Bay Side Houses

These were the houses next to the house we stayed in. One of them was occupied for the first couple days, but then it was pretty much empty for the rest of the week. It was nice being able to look out over our balcony and just get a calm peaceful view. I love how HDR photography can really capture how our eyes see the scene. With traditional photography you wouldn't see the detail of the houses and the water.

Waiting In Line

On a scouting adventure I found this run down "water park". There were really only two big slides and two little kid slides so I am not sure how much business it really got considering the beach was just a two minute walk but this is the condition it is in now. I found it interesting that pieces of the slides were missing, umbrellas were turned upside down, and everything was over grown but most of the roping was still up and kept me from falling off the path.

Beach House

       About 2 years ago I found a style of photography called High Dynamic Range, HDR. I fell in love with the images and how it was the digital way of making multiple exposure images. After much research and studying I started going out and trying to create my own images. I ran into many issues but thanks to the extensive knowledge of the pioneer of HDR, Trey Ratcliff, I was able to work through many of the issues I was running into. I read his web-site, http://www.stuckincustoms.com/, many times over and even recently got to show him this blog and ask him questions about what I needed to work on. 

      The process is very simple and complex at the same time, I will give you the short less complex version but if you have questions please ask. When setting up for a picture you must have the camera on a tripod or another steady object. You will set the camera's F/stop and shutter speed for a proper exposure, but that really depends on what you are exposing for. You will then bracket 2 other photos, or 4 or even more if you have the ability to. For me I do three per my equipment. Those three photo's can be see above. Then load the pictures into a HDR program, I use Photomatix and making adjustments and you have your final image (below). Like I said before though it is a lot more complex than just that but that is the beginning.

The best part of HDR is how it is a great representation of what your eye will actually see.

The Ugly Side

My daughter, Jayce, and I got to go out exploring in the bay area neighborhood that we vacationed in. It was 100+ degrees and obviously no cloud cover but it was so much fun. Jayce decided early on in our adventure that she didn't want to walk or even be put down so composing pictures became a challenge. For this picture we had to get as low as we could to the ground, and if you could imagine a grown man holding an 18 month old in his left arm, camera in right hand, almost laying down in the hot sand, and trying to focus you would understand how we looked. I wouldn't trade that hour for anything. We found this old rusted can sitting on...well I am not sure what it is on but it just captured our attention. I do mean our attention because Jayce really wanted to take it home with us.  

Storm's a Coming

A storm was rolling in and my wife was out on a girls only day. Not wanting to be stuck inside all day, the little ones and I jumped in the car and started to scout locations and find something fun to do. Well within 15 minutes Jayce was asleep and it was just me and Jadyn scouting locations. We found this location in a near by bay side neighborhood. Jadyn loved it so much she begged to get out and take a picture. This picture is mine but I will post hers later. 

What's for Dinner?

I never knew how addictive crabbing was. I checked the trap a couple times a day and the coolest part was I got to cook with that fresh crab for the very first time. This was from the first night we were there and it was a great start to a great vacation. 

The Golden Rod

Father-in-law got to spend a lot of time fishing while on vacation and as I passed this fishing pole he had set up I almost missed how the gold rod mimicked the color the setting sun was creating in the sky. After a double take I realized what I almost missed and captured this picture.

Long Day Fishing

This year in Galveston we got a great house on the bay side of the island. Every night there was a beautiful sunset falling over the ocean. The gold lined clouds were so breath taking and peaceful. I got to take this picture with my little girl Jayce sitting on my hip and although it does make it difficult I would never trade those moments. 

The Shell Hunter

My daughter Jadyn loved hunting shells at the beach this past week. It is so much fun watching little children discover joys for the very first time. She is such a little blessing. Her little sister also loved searching the sand for shells but she liked throwing them more than keeping them.

Logger

One of my favorites. The sky was so perfect that day and this log had almost taken on the color of the surrounding sand. There is a reason I love this type of photography, the picture is really created for me I just get to go and find it and hope I don't screw it up.

Bail the Hay

From a trip to Oklahoma with my family. When we got to the cabin I knew I wanted to capture an image of this tree with the hay bail near by. Since it was right by the house it was easy to wait for the right time of time and cloud cover. Lighting is so crucial to a great picture so much so that a beautiful location can be ruined by bad lighting.  That waiting is what makes a good photograph great.

Shipping Yard

I enjoy watching the massive barges leaving harbor. It is just peaceful, in a weird way, watching these huge ships slowly move through the bay and go out to sea. When taking this picture I felt like the rubble in the foreground was just as important as the shipping yard. For me rubble just goes with the scene, the shipping yard isn't a beautiful location and I think the concrete just adds to that effect.

Galveston Vacation

I am really afraid of the ocean but I always look forward to my wife's family trip to Galveston. We play games, the weather is cooler, and the photo opportunities are just different than other places. Beach fences have such an interesting look, how it gets buried by the sand and just the general aged look. They are just so common but still so cool looking.  I really never understood their purpose or if they even have a purpose so maybe it is just for cool photos.

Capital Stairs

Growing up my mom would often take us to the Texas Capital building and these stairs always caught my attention. I loved the light coming in from the windows and the massive columns. This photo always brings back memories of those days. We always stared up at the star at the top of the big dome, or wonder who each person was as they came down these stairs and wonder if they were important. Great times!

I Sit Alone

This is a picture I have always been drawn to but I have known it needed something a little more to make it really standout and pop.  I think I found what it is in need of, a tilt and shift effect. I can't afford high priced lenses, like most of America but I do have a computer that can do a lot of what I could do if I had that expensive gear. My traditional self is always fighting against my modern self and in this case Mr. Modern won out. The original photo is crucial to the success of this picture, it was well executed and has great exposure making it easy to get the effect I desired. 

My Journey

I love photography. From the moment I picked up my mom's Canon AE-1 I knew that I would always want to take pictures. That was over ten years ago and I am still picking up the camera. When I first started I was taking pictures of everything from frozen basketball nets to jump shots to church's buried under volcano rock but these days I am finding it harder to really know what I want to take a picture of. This is me rediscovering myself as a photographer. What you see will be what I am shooting at the time. I hope you enjoy the images as I rediscover my photography eye.

This first set of images were taken in San Antonio and Austin. I drove around Austin with my little brother looking for the perfect shot. The one in San Antonio was taken from the 25th floor of our hotel. That was a lot of fun to do and a challenge dealing with reflections.