Thanks to All Tonight!

Thanks again to everyone for your patience and assistance in setting up our first ever Web Seminar. The learning curve for us was huge!

Thanks again and have a great night.

Hal

Sunrise Pano

Sunrise over Kachemak Bay a few days ago.

4 shots Canon 50D, Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L

Inbound flight diverted so we'll see if there is any chance of getting out.

Stuck in Anchorage

Stuck in the Anchorage area for another day. We're sitting in the airport again tonight waiting to see if we can fly out. Mt. Redoubt erupted again this evening at around 8 PM. Most of the airlines have cancelled but trust US Airways is going to try, at least as of now.

Going to stitch a few panos together. If I can finish them before we board I'll post them here.

Drop Shadow Technique

A few people have written asking about the drop shadow technique George used on some of his prints. I will publish the full details on how to do this as soon as I can get back to the lab. I'm currently stuck in Anchorage, AK because of a volcanic eruption.

Hal

Final Day in Homer

We finished up the tour yesterday with an epic boat trip across Kachemak Bay. The week saw some great shooting with hundreds of eagles, varied weather, landscapes, volcanoes, small earthquakes, LR and PS training, and even a mead tasting.

Victoria and I are spending the next two days shooting around here before heading back to the school. Good stuff coming up includes Lightroom, flowers, Ben Willmore, Advanced Studio and more.

Cheers!

Hal

Sunday AK

Nice grab! Focus problems, what focus problems

Canon 1D Mk III, EF 70-200 f/4L

"Oh $@#!"

Thought I'd put up a few quick ones before bed. GREAT shooting up here. Shot from the beach this morning and out on the boat this afternoon.

Redoubt volcano had a great little steam and ash episode this afternoon, very cool!



Cheers!

Hal

Helene Glassman has been here this weekend and we are having a ball! While Hal is hanging out in the cold with Eagles we are in the studio and digital lab making some wonderful images and ultimately some beautiful cards that we will print today.

On Saturday, Helene brought in several vases full of beautiful tulips, sunflowers, Lily's and I brought in some birds of paradise and camellia’s from my garden. We set up several areas where the students could play and create with the flowers, some different colored fabrics as well as some beautiful Christian Louboutin shoes and an old wooden chair that Helene found out back!

Window lighting was all we needed. Our studio has large west facing windows with a sheer curtain we used to diffuse the afternoon light.

I whipped out our collection of Canon Macro lenses, thank you Canon, and got some beautiful shots! With a little post processing in Adobe Lightroom I got a few great images ready for cards...and perhaps canvas later.

Below are a few images I took while the students were taking a break. All window lighting with a simple piece of black fabric hung behind. The 65mm 1-5x lens on a 1D Mark III on an Induro tripod. The 65mm can be a challenge to use to those just starting with it. Very small changes in rotation and position of the subject make very different images. I had the tulip on black tulle and I would just push the fabric a little when I wanted the focal point changed. It is like breathing with your camera was the best way to focus and create the different images.

This image to the left was also with the 65mm. Once I found a good focus point, I took our little fluorescent flashlights that Canon hands out as little perks, and just highlighted the inside base of the tulip. I liked the "cool" color of the fluorescent light against the pink and white of the flower.

Below was shot with the 100mm Macro

I think I'll dedicate this image above to Hal.

Back in AK

Mt. Redoubt from a quick pano.

Flew up to Anchorage yesterday and spent most of today driving south to Homer. Started off a bit cold and snowy but by the time I reached Homer the sun was out (still a bit chilly though.)



Tonight's Sunset in old school HDR

The drive down is beautiful for both the landscape and the wildlife. I had to fight the urge to pull over every couple of miles to shoot. I did stop a couple of times though, for volcanoes and a moose.

Moose in faux/pseudo HDR

Forecast for tomorrow's shooting is wind. Unfortunately, a NW wind makes it challenging to capture the right angle since the eagles land into the wind and there aren't many good spots to shoot from the NW. We'll see how it goes.

The remainder of our group arrives tomorrow and the main shooting starts Monday morning. Should be a great week.

Cheers!

Hal

Shooting with Jack

Cayucos Pier 20 minutes after sunset (10" f/16 ISO 100)

Out shooting with Jack Davis and the class yesterday evening in Cayucos (a small town just north of the Institute.)

Jack's weekend workshop is about permission. Give yourself permission to experiment and tap into your creativity. For me, it was about leaving the tripod in the car. I started there and worked my way up to moving the camera in small circles during a 10" exposure.

Today we shot primarily infrared. I'll put up a few of those either tonight or tomorrow.

Out Shooting with Jack Davis

15mm Fish Eye with a rotation

Jack Davis is here for the next seven days teaching photography and Photoshop. We just returned from our first shoot of the week. Most of the class shot with our Infrared cameras and captured some pretty cool images.

We're taking a quick lunch break and then we will shoot models this afternoon followed by a sunset shoot out in Cayucos.

Jack is an inspiring instructor and we look forward the week's creativity and some great shooting.

Back from Vegas

Stellar's Sea Eagle over Lake Fuhren, Japan

It has been a whirlwind few weeks as I finally returned from Japan just in time to teach a weekend canvas workshop. The following day we left for the PMA convention in Vegas and finally returned to Los Osos to prepare for Jack Davis this weekend.

Not sure how many eagles are in this frame.

The Japan trip was incredible. Internet acccess was limited as we travelled further north and east on Hokkaido. Fortunately, as the internet decreased the eagle density skyrocketed. There were Stellar's Sea Eagles and White Tailed Sea Eagles everywhere. We spent time at Lake Fuhren as well as in a small town called Rausu. Good stuff. I cannot wait to get back there next February. If you have any interest in joining us give me a call or email.

Stellar's Sea Eagle Again

After returning to the Institute, we ran a very successful Canvas Printing and Finishing course over the weekend. The two day canvas intensive is the best way to learn how to create a professional, archival gallery wrap. Course participants left with a 16 x 24 image of their own wrapped and ready to hang.

Vegas from the 49th floor of the Palazzo

Most recently, we attended the PMA conference in Las Vegas to catch up with a few of our sponsors and instructors. It was a quick trip but good to see everyone and discover any new gear or software. Spent a little time with the new Canon 17mm tilt shift lens. I think I need one.

A motley crue of photographers!

Jack Davis is here starting tomorrow and is giving a full week of his impressive knowledge, tips, and tricks. Should be some outstanding shooting and digital darkroom work.

Cheers!

Hal