Fall Moon

I like being able to see some detail in the moon's shadow areas.  Of course, you lose all detail in the 'lit' portion, but it is nice and moody.

Monday Photo Roundup - Nov. 12

Terrell travelled to Highland Park for the final game of the season.  As halftime shows go, the Highland Belles were the best dance/drill team I've seen all year.  It's too bad their website has a bunch of mediocre photos that are distorted.

Which leads me to another point.  Don't stretch/bend photos to fit a spot.  Crop them if you have to, but stretching to fit is terrible.  It is also one reason photogs hate giving up digital files to customers.  If you make a photo look ugly, it reflects back on the photographer.

Transfer B&W photos onto clear contact paper to stick them anywhere...

An intriguing photog project - contents of insane asylum patient suitcases.  There is so much history there and so much unknown about the owners of the objects.

10 surefire ways to become a better photographer.  I subscribe to this method, and add one more step.  Also look at a lot of photos.

And if you want better photos of the moon, here is a comprehensive article on that topic.

The football action was a little lopsided Friday, and my shots were just OK.  I'm thinking the lady in the endzone was positioned just right for this play.


Same for whoever was shooting from the other side here..


Have a great week.

Carnival fun photos

It is hard to beat small-town carnival atmosphere for photography fun.  There are lots of people having fun, some having no fun at all, carneys, and of course, lots of lights and lighting challenges. Usually you only have about 30-45 minutes of daylight that is not too bright to combine with slow shutter speeds. (use a neutral density filter to get long shutter speeds during the day) Including a darkening sky with spinning rides is great. Today was better than that... clouds of a cold front rolling into the area just as it got dark. Of course it pays to be early for fun people shots. Did I mention carneys?


Upside down ride riders...

Fun slide sliders...


Shooting people on moving rides is hard, but as always, sharp eyes are key..

Many rides have bright halogen lights directed at the riders. If you catch them going through that light, it is usually good..



As it gets darker, shutter speeds get longer to capture any sky at all... which also makes for more interesting patterns in ferris wheel lights.




Ominous!




How to shoot pretty blurry light photos?  Get a tripod and be willing to look like a shutterbug while having fun with hundreds of your neighbors.

Other posts with carnival photos are here, here, here and here.

Thursday Night Lights at Mesquite Memorial

The Terrell Tigers will go into Mesquite Memorial Stadium as the definite underdog for tonight's matchup.  Luckily for everyone shooting photos, the lights and unique features of the venue can help make up for what may be a lopsided game. The large communications tower at the south end of the field can be incorporated with a wide-angle lens ...






And a nice grassy bowl at the end of the field makes a clean background for on-field action.


And lighting is better than average, so it should be a good night, at least for the cameras.

Monday Photo Roundup - Oct. 1

Settling into fall and football weather..  To follow up on last week's homecoming post, here is an interesting observation.  On Friday, the best reaction upon the announcement of king and queen winners was from the parents rather than the students.

Be a Photographer!  1946 vocational film shows that everything has changed, and not much has changed.


The cost of printer ink, relative to other liquids.  There's gold in them thar cartridges!

Big price drop on the still-impressive Canon 5D Mk II.  The dreamy look of modern wedding and family portraiture is, in part, the work of this camera.  However, the autofocus and sensor improvements of the Mk III version may be worth almost twice the price?

There are other Canon rebates as well...

Golden corporate headshot advice from The Slanted Lens is up on Strobist...

Finally... In low-light high school football, you really want the action to be right in front of you (or invest in an $11k lens).  So it was nice to be in the right place at the right time Friday.  In Terrell, the light is particularly bad, as you can see in this series....

Have a great week!

Gladiators, kids and dogs ... a sunny Saturday morning

When you combine a bunch of crazy folks, mud, obstacles and beer, photo opportunities are bound to be plentiful. The Gladiator Rock'n Run had a stop in Terrell, so I went out early this morning to get some photos for the Tribune.


It is important to note that shooting one of these things takes a bit of preparation. It is hot, dirty, and you will hike quite a bit to get to the obstacles. I did not stay for long, but I was glad to have my hiking boots, long pants, bug repellant and water. As with any other event, catching expressions and emotion is the key to good photos... luckily the obstacles bring out great faces from the contestants.


The costumes worn by contestants can be humorous as well and are certainly worth a snapshot.


Some obstacles offer more scenic photo possibilities...

And at some you can get in for a good close-up...

Having a camera around can elicit some strange behavior among friendly contestants...


Still friends after 6 kilometers of insanity...

The light was pretty harsh, but if you wait long enough, someone will be in the right spot for a shot..




After the first few waves of gladiator runners, I headed to a different running event - a summer youth track meet. These kids are always great to shoot.



Then it was one more stop to see how things were going at a special 'Dog Days' event with the Terrell Pet Adoption Center. Some dogs visited for shots and recreation...


Others were hoping to go home with a new family...

Ah, that was fun. Did you take any photos this morning? Why not!? Have a great Fathers Day everyone. Don J.

Quick Pic - Wheels

The Terrell Heritage Jubilee is this weekend, which provides countless photo ops if you have some free time. The carnival rides are just about ready to go. Having the rides up, but no people makes for a strange feel in photos, I think.



The ferris wheel is set up across what are normally handicap parking places. That makes for a strange combination of wheels.

Alan + Nevada

I don't get a lot of time to do weddings, portraits and such, but when some friends are flexible and the schecule works out, it certainly is a lot of fun. Alan and Nevada will tie the knot in July, but we got to hang out for a couple of hours last Saturday evening.

First things first... photographing folks with great personalities is a huge plus, and these two are pretty much naturals in front of the camera.

Second, it wasn't quite 'golden hour' light yet, but we found some good light and fun backgrounds around downtown Terrell.

Old storefronts are abundant.

Canon 5D, 50mm, f3.5, 1/125, iso 100

There are many brick walls to choose from.

Canon 1D-IV, 70-200mm, f6.3, 1/80, iso 200

Architecture to use as props.

Canon 5D, 50mm, f6.3, 1/125, iso 100

Canon 5D, 50mm, f6.3, 1/80, iso 100

And random spots of nice, shady light

Canon 5D, 50mm, f4.5, 1/100, iso 100 (-2/3 EC)

Shady spots are good, but you still have to look at where the light is coming from. I did not have any helpers for reflectors or lights, so I packed very light. Just a fill flash here and there and available light for this shoot.

When in doubt, jump.

Canon 1D-IV, 24-70mm, f7.1, 1/4000, iso 200 (-2 EC)