Pretzel's Snack-A-Day (365 for 2014)
- Thread starter Pretzel
- Start date
Sorry to hear about Piglet. They are just as much family as the human kind--and quite often much nicer!
I don't think I would have liked this photo at f/8. There's too much in the background that might have been brought more into focus.
Sorry to hear about Piglet. They are just as much family as the human kind--and quite often much nicer!
I don't think I would have liked this photo at f/8. There's too much in the background that might have been brought more into focus.
Yeah, clearer head would have been better, but got a chuckle out of the squirming pooch lickin' my boy's face about 9 dozen times right after this shot.
It was more a shot to make for a bright spot than turn out anything jaw dropping. Gettin' back on track today!Yup, done it plenty times. If you turn your "Man Card" card over, you'll see the fine print that says, it is acceptable to weep like a baby only on two occasions.
When you lose your dog
When you run out of beer.
Seriously , sorry to hear this news.
Day 169 - Lightsphere testing
Ok, two subjects. 1st, my co-worker and "sister by another mister". NO, she's not actually my other sister by way of the milkman (I'm an only child, rofl) but we think so much alike we swear we were twins born in two different families. I coined the phrase off of "brother by another mother" that's so common, and the result was just hilarious in it's implications; we laugh about the phrase all the time.
Bright window background, was excited about the toy so left the camera in aperture mode at ISO 800 where it last was, so I kinda got to test HSS at the same time. I think the results were different enough that it worked well to show the comparison though. (isn't it funny how we temporarily forget EVERYTHING when we have a new gadget??)
ALL SHOTS ARE OOC - the only edit is the addition of my watermark, and in the case of the flowers, all shots were taken from practically the same distance, but cropped to show the details in the flower.
1st shot, no flash.
2nd shot, SB700 with stock diffuser and bounced off the ceiling.
3rd shot, Lightsphere with clear dome, bounced off the ceiling in the same position.
It's obvious that the 1st pic, with the bright background, makes the subject too dark. Ya lose the eyes and shirt color, and it would require quite a bit of editing. The second shot brings out the features, but there's a couple of flash "hot-spots" that would need a bit of work, one of which is on the glasses, and the shirt darkens almost as if there's a bit of vignette. Nice catch-light in the eyes, though, even with the bright background. 3rd pic, still a nice catch-light, but the hot spots are a bit more subdued, plus the shirt maintains it's color a bit better. Not SCIENTIFIC, as like a fool, I didn't shoot all with the same settings, but still...
Now, the flowers after most of the evening light had disappeared. Remembered to switch to manual this time and keep the settings exactly the same (except for the last two, which will be explained). Because of the light conditions, no "without flash pic", and again, all shots are OOC.
1st - on cam SB700 with just the stock diffuser, pointed straight at the bloom. A little blown out, brightness wise.
2nd, Lightsphere with dome mounted "concave" (for close-up shots), pointed straight at the bloom. Much more controlled and non-hot-spottish!
3rd, just to test what the instructions stated (outdoor with bright light, use ISO 100. indoors or with dim light, use ISO 800), same Lightsphere set-up but at ISO 800. Not really sure what the difference was, but it seems just a tad darker. Too many things could have changed to pinpoint precisely, but I think it's safe to say any ISO should work just as well.
Then, just for giggles, this was with the built-in flash. Almost performed like a snoot? A bit underexposed, and definitely pronounced shadows...
What ya think? Overall, for a moderately priced diffuser, I'm a bit pleased with the results!
Gonna see if my boy will let me test on him in a bit.
Ok, two subjects. 1st, my co-worker and "sister by another mister". NO, she's not actually my other sister by way of the milkman (I'm an only child, rofl) but we think so much alike we swear we were twins born in two different families. I coined the phrase off of "brother by another mother" that's so common, and the result was just hilarious in it's implications; we laugh about the phrase all the time.
Bright window background, was excited about the toy so left the camera in aperture mode at ISO 800 where it last was, so I kinda got to test HSS at the same time. I think the results were different enough that it worked well to show the comparison though. (isn't it funny how we temporarily forget EVERYTHING when we have a new gadget??)
ALL SHOTS ARE OOC - the only edit is the addition of my watermark, and in the case of the flowers, all shots were taken from practically the same distance, but cropped to show the details in the flower.
1st shot, no flash.
2nd shot, SB700 with stock diffuser and bounced off the ceiling.
3rd shot, Lightsphere with clear dome, bounced off the ceiling in the same position.
It's obvious that the 1st pic, with the bright background, makes the subject too dark. Ya lose the eyes and shirt color, and it would require quite a bit of editing. The second shot brings out the features, but there's a couple of flash "hot-spots" that would need a bit of work, one of which is on the glasses, and the shirt darkens almost as if there's a bit of vignette. Nice catch-light in the eyes, though, even with the bright background. 3rd pic, still a nice catch-light, but the hot spots are a bit more subdued, plus the shirt maintains it's color a bit better. Not SCIENTIFIC, as like a fool, I didn't shoot all with the same settings, but still...
Now, the flowers after most of the evening light had disappeared. Remembered to switch to manual this time and keep the settings exactly the same (except for the last two, which will be explained). Because of the light conditions, no "without flash pic", and again, all shots are OOC.
1st - on cam SB700 with just the stock diffuser, pointed straight at the bloom. A little blown out, brightness wise.
2nd, Lightsphere with dome mounted "concave" (for close-up shots), pointed straight at the bloom. Much more controlled and non-hot-spottish!
3rd, just to test what the instructions stated (outdoor with bright light, use ISO 100. indoors or with dim light, use ISO 800), same Lightsphere set-up but at ISO 800. Not really sure what the difference was, but it seems just a tad darker. Too many things could have changed to pinpoint precisely, but I think it's safe to say any ISO should work just as well.
Then, just for giggles, this was with the built-in flash. Almost performed like a snoot? A bit underexposed, and definitely pronounced shadows...
What ya think? Overall, for a moderately priced diffuser, I'm a bit pleased with the results!
Gonna see if my boy will let me test on him in a bit.
wreckdiver1321
Senior Member
Very nice, liking your reflector work. Makes everything nice and balanced.
Here's some "portrait" testing using the same manual settings, just for comparison. OOC, uncropped.
1st, SB700 with stock diffuser, on target.
Stock diffuser, bounced at an angle.
Lightsphere, on target.
Lightsphere, bounced at an angle. Best of the shots!
NOW I'm seeing what the lightsphere can do as an improved diffuser. Not a bad investment, IMO. Just a little more testing in different lighting situations, and I think it will become a fairly valuable piece of my kit.
1st, SB700 with stock diffuser, on target.
Stock diffuser, bounced at an angle.
Lightsphere, on target.
Lightsphere, bounced at an angle. Best of the shots!
NOW I'm seeing what the lightsphere can do as an improved diffuser. Not a bad investment, IMO. Just a little more testing in different lighting situations, and I think it will become a fairly valuable piece of my kit.
Day 170 - BLACK GOLD!!!
No, really... it's the Black Gold Festival that's held every year in a nearby community. My InFocus life group from church met here tonight for our "shoot it" night, and I got a few worth messing with. There will be several posts, but here are the first 3 from BEFORE the sun went down.
1st, one of the ladies ran into another mom she knew, who gave us permission to catch a shot or two of this lovely little lady. I think she was having fun!
Since I was at the carousel, I ran across this guy who claimed to be the "King of the Carousel", but it turns out he was just joking. Imagine that!
Waiting for it to SLOWLY get dark... I kept testing longer exposures when this family came and sat down for a bit. Made for an interesting shot that I simply call "Watching".
No, really... it's the Black Gold Festival that's held every year in a nearby community.
My InFocus life group from church met here tonight for our "shoot it" night, and I got a few worth messing with. There will be several posts, but here are the first 3 from BEFORE the sun went down.1st, one of the ladies ran into another mom she knew, who gave us permission to catch a shot or two of this lovely little lady. I think she was having fun!
Since I was at the carousel, I ran across this guy who claimed to be the "King of the Carousel", but it turns out he was just joking. Imagine that!
Waiting for it to SLOWLY get dark... I kept testing longer exposures when this family came and sat down for a bit. Made for an interesting shot that I simply call "Watching".
Day 170 continued...
Of course, *I* was there for the after dark shots (which I've become enchanted with lately), and where better to start than with the Ferris Wheel?
One of my faves from the night... I call it "Operator".
Funny story to the next two shots. Not sure if you can see the bucket in this pic (it's much easier to see in the full blown version), but on the way out, I noticed one of the carnies using it to pour bleach water into one of the cars... so I asked another nearby carnie, "Does that mean what I think it means?" His answer? "Yup. Third time tonight, too!"
I had a pic of the ride from just moments before, though, and for the life of me, I can't figure out WHY the cars would need to be cleaned so often... can you!?
Of course, *I* was there for the after dark shots (which I've become enchanted with lately), and where better to start than with the Ferris Wheel?
One of my faves from the night... I call it "Operator".
Funny story to the next two shots. Not sure if you can see the bucket in this pic (it's much easier to see in the full blown version), but on the way out, I noticed one of the carnies using it to pour bleach water into one of the cars... so I asked another nearby carnie, "Does that mean what I think it means?" His answer? "Yup. Third time tonight, too!"
I had a pic of the ride from just moments before, though, and for the life of me, I can't figure out WHY the cars would need to be cleaned so often... can you!?
Day 170 - Final post...
Along with "Operator", these last two snaps (well, multiple variations on two snaps) finish out my fave 3.
I first thought I'd simply title this one as "Waiting", but the more I look at it... it strikes me more as "Lonely". Thoughts?
Here's a closer crop, which I also like, although not as much as the one above.
THEN, to finish it out, there's this shot, which became my OVER ALL fave for the night. I stepped out of my comfort zone and asked one of the ladies in the face painting booth if we could snap a couple of shots, then asked her for a specific pose and got in close. The first shot is the original with just a small contrast and clarity adjustment.
Then come the two edits that tugged at me. Here's the first of those...
...but it's this last B&W edit that I think won me over as the best.
Along with "Operator", these last two snaps (well, multiple variations on two snaps) finish out my fave 3.
I first thought I'd simply title this one as "Waiting", but the more I look at it... it strikes me more as "Lonely". Thoughts?
Here's a closer crop, which I also like, although not as much as the one above.
THEN, to finish it out, there's this shot, which became my OVER ALL fave for the night. I stepped out of my comfort zone and asked one of the ladies in the face painting booth if we could snap a couple of shots, then asked her for a specific pose and got in close. The first shot is the original with just a small contrast and clarity adjustment.
Then come the two edits that tugged at me. Here's the first of those...
...but it's this last B&W edit that I think won me over as the best.
Day 172 - Cousins! (A whole day with family)
Not formal pics, but rather just in "snapshot" mode for the day, but came up with a few that I enjoyed messing with.
BUBBLES!
Watchin' it all the way into the glove. Such discipline for a T-Ball player!
Before the pitch even gets there, this look says, "Don't even try to catch this one... It's GONE!"
Time to bring the heat on ol' pops!
Puttin' it all into the swing!
...and finally, some trampoline fun! (ugh, that safety net)
Not formal pics, but rather just in "snapshot" mode for the day, but came up with a few that I enjoyed messing with.
BUBBLES!
Watchin' it all the way into the glove. Such discipline for a T-Ball player!
Before the pitch even gets there, this look says, "Don't even try to catch this one... It's GONE!"
Time to bring the heat on ol' pops!
Puttin' it all into the swing!
...and finally, some trampoline fun! (ugh, that safety net)