Project 2013 - Weekly Photos

[Geoff F]

Following on from the Project 52 challenge last year, I'm intending to do the same thing again and post at least one image each week.

UK weather (dull and damp) plus other commitments have caused a rather slow start but I hope to post regularly once the conditions improve.

Peter is also continuing with this idea. Project 2013 by Letrow

Anybody else wanting a challenge can start their own thread.

Week 01 - Christmas Lights



7D with 24-105 L lens 1/4 F5.6 Iso 1600 obviously on a tripod. A lower Iso and slower shutter speed would have been better. But this display was moving in the wind so even this shutter speed was a challenge.

Like many small towns, money for decorative winter lighting is rather restricted. This is one of the larger displays. Actually getting a clear sky with moonlight on the sea was a real bonus!

Week 01 - Frances



7D with 24-105 L 1/5 F4.5 Iso 1600.

There was a bit of movement with this boat due to the stormy conditions so I was struggling to select some workable camera settings

I started last year's project with this decorated ex fishing boat. Same position but slightly different conditions.

[Geoff F]

Did a little bit of voluntary work at a wildlife site - cleaning out the bird nest boxes.

When I arrived I found this scene from one angle but it meant standing on a hedge between trees.



1/30 F11 Iso 400. 40D with Canon 70-300 (the older version)

Expecting rain, which soon came, I didn't bring any good camera gear; so used this older equipment which I always carry in my vehicle.

Handheld, so 1/30 was a bit of a mistake, but the lens stabilisation just managed to save the day.

ps. most of the nest boxes had been used during the previous summer. And yes, we did end up getting soaked!

[Bobobird]

Interesting idea.

I might just move over the JanuWednesday project when it is done and continue on that.

That 3rd image is really nice. I like the layers in the background and those perfectly placed butts in the fore.

[Letrow]

Week 01 - Christmas Lights




Week 01 - Frances

I really like the night shots Geoff. I tried this with my Ricoh GX200 and got quite decent results, but I have to see whether the D600 comes out as well.
You have beautiful colours in there.

[Geoff F]

Had another non payment commission this week - photographing the boat in week 01 for advertising a money making scheme which the owner has developed!

While doing that, one of the local rowing gigs went past, so I managed a few quick snaps.



7D with 24-105 lens. 1/640 F11 Iso 400.

And a close up of the rowers.



1/500 F11 Iso 400

Low angle sun at 90 degrees.

Anyone who is familiar with rowing might notice something 'odd' about this particular 'team'.

[Lon Howard]

Geoff I am NOT familiar with rowing but how about the fact that there are three rowers on one side and only two on the other? Wouldn't the two have to work harder than the three ... but the fact they have to sit sideways means they lose power so how can that happen?

I do like the way the foreground is lighted up on the Misty Morning shot ... makes a dreary day look almost sunny. Agree with Bobo about the layers there.

[Brownbear]

I love the colours in Frances (your night shots are truly lovely) and I especially like the 2nd shot of the rowers and how you caught the expressions of the ladies and the feeling of work. The colours are also very beautiful in this shot.

[Letrow]

It looks like they are applying the brakes Geoff. And they could have done with one rower less. I don't think that they are lacking one rower.
But the suspense is killing me...tell me your thoughts. Nice colours by the way.

[Geoff F]

These boats, designed on Cornish Pilot Boats, normally have 6 rowers but it looks as though only 5 turned up that day.

No real problem, place the two strongest rowers on the same side. Being rather long boats and having a rudder makes them fairly easy to keep straight.

I took about 5 photos of the rowers as they passed closer to me and got a few 'strained expressions' but couldn't get all their faces together until they had passed and I was shooting from behind them.

ps. A little snow was suggested for today, but nothing has arrived so far.

[Geoff F]

No snow just more rain here. Eventually we had a day when the rain stopped for a few hours, but it remained overcast and hazy.

Most fields/paths and similar places are saturated with water so I had a look at the Fish Quay instead. And being low tide just adds to the greyness and gloom.



7D with Canon 24-105 L lens 1/60 F8 Iso 400.

Think I may have posted the wrong edit here; this slightly darker version is the one I intended to use.



Quayside workers are moving crabs from the transportation crates and placing them into a floating storebox. The boat alongside has just arrived here after being purchased from the nearby port of Dartmouth.

This couple of retired fishermen have grey hair; although one has it partially hidden under a bright hat.



1/100 F8 Iso 800

A quick snap when I saw a potential scene; and even the background vehicles are grey!. Tried a few crops but eventually settled for this one. The distracting parts of the background vehicles are hidden and there are enough crabpots stacked on the right side to place the scene into context.

And a grey bird - a juvenile Herring Gull searching for something edible amongst fishing gear.



1/80 F8 Iso 800

But we are past the shortest day, so brighter weather is coming - eventually!

[Letrow]

They like their bright colours down there, don't they?
It is really a pity that you have that grey weather. I am looking at that shot of the two blokes, which is great. With a bit more colour it would be even better.
That water is pretty bleak to look at. Have you ever tried a polarizing filter there to deepen the colours a bit. Can be used on overcast days as well, so might help in getting a bit more vibrance.

[Geoff F]

Looks like I uploaded the wrong photo, Peter.

I did a couple of different edits to a few shots and was originally going to use a different shot. Then decided that I liked the reflection better with this shot. I have added the intended image next to the previous version.

Problems with Tinypics uploading so I went to my P base gallery and moved the photos around then linked again. So the previous upload may disappear. I'm struggling all round at the moment!

Still can't upload so I've placed the images into a CinC gallery and will link from there but this may reduce image quality with this slightly too large files.

The water was bleak, and I intended to create a drab looking scene. A lot of brown water, mixed with soil, has been washed from nearby fields so it was a bit 'soupy' in places and grey elsewhere.

From the original Raw file.



With the fishermen photo, I tried to keep it looking a bit darkish so the distant haze would look natural then slightly brightened their faces. But I have also produced an alternative where I have brightened everything then subtracted excessive bright areas.



Fishermens clothing tends to be produced in America or Norway and they seem to like bright colours. Although there is a safety reason for using easily seen clothing.

I mostly used French (Guy Coten) waterproofs which were a plainer yellow.

Will try to add the photos later.

[Lon Howard]

Geoff, I like the second edit on the fishermen all around. You're right about the water showing up better on the darker version of the first one though I would have brightened the rest of the scene just a little ... just not to the extent of the first one; possibly wouldn't have turned out as drab looking as you wanted, however. Nice winter portrayals, could have been taken right where I live ... water, boats, crab, drab and all.

[Letrow]

The second batch looks better Geoff, especially the first photo. The second one was already ok for me, but this is good as well.

[Geoff F]

Just been trying to put everything in order now that I am able to directly upload.

Had a little experiment with using the polarizer today.

Final edits worked out virtually identical with regard to brightness, saturation, sharpness etc but there was noticeably less noise on the polarizer shots; although the exposure time was considerably reduced.

I've posted the results in a separate post.

Polarizers and Image Noise

[Geoff F]

Week 5 - Signs of Spring

Saturday was a bright and sunny day - and I spent all of it in a Local History Society meeting, looking enviously out of the window.

Earlier in the week, between showers, I had a quick look around the garden and found a few hopeful signs of better times to come.



Camelia buds. 1/125 F14 Iso 800. I didn't want to reduce my shutter speed due to potential wind movement.

Spot metered on the brightest areas, produced 2 Raw conversions with different exposures etc then combined them plus a few other tweaks.

Mahonia. Always a welcomed bit of brightness in those bleak winter days.



1/320 F14 Iso 200. Spot metered. Another double Raw conversion plus some tweaks to remove or tone down the hotspots which remained.

I wanted to get a mix of delicate pale yellow flowers amongst the strong dark green distinctive foliage; and a little winter sun. But I always struggle with this plant.

All taken with 7D and 24-105 L lens, on tripod. Took several shots with different settings, but these were the best.

[Brownbear]

Lovely flowers, beautiful photos. It is nice to see a sample of a photo where you have used spot metering and I see no noise even at iso 800, and a tight crop? which I presume reflects on your perfect exposure?

Why did you use just iso 200 in the second shot? ie; your still shooting at F14 and you're using a faster shutter speed, but you dropped the iso? Somehow I've turned your project into another lesson in photography for me.

[Geoff F]

There was better light in the second shot, Christina. If I could have lowered the Iso in the first one I would have done it. But I was trying to avoid over exposure on some shiny leaves by positioning my head between the sun and subject.

Sometimes a bit of sun blocking is needed with plant photos.

And using two Raw conversions meant that the buds were converted from Raw with different exposure, then combined with a mask.

Also, I used the old trick of going over any slightly noisy areas with a little bit of Blur Brush. Usually 20 or 30% opacity works well.

[Brownbear]

Thank you, as always.

[Letrow]

One of my books says that you have to meter for the green Geoff and then underexpose by 2/3. Maybe that would have helped the second photo exposure. Now the yellow disappears a bit. The first one is great though. Sharp, colours bright. I liked that one.
But green foliage is difficult to get right apparently.