Archive for category Seascape
Adventures in HDR Imaging
Original Exposures -
I have spent the last several months investigating techniques for creating High Dynamic Range Images. Based on my experience thus far I have some recommendations for getting started.
Online Resources -
- First a video by Matt Kloskowski -Video – HDR and Lightroom, where Matt explores how to use Lightroom in a HDR workflow.
- In the next blog post -HDR Tidbits (links, news, inspiration), he provides more info and some neat links. (NOTE: NAPP members can get added tutorials by Matt on HDR at the NAPP website)
- I would then recommend visting Pixel Perfect where Ben Willmore has a two part video on how he creates HDR images -Episode 92 – HDR Secrets: Amazing Photography Tricks
- Then Episode 93 – HDR Secrets: Amazing Photography Tricks Part 2
As for book recommendations -
If I had to choose just one – I would pick the HDRI Handbook, if you are interested in the technical specifics, as I am, this book has the most detailed explanation of HDRI that I have found thus far.
The HDRI Handbook: High Dynamic Range Imaging for Photographers and CG Artists +DVD
Video Training -
If you want to know how to capture and then process in a clearly presented step by step video tutorial, then I would definitely recommend Ben Willmore’s DVD High Dynamic Range (HDR) Mastery by Xtrain.
The training is broken up into 4 classes :
- Shooting for HDR
- Merging Exposure
- Processing HDR Files
- Enhancement
Ben is considered by some to be the master of HDR imaging. If you have purchased Photomatix for rendering HDR then Ben’s video is the instruction manual that is missing.
Back to Photography while continuing to develop ….
Posted by Peter in Google Earth Locator Link, Lightroom Templates and Presets, Massachusetts, Seascape on March 4th, 2008
Time to get back to showing some images of Boston’s North Shore, while continuing to offer some techniques.
As residences of the North Shore know, in the summer getting close to the ocean in some areas along the Beverly to Gloucester coast line is limited to residences only or to members of a specific club. However, in the winter when not too many be willing to venture to these summer gathering spots, an opportunity exist to visit these locations and bring some of the scenes into the camera’s view.
One such spot is Tuck’s Point in Manchester by the Sea Massachusetts.
Google Earth Locator of Tuck’s Point
This image was captured several weeks ago.
Techniques used for the effect were a combination of adjustments, my own and a preset from Adobe Lightroom Killer Tips called Matt’s Nostalgic Effect (1). All adjustments were made using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom.
Taking it one step further, I decided to continue developing framing options for use as templates within the Lightroom Print Module. For this image I created a torn edge effect.
Here is a screen capture, from Lightroom, of the same image with the template applied and another with the template opacity reduced, allowing some of the underlying image to bleed through (Click on images for larger view) Note: Grey are around image is my screen capture and not part of image or template.
This template is now saved within the Lightroom Print Module user preferences and available to apply to all the images in my catalog.
If interested, here it is for a 8×10 Portrait applied on a 8 1/2 x 11 paper – Torn Edge Print Template Download
Your site support and comments welcomed.
A day at the beach with a good friend
Posted by Peter in Google Earth Locator Link, Light Houses, Massachusetts, Matt Kloskowski, Seascape on December 28th, 2007
The sun has finally come out from behind the clouds (but not for long) and my good friend, Armand, joined me for a day of capturing images at the beach.
Just to remind myself that it is winter, I found a patch of snow at the beach.
This image was captured on Wingaersheek Beach looking towards Annisquam Light in Gloucester, MA.
Edited with – 
The following image, Annisquam Light was edited in only where I used the Vintage New York Presets created by Matt Kloskowski and then cropped into a Pano.
Annisquam Lighthouse
Located in Annisquam Village, Annisquam light was erected in 1801 to mark the entrance to the Annisquam River at Wigwam Point. Originally built as a wooden frame. Then in 1897 the brick tower replaced the wooden structure. Annisquam Light is maintained by the U.S. Coast Guard.
How many more days till Spring..
Posted by Peter in 7-Point System, Google Earth Locator Link, Massachusetts, Seascape on December 27th, 2007
Winter has not been kind thus far for some of us in New England. It has been great for the ski areas up north, but for those who seek an ocean breeze, it has not been to welcoming. To give you a sense of the way it has been thus far, Boston and surrounding the area are on the verge of breaking the all-time record for snow in December, almost 28″ (71cm).
So to get into a better mind set, I decided to revisit some of the images that I took one early evening this summer in Rockport, MA. As you can probably tell ocean settings and in particular Rockport and the Gloucester area are some of my favorite places to capture an image.
Motif #1 (which is really Motif # 2 or Maybe #3 ) is one of those images that almost every wants to capture and one night last summer I was able to get just the reflection I wanted.
Here is the image as captured -
Click on Image for larger view
When I first captured this image, I was pretty satisfied, however since then I have spent more time with Adobe Lightroom post processing and more recently with Scott Kelby’s 7 Point System .
Today, I went back to see what I could do to adjust this image further with the techniques learned from the 7PS. I also spent sometime removing sea weed from the scene and some minor cropping.
Here is the resulting image -
Click on Image for larger view
I still thought it was a little to “cold”, so I made it a little warmer and adjusted the crop -
Click on Image for larger view
I’m interested in your thoughts.
Another snowy and dreary day in New England
Posted by Peter in 7-Point System, Google Earth Locator Link, Lightroom, Massachusetts, Matt Kloskowski, Orton Effect, Photoshop, Scott Kelby, Seascape on December 20th, 2007
Winter hasn’t really started and it looks like it is going to be a long one here along the coastline of Massachusetts.
Not a good day for making images, at least not for a fair weather photographer like me.
So I thought I would play around with Lightroom and Photoshop along with a few techniques that I have been playing with the last few days.
There was really nothing special about this series of images. The original was randomly picked from images that I had not assign a high rating and would probably not print.
The image was captured off Castle Rock, which is located off Ocean Avenue on Marblehead Neck section of Marblehead MA. Castle Rock gets its name from the castle-like private home next to the park. Once known as “Great Head”, Castle Rock was a lookout for arriving and departing fishing fleets and for pirate and enemy ships, both British and French.
This is the original image capture, no adjustments -
First thing I decided to try was to run the image through the Scott Kelby’s 7-point System to adjust the “punch” of the image. I then decided to apply the “Orton Effect” (The Orton Effect is named after Michael Orton who first used the technique of sandwiching two images, one in focus the other out of focus). I then applied a mask to remove the effect in some areas. Resulting in this image -
I then decided to see what would happen if I applied Matt Kloskowski’s “New York Effect” to the “Orton Image”. Resulting in this rendering -
Unfortunately, people who know me, know I can not leave well enough alone, so I tried to add another effect where I used a preset from the WOW Collection by Ben Willmore (that was available for free download for NAPP members). With this effect, I was able to isolate the browns in the image for this effect -
Thanks !
