame with flowers and exclude the surrounding environment.  Also note that the light is very different.  I shot this image after 6pm with the evening sun directly shining on the flowers from the side.

tulips-5282

Getting even closer, the image becomes more abstract.  The image is about color and texture; the concept of “tulip” begins to disappear.  I specifically chose to use an evergreen shrub for the background, knowing it would fall away to black because this side of the shrub is in shadow.  (You can dimly see a green tulip stem rising along the left side of the image.)

tulips-5287

Taking a step back, not as close as the previous image, this is more obviously a tulip.  Still working with the dark background, I’ve repositioned myself to achieve back-lighting from the setting sun.

Additionally, I chose to break a couple photography “rules”. Intentionally photographing through a foreground tulip creates a highlight in the bottom left.  It was a gamble that I think paid off quite well.  A viewer will naturally be drawn to the lower highlight and the upper highlight. After bouncing back and forth a few times, you eventually find the beautiful color and texture in between.  I find that my mind dwells on this image longer than the others.

tulips-5299

A combination of backlighting, dark background, and close-up abstract shape.

tulips-5301

Upon thinking “how can I look at this subject with a different perspective?”  I finished up the evening by looking down on the flowers from a steep angle, as the sun was soon to fall behind the buildings of Boston.  I chose a more narrow aperture here, f 16, because I wanted to hold some depth of focus from foreground to background.  And because a smaller aperture means less light entering the camera, I increased the ISO. Aperture priority, f/16, 1/160 sec, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

How Do I Put A Custom Photo On My Bank Checks?

How Do I Put A Custom Photo On My Bank Checks?

Boston SkylineIf you have a personal checking account, you can have your own photographs printed as custom backgrounds on your checks.

While some of my bills are payed automatically, either through my bank or credit card, I do still write checks for some things. Upon discovering that I only had one blank check remaining, I was about to order more through regular channels, but the price seemed a bit high. Searcing on-line, I found that other providers will print blank checks for far less money and you can order checks direct through their web sites.

Some companies allow you to upload your own photographs to be printed as the background image on your checks. Caution – some of those providers do not include security features, such as microprinting of the signature line. I found two providers that offer custom photo checks with security features, then researched them on-line to find positive/negative reviews. I selected one of these providers and then searched on-line for freely available discount codes. I found a discount code that saved me $3 per box of checks.

The photo I selected from my own catalog is shown here, an image of the Boston skyline.

Unfortunately, no guidelines were given how to size my photo appropriately. The web site did list specific file types that were acceptable and a maximum file size of 5MB.

Measure the height and width of your old checks. Then re-size your digital image accordingly. Personal checks (in the USA) are typically 6″ x 2.75″. I re-sized my photograph to slightly larger than 6″, thinking that the images are typically over-printed and then the paper is cut to a slightly reduced size. Set the print resolution to 300 dpi. Save the file as JPEG. Upload this file when the check-ordering web site prompts you to do so.

Choose a brighter image rather than a darker image. Text that is printed on the check will be difficult to see if the background image is too dark. The web site should show you a preview of the check with your photo and text. Upon seeing my check preview, I deleted the photo (the original shown here in this post), edited the photo to make it lighter, then uploaded the modified version.

To lighten a photo, raise the black point, which causes black to be rendered as grey instead of black. For example, in Photoshop, use either curves or levels. In Lightroom, in the Develop Module, use the Tone Curve. Simply drag the left-most point of the curve upward until it looks right to you.

 

When will the cherry trees bloom in D.C. ?

When will the cherry trees bloom in D.C. ?

Yoshino Cherry trees encircle the tidal basin at Washington D.C.
Yoshino Cherry trees encircle the tidal basin at Washington D.C.

This week, I was thinking that the trees may bloom very early this year, particularly as a friend in N.Carolina reported that dafodils bloomed early, in mid-February.

Today, looking on-line at cherryblossomwatch.com
I see that the D.C. air temp through January and February this year has been warmer than the past six years.

As spring arrived particularly early in 2012, the Yoshino Cherry trees around the tidal basin bloomed early and disappeared BEFORE the opening of the annual Cherry Blossom Festival.  Thankfully, I achieved a bit of photography the day before a spring storm blew away all the Yoshino flowers.

Historic first cherry bloom in D.C.
•2016: March 25
•2015: April 10
•2014: April 10
•2013: April 9
•2012: March 20
•2011: March 29
•2010: March 31
•2009: April 1

Accidentally Deleted A Memory Card

Accidentally Deleted A Memory Card

Card_meltdownHave you ever formatted a memory card and then realized that there were images on that card you needed?  That’s exactly what I did recently on a video shoot.  Acting as a one-man video and audio crew, I was rather hurried and hastily formatted the card that was already in the camera.  Big mistake, but I realized my error immediately.

Vaguely, I thought there was a possibility of recovering data from the card IF I did not over-write the files with new images.  So I immediately removed the card and replaced it, hoping that the data on the formatted card might still be in tact.

The trick here is knowing that most formatting is a “quick format” that doesn’t erase the entire card, but simply erases the index that locates files on the card.  Special computer software can scan the memory card for files, even though the index has been trashed.

As I had never needed recovery software before, I research on-line to see what was available. To avoid a virus or spyware into my computer, I considered only applications that were recommended by reputable sources (such as PC Magazine or Tom’s Hardware Guide).  The software I used is called Recuva and it did successfully dig up the lost files from the formatted card.  While a few of the images were corrupted, the important images I needed were all just fine.

Wildflower Photography

Wildflower Photography

Colombine
Colombine

One of the most important aspects of wildflower photography is controlling the background. Finding a clean background, that is not distracting, can be challenging.

Controlling the background can sometimes be easy and sometimes difficult.  Thinking about it just now, here are some considerations just off the top of my head.

  • Inspect around the flower to understand what will appear behind the flower
  • Choose if you want additional flowers in background or foreground
  • Watch out for distracting twigs or blades of grass; you can push them out of the frame
  • If the flowers are on long stems, you may be able to nudge the stem, either to achieve a better background or to place the flower in a more flattering light.
  • To fix a problematic background, consider placing some object behind the flower.
  • Consider placing the camera near the ground and shoot upwards at the flower
  • Consider filling the entire frame with the flower – no background
  • If you can’t achieve a good background, look for a different flower nearby
Canada Mayflower
Canada Mayflower
Canada Mayflower
Canada Mayflower

 

 

One more thing … In your zeal, try not to trample the flowers. Leave them for someone else to enjoy.

Tree Silhouette At Sunrise

Balsam Fir and sunrise (final)
Balsam Fir and sunrise (final)

At 4:30am, I hiked out to the coastal headlands and arrived at White Head shortly before sunrise.  Although the weather was hazy, the pre-dawn light in the sky was interesting and beautiful.  As the sun rose to the horizon, the colors begain to fade and I believed the show was over, so abandoned my perch atop the cliff, 160 feet above the sea, and hiked north along the coast.

Fifteen minutes later, I spied this oddly shaped tree atop an exposed cliff and made the image shown here, a silhouette against a grey sky.

Balsam Fir silhouette
Balsam Fir silhouette

The hike to the north had brought me down to sea level and the cliffs now loomed above me. Unexpectedly, just to the left of the tree, the sun was beginning to rise behind the cliff.  The show wasn’t over yet.  The time was almost 6 a.m.

Scrambling along the coastal rocks, I positioned myself such that the tree was in front of the rising sun.  The second shot here is 15 minutes after the grey-sky shot.  Then, the final image is an additional 5 minutes later, about 6:20 a.m.

Balsam Fir and sunrise
Balsam Fir and sunrise

Waterworks – rowboat drifting

Drifting rowboat, Deer Isle Maine
Drifting rowboat, Deer Isle Maine

 

A print of this image will be exhibited in a juried art exhibit this month.  The framed print is 18×24 inches.  The uframed print is 12×18 inches (because that is what I can print on my 19″ Epson printer).

This is a composite of three images while the camera was fixed on a tripod.  As I was working, the row drifted around its mooring. The reflection at the top of the frame is from a lobster boat.  I feel that the lobster boat serves to anchor the image, while remaining abstract enough not to be a distraction.

The exhibit at Maryland Federated Art is entitled “Waterworks”.   With a total of 580 pieces submitted, the jurors selected 54 for the exhibit.  I submitted two, one of which was selected.  Here is a link to all the works in the exhibit:
http://mdfedart.com/portfolio/49/

Photography Workshop with Craig Blacklock

Apos-8344
Sunrise in fog .

Photography books on my bookshelf include Eliot Porter, Galen Rowell, Art Wolfe, David Muench, and Craig Blacklock. I expect every nature photographer knows the first four names. The name Craig Blacklock (pronounced black-lock) is probably not as well known, but his photography ranks among the very best.  Imagine my amazement when I learned that Craig was leading a photography workshop very close to the time and place where I was planning to travel.

I normally prefer to discover a location through my own explorations and, as I have many years experience with my photography, I rarely participate in workshops. But after the name Craig Blacklock caught my attention, I learned that he is an expert regarding the Apostle Islands, the location for this workshop. Furthermore, this workshop would include boat transportation as well as canoes. My feet and my car would not be sufficient to explore the Apostle Islands.

In retrospect, I can report that it was an excellent workshop … educational, enjoyable, and in the company of a great group of talented photography enthusiasts. As participants ranged from inexperienced to very experienced photographers, Craig individually provided as much or as little instruction as was desired. This is one of Craig’s strengths, the ability to tune-in to each individual’s needs.

Most days, we were up at 4 a.m. and on location shortly before sunrise. Locations included a bog where we photographed sundew, pitcher plants, dew-covered spider webs, and more. A long-distance boat cruise brought us out to the famous sea caves which are prominently featured in Craig’s published images of the Apostle Islands. However, we did not go inside the caves, as this requires kayak expertise and incurs substantial risk.

While I have a fair amount of experience photographing macro (I have self-published an 80-page book of wildflowers), Craig advanced my technique so I can achieve better results.  He brought us deeply into the use of focus stacking, which achieves a depth of sharp focus that is beyond what a camera can capture in a single image and therefore requires multiple captures, subsequently combined together. Sometimes related to this, a diffusion tent allows isolating a subject from the movement of wind. As I own and carry only a medium-size piece of diffusion cloth, I had never before seen or used a full tent.

Workshop led by Craig Blacklock
Workshop led by Craig Blacklock

(click on the image for a larger view)

 

 

Participants spent many hours post-processing our captured images. Our headquarters for such activities was Madeline Island School of Arts (http://www.madelineartschool.com), the location host for the workshop. While most participants lodged at MISA, I parked my pop-up camper down the road at Big Bay Town Park.

Craig Blacklock is author of more than a dozen books, including Lake Superior Images, Minnesota’s North Shore, and the Apostle Islands from Land and Sea. Craig’s gallery is located in Moose Lake, Minnesota (http://blacklockgallery.com). Additionally his images can be seen in many exhibits, but he currently has an excellent set of large prints on display now at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center in Ashland Wisconsin (http://www.northerngreatlakescenter.org). Upon leaving the Lake Superior shore, I stopped by the visitor center myself, to see the exhibit.

The ONE Filter Every Outdoor Photographer Needs

Clockwise from top left: Singh-Ray cir.pl., Tiffen cir.pl. (77mm), Rodenstock Digital HR cir.pl., Hoya pl., Tiffen HT Digital cir.pl.
Clockwise from top left: Singh-Ray cir.pl., Tiffen cir.pl. (77mm), Rodenstock Digital HR cir.pl., Hoya pl., Tiffen HT Digital cir.pl.

We need polarizing filters and I am not going to explain why.  Many other photographer-authors have already done that and I see no need to put my own spin on it.   But there may be differences between two polarizing filters, either from two different manufacturers, or from the same manufacturer.  That is what we’re going to look at here.

Frankly, choosing a polarizing filter from a dozen or more options is a pain.  If you have a limited budget, you might select the cheapest filter.  If you have used filters before, you will likely stick with a brand that you know and trust.

The photo above shows five polarizing filters. All attach to the front of a camera lens; four include a screw thread to attach directly to the lens and one is designed for a filter holder.  Most are constructed from a glass element and a metal ring, but the most expensive filter is mostly plastic.

Clockwise from top left: (1) Singh-Ray LB Neutral Circular Polarizer for Z-Pro holder, (2) Tiffen circular polarizer 77mm, (3) Rodenstock Digital HR circular polarizer, (4) Hoya polarizer, (5) Tiffen HT Digital circular polarizer.

In true Sesame Street manner … which one of these does not belong with the others?  While Singh-Ray does offer standard screw-in filters, this version shown here is designed specifically for a Cokin Z-Pro filter holder.  Filter holders such as this allow the use of rectangular graduated filters.  If you need both grad filters and polarization, you have two choices: attach a polarizing filter to the lens and then add the filter holder onto that, or use a special filter that fits directly in the holder.  The Sing-Ray LB series (LB = lighter and brighter) isn’t quite as dark as most polarizing filters – you lose less light compared to others.  And, while some polarizers have a color tint, the LB Neutral does not.  This filter is ridiculously expensive.

Next, consider the silver-ring filter, which is a Tiffen Digital HT circular polarizer (HT = High Transmission).  Like the Singh-Ray LB, this filter is not as dark as most polarizers, so you lose less light through the filter.  Unlike the Sing-Ray LB Neutral, this filter has a color tint.  This filter is low-profile; however, while “low profile” usually implies there is no female thread on the front, this filter does have a front thread.

In the specific case of the Digital HT, the front threading and the rear threading are both shallow, allowing the filter to be thinner. But after eight years of use, the rear thread has worn and this filter sometimes does not stay attached to the lens – that’s a problem.  I recently replaced this filter with the Rodenstock HR Digital filter.  The color is more neutral compared to the Tiffen Digital HT.  However, it is not HT or LB, and I do miss that.

What is a low-profile filter?  It is simply thinner than usual, in order to solve a particular problem.  The problem with adding filters to the front of a lens is that they can cause vignetting, particularly if you stack multiple filters together.  Low-profile filters often omit the female thread on the front, meaning you cannot attach another filter in front of it.  The thinnest filters I have seen are from Vu Filters (http://www.vufilters.com).  Frankly, unless you are experiencing a vignette problem, I suggest avoiding low-profile filters.

In addition to the Tiffen Digital HT, the photo here shows another Tiffen.  This is a basic circular polarizing filter.  It is good quality and I have relied upon frequently.  However, I am replacing it with a B+W F-Pro circular polarizer (not shown), which I think is a bit better.

Just as lenses often have optical coatings on the glass, the same can be true for filters.  The second photo (below) shows a telephone pole reflected on the filters.  You can see that some filters are less reflective than others, which is achieved through coatings applied to the surface of the glass.  From the top of the photo, first is the Singh-Ray, followed by the 77mm Tiffen, and then the 67mm Rodenstock Digital HR.  See how the Rodenstock is a bit less reflective than the others? It has multiple coatings on the surface of the glass.

(Click on the image below to view it larger size.)

Singh-ray, Tiffen cir.pl., Rodenstock HR Digital cir.pl., Hoya pol., Tiffen Digital HT cir.pl.
Singh-ray, Tiffen cir.pl., Rodenstock HR Digital cir.pl., Hoya pol., Tiffen Digital HT cir.pl.

The one polarizing filter that I have not yet mentioned is an old Hoya filter, which is a linear polarizer, not a circular polarizer.  Any linear polarizer can interfere with electronic auto-focus.  Circular is generally preferable because you can always use a circular polarizer in place of a linear polarizer, but the reverse is not true.  None-the-less, I did use this filter quite recently in a situation where I was relying upon manual focus.  I have owned this filter for twenty years … since before I owned autofocus lenses.

Once upon a time, photographers needed an array of color-correction filters to compensate for peculiarities in the light.  However, with the advent of digital cameras that include a color temperature adjustment, color correction can be done in-camera, largely eliminating the need for such filters.  So, today, I carry only three types of filters, polarizing, neutral density, and graduated neutral density.  While ND and grad ND are rather specialized devices that many folks do not need, the one filter every outdoor photographer needs is a polarizing filter.