Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 8, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

I’ll tell ya – I love post processing almost as much as I do shooting. I know a ton of people who want to spend as little time as possible in front of the computer and spend as much of it behind the viewfinder. Trust me, I can relate. But, there is something so rewarding about creative post processing. Sure, post processing is a massive string attached to HDR photography but it is much more than that. Post processing allows you to create a story on top of the image that you have already created.

Take this shot as an example. This door was caked in gorgeous golden hour light. It was actually very beautiful. But my imagination had different plans. I wanted to convey a post-apocalyptic scene and draw curiosity to what could possibly lie behind this massive door. And what happened in this scene? Nuclear war? Mutant outbreak? Who knows?

What I do know is that post processing has allowed me to craft the image further than just capturing it. It has allowed me to fashion a scene with more refinement and boils to down closer to the story in my mind. It’s a wonderful thing when your eye and your mind work in tandem to construct a story-time path for the viewer.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 6.3, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

Most times, I doing everything I can to ensure that my horizon line is properly straightened.  It’s something that I’ve just gotten into the habit of because it makes visual sense.  I do see a lot of people preesent their photos with a tilted or rotated horizon line and that certainly can be impacting when it is done effectively but it is easy to get out of hand.  In this scene, I actually played off of a small element within the scene.  Originally, the image was properly aligned and I was happy with it.  But then, I noticed the knob right above the eyepiece of the binoculars and thought it would play well to rotate the scene a bit.  In that sense, my hope was to add some dimension to the shot… a bit of interactivity between the viewer and the image.  It’s nice when a shot can be more than a shot.  :)

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

I love the illusion of warmth that I feel when I see this shot.  It’s cool how an image can evoke emotions and sense.  Granted, that it is a gross understatement but it’s true.  I see this shot and I can smell the sea salt in the air and feel the warmth of a setting sun.  The truth couldn’t be farther from the illusion, though. 

It actually was bitterly cold and there was no smell of sea salt, kosher salt, or any other kind of salt to be sniffed.  But still, that’s the fun thing about playing pretend, right?

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 8, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

It was pretty cold this morning so I was inspired to go back into the archives to a few months ago, the winter months.  I took this shot while roaming around Cape Cod with Jack, looking for things to bracket.  I remember how quiet it was at this scene and was immediately struck by the winding, wooden pathway through the trees.  I love scenes like this one, when foot traffic is boiled down to just me and I can take my time to think about composition or wait for the wind to die down.  Time, restfulness, and quiet are luxuries that I am learning to appreciate more and more each day.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

This is another perspective from the HDR UrbEx shoot that Jack and I went on earlier in the winter.  Depending on the look that I want to go for, I will usually open up the aperture of the 17mm T/S lens to its widest, especially when fully tilting.  By doing this, you really maximize the shallow depth of field in conjunction with changing the plane of focus.  Plus, I like how the sunset was rendered into bokeh, along with the complimenting structure in the background.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

Bomb Shelter? Check. Boarded up windows? Double check. Creepy sunset scene? You got it. When Jack and I stumbled onto this scene, I knew that many hours would be killed very quickly and easily. There was no shortage of shots here as it seemed that every turn yielded something new to capture. I can’t wait to hit this place up again… and soon.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 22, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

I remember when my good buddy, Jack, asked if I wanted to come down for a weekend and shoot HDR brackets non-stop.  Right off the bat, I was very psyched but things got real when when emailed me the actual itinerary of places we’d be hitting.  In all, we spent about 15 hours driving from place to place on the cape, shooting all sorts of things.  This was the third or fourth lighthouse that we visited during our shoot and by this time, I was pretty much done with focusing on shooting lighthouses.

Instead, I started incorporating a lesson that I learned from Jack.  He taught me how to appreciate incorporating a dominant foreground element in my frame.  It often leads to a high concept, somewhat cerebral image… one that causes the viewer to think a little about what is going on in the frame.

That was the goal when I fired the brackets for this shot.  I was happy that the traffic arrow was able to align with the lighthouse in the background and for the total lack of traffic (both pedestrian and auto).

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 16, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

Good morning!

I have learned from this shoot that I absolutely love wintry Cape Cod sunrises.  The combination of beautiful color and scenery coupled with total quietness makes for pretty perfect shooting.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 11, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

Before I start my post processing routine on a shot, I spend some time looking at it and think about how it speaks to me.  I know it sounds a bit hokey but it’s true.  It’s a very emotive process and it drives how I go about processing my shots.  I spend a lot of time ensuring that the processing style is an extension of the shot, that it lends itself to continuing the story that is told within the frame.

This shot is no different.  It was taken recently during an UrbEx HDR jaunt around Cape Cod with my friend and mentor, Jack Hollingsworth.  When I saw the shot on my screen, I got the feeling that I was looking at some remote and forgotten outpost.  I was half expecting to see some mutants or deranged psychopath start running towards me.  So, I adjusted my processing to accentuate that feeling and what I am left with is the image that I’m sharing with you above.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L, 17mm, F 4, ISO 100, HDR, 9 Exposures

This past Saturday, my good friend, Jack Hollingsworth, and I spent the entire day shooting more brackets for HDR.  Jack was really interested with learning about UrbEx photography, specifically scouting the more derelict corners of the Cape.  When we found these abandoned structures, I instantly knew that we hit pay dirt.  I decided to go a little more overboard with my post process stylization because I was aiming to give the image a post-apocalyptic look, especially with the boarded up door.  I also love how you can catch the sun setting in the window on the right but see darkness in the left window.  Interesting contrast there.