The Tourists
I guess it is time to confess that I owe Bob Lussier a high quality IPA for letting me borrow his Sigma 15mm while we were in Moab. When we started this trip, we made a rule that the first person who had to ask for gear from a camera bag that was not their own would have to buy the first round. We did break this rule, as it ultimately was determined that it stifled creativity, but I will honor my word and buy that man a cold brew the next time I see him. I will even do it with a smile…cuz I’m nice like that ;)
As for the lens itself, man did that sucker impress the crap out of me. I never thought that I would be contemplating anything wider than my 35mm, but after gracing my D700 with that sucker, I found a new love. It does take some getting used to however. In all honesty, I lost a few shots as my skill with how much that puppy takes in was too powerful for my skillset. I never realized how many shadows, tripod legs, and photog bums I snagged while learning this new glass. In fact, I still had to crop out my own tripod shadow in this shot, as I just could not get it to go away. Yup, it is just that much lens!
However, after a few tries I began to figure it out and walked away with this one piece of loveliness. There is probably no way I would have ever nailed this image without the help from Bob and Sigma. Well I might have snagged something similar, but the grand scale would be lost in a re-composition. So, Bob, thank you!
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/250sec at f/8
Lens: Sigma 15mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: The setting sun
The 2013 nXnw Pros
To say I had fun in Moab would be to sell the trip short. Not even lack of sleep could slow us down or dampen our spirits over the four days of photography greatness. While most of us had never met in person when this trip began, I believe we all left with memories we will soon not forget and new friendships forged. It was nothing short of pure awesomeness. So today, I would like to introduce you to the other six guys who were the reason this trip rocked.
Mike Criswell
Mike is a fairly quiet guy. He is also one of two Canon photographers on this trip. Mike was always calm, could drop a good joke when the time called for it, and just an all-around nice person. I will also say that I am totally jealous of his t-shirt collection. Seriously, this guy brought some of the most badass shirts!
Bob Lussier
Bob is the one other person that would venture to the edge of the earth to snag his shot. Seriously, we have so many images of Bob and his tripod setup at the edge of some cliff. I also owe this man a beer or six thanks to him letting me borrow his Sigma 15mm, of which I’ll be posting some results next week. Now, if only he could come to the realization that a stout is far superior to and IPA.
Mark Garbowski
I have been chatting with Mark on social media for some time. To be honest, he is one of my biggest sources of inspiration to get back to working out once this housework in Madison is over. I think we both started to read one another’s minds after a bit as we would both start oohing and aahing at the same sights.
Dave Wilson
Ah the Scotsman. I wanted to steal his Fuji X20 so badly. Dave is one of the sole reasons there are actually group shots of us at various places in Moab. He also loves the fact that some of us snagged photos of him all thug like with his hat backwards while he worked his magic with the camera.
Justin Balog
Justin is like the ball of positivity and excitement of the trip. This dude got up and made everyone coffee before the ass-crack of dawn, carted us around, and just rocked the whole trip. While he may be “no Brad Pitt”, he rocked the camera every time we aimed at him. Justin also makes me excited to ride my bike once again.
Rick Louie
I owe Rick quite a bit of gratitude. This dude snagged me from the airport, put me up at his home, carted me all over Moab, and was just extremely generous all around. Rick is also the reason we started calling one another pro. You see he busted out all kinds of pro gear like graduated filters and polarizers. Even half-awake, he took us to new places to shoot and encouraged us to have fun and shoot whatever we wanted.
Thank you gents for one hell of a great time. I am so ready for 2014 now!
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: Magic
Lens: That big one
ISO: Somewhere between 1 and 25,000
Lighting: Burning Unicorn dust
Unstoppable Legend
I think it is time for one of those “just for fun” kind of posts. I freely admit that I miss my Jeep Wrangler something fierce. Something about going off road with the top down and doors off just tugs at my heart strings. One day I hope to snag another one of these off-roading icons.
I don’t know why, but this shot just felt like it needed to be made into an advertisement. So, not one to argue with what the image wants. I went ahead and slapped on some advertising lingo and away it went. Hey, it’s all about having fun!
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/500 sec at f/8
Lens: 35mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: Sun, and lots of it
Delicately Painting with Light
It looks like I have a bit of a double post today, but for a good reason. The bonus here is because the nXnw pro photographers by the name of Justin Balog, Mike Criswell, Bob Lussier, Rick Louie, Dave Wilson, and Mark Garbowski all posted their light painting images last week. You can check them out on their respective blogs. Sadly, I was not able to participate in the mass internet spamming as I was in Madison and my photos were chilling out in Ames. Well, today I get to correct that.
The first image is that of Delicate Arch. I decided to go against the norm on this frame and go all monochrome with it. What I like about this is that it makes the texture on the rock stick out, along with adding a bit of emphasis on the stars. The best part about this image is that it was just the beginning of one heck of a fun night. Also, yes, that 1.5-mile hike back down to the cars in the dark was super fun!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 33 sec at f/6.3
Lens: 60mm
ISO: 1000
Lighting: Flashlights
Once we finished with Delicate Arch, we decided to hit up one last spot for a bit more light painting. Rick was kind enough to take us to Double Arch. Here, I got to light that spectacular place up with the massive flashlight that Rick had. While I worked that light like a Jedi Master, the others shot some frames and came away with some great work.
Now it was my turn to have a go at snagging an image. The moon was just starting to bathe the monument in its glorious splendor. So, I setup a few toys and let the natural light provide me all that I would need. I wish I had a wider lens so that more of Double Arch would be in the frame, but I made do with what I had. Yup, this shot is 100% pure moonlight. What a crazy cool night this was.
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 62 sec at f/4
Lens: 35mm
ISO: 2000
Lighting: The pale moon light
BOOM! I’m Done Here!
Imagine that you are setting up a shot while sprawled out on the ground. There are two photographers to your left and one on your right. You set your props in place, making sure the backdrop is in order and looking fly. You finesse a damn fine comp in your viewfinder, dial in those ever-important camera settings, and press that shutter button. You pull the camera back to check the LCD and there is the shot that makes your weekend. You do all this while thinking; One shot. One kill.
That story, well it was totally me! After I checked the LCD, I yelled out “BOOM! I’m done here!” in all kinds of excitement. It might only be the start to the nXnw Moab trip, but with this image, everything else was going to be gravy. You know, sometimes you just have to let the excitement explode from you. Also, let everyone in a five-mile radius know you are a badass. Well, that is what I like to think at least!
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/500 sec at f/8
Lens: 35mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: The glorious sun
In Memory of the Fallen
I’m starting the week off with a bit of a somber post, but one that has been running through my head for over a week now. The inspiration for my ramblings today are thanks to Bob Lussier and a simple bracelet he wears in honor of CPL Christopher G Scherer. You can find out more on the back-story right on this posting by Bob, which I highly recommend you read.
The photo today comes from our first nXnw lunch. We had just snagged Dave Wilson from the airport and headed to the Ale House for some grub and a brew. This would be our first time sitting down as a full group, and the first time we all would really get to “meet” one another and talk about anything and everything. After taking our seats and placing drink orders, the conversations started up, mostly about what cameras we had with us at the table. That is when I noticed Bob wearing this bracelet and I instantly remembered his post about Christopher. I snatched up my camera and Bob was kind enough to “pose” for me. He is a nice fella like that. Image caught, it was onto wondering why the waitress disliked me so much as to deny me beer or a side salad, but that is a tale for another time.
Really, this photo is not all that “badass”, but the story behind it has stuck with me something fierce. While I am miniscule in the eyes of the Internet, I want to say thanks to all of those fine people that allow me the freedom to complain about bad beer, bitch about the snow, and go spend four crazy and marvelous days shooting Moab with some swell dudes. Even more, I want to thank the fathers, mothers, grandpas, grandmas, brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, friends, and lovers who have to stay home and worry day after day about their loved ones whom are providing us our freedoms. You are the silent warriors, and you deserve our gratitude. Finally, to those that have paid the ultimate price, may you finally find the peace you deserve.
Then next time you are out and see someone in uniform, why not buy him or her a meal or a drink. Hell, do it anonymously if you see them across the way at a restaurant. It might seem like a small task, but they will certainly appreciate the generosity.
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/200 sec at f/2.8
Lens: 35mm
ISO: 4000
Lighting: Bar lights
Photographer at the Edge of the World
Right off the bat, I have to admit that the idea for this shot does not belong to me, but rather Justin Balog. This photo comes at the end of our NxNW Moab trip. To put that into some sort of perspective, most of us were running on about four hours of total sleep after two full days of shooting. We had just finished a 20-hour day of greatness by capturing moonlight landscapes before finally turning in for a mere two-hour nap. Justin took the bull by the horns and graciously got up before everyone else to make us coffee. Regardless of how good or bad Folgers really is, at 4am, it is essentially the Holy Grail of caffeinated beverages…granted you can choke it down.
Anyway, we had finished our rounds at Mesa Arch, of which we closed that area down. You know, like closing down the bar, but by making magic with a camera. We were so excited about the tonal recession that Justin decided to take us to one more spot for a change to capture just a bit more light. We were at our new location all of a minute before Justin told us to take a photo of him at the edge of a cliff with the glorious view behind him.
The shot itself is rather awesome. I had to move around to remove a bunch of shrubs and trees from the frame, as I’m shooting a 105mm prime. As I’m doing this, I decide to put our new model down into the very bottom of the image and let the landscape dominate the majority of the composition. As I moved closer and rid the scene of shrubbery, the magic began to happen. Despite the lack of sleep, the adrenaline provided me one last badass image! I hope you enjoy!
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/2000 sec at f/8
Lens: 105mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: The lovely Moab sun
Jeepin the Rockies
I honestly don’t even know where to begin this post. You see, I just got back from a wickedly fun trip out to Moab, Utah, where I spent almost 3 solid days taking photos of some of the most gorgeous landscapes I have ever witnessed. I enjoyed the scenery alongside the excellent company of Mike Criswell, Rick Louie, Justin Balog, Dave Wilson, Mark Garbowski, and Bob Lussier. We joked. We consumed beer. We downed great food. We made magic happen with our little boxes that capture light. In short, it is a trip I will not soon forget.
This is technically not my “first” image from the trip, but the one that I consider my first from our excursion of photo fun. We stopped at a rest area about an hour and a half outside of Denver. The sun was shining nicely, the air was crisp, and seven photographers were full of energy and excitement. This is also the first time everyone got a real taste of what I was about to bring to the table. Things only got better after this.
You know, we joked about many things “sucking” or the lack of suck at every point we stopped to photograph. In the end, the only thing that truly sucked about this trip was boarding that plane to head back to Iowa. Thanks fellas for giving me memories I will cherish the rest of my life.
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/640 sec at f/8
Lens: 35mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: The sun above my head
Peep Death- Dragon Snack
Well, here we are at the last image of the Peep Death 2013 series. If you have stuck with me this long, I want to say thanks, as I tend to lose a few people during this time of year. I also figured that what better way to end this run than somewhat the same way I started it. Thus, I went all high key with my toys!
As for some sort of update, well, I’m busy trying to get this house in Madison ready for sale. It seems like every time I get close to being done, somebody decides I need to fix this or paint that. I don’t mind being busy, but I’d love to return to chatting with friends online and working on my photography. My cameras stare at me all glassy eyed because they feel unloved. Hopefully things will return to normal soonish!
I also should mention that I recently started working with a marketer on how to improve my marketing/branding. Boy do they have me brainstorming some new projects. I’m still a ways off from starting them, due to travel and such, but I am excited on what they are teaching me and where they are helping me take this passion of mine. Fun times are ahead my friends, but for now, I must return to painting.
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 6 sec at f/10
Lens: 60mm
ISO: 200
Lighting: Desk lamp with a 40watt light bulb shot through a white bed sheet.
Peep Death: An Arrow to the Face
The inspiration for this shot spawns from a video game; imagine that. I recently spent a good amount of time playing Skyrim, and man was it ever a fun time. The big joke about this game is that every guard seems to have a harrowing tale that always tragically ends when they take an arrow to the knee. While this Peep does not have a wild story of perilous adventures battling aliens or dragons, its life ended by an arrow to the face. Tragic, really.
Be excellent to one another!
Technical Info:
Exposure: 1/100 sec at f/8
Lens: 60mm
ISO: 500
Lighting: The morning sun
I am a Ames, Iowa based photographer. I enjoy automotive, macro, still life, and street photography. To relax I wrestle dinosaurs.
