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Archive for the ‘Photography Travel Journal’ Category
Friday, January 29th, 2010
Several months back I upgraded cameras from my trusty Canon EOS 5D to the newer model, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II. The Mark II boasted a range of new features that made it a worthwhile investment, including a larger and clearer LCD screen, a stronger and more weather proof build, easier to navigate menus, customizable settings, HD video, a sensor dust cleaning function as well as greater resolution (21 MP), updated processors and firmware and reportedly better image quality. Over time I have found that, really, just one feature of the newer camera has fundamentally changed the way I can take photos. That feature is the greatly improved performance at higher ISO settings.
 Hand held at 1/40 second, f/9, ISO 500 ISO is the standard by which the sensitivity of film or a digital sensor is measured. Better sensitivity, lower noise and improved in-camera noise reduction at higher ISO settings are hallmarks of the latest generation of digital SLR cameras, and high ISO performance will surely continue to improve in the near future. I have always used Canon digital cameras by choice, but the most current high end digital SLRs from Nikon, Sony, Minolta and others all have much better high ISO performance than their predecessors.
 Hand held at 1/100 second, f/8, ISO 320 I haven’t done quantitative tests to compare the high ISO performance of older DSLRs and current ones, but the improvements are so dramatic to be readily apparent with a simple inspection of the image files at 100%. There are plenty of independent testers out there who have done careful scientific comparisons if you want the raw data. My goal in this article is simply to share some images I have taken recently that either would have previously been impossible or would have required more equipment and more labor intensive techniques. Of course, you would need to see high resolution image files to get a complete understanding of the image quality, but for the purpose of this article I think these screen size images give you the main idea. I should also point out that in addition to improvements in ISO performance, improved noise reduction algorithms in software like Adobe Lightroom and Camera RAW, as well as improved image stabilization technology in lenses take some of the credit.
 Hand held at 1/13 second, f/4.5, ISO 3200 How does better high ISO performance allow for new opportunities in photography? As the sensor becomes more sensitive to light as the ISO setting is increased, the camera is able to maintain faster shutter speeds in lower light conditions and still get a proper exposure. Essentially it means you can shoot in lower light situations or with smaller aperture settings without the need for a tripod. However, with past cameras the increased sensitivity to light at higher ISO settings came with an unacceptable trade off; increased image noise or digital grain. Until I acquired the Canon 5D Mark II, the higher ISO settings were generally useless to me. My images need to be very clean and sharp, so I would always shoot at the lowest ISO setting (ISO 100) to ensure adequate image quality. This almost always meant the need for a tripod to get a sharp image.
 Hand held at 1/15 second, f/5.6, ISO 3200 Experimenting with the ISO capabilities of the 5D Mark II during my travels in Mexico this month have left me impressed and excited about the possibilities. I still use my tripod most of the time, but I find that in situations where a tripod is impractical, time prohibitive or creatively limiting I can often raise the ISO to between 200 and 500 to allow for fast enough shutter speeds for hand held shooting with a very slight loss in overall image quality. Images at these ISO settings are certainly good enough for publishing and even fine art printing. There are times when having the ability to photograph without a tripod is extremely freeing and allows for flexibility, mobility, spontaneity and creativity that wasn’t possible before.
 Hand held at 1/20 sec, f/4, ISO 3200 What’s more, I have found that I can also hand hold my camera in minimal light situations, such as indoors or for night time city scenes, by increasing the ISO dramatically. I have increased the ISO to as much as 3200 and still been able to capture very usable images. A slight degree of noise in these images is acceptable to me for the fact that they would have been almost impossible to get otherwise. While I still return to the tripod if image quality is essential, it is exciting to be able to photograph people and other moving objects in low light conditions and not have them be blurred. Most of my night city photography does not include people because of the blurring of objects in motion with slow shutter speeds. Being able to hand hold the camera and get sharp images of moving subjects indoors and at night opens a whole new world of possibilities.
 Hand held at 1/30 second, f/4, ISO 3200 I’m sure the technology in ISO performance will continue to improve for some time. Within a couple of years there will be cameras that allow us to photograph in almost complete darkness with fast shutter speeds and produce noise free images. Until then it is exciting to know how good the ISO performance is right now, and that photographers have the ability to take photographs that were previously impossible or impractical.
 Hand held at 1/15 second, f/7.1, ISO 500 If you found this article helpful, informative or otherwise useful, feel free to share it on the social media network of your choice using the handy links below. If you have anything to add, feel free to leave a comment. Thanks!
 Hand held at 1/30 second, f/4, ISO 3200
New Photography Possibilities with high ISO Performance
Several months back I upgraded cameras from my trusty Canon EOS 5D to the newer model, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II. The Mark II boasted a range of new features that made it a worthwhile investment, including a larger and clearer LCD screen, a stronger and more weather proof build, easier to navigate menus, customizable settings, HD video, a sensor dust cleaning function as well as greater resolution (21 MP), updated processors and firmware and reportedly better image quality. Over time I have found that one specific attribute of the newer camera has had a bigger impact on the way I can take photographs than any other. That feature is the greatly improved performance at higher ISO settings.
I haven’t run any objective tests to make quantitative comparisons between older DSLRs and current ones, but there are plenty of independent testers out there who have if you want the raw data. My goal in this article is to share some images I have taken recently that either would have been previously impossible or would have required more equipment and more labor intensive techniques.
Better sensitivity, lower noise and improved in-camera noise reduction at higher ISO settings are hallmarks of the latest generation of digital SLR cameras, and high ISO performance will surely continue to improve in the near future. ISO is the standard by which the sensitivity of film or a digital sensor is measured. I have always used Canon digital cameras by choice, but the most current high end digital SLRs from Nikon, Sony, Minolta and others all have much better high ISO performance than their predecessors.
How does better high ISO performance allow for new opportunities in photography? As the sensor becomes more sensitive to light with increased ISO settings the camera is able to maintain faster shutter speeds in lower light conditions and still get a proper exposure. Essentially it means you can shoot in lower light situations or with smaller aperture settings, without a tripod, than at lower ISO settings. However, with past cameras the increased sensitivity to light at higher ISO settings came with an unacceptable trade off; increased image noise or digital grain. Until I acquired the Canon 5D Mark II, the higher ISO settings were generally useless to me. My images need to be very clean and sharp, so I would always shoot at the lowest ISO setting (ISO 100) to ensure adequate image quality. This almost always meant using a tripod.
Experimenting with the ISO capabilities of the 5D Mark II during my travels in Mexico this month have left me impressed and excited about the possibilities. I still use my tripod most of the time, but I find that in situations where a tripod is impractical, time prohibitive or creatively limiting I can often bump up the ISO to between 200 and 500 to allow for fast enough shutter speeds for hand held shooting with a very slight loss in overall image quality. Images at these ISO settings are certainly good enough for publishing and even fine art printing. In some situations the ability to photograph without a tripod can be very freeing and allow for creativity and camera positions that weren’t possible before.
What’s more, I have found that I can also hand hold my camera in very low light situations, such as indoors or with night time city scenes, by increasing the ISO dramatically. I have increased the ISO to as much as 3200 and still been able to capture very usable images. The value of these images in greatly enhanced by the fact that they would have been almost impossible to get otherwise. While I still return to the tripod if image quality is essential, it is exciting to be able to photograph people and other moving objects in low light conditions and not have them be blurred. Most of my night city photography does not include people because of the blurring of objects in motion. Being able to hand hold the camera and get sharp images of moving subjects in low light opens a whole new world of possibilities.
I’m sure the technology in ISO performance will continue to improve for some time. Within a couple of years there will be cameras that allow us to photograph by moonlight without a tripod and produce noise free images. Until then it is exciting to know that ISO performance is at a level right now that allows for types of shooting that were previously impossible or impractical.
Tags: digital photography, Guanajuato, night photography, photography techniques, travel photography
Posted in Digital Photography Tips, Photography Equipment, Photography Travel Journal | 1 Comment »
Friday, January 22nd, 2010
Guanajuato, Mexico is as visually interesting as any city I have photographed. What many visitors might not realize, however, is that to find some of the most surreal parts of town you have to go underground.
The entire city sits atop an extensive subterranean tunnel system. The tunnels were originally dug by mining operations starting in the 16th century to divert the river and keep the town and mines from flooding.
From its beginnings in the mid 1500s the city was built to maximize useable space on the steep hillsides. Houses were stacked on top of one another with only the narrowest of alleys between them. Much of the charm of Guanajuato comes from the fact that it was never intended to accommodate cars.
But cars were inevitable. In a huge engineering project in the 1960’s, as car traffic in the narrow streets became more of a problem, the river was diverted yet again and the tunnels were converted into an underground system of roads. New tunnels have since been added, creating an ever expanding underground even Batman would be envious of. Drivers who know and understand the complex catacombs can quickly get from one part of the city to another. There are many entry and exit points making it possible to dive underground in one neighborhood and surface in another the next valley over.
Most of the tunnels are deep underground, dark and full of car exhaust, but in places they break out to the surface where they are lined with buildings, bridges and arches.
The subterranean channels and tunnels create an entirely different and mysterious dimension to a town that already has so much interesting character. It is a little hard to locate the best parts of the subterranean tunnels at first, and it can also be very disorienting trying to navigate through the tunnels. Often I’ll emerge in a part of town that I have never been in before.
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Tags: fine art photography, Guanajuato, Mexico, night photography, travel photography
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Friday, January 8th, 2010
For the entire month of January I’m taking my photography in a slightly different direction and exploring the colonial mining towns of central Mexico. My blog will act as my travel journal. I’ll be posting images and stories about the project here every couple of days.
 Guanajuato Sunrise So, why this particular region of Mexico? Several reasons actually. Guanajuato, the city that I will be based out of, is the sister city to my home town, Ashland, Oregon. The two towns share geographic and cultural similarities. Both are located in valleys in the mountains, both are university towns and both have theater festivals and strong art culture. Since the two towns became “sisters” there has been a continuous exchange of students, teachers, musicians, artists and city leaders. My wife has been coming here for several years to attend Spanish language school. This year our sons are old enough to begin taking Spanish lessons, so we decided to move the entire family down for a month of language immersion. I made a short trip to Guanajuato about three years ago and fell in love with the photographic potential of the architecture, character and beauty of the town. During this more extended stay I hope to do the kind of in depth photography that comes with familiarity with a place and also travel to some of the other towns and environs in the region.
Early colonists came to the mountains of central Mexico to mine for metals and minerals. The towns are often built on steep hillsides in narrow valleys. In Guanajuato, most of the roads are in tunnels beneath the city and the town is accessed via pedestrian streets and very narrow and steep alleys. The colorful houses are stacked upon each other like a big game of tetris and the alleys can be almost as narrow, deep and winding as slot canyons in Utah. Needless to say, Guanajuato and the other mining towns in the region are popular with photographers.
 Calle Potrero, Guanajuato, Mexico My focus this month is to continue the photography that I started on my previous visit and try to create the most beautiful, dramatic and expressive images of the area that have ever been taken. I have a virtual office set up here so I can continue to work and do business via the Internet. Processing images on my laptop is difficult. The lesser contrast, resolution and speed mean that the images I post during the trip will be as good as I can get them, but will be in rough draft form. All of them will need to be remastered when I get home, but hopefully they will give you an idea of what I’m going for.
For those of you who think I’m in Mexico to relax in the sun, not quite. Guanajuato sits almost 7,000 feet above sea level and the average temperature is 62 degrees F. January is the coldest month and temperatures at night can drop into the 30s. Today it is cold and rainy. So, this isn’t a Mexican beach vacation I’m on here. While I like to sit on the beach and surf as much as anyone, the culture, scenery and history of this place will make it a very rich experience of living, learning, spending time with my family and doing my work.
Tags: Guanajuato, Mexico, Mining Towns of Mexico, travel photography
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Tuesday, August 25th, 2009
 Intimate Painted Hills The painted hills in central Oregon is one of my favorite places in the state. The Painted Hills are located in the Painted Hills Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument along Hwy 26 just west of Mitchell. Even though the hills don’t cover much area, the patterns and shapes and the way light plays across them is visually absorbing. I often take wide landscapes, but for this image I decided to zoom in for an intimate and abstract study. When photographed like this, the hills really do look painted…or rather, they create a photograph that looks like a painting. I’ll have to print this large on canvas and see how it looks.
Tags: abstract photography, intimate landscape, john day fossil beds, landscape photography, painted hills, sean bagshaw, southern oregon photographer
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Thursday, June 18th, 2009
Travel Essentials is a travel equipment and clothing store based in Ashland, Oregon that also does a lot of business across the country via the internet. Each summer they host a travel photography contest that attracts some highly talented amateur travel photographers from around the US. The winning photos in the past few years have been submitted from all parts of the country and were shot in locations around the world. This year I am working with Travel Essentials as a judge and guest photographer. In my career I have had the opportunity to photograph in some exotic locations such as Nepal, Tibet, Costa Rica, Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska and many of the National Parks in the western US. To help kick off the contest I wrote an article outlining some of my top tips and suggestions to help travelers achieve their best results when photographing on a trip.
The following is the list of my top twelve travel photography tips. In the article I explain the importance of each one and give ideas on how to integrate them into your travel photography repertoire.
- Don’t get too wrapped up and weighted down with gear when traveling.
- Carry your photo equipment with you on the plane.
- Make time to photograph on your own.
- Photograph during the magic hours for magical photographs.
- Vibration is not your friend.
- Get the lay of the land.
- Control depth of field for different artistic effects.
- Add drama with high and low perspective or a unique point of view.
- While on the move, adopt a rapid fire shooting style and let the chips fall where they may.
- Make it move.
- Lose the clutter.
- Edit mercilessly.
You can read the full article and find out more about my 12 travel photography tips on the Travel Essentials Website.
Then head out on your summer travels with your camera in hand and bring back a winning shot to enter in the Travel Essentials Photo Contest.
Tags: photo contest judge, professional photographer photo tips, Travel equipment and clothing, travel photographer, travel photography, travel photography contest, travel photography tips
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Wednesday, February 25th, 2009
 Riders along the Big Sur coast in 2008 In about two hours my brother, his girlfriend and I are hitting the road to be super fans at the Tour of California professional bike race. This will be our third year in a row sleeping on the side of the road, eating fast food and chasing the peleton as it makes its way from one end of California to the other over the course of nine days.
How is this photography related? Largely it isn’t, but I will have my full camera kit and will shoot lots of photos, even if they are mostly for my own gratification. I would love to be one of the press photographers riding along on the back of a motorcycle and getting right up close to the action. It would be great to see my photos in the pages of Velo News. I can only imagine the life of Grahm Watson, traveling to the biggest races all over the world and taking famous calendar and poster photos of people like Lance Armstrong, Jan Ulrich and Tom Boonen. But I’m content being able to pretend for one week each year. With the camera around my neck I even look official enough to get into some of the post race press conferences without being questioned.
This Tour of California should be one for the books. Lance Armstrong will continue his comeback, racing on US soil for the first time in several years. Floyd Landis, Tyler Hamilton and Ivan Basso will also make their combacks after serving bans for doping. All the biggest teams from around the world will be there and the line up will feature more Tour de France, world, olympic and national champions than have ever raced in the US before.
We will be posting videos of our adventure. Watch for some here, but the main viewing station will be the website for my brother’s bike shop FLYWHEEL BICYCLE SOLUTIONS in Talent, Oregon.
Tags: bike racing, lance armstrong, professional bike racing, sports photography, tour of california
Posted in Adventure Journal, Photography Travel Journal | No Comments »
Saturday, April 26th, 2008
Thanks to my Wife’s parents, we recently took a family vacation to Sayulita, Mexico. While this was a true vacation in every sense of the word, and I spent most of my time lounging, playing on the beach with the kids, surfing and ingesting large quantities of fresh tortillas and Corona beer, I also managed to get myself up at 5 AM most mornings to spend a couple of hours photographing the landscape.
 Sayulita was, until the last 15 years or so, a little known and sleepy fishing village on a beautiful sandy bay about 45 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. I spoke to a few long time residents who remember when the whole town was nothing but grass palapas. It is now “on the map” for its surfing, sandy beaches, laid back art community and good food. Even with the recent tourist boom and large numbers of gringos living there it is still retains enough of its authenticity, laid back living and small town charm to make it a refreshing and unexpected departure from the scene down around Puerto Vallarta, with its high rise hotels, traffic, shopping malls and golf courses.
 The photography opportunities were plentiful within walking distance of town and a bus or taxi ride up the coast provides access to many more beaches and even smaller and more remote coastal towns. It was also a great place for the entire family with plenty of fun hiking, beach activities, music, great food and a fun and active town square.
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Monday, March 3rd, 2008
Photography is my hobby and my job, so it commands a good portion of my attention. Even though it is strictly a hobby, bicycle racing is a close second. One day I hope to travel in Europe during the racing season and be a spectator at some of the classic world-famous races. Until then, I am very glad that the Amgen Tour of California offers a week of professional cycle racing with some of the best riders and teams in the world, just a few hours drive from where I live.
This year, my brother Ian, Owner of Flywheel Bicycles in Talent, Oregon, and I followed all eight days of the Tour, camping in Walmart parking lots, eating burritos, cheering on our favorite riders and just being general bike racing geeks. We also had some fun making very low quality videos which we posted on his website for the southern Oregon cycling community to enjoy. If you want to see what the life of die hard cycling fans is like you can see the videos HERE. The videos are posted in reverse chronological order.
 In Just three years, the Tour of California has become the biggest and most prestigious bike race in the US. It draws the biggest European pro tour teams such as Astana, CSC, Rabobank, Gerolsteiner and Credit Agricole, as well as top US teams such as Slipstream Chipotle, Rock Racing and Toyota United. This year’s roster included the Road World Champion, Paolo Bettini and the Time Trial World Champion and Paris Roubaix winner, Fabian Cancellara, as well as many national champions and other top pro riders such as Tom Boonan, Stewart O’Grady, George Hincapie, David Millar and Mario Cipollini. Levi Leipheimer, who was last year’s overall winner and third place finisher in the Tour de France, defended his title with a convincing second win.
I managed to take a few photos of the racers, but someday I’ll have to work on getting a press pass so that I can access the press areas, support cars and photo motorcycles, which is where the best shots come from.
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Wednesday, January 9th, 2008
As an outdoor photographer I work in conditions beyond my control. The unpredictable, mysterious and surprising elements of nature are precisely what compel me to spend time outdoors attempting to photograph the landscape at its defining moments.
A trip I took last fall is a great example. Excited by the promise of fall color and dramatic skies, I took a nine day trip to Montana and Idaho. 1,200 miles later I arrived at Glacier National Park on the edge of an approaching storm. Hunkered in my van, I was buffeted by high winds and rain for three days, during which I was able to get out and take photos for an hour or two. Undeterred, I headed south in hopes of better weather. In the Sawtooth range of Idaho, low cloud cover and snow kept the mountains hidden for all but a few minutes of the next three days. During the long stretches of time alone in my van, I read, scouted locations, studied the landscape and weather and got up before dawn so that I’d be ready if something magical happened.
The mountains were still shrouded when my time came to an end. As I drove back across the high desert of eastern Oregon, the skies opened for a brief sunset at the John Day Fossil Beds, but by morning the clouds were back and it was snowing.
The day after returning home, I decided on a whim to make a quick visit to the upper Rogue River, an hour’s drive away. I was completely caught by surprise when one of the most beautiful sunrises I’ve experienced illuminated the sky and I rushed to capture the event. For the rest of the day I hiked and photographed brilliant fall foliage along the river at the height of color in perfect soft light. On that single day I created more good images than the previous nine combined, including one of my all time favorites. All of my experiences with nature during those ten days: the cold, the gray, the quiet, the slow, the subtle, the brilliant and the unexpected, they all keep me anticipating what nature will show me next.
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Thursday, October 25th, 2007
David Price is a photographer from the UK who I have struck up a long distance friendship with. He has a great talent for photographing people. He was recently on a photo assignment in Nepal, a place I am very fond of. He captured beautiful images of the Nepali people in a way that I wish I could. What follows are images and thoughts from his adventure. You can see all his images at his site www.davidprice.uk.com.
Back in England I sit in my apartment several thousand miles from Kathmandu my thoughts firmly with the people of Nepal. Although now great distance separates my new friends and I, editing my images I have just spoken by telephone with film producer Sanu Thapa and the distance between us seems not so great.
 Commissioned to photograph a football tournament and school opening in Kavre south west of Kathmandu. My customer UAP ltd gave me this opportunity and I did not think twice about accepting. The event run by charity DCWC Nepal included a volunteer medical team who treated two thousand patients in five days……..AMAZING ! I extended my trip to Nepal beyond my work in the village; Kathmandu was my home for 18 nights with my guides Komal Lama, Vijaya Thapa and film producer Sanu Thapa.
My memories of Nepal are not of the cues for fuel or the twice-weekly power cuts and the candles in my room, my mind cannot forget the people of Kavre and also a wider Nepal. Speaking only a few words of Nepalese I found a strong connection was quickly formed with the people even though our meeting may have only lasted a few moments. I find the strength of the people incredible, talking with Dr Ramu Sharma, he told me of a patient he treated in the village a lady who had given birth nineteen times with 13 children surviving. To bring up this huge family with no electricity or running water just seems beyond belief. This storey highlights the difference in our two worlds; mine being a combatable life in England with more or less everything a man could want and the harsh reality of life in Nepal. My resounding memory is of its people’s gift of friendship and their wonderfully happy smiles. At times I was overwhelmed by the number of people who wanted to be photographed, and on occasions I put away my camera just for a short break.
 Kavre village lacked many things I take for granted in England such as a hot shower however I embraced my time there and will never forget it. With no mobile phone or Internet I immersed myself in work pausing briefly to eat or wash in the river an amazing experience. I did not care about communication with the outside world, it was just my work and the people and what more could a passionate photographer ask for. As I left the village after five days tears in my eyes, looking back from the steep path climbing from the valley bottom my thoughts were not of leaving this amazing place but of my compulsion to return.
 Crazy Kathmandu. Back in Kathmandu my work at times was difficult I found the speed at which things happened frustrating. I commissioned a short film that was produced over three days by director Sanu Thapa. I am overjoyed with his work and you can watch the film here LINK TO FILM PAGE. Often I organised my own work, waiting to long for other people to do it for me, it’s a very different world in Nepal a lot slower pace than in England. If things happen at all seemed to have little importance and I lost count of the times I was told “tomorrow”. I take my work very seriously and will let little come between my subject and me. My guides on reflection were so good to me they all tried to accommodate my wishes and I visited all but one of there homes, something I feel very privileged to have done. I forged a strong bond with all three guides a process that started on my second night in Kavre when I sat talking with Komal Lama until the early hours. In Komal I see a very good man! Highlights of my work in Kathmandu were photographing models in traditional Nepalese costume and meeting and photographing Shabhu Tamang who submitted Everest age 17 in 1973. I was thrilled to meet for the first time a man who had stood on top of the world. I also built a good relationship with the Sadhu men of Durbury Square producing several memorable images.
 As I sit editing the images created in Nepal my realization is that without the people I would have no photographs. It is the people of Nepal that made my trip so memorable. I have a strong desire to return and meet my new friends again to shake their hands and to see how they have changed. My next visit to the country is not in question my only concern is of timing.Thank you to my guides Vijaya, Comal, Sanu and the people of Nepal
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