That's the title of this month's image - 'Inspiration'.
It's one where i did a darkroom print, and then did some digital embellishment, even took a stab at coloring the thing. I've been calling these 'hybrids', darkroom followed by digital. The levels adjustments are the kind of thing i could easily do if i shot a 4x5 copy neg, and did some burning/dodging/contrast adjustments in the reprint. Which is something I did plenty of back in the days before digital.
From bottom to top: there's a hand holding a candle in darkness; an abstract thing, a shot of light coming thru the bottom of a textured bottle, or maybe it was a stack of filters held against the lense, i can't remember at this point...
7/17 - A big P.S. and a bit of a rant! I was reviewing this post while drafting the next one, and realized that the tweaks I had done in the full res file (3600 pxls tall) barely showed up in the 700 pxl tall image you can see at the link to my page below.
They sure don't show in the thumbnails above.
All this leads me to comment on what digital has done to image quality - it's taken a BIG nosedive. So much for 'web quality images/discussions on this blog about subtlety'.
It's a waste of time. iPhones and all these other devices have lenses that are made of plastic, no larger than your fingernail. They are crap. People seem thrilled that they can 'share' (which is a euphemism for 'bother you with') whatever they want to.
REAL camera lenses are mad of glass - by Leica, Nikon, Schneider, Fujinon, Pentax.
I shot architecture for 10 years w/ superb Schneider lenses w/ a 4x5 view camera, i still have a pentax 6x7 w/ a 55mm lense so sharp you could slice salami with it.
Now THAT'S image quality!
One last thing? - how many people reading this have seen an Ansel Adams print?
I'll bet the answer is a resounding.......(almost) none.
Your loss. I suggest you correct this oversight whenever possible.
or buy a book, a real book, of the work of the masters of the past.
[[OK, end of rant, return to blog]]
Now here's some digital coloring. It's always interesting to try, but i can do soooo much more by hand, with much more subtlety, in less time.
Oh, yeah, almost forgot - i sandwiched the hand w/ a very thin neg of wispy clouds, wanted to add a bit of mysterious texture to the darkness.
I guess this is my version of 'the light bulb going on' that is so often used to express this.
For larger images, go here:
http://www.bobbennettphoto.net/BeachBlog_2015/Inspiration/index.html
--------------------------------
The world has gone wacko IMHO, but the news this week had some bright spots. The Supreme court decided that gay marriage was OK, and the ACA was constitutional too.
I'm not gay, couldn't care less who sleeps with, or marries, who ...as long as it's consensual. And the ACA has been good for me! - a subsidy that reduces my insurance from 700-something to 77/mo. is very niiiice! And I'm don't feel guilty about it - in a few years i hit Medicare, and the feds pick up the whole tab!
In the 'whatever catches my eye' file this month:
RE: the ocean and the beach:
Very good books, and reviews of them, as always the NYT does it right!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/science/review-the-last-beach-the-narrow-edge.html
http://www.grindtv.com/wildlife/new-species-of-yeti-crab-has-odd-living-arrangements/#lFHBtub3pIRHmyIk.97
Photography:
http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/15/burk-uzzles-american-puzzle/?_r=0
http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/25/kenji-kawano-40-years-with-the-navajo/
If you agree the world is a bit crazy?... read this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/opinion/david-brooks-the-small-happy-life.html
It's one where i did a darkroom print, and then did some digital embellishment, even took a stab at coloring the thing. I've been calling these 'hybrids', darkroom followed by digital. The levels adjustments are the kind of thing i could easily do if i shot a 4x5 copy neg, and did some burning/dodging/contrast adjustments in the reprint. Which is something I did plenty of back in the days before digital.
From bottom to top: there's a hand holding a candle in darkness; an abstract thing, a shot of light coming thru the bottom of a textured bottle, or maybe it was a stack of filters held against the lense, i can't remember at this point...
.....and some campfire flames I have used in a number of contexts.
Here's the basic scan of 'Inspiration':
Here's the hybrid, w/some levels adjustments, the burning in of some edges -
pretty simple stuff.
7/17 - A big P.S. and a bit of a rant! I was reviewing this post while drafting the next one, and realized that the tweaks I had done in the full res file (3600 pxls tall) barely showed up in the 700 pxl tall image you can see at the link to my page below.
They sure don't show in the thumbnails above.
All this leads me to comment on what digital has done to image quality - it's taken a BIG nosedive. So much for 'web quality images/discussions on this blog about subtlety'.
It's a waste of time. iPhones and all these other devices have lenses that are made of plastic, no larger than your fingernail. They are crap. People seem thrilled that they can 'share' (which is a euphemism for 'bother you with') whatever they want to.
REAL camera lenses are mad of glass - by Leica, Nikon, Schneider, Fujinon, Pentax.
I shot architecture for 10 years w/ superb Schneider lenses w/ a 4x5 view camera, i still have a pentax 6x7 w/ a 55mm lense so sharp you could slice salami with it.
Now THAT'S image quality!
One last thing? - how many people reading this have seen an Ansel Adams print?
I'll bet the answer is a resounding.......(almost) none.
Your loss. I suggest you correct this oversight whenever possible.
or buy a book, a real book, of the work of the masters of the past.
[[OK, end of rant, return to blog]]
Now here's some digital coloring. It's always interesting to try, but i can do soooo much more by hand, with much more subtlety, in less time.
Oh, yeah, almost forgot - i sandwiched the hand w/ a very thin neg of wispy clouds, wanted to add a bit of mysterious texture to the darkness.
I guess this is my version of 'the light bulb going on' that is so often used to express this.
For larger images, go here:
http://www.bobbennettphoto.net/BeachBlog_2015/Inspiration/index.html
--------------------------------
The world has gone wacko IMHO, but the news this week had some bright spots. The Supreme court decided that gay marriage was OK, and the ACA was constitutional too.
I'm not gay, couldn't care less who sleeps with, or marries, who ...as long as it's consensual. And the ACA has been good for me! - a subsidy that reduces my insurance from 700-something to 77/mo. is very niiiice! And I'm don't feel guilty about it - in a few years i hit Medicare, and the feds pick up the whole tab!
In the 'whatever catches my eye' file this month:
RE: the ocean and the beach:
Very good books, and reviews of them, as always the NYT does it right!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/science/review-the-last-beach-the-narrow-edge.html
http://www.grindtv.com/wildlife/new-species-of-yeti-crab-has-odd-living-arrangements/#lFHBtub3pIRHmyIk.97
Photography:
http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/15/burk-uzzles-american-puzzle/?_r=0
http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/25/kenji-kawano-40-years-with-the-navajo/
If you agree the world is a bit crazy?... read this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/29/opinion/david-brooks-the-small-happy-life.html
I'll be trying to continue to live the small happy life (I've been doing it for a while anyway) for another month.
As the terminator said so eloquently:
"Ah'll be back"
Probably more 'beach' - definitely more darkroom.
