Urban Photography – High Noon

Convention wisdom has it that its best to shoot in the first few hours of the morning and the last few hours of the evening. The light is generally softer and warmer and the shadows much more interesting. Most magazines like National Geographic or Texas Highways won’t even consider publishing a landscape image that wasn’t taken during these “golden hours”.

So what’s a serious amateur to do with the rest of his or her time? One answer is to look for subjects or locations with enough contrast that even shots taken at high noon look interesting. Anything metal like a car or truck generally fits this profile as you can see in this image. Urban settings abound with possibilities.

Sugar Land’s New Ladder Truck
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT set on aperture priority (Av) using an EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM hand-held. The exposure was taken at 31mm, f/11 for 1/80th of a second at ISO 100 on Sandisk digital film. Post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 using Nik Software’s Color Efex Pro plug-in filter. Click on the image above for a larger version.

Another possibility is photograph high contrast subjects and then process the images as Black & White as shown below. Nik Software’s Silver Efex Pro plug-in for Lightroom and Photoshop does an incredible job converting color images into high contrast black & white images.

Sugar Land’s New Ladder Truck
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT set on aperture priority (Av) using an EF 17-40mm f/4 L USM hand-held. The exposure was taken at 31mm, f/11 for 1/80th of a second at ISO 100 on Sandisk digital film. Post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 using Nik Software’s Silver Efex Pro plug-in filter. Click on the image above for a larger version.

One thing to remember about “rules” in photography, they’re meant to be broken. Many of Ansel Adams’ most popular images like the Taos Pueblo Church (1942) were taken in the mid-day sun.

One final thought. Don’t limit your photographic explorations to only a few “golden” hours each day, no matter what anyone says. When you have the chance to go shooting, spend as much time as you can looking for locations and subjects that excite your vision and sense of adventure. The Lord has provided us an incredible planet to explore and only a short lifetime to explore it in. Grab your camera and your creative spirit and get out there.

Life is Too Short (LTS) !

Travel Photography – Faith

Faith
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS Rebel XT set on aperture priority (Av) using an EF 17-40mm f/4L USM hand-held. The exposure was taken at 21mm, f/14 for 1/80th of a second at ISO 100 on Sandisk digital film. Post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 using Nik Software’s Viveza. Click on the image above for a larger version.

From the bottom of my heart, to all my friends, colleagues and readers worldwide. Have a joyous Easter Sunday. Alleluia, He is Risen.

Black and White Photography – Contrast

Rules are made to be broken. Remember the “golden hours” rule? You know, the one that states that any good landscape image has to be taken during those golden hours right around sunrise and sunset? Well, in black and white photography you can break that rule with impunity! (I’m sure this comment will get me flamed)

Black and white photography is all about contrast. Any subject and any lighting that will provide you with great contrast is fair game. And if you don’t believe me, read Ansel Adams’ classic book Natural Light Photography to see how the world’s most famous photographer used contrast in his images taken at all times of the day and night, not just during the “golden hours”.

Afternoon in Town Center
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS 40D set on aperture priority (Av) using an EF 17-40mm f/4L USM hand-held. The exposure was taken at 21mm, f/5.6 for 1/640th of a second at ISO 100 on Sandisk digital film. Post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 and Photoshop Elements using Nik’s Silver Efex Pro filters. Click on the image above for a larger version.

Putting Jeff Revell’s Grunge Tutorial To Use

I’ve wanted to try my hand at the “grunge” look ever since I saw some of Dave Hill’s incredible work and read a review on Scott Kelby’s blog on the Lucis Art Photoshop plugin that can create a similar look. Then I found a grunge tutorial on Jeff Revell’s blog describing a simple technique in Photoshop to achieve similar results and was off to the races!

So I looked through Lightroom and found a couple of images I’d posted before and exported them into Photoshop Elements to see how Jeff’s technique worked in real life. I’m pleased with the contrasty look to these landscape images but I think this technique would work better for grungy urban settings.

Living near a major US city, I’m sure you can guess where I’ll be shooting this weekend!

Afternoon Storm Brewing
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS Rebel XT, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM tripod mounted at 22mm, f/6.3 for 1/320th of a second at ISO 100 on SanDisk digital film. All post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 and Photoshop Elements. Click on the image above for a larger version.

The Old Sugar Mill
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon EOS Rebel XT, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM tripod mounted at 17mm, f/16 for 1/15th of a second at ISO 100 on SanDisk digital film. All post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 and Photoshop Elements. Click on the image above for a larger version.

Landscape Photography – The Old Sugar Mill Grayscale

Here’s another landscape image taken early last year using an old Rebel XT and an EF 17-40mm f/4L lens. I processed the first entirely in Lightroom using the high-contrast grayscale conversion routine outlined in Scott Kelby’s Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 book for Digital Photographers and finished it off in Noise Ninja.

Since I started out shooting B&W over 30 years ago, processing images like this really bring back some memories. One of the best (and most thoroughly used) reference books I’ve ever read on B&W imagery is Natural Light Photography by Ansel Adams. I got my hardcover edition of this book in 1976, the same year I bought my first SLR. Every few years I’ll sit down and reread this timeless classic. Every photographic principal and technique Ansel Adams described in this 1952 book remains true today.

The Old Sugar Mill
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon Rebel XT tripod mounted, EF 17-40mm F/4L USM at 17mm, f/9 for 1/50th of a second at ISO 100 on SanDisk digital film. All post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 and Noise Ninja. Click on the image above for a larger version.

Landscape Photography – Moonlight

I took this image several months ago when the evening was hot, humid and the air was absolutely still. A typical summer evening in Houston. I wish the moon had been a little larger but you learn to work with whatever nature provides.

I hope this image brings a little warmth to my friends Mark, Tom and Jared in the great white north.

Happy Holidays!

Moonlight on the Old Mill
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon Rebel XT tripod mounted, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM at 32mm, f/11 for 15 seconds at ISO 100 on SanDisk digital film. All post capture processing was done in Lightroom 2 and Noise Ninja. Click on the image above for a larger version.

Dramatic Afternoon Sky

I took this shot several months ago during an early summer afternoon when the clouds were at their most dramatic. I used an older Canon Rebel XT body but was still able to create a very good exposure using my EF 17-40mm f/4.0 L USM glass. The clouds that afternoon were spectacular to look at.

Dramatic Sky
Copyright © 2008 Jeff Lynch Photography
Shot taken with a Canon Rebel XT , 17-40mm f/4.0 L USM at 22mm, f/6.3, 1/320th sec at ISO 100 on SanDisk digital film. Click on the image above for a larger version.