A friend asked me about using a zoom lens, so I collected a few shots that demonstrate effects I sometimes seek. Other than the obvious—increasing size when I can’t get closer—there are a number of things a long lens does that can actually make it worth walking farther away from the subject. Read on
Category Archives: Photography
HDR at Mt Lemmon
We were delighted to see trees, water, and, yes, even snow on our visit to Mount Lemmon today. About an hour north of Tucson, the Catalina Highway winds 26 miles through Coronado National Forest, climbing about 6,000 feet up the Santa Catalina Mountains to the village of Summerhaven atop Mt. Lemmon at 9,100 feet. Ski Valley, the southernmost ski destination in the USA, was closed for lack of snow, but we enjoyed a chat with the caretaker who cheerfully filled us in. The big story was the Aspen Fire of 2003 which destroyed over 90% of the area’s buildings, leaving only 20 residents today compared to some 2000 before the fire. Touring with friends Terry and Sue is always fun, and pizza at The Cookie Cabin was great. You can see some of the pretty vistas in the 12-02-29 Mt Lemmon album.
Continuing my HDR experiment (see previous post), I made several images that, as seen in the side-by-side comparisons below, Read on
HDR at Pima Air & Space Museum
Our visit to the Pima Air & Space Museum on Friday produced the usual (for me) dichotomy of feelings: awe and pride for our country’s military prowess and accomplishments, interwoven with a profound sadness that we do not find ways to direct more our formidable ingenuity, resourcefulness and will toward the good of mankind instead of its destruction. Sigh.
The time was enhanced by good friends Terry & Sue Baughman and Jim Zimmerman. Jim further spiced up an already interesting day by sharing many of his experiences as an Air Force mechanic before the start of his farming career, and as a restoration volunteer at this museum since his retirement.
The day also produced lots of photos. I frequently thought of Susi’s dad, Tom, who has taken me to many an air museum throughout the years, which further pushed me to try and get the best images I could. Tom, I hope you enjoy the images in this 02-24 Pima Air Museum album.
Several of these images were produced with HDR photography (i.e., High Dynamic Range, Read on
Michele Sibiloni on Photojournalism
On October 14, 2011, The New York Times front page highlighted a Michele Sibiloni image captioned Economic Woes in a Ugandan Market. Included was a reference to a Josh Kron story by on page A5 titled Discontent Simmers in a Market as Uganda’s Economy Staggers that was accompanied by another of Michele’s pictures. The associated web slide show, Economic Malaise in Uganda, includes both of these photographs along with seven additional related ones. This strong package impels one to ask, “How did he capture all of these stunning images?” Fortunately, Michele graciously responded by my inquiry with many details that provide both illumination and inspiration.
Michele gives Josh credit for initiating this story about the effect of Uganda’s economic malaise on the shopkeepers in downtown Kampala’s Kiseka market. He goes on to say that it is something every journalist—whether working in “photo-video-text or whatever”—must know, just because they live there and talk to people all the time. So, while we might wonder about the development of these stunning images, he compares them to the everyday job of a journalist in the USA covering any running economic issue such as Occupy Wall Street.