Day 272, 365 Day Project

Last Lady Bug of fall. I was at my mother's house on what is probably our last nice day of the year (they are predicting snow on the weekend) when I glimpsed this little one walking on one of the flower's in her garden. It was on the back side facing away from me and I did not want to disturb it should it fly off. This is one of the advantages of the iPhone is that it is small enough that I was able to reach around the flower and get it close enough to pretty well fill the screen. I have been thinking about buying a macro lens for my 7D and probably will someday, however I am very satisfied with the results and am actually very impressed with the sharpness. I brought the image into Snapseed where I fine tuned it with a little softening on the edges as well as some blending of the background flowers. The Yellow flower and the Lady Bug were not touched.

Day 271, 365 Day Project

For your consideration. Here are two versions of the same image. Both are from the same shot but processed slightly different in Snapseed. The bottom one has the grunge setting higher then the top. After looking at both of them I liked both and could not decide. This is from a new series I am starting looking at face plates on various types of vehicles. This is the third vehicle in the series so far.

Day 270, 365 Day Project

Found objects can make the most interesting of subjects. As I was unloading my studio gear for my Basic Lighting class at SAIT I noticed a pile of old pipes and valves alongside the building. Not having a lot of time I quickly ran over and shot a couple of images with the iPhone before heading off to teach. Once I reached home I knew I had something that could be special. I looked at the photo and wanted to see what it would look like in some of the other app's I have downloaded recently. Well I went through about 6 of them not finding anything to my liking or the vision I had in my head for this scene. Finally I went back to the one app that I have the most confidence in, Snapseed. Using the center focus first, i softened the edges that really seemed to add depth to the shot. Then I went in to the grunge and made adjustments till I was able to darken the periphery bring the attention to the centre. Finally I added a frame to finish the shoot.

Day 269, 365 Day Project

I was sitting in the Varsity Community Centre waiting for Cool at his Jazz Dance lesson when the lights on the wall caught my eye. I like the "V" and the ripple effect of the fixture and thought I might be able to do an interesting capture of it. Pulling out the iPhone and holding it over my head I snapped a couple of frames. I then brought the image in to Snapseed and did some minor post processing.

Day 268, 365 Day Project

Most of the wedding photography classes I teach at SAIT take place on Saturday afternoon's. Due to the popularity and some of my students saying that they were unable to make Saturday classes we added a Monday evening session this fall. I have a great set of students once again and we had some wonderful subjects this evening. We start the class with the sun low in the sky and by the time I created this image of the lovely Eileen, the sun had pretty well dropped below the horizon. So we had some mixed light sources here being the darkening blue sky and the tungsten from the lamps. So I let the AWB do it's thing to get what I feel is a pleasing contrast of colors. Shot with the Canon 7D, 24-70 f2.8 @ f4 and 35mm, 1/50 sec at 1000 ISO.

Day 267, 365 Day Project

Cool was away at choir retreat all weekend, so I thought I would treat him to one of his favorites, Little Caesar's Cheese Pizza, for supper. While waiting for them to get the order together I noticed the large order of soft drinks lined up against the wall. Using the iPhone I put it down at a low level and shot up at the bottles in their trays. Using Snapseed I did a little post production work using the centre focus filter and then added the frame.

Day 266, 365 Day Project

Katherine and Thomas were subjects for my wedding photography class at SAIT today. They wanted some engagement photo's and I showed my students how a slight tilt of the camera can eliminate a hot spot as well as make for a more dynamic image. This was shot in the parking garage on campus. Canon 7D, 24-70 f2.8 @ f7.1 at 46mm, 1/80 sec at 250 ISO.

Day 265, 365 Day Project

I awoke this morning to what is a rare occurrence here in Calagry, a spectacular sunrise. The clouds and the sun played beautifully with each other and I was able to capture a few dramatic images with my Canon 7D. This is one time when the iPhone camera just does not cut it. I tried some shots with both, but found the big camera worked best in this situation. The above shot was done using the 24-70 f2.8 @ f2.8 and 54mm focal length, 1/50 sec at 100 ISO. There was no post production on this image, straight out of the camera.

Day 264, 365 Day Project

An old keyboard laying around waiting to be recycled. Moved the iPhone in close and turned it till I achieved the angle I was looking for. Brought the image into Snapseed where I did some color temperature change, a bit of work on the contrast and brightness, then adjusted the centre focus and added a couple of filters as well.

Day 263, 365 Day Project

It was an eventful evening at my Basic Lighting class at SAIT tonight. While working with one group of students with a style of high key lighting I heard my Speedotron power pack making some funny clicking noises. I no sooner said that the unit was sounding funny when it blew-up while one of the students was shooting. Fortunately there was no damage beyond the power pack itself, but I think this unit is beyond repair now as it was some 40 years old.

Any way I had some intuition before leaving home and had brought another set of lights and was able to set them up so the students could keep shooting. Fortunately the other room did not have any problems and the lovely Breanna graced my class once again. I waited till the end of the night which had run overtime (due to the above mentioned set back) and shot a couple of quick images.

Canon 7D, 24-70- f2.8 @ f8 at 100 ISO.

Day 262, 365 Day Project

It was only the second time that I had the morning entirely to myself. Both boy's at school and Lysa at a seminar so I had 2 1/2 hours on my own. Since it was a beautiful (even if it was a bit brisk) morning I decided I did not want to sit in the house and went for a long walk. As I wandered around the neighbourhood I was watching for interesting things to snap. With the sun still low in the sky there were a lot of interesting shadows so that become my subject for today. This one of a flower pot and flowers was my favorite and I like the abstract quality. Once I returned home I processed the image in Snapseed first adding a bit of vintage stain and then brought it in to Pictureshow for the edging.

Day 261, 365 Day Project

I was walking out of SAIT tonight after my class when I stumbled upon this sign painted on the floor. Usually it is covered by food serving carts, but tonight I guess some on choose to head the wording on the ground. It struck me as something one of my favorite photographer's, Mr. Jonathan Marks http://www.jmarksphoto.com/ , might photograph and work his magic on. So I pulled out my iPhone and snapped a shot and finessed it in Snapseed to get the look I desired.

Day 260, 365 Day Project

Blowing the froth off a cold one. This tankard was a souvenir I picked up when I was in Berlin back in 1990. The globe is something I picked up in Holland on the same trip. These are actually miniature items approx 6 inches and 3 inches in height respectively. The froth is cotton balls that I then worked on later. I shot them using the iPhone on a black piece of fleece with the lighting coming from a small LED flashlight on the front and a tungsten light bulb from above. I did some minor processing in Snapseed and then brought the image into Photoshop where I added the texture using the watercolor filter.

Day 259, 365 Day Project

I had wanted to try this type of image for a long time after seeing something done similar by an old friend, Michael Depraida. He had created a series of plants against a dark background in Black & White that I published in the first issue of my short run (4 issues) photo magazine "FotoSynthesis" back in 1999. I loved the idea and knew I wanted to pay homage to him. My take is a little different as I have chosen to put the plant on a long light table I have and then let the back light illuminate the pedals and the leaves.

The above shot was done with the Canon 7D and the 10-22 f3.5-4.5 lens @ f4 and 13mm. Shutter speed was 1/50th sec at 400 ISO.

After creating the top image I then decided to come in tighter on the flowers themselves as the back light gave a beautiful look to the petals and I wanted to capture a more intimate view of the flower. For this I used the 24-70 f2.8 @ f4 and 24mm at 1/50 and 400 ISO.

Day 258, 365 Day Project

Old school captured with new school device. I know there are many of you around who use to work with one of these, but I think I am one of a dying breed who still uses it. I have the darkroom up and running and I'm breaking out the old 4X5 to do some shooting again. Going back to my roots will be different but will again allow me to slow down and think about the shot, no instant gratification. Should be fun.

Shot with the iPhone and processed in Pictureshow. I choose to convert to B&W as that is the type of work done here.

Day 257, 365 Day Project

Long, busy day of construction at the community playground and activities at the boy's school. Sore and tired so I looked for something simple that I would try and make interesting around the house. Stumbled across my wife's sewing machine so I brought the iPhone in close and took a couple of frames. Then processed in Snapseed to get what I thought was an interesting image.

Day 256, 365 Day Project

I was just in the process of wrapping up my lecture to my Basic Studio lighting class at SAIT when the alarm went off and told us to evacuate the building. So I said good night to my students and dismissed them and then went outside to see if I could find out what was going on. There were four fire trucks outside and firefighters were entering the building. While waiting for the "All Clear" I pulled out the iPhone and snapped a few images of one of the waiting trucks. It took about 1/2 an hour before I was able to go back inside to pack up my gear but it seemed like it was not a serious incident.

Once I returned home I brought the image in to Pictureshow where I added some vignetting and a border.

Day 255, 365 Day Project

Shot September 13th, 2011

I was waiting for Cool at his Jazz dance class and while walking around the community centre came across these locked boxes in the coat room. I liked the look of the lock and chains and used my iPhone to capture the image. Using Snapseed I did a little post processing and achieved a result that I really liked.

Day 254, 365 Day Project

Shot Monday September 12, 2011.


I took this shot after my class at SAIT. I tilted my iPhone to get the perspective I was looking for and then processed the image in Snapseed.

Day 253, 365 Day Project

Visiting my parents house this morning and saw my Mom's rose bowl on the table in the living room. The light coming from the front windows was soft and from behind giving some beautiful shape and dimension to the flowers. I also liked the way the lace table cloth was distorted in the glass of the bowl.

Shot with the iPhone and processed with Pictureshow.

Day 252, 365 Day Project

This was an interesting shot to do. It is of one of our larger plants in the basement and I had to hold the iPhone above it to get the perspective I desired. I liked the patterns on the leaves and knew it could look abstract in Black & White. Using Snapseed I processed the image to B&W then used the centre focus to blur the outside and the vintage to give it a tone that I think suited the look.

Day 251, 365 Day Project

This image started out as a reference shot as our new refrigerator arrived today and I needed some parts to hook up the water for the dispensers. I put the iPhone on the floor and was able to get a good shot of the valve which saved me twenty dollars as when I showed it to the associate at home depot he knew I only needed a specific connector and not the whole kit.

Any way after I got everything connected and up and running I was looking at the shot and thought it was kind of cool looking. Brought it first into Snapseed for some post processing and then added the frame using a new app called Fotolr PS.

Day 250, 365 Day Project

As it is Lysa's birthday tomorrow here is a little tribute photograph for the love I share for her.

Canon 7D, 24-70mm f2.8 @ f5.6 and 45mm, 1/125 sec at 100 ISO. One Balcar MiniZ mono-block and an extra small Chimera soft box with egg crate.

Day 249, 365 Day Project

So I have been doing a lot of my images in Snapseed lately and applying various filters. Today I wanted to do something different and go back to a fairly straight shot. This was still taken with the iPhone but is of the flower through the shower door. I like the texture and soft feel it gives. Snapseed was still used but only for the cropping and border.

Day 248, 365 Day Project

It was a beautiful summer day in Calgary. The sky was clear, the air was calm and it was a balmy 29 degree Celsius. However the pool was empty, locked in fact, where were all the kids on this fine day. Why school of course. This is par for the course here in Southern Alberta. We had a wet and cool August when the pool was open and now that we have a forcast with 10 days of above average temperatures it is closed.

iPhone processed with Snapseed with some fine tuning and added grunge to add to the lonely feel.

Day 247, 365 Day Project

My wife's cousin added two more Elephant figurines to our collection when they visited us this past weekend. I joked that it was good timing as I had already photographed every other elephant that we owned and needed another subject. Little did they know that I had already envisioned the look I wanted. Since they were made out of dark wood I knew that I wanted to the image to be black and white and I also knew that I wanted to make it look somewhat wild. So I put it in one if the pot's with the money plant to make it look as if it was emerging from the bush and got in close with the iPhone to shoot the image. Then using Snapseed I converted it to B&W and adjusted the exposure and contrast, added the texture using the grunge and then added the border.

Day 246, 365 Day Project

Last week we went to visit Lysa's Cousin whose son now lives in Vancouver and was there on a visit from India with her husband and youngest son. Last night they all stopped in on a visit with us as they were doing a quick trip to see Banff and the mountains. They are very nice people and brought some gifts for Cool and Luke. One of the gifts was the game "Operation" which the boys enjoyed. They joked with Lysa today that she should be good at it being a nurse and all. So today's shot is of another game that has stood the test of time. Shot with the iPhone with post-production in Pictureshow.

If you are looking for a laugh, after all we are removing the giggles game piece above, here is a link to the Cool and Luke's second cousin Abish's website. http://www.sonofabish.com/

Day 245, 365 Day Project

We were having some visitors today so I was preparing the fruit bowl for them and thought it might make for an interesting image. So I went and grabbed a piece of black muslin and put it on the counter a placed the bowl on top. Using the iPhone to make the capture I brought the image in to my favorite app, Snapseed, and added a little grunge and the border.

Day 244, 365 Day Project

As the storm clouds started to roll in I noticed the nice light hitting the wind chimes in our window. This time I also chose my Canon 7D over the iPhone as the lens on the iPhone is so wide that there was to much background that distracted from the image. Using the 24-70 f2.8 at 64mm I was able to use compression to my advantage thus eliminating the surrounding street scene and just focusing in on the chimes with the darkening sky behind. Shot at 1000 ISO at 1.250 sec and f 16.

Day 243, 365 Day Project

Had to break out the big guns today as the iPhone just won't cut it for this type of shot yet. We have lots of wild rabbits in our neighbourhood and this fellow choose our front lawn to catch the first rays of the sun at the start of the day. Pulling out the Canon 7D with the 70-200 f2.8 and the Extender EF 2X II, I was shot this little fellow from my front window. Shot at 1/200 sec @ f6.3 and 1000 ISO with a focal length just over 200 mm.