Brisk Bayside Breeze

Tuesday was a fun photo day. I hopped behind a chain gate and snagged a couple closeup photos of a stuffed dragon and a graffiti sticker. It should be noted that the chain only covered the vehicle drive, a sidewalk went right through where I was shooting. I just like to make it sound like I live a life of danger. Did it work? Great. Let's move on.


I got out twice on Tuesday to take photos -- once over lunch and once after work. I forgot my notebook for the second walk, so many of these photos won't have notes. This was a long exposure, though, at least one second, braced against a lamp post.


Here's a tree. Bark tends to make a good, contrasy subject for monochrome photography. If you're ever out taking pictures and are hard-up for an easy subject, trees don't complain about having their picture taken. Nor do they come after you swinging an umbrella. Just sayin'.


Have I mentioned before that I dislike graffiti but am less disapproving of sticker graffiti? I may have. It's worth repeating. This is a three-piece penguin sticker on a mooring post. I'm impressed that it's three pieces. This picture is super blurry because of the Travenar. There I go again, acting like a Formula One driver and blaming my gear.


Roar.


This image looks very muddy. That's due to the poor lighting. Overcast skies have the advantage of dampening harsh shadows and not making people squint, so they're good for photos with people. But poor light reduces contrast and leads to poor image quality.


1/180th, f4.5. I had to Photoshop this one substantially. The sky was pure white so I used the magic wand to grab a non-contiguous mask and feathered it at, I think, 95. Maybe 65. Dropped the gamma to about .4, flattened the image, and repeated a few times. The last couple were contiguous masks. Ultimately, I recovered it but I shouldn't have let the image be that overexposed in the first place.


1/45th f16. No post-processing here at all. This shot just worked. The RT seems to more accurately meter non-native-mount lenses when they're stopped way down than when they're way open.


1/90th, f6.3. The shadows in this were a bit washed out, so I began post-processing with an overall contrast bump. After that, I used the magic wand to grab the over-exposed areas and feathered them at 65. I copied the layer and pasted it directly in place. I dropped the gamma to .3, maybe .2, and did a transparency at 45% or 55%. That made the highlights a bit less blown-out and added some character to the shadows.

So what are the lessons learned today?
1- Lenses matter. This is common sense, but all cameras function basically the same way. Sure some have more features and bells and whistles to break, but mostly they all do the same job: hold a lens and film. The lens you use will not make you a good photographer, nor will it make your photos turn out well, but it won't hurt your chances, either. Using a bad lens simply sets you up to fail.
2- Weather controls photography. Bad lighting leads to bad photos. Photography is an art form based on light and if you want to create good photos you need to work when the light is good, typically in the morning and evening.