Category Archives: photography

Ready to Fly

Posted by Mike on

Squared – SQ142
Dandelion

Early in the afternoon the sun started shine but I still had a few hours left before the workday would be over. Mother Nature was setting me up for a race, could I complete my work and enjoy the sun before the rain started? Luckily for me, I typically start work early and at 3pm I called it a day. I was going to use any advantage I could to feel sun on my face and enjoy the 78o temperature.

The dandelions had proliferated in the yard outside my apartment so I didn’t have to venture far to capture a few images while the sun warmed me up. Although the ground was still damp from the morning sprinkle I compensated by grabbing a grocery bag, the kind you had to buy when the state disallowed plastic bags, and used it kneel on as I captured my macro view on the yard.

It was a good thing I finished work early because by 4pm the sky darkened and the clouds opened up. It was a torrential downpour! The cats were not happy with the thunder rumbling along as the rain pooled in the yard. By the time it was done I had a little lake outside my living room window.

I switched up my view of this dandelion by placing the camera low and underneath it. The sky was only starting to darken and the lighter background would change the look of the dandelion seeds. I typically use the grass as a background to highlight the entire head of the dandelion, but with the almost white background you have to focus on the seeds backed by the interior of the dandelion head.

I like the monochrome look for most of my dandelion images and this one was no different. I did change it up slightly and applied a split tone effect. This is where you add a slight color to the highlights and shadows of a black & white image. For this particular image I added some very muted yellow to the highlights and blue to the shadows. When balanced well it can create a striking enhancement to an image.

  

MLCreations Photography: Squared &emdash; Ready to Fly

Ready to Fly
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 Macro, 1/2000s, f/2.8, ISO 200

 

Speak to Me

Posted by Mike on

Floral

I’m back to the wildflowers I found at the cemetery. It always amazes me the subtle color differences among the various “patches” of flowers. I feel like every row I walk down has a new group trying to stand out from the others. I guess the flowers are not so different from everyone else…

  

MLCreations Photography: Blog Post Related &emdash; Speak to Me

Speak to Me
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 60mm f/2.8, 1/3200s, f/2.8, ISO 200

 

Escape

Posted by Mike on

In The Yard – ITY64

At times I am an opportunistic photographer, maybe all photographers are to a certain degree. The sky was blue most of the day and it was going to be a bright sunset. I wasn’t decided on where I should go to catch the last of the light when I noticed the yard had dandelions starting to seed. Well, that changed everything.

The macro lens was still on the camera and there were pockets of sunlight streaking through the trees. I didn’t have to give it a second thought… yard exploring it was! I can imagine my fellow residents of the apartment complex were curious as to why this mad man was crawling around the yard on his knees photographing the weeds. 🙂

This image was the first subject I found. I loved the look of one seed caught while trying to escape. The wind was not quit enough to allow it its freedom. Patience rules as it awaits the next strong breeze…

  

MLCreations Photography: Monochrome &emdash; Escape

Escape
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 Macro, 1/125s, f/2.8, ISO 200

 

Muscari

Posted by Mike on

Floral

My trip to the cemetery the other day was very fruitful, photographically, so why not an image that resembles grapes. I’ve posted a few images of these little wildflowers before. The image does nothing the relay their actual size, which, is quit small. A large bloom could be 1.5 – 2″ in height.

Years ago when I first found these little gems I did think they looked like grapes. A quick search on the internet revealed the following:

Muscari is a genus of perennial bulbous plants native to Eurasia that produce spikes of dense, most commonly blue, urn-shaped flowers resembling bunches of grapes in the spring. The common name for the genus is grape hyacinth, but they should not be confused with hyacinths.

I am admittedly clueless when it comes to flowers but I do know what I like to photograph. Each year I can’t wait for these little guys to bloom and the section of the cemetery where they sprout up is starting to get crowded. I’m hoping for a little sun today so I can return to see if any others would like their portrait captured…

  

MLCreations Photography: Floral &emdash; Muscari

Muscari
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 Macro, 1/1250s, f/2.8, ISO 200

 

Slowing It Down

Posted by Mike on

Pixley Falls State Park
Chittenango Falls State Park

I love photographing water. It presents many possibilities that I am unable to ignore. I am also entranced by the sounds of running water and could sit for hours listening to it. I even have a babbling brook soundtrack I play at night that puts me to sleep within minutes.

While I was at Pixley Falls State Park over the weekend I not only captured images of the waterfall, I searched the creeks feeding the falls for isolated mini falls. The morning had progressed enough and allowed the sun to find such a small section of the creek. I played for quite some time trying different angles and compositions. I really loved this almost macro view with the golden sun reflected in the water.

  

MLCreations Photography: Slow &emdash; Gold Flow

Gold Flow
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 0.6s, 34mm, f/8, ISO 200

 

Although I love the waterfalls at Chittenango Falls State Park there is a section of the creek above the falls that is an amazing playground for me. Depending on the time of year and the volume of water flowing through the creek I can lose time exploring every twist, turn and mini waterfall I can find. It also is a lesser explored area of the park and I encounter far fewer people… 😉

I’m lucky enough to have a spot where an outcropping of stone allows me to practically be in the creek to capture the water. The volume was heavy and the water was flowing fast over the weekend as evidenced by the early picture of the main waterfall. I almost converted this image to B&W, which is my go-to process for this type of image. I couldn’t bring myself to use that version, I really liked the changing colors in the turbulent areas of the creek.

  

MLCreations Photography: Slow &emdash; Hasten

Hasten
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 1/8s, 35mm, f/11, ISO 200

Let Me Shine

Posted by Mike on

Squared – SQ141

It was almost too windy to go on a hunt for flowers. I had my doubts I would be able to capture good images while the flowers swayed back and forth. I wasn’t particularly excited by the thought of staying inside another day. After the snow we received on Saturday, I wanted to get out and see some color. I didn’t care if I came home empty handed, at least I would get outside.

I started at my favorite location to find the little wildflowers I typically photograph, the Wright Settlement Cemetery. I have been waiting for the grape hyacinth, and the small white, purple and pink little flowers to take hold in the grass. The first to bloom are the daffodils and then a few weeks later I can capture the little ones fighting with the grass. The snow did not frighten them away…

  

MLCreations Photography: Floral &emdash; Let Me Shine

Let Me Shine
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 60mm f/2.8 Macro, 1/1600s, f/2.8, ISO 200

 

After capturing my images at the cemetery I drove through the city looking for other possibilities. I spotted the tulips along the meridian on Black River Boulevard. I will need to come back when the wind is not as strong, those tall blossoms definitely were dancing to much. I Also spotted some flowering shrubs at Franklyn’s Field. Another possible destination. It appeared as if the city had started planting the flowers but still had more to do. I’ll wait, the colors will be worth it…

Color on Glass

Posted by Mike on

Delta Lake State Park

I mentioned in my ‘…as the sun goes down‘ post, before the sun was in its best position I ran around the water’s edge grabbing long exposure images. Sadly, I realized when I went to process those images that my 10-stop ND filter has a small scratch on it. This creates a very visible sun spot when shooting into the sun.

Sadly, as I researched getting a replacement it appears I bet on the wrong horse. I bought a set of square ND filters with a holder capable of installing a circular polarizer from Vu Filters. I have been very happy with the results. Because I use a micro four thirds system with smaller lenses I did not need big filters and Vu had a 75mm wide system that would be great for all my lenses. Doing a little research, it appears Benro bought out Vu and incorporated the filters into their own line. Hopefully, I can get a replacement without having to switch do a different system.

Luckily, for you I was able to salvage one image from my ruined long exposure fun. I found a grouping of rocks at the edge of the water to use as foreground interest for the color show happening at the horizon. With the clouds partially obscuring the sun combined with 10-stops of light filtering I captured a 30 second exposure. This long exposure smoothed out what little waves were undulating on the water and created a glass-like look reflecting the colors in the sky.

I did minor tweaking to the image in Lightroom sticking with a few adjustments to highlights and shadows. I then processed it in Luminar to enhance the colors, mainly to bring out the blues and brighten the oranges. Add a subtle vignette and the image is ready for display…

  

MLCreations Photography: Blog Post Related &emdash; Color on Glass

Color on Glass
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 30s, 12mm, f/11, ISO 100

 

Roaring Falls

Posted by Mike on

Chittenango Falls State Park

In a previous post I mentioned my adventure at Chittenango Falls State Park earlier this week. The volume of water flowing over the falls was incredible. I generally like to photograph the falls when the amount of water allows me to highlight the cascades. The silky streams of water mesmerize me. I wasn’t sure how the pictures would turn out with this much water but I have to admit I am happy with the result.

Setting up for the image I was worried the highlights in the water would cause me issues, especially having to expose enough for the gorge walls still in shadow. I countered by using my polarizing filter which helped reduce the glare and allowed me to capture this image with one exposure. In the past, as I was beginning to learn, I relied on high dynamic range (HDR) techniques to create my images. When done correctly, the HDR technique can yield amazing results, but I used it as a crutch and at times I ended up washing out an image. I was creating images without a proper balance of light and shadow. You need good shadows to produce an interesting image (IMO).

Considering how bright the sun was shining I threw on my 4-stop ND filter as well to reduce my shutter speed and achieve the blur I wanted in the water. Due to the speed of the water flowing through the creek I did not have to get below 1 second to achieve the my look. This is another area that is subjective to the photographer but I like to be able to see the water flowing. I try not to reduce my shutter so far as to create only a blur of white to represent the water but I also do not want to freeze the water with to fast of a shutter.

This park and the beautiful cascading waterfall is one of my favorite places to go in Central NY…

  

MLCreations Photography: Blog Post Related &emdash; Roaring Falls

Roaring Falls
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, M.. Zuiko 12-40mm f/2.8, 1/5s, 21mm, f/11, ISO 200