Facebook Fan Page

We have a nice and active Facebook Fan Page — I invite people to freely share their photos, comments, and the like.  I also occasionally pop in there to answer special questions and give sneak previews on cool things — so be sure to join up!

I added a little widget over there in the right column — you might just see your bright and shiny Facebook-smile appear over there on day! 🙂

Daily Photo – An Icy Cold Evening

I’m always amazed at all the little living things in the most extreme conditions. I’m a big fan of all those science shows that talk about various organisms and extremophiles that barely cling to life in the most bare of circumstances. I was reminded of this while at this icy cold lake in Argentina.

I’m used to moss and lichen and this sort of thing growing in more temperate climates, so I was surprised to see whole rocks covered in it, especially with little icebergs floating nearby. It did give some nice color to an otherwise blue-cold-stark scene.

The only thing more stark than this scene was the cooking waiting for me back at the camp. I don’t mean to say anything bad at all about the two Russian women that were cooking for me — but over a week’s worth of in-the-bush Russian food is enough to harden any soft man. My main mate on the trip was ex-Soviet military, so he was used to these sorts of rations and seemed to enjoy it — or, at least tolerate it with less of a grimace.

The HDR Tutorial, Still Going Strong

I think it’s been over three years since I first posted the HDR Tutorial here on this site!  By the way, if you are new to the site, then what you are mostly seeing here is HDR Photography.

I go in and update the tutorial every three months or so, as I discover new techniques and further refine the process. We have SO many comments on there (especially on page 3 of the tutorial!) — I am not able to answer them all. But I am happy that so many people are learning this fun new sport. As usual, if you have any feedback, please let me know. The reason it is so good now is based on that very feedback, so keep it coming

Daily Photo – The Lonely but Beautiful Path

I have a lot of alone time. When I am out shooting, I am totally in my own world. In fact, I’m even double-in-my-own-world because I have my iPod on and I drift away into pure right-brain mode. It’s quite nice, in a way, because I do achieve a zen-like peace where time does not matter.

I’ve worked with a few photographers that will copy and paste a sky from one photo and put it into another photo. I don’t do that stuff – that is waaaay too much editing for me. All the clouds and colors you see are true and wonderfully there. I even sat with a guy once who would take a perfect moon out of one photo and paste it into another! I simply can’t bring myself to do anything like that… it’s just too over-the-top!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new photo from Florida… I’ve got some more beautiful ones coming up in the next week, so stay tuned!

The Lonely but Beautiful Path

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2020-07-08 18:39:57
• CameraNIKON D2Xs
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time1/25
• Aperture4
• ISO100
• Focal Length10.0 mm
• FlashNo Flash
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+2

New Version of Topaz Adjust out today!

Topaz Adjust 4 is out today on the Topaz Website. You may have already seen my Topaz Adjust Review in the recent past, and you’ll be happy to know the new one is a free upgrade if you have the previous one! I got a sneak peak at the new one, and I posted an image below from the slick new interface. If you haven’t already got it, then I recommend it totally. I use it quite a bit to sharpen things up and give images some pop.

Screenie from the new Topaz Adjust 4 – Nice looking interface, eh?

Daily Photo – The Icy Cave at the Franz Josef Glacier

I’ve had an amazing time so far in New Zealand. I’m here for about a month with my family. On a recent evening, my 8-year-old son and I went on a decent hike to the base of the Franz Josef Glacier on towards the west coast of the southern island. Once we got close to it, we could see the icy blue cave where a glacial-white river emerged. Awesome! My son looked at me and said, “Wow. I feel like we just discovered Atlantis!”

In truth, we stayed way too late. This was a good 1.5 km from the car, and it was pretty dark. By the time we got back, it was totally dark except for the moonlight that helped guide us home. I had a flashlight hanging off my camera “just in case”, but, as case would have it, the flashlight fell off into the glacial river!

How Long Until the Singularity?

About halfway through my HDR talk at Google (Youtube link), I asked this to the crowd there. I figured they would know! I was thinking about all that a bit recently while working on this photo for the day….

Don’t forget to come discover new artists!

We started this Smugmug Portfolio Contest just recently. Be sure to come over and see some of the new entrants… some beautiful work out there!

Daily Photo – The Tunnel to the Singularity

While getting lost on purpose in the streets of Tokyo, I decided to head up into one of the buildings to wander about. It led to one hallway, which led to another, another, and then to this amazing place. I’m not sure I could ever find it again, so I was sure to take way a photo as a keepsake. Sometimes special things like that happen, and I am sure to appreciate it at the time. One part of me thinks, “Oh, no worries, you’ll be back here again some day.” The other half worries, “Okay, maybe not, you better fully appreciate it!” And I did! 🙂

Mega-Photowalk During SXSW? How about March 13

Yes, I am thinking about putting one together based on a series of very enthusiastic requests! I don’t have anything formally planned yet, but some pieces are coming together. I know we have people coming to Austin for SXSW from all over the world. If we hold it, it will be around sunset on Saturday evening, March 13 (it was March 14, but I understand now the Austin Photography Group meets that evening). So… pencil in the 13th !

We might even have a little contest of sorts… see who can get the most interesting Austin evening / SXSW / party / social / or Austin-y shot!

Daily Photo – The Beautiful Airport in Kuala Lumpur

Ahhhh… Asian airports. I really love them. They all remind me, for some reason, of these clean-white scenes from the beginning of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The architecture in these places is inspired and the textures are impeccably chosen. I literally cannot help myself from taking photos. Whenever I walk through them and I compose a scene with my eyes, I am compelled to get out my camera and tripod and shoot away.

And yes — this is a common question I get on Twitter and all over the place. I always carry my tripod on the plane. I’ve never had a problem except for one international flight, when they told me it was a few inches too long. Now, this might have been a fluke because I have a big tripod. I’m just sayin’.

Join the Facebook Fan Club!

We have a nice growing community over there, and I drop in on occasion to put in little bits of news that just can’t wait on the daily blog post. I do want to keep the blog a regular once-a-day event. However, sometimes there are cool things you might want to know over on the Fan Page. I also encourage discussion, finding more friends, and the like there. So, come join and have a good time!

I had a great time in New York!

I just got back from NYC, where I went out to get ready for the book launch party. While there, I shot a secret video with Steve Simon, which may not be secret for long… stay tuned for that.

Also, I went out with Cali Lewis to shoot some HDRs in Times Square! This was a bit of an in-person version of the HDR Tutorial here on the site. Cali is the host of Geekbrief.TV – a show you should watch for sure if you like tech and spunkiness (plus, you can see she uses my photos on her backgrounds!). Anyway, after shooting some HDRs, we went and had Italian food with Cali, Neil (her hubby), and my friend June Arunga. I handed Neil my camera and he shot this pic of us together…

It’s been a few years since I have been to New York, and Times Square is better than before! I was actually in New York on 9/11, so it’s always good to go back to the city and see everything is still awesome. Maybe next time I come, we can all do a flash mob and hit B&H Photo for a while – that would be fun!

New York is Alive and Well

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2020-07-10 03:22:05
• CameraNIKON D3X
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time1/60
• Aperture11
• ISO100
• Focal Length15.0 mm
• FlashNo Flash
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias-2