Phil Redo

If it works out that I receive advice on this blog about how to improve a particular photo, AND if I think that the advice has merit, AND if I actually have time to make the change, then I do like to try and make the change and post the revision. In my mind this serves two purposes: 1) it demonstrates that I do indeed pay attention to the feedback I receive and 2) it lets other followers of the blog see how relatively minor changes can have a large impact on a photo.

I originally posted this photo of Phil on Thursday, July 2 and received a lot of positive feedback related to it. One suggestion I had, offered by Larry Patrick (fellow Bay Area Photo Club member), was to remove some of the negative space between Phil and the photo on the wall in order to strengthen the relationship between the two. Larry's change to the photo, which I really liked, went even further than I did here by actually putting a portion of Phil's head in front of the wall photo. I tried various different spacing options and settled on this one that leaves a little more of the original negative space in place. I think this small change does improve the impact of the photo and would be interested to hear if you agree (scroll down three postings to see the original image).

Title: "Phil Redo"

Hey Cupcake!

You can always count on seeing something interesting in Austin! This past weekend we spotted this business being run from a small Airstream trailer. I don't remember if it was the giant rotating cupcake on top or the "Hey Cupcake!" sign that first caught my attention but either way it struck me as funny in a "Keep Austin Weird" kind of way.

Title: "Hey Cupcake!"


Camera / Lens: Canon 40D / Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 zoom
Post-processing: Photomatix to combine three handheld exposures (-2,0,+2) into one HDR image, Photoshop CS3 for contrast and color adjustments, Topaz Adjust plugin for contrast and sharpening adjustments

Based on feedback to yesterdays posting I did a little more Photoshop work on "Austin's Oasis". Mainly I leveled the horizon by partially rotating it (not too much because I wanted to limit the cropping I would have to do after the rotate operation) and then by using Transform Skew to raise the top right hand corner. I also brightened the image a little while I was working on it.

Title: "Austin's Oasis Redo"

Austin's Oasis

We spent this past weekend in the Lake Travis area of Austin. One of our stops was the famous Oasis Restaurant where seating is available inside or outside on a series of hillside decks. The restaurant is famous for offering a spectacular view of sunset. About 10 minutes prior to sunset the Oasis staff removes all the umbrellas so that a clear sight line of the sunset is available to all the restaurant's customers.

Title: "Austin's Oasis"


Camera / Lens: Canon 40D / Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 zoom
Post-processing: Photomatix to create an HDR image from three handheld exposures (-2,0,+2) > Photoshop CS3 to adjust contrast and heal some spots caused by dust on the camera sensor > Topaz Adjust Plugin to improve contrast and reduce noise

Phil

This is a shot I took of my boss while we were at lunch a while back. I like the lighting in the photo and the strong red color of the background but there is something about the composition that I can't exactly put my finger on that makes it really appealing to me. Maybe it's the contrast between youth (the young child in the drawing hanging on the wall) and age (the not so young subject (sorry Phil) sitting at the table)? Or maybe it’s about innocence versus wisdom? Whatever it is, I hope you enjoy the photo.

Title: "Phil"


Shot data: 1/250s f/2.8 at 18.0mm iso400
Camera / Lens: Canon 40D / Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 zoom

Watch Out for Farmers!

Just a quick grab shot today. I took this shot while in Pennsylvania in May. You can see a bit of the beautiful farmland in the background but mostly I took the shot because of how well the simple sign represents such a huge part of Pennsylvania's industry.

Title: "Watch Out for Farmers!"


Shot data: 1/60s f/16.0 at 55.0mm iso125
Camera / Lens: Canon 40D / Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 zoom