August 2008 Desktop Calendar

Egret - August 2008 Calendar, 1200x768 - Download full size here:
farm3.static.flickr.com/2371/2720929653_a34b6ebe64_o.jpg

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 31, 2008

I shot this photo last September in my back yard, but re-processed it tonight and like it much better. :)

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Photo Assignment: July 30 - Aug 10

Sorry for the lapse there! Crazy busy over here. (I thought this was supposed to be summer?!)

If you're following along our little Flickr group, feel free to add photos to the group pool for this next topic. (If you're not in the group and want to join, let me know what your Flickr username is and I'll send an invite!)

Here's the topic for July 30 to Aug 10:

Insignificant

Definitions of insignificant on the Web:

* not worthy of notice
* signifying nothing; "insignificant sounds"
* of little importance or influence or power; of minor status; "a minor, insignificant bureaucrat"; "peanut politicians"
* devoid of importance, meaning, or force
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Post photos to the group pool on Flickr, and feel free to share comments :)

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Light Painting

Found this video tutorial on Light Painting through the DPS blog. Check it out and if you like it, go vote for it!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Social Photography Link-up

Epic Edits is running a little social media love-in for photographers. Share links to your social media profiles (Flickr, Digg, Twitter, Zooomr, StumbleUpon, Twitter, etc), and Epic Edits will collect them all up and assemble them so that all of us can connect with other photographers.

Cool, eh?

Epic Edits Mini-Project: Social Media Link Up

I've commented with my links (as Shelly).

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 27, 2008

The caption:
"If the Olsen twins ever get locked in a walk-in cooler for two days and are forced to live off their own body fat, they're goners. Penguins? They're good for months. A little extra baggage comes in handy once in a while."

From the book: "Flipping Brilliant: A Penguin's Guide to a Happy Life" by Patrick Regan

Instant Classic!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 265: July 25, 2008

The Boston Red Line (aka the "T") - Charles/MGH stop

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 24, 2008

Salem, MA - Victoria Station, where we had lunch. Good food!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 23, 2008

Fenway Park, Boston - Home of the Red Sox

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 22, 2008

This is Nile, a female humpback whale I saw on the New England Aquarium Whale Watching cruise in Boston. After posting it to Flickr, a group that is building a catalog to identify humpback whales contacted me and asked to include this photo in their catalog. I of course said yes! Whales can be identified by the undersides of their tails, or "flukes." Here's what we know about Nile:

Nile - Female

Born: 1987
Mother: Hwc#0269 Mars (first seen 1979)
Sex: female
Calves:
1998 Amazon (female)
2000 Aswan (male)
2007 ?

Siblings:
1982 #0343 Felis
1984 #0421 Seal
1985 #0474 Excalibur
(1987 #0688 Nile)
1990 calf
1993 #8144
1997 calf
2004 calf

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 21, 2008

As seen on the Duck Tour duck vehicle

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 20, 2008

"Make Way for Ducklings"

Boston Common & Public Garden

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 19, 2008

Day One in Boston: Mom asked the nice officer sir where we might find the City View trolley stop at Boston Garden.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 18, 2008

Family collage - Polaroid emulsion transfers, circa 1976-79

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 17, 2008

1976 Bicentennial Parade, Orland Park, IL

Polaroid emulsion transfer

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 16, 2008

1976 Bicentennial Parade, Orland Park, IL

Polaroid emulsion transfer

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 15, 2008

Cool clouds while driving

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 14, 2008

Stand By Me

Shot at Pilcher Park in Joliet, IL on Tri-X 400 film

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 12, 2008

Lounging Squirrel

It was HOT out today, and this squirrel found it fit to lounge along the metal arm of a patio chair in my mom's back yard... it certainly doesn't look comfortable to me, but who am I to judge?! All I had was my cell phone, and had to shoot this from inside the house - he looked so chill, I didn't want to scare him away!

Today is also the day that my mom official became a Mac user. Go, Mom! :) Another happy convert...

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 11, 2008

Lake Katherine, shot with Ilford SFX 200 infrared film (actually, a red sensitive "special effects" film)

Blogged with the Flock Browser

The Ilford Infrared Shots

Here are a few of the shots from yesterday's trek out to Lake Katherine with the Ilford SFX 200 infrared film. One thing to note is that in the actual prints, the black-to-gray gradient in the sky is MUCH smoother than it appears here, grain-wise. You can hardly see the grain in the actual print - but I've got a very crappy scanner here at home, and I suspect that's the culprit. I'll rescan the actual negatives at school next week to see if they're any more true to the print.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

First attempt at Infrared

I made my first attempt at shooting infrared this week. Well, not true infrared, as Ilford SFX 200 film is a "red sensitive" film and not a true infrared film, but something creatively similar to infrared, anyway.

This film is rated for ISO200 (technically not ISO, as infrared film is somehow measured differently, but close enough for hand grenades...) After some reading online, I decided to shoot it at ISO100 instead, and did like the results. Several people in the experimental darkroom class I'm taking shot at ISO200 and ended up with unusable negatives. Our professor recommended shooting at ISO25. Your mileage may vary!

I also shot on a tripod. I was shooting in bright afternoon sun, but still, shutter speeds got down to 1/30 or so. I was shooting aperture priority mode at f/11 most of the time.

I used a red 25 filter by Tiffen (58mm). I bracketed 1 stop with exposure compensation +1 (thinking I needed to compensate for the filter, which blocks about 1 1/2 stops of light). However, my light meter was able to meter through the filter - so I think maybe I should not have compensated +1? If anybody can explain this, feel free. In retrospect, I'm thinking that if I was unable to meter through the filter, THEN I would use exposure compensation, but since I could meter through the filter, there was no need to compensate. Still, this film is very sensitive to exposure, and I'm thinking maybe bracketing only 1/2 stop would result in a better variety of usable shots.

At any rate, my bracketed shots were taken at 0, +1, and +2 exposure. In most cases, I preferred the +1 shots, and a few I liked at 0. The +2 shots were quite blown out.

I printed a few of the +1 shots as 8x10's. Using a  5 filter on the enlarger, I got a cool looking print with lots of blacks and lots of whites and not much in the way of midtones. Cool creative effect, but not what most people go for. (I liked it, but I'm all kinds of contrasty).

At a #2 filter, the photo was much too gray. #3 was OK, but I finally settled on a #3 1/2 filter for a nice range of blacks and whites without blowing out or dulling the grays.

As for the infrared effect... well, I wouldn't say these shots looked infrared, but they didn't look like standard black and white photos, either. I shot landscapes, and the skies definitely exhibited a black-to-gray gradient. Clouds were pure white, water reflections were dark gray to black, and trees and foliage were rendered lighter. Foliage didn't have the trademark "glow" of infrared, but the overall result was a very pleasing effect. I'd call this film more of a creative effects film than infrared. (It is marketed as a "special effects" film).

I've read that using an R72 filter enhances the infrared effect on this film. I'm thinking of grabbing a Hoya R72 58mm Infrared filter to try it out. This filter is nearly opaque and dings you for 5 stops of light, so exposure compensation is a must. (A tripod is also a must, as the exposures will be long!)

So, while I didn't achieve what I expected in terms of the "infrared" look, I must say that I did like the results of this film. Shooting at ISO100 I think helped and I got a really nice smooth grain in the prints. (It seemed less grainy than the T-Max 400 that I'm used to). I will definitely shoot it again - maybe with a darker filter.

My recipe:
ISO100, bracketed 1 stop, Red 25 filter

Next time I shoot:
ISO100, bracketed 1 stop, Red 72 filter, +5 exposure compensation for filter

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 10, 2008

Shelf cloud approaching, as seen from my bedroom window (facing the back yard).

The accompanying storm missed me, for the most part, but this cloud passing over was phenomenal!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 9, 2008

Shot today at Lake Katherine in Palos using Ilford SFX 200 film - a red sensitive film, though not truly infrared. I used a Red 25 filter and shot at ISO100 with 1 stop of exposure compensation to the +. I also bracketed, but the +1 stop was the shot that worked. This is actually the negative. I haven't printed positives yet, but I'm afraid they won't look nearly as infrared as I had hoped. Since this Ilford film is not truly infrared film, it doesn't have quite the same ethereal glow as infrared - but the negatives sure look cool!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 8, 2008

Flowers, Pin-Holga Style

This is a digital pinhole photo that I took with the pinhole body cap that I made for my Canon Digital Rebel XTi. In post-processing, I applied the Holga simulator action in Photoshop. I may have a chance to buy a Holga camera this week for the low low price of $12. I'll know tomorrow :)

Blogged with the Flock Browser

All Hail Epson!

All I can say is, WOW.

The Epson printer arrived today - earlier than I expected, as the FedEx tracking said it would be here by 7pm.

Setup went without a hitch. (I must admit a moment of fear just before plugging it into the power strip, hoping not to re-live my HP experience. Much to my delight - no problems whatsoever, even running through a power strip).

This printer is much more sturdy than the HP. The doors are solid and not flimsy - they feel like they could take a beating.

I ran my first print through it just now, and, WOW. It's gorgeous. That's all I can say! It's THE most accurate color representation from screen to print that I've ever seen come out of a printer - and that's with a monitor that's only software-calibrated! (I did use Photoshop color management and Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper, as well as PhotoRPM mode in the printer and the appropriate paper/mode ICC profile from Epson). I'm beside myself at how accurately it reproduced this photo. I've got 2 other prints of this photo - one from my Canon and one from a printer at school (an older, less advanced Epson photo printer), and the R1900 wins hands down. They aren't even in the same ballpark, considering the sheen of the gloss or the color reproduction. It's just... Wow.

Label me a happy camper. Good riddance, HP!

I'm now going to try to go out and shoot some film for experimental class. Let's hope it doesn't rain on me.

Pinhole Body Cap

This is my very first shot with my homemade Canon EOS pinhole body cap, on my Digital Rebel. This was taken indoors in my dimly lit office, late at night, 30 second exposure, ISO100 (sitting on my desk). I wasn't sure the cap would work, as it was very crudely constructed (due to my inability to manipulate power tools with any level of skill).

I drilled a hole in one of the generic $1.00 EOS body caps I bought (I got two, just in case) - about a centimeter wide. (Of course, I drilled it off center - go me!) Then, similar to what I did for my modded plastic-cam pinhole, I sanded down a piece cut from a tinfoil container and poked a pinhole in it. I sanded down the pinhole and blew out the dust, then taped the pinhole to the outside of the body cap. (I read somewhere that putting it on the outside instead of the inside gives you just the right amount of distance to make it work like a 50mm normal lens on a camera with a smaller digital sensor, like my Rebel).

I also read somewhere that digital pinhole photography exposes every little bit of dust on your sensor - and holy crap. It makes me wonder how the thing even manages to take pictures! Oy.

I can't wait to try this outside. The soft sort of ethereal look will probably look pretty cool on landscapes or nature shots. A tripod is a must with the long exposures.

I'm hoping the weather stays dry enough tomorrow for me to go out shooting. I've got 4 things on my shooting agenda:

1. Finish up the roll of Tri-X b/w that's currently in my film Rebel.

2. Shoot a roll of color slide film for experimental class.

3. Shoot a roll of Ilford SFX 200 film (pseudo-infrared) for experimental class.

4. Try out the new digital pinhole body cap outside.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 7, 2008

Black and white film negative, scanned and colorized in Photoshop.  

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 6, 2008

Godspeed, Gumpy.   

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 5, 2008

July 5th BBQ at Kevin & Tracy's

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 3, 2008

We had to create a print package as part of our final exam in Digital Darkroom class... so I made Merlin!

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 2, 2008

Droplets

Originally a black and white photo taken at the Tulip Time Festival in Holland, MI 2008. Printed in the darkroom and solarized.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Fireworks!

Happy 4th of July, everybody!

The fireworks were fan-friggin-tastic this year! As usual, we went to the New Lenox, IL display, and they never fail to put on a great show. It was a full half hour long, and not a bit of it was cheapo-filler-crap. I love their show.

I shot on a tripod with a cable release, and used ISO100 and f/11 for the entire show. Most of the time, I used a 2 or 3 second exposure. I made a few shots with a 6 second exposure, when they were firing off multiples in sequence, and those turned out pretty cool too.

Here are a few of my favorite blasts:

Blogged with the Flock Browser

A Letter to HP

I've just dropped the following letter into the outgoing mail (postal mail, that is):

July 3, 2008
Customer Service
Hewlett-Packard Company
3000 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1185

To Whom This May Concern,

I am writing regarding a recent experience I had with your technical support representatives (Ticket #801330xxxx). On June 28, 2008, I purchased the HP Photosmart Pro B8850 printer and several packages of Advanced HP photo paper. I ordered these items online via CircuitCity.com. The items were delivered in June 30, 2008.

I unpacked the printer and began setup. When I plugged the printer into the wall outlet, the printer received no power. After troubleshooting via telephone with one of your support representatives, it was determined that the AC power adapter was likely faulty. Your representative shipped a new AC adapter to me. It arrived on July 2, 2008.

The new AC adapter did not solve the problem. I called technical support again, and after troubleshooting, the representative determined that there was likely a problem with the printer itself. While I was disappointed, I understand that this happens. Hardware fails. It’s the way of the world, when it comes to computers.

What I was most disappointed in, though, was the solution offered by your representative. She offered to replace my brand new printer with a refurbished one. I explained that this printer was brand new out-of-the-box and was dead on arrival. I paid for a new printer. I expect replacement with a new printer. I could understand a refurbished replacement if I’d owned the printer for some time and it needed repair, but this printer was not used. The support representative agreed with me, but that she could not guarantee that the replacement would be new, and that she had no other options to offer me.

I find your policy of replacing brand new, defective items with used, refurbished ones to be completely unfair. I spent $549 on your product in good faith that it would work when I brought it home. When a brand new item is defective, I expect a brand new replacement - not just from HP, but from any company.

I am a photographer and a professor, and despite the advice of many of my colleagues to purchase an Epson (the reigning king in the professional photo printing arena), I decided to give HP a shot. The B8850 might be a fantastic printer. I did not get the opportunity to find out. Based on this experience, HP is not the kind of company I want to do business with.

As a result of my disappointment in your company’s policies, I have returned the HP printer and papers to Circuit City and instead purchased the Epson Stylus R1900 and Epson papers, and will recommend to my colleagues and students that they do the same.

Sincerely,

Shelly Hokanson

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: June 2008

1. The printer that is driving me insane, 2. My Watchdog, 3. Cool clouds, 4. Roadside Breeze, 5. DMB Bridgeview (Chicago) 2008, 6. Driving home from work, 7. Deconstruction, 8. Where'd Kevin Go?, 9. Whiskers & Tails, 10. One of Many, 11. Eye for Love, 12. Fantasy Ride, 13. At the car wash, 14. Swirly Deliciousness, 15. Allegan Lake, 16. Sleepy Mav, 17. Pinhole: Back Yard, 18. Heartbreak, 19. Storm Clouds, 20. Parrot, 21. XRay Vision Dandelion, 22. My Dad, 23. Sketchy

Blogged with the Flock Browser

Project 365: July 1, 2008

Yeah, it's my hand. And my mouse.

Blogged with the Flock Browser