Category Archives: Photography

Art, Photoshop, Railroad, Road Trip

High Winds

7 Comments

When I woke up and drove to work this morning, the winds and the sky were amazing. I had to stop the car and take a picture.

Unfortunately, because the earliness of the morning and the darkness of the clouds and not having the right equipment, I instead cracked out my easel and painted the scene before hopping back in my car and finishing my daily commute.


I figured I better get this scene recorded, in case nature came back and finished off what it left of Jordan.

PARTICULARS

CAMERA: SONY SLT-A65V
ISO: 1600
FOCAL LENGTH: 35mm
APERTURE: f/5.6
EXPOSURE: 1/30
DATE: 08/11/2016 – 06:46
LATITUDE: 42.05237°
LONGITUDE: -93.81548°
PHOTO ASSISTANT: Time
PHOTO EDITING SOUNDTRACK: American Dominance

Also, I might have touched this in Photoshop a little bit.

Automobiles, Formal Portrait, Gretchen, Sara, Shawn Lockner

Jay Leno’s Jealousy

5 Comments

I was recently tapped to do a photo shoot of the Junck family and their newest old timey firetruck.

This photo of Gretchen is one of my favorites from the day:


I’ll probably share a few more from this photo shoot at some point.

PARTICULARS

CAMERA: SONY SLT-A65V
ISO: 100
FOCAL LENGTH: 20mm
APERTURE: f/8
EXPOSURE: 1/125
DATE: 07/31/2016 – 12:18
LATITUDE: 42.02893°
LONGITUDE: -94.04409°
PHOTO ASSISTANT: SARA AND SHAWN
PHOTO EDITING SOUNDTRACK: The quiet murmur of world-class support.

Angie, Bill, Carla, Dawn, Iowa State, Kim, Monica, Steph, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 47 – ARCHITECTURE

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Quite a large selection of submissions this week. It is almost as if THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE has hit its stride. I hope that there is this much passion in the middle of winter!

Dawn has made her first submission(s). I expect big things from her in the future!

Here are the submissions for ARCHITECTURE:


WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - ANGIE DEWAARD
Angie DeWaard

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - CARLA STENSLAND 1
Carla Stensland 1

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - CARLA STENSLAND 2
Carla Stensland 2

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - CARLA STENSLAND 3
Carla Stensland 3

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - DAWN KRAUSE 1
Dawn Krause 1

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - DAWN KRAUSE 2
Dawn Krause 2

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - DAWN KRAUSE 3
Dawn Krause 3

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - BILL WENTWORTH
Bill Wentworth

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - MONICA KEWER 1
Monica Kewer 1

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - MONICA KEWER 2
Monica Kewer 2

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE, MONICA KEWER 3
Monica Kewer 3

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - MONICA KEWER 4
Monica Kewer 4

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - MONICA KEWER 5
Monica Kewer 5

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - MIKE VEST
Mike Vest

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - STEPHANIE KIM 1
Stephanie Kim 1

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - STEPHANIE KIM 2
Stephanie Kim 2

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - STEPHANIE KIM 3
Stephanie Kim 3

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - KIM BARKER
Kim Barker

WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

While I know most people will appreciate my throw away ARCHITECTURE pictures to my submission, but that is okay. I’m dedicating it to somebody, with whom, I have a special relationship.

That being said, a very solid week of submissions. I’m proud of all of us, everyone.

But enough dwelling on the past. Time to look to the future. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future! This week’s theme:


WEEK 48 - SPORTS
SPORTS!

But what are SPORTS?

Well, one definition would be:

“an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.”

But of course another would be:

“a person who behaves in a good or specified way in response to teasing, defeat, or a similarly trying situation.”

So go out an do some physical exertion, or bully somebody. Do whatever it takes? Or define the theme in any way you see fit!

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nobody this week showed class, taste or sophistication by signing up for a Photography 139 Email Subscription. I’ll try to do better next week.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS REMINDER DIVISION

Just a reminder, that if you ever want to look back at previous submissions for the WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, visit the Gallery by clicking on the link below:

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE TAKE 3

That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very sporty Monday.

Photoshop, Self-Portrait

Bette Davis Eyes

9 Comments

So, back to Photoshop School…

The newest release of Photoshop has 2 new features. The one I will discuss today is the new LIQUIFY FACE feature.

Under this new feature, you can adjust the following on a face:

Eyes
-Size
-Height
-Width
-Tilt
-Distance

Nose
-Height
-Width

Mouth
-Smile
-Upper Lip
-Lower Lip
-Mouth Width
-Height

Face Shape
-Forehead
-Chin Height
-Jawline
-Face Width

Because of that, in the matter of moments, you can make a picture that looks like this:


I assume that most of you remember me enough to know that I don’t normally look like that. I hope I definitely don’t normally look that tired.

Maybe we’ll take a look at the new Smart Cropping Tool in the future. Maybe not. We’ll see what the future holds.

Postcard

Proof of Concept

4 Comments

I’ve been playing with the idea of finally coming out with Series #2 of the Photography 139 Postcard Line lately. Even though, I still have plenty of Series #1 in stock. Although the daisy postcard is nearly sold out.

Another bugaboo is that the retail outlet where I was selling Series #1 recently folded up shop, so all the postcards currently are just sitting in my living room, collecting dust and the occasional dog hair. Or maybe it is collecting dog hair and the occasional piece of dust.

Either way, I’ve decided to forge ahead with Series #2. These will be based on those vintage postcards that always said “Greetings from…” on them. You know what I’m talking about.

I’m not ready to reveal Series #2 yet, because they aren’t designed (or necessarily) even shot yet. However, I’ve been working on some designs to see if this was even viable.

Here is a look at some very raw designs (ignore what pictures are being used) to prove that the concept was viable:








This new project will probably take quite some time, but it might also lead to a new image to display at Salon 908.

Becky, Bill, Carla, Jesse, Kim, Sara, Shannon, Steph, Still Life, WPC - Submissions

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 46 – ART

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A few of the regulars were missing this week, but there were still plenty of submissions for ART!

The submissions for ART:


WEEK 46 - ART - BILL WENTWORTH
Bill Wentworth

WEEK 46 - ART - CARLA STENSLAND 1
Carla Stensland 1

WEEK 46 - ART - CARLA STENSLAND 2
Carla Stensland 2

WEEK 46 -ART - STEPHANIE KIM 1
Stephanie Kim 1

WEEK 46 - ART - STEPHANIE KIM 2
Stephanie Kim 2

WEEK 46 - ART - STEPHANIE KIM 3
Stephanie Kim 3

WEEK 46 - ART - SHANNON BARDOLE
Shannon Bardole

WEEK 46 - ART - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

WEEK 46 - ART - SARA LOCKNER
Sara Lockner

WEEK 46 - ART - BECKY PERKOVICH
Becky Perkovich

WEEK 46 - ART - KIM BARKER 1
Kim Barker 1

WEEK 46 - ART - KIM BARKER 2
Kim Barker 2

WEEK 46 - ART - KIM BARKER 3
Kim Barker 3

Another solid week of submissions! I feel like this little project is starting to gain some steam. I know that there somebody out there that badly wanted this to return should start submitting soon, now that she is done with school. Hint-hint!

But enough dwelling on the past. Time to look to the future. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future! This week’s theme:


WEEK 47 - ARCHITECTURE
ARCHITECTURE!

But what is this ARCHITECTURE you speak of? According to Wikipedia:

“Architecture” can mean:

+ A general term to describe buildings and other physical structures.[3]
+ The art and science of designing buildings and (some) nonbuilding structures.[3]
+ The style of design and method of construction of buildings and other physical structures.[3]
+ Knowledge of art, science, technology and humanity.[3]
+ The practice of the architect, where architecture means offering or rendering professional services in connection with the design and construction of buildings, or built environments.[4]
+ The design activity of the architect,[3] from the macro-level (urban design, landscape architecture) to the micro-level (construction details and furniture).

For our purposes, I’d say that you should go out and find a building, a staircase, a bridge, a road, or something that was built by humans (or ancient aliens) that is interesting. Or at least take an interesting photograph of such a structure. However. As always. Define the theme any way that you want.

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

This was a big week for the PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION. Thanks to Sara Lockner*, (PHOTOGRAPHY 139 STAR OF THE WEEK) not one, not two, but three people showed their class, taste, and sophistication by becoming Photography 139 email subscribers. So if you see Shawn walking the mean streets of Johnston or Steve and Jessica walking the mean streets of Burnsville, Minnesota feel free to give them a knowing glance and feel free to show them the super-secret Photography 139 handshake.

Because my day job lunch hour is growing short, I won’t going into much details about these great, grand, and wonderful people. It is enough to say that Shawn is married to Sara, so he is a winner at life. Steve is a Cyclone and I hope he joins us for a tailgate this Fall. Jessica is a leather artist of some note as well. Maybe she is a future submitter to the WEEKLY PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE!?!?

This means that I believe there are now 5 married couples that are Photography 139 email subscribers. This also makes 4 Photography 139 email subscribers in Burnsville, Minnesota and 3 Photography 139 email subscribers in Johnston, Iowa. For those of you checking your Photography 139 Heat Maps. Those towns are on fire!

That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very architectural Monday.

*First trip to that taco bar is on me!