nature

XDrive Photo Lesson – 12 – Shooting in Raw

For this xdrive photo lesson Raj introduces the reader to raw photography as well as explores the advantages and disadvantages of setting the camera to raw.

Some of the disadvantages of using raw are:

  1. size of files and required storage space
  2. requires editing
  3. sluggish burst mode
  4. software required to process files and convert to jpg
  5. sharing images while traveling

On the positive side, raw images allow the photographer to:

  1. recover areas in the image that may be over or under exposed.
  2. easily adjust white balance.
  3. make use of high-end image editing software
  4. ensure that original raw images are not destroyed during the editing process.

Nikon D750   f/7.1   1/400s   35 mm   ISO 400

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sample of raw image

rawadjusweb2a

raw adjusted image

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edited image in Nik’s Color Effects

The second set of images were created using:

Nikon D750   f/6.3   1/6s   40 mm   ISO 400

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sample of raw image

rawadjweb2

raw adjusted image

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3 raw images edited using Nik’s HDR software

seven day photo challenge: day 7

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The rules to the Seven Day Photo Challenge challenge are, “…is one black and white photo from your own life each day for seven days. No people depicted, no words of explanation. Invite one other person to join each day.”

Since I’m uncomfortable with the process of inviting others to join, I will extend the invitation from Emilio to those who let me know they would like to join.

seven day photo challenge: day 2

bnwchallenge2web

The rules to the Seven Day Photo Challenge challenge is:  “…is one black and white photo from your own life each day for seven days. No people depicted, no words of explanation. Invite one other person to join each day.”

Since I’m uncomfortable with the process of inviting others to join, I will extend the invitation from Emilio to those who let me know they would like to join.

seven day photo challenge: day 1

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Standing outside the group of photographers who have joined Judy Dykstra-Brown’s Seven Day Photo Challenge., I humbly asked Emilio, “May I play?”

So with the joy of being welcomed and knowing how I also feel uncomfortable imposing upon others, I will extend the invitation to those who let me know they would like to join.  The rules to this challenge is:  “The challenge is one black and white photo from your own life each day for seven days. No people depicted, no words of explanation. Invite one other person to join each day.”

learn photography – 10 – black & white

I’ve had a bit of a problem with my computer so my submission for Raj’s black & white lesson was on the back burner for the past week.  I decided to challenge myself during this lesson by using a 50 mm lens and manual focus during a rain storm.  The outcome of my exploration with various f-stops was hampered by the – sigh – a very limited experience and trust with manual focus.

Nikon D750  f/5.6  1/30s  50mm  200 ISO  manual focus

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Nikon D750  f/5.6  1/30s  50mm 200 ISO  manual focus

EmptyName-68colorwebEmptyName-40bnwweb

Before the rain, I decided to explore the interactions of the histogram and shutter speed in the Nikon D750 while photographing the arrival of autumn.

f/7.1  1/6s  300mm  ISO 200

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xdrive photo lession – 8 – close up/macros

RAJ’s photo lesson about close ups and macros, encouraged me to create images with my camera set to manual focus, “Remember, only you know the story you are trying to tell, not the camera!”

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Nikon D750  f/6.3 40mm  1/4s  100 ISO

This initial exploration with manual focus brought to mind the summer between the 4th and 5th grade, when I put on my first pair of glasses (Cat Eyes). I can still recall the visual experience of seeing for the first time individualized leaves on trees and multiple shapes and colors of gravel stone…the world, sharpened and focused, was a moment of awe.  Corrective lenses was a means of normalization; yet, there are no words to describe and there are no photographs that can replicate the amazing bokeh of Christmas lights created by astigmatism and myopia.

Nikon D750  f/5  40mm  0.2s  100 ISO

The ease of using auto focus–a reliance upon technology–to create images that satisfy a self-imposed standard has me question if the advancements in genetic, genomic, and reproductive technologies, identified by a UC Berkeley sociologist Troy Duster as a back door to eugenics, to lessen human suffering will also nudge us into a world absent of human uniqueness.