What does HDR do for you?

Price going up soon for the Webinar!

The price jumps up very soon, so be sure to  go here to sign up. It’ll be awesome. Not the price going up part… but the webinar part. You know what I mean.

Shuttle Update

The shuttle launch was scrubbed today… It is postponed three more days. What a bummer! But these things happen… I’ll wait it out.

Daily Photo – Big Ben at Dusk

Halfway through the PhotoWalk in London, we stopped here at Big Ben to get a shot. It’s a little tough for me sometimes to do this while on a PhotoWalk because I can’t fully focus on the photography. I have to talk, explain, converse, answer questions, and the like. Don’t get me wrong… I love all that stuff. But I do find it hard to fully focus on the photography side of the evening!

Filed under the categories: Travel

A Long Day on the Cape

I’ll talk all about my day at NASA in a later post… I’m super-duper tired… but I wanted to share this photo I just took of a massive storm sweeping over the complex on the evening before the launch.

I was supposed to be going over to the actual launch pad as night was falling to get a shot, but this storm started to roll in, upsetting those plans. The big structure you see on the other side of the flag is the Vehicle Assembly Building, and that blue structure you see to the left is the famous countdown-clock you always see in front of the press area before the launch.

Right as I was taking this, an official lady from NASA ran into the field warning me that this was now a “Level 2 lightning alert!” I happen to be standing by another NASA Tweetup invitee, Lavar Burton. He asked, “Is that like a Level 3 diagnostic?” Greatness. He was a really cool guy, btw… I put up a photo of us together over on my Facebook Page.

100 Cameras in 1 – Try it Free

We have a new free version! (iTunes Link) It comes with well over a dozen effects for free. You will have fun using this app and giving it a whirl. There are some options inside the app if you want to unlock more effects too.

Also, you’ll see we added a new camera interface that is very cool… I think you’ll like it. We have an iPad version too, of course. (4.5 stars with over 200 reviews – thanks!)

Filed under the categories: Florida, NASA, Nikon D3X, Travel

The Original Video of 80 Days | 8,000 Photos

As promised, I have posted the new tutorial and “making of” this video today. First, I’ll show the video in case you have not seen it…

The Making Of

And here is the video where I explain how it is done. I hope you give this a try on your next series of photos!

Filed under the categories: Travel

More Burning Man Photos

To see them all, select the Burning Man Photos category here on the site.

Daily Photo – Burning Man Alive

I’ve been releasing these photos in little batches.  I don’t usually add captions to photos, but I have been doing in these cases.  Enjoy!

There is a central area in the middle of the camp where people come to do yoga, get coffee, perform magic, or do other carnie-like activities. Some people just go and watch, like this gal here.

This was my favorite land vehicle. I wanted to ride around in it for a while, but I was too busy following it with my camera.

One of the many wild custom land vehicles heads out to tour the playa as the sun sets. As soon as the sun starts to go down, everything comes alive in a fanciful way.

On the final night of the temple burn, a huge sandstorm blew across the desert, blinding all of us out in a dreamy haze.

Filed under the categories: Burning Man, Nevada, Nikon D3X, Travel

New Tutorial Wednesday!

On Wednesday, I’ll post a new tutorial video I did… I worked on it during the weekend, and I hope it gives you some good ideas to mimic or modify as you see fit!

Don’t forget about the free ebook!

Remember to pop over to Flatbooks.com and fill out that email newsletter thing for a free eBook.  I say this so that you will know later this week when I release a little upgrade to an older eBook.  I’ve been working on this too… it’s pretty cool.

Daily Photo – Ghost from the Dungeon

I was walking along the Thames river in London, following up on a lead that a reader told me about. There was supposed to be some cool hidden underground area that you can access from underneath one of the bridges that crosses the river. I never found it, but I did come across this place. Maybe you have seen it before if you are a local? If so, maybe you shouldn’t ruin it for the other readers… let them uncover it on their own. Also, if you say what it is, it may ruin the nice mystery of it all, yes? Yes I’m sure since we both know what it is…

Filed under the categories: England, London, Travel, UK

Free Photoshop Awarded

When I announced the prizes for the webinar, I also decided to give away an extra copy of Photoshop CS5 I had here at home. We got over 1400 comments, and 100 of them were from Theolonius Gonzo, who wins the most entertaining award (go read his long comments… you can’t miss ‘em!).

The randomly selected winner is Iain, who I hope doesn’t mind if I plug his website at Emptiful, which was embedded in his comment registration. I though this byline was kind of nice – it reads “photoblog of Iain Simmons: amateur husband, amateur photographer…”

Mostly Photo – Going Commando

I recorded this a few weeks ago, but I never posted it… I don’t know why! So, here it is… On this episode, Leo Laporte, Lisa Bettany and I talked about what kind of camera to get for entry-level DSLRs, the advantages/concerns of upgrading, and other general photography talk.

Daily Photo – Sad and Alone at Night

On one of my first evenings in Beijing, I walked around some of the older parts of the city to get a feel for it. Whenever I have extra time in a city, I usually don’t go too hardcore with the photography initially – choosing instead to explore on foot and get a sense of the place. But, you know, I do have my camera with me to get a few things here and there…just can’t help it. Between a few streets, I came across this little guy sitting on the seat of a small motorcycle.

Filed under the categories: Beijing, China, Nikon D3S, Travel

Photoshop Giveaway Tomorrow!

Hilarious responses in the comments for the giveaway celebrating the Webinar announcement! I call your attention to commenta #1185 and #1268, among others.

And no worries, of course… the random giveaway will be fair… hehe.

Daily Photo – The Hallway to the Mona Lisa

The Louvre has one hallway leading to another in an endless and awesome labyrinth of confusion. Maybe the most confusing thing is that there don’t seem to be consistent floors. There you are on floor three, and then you take half a flight down, and its unclear if you are on 2 or 2.5. And then, you see a sign, and it explains in international language that you are indeed on the “yellow” floor, where in the last wing you were clearly not in a color-oriented floor but instead on 1.5.

But, throughout the Louvre are huge signs that say “Mona Lisa” with an arrow pointing in one way or another. I’m sure the guards got SICK of people askin’, “So where’s this moner lisa gal?”

Filed under the categories: France, Paris, Travel

You guys are insane – Thanks!

Wow I didn’t think yesterday’s post about the Photoshop Giveaway to announce the Webinar would generate so much traffic. It shows how many “lurkers” there are on here. You know, guys, you don’t have to wait until I give something away to leave a comment! hehe… no problemo… I already know from the stats that less than 1% ever comment. That’s cool… if you’re quiet, I’ll just assume that everything is a-ok. I’m kind of a quiet person too, really…

A great bootleg video from EG

Daily Photo – The Best Fish Evar

I have a restaurant suggestion!

The best fish I have ever had is in that little viking-house there to the right. You have to duck to get through the door. Once inside, you emerge into a darkened viking-style dining hall (imagine the great hall where Gríma Wormtongue held powah over King Théoden of Rohan).

This spot is pretty well-known restaurant called Tjöruhúsið in the little town of Isafjordur. There is a little window in the back where the fishermen come every morning to deliver the fresh fish in exchange for getting to eat there for free. They bring you the food inside giant iron-clad pans… it was so awesome. I’m going back in a few months and I’m going to gorge myself here with giant dinners before heading out for all-night shooting.

Filed under the categories: Iceland, Isafjordur, Nikon D3X, Travel

Photoshop CS5 Giveaway – Leave Comment to Win

I have an extra copy of CS5 Extended (still wrapped in box) I’m giving away. Who wants it? Just leave a comment to win – I’ll pick a random person in 72 hours! Tell your friends, tweet it out, tell your mates on Facebook… this will be fun!

What’s in the Webinar? And Prizes Announced!

It starts in just a few weeks, so I made this quick video to talk more about it. Visit the Webinar page to get all the details.

Amazing prizes announced

Over the 9 classes, we’ll be giving away thousands of dollars in prizes… this will be great fun too. Here is a selection:

• A Drobo every class!  (that’s a lot of Drobos)
• Multiple Animoto one-year pro accounts
• Multiple copies Nik products and HDR Efex Pro
• Multiple copies of onOne Software
• Multiple copies of Topaz Adjust and the Full Bundle
• and other super-secret surprises… I can’t show all the cards now!

Daily Photo – Spiralstorm

This beautiful staircase was found in a small cloister while I was about to exit St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. I took some extra time while I was over there for the workshop to explore places like this. There were only a few days extra, but I tried to make the most of it.

I got shut down a few times while in the proper part of the cathedral, but I did manage to get a few shots in. As for this area, it was wide open and no one said anything. I always feel more comfy when I am not rushed and have time to set everything up! In this case, I used a 14-24 lens. I get asked a lot if I use filters on my lens — but I do not. I don’t even know if you can get a filter that fits this bulbous wide angle.

Filed under the categories: England, London, Travel, UK

The new tutorial will come…

I promise. It has turned out to be a bit of a beast. The tutorial will feature “The Making Of” 80 Days 8000 Photos. It is a fun process, and maybe you can give it a whirl too.

Daily Photo – Climbing Inside the Dyson Sphere

When you’re inside these megastructures, every room seems like a triumphant masterpiece on its own. I only know a little bit about architecture…just sort of as a general “fan” that can say, “Oh that looks cool,” but I wonder about how many architects work on a structure like this. I’m sure it’s a full team, and I imagine one of the junior guys getting to design this room. Even that would be a dream assignment, I would think!

This towering Escheresque room is inside The Egg, which you can see by looking back at previous photos of Beijing. Or, specifically, here is one photo from inside the egg, and another from the outside.

Filed under the categories: Beijing, China, Travel

New Video – Sharing Online

This was a great episode! We talked about topics like:

• How to share your photos online (I give some philosophical advice in addition to logistical, practical advise)
• Pricing your images and selling prints
• Getting inspiration from other online photographers
• SmugMug and how I use them  (see my full SmugMug Review here)
• Memory cards and horror stories  (I use Hoodman, which Leo thought was funny…hehe – but see my Hoodman Review here)

So, in addition to Lisa Bettany and Leo Laporte, we had on RC Concepcion, which was really cool.  He just finished a book on this very subject, so he was a fount of knowledge.  And if you guys don’t know who RC is, well then this is a great introduction to him!

Shuttle Launch Upcoming on April 29

I hope NASA doesn’t delay this thing again! Re-organizing planes, hotels, and cars is not an easy thing. Luckily, my “inside gal” got me some quick info so I was able to re-book the hotel near Cape Canaveral before it filled up. There’s gonna be a lot of people there… I should be getting in close, about three miles away in the media section. I’m excited about seeing the rocket launch, but I’m also worried about getting an interesting shot. I’ve been thinking about it a lot… I have some ideas but nothing solid yet.

Daily Photo – Coming Home to the Inn After Dinner

This is a nice feeling — this idea of walking to dinner and arriving back at the inn with family and friends just before it gets dark. I don’t know how to explain it, but perhaps you have experienced this too.

This is in the far northern part of the South Island if New Zealand. The town is named Nelson, and I think it is one of the five biggest on that island. But all of New Zealand only has four million people, and the vast majority of those are on the north island. I wonder what has happened to towns like Nelson since the big earthquake in nearby Christchurch. Maybe some of our NZ community readers can fill us in with some on-the-ground info.

Filed under the categories: Nelson, New Zealand, Travel

Join me on TWIT Live Video Today

See me Live today (EDIT: Video Posted on April 20 Blog Post). I’ll be on with Leo Laporte, Lisa Bettany, and my friend and special guest RC Concepcion! We’re going to be talking about “Getting your photos on the web,” so it should be a good discussion. RC just finished a book about this, in fact, so he’ll have all sorts of Golden Nuggets of Truth.

Cult of Mac – comon guys….

Well I hate to do this two days in a row…. but I let this sit out there for a month after sending emails and whatnot… still no response.  And, since this is a New York apple-related post, I thought it a good time to mention it.   They used my photo, uncredited, (original) on a story about a new Apple store in NY.  They are ignoring my emails, so perhaps someone here has a connection over there?

Two weeks ago I DID get an email from Cult of Mac asking for a free code for 100 Cameras in 1 for iPad so they could review it.  But I saw nothing, even though it’s averaging 4.5 stars with 180 reviews!  Anyway, I don’t know what’s goin’ on over there, but I don’t like it… and it kinda sucks because I always liked that site.

Update:  They contacted me, so I am in talks with them

Daily Photo – Apple Store, New York

This store is pretty awesome, isn’t it? I was just showing this photo to the architect Eric Kuhne (who gave an awesome presentation at EG about futuristic city design – will link soon), and we both had the same reaction to this place… smart and awesome.

I always wanted to take a photo from this angle and thought about it ever since the first time I visited. I was happy with the rain, because it made it all feel right. Even better, I was standing under an arch so I was perfectly dry… these kind of shots out in the rain with the 14-24 are tough because of the bulbous lens. It’s not a problem if the rain is straight down, but it never is!

Lisa Bettany has an upcoming PhotoWalk starting from this location, and I am sure she will mention more today on the live show.

Filed under the categories: New York, Nikon D3X, Travel