Geoff Fox: My Permanent Record
Back when I was in school teachers would always scare me with stories of how my exploits would end up in my permanent record. I believe this is it! – Geoff Fox
Sometimes it must seem like I have friends in the witness protection program! Helaine and I headed to New York City for breakfast and a stroll with some of those “shhhhh – don’t tell” friends. That’s all I’m allowed to say.
Sometimes it must seem like I have friends in the witness protection program! Helaine and I headed to New York City for breakfast and a stroll with some of those “shhhhh – don’t tell” friends this morning. That’s all I’m allowed to say.
Of course “Clicky” came along. Here’s a look of a little of what we say on this early fall day in Manhattan.
“You’re going to spend the weekend on the sofa.” Really? That makes me seem so boring.
Before she left for California Helaine made a prediction. “You’re going to spend the weekend on the sofa.”
Really? That makes me seem so boring.
I had loose plans to visit with a fellow photographer in New York City. He can’t do it Saturday. The weather doesn’t look camera friendly Sunday.
I’m not sure what to do. These things have a way of working themselves out… on the sofa.
I hope not.
The link led me to TripAdvisor a site we’ve used in the past to help research vacation plans. They’ve gone into competition with Animoto and other online slideshow producers with a service that produces an iMovie type vacation presentation nearly instantly and totally effortlessly.
I woke up to find an email from Helaine with nothing more than a link. True husband/wife communications in action!
The link led me to TripAdvisor a site we’ve used in the past to help research vacation plans. They’ve gone into competition with Animoto and other online slideshow producers with a service that produces an iMovie type vacation presentation nearly instantly and totally effortlessly.
The included photos have been on this site before, but the chance to show you the concept makes posting this worthwhile.
Using nine or ten of my best shots and a little Photoshop magic I can fashion a 16″ x 24″ poster. The finished product looks like something you’d buy in a store, except it’s our photos!
Here I am with around 1,500 shots from our Canada cruise. At some point they will move to a backup drive and disappear. There’s got to be a better way to use them?
“Make a poster,” Helaine said.
I’ve done this before. Using nine or ten of my best shots and a little Photoshop magic I can fashion a 16″ x 24″ poster. The finished product looks like something you’d buy in a store, except it’s our photos!
The process takes a little forethought, but not a whole lot of skill. It’s a series of repetitive steps to get each image the correct size with border effects and drop shadow then properly place it on a grid. It took under an hour start-to-finish.
This is a reduced resolution version to squeeze onto the Internet. The real poster file is 7200 by 4800 pixels or 34.56 Megapixels!
Your eyes can catch the detail in brighter whites and darker darks simultaneously than your digital camera can.
Some day that will surely change. Not yet.
A photographer working in news, whether a still or video photographer, is limited in what he can do to his photo. The finished product should be a documentary representation of what was in front of the lens. The use of Photoshop and its pretenders is limited.
National Geographic got caught moving the pyramids closer together a few years ago. Obviously a no-no.
Other guidelines aren’t quite as easy because cameras and humans see differently! Your eyes can catch the detail in brighter whites and darker darks simultaneously than your digital camera can.
Some day that will surely change. Not yet.
As a practical matter a properly exposed skyline will often have a blown out sky–whiter than its actual color and devoid of detail. If you take outdoor snapshots you’ve probably experienced the same thing where a sunny day is captured as bright gray.
Darks suffer a similar fate. Stands of trees or the detailed steelwork of the Verazzano-Narrows Bridge are lost in a blob of black.
A newspaper shooter is stuck. I am not! I take advantage of science and readily admit my finished photos often look better than real life and always look better than what came directly from the camera.
The Verazzano-Narrows shot (above) is a perfect example. I shot this bridge a bunch of times as our ship approached. No single image exposed everything properly. On top of that, I was on a moving ship so my perspective was constantly changing. I couldn’t use multiple shots differently exposed because each shot would ‘see’ differently.
I needed everything the camera’s sensors saw and got just that by using RAW files. Instead of compressing my image to a jpg (as most cameras do) my RAW file was saved just as it was sensed on the camera’s chip. The file was much larger, but it retained lots of detail–even if that detail couldn’t always be seen.
I brought the file into Photoshop and began selecting sections. I isolated certain shades of blue. I isolated areas where the luminance (brightness) was low. Now I could manipulate those sections without affecting the rest of the shot.
I brought up the bridge’s levels until the intricacy of the girders could be seen. Then I went back and deepened the sky color making it richer and giving the whole picture more contrast.
None of this would ever be done by a news photographer. It’s ethical poison. For my non-news artsy shots it doesn’t matter… at least it doesn’t matter to me!
It does make a difference in the final result. I think the finished shot is more pleasing and more like what I saw as we sailed under the bridge.
If I tried to pass this off in a newspaper or magazine they’d fire me.
I was disappointed. If this was a well known spot what we find at more obscure locations? Thankfully things rapidly improved.
We booked a photo tour for our cruise stop in Saint John, New Brunswick. Online reviews were good¹. We wanted to see the area and this seemed like the best way to do it.
We met Lance Timmons, a photographer and our guide, in the parking lot next to the pier. Our group boarded a small bus and headed southwest.
Saint John is a working class city. The homes are mostly small. Nondescript might be the best non-description.
Our first stop was the famous Reversing Falls.
When the tide is low, the St. John River, 450 miles long, empties into the bay. Between Fallsview Park and the Pulp Mill, the full flow of the river thunders through a narrow gorge. An underwater ledge, 36 feet below the surface causes the water in the river to tumble downward into a 175-200 foot deep pool. Below the mill and under the bridge. The water then boils in a series of rapids and whirlpools.
We missed all that arriving somewhere near high tide. The river certainly was flowing fast, but this is not a lifetime remembrance other than the cormorants I wrote about earlier.
Sorry.
What I saw was marred by the Irving Paper Mill across the river. It’s a big, ugly plant with tall stacks emitting… God, I hope it’s just steam.
I was disappointed. If this was a well known spot what we find at more obscure locations? Thankfully things rapidly improved.
Even at this first stop a glimmer of goodness came from Lance. He spent his time near the river helping point-and-shoot photographers understand how they could coax better photos from their cameras. The advice was simple and useful. Someone will come home with better pictures courtesy of Lance.
We got back on the bus and headed west on the Trans-Canada Highway. The population quickly thinned out. Conifers dominated. Our destination was Lepreau Falls.
Lepreau is a step waterfall with rapids upstream and a series of drops as the water flows toward the Bay of Fundy. It’s really pretty and unlike our last stop–pristine. For photographers there are two separate viewing areas at different altitudes.
Lance had our tour well planned. There was enough time to shoot, but certainly time limits. We needed to be back before the ship left… and it doesn’t stay in Saint John too long.
Now we were taking more narrow rural roads now driving at the edge of land. The Bay of Fundy was off to our right. We stopped in Dipper Harbour a protected inlet off the Bay. It was filled with working boats and small floating docks piled high with lobster traps.
I took one look and said to myself, “Maine.” This place was just like the small harbors I’d visited on a trip to Mount Dessert Island (Bar Harbor) a few years ago–the famous “mancation” with my friend Bob.
Our final stop was a beach inside the Irving Nature Park. Yup, the nature park Irvings are also the paper mill (and oil and chemical) Irvings. They dominate Saint John. Whether this park is the product of community spirit or guilt or a combination of the two is anyone’s guess.
With the water temperature around 55° the beach was without bathers save one young girl. I climbed some rocks to try and get better shots.
Helaine, remembering my lack of coordination and limited dexterity gets scared at moments like this. It’s possible she’d already dialed 9-1 on her cellphone!
Without Lance we never would have gotten to see this much of the Saint John area. Here are a few of my favorite shots.
¹ – At some point I’ll deal with this in greater detail, but Helaine does heavy research before we go anywhere. For this trip she depended on cruisecritic.com. It is a very active community. The tips Helaine found turned out to be very helpful.
There are lots of architectural ‘touches’ on campus. Some are beautifully ornate and reflect the stature of Yale and those who made up its student body back in the day. Others are just plain weird
I just took another look at my Yale shots from yesterday. As I walked the campus I snapped shots of anything everything that looked interesting.
There are lots of architectural ‘touches’ on campus. Some are beautifully ornate and reflect the stature of Yale and those who made up its student body back in the day. Others are just plain weird.
Judge for yourself.
This was my third walk. The first was great. The second not so much. Saturday fell in between. I enjoyed the day though there were few good shots.
Saturday was the third annual Worldwide Photowalk. Here in Connecticut it was a beautiful day–hot and sweaty for sure, but from a photo standpoint the sky was a deep blue and free from haze. I set out for the Peabody Museum in New Haven our walk’s starting point.
This was my third walk. The first was great. The second not so much. Saturday fell in between. I enjoyed the day though there were fewer good shots than I hoped for.
I met two women from Trumbull and walked with them through the Yale campus and New Haven. My time with them made the day worthwhile. Good company.
As striking as Yale is once again I had trouble finding the proper way to capture it. That’s more me than it. I did come to the conclusion there are too many architectural styles on display on-campus. Often there are jarring juxtapositions of old versus new in close proximity.
It’s possible the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library is the ugliest building in Connecticut (though its inside is full of scholarly goodness and priceless treasures). The Yale Art and Architecture Building is a close second. It’s home to the School of Architecture. I wonder if they know?
There was one odd moment on the Yale campus. A group of Korean students (probably high school) were visiting the school on their one week trip to the United States. That’s a lot to squeeze in a week! I spoke briefly to a few of them and then as I was walking away they asked if they could have their picture taken with me! I posed with three or four groups of giggling young girls.
Why me? No clue. I’m sure there are Caucasians seen in Korea. Maybe these kids don’t have access? Maybe Asian women fantasize about Jewish men? Nah.
In the end my best shots were taken in New Haven’s historic Grove Street Cemetery–itself a tourist attraction. I set out to take advantage of the very shallow depth-of-field with my 70-200mm f/2.8 lens.
There is a huge difference between what the camera shot and what was ultimately delivered. The final product is closer to what our eyes actually see
I am just back from the annual Photowalk. I’ll write more a little later. Simply put it was frustrating. I’m not sure how many ‘keepers’ there are.
I did have one which caught me because I wanted to demonstrate some photo techniques I use. If you’re not a photographer (or maybe if you are) you might not know how all this stuff works. I use Photoshop, but you could use a variety of paint programs. They probably all have this functionality.
I wanted to shoot the wrought iron gate into Pierson College on the Yale campus. It is dark. Behind it are a few buildings which were bright and brightly lit. The camera just couldn’t handle it!
The camera captured a file with the gate properly exposed and the sky blown out. There was virtually no detail in the brightest areas.
Because it was shot in RAW and not .jpg there was more detail locked away than what was visible on the screen.
I masked, or separated, the dark from light so I could turn down the sky without affecting the gate. After adjusting the levels I sharpened the gate a little.
There is a huge difference between what the camera shot and what was ultimately delivered. The final product is closer to what our eyes actually see.
Some people think using Photoshop means you’re cheating. Not me.
“You can rent lenses?” Yes, rhetorical voice of me, lenses can be rented.
Vacation is rapidly approaching. We’re going somewhere very photogenic so I decided to try something a little different. I rented a lens for “Clicky.”
“You can rent lenses?”
Yes, rhetorical voice of me, lenses can be rented.
I ordered a 4.5mm f/2.8 Sigma fisheye lens from BorrowLenses in California. It arrived today. The rental price and shipping is around 15% of what a lens would cost. It’s a lens to play with, not own.
The lens itself is very different than anything I’ve shot before. There are no straight lines. Everything is spatially distorted.
Distances are distorted too. Everything looks farther away and larger than it really is.
Finding the right tricks to make a pleasing shot won’t be easy. I’ve already thumbed through dozens of photos on Flickr to see how others use this lens (yeah–you can do that too).
Here are my first attempts in no particular order. Click any photo to make it larger.
Two years ago Steve Brenner and I drove to Brooklyn, took the subway to Manhattan and walked back across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was probably my best photo day ever!
Saturday is the annual Worldwide Photowalk. I plan to attend in New Haven even though it’s scheduled for the middle of the night: 9:30 AM! Are they nuts?
Worldwide 29,000 photographers are signed up to attend 1,108 walks. The New Haven walk is limited to 50 with 49 already on board.
Q. What is a Photo Walk?
A. It’s a social photography event where photographers get together (usually in a downtown area or trendy section of town) to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers.
Two years ago Steve Brenner and I drove to Brooklyn, took the subway to Manhattan and walked back across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was probably my best photo day ever! The Brooklyn Bridge pano at the top of this entry was taken at the end of the walk.
Last year I did New Haven which is an architecturally interesting city and was still as disappointed as could be.
New group leader. New meeting place. New route. I’m giving it another shot.
I’m excited because I’ll be carrying one additional lens. In anticipation of an upcoming trip I’ve rented a 4.5mm fisheye lens for ten days. FedEx says it’s here Thursday. It should give me an additional perspective… good or bad.
Matt is the captain. He likes to work early in the day. We were on the boat around 4:00 AM.
I spent Monday morning on-the-water. Erik Dobratz’s brothers Matt and David are fishermen… or I guess more accurately ‘conchers’. I packed up “Clicky,” picked up Erik and headed to the dock in Old Saybrook.
Matt is the captain. He likes to work early in the day. We were on the boat around 4:00 AM.
The boat itself is called “Free Bird,” though you won’t find that stenciled on the hull. It’s a “Downeaster” — a stubby working boat with a flat deck leading to a totally open stern. A winch and pulley on the starboard side are used to haul the conch pots out of the water. If you’ve watch “Deadliest Catch” you’ve seen winches like this in action.
It’s dangerous. You can lose a finger. Matt has.
Unlike “Deadliest Catch” we were heading into the totally ice free, reasonably flat Long Island Sound. The shellfish the Dobratz boys were going for sat under 90 feet of water off the shoreline between Guilford and Clinton.
The sky was just beginning to turn from black to blue as we headed down the Connecticut River past the two lighthouses at the mouth of the Connecticut River and into the Sound. Within a few minutes the reds of dawn were brightening on the horizon. Sunrise itself was still over a half hour away.
There’s a lot of trust being a fisherman. Matt’s lines are unprotected round-the-clock. Anyone floating by knows they’re full of valuable catch.
“Free Bird” motored through the sound picking up pot-after-pot of conch. Fish or crabs mistakenly caught were thrown back into the drink or left as bait for the next catch.
By the time the day was done 14 orange bags full of conch sat on the deck. They were sold and in an industrial refrigerator on-shore within moments of docking.
My final catch was over 500 photos! Here are my keepers. The rest I’ll throw back.
Here’s a little video I captured on my iPhone over the course of the morning.
These shots were taken from an athletic field at the Foote School in New Haven.
I enjoy seeing fireworks and, since I now seem to be totally obsessed as a photographer, I also enjoy shooting fireworks.
“It’s not the same,” said Helaine when I came back from shooting the New Haven fireworks. “It doesn’t have the same excitement.”
She’s right (as usual). A still photo will never bring the oohs and ahs you hear from the live crowd.
On my drive home I was thinking this is a technical exercise more than anything. You never really know what’s going to be in the frame during the 5, 10 or even 20 seconds you’ve got the shutter open! The only thing a photographer must/can scope out is the shutter speed, aperture, ISO, lens focal length.
These shots were taken from an athletic field at the Foote School in New Haven. I used a Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 lens and varied my shots from 70mm all the way to 200mm. I was far enough from the fireworks that this was a near perfect lens choice lens.
The view was good but there were some trees that blocked a little of the action.
Click any photo for a larger view.
We miss having a dog around the house. We don’t miss the responsibility that comes with dog ownership. Babysitting works just fine.
Dogs have individual personalities. Some are hyper. Some are licky. Others are perfectly content to be perfectly content. That last description applies to Tallulah, who we’re babysitting this weekend.
Tallulah is VERY laid back. She is a Xanax with paws.
We miss having a dog around the house. We don’t miss the responsibility that comes with dog ownership. Babysitting works just fine.
Here she is front and profile… in case the police ever need a wanted poster.
Meanwhile, as I drove to the top of their beautiful hill I found what I thought was a wind sculpture. That’s only part of the story.
I took a little time to go to Quinnipiac University’s new York Hill Campus for some ‘broad sky’ time lapse tonight. I’m processing my shots, but I think it was a bust. Bad choices on my part.
Meanwhile, as I drove to the top of their beautiful hill I found what I thought was a wind sculpture. That’s only part of the story.
From Quinnipiac University: The 250-acre York Hill Campus will feature two major initiatives that use renewable energy sources to produce electricity and make the campus more sustainable. A wind garden composed of 42 vertical-axis wind turbines will generate about 84,000 kilowatt hours per year. These wind turbines, each approximately 40 feet high, will be built into a garden area complete with stone benches that will provide an area for student gathering and reflection.