Category: Digital

My New Project

· Leave a comment ·

I spend a lot of time on the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission for those outside of Toronto). On average about twelve to fourteen hours a week. I actually prefer it to driving: I can read, close my eyes, listen to music. And, I can practice street-style photography, using my Smart Phone. So I am starting a new project called the Daily Commute Shoot: one photo taken and posted every workday during my commute either to or from work, , taken with my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 smartphone. You can see the results here. The image below is an outtake from yesterday. (I am three days into the project at this point).

Tired

The Toughest Audience

· Leave a comment ·

It has been said by many performers that children are the toughest audience you can have: it is hard to get their attention and even harder to keep it. Last night Janice and I attended the 2014 Toronto edition of Dusk Dances, an outdoor dance festival. Many children were in attendance, and one particular performance (involving synchronized swimming in inflatable wading pools!) really grabbed and kept their attention, as shown in their faces below.

Children Enjoying a Show

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm Nikkor lens
Post work in Lightroom and Nik Silver Efex Pro 2

A Soggy Day

· Leave a comment ·

It was a pretty soggy day in Niagara Falls yesterday, and the two film cameras I had with me had no weather sealing. I wanted this shot at the base of the American falls, so out came the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Smart phone. Quite happy with the results!

At the Base of the American Falls

The Expression

· Leave a comment ·

I was in Hamilton this past weekend at a social gathering with some of my best Social Media friends. On the way from supper Saturday to a pub we walked through the beginning of that evening’s Hamilton Art crawl. The street was already crowded with artists, musicians, performers and pedestrians of all kinds. I had literally not much more than a second or two to get this shot; technically it’s not perfect, but I like it — I wonder what the story is behind expression of the woman on the right! There must be a story there!

Hamilton Art Crawl Street vendors

In the Kitchen

· Leave a comment ·

My friend Maria and her business partner Agatka have three times now put on a dinner service at The Depanneur here in Toronto. This facility has a kitchen area visible to the eating area and is a great setting for photography! I was able to shoot the buzz of activity in the kitchen and I think for the most part I was able to stay out of the way. 🙂

Working hard

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm Nikkor lens
Post processed in Lightroom and Nik Efex

Quietly Smiling

· Leave a comment ·

Today’s image is another one from Rock, Stock and Barrel’s gig at Irene’s pub in Ottawa. The band’s bass player, always quietly smiling in the background, always rock solid, but never seeking the spotlight.

The bass player

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm NIkkor lens. Shooting at ISO 8000
Post-processed with Lightroom and Nik Efex software

Jill

· Leave a comment ·

Today’s image is from another shoot this past weekend in Ottawa with my friend Jill. Jill has been a friend of the family for many years, and it was a pleasure to collaborate with her at this photo shoot. She came armed with many ideas and a strong creative and expressive spirit that made the shoot a success.

Jill

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm Nikkor lens
Post production: Lightroom and Nik Efex software

Maggie

· Leave a comment ·

One of my shoots this past weekend in Ottawa was with Maggie Kyoko Tan. We had been friends on Facebook, but had never met until this shoot in Ottawa, and she was a delight to work with, as she understands instinctively that posing is (as I have often said) a combination of choreography and acting. We were able to get into a rhythm very quickly, and I am very happy with the (digital) results so far. (Film to come!!)

Maggie

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm Nikkor lens
Post processed with Lightroom and Nik Efex

Still Rocking

· Leave a comment ·

I had a lot of fun shooting my friend Sue Murphy’s band Rock, Stock and Barrel on Friday night at Irene’s Pub in Ottawa. I was struck by a couple of things: first was the very low light: I had to shoot at ISO 8000, and take a lot of photos to make sure I had an adequate number of keepers. (I made it, barely :-)). The second thing that made an impression was talking to the band: definitely not a bunch of teenagers, the discussion centred around family responsibilities, and how they preferred playing shows that didn’t keep them up past their bedtimes. But once they hit the stage all that was forgotten, and proved (as if it needed proving) that rocking high energy music is not the property of a single demographic.

Sue Murphy of Rock, Stock and Barrel

 

Nikon D7100, 18-200mm Nikkor lens
Post processing done with Lightroom and Nik Efex