The Rebekka Project

You all remember Rebekka Guðleifsdóttir? How could you forget a last name like that? Over 3 years ago, I met her in Iceland and did a post called “Rebekka in Action“, in case you have not heard of her…

Anyway, Rebekka has a new photography project, and she’s accepting donations for people that want to be part of it.

Daily Photo – Trains Across Europe

The Europeans are so lucky to have a semi-functional train system. I’m sure many of them find reasons to complain, but to me, it’s all pretty awesome. The idea of a working train system is pretty foreign to Americans.

This notion that you can get on a train in one city and then hop-skip your way to another city is kind of a novel idea to us! If you’re in Houston, for example, and you decide to go to Dallas, then “getting on the train” isn’t even one of the things that crosses your mind. I don’t know that much about the passenger rail system in the US, and I guess that means its in pretty dire shape. Without even asking, I can almost guarantee our biggest passenger rail service is subsidized by the government. And that, of course, means that I am personally paying for something that I know nothing about.

I’m reminded of this when I go to Europe and can get on a train in Montpellier and end up here, in Barcelona. And not only that, but the train stations are all pretty interesting to explore.

Filed under the categories: Barcelona, Spain, Travel

HDR Tutorial in 6 Languages

And growing… find your language below and enjoy!

Welcome to the International HDR Tutorial!

• Speak English? Howdy! Head on over to the HDR Tutorial
• Vous parlez français? Bienvenue sur le Tutoriel HDR en français.
• Parli italiano? Leggi il tutorial HDR in italiano!
• Fala Português? Confira o Tutorial HDR em Português.
• Hablas Español? Clic Tutorial HDR en Español.
• Mluvíte česky? Pokračujte zde!  HDR Tutoriál v českém jazyce.

New Interview with Nikon

Nikon has an official podcast where they talk all about Nikon stuff and stuff stuff like that. I didn’t know what it was going to be like before I was on, and I envisioned it would go like this:

[begin Stock Music Intro reminiscent of background music in porn movies]
Host: “So do you like stuff?”
Trey: “What, like Nikon stuff?”
Host: “Oh yeah, totally.”
Trey: “Well, yes, I do like Nikon stuff.”
Host: “Like all the Nikon stuff?”
Trey: “Well not all the Nikon stuff, but you know, some of the stuff.”
Host “Yeah totally.”
[fade out with same silly music]

But it turned out not to be quite like that…well, except for the music which I was spot on about… BTW, Nikon doesn’t pay me or give me free stuff stuff or any of that stuff.

Just click that lonely looking play button below:
[display_podcast]

If you want to see all my camera and lens suggestions (yes there is even a Canon in there, ahem!), see my HDR Camera recommendations page.

Daily Photo – Church in the Fog

I was driving along the southern coast of Iceland on the way to Vik, and I started going throw an area of lowlands. Around midnight or so, the sun was getting pretty low in the west, and it gave the sky a slight pink glow in almost every direction.

I shot this one at a 200mm at F/6.7. I don’t often take out my zooms for landscapes, but it does provide a nice compression that gives an unexpected feel to the final photo. It’s really hard to explain in words, but maybe you can sense of this framing in the final result. It just can’t be done with a wide-angle lens, even if I was a lot closer.

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

Webinar Update [Batch 1 of spots Sold Out]

Update: Normal prices are now effective for Batch 2 of spots for the Photography Webinar! Don’t miss out! I hope to see you there!

Andrea will email everyone today (some may have already received) with details on the specifics of the Webinar location with a special link for you. I’ve spent the last few weeks figuring out how to jam a ton of practical tips into this 9-day 9-hour course. Also, and it should go without saying, but of course there is a money-back guarantee. If you don’t feel like you learned a ton and are inspired to do great, creative work, then you are more than free to take me up on that!

Daily Photo – Cracking The Egg

Ahhh…the wonderful things that man can create!

I was just coming off the end of a sickness from some bizarre viral strain I picked up in another part of China. And I was extra-tired because I over-worked myself and gave a long speech / demo at Google in Beijing. And then I over-over-worked myself because I had an amazing invitation to visit The Egg here, but I had to go, you know? You gotta go… I couldn’t say no to these amazing opportunities. …and I wasn’t collapsing with fatigue and sickness… I could still move around a bit, even though I was not in top form. But I’m glad I went.

Filed under the categories: Beijing, China, Nikon D3X, Travel

Video Help in Austin

I need your help! We have a cool kinda-secret project going on here in Austin. I want someone local that can come get some of our meetings on video. If you have skills and experience with 1) recording high-quality video 2) editing 3) story-telling with video, then contact jack@jackhollingsworth.com with your info. Thanks!

Daily Photo – Chinese Pirates

One evening, my boat driver was speeding down the Li River as dusk was approaching. Every bend held new secrets as we wound our way further from civilization. I had a bag full of snacks to my left side and my DSLR to my right. Sitting out on the front of the boat, I had a full view of everything that was coming at me, so it was pretty amazing.

Just before we got to the turn-around spot, we came across this old ship. Part of me wanted to go inside to explore a little bit… the other part of me was a bit freaked out. Since I was new to this part of the ‘verse, I thought there could be Reavers inside.

Filed under the categories: China, Li River, Nikon D3X, Travel

48 Hours Left At Early Bird Pricing

The cleverly named Trey Ratcliff’s Photography Webinar will increase in price on Thursday to $247 for the 9-day course. Even though it is live, you can still download the sessions later if you miss it.  Sorry the early pricing is ending so soon, but the big event itself starts on Sunday.  It’s gonna be a blast, and you’ll learn some great skills.

Join me today Live

I’ll be on Live today at with Dane Sanders. Check the website for the countdown!

Daily Photo – Exploring the Peninsula at Sunrise

I weaved in and out of these little roads as the sun was coming up in Iceland. I was trying to find a certain rock formation off in the ocean, which I never found. But that’s okay. These roads are very windy, and that makes setting up for a shot very difficult. Every curve of the road is a new geometry, and this causes endless possibilities and problems! When you come across a nice old farmhouse like this, you hope the road is curving the right way so that you get a nice setup with the composition.

Filed under the categories: Iceland, Travel

Another Jetsetter Win

This (the photo below) is the third Jetsetter place I have stayed, and they’ve all been winners so far. It’s a little weird, because Jetsetter isn’t really conducive to my style of travel because I often plan ahead. But, if I happen to be going somewhere, I will check to see if they have a special in that location. Anyway, I’ve never had a problem… and the hotels have always been pretty awesome and unique.

Daily Photo – Night View from Balcony in Ibiza

Ibiza is a really strange place. This hotel (Ibiza Gran) seemed to be typical of hotels in Ibiza when it came to the clientele. Here’s the deal… if you have never heard this, you’ll think it sounds pretty strange — and it is.

So a lot of people in Ibiza dress in all white. White pants, white shirt, free-flowing fabrics, and cavalier attitudes flow in and out of the hotel lobby, bar, poolside restaurant, and the spa. It’s all very strange. It’s sort of a combination of a Clockwork Orange and a Euro Sci-Fi Orgy. I can’t quite explain it… I’m not sure I understand it, and I didn’t succumb, even though everyone did seem very comfy.

After a long day of exploring and shooting, I went out on the balcony to get a shot of the pool and the moon behind the clouds.

Filed under the categories: Ibiza, Nikon D3X, Spain, Travel

New Website for iPhone App

David Pogue from the NY Times (who I just met at NASA, btw) wrote an article about iPhone camera apps. He gave ours a great review, and that is very cool. Thanks David!

BTW, I met him in person AFTER he wrote the review. I was in the press area getting interviewed on NASA TV, after we had just found out the shuttle launch had been scrubbed. Right when I finished, Pogue came running up the stairs to the press area, and we said hello and had a short conversation.

Besides that, we also created 100Camerasin1.com that will contain all the latest info for the apps. And yes, as you can see, Android version is in the works…

Daily Photo – My Next Trip to the Louvre

You know how sometimes you go some place awesome and you think, “This is really cool, I think I’ll probably come back some day.” But then, sometimes, after the event, you start thinking that maybe you may not be able to make it back. You never really know I guess.

Anyway, when I do go back to the Louvre in July, I’m going to spend a day inside sketching. I do like to sketch (I have a few on the About Me page), and this seems like a great place to do it. I wish I had a whole month in Paris… I’d try to go here once a week for a day of sketching. Maybe I should put this on my to do list… why not?

Filed under the categories: France, Paris, Travel