A Long Time Coming

I say in the title it has been a long time coming because it feels like ages since I just got outside and walked around to take personal photos, not something I'm paid to do. Don't get me wrong, I love paid work and I hope it only gets busier, but everyone now and again I need to get out and shoot for myself. That is exactly what I did this evening. 

Originally, I wanted my wife Anne to join me but she just wasn't feel up for it. So because it was just me, I decided to make it into a photo walk. I grabbed my trusty X-Pro2 which I have been neglecting for quite some time. I usually use my Nikon gear for all my paid work. I had the X-Pro2 paired with the 35mm 1.4, which is probably my favourite lens out of any I own. I just love the character and tones it creates.

As with most of my photo walks, I don't really plan a route. I did want to end up at Calico for a cappuccino, so that was my destination. The good thing about this time of year is that the sun is low around 5:00pm which makes for soft(er) light. So I was able to play with some shadows that weren't too harsh. I didn't really focus on people like I have done in the past, but my favourite shot of the walk was actually of a person. Go figure. The header image of the man on his phone against the wall, was literally shot from the hip as I was walking. I didn't want to stop and compose because I liked how he was looking down.

The rest of the photos in this series were just things that caught my eye, whether it was based on colour, pattern or sometimes shadows. Everything here was processed in Lightroom and the black and white images were done through Silver Efex Pro which I really hope doesn't fade away anytime soon as a program.

Thanks for viewing!

Along the Neebing River

Since I am going on more and more photo walks these days, it's often a challenge to choose fresh and new locations to explore. I had walked around Friendship Gardens last summer but I didn't really get the chance to explore too much of the trail that runs along the Needing River. That's what I decided to check out for my most recent walk. With me for this one was my newest addition to the family, the Nikon d750 and the only lens I currently have for it, the 50mm 1.8. Even though it's a DSLR, this combo is extremely light and I simply use a wrist strap to carry it around. That's even with the battery grip. I can't wait to put this puppy to the test for wedding season. 

Back to the walk... I started off where all the new construction is by the retirement home. I basically weaved in and out of the trail and side roads eventually ending up at the Delaney baseball fields. I did venture into Friendship Gardens for a short while but made sure to check out some areas I hadn't yet explored. As usual, I just shot whatever caught my eye. As you can tell, for most of my photos, I have the lens aperture wide open to blur out any background. For one of the cheapest prime lenses you can by, the 50mm 1.8 on the 750, produces superb results. All the processing was done in Lightroom in my usual style. Thanks for reading!

Almost too cold to take photos .... almost

This winter has taken a turn and it has been very cold. That's not good when you actually want to do something outside, but I decided to defy the extreme temperature, grab my camera, and wander around aimlessly looking for things to photograph. After meeting Anne for lunch at Cronos Cafe, I dropped her off, parked the car and began my cold and brief venture in downtown Fort William. 

Instead of my usual X-T1, I decided to pull out the X-E1 paired with the 35mm. I had forgotten how capable of a camera it is. Just like with all Fuji cameras I own, the colours straight out of the camera are superb. The first 10 minutes of the walk weren't too bad but then I started feeling the cold, especially on the face. Instead of giving in I just decided to keep walking and hopefully that would warm me up a bit. It didn't. Regardless, I managed to explore for about 25 minutes. 

I didn't really have anything specific in mind, as usual I just captured what caught my eye. I finished off my walk around the train yard on Simpson Street and did some in camera double exposures. Some of them turned out pretty good. It's usually a hit and miss kind of thing but fun as hell to try. If your camera has the option, next time you are out and about and looking for something different, give it a shot. 

Thanks for viewing!

Trip to Kakabeka

With some slightly better weather finally here me and my Fiancé Anne, managed to drive to Kakabeka. As we have done before during visits there, we grabbed a bit to eat at the Metropolitan Moose. It's a wonderful Cafe that has some really good food. My camera of choice today was a Nikon D610 and my Nikon 50mm 1.8. It's a relatively light combo and paired with my Black Rapid strap, it's very easy to carry around. 

Before heading out on our trip I set it to Auto ISO and kept it on Aperture Priority mode. Every once in a while I would use Manual but it was really needed. All the photos in this post were also taken with natural light, no flash. A lot of the indoor shots were actually right around the 6400 ISO mark and they came out really good. I did use a bit of noise reduction in Lightroom but I actually don't mind the noise produced by the D610. I don't know if I would go any higher then 6400 ISO, but I'm sure it's manageable. 

Before leaving the cafe, I got a couple quick photos of some of the vintage objects around the property, including a bicycle and car. I could probably spend a good 2 hours there but we didn't exactly have the time. Plus, Anne is very patient when I take photos, but that would be drawing the line.

It was then off to Kakabeka Falls. As usual, Anne was my personal model. I'm always taking photos of her. Not only is it good practice, as I am always trying new things, but it's also fun as she is the prettiest girl I know! Plus, she's a good sport. 

All the outdoor shots were shot at low apertures. That's just my preference, especially for portraits. Even with a relatively cheap lens like the 50mm 1.8, you can get some fantastic photos with it. That's probably why I use it a lot during my wedding and portrait sessions. That, and it's very light.

I was amazed that the Falls were still frozen. I managed to get a couple shots so you can get a general idea of what it looks like. I do wish I brought my wide angle lens, perhaps next time. 

Anybody looking to learn more about photography reading this post, the best advice I can give you is that you really don't need much to take good photos. Even though I am using a full frame camera, you can get similar photos on any one of the lower end models, in any camera system.

Of course, all the photos below have been processed to my style in Lightroom. I tend to lean towards a bluer tone and a lot of times I actually add a bit of noise to give my photos a bit more character. That's just a personal preference though. Stay tuned for my future post which will show how I edit photos in Lightroom. I might even start testing out the waters on offering some free and paid presets. 

Any comments or questions are always welcome. Enjoy!