2014

Posted by mkirkd on Fri Jan 31, 2014

Well looks like the last photo quest was a bust. Let’s try this one. Painting with light, a flashlight that is.Here is what you will need:

Camera with a bulb setting
remote shutter release or the ability to set your shutter at 30 seconds or more
Tripod
flashlight

Find a subject that won’t have any lights in the background. In the photo below my neighbor’s porch light was in the background. I took out the porch light in Photoshop.

Set up your camera before it gets dark. Set up the tripod and focus on the subject then put the camera on manual focus. Set camera in bulb or set your shutter speed to be 30 seconds or more. For the images here I kept my shutter open for over 1 minute.

My setting for the camera were B (bulb) f4.5, ISO 200.

When it gets dark engage the remote shutter and leave the shutter open. Take your flashlight and lite up the areas you want on your photo. Move the light across the subject slowly but don’t stop in anyone place long as that area will be too light. If you get between the camera and the subject keep moving so that your ghost won’t show up on the photo. It will take a few tries to get the right camera settings and the right amount of light.

Here are some great directions http://digital-photography-school.com/light-painting-part-one-the-photography. and
http://digital-photography-school.com/light-painting-part-two-photoshop.

The first image is one photo. I processed it in PS using the HDR toning under Image, Adjustments.

Second image is three photos merged into one. I first lit the front then the middle and then the end of the tractor. I processed this image with a bleach bypass filter to wash it out. If you have any questions let me know.

Photo Quest #119 Letters – starts 1/7/14

Posted by mkirkd on Tue Jan 7, 2014

Wow 2014 boy that is something. Time is ticking away at a very fast pace for me…how about you? Do you find that you are running all the time to keep up with the pace of the world? I sure am but I’m getting old and it is harder for me to keep up with all that I commit to and all the new stuff.

Since we are all having issues with time I’m changing the rules and the Photo Quests will just have a start date so you can post anytime you want. Be sure you tag your entry with the number of the photo quest you are entering so everyone will know what you are doing.

Sorry I’m a day late with this one but I think you are going to like it. Here is a cool and fun quest for you that I hope is something new for you and fun. You can use old photos but it would be fun to see you get out and take some new one for this quest.

Take photos that look like letters and spell your first name. You can use your VOX name or your real name. For the example below I went around my yard and took photos that looked like the letters in my name. The M is two horse shoes, the A is the left hand top of a gate to my round pen, the U is from our tractor, the R is a hook from the tractor, the E’s are from a pitch fork, and the n is from the tractor.

Some other letters you can find and photograph could be from pasta, chairs, hinges, door knobs, pots, pans, dishes, candle holders etc. Just go out and take photos with letters in mind and you will start seeing letters that you never saw before. Have fun!

Photo Quest #118 – New Years Resolution – Runs from Dec 29 – Jan 5, 2014

Posted by mkirkd on Sat Dec 28, 2013

Take a photo of one of your new year resolutions. If you don’t make new year resolutions take a photo of something you want to do, purchase or start in 2014.

An example could be to take a photo of a car you are lusting after, or a new camera or lens, or a photo of a room you want to do-over. Be creative and have fun. Post your photos on the quest and print one and put it on your wall as inspiration for 2014!

Photo Quest #117 Just for Fun – 12/16 – 12/22/2013

Posted by mkirkd on Mon Dec 16, 2013

Lets stretch our creative legs and take photos without looking. Be creative and think out of the box, or through the box or on top of the box or from under the box so to speak.

Your photos can be from your DSL, point and shoot or even your cell phone. You may use any phone app or photo editing filters. Have some fun with this one…don’t make it hard. This time of the year can be stressful make this Photo Quest include the quest for fun.

Remember no looking just point and shoot.

Quest 120 – painting with light

Posted by fatcatfromvox on Thu Feb 6, 2014

My apologies for not following the instructions of the quest very closely (or at all – you be the judge!), but I wanted to share this picture as it is indeed painted with light 🙂

We went walking with tripods yesterday evening, and I set up at the bottom of a hill. When a car turned up at the top of the hill I started the exposure – and by sheer luck the car managed to get out of the frame before it shut. On its way it painted the road in light for me – so it is sorta within the quest…? Mea culpa if it isn’t, but this is the closest I’ll get any time soon.

Specs: f/10.0, focal length 14 mm, shutter speed: 30/1 sec, ISO 200

Using a car as a torch!

I’m practising…

Posted by realworld234 on Sun Jan 12, 2014

Meanwhile I purchased a Nikon D7000 body.

Sorry that I’m still not posting for the quests but I promise I’ll start with it soon…
So good that the action is back here *yay*!!!!!

A few months ago when I was at the honeymoon – if you remember, if not, there are some shots on my blog. One of them is a photo I made from the moon using my D 5000, my 70/200 zoom and my2.0 converter from Sigma.

Today I made a shot with the D 7100 and the same lenses. If you like you can compare them. My tip: the bigger you see it on the screen the better you can detect the ‘lil’ differences.

#118

Posted by lizzy on Wed Jan 8, 2014

I can’t believe I didn’t think of this before! I suppose it’s too close to me. My resolution for this year (as it was last year also) is to paint more. And with that resolution I post a pic I took of one that I think is kinda pointing me in the direction I want to take it now.

#Quest #118

Posted by mkirkd on Tue Jan 7, 2014

Since this is the Chinese Year of the Horse, I’m going to concentrate on my horses and all horses this year. My goal is to develop a new style with my horses photography and continue to help promote the Spanish Barb Horses.

This isn’t a new photos but one I took last summer of all three of my horses. They are very precious to me and I haven’t given them the time and energy they deserve in the last several years. I’m going to work on changing that this year.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mkirk/11825715813/

Photo Quest #118 – New Years Resolution

Posted by fatcatfromvox on Sun Jan 5, 2014

I’m late to discover this quest, and was just thinking that I’d skip it, since I don’t really have any New Years resolutions. But then I looked at the lable on my tea bag (from Yogi, they have words of wisdom (or “wisdom”!) on them), and thought “Well, that’s not a bad resolution!”

Photo taken with new point-and-shoot (Canon Ixus 132) and played with in freeware Picasa.