The World As Photography Sees It

In the back garden

2012-02-10T09:00:00.000-08:00

Messing about with focus and out of focus.
I used the 50mm F1.7 MF lens and extension tubes.

With everyday objects, specially where contrasting colours or lines are present, very beautiful frames can be created. For this type of photography, you throw away the rule book, and just play about until something appealing pops up on the viewfinder.

Playing around with viewing angles and depth of field you explore the same subject but get very different results.

Out and about # 8 - Back to Serra D'Arga

2012-01-28T10:30:00.000-08:00

I went back to Serra D'Arga, this time a longer route, but overlapping #7 for a great part.

View Serra D'Arga 15-01-2012 in a larger map

I recommend checking my previous visit for some more information on the place.
Last time I took the more direct route from Cerquido to the peak (Alto do Espinheiro) an came down the other way. This time I did the opposite.
The forecast was for rain, and while this did not materialize at home, as I drove north, and particularly near Viana do Castelo, it was obvious the cloud would be with me soon.
As I reached Cerquido, it was raining properly... I stopped for a couple of minutes in the car considering i I should go or just turn back. The rain became a bit less strong, which was the push I needed. I geared up and head-off.

A nice old man gave me directions on the path perplexed by my willingness to walk uphill in the rain.
After the first 50m of ascent the rain was gone, and did not come back.

Its a better scenery without clouds.

This side is a bit steeper than the north path, but it was fairly good going, at least it as better than I expected
It was very wet underfoot, but with such a rocky ground, it was rarely boggy.
My knees started to feel a hurt a little, I really have to lose weight and get walking poles.

After a breather and water at the top I continued past the free roaming horses in the plateau and on to a small top (806m).

A look back.

There's another tower to the left of this one, probably its replacement, both are out of commission and rusting away.
After this I decided to go of the trail and cross to the start of one of the tracks for the string of wind power generators.

I crossed two streams and some boggy terrain which together with the stumps of the burnt bushes was a testing ground for my new Karrimor KSB Munro boots.

As I neared the start of the track, this huge cloud was moving over the mountain, which together with the dimming light gave an extra spring to my step.

Made my way down, with proper darkness for half the way. I must say I was well pleased by the boots, comfy and dry and good grip.

Check these extra photos from this walk here. The best I could do with the thecnical problems I had with the camera.

Tech Problems

2012-01-16T14:09:00.000-08:00

My K10D has been having issues with focusing.

Although the there has always the odd of-focus shot, it has generally behaved very well.
Lately, however, the exception has been for shots to come out focused. The weird thing is that it seems like a more and more common problem.
I had changed the settings in debug mode for the auto focus, when I was doing some macro work with a 50mm lens. However I didn't notice any relevant change in the AF of my kit lens.

These problems and other circumstances have put me off shooing for a while.
Last Sunday, to refresh mind and body I went for a walk to Serra D'Arga again. Took the camera but got dismal results. I'll do a post on that soon.

Definitely annoyed with that since by now I've ruled out issues with shutter speed and shaking or focus error.

I thought it might be a dislodged focus screen, even though I'm not certain it actually plays a role in AF. Took it off and mounted back again. No change.

This is the techie bit and more of interest to geeky Pentax users. Long story short, I fiddled around with hacked software on the camera and got it working. For now at last, will confirm this as more frames are shot.

I had already reset the camera settings, but went into debug mode again and tried to play with AF settings.
For some reason it was set to -20um which is odd. I played around with the focus areas (0,1,2,3) and realized that the settings on 1 change the settings on others, rather odd...
What as different is that I set area 1 to a -250um compensation to get great results at 55mm on the kit lens, but then at 18mm it was way off.
I then set area 0 to the same and kept compensating until -450um to get great results at 55mm which also worked at 18mm.

Used a different lens, and still good.

Whether it is fixed or not, I'm not sure, but I'll go for some shots in different conditions and see if the accuracy holds up.

Missing it...

2011-08-23T13:19:00.000-07:00

I've been away from Portugal now since my PhD viva in May.
My plans were not well defined and since a quick return was likely, I decided to travel light which meant not bringing my camera with me.

Well its hard... I miss taking photographs, framing the world and pressing the shutter.

Its especially hard because I've had the opportunity to do some walking and travelling around the south of Wales. There are plenty of beautiful sights to be seen.

On a recent walk near Pontypool, I took the path along part of the The Monmouth & Brecon Canal and up a hill to a small folly tower which serves as a war memorial.
The sky was clear and there was great visibility. As I adore landscapes, I was really missing the K10D then.
I realised then that since I can't take photograph I should do what we so often forget to do and really take the landscape and all its details. When I say we, I don't mean photographers, I mean poor amateurs like me.
Coming down I looked back at the tower and was struck by the beautifully picturesque image made by the hill line, tower and threes along the path.
I stopped and tried some frames with my fingers. I don't know if its because I really liked the "picture" or because I took the time to frame it and make a mental not, but the image really stuck from that outing.

I have to remember to do this more often, and definately take more time to appreciate the scenery.

Out and about #7 - Alto do Espinheiro

2011-04-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

View Cerquido - Alto do Espinheiroin a larger map

A quick a close to home walk.

Alto do Espinheiro is the peak (823m) of the Arga mountain in the most northwestern region in Portugal.

The mountain is immersed in mistic and religious lore. There are several chapels dedicate to different saints and
The mountain features the Our Lady of Minho Chapel (Minho is the name of the region/province)
Like most mountains in northern Portugal, granite boulders characterize the landscape.

The track starts at the northern edge of Cerquido, a small place with a handfull of houses.

The trail starts with a gravel track which soon turns into an obviously laid path of granite boulders and slabs.

This clearly old track denotes the ancient relationship of the locals with the mountain. During this first part of the walk, the soundtrack were cow bells, cow or goats are the typical animal farming in this area.

The tracks winds it way up, at some points it even has side guards.

The watch tower marks the last point of the trail before descent starts.

The weather was very good, sufficiently windy not to feel the heat too much.

The visibility was very good, you could see a vast, densely populate area, very typical of this region of Portugal.

After a certain hight you can discern the wind mill blades. You really don't mind them here, the area is heavily populated, and there are clear signs of man anyway. For some though, these are definite stains in the landscape.

I went off the trail and up the boulders for the highest bit of the mountain. I think this rock was surprised to see me.

On the top of the mountain, you can see the antennas, off-roader tracks and man made buildings.

Finally I arrived at the Chapel, inaugurated a few years ago. There is an annual procession up to the chapel, so there is even a proper road, from the other side of the mountain.

These geodesic marks were used to triangulate and determine measurements for ordnance surveys.

My sloppy map reading skills had me overshooting the path down, after wasting a lot of time trying to find it, I started going down the hill through a steep incline, but eventually found my bearings.

The track down is the same as up, hard granite rock bed for the most part.

Light was getting that nice gold colour, even nice colours in the landscape.

I wished I had walking poles going down. My knees were not enjoying it very much.

For the landscape it was a very nice walk, its a pity about the clear signs of fire damage and the still developing vegetation. Later in the season should make a nicer picture.

Out and about #6 Sugar Loaf

2011-03-23T14:35:00.000-07:00

View sugar loaf in a larger map

At the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, Sugar Loaf (Mynydd Pen-y-Fal in Welsh) is not a particularly spectacular or demanding hill. It is very popular because of its curious shape and easy climb.
The hill is cone shaped and kind of looks like a volcano.

I started of from the train station which is on the other side of the town.

Passed through the town centre, marked to check out later.

Getting out of town, there are fields and farms and of course sheep.

The start of this trail I found is actually about half-way up in car park. There were paved road up to it.
From the car park one cannot see the Sugar Loaf, but entering the trail it becomes visible after a few metres.

Due to its popularity there are plenty of tracks made in the landscape.

After the first slope up to the car park, there is a flat bit of trail.

It then slowly increases in gradient as you hike the cone of the Sugar Loaf.

The trail is very easy, even for unfit me. The view was good, pity there wasn't more visibility.

I didn't find it particularly exciting to photograph, but the heather management in the hill north-east were a nice surprise. Its almost like landscaping and almost any random pattern you make produces an interesting effect on the scenery. I first noticed these on my first trip in Scotland going through Glen Shee.

I rested against the trig mark somewhat protected from the wind.

After a snack I went down through a different path and passed by some horses grazing. Very peaceful but cautious animals. Its a pity I didn't have a longer lens, it would have been nice to take some head shots.

Its a great trail for begginers and with its track, for trail runners as well.

Digital pin-hole

2010-11-26T09:44:00.000-08:00

This is a quick example of how you can turn your DSLR into a pin-hole camera, simply and cheaply.

You will need:

> Aluminum foil or used soda/beer can
> Adhesive tape
> A Pin or needle
> Scissors
> A spare body cap for you camera

You start by drilling a hole in the center of you body cap. You don't need power tools, a pointy knife or scissors will do the trick, just need some patience.
This step takes some care, don't go cutting your fingers off :P

You then cut a small piece of aluminum foil or aluminum can. I used aluminum foil, because it was at hand. Aluminum sheet from a soda can is more sturdy, so its preferable. In reality any opaque material would do, the aluminum sheet is just a very practical way to do it and its easy to get small well defined holes.
Again, don't cut your self.

Now tape your aperture to the body cap. Of course, the smaller the hole, the smaller the aperture. I made mine about 1/2 mm, which should be an F number above 100. Also, you aren't focusing anything, there is no glass. However, the smaller the aperture, the sharper the images gets.

Here is a test shot with the pinhole:

The distance of your aperture to the sensor plane will define your field of view.
Above, its about the same as 42mm checked with the kit lens.

By placing your hole, father away, you get a different focal length.
I have extension tubes for my macro shots, so its easy to get different focal lengths.
Here is a shot with 65mm of tubes.

Its about 105mm checked with Tamron A2 70-210mm.

The images are awfully blurred, and this can be due to several factors: aperture hole not round, size not optimal, thickness of the material not adequate. There is a lot behind getting a good pinhole image, well... at least a sharp one.

A bit of knowledge on pinhole here.

2010-11-19T05:57:00.001-08:00

Abstract photography is a photographic art that doesn't rely on the explicit representation of a physical subject. Because of this, the elements you find in the frame are texture, shape, composition and colour.
More than anything the expression of this photography is aesthetics.

For me, abstract photography does not even intend to portray an explicit physical subject. So I tend to like and understand as abstract photography those images where if any subject is explicitly depicted, it is also clear that it is not the true subject or message of the photograph. I view it as a form of free reign to create photographs of a basic visual message: soothing, harsh, pleasant, soft, fun, etc.

I have not yet tried or committed myself to creating photographic stories. To plan a theme, a message and then search for the photograph or photographs than can write it graphically. I hope I will achieve this stage one day. I think it take a great involvement with the art, much above the casual hobbyist, however keen...

Doing abstract photography is rather fun, especially if you are looking only for pleasing or impact full aesthetics. There is the obvious bonus that it can be made almost anywhere. You can find patterns. contrast, shapes and textures anywhere, its up to you how to photograph them.

Some good ways to "reduce" reality into basic elements for the frame are: reduce context to the maximum, get very close or get out of focus.

I plugged my Industar 61 L/Z and extension tubes onto my K10D and on to find some contrasty lines and shapes.

I still adhered here to conventional norms, such as the rule of thirds and driving lines. But out of the format of more traditional photographic stiles, you'll find that in abstract photography many rules are easily discarded or not applicable.

Birdy steps

2010-09-29T12:10:00.001-07:00

Photographing birds is interesting, especially when you get the chance to see them in their habitat and you manage to observe some action: interacting, feeding, grooming...

But birding is very challenging, it requires patience, good knowledge of bird behavior, perseverance, proper gear, endurance... You get the idea... its hard, especially with small birds. These are a smaller target, tend to move about much more, so they are harder to spot in the wild.

I am not a birder, but I like toying with the idea. Starting with bigger birds was recommended since these tend to move slower. An obvious easy one are seagulls, ducks, herons or swans.

In the Cavado estuary (a river near my home town), there are many birds to be found, including these large ones I mentioned.

I decided to have a go and finally give some good use to the Pentacon 300mm F4 I had bought.

Focusing us hard especially with a 2x tele-converter attached (I really want those close shots). I'll write some comments on this lens later.

A good thing about photographing seagulls is that they usually stand about for long periods of time. This gives you ample time to set yourself up. Don't count on having a very close to them though, unless you got food. Ducks are usually more relaxed, perhaps because they are more used to being fed (those in the wild, but close to humans).

Swans are very gracefull and move slowly through the air and water, they can provide some good shots.

There were some dunlins by the shore, constantly feeding, this was the first time I shot these birds.

One issue you might find is getting excited about these photos. These are well known and documented animals (meaning everyone's shot them), have patience, stick around and wait for some action.

These bird in flights shots are harder to get in focus, especially with manual focus. But these can give really nice shots.

Seagulls for example are always fighting for food. If you see a flock and one of them finds food, a fight for it will ensue more often than not.

For my part it was an interesting experiment that'll I try to repeat to explore this genre of photography.

If you are interest in visiting Cavado estuary, Carlos Rio @ Fao Natural has many photographs of birds and other animals that inhabit the area.

Out and about #5 - Cidade da Calcedonia

2010-09-23T06:46:00.000-07:00

I searched for trails in Portugal, because I was missing walking about in nature and taking pictures.

Obviously Geres National Park, being fairly close and one of Nature's gems in Portugal was an obvious place to start.

I checked and this seems to be a fairly popular trail.

Its approximately 10km long and takes you up a steep hill near the small village of Covide on the edge of the park. The top of hill you find Calcedonia, a mithycal archaeological site which is fact is a maze of boulders that characterize the mountains of this region of the park.

The trail starts near the road that leads from Covide to Campo do Geres.

Soon after starting you pass by the typical "espigueiro" (corn cob storage).

A bit down the trail you hear the sound of small creek. I was lucky to look, or I would miss this little gem of rural life heritage - and old abandoned water mill.

The trail is well marked and easy to follow. Once you start climbing, the track becomes gravel and granite stone for the most part.

Soon after I started planning to walk this trail, the park was attacked by wild fires, one of which exactly in the area of this trail. I knew I was going to witness this tragedy to our natural heritage.

One of the interesting things about visiting Geres National Park is the anthropomorphic rocks formations you can find.

At points the track gets very interesting :)

Going down the path is a bit easier track wise, but maybe even steeper, so hard on my knees.

Another curious boulder...

If you want to try this trail, be prepared to sweat a bit, take proper shoes and enjoy it, its a great experience.

To filter or not to filter?

2010-05-11T21:40:00.000-07:00

That is the question?
Should it be? Should it still be?
Like many great themes and small minutia, this is a recurring subject in the photography forums.
Should I use a filter or can I just do it in post? Should I use a UV all the time? What filters to get?

Filters used to provide much of the manipulation of the photograph in the "film days".
From white balance correction, or contrast boost to softning effects or even wacky distortions, much could be done with filters and it would be hard to find a photographer, even amateur that would not have a small wallet to these.

Nowadays, the UV filter is still very common, whereas the Skylight (another stay on the lens filter) is nowhere to be seen.
The UV, as most know, is not there for its optical properties, but is now clearly an "insurance" on your glass.
My view is that its use, should be rationalized, if you are in a safe environment, where water or dust is not likely to be thrown at your lens, and knocks are no likely, then it is probably best not to put any additional glass in the optical path. If you feel your lens is in peril, then by all means protect it, but remember that the UV only really provides protection against certain knocks directed at the front of the lens and against coarse dust and excessive water penetration. The price you pay for this insurance should, it seems to me, be in consonance with the insured item.
Is it really worth it to put a £15-20 UV on a lens you can buy £25-30 used? Is it worth to put a cheap UV on and expensive lens?
Your UV, or better said, your protection should cause the least damage possible to the IQ of the lens. So a more expensive lens, if required, justifies a good quality, expensive filter.
And of course, don't forget to keep that lens hood on. Think of it as you first line of defence!

What about other filters? Well use whatever you like really...
Just because you can do most of it in post does not mean you need to trade the mechanical experience for the digital one. Of course, filters such as IR, and WB corrections or contrast and others can really only perform the task they were designed for when used in film.

What cannot be done in post?
Any pixels can be created or moved around, so its fairly restricted what is still only the job of the filter.
Certainly the polarizer, Circular Polarizer, in the case of DSLRs.
This allows you to ... well polarize the light, and depending on how you set it, reduce part of the light reaching the lens. Specifically it is used to cut reflections from surfaces, such as water and glass. A good explanation of how a polarizer works and should be used here.
Neutral density filters allow you to reduce the amount og light that reachs your sensor, thus requiring much more time to achieve a correct exposure. These filters are therefore used when long exposures are required or desired (star trails, milky smooth seashores and waterfalls ...). Neutral density means that the filter will not change the hue of the colours permitted to pass, however you will find that the cheaper ones might do it.
You can find these filters in different levels of density, allowing you to remove more or less stops of light.
In principle the same could be done by modulating the triumvirate of ISO, shutter speed and F stop. But cameras and lenses on the ranges of all these parameters, so they cannot accomodate any level of light.
Pentax, allows multiple exposures in the same frame, at leaast from the K10D onwards. This allows you to essentially accumulate several exposures at the longest shutter speed possible that still provides correct exposure.
What this means is that for subjects which do not require the continuous capture of motion, the shot cna be made with multiple shots, in camera, without a filter. This works well for waterfalls, but would present noticeably different results in car trails for example.
A variation of the ND filter is the graduated ND filter, where a portion of the filter reduces the light as an ND, and the other does not (usually with a soft transition between the two areas).
This is popular with landscape photographer since it allows the accentuation of the collours of the sky, without altering the collour of the land or seascape. . The filter does not need to be ND though, as sometimes a particukar colour cast might be desired. This could be done in post with carefull exposures, but this remains a very used filter.
Some of the effect sought from an ND can be obtained from HDR photography, which can now be done in camera (Pentax K-7), but ultimately the effect is not the same, since HDR operates over the whole image.

These are my two cents on filters and filter use. I hope to have time to complement this with some images and maybe tiddy it up a bit.

Composition

2010-04-24T11:34:00.000-07:00

For me composition is the first element I think of when creating a photo.
One may claim, with merit, that subject is the first thing to be contemplated. I agree this is true to many types of photography, but in so many cases the subject is either thrust upon you or found that there is not conscious contemplation of it. Think photojournalism or street photography versus studio or product photography.

Composition will be the first purposefully thought out element of the photograph.

Composition will help you defined the story in photo, if there is one you wish to tell. The right composition can create a sense of drama, a striking visual sensation.

Sometimes, like for the images above you have to wait for your composition to appear.
For the first one, I wanted to look into the close and through the buildings, but I saw the man carrying the plank on his back coming way down the road. I wanted him coming into the scene. The composition is richer with him in the scene. For the second photo I had to move quicker, I saw the cars were stoping and wanted to take a photo looking through North Bridge, then I notice this guy riding his bike through in an odd way. I waited a second for him to come more towards the center of the frame and snapped the picture.

I believe a good photograph has to a least be visually pleasant. This is done with composition and colour primarily. Why to I say at least? Because a photograph that can touch you emotionally is far harder to create and probably even more subjective.
You may have a bland subject, but can still create a visually appealing photo.

All the images above were taken during a visit to Granada, Spain. The subject is the same, cityscapes, rooftops.
However, I'm sure that like me you're eye is going to be drawn towards one or two of the photos and not the others.
I think the composition is well done for all the photos, but for 2 of them I think it is more successful. For the second and third photos, the lines are more clear, the areas more distinct and they become visually more dramatic. Of course the colours or their omission also help, help to intensify the effect.

You will find easily many books and tutorials the rules of composition, and in some you will also find that rules are to be abandoned. There is little I can add except for this: do what feels right for that photo.

Carl Zeiss Jena 135mm F3.5 "Zebra"

2010-04-08T17:56:00.000-07:00

I got this lens quite a while ago, but when I received it I saw that the aperture was not working. I knew about the bent filter thread, but not the aperture problem, I contacted the seller and he offered a generous partial refund. I decided to keep it (together with a Pentacon 30mm and Praktica body) and try to fix it.

Because I got more and more 135mm lenses, I never got around to doing, but I finally did.

I knew that it would either have to be blades stuck together (beyond my skills :P) or a problem with the mechanism that forces the blades to move.

Starting with three little screws (using jewelers driver) I remove the back of the lens which is really just a cover.

Another set of 3 screws, here we start messing with the mechanism. See the pin? That stops down the lens and it is loose. Carefull when removing this plate as it may fall off.

The mechanism consists of two springs which force the blades to open or closed, with the apeture ring defining were to stop the closing spring's action.
The blades were stuck in the open position, but forcing the shaft to which the spring connects sortd it out. The blades have a bit of material on them which may be creating drag.

The action now is snappy but if you allow for slow movements it still gets stuck sometimes...

So it was an easy fix, although not a complete one.

To use the lens on a digital body you need to remove the pin, otherwise it hits the inside of the camera (mirror or chassis).
This is easy to do, you just need to disengage the opening spring, since you cannot actuate the pin to provide stop down motion at time of shooting. With just the closing spring, the aperture ring's movements are reflected on the blades opening and closing.

Re-evaluate

2010-04-04T17:11:00.000-07:00

As I stated in my previous post, I give many of my photos a lot of attention in post-processing.

Some of them I expect to make when I take the shot like this skyline from Granada (Spain).
When I took the shot at sunset I was thinking of getting a great contrasting line between sky and the roofs.

The outcome was not great and it just looks like a poorly exposed image.

In PP I forced the exposure and the blacks to make this much more dramatic image.

You might make images that are just ok (or that really don't speak much,) into something different. There are sometimes images that are just banal, but if you take a 2nd (or 3rd or....) look you will see a potential in it, a detail, a different composition.

In this image of the walkway down Calton Hill I took this wonky angle on the lit rails which at the time seemed an ok shot. In the computer, with a better view I found it very bland, not really funky or interesting. However the the lit rails in this night shot still seemed interesting, so I decided to get the most contrast out of the scene (which B&W does well).

Doing this created, in my opinion, a much better image. I isn't spectacular, but much more appealing I believe.

This other shot was taken in a tunnel on Inchcolm Island in the Firth of Forth.
I saw someone coming and it was obvious this would make a great spooky shot.
I leaned against the wall to stabilize the image as much as possible. I successfully got the exit overexposed shining behind the "entity". Because the shutter speeed was slow, it is still a bit shaky, which helps in giving a positive distortion of this figure.

I was happy with the shot, but in the computer I realized I had a lot of space in terms of composition and that there was allot of room to explore.

This option clearly shows how you can change the mood of the photo by changing composition. In this case the heavy cropping transforms the strange entity in the distance into an impending encounter. It is also more clearly suggested that the figure is moving towards you.

So I would suggest that you consider carefully your images when you review them on your computer. The separation from the time of exposure, the bigger and better viewing opputunity should provide a different perspective on the shot and maybe you can improve them or discover new photos inside the photo.

Happy shooting!

Not much of a photographer...

2010-04-04T11:53:00.000-07:00

Photography enthusiasts like me usually go by the label of amateur photographers.

Personally I have trouble accepting this label for myself although I have used it since it is convention.

For me the photographer is capable of creating the image he wants from the time of capture in the camera. So much of my photos have so much experimentation in post-production, that I feel I create the images in the digital dark room, so in a way I am more of a digital artist than a photographer.

But I know much of this argument is fallacious. Since the inception of photography the photographer has been granted freedom to make the captured image from reality. These freedoms were available in the capture process and in the development stage.
One can obviously counter argument that the development stage his not the photographers concern necessarily.

Clearly however, photographers have for a long time wanted to delve in this second stage (or even the third: printing and presentation). Presently, photographers have far greater abilities for in-camera post-production and development of the photograph than ever before. It seems this trend is only going to increase, especially with the fusion of cameras with other media (video, portable media player like the ipods, iphone and other mobiles).

Nonetheless, this is a separate set of skills.

Yes, but a set of skills that made many photographers achieve the vision they wanted for their art, which is what matters in the end.

Hmph...
As you can see many points can be argued, and I am still "on the fence" on this.
I won't be very troubled however, if people choose not to call me a photographer, especially if I am happy with the end result.

Out and about #4 - Edinburgh 21st March 2010

2010-03-23T16:17:00.000-07:00

Walk Map:

View Edinburgh walk 1 in a larger map

I did this walk with two members of the TalkPhotography.co.uk forum.
It makes for a good quick tour of the sights in the city center. If recommend it for a one day visit to Edinburgh, maybe including Holyrood park as well.

I took with me my K10D and MX film camera and some lenses I hadn't been using much.
When I get round to developing the film, I'll update this post.

We met at Double Dutch (parking at George Square is usually easy, alternatively use Chamber Street).

The first spot on the walk was the statue of Greyfriars Bobby at the corner of George IV Bridge and Candlemaker Row. For those who do not know the story, Bobby was a Skye Terrier who belonged to John Gray, a policeman in 19th century Edinburgh.
They were very close and when the owner died and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard, the dog spent is remaining 14 years of life siting on his owners grave or around the graveyard. This display of devotion gained Bobby notoriety and the little statue was erected in his honour.
From there we went into Greyfriars kirkyard, but much to my regret I only latter realized that close by I could find the graves of John Gray and Bobby.
Shooting in cemeteries may sound odd for many, but you don't have to go for a macabre theme to enjoy it. The richness of the stonework in many of these old British graveyards alone is enough to deserve your attention. Unfortunately I didn't manage to take any photo I was really happy with.

After the graveyard, we went down to Grass Market, we went very quickly through, but this is a good place to have a pint in many of the pubs around and in sunny days a table outside makes for a very pleasant rest or a good time with mates.

The odd geography of Edinburgh city center creates the interesting cityscape of Victoria street/Grassmarket/Royalmile. There are some restaurants in the "varanda" along Victoria street and you can enjoy a nice meal with a nice view.

Cutting into Royal Mile we strolled down stopping at St. Giles cathedral, but this was during service, so we did not enter. It is well worth a visit though.
We continued down to the Queen's Holyrood Palace, and from there up to Calton Hill.

The sky, by this point, had turned against us a bit, which was a shame but the views from Calton Hill are always very nice.
After some time there we went down for lunch in one of Rose Street's many pubs.

I was trying to increase my forays into street photography, so with a sharper eye than usual I managed to spot this cyclist coming, I waited, framed it and took the shot. Its not spectacular, but I'm quite pleased, I remember Bresson and how movement and life transpired from so many of his shots.

We went to Princes Gardens afterwards. I had used my last exposure on film in Calton Hill so I hadn't any really wide angle to use in the Fountain and Castle, these always make a great composition.

We continued to the Galleries and up the Mound, ending up again at Greyfriars Bobby where we finished our photo-walk and said our goodbyes.

Walking back to the car I came across this shot. Always have your camera at the ready.

Out and about #3 - Roslin

2010-03-13T03:04:00.000-08:00

This was a walk a while ago when I wanted to visit Roslin Chapel.
Unfortunately for me and fortunately for the Chapel it was under restoration.

I didn't bother trying to photograph the scafolding outside, and the inside was photography free... Another day

Walk Map:

View Roslin in a larger map

By taking the road down between the car park and the Chapel you are taken down to remains of Roslin Castle.
From there, there is a path on your right, before you arrive at the small bridge, which can take you under the bridge and northwards along North Esk River. You can also cross the river west and take a different walk to Roslin Glen Country Park.

You can find some evidence of human presence along the way, but fortunately its not trash :P

The path along the river is narrow for the most part and can get much more harder to passes at places than this. You are passing through in dense woods and irregular terrain.

You pass very close to the river at some points and by the side of wavy fields on the other. Enjoy the nature along the way.

After a while the river makes a sharp bend to the right and again to the left. The path takes up a small elevation and away from the river, from there you have a good view of the surroundings. Soon you come to a road, turn left in the direction of Roslin.

The road back to Roslin takes you past the Animal Research Centre. Remember Dolly the sheep? I wonder if these are clones too?

Out and about #2 - Pentlands Hills 2

2010-03-08T16:36:00.000-08:00

The second trail is again on the Pentlands. It's a bit of a mess because I made it up as it came along.

Walk Map:

View Pentland trail 2 in a larger map

This walk was actually done before #1, a bit after the snow started to melt. Unfortunately it was almost all gone.

The walk starts at the car park at the beggining of the road into the artificial sky slope on the north face of the ridge between Caerketton and Hillend hills.

Set due west and up Hillend hill.

From there you have great sights of the city and its surroundings.

Continue climbing up to the top of Carketton hill, you will pass a gate (remember to close it), and you'll see the sky slope to your right. From there to the top there is quite a steep slope, but there are zigzag path as well.
Fortunately I remembered to take the 500mm mirror lens to get some different perspectives on the city, and I used it from the top of Caerketton.

I found some patches of snow, which showed how cold it still was.

Well, that and the fact I could barely feel my nose :P (wind chill factor was strong).

Besides the patches of snow, there were other signs of the cold. Fortunately I was expecting this and took my macro lens.

Continue up and down along the top to Allermuir Hill, where you find this landmark and another gate.

After this I turned south and was contemplating going up Fala Knowe and then Castle Law hill, but at this point I was already a bit tired and it was later than I had planned.

So I decided to take an easier route down west of Kirk burn and down to Glencorse Reservoir.

However I then realized if I did so I'd be shooting mostly against the sun, so I passed to the other side of the burn.

Unfortunately that put me very boggy uneven terrain with no paths.

But later on you come close to a footpath which takes you around Beacon with nice views over the reservoir.

I decided to go straight down to the reservoir to check it out.
Due to time constraints, I then went back via the road because it was faster.
In retrospect, in terms of a walk, I'd recommend taking either the path west of Kirk burn or up Castle Law, then take the alternate path back and go over the ridge and down to the golf courses north of them and then back to the car park. You will have to have some stamina though.

My favorite photo?

2010-02-22T06:40:00.000-08:00

Its hard for me to have favourites. I've read that isn't a good sign, but I really don't care.
If someone asked me what my favourite photograph, my answer at least as of now would be this:
Destitute pea pickers in California by Dorothea Lange

Its not that its B&W, its not the composition or the colours. It is my favourite because of how it makes me feel. This reminds me of my mother, of her love for me and of her sacrifices.
This photograph touches me like none other. It is the most you can ask of any piece of art, and it is very subjective.

This links to what I can call my best photo ever. You have not seen it, and probably you will you never see it.
It was a photo I took of two friends of mine walking down an aisle of a church in Linlithgow. It was compositionally poor, not very sharp and had bad colours.
I was never prouder of a photo I took. It was taken with purpose and almost made my friend cry, because you see... They were getting married in a months time.
I knew that, and I knew that whatever I captured in those feeble seconds would have some meaning to them. It did and I was very happy.

I would like to master all photographic technique, I desire many pieces of equipment and opportunities to go out and take photographs.
But I cannot aspire to get more out of photography than what I had when I saw my friend's expression.

I hope you have or will have those same moments.

Out and about #1 - Pentlands Hills 1

2010-02-17T07:03:00.000-08:00

Just outside Edinburgh are the Pentland Hills.
These hills peak a bit above 500m, so not a very strenuous climb. You can also find several of the City's reservoir around, and the area constitutes the Pentland Hills Regional Park.
Atractive area to have a stroll or a bit of hill walking.

I am terribly out of shape, so serious hill walking is not for me, however the proposition is very attractive. This walk is based on a normal trail of the park with a slight detour up a small hill.

View Pentlands trail 1 in a larger map

The walk starts at the Ranger Centre Car park, where you can find information about the park and its natural attractions. A simple, but useful map of the park can also be had.

You can take to the road or follow the small zigzagging path by the side. Further along this joins the road which takes you up along Glencorse Reservoir. Halfway along you can choose to go along the park's marked trail (this would be shorter and easier). If you want a bit more exercise and some good views of the area, keep to the road until the end of the reservoir. Here you'll find a small a small swampy area to the right. I found some ducks and a grey heron.

After this to the right there is a farm house, take the path inside and towards the right into the hill. I don't advise this, although the right of way in Scotland allows walkers to enjoy private areas, I cannot vouch for this particular bit of path. Use your own judgement!

As I went up Bell's Hill, I found sheep and rams grazing, they kept a watchful eye and avoid me, I found evidence of their wind shelters, which I found very curious.
At this point you can have a good view of the hills and the reservoir. Unfortunately with the fog and very overcast sky, the scenery isn't quite as brilliant as it could be. That's Scotland for you...
Being out of shape, even this easy climb was hard, so the weather kind of went along with the arduous walk up. After reaching the top of the Hill I descended by its right slope to join the park's trail. At the bottom of the hill you find a gate and a clear and well kept path.
Taking the path, eventually you arrive at a T-junction, take the left path towards Threipmuir Reservoir.

Along the reservoir water birds should be easy to spot. At the west end of the reservoir, there is the elevated footpath in the Red Moss area.

After this cross the bridge and go up towards Bavelaw Castle. Passing the Castle entrance you hop over the fence and into a fairly well marked path, this will eventually take you between Hare and Black Hill.

Before reaching Loganlea Reservoir, the path takes past a small waterfall and a stream.
Along the reservoir the path becomes a road which will take you back to Glencorse Reservoir.

You can return by the road or take the detour to the right (a bit past the reservoir).

I started late, but start early in the morning and even at a fat photographers pace (read "pretty slow") and you'll get back to the car park in time for lunch.
There is an Inn close to the car park, haven't tried it, but after a good walk, it should be very enjoyable.

Photographer versus Gear

2009-09-28T04:04:00.000-07:00

A random thought:

If you are a good photographer you can identify why you are not getting the shots you want and where the gear is failing you.
If you are a bad photographer the gear is always failing you.

... If you are a gear head, you always have to get more gear, regardless...

JimPix @ Flickr

2009-06-27T15:21:00.000-07:00

I found this photographer and photo manipulator on Flickr.

I think his work is awesome, with immense visual impact and very pleasing images.
Some of his highly saturated and HDR images seem to be paintings. He is now pushing manipulation further and meshing images together.

Check him out here.

More on the Tamron 500mm...

2009-05-30T14:19:00.000-07:00

I've been collecting some more experience in shooting birds and with the Tamron. On my last trip I've had better light, and I'd say that's were the better results come from. Easier to focus, faster shutter speeds possible.

I want to address the issue the bokeh. These mirror lenses have an infamous bokeh, with rings forming in the area out-of-focus. These are due to the fact that the light enters through a ring like glass (as opposed to the circular glass of regular lenses).
See more on Mirror (catadioptric) lenses here.

I do believe that this isn't a bad bokeh in it self. Like all bokeh, it depends on how it works with the image, the issue is it is rare for an image to work well with this brush-painted impression the bokeh gives you. But possible!

Having said that, the vast majority of the photos I've taken do not show the rings and the bokeh is not that unpleasant. Its not great, but not that annoying, as some advocate. A "double vision" kind of bokeh was the most common on the shots I made.

The definition of the rings depends on the distance of a point in the background (out-of-focus) to the point of focus.

These last two are a particularly good demonstration of how the bokeh can be very good (in my opinion) , but clash with the rest of the photo.

But remember its not always that bad, and you do get good images:

And also, a lens which is accessible price wise, light and compact, and has these results at 100% crop:

Is a pretty good deal.

So if you are craving for some long focal range, and your subjects are usually well lit, start getting some experience under your belt with this lens, before you can actually spend top dollar on a top notch lens.

Tamron SP 500mm F8 55B Mirror lens

2009-05-19T11:56:00.000-07:00

This is not a review, I will not be making proper lens reviews here. I will however try to convey my impressions of some lenses, and of course I will show some photographs I get with those lenses.

Tamron 500mm @ Adaptall-2.com
(please read this first)

I recently got this lens on loan from the Photosoc, the Photography Society of the University of Edinburgh.
I got this lens because I wanted to have a go at bird photography. To complement my recently acquired 55-300mm, I wanted something longer.
I went to practice near Duddingston Loch in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh.

The lens, of which there are two variations (55B and 55BB), is quite sharp considering that mirror lenses are not generally heralded for this optical property.
It is even more significant considering the price. You can generally find these on ebay with case, prices range from £70 for a good condition one, up to £180 for a mint condition kit with filters and a 2x TC. For 500mm, this is pretty good.

This is a small lens for its focal length, even considering it is a mirror lens.
It is a slow lens at a fixed aperture of F8.
Focusing is manual, and despite the very large focus ring diameter which I'm not used to, changing focus was quite easy. The good damped movements that are common in old manual focus lens is evident in this lens as well.

(Focus not too off, considering its hand-held, still need more practice)

(Heard them coming and quickly tried to focus, failed to notice I was in ISO 100...)

Bird photography generally requires fast shutter speeds, so F8 isn't that great. If you are shooting birds in flight in really bright conditions, you may get away with it, for stationary birds one might want to use a tripod and slower speeds, but even on a perch, birds tend to move constantly, so maybe slower but not really stationary.

I mentioned changing focus was easy, however actually achieving focus is another story.
Personally, I found the real issue with the F8 aperture to be the low amount of light reaching the viewfinder (VF). This makes focusing very difficult, without any focus aids in the screen of my K10D (like split-screen or microprism), a correct visual detection of focus is near impossible (even on the K10D's good VF).
I usually rely on the camera's automatic focus detection, but alas, this has issues with low light and many times just gave no signal. So in low light, low contrast scenes, focusing became very hard.

There are 500mm mirror lenses at F5.6, certainly this would reduce or eliminate the problems I mentioned. However if F8 has a shallow DOF, as can be seen in the pictures, imagine at F.6.

I shot the photos I show here on a cloudy day, with occasional sunny openings. I used a monopod, and I found that decent results could be obtained at ISO 200-400. Shake reduction was on. I have many shots at 100 ISO, which results from the camera resetting after turning off. There is a way to change this, but I haven't gotten around to it...
All these images are strong crops from the original frame, so take that into consideration.

Overall, I would recommend it because the alternatives for decent/good results, at very large focal lengths, are generally orders of magnitude more expensive. It is also small, so easy to carry in your bag.

Advantages:
> Price
> Reach (750mm on Pentax, 1.5x)
> Comparatively small and lightweight

Disadvantages:
> Fixed aperture F8, no control on DOF and makes manual focus difficult.

Great Photographers: Scott Kelby

2009-03-15T08:07:00.000-07:00

I've given you my flickr page, and I'll post some photos here from time to time.
But let me show you some really good photographs.

I heard about Scott Kelby from vids and from sites like strobist.
I really like his landscapes, they are the kind of photos I would take or would like to take.
Another thing I like is the fact that he explores and is very good in several types of photography.

Enjoy...

Using old manual focus lenses

2009-02-27T03:20:00.000-08:00

So you want to tap into the sea of manual lenses out there?

Versatile Lenses

In the world of manual focus lenses, the M42 mount is ubiquitous. It is a screw mount (42mm diameter with 1mm pitch) and is most commonly named "M42" or "Pentax or Praktica Screw Mount".
It was actually first used by Zeiss in the Contax S. Pentacon and Praktica are in many cases rebadged Zeiss products and these two also used the M42 mount. Pentax, seeing many great lenses being produced in Germany and being a popular mount, adopted it. With the popularity of the Spotmatic (and following models) M42 started to be associated with Pentax.
We are therefore left with a huge amount of lenses, many of fantastic quality.
M42 has a registration distance or register of 45.56 mm. This is the distance of the mount's flange to the sensor of film plane.
Having a fairly long registration distance makes a lens very flexible in terms of how many cameras it can be mounted on. Adaptors are readily and cheaply available for Canon, Pentax and Olympus. Take care that the adaptor is well built, since any small deviation from the correct thickness difference means no infinity focus.
Nikon cannot accept M42 readilly since its mount register is too long.
Adaptors can allways be built to make a lens compatible with a camera mount, but glass might have to be included to correct the register discrepancies. More info here.

Tamron had, what to me is a fantastic idea: the ADAPTALL mount.
They build ADAPTALL and ADAPTALL-2 mount lenses, with a large registration distance that allowed them to have adaptors for many cameras.
ADAPTALL-2 adaptors can be used in adaptall lenses, and there some can have electric contacts. So the camera can stop down the lens and register the lens info.
You can find many of these lenses for sale, with a couple of zooms and some primes of great quality.

There are also other flexible mounts like the Pentacon6 (large registration distance), and I believe Vivitar also built lenses in a system similar to the ADAPTALL idea. But I'm restricting myself to these more common and popular flexible mounts.

Versatile Cameras?
Most brands changed their mount with time.
Olympus kept its OM mount for a very long time and then changed to 4/3 Olympus E.
Minolta had MD mount and then MA (alpha mount) on film and kept it to digital.
Nikon kept its mount compatible in the film to digital transition, as did Pentax with its K mount.

Of all the brands Pentax has the best record for backwards compatibility with its own lenses. All Pentax DSLRs can mount, meter (not completely well!), perform AF and stop down the lenses that have K mount. Exceptions to this are the powerzoom fucntion of FAJ lenses and the autofocus of the "SMC Pentax-AF 35-70mm F2.8" produced for the Pentax ME-F.
I know these details because this is the DSLR brand I have :P

Nikon is next and notably offered conversions to its lenses when transitioned from non-AI to Ai lenses. It however does not meter or autofocuses in its lower product line DSLRs (only Dxxx and above), among other incompatibilities.
I know AF is out of the broad context, but its within the context of versatility in DSLRs.

But backwards compatibility is restricted to the brand's own mount. Remember flexibility comes from the registration distance.
In this perspective Canon and Olympus are the most flexible since the registration distance of their EF/EF-S and E mounts is very small.
As a matter of fact these can mount M42, Pentax, Nikon and many other lenses, with the right adaptor.

I am happy with my Pentax for many reasons. In the case of using old manual lenses I like fact that I can easily use M42, ADAPTALL(-2) and all K mount lenses. I can meter, I can automatically stop down SMC-A lenses and any other with the KA variation of K mountlenses and I have shake reduction as well.
If for you using old manual lenses in DSLRs is very important I recommend looking carefully at what each brand and model can do for you. Definately go for an Olympus or Canon for maximum flexibility, but take care there are some issues with those choices as well.
I explained why my brand suits me, but it might not suit you.

This is meant as an "introduction to..." so if this has interested you, go and look further :)
Google or visit these very good forums: MFLenses and ManualFocus.

Manual focus lenses

2009-02-26T02:50:00.000-08:00

All lenses can be focused manually. However, hardly any of the modern autofocus lenses have quite the same "feel" of the good old manual focus lenses. By feel I'm talking about the whole experience of shooting with one, but one quantifiable value is how smooth (damped) the focus ring feels.

Manual focus (MF) lenses either old or new (Zeiss and Leica are examples of modern MF-only lenses brands) are generally built in metal with few if plastic parts. Metal isn't necessarily the best or essential for great build quality, but this was the view a few years ago. There is no disputing though that metal lenses feel considerably more durable and impose a sense of quality.

There are several reasons to like manual focus lenses.

Some people collect them. Many high quality lenses are marks in the history of photography, all of them are fantastic pieces of industrial design. Marvellous jewels of glass and metal.

There are people who love manual focus because they don't trust auto focus (AF). MF can be cumbersome, but there are many situations in e.g. macro photography or night photography (and other low light situations) where AF does not work or leads to incorrect focus.

There are also those who want to control the whole process themselves: manual aperture, shutter speed and focus control.

There is of course the economic reason. Very good lenses either produced last year or 40 years ago, are always paid at a premium (especially if they are in good nick). But there are many good lenses that are significantly cheaper than current AF lenses. Optically they compare very favourably and can sometimes surpass current offers. Optics have evolved but not so significantly as advances in say... coatings, AF and other functionalities have been added that improve the behaviour of the lenses.
One notorious economic advantage arises from the crop factor of most DSLRs' sensors which are smaller than 35mm film. This means that a 50mm lens becomes a 75mm (Pentax, Nikon: 1.5x) or 80mm (Canon: 1.6x) or even 100mm (Olympus: 2x).
Fast 50's (F1.8,1.7,1.4) are easy to find for not much money. So all of a sudden you have, e.g. a 75mm F1.4, This makes a great portrait lens. For comparison a fast 85mm in full-frame (35mm) was THE portrait lens and very sought after. Price wise the difference to 50mm lenses can be an order of magnitude or more.
If you like telephoto, you like this cropping effect. All fast telephotos lenses are very expensive, but shorter telephotos are now 1.5x, 1.6x or 2x longer and fast still.
A further advantage of this cropping effect is that you use the best part of the lens. The centre of the lens is sharper than the extremities. Because the sensor will read only that central part, the extremities in the sensor will be less soft than what they would be if the actual lens extremities were being read.

So looks like a great opportunity right? Yes, but not so fast.
As you've guessed by now, wide and ultra wide angle lenses are not so wide with the crop factor...

Considerations to make if you're thinking of buying old manual focus lenses.
You'll be buying lenses that are decades old. This means that they are usually well used. Some deterioration of the optics may have occurred, by bad care (loss of coating) or internal problems (cemented elements may separate). Also take care that they maintain its mechanics intact. Dust is likely to penetrate the lenses after a lot of use, especially in zooms, particularly push-pull zooms. Generally this is not a problem and wont show up on the photo, but do check the amount and size of dust particles.
Other danger with old lenses is that many of them can have been stored and unused for many years now, if this storage is not well made fungus can grow on the lenses. Fungus grows happily in humid and dark places. It can grow until it covers the whole lens and etches in to the glass. It can also spread to other lenses. Take care!

I hope this post has helped you learn something new :)

What do you shoot?

2009-02-22T07:41:00.000-08:00

Many things really...

Of all my photos, the majority are landscape and friends. That mainly due to "historical reasons" :)

That's just how I got into photography.

After becoming seriously involved with photography I started to expand my subjects. I'm interested in many different ones and have yet to be captured by any in particular.

You can find some of my photos on my Flickr page here.

Why TWAPSI?

2009-02-16T18:15:00.000-08:00

The World As Photography Sees It...

When I was thinking of a name for the blog I quickly understood it would have to be an acronym, I could not describe what photography is to me or how I see it in one or two words.
Photography is reality, but molded. It is not, at its core, a direct expression of the artist. Which can be the case for a painting or a sculpture. In photography we must always find a reality that can be worked to convey our most abstract visualizations.
What many of us want with photography is exactly this: to show the world in different and uncommon ways. As we see it: through a lens, a frame and a image capture procedure. It can be an odd angle or a majestic wide view, a frozen moment so unique or an impossible view of the small details o this world that usually escapes us.

Why this blog?

2009-02-16T17:54:00.000-08:00

This photography hobby of mine is growing more and more.
I've been reading allot of sites, posting in many sites, seeing many photos…

Its been great and very time consuming :P

The idea of this blog is to compile interesting stuff I discover in the web, and in my own voyage to improve my photography.

I won’t be compiling every last tip and news, sites of this kind already exist and they are very good. I will post things that interest me, they I’d like to try or will try.

There’ll be a very practical use for this blog, instead of posting in many sites the same thing over and over, I can post here once and use this link, saving some time.