Spain – Page 6 – Stuck in Customs

Photo Mystery – Ye Olde Blacksmithy

Photography eBooks over at Flatbooks.com

Here’s a list of some of our most interesting and best selling eBooks over at Flatbooks.com!

Daily Photo – Ye Olde Blacksmithy

Okay THIS is a tough one, I hope. Who can figure out where this insane place is located?

I saw it from the street… a lot of glinting metal… and I had a feeling it would be pretty awesome inside… I was right!

Ye Olde Blacksmithy

Photo Information

  • Date Taken2010-09-22 04:39:04
  • CameraNIKON D3X
  • Camera MakeNikon
  • Exposure Time0.7
  • Aperture16
  • ISO250
  • Focal Length14.0 mm
  • FlashNo Flash
  • Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
  • Exposure Bias+1

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The Rocky Spanish Coast

On the Facebook Wall

I was just at Facebook in New York City and I signed the Facebook Wall at Facebook! Can you find my name on there? There’s many other names on there too hidden around… like Madonna and Jimmy Fallon.

Ghosted Waters

I used a program called Photomatix (Photomatix Review) to process this photo. If you’re on a Mac, you can use Aurora HDR Pro – this is the program I worked with Macphun for over a year to build. Oftentimes, when combining multiple photos of waves, the water becomes “ghosted” as it averages out all the waves. I usually don’t really mind that, and I feel it gives the ocean a sense of painterly motion…. what do you think?

Daily Photo – The Rocky Spanish Coast

Here is another part of the beach in Ibiza. I guess I could have been off taking photos of topless Euros, but I found the rocks so much more interesting. This is the problem with photographers… whenever we see someone taking a photo of a girl, we are more likely to look at the camera than the girl! 🙂

The Rocky Spanish Coast

Photo Information

  • Date Taken2010-09-24 17:28:23
  • CameraNIKON D3X
  • Camera MakeNikon
  • Exposure Time1/90
  • Aperture8
  • ISO100
  • Focal Length16.0 mm
  • FlashNo Flash
  • Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
  • Exposure Bias

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The Skeletal Hallway

Live Show Later Today

I’m gearing up for the live show later today! 🙂 It will be a little wild because I JUST moved into the new place here in New Zealand and I don’t even have my computer set up in the right room yet… so… it might be kinda wheels-off for a bit. We’ll see!

Just watch the blog here and the Live Embedded player will appear if you refresh around 7 PM PT.

Daily Photo – The Skeletal Hallway

While walking through one of the amazing Gaudi homes in Barcelona, we came upon this unique hallway. I didn’t have a tripod for my full-on treatment, so I did my best to see what I could get with a single RAW. Frankly, whenever I am forced into this situation, I’m still pretty happy with what comes from that single shot.

There’s a slight chance I’m going back to Barcelona later this year… if so, I’m going to schedule more time with Gaudi! 🙂

The Skeletal Hallway

Photo Information

  • Date Taken2010-09-22 12:54:17
  • CameraNIKON D3X
  • Camera MakeNikon
  • Exposure Time1/250
  • Aperture2.8
  • ISO1000
  • Focal Length14.0 mm
  • FlashNo Flash
  • Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
  • Exposure Bias

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Spanish Streets at Night

A Fun Birthday!

I woke up this morning to find my kids had hung this over the fireplace. 🙂

We’re still renting a place here at the Commonage (best view in Queenstown!) until we move into the final house in a few weeks. Until then, we are making the most out of this fireplace because it is pretty cold in this city now in the middle of winter!

 

Daily Photo – Spanish Streets at Night

The old part of Ibiza is has a medieval layout where the inner city is ringed by a city curtain wall. Once inside, all the streets are narrow and twisty and lined with different kinds of stone. This looks back at the main entrance to the area.

I haven’t spent as much time in some of these ancient old cities as I would like. There is a lot of satisfaction in setting up for shots in these areas. It’s nice to take my time and compose this and that… I find great enjoyment in this!

Spanish Streets at Night

Photo Information

  • Date Taken2010-09-23 17:54:57
  • CameraNIKON D3X
  • Camera MakeNikon
  • Exposure Time1
  • Aperture9.5
  • ISO200
  • Focal Length15.0 mm
  • FlashNo Flash
  • Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
  • Exposure Bias

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Scott Bourne and Other Fallout from DSLR Dying article… & Saving Money

 

Free Workshop at Google Giveaway!

Are you in the LA area and want to join me for a great day at Google for a photography workshop?  I’ll be going through my process inside their secret vaults…  Watch my Google+ Stream today for instructions on how to win the giveaway today.  The workshop will be on Friday in Venice.

Reactions on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter

Thank you for ALL the conversation threads.  I read them all, even though commenting on all of them is almost impossible… so, I have put many amalgamated responses here!

  • Facebook Threads – Many great points and some confusion/angst too that I hope this post helps…
  • Google+ Threads – A similar discussion to Facebook that broke down along other lines
  • Twitter Threads – A lot of quick thoughts and instant reactions, including a mild disagreement with my friend Stu Maschwitz
Original Article was posted here yesterday:  My original article “DSLRs are a dying breed – 3rd Gen Cameras are the Future

Scott Bourne Analyzes the Haters

A reaction (and unexpected Defense!) from Scott Bourne went up quickly on his blog.  I will quote a bit below. What do you think?

Here is a snippet from Scott’s full article:

I read a few of them and then grew tired of some of the negativity. You have your nay sayers attacking Trey’s post. These people (in my opinion) break down into a few different groups
1. Those who just spent a ton of money on DSLRs and feel the need to defend that decision so they are upset at Trey’s predictions
2. Those who think you need a “big” or “pro-looking” camera to get pro results or to get paid – pretty sure their portfolios would speak volumes about that statement
3. Those who would disagree with Trey no matter what position he took because they think it makes them cool to fight with a genuine thought leader in the field
4. Those who didn’t read the article carefully and didn’t notice some of the qualifiers he mentioned like – the five year time frame – or the fact that people who shoot fast action (like sports or wildlife) may still have a need for DSLRs
5. Pedants who want to prove how smart they are by picking at every little thing like whether or not these really are “third generation” cameras to which I respond “who cares?”

HDR Photo

Will I be capturing images like this without a DSLR next year? Probably. If I can, you can too. It's very exciting...

Further Thoughts… (From Trey, me…. this is getting confusing)

So, remember that I say that DSLR Cameras are indeed a “dyning breed” – it does not mean they are dead. If you (gentle reader) agree that you won’t be using a mechanical mirror-flipping device in the future, then we are in agreement. We may disagree on the rate-of-death — but that is all.

In my judgment, I think the extreme pace of technological change makes this rate-of-death faster than people think, especially given the rate that most camera-owners buy new equipment combined with the inevitable vector of Moore’s Law. I feel confident in saying that most photographers simply want to make interesting images faster and easier.

The path to that future is not one of bulky cameras with flipping innards. It is the one that has been hinted at by the full-frame Leica M9 or the amazing Sony NEX series or any other number of examples. Note that I am not paid or sponsored (now or in the past) by Nikon or Sony or Leica or Panasonic or any camera manufacturer. Because of my recent expose on Photography Magazines, most of them hate me — so I am completely independent and I can clearly state the trends I see.

By identifying these trends, perhaps I can help save you money. Don’t let the popular media goad you into having to dump more money into DSLR technology. Since I already have a good set of DSLR equipment that I will use for the next few years, I am personally not going to not spend any more money on bodies or lenses in this line of cameras. Maybe this is your situation too. (Note that if you are just getting started, then maybe this does not apply, since you are entering the world of photography at a point of tremendous technology upheaval.) I’ll be using my DSLR until these 3rd Gen Cameras make a few more iterations, which will happen faster than most people think.

Ensnared in Flame On my first evening in Barcelona, I dumped my bags in the room them went right out to explore.  Unpacking is so boring... let's face it.I started going down side-streets and back alleys to where I heard activity and motion.  I was more or less zig-zagging my way to Las Ramblas, where there's always a lot of activity.  But I didn't want to go right there.  During the weaving, I found this enormous cathedral nestled between a square of classical looking Spanish buildings.  A performer had lit a unique homemade contraption of flames and was whirling it about.  I got back behind her and set up for this shot.- Trey RatcliffClick here to read the rest of this post at the Stuck in Customs blog.

Caption: I took this photo above with a DSLR, but there is nothing about it that I can’t do with some of these emerging 3rd Gen

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Exploring the Church

Another Post-Processing Tutorial Photo

Here is the one of the final photos that I worked on in class for the HDR Video Tutorial. It was a tough one… a lot of issues that needed fixing, but I’m pretty happy with the way it turned out.

I wanted to thank my support team for really working hard to help out all the customers that got this product. Luke does an amazing and very patient job of personally helping each and every question he gets at support (at) stuckincustoms.com. I really appreciate him… glad he is around to keep everything going smoothly. As always, if you have any questions or feedback, let us know! 🙂

Daily Photo – Exploring the Church

I like all the colorful votives. They make everything a bit more festive…. Cathedrals can be sort of melancholy places, so anything to liven things up a bit are a nice change of pace. I’m not saying we should go neon-signs or blinky-text on the church’s website or anything crazy like that…. just a little somethin-somethin to spice things up a bit.

And I do like that hallway quite a lot… it’s got a nice M.C. Escher quality to it.

Exploring the ChurchI like all the colorful votives.  They make everything a bit more festive....  Cathedrals can be sort of melancholy places, so anything to liven things up a bit are a nice change of pace.  I'm not saying we should go neon-signs or blinky-text on the church's website or anything crazy like that.... just a little somethin-somethin to spice things up a bit.And I do like that hallway quite a lot... it's got a nice  M.C.Escher quality to it.- Trey RatcliffRead more here at the Stuck in Customs blog.

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Top 5 Instagram

Top 5 people to follow in Instagram

I’m @TreyRatcliff at Instagram and I’ve been following quite a few people that are really talented… but I need more people to follow! Here is my list of my Top 5. What’s your Instagram name and who are your favorites?

1) @zarias

2) @JoshJohnson

3) @takahiroooo

4) @Aaronburden

5) @sweetness_smile

More from Spain

The Spain Photos Category here is slowly filling up with photos! I know…I know… people want more of that girl in Ibiza… MAYBE those are coming in the future… you never know…

Daily Photo – The Endless Alley

The dirt and grit and color that comes with European alleys make for great subjects for dynamic night photography. Usually I only stay out for about an hour after it gets dark, but it’s hard to stop with this kind of scenery… I mean, you can make a legitimate excuse to stay out all night!

But a lot of people warned me about how dangerous Barcelona can be… I did already meet many people that were robbed blind… I was extra-extra careful… and, in this case, decided to head back to the hotel early. Also, I was feeling pretty under the weather…so yet another excuse.

The Endless AlleyThe dirt and grit and color that comes with European alleys make for great subjects for dynamic night photography.  Usually I only stay out for about an hour after it gets dark, but it's hard to stop with this kind of scenery...  I mean, you can make a legitimate excuse to stay out all night!But a lot of people warned me about how dangerous Barcelona can be...  I did already meet many people that were robbed blind...  I was extra-extra careful... and, in this case, decided to head back to the hotel early.  Also, I was feeling pretty under the weather...so yet another excuse.- Trey RatcliffRead more, including my top-five Instagram list,  here at the Stuck in Customs blog.

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The Gaudi Cheesecake Factory


New Newsletter Soon!

I’m working on a new newsletter that should come out soon… we have a cool new review and other goodies inside. We send out about one every month or so, and we put a ton of pretty photos in there… they are great fun to forward around to your friends and family so they can see what they are missing!

On average, our newsletter have a 125% open rate, which is pretty amazing. I think this is because people get them and forward along to other interested parties. Thanks so much! I never really thought newsletters would be so popular, but I’m glad they are… thx for letting me into your inbox!

Newsletter Sample

Want to see what it looks like? Here is Newsletter #21, one that went out a few months ago… it’s a pretty good example of what you’ll get soon.

Suggestions?

Do you guys have any suggested newsletters that you receive on a regular basis? I figured that the interesting group of people that come here have some various interests that might have cool newsletters attached to them.

Daily Photo – The Gaudi Cheesecake Factory

I was stuck doing handheld shots all over this awesome Gaudi house because the PR staff would not let me use a tripod. They also said I was not allowed to post any photos of the house on my blog. I told them this was absolutely ridiculous and of course I would post photos on the blog. They said it was not ridiculous and I should really listen. I then said, “But everyone else is here taking photos and posting on Facebook and Flickr!, right?” And they said, “Oh, well, they shouldn’t be doing that either.”

Anyway, I just don’t deal well with that kind of insanity… I found this place to be quite beautiful, and I wanted to share it with you anyway. If you want to see it yourself, visit the CASA BATLLÓ in Barcelona. Oh, I know…. PR team at Gaudi… this is so terrible… #1 Travel Blog in the world showing a beautiful photo of your property and encouraging people to go… This really is as horrible as you imagined.

http://stuckincustoms.smugmug.com/Portfolio-The-Best/your-favorites/10668747_AuyBk#1306587446_PsPxCGD-A-LB<

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The Barcelona Airport

Silver Efex 2

I mentioned how I’ve been playing with the new version of Silver Efex lately. I made this photo below the other night during the Webinar. I don’t post a lot of B&W stuff, even though I do make a lot of them. Maybe I should post more?

Daily Photo – The Barcelona Airport II

This is another reason I like to get to airports early. Not only do I hate being rushed, but I like to take time to explore with my camera. Well, I guess that only is in the case where the airport happens to be particularly beautiful, like the one here in Barcelona.

I always start out extremely rushed, because I picture security closing down on me from every angle. So, my first shot is usually rushed and not perfectly centered. Then, if the guards don’t gang-tackle me like I’m streaking at Yankee Stadium, then I keep adjusting my position and the camera until things are more and more aligned and composed to my satisfaction. This one was even a little bit tilted, but I fixed that bit with the crop tool later in Photoshop (as people saw).

The Barcelona Airport II This is another reason I like to get to airports early.  Not only do I hate being rushed, but I like to take time to explore with my camera.  Well, I guess that only is in the case where the airport happens to be particularly beautiful, like the one here in Barcelona.  I always start out extremely rushed, because I picture security closing down on me from every angle.  So, my first shot is usually rushed and not perfectly centered.  Then, if the guards don't gang-tackle me like I'm streaking at Yankee Stadium, then I keep adjusting my position and the camera until things are more and more aligned and composed to my satisfaction.  This one was even a little bit tilted, but I fixed that bit with the crop tool later in Photoshop (as people saw).  - Trey Ratcliff Read more here at the Stuck in Customs blog.

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The Prismatic Cathedral

The EG Program

At the EG Conference, they give everyone a unique program and a set of specialized playing cards, each adorned with customized art. Their team takes all the presenters and portrays them in some kind of a scene. For example, last year they did “movies”, and this year they did “fine art.” Anyway, you can thumb through their program and see if you can find me! (If you are mega bored…)

One other cool thing about the playing cards is that people often get “special” one-time cards in there that are prizes. Most prizes are very unique and are offered by one of the speakers. The one I traded for ended up being a balloon ride with Jonathan Trappe, one of the other speakers there. Know who he is? Ever hear of that guy that started tying balloons to his office chair until it took off? That’s him! I don’t know where we’ll do our balloon ride yet… I’m trying to talk him into Myanmar.

Daily Photo – The Prismatic Cathedral

In the webinar, I gave people a small set of images for homework. This is the second of the two sets (the first I posted yesterday). I didn’t mean for both to be from Spain, but I guess they are! Anyway, I thought it was kind of fun for people all over the world to be processing my images while I am processing them… kind of strange but cool. I will try to post things on a regular basis as we work on them together.

The Prismatic Cathedral In the webinar, I gave people a small set of images for homework.  This is the second of the two sets (the first I posted yesterday).  I didn't mean for both to be from Spain, but I guess they are!  Anyway, I thought it was kind of fun for people all over the world to be processing my images while I am processing them... kind of strange but cool.  I will try to post things on a regular basis as we work on them together. - Trey Ratcliff Read more here at stuckincustoms.com.

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