I put together a Genuine Fractals Review. This is a great tool for increasing the size of a photo without losing many details. I’m sure many of you have tried this with Photoshop and the like, but you probably didn’t know what you’ve been missing. After stretching in Photoshop, you may twist your head a little and say, “Yeah that looks pretty good.” That’s what I did for years! And then I gave this program a whirl and I was really amazed. Below are a few images from the review… but you can see all the goodies inside. Enjoy!

By the way, in case you are curious. The top photo is from Patagonia. The bottom one is some doors here in Austin in downtown… can anyone identify where exactly?

Filed under the categories: Travel

Argentina is gorgeous. Have I said that before? Doesn’t it go without saying by now?

You really get to know a set of mountains when you have to hike around them. Fortunately, in the middle of these death marches, I was able to stop and drink in some of the scenery. It took a lot longer than necessary to get to the destination, but at least I arrived with a camera full of photos.  That beautiful peak in the distance is Fitz Roy.  I was very lucky to see it, because 90% of the time it’s covered with clouds.

So, last night something else lucky happened! Here are the high points:

• I did an interview that aired on NBC at 10 PM here in Austin.  The segment was all about HDR and turned out really well.   Jim Swift interviewed me and he did a great job editing together a nice little story.  You can see the full video by pressing play in the upper left hand area of the TV Station’s KXAN site. There is a second video down on the left with some extra interview stuff…
  • You guys should contact your local NBC affiliates and ask them to get the segment from KXAN – that would be cool!
  • The story also mentioned the HDR Tutorial, which you can get to via that link.
• The news segment mentioned an upcoming PhotoWalk in Austin on August 6 that I am organizing.  You can find out more inside the Facebook Event!

You can click that picture just above to visit the NBC KXAN site to see the whole segment with Jim Swift.

Filed under the categories: Argentina, Nikon D3X, Patagonia, Travel

Vegas is filled with all these cool secret spots. I suppose this one isn’t all that secret, but I had never heard of it! This is the entrance to the Skylofts At MGM Grand Las Vegas. And this is just the elevator bank! I got a nice little private tour of some of the suites and they were quite amazing. I have those pics sitting in waiting, still unpublished. At first, I was thinking these were the kinds of places that were saved for the uber-elite whales of Vegas, but the prices aren’t that different than a nice Four Seasons.

I’ve been working on editing a new video of how I took an HDR photo in Yellowstone. I’ll give a first look to everyone that is on the Newsletter list. We’ll try to get that thing out this weekend or so! Now, I can tell you that as I edit this thing… it’s very shaky! What can I say… I just used one of those little Flip Video jobs. So, obviously, I’m trying to undersell the thing…. but maybe y’all can get some good information about how I took one of the Yellowstone shots.

Filed under the categories: Las Vegas, Nevada, Nikon D3X, Travel

This is the famous Stevie Ray Vaughn statue in Austin. It’s almost as famous as that little statue of mermaid in Copenhagen, Denmark (at least to Texans). It sits on the edge of Lady Bird Lake and I see it almost every day when I go on a run. In fact, I saw it today. We’ve had over a week of 100+ degree days here in Austin, and it’s getting a little old. I’m not the young man I used to be when it comes to this sort of thing.

You can see a few cranes out there over downtown. They are in the middle of building two more high rise condos. I’ve been waiting patiently for them to finish so I can grab a shot of the new Austin skyline of 2010. 2010 – it’s pretty close – can you believe it?

Filed under the categories: Austin, Nikon D3X, Texas, Travel

I recently had some spare time. Well, not really. But I did insert into my schedule something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time – go back and re-examine some of my Chernobyl shots. I wasn’t ever happy with the way this one turned out, so I went back to give it a fresh pass.

I wrote up a long story about my trip to Chernobyl, which you might enjoy. This photo was taken just a uranium rod’s throw from Chernobyl in the little town that all the workers lived in called “Pripyat”. It was abandoned immediately when the meltdown happened. It was a perfect little Soviet master-planned community from the 80′s. During the emergency evacuation, kids left their schoolbooks on desks, families left clothes unpacked, and cafeteria workers left food unfinished. This particular picture was taken by the playground where creepy toys creaked in the wind.

Filed under the categories: Chernobyl, Travel, Ukraine

This is Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi. It’s a wonderful place full of a rich bouquet of textures and light. There isn’t a bad shot of it to be had in this well-preserved Moghul tomb, and these light levels were made for HDR.

I’ve put another image of this tomb in the upcoming book. I talked a little more about the shot and some additional explanation about how it was made. When I go around and give talks, get feedback, and hear all the comments here on the blog, flickr, and facebook, I get a lot of repeat questions. I think the book will be a good chance to get them all in a nice definitive place where almost everything can be addressed. At least, I hope so!

Filed under the categories: Delhi, India, New Delhi, Nikon D2XS, Travel

Outside of the famous Broken Spoke in Austin, Texas, sits this old, dilapidated bus. I don’t know how long this thing has been sitting there, but it looks like quite a while. If it wasn’t for the rust, I guess you can assume its age from the phone number only having 7 digits. Remember that? 7-digit phone numbers now seem so quaint, like browsers without tabs.

I wonder if this bus still works. I know we have a lot of smart Texas readers who can probably tell us the answer to that little piece of trivia! Under the photo of the bus, I put up the older picture of the Broken Spoke dance hall that was taken about 20 minutes later as the sun was finishing it’s daily duties.

Filed under the categories: Austin, Nikon D3X, Texas, Travel

The temples sprawl all around Cambodia. This is quite the holy spot for Buddhists who travel here from locations all around the world. You can tell what sect they are from based on their robes. I was able to sit with one for a few hours and we watched dozens of monks walk by and he could tell me exactly where each one was from based on the slight color variation in their robes and the way it was folded.

Also, if you all want to see some of the behind-the-scenes activity here and see the book-cover selection process for “A World in HDR“, visit the Stuck In Customs Facebook Fan Page, where we have a discussion forum. Once you are in there, just click on “Discussions”, and you can see the four images we were considering for the cover. Feel free to give your opinions in there… I put one of the other favorites here below!  These were all designed by the great Fabian Barral, who I feel very lucky to work with on the book.

That FB Fan Page is also a good place to have “General Discussions”. The only bad thing about the blog is that each discussion is tied to a single post. That’s great, and people always seem to have interesting ideas and experiences to share. But I wanted you to know that you are more than welcome to start up any discussion you wish inside the FB Fan Page Discussions area…

Filed under the categories: Angkor Wat, Cambodia, Siem Reap, Travel

I think this restaurant is amazingly cool. Wood always gives a nice warm feeling to a place, and this place could not have possibly have had more wood inside! I’d love to meet the interior designers of these places… I bet they are real characters. This place is the FiAMMA Trattoria and Bar inside the MGM Grand Hotel in Vegas.

I’ll be back in Vegas in a few weeks and I’m looking forward to it. I’ve got a lot of unpublished photos from there and there are about to be a bunch more! It’s a shooter’s heaven there… and a nice distraction from the gaming tables!

Filed under the categories: Las Vegas, Nevada, Travel

This is the Sacred Heart Church that sits high on a hill in a very artsy area of Paris. Actually, all of Paris seems artsy to me. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be a “full time artist” living in Paris. Wouldn’t that be just about the coolest thing in the world? Or maybe you would become spoiled in just a short while and take it all for granted. It’s very hard to empathize or sympathize with any mystical miserables that might be in that situation.

I usually take these with a single RAW, but I kind of like the motion in these people… on occasion it seems okay to me, like here.

Last, I don’t know how real this report is, but I saw the Nikon D4X (a 30 megapixel monster) was leaked out on Nikon Rumors. I am waiting for Nikon to send me an email and hook me up! It may be the only thing that makes me get rid of the sweet lady D3X!

Filed under the categories: France, Paris, Travel

I am very excited to announce an HDR Book entitled “A World in HDR”!  It’s a 216-page book that should be everything you have been waiting for. The vast majority of the book contains select pieces from the portfolio along with extended descriptions, tips, and more information about how the photo was achieved. The second part of the book contains the HDR Tutorial along with a few bonus steps to help you get extra oomph in your creations!

Pre-Order Now Available

The book is now available for pre-order. It will be out at least a month before Christmas, although the exact street date depends on the publisher, Peachpit / New Riders. We will inform you as the date becomes more solid.

This has been a long process, and we have been looking at four different publishing partners. Peachpit had the strongest offering, and I am excited to work with them. We wanted to bring you the highest quality book by partnering with world-class organizations. These guys are very strong in this space and currently dominate the top 10 books in the booming photography category.

Two Exclusive Options

We are offering two options exclusively here on Stuck In Customs for pre-ordering. The first package is an autographed book. The second premium package includes an autographed book and a signed 9×9 and numbered exclusive print. This print will only be available in the pre-order premium package and then never be available again. We will shut down all online autographed book sales after the book hits the street. So, be sure to grab yours today! My family and I thank you in advance!

Your pre-order options are below. We are not accepting International orders at this time, but perhaps soon!

Premium – Autographed book and signed print $59.99 Value – Autographed Book $49.99

Inside the Book

The rich cover and interiors have been designed by the great French designer Fabien Barral, who also did the graphic design for the website. We have spared no expense in bringing you the highest quality book! More photos of the interior and other tidbits will be revealed in the next few months as we get closer to release.

Besides new and extended descriptions with various tips, the book will also feature several previously unpublished photos.

Because I like to teach by example, the book will feature over 100 photos that I consider to be some excellent examples of “HDR done right”. Whenever possible, I include tips and tricks and discuss the conditions of the shot. Often times, I also talk freely about various subjects that are related and help describe more about the way I think about these things. There are many thoughts and questions around human nature, the arts, science, religion, and more. This style has sprung up from the wonderful congenial and conversational style that has helped make this community so fun and exciting. I thank you all for your involvement, your passion, and your feedback. I appreciate it very much.

The Press Release:

If you’d like to read the full press release, head on over to the aptly named “Press Releases” area!

A selection of Images from the book

Filed under the categories: Travel

The 40km hike in Argentina (which my legs still feel and probably always will), it started out by ascending a small mountain in the Andes. A small mountain in the Andes, by the way, is a mountain of incomprehensible proportions in any other part of the world. After a harrowing trip, I was greeted with this view of the rest of the hike. Luckily, I was tired enough to grant myself an excuse to take off my pack and put together my Inspector Gadget camera setup to grab this shot.

In other news… wait just a few hours… we have a big announcement coming!

Filed under the categories: Argentina, Nikon D3X, Patagonia, Travel