365.264 clipped

I wrote about 12 posts to go along with this shot, all venting about a certain online talkshow that I view via podcast from time to time, but this picture deserves better than some rant about what a group of professional photographers think about amateurs, or what they think about 365 projects, or what they think of amateurs who share their work, or anything else.

And, anyway, it’s my dinner time.

So I’ll share with you something I discovered recently, and have dubbed The Cubist Smiley(r):

`/~

D7000. Nikon 75-150mm f/3.5 Zomb-E Series. ISO100, 2 seconds (APmode), f/3.5, -1EV. A slight bit of cropping, and perhaps 2 minutes of slider play in Aperture.

365.263 if it was any closer, it would’t be

Following the most recent addition to my drip play (a straw from one of the fast food places around), which brought some size uniformity, today I moved the camera off of the stable Manfrotto tripod and on to the wobbly plastic tripod I bought on the cheap in 2003 (and cursed at every time I used it to support a camera) and used the fancy swing-out center post to help stabilize my dripping.

I also used a bowl—a red bowl I used for a candy dish at work until I stopped eating candy, and that just languishes in the cabinet most of the time now—to get a deeper pool, even though everything I’ve read about this says shallower water works better.

The new setup worked fairly well, I must say, but I still didn’t get that shot, and the splash-back was quite often well out of frame.

But I got this groovy one instead, so I’m fine with that.

D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron). ISO400, 1/250th, f/11. SB-700, zoomed to 50mm, at 1/32nd fired behind and slightly towards the pool. Some straightening (the elcheapo tripod is never square, no matter how hard I try) and about a 50% crop in aperture, plus maybe 2 minutes of slider play to sharpen things up and bring out that nice 6-pointed sunstar.

365.262 vibrant textures

On the way to move laundry from the washer to the dryer this morning, I noticed these pretty little flowers. Within seconds, the iPhone was out of my pocket, the built-in camera app was ready, and I was kneeling on the ground framing up a shot.

This could’ve been framed up better, had I laid on the ground, and could perhaps be a bit less exposed had I been out 10 or 15 minutes earlier, but neither of these were the fault of the phone.

The same could likely be said for any of the numerous phones-with-cameras on the market today, including those phones with one of the numerous Androids operating on them. (As far as the operation goes… and the same could be said about any camera operator as far as the framing and exposure goes).

So why all the vitriol?

I happen to like the iPhone4. I haven’t upgraded to the 4s, and am interested in the 5, but will wait until actual user reviews are in, and I may switch to one or another of the numerous android devices if I don’t like what I read.

Thing is, for me, the ease of use is very important. The phone is a tool at best, and a toy most of the time. I don’t want to spend time maintaining it, cursing at the vendor for not upgrading the OS in a timely manner, and (perhaps most importantly) have a workflow with my mobile photography that includes some iPhone specific applications (Hipstamatic, for one, is not satisfactorily recreated on Android, as yet, and yes, I’ve looked for similar apps).

For other users, the newest technology is of primary importance. Others enjoy rooting around in the OS, theming and re-theming, and all the other myriad and magnificent advantages that android phones hold for many people.

I don’t begrudge my neighbor his jelly bean phablet: his tales of rooting it are legendary. Nor do I begrudge my buddy and her blackberry, with which she refuses to part. Why do so many begrudge my (and others) use of an iPhone?

Are we humans really that petty that we must fire all sorts of arrows at one another over our toys?

Apparently so, and this has long been a mystery to me.

That’s why I like these flowers. “They do not toil, nor do they spin” as someone once said (peace be upon him).

iPhone 4. Built-In Camera App. ISO125, 1/120th, f/2.8 (all chosen automatically by the phone). Some straightening and about 8 minutes of noodling in Aperture (and don’t start on the software bashing either, please).

And apologies to spring this rant on you. I’ve come across a great deal of drama on the interwebs lately, largely iPhone5 bashing coming from various quarters, and it’s making me tired.

365.261 Closer Still

Well, 483 shots today, and I got my plane of focus issues mostly solved, but I ran into another problem: somehow, 1/32nd is suddenly not fast enough to freeze drops. That, or diffraction kicks in earlier than expected on the Vivitar, or ISO400 has some blurring effect on objects in motion.

According to the SB-700 manual, a 1/32nd power pop should last for roughly 1/18182 second. For the record, everything I’ve read suggests 1/8000th to freeze droplets, and I’ve fairly successfully captured droplets at 1/32nd. So I don’t think that could be it.

So I’m leaning toward the diffraction answer or the ISO answer, though more testing will be required (unless someone has the answer).

Thing is, the splashes were mostly sharp, and the ripples were all sharp, as long as they were inside the rather wide focal plane.

So maybe diffraction isn’t the answer, unless faster moving objects are subject to greater effects from diffraction than slower moving objects.

Again, more testing and more research will be required, in addition to more attempts.

But not tonight: I’m wiped out.

D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron). ISO400, 1/250th, f/11. SB-700, zoomed to 70mm, at 1/32nd, fired behind and across the scene. Cropped to roughly 1/4 size, and subjected to ~5 or 6 minutes of slider play, but only after ~an hour of choosing which of the 483 failures to submit…

365.260 Closer… Actually, too close.

In my quest for the droplet shot that every photographer absolutely must have, I’ve been closer than this. In fact, I had a perfect one today, with the stem rising up to meet the drop; with the drop itself hovering several millimeters above the stem. Alas, the drop was not in focus.

Since I’m shooting slightly down on the scene—actually, close to 35 degrees down, if the Manfrotto geared tripod head is to be believed—the plane of focus is angled out and away from the the drops and stems and ripples. Getting everything in focus is impossible (though I could get closer with a narrower aperture and higher ISO to keep the flash power at a drop-catchable 1/32nd or faster). And since I can’t aim the spray bottle with any real accuracy—I’m gently squeezing the trigger on the cat punishment device to create the drips—or really time the drops, framing and focusing becomes extremely hit and miss.

But I got closer today, and I have some ideas of how to get even closer, so GoGo.

Any bets on me getting the shot before I get a proper eye dropper? Any suggestions for different things to try? Any tips, maybe?

Thanks in advance!

D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron), in Macro Mode. ISO100, f/8, 1/250th. SB-700 zoomed to 60mm at 1/32nd, fired behind and across the scene.

365.259 the Miracle(s) of Jury Duty

First, I must apologize. I made no attempt to make a good picture for the 365 today, nor did I attempt to learn anything new about making pictures.

Second, I must apologize again, because this post will be rather lengthy. Given that few of you read my posts anyway, the uninspiring picture is unlikely to illicit much reading, and if you do read it all, it’s unlikely to provide much.

Third, the Jury Trial is a sacred institution, designed to protect common people from tyrants. This sacred trust is under constant attack from the rich and powerful (not to mention judicial overreach), and we must protect it.

Now, on to my observations.

1) There were about 30 people in the Jury waiting room. We were there from 1pm until 3:53pm, and many of us were there far longer. (I arrived at 12:10, and there were people already waiting.) Until the arrival of the cheerful bailiff to tell us that there was a good likelihood we would all be sent home early, there was absolutely no chit chat: the triumph of the introverts.

2) there was absolutely no visible security, the bailiff was rarely to be seen, and spent most of the time in some other part of the building. Imagine the havoc 35 people could wreak if so inclined! And, similarly, no one tried to sneak out early.

I almost commented on both of these aloud, but stopped myself, probably for the same reasons there was no chit chat and no havoc-wreaking.

Now, to my comments.

A) This was a jury summons for municipal court in the City of Dallas. That means, the trials all concerned traffic violations (under $200), class ‘C’ misdemeanors (under $500), code violations (under $2000), and rare cases of civil trials valued less than $2000.

[During the Congratulations on Being Selected as a Juror, Valued Citizen welcome video, the Municipal Judge, the Honorable What’s-his-Name, specifically mentioned Red Light Cameras and Water Restrictions (there are restrictions on when and how you may water your lawn in TX, and many other locales).]

They run two shifts of trials per day, 8 dockets, 80-90 trials per docket. That’s roughly 1,300 trials per day, and they call 70 people to serve as jurors for those trials.

That’s a fairly low turnover rate.

B) Take a look at the furniture and other accoutrement in this drab space.

If you removed the flags (or shoved them into a corner), you’d have a for-profit university lecture hall or megachurch meeting space or a community center multipurpose space.

If you removed the rows of chairs, dais, and flags, and if you added many more cubbies, you’d have an average office space.

What is this setting supposed to evoke?

Awe in the power and processes of the legal system?
Confidence in your powers as a Juror, in the Judicial system itself?
Comfort in the familiarity of the objects, materials, colors, and their arrangement?

Did anyone consider what this setting might evoke when they constructed it in this way?

The Patriotic part of me is dismayed by the soul-crushing dullness of it.
The Communist part of me is overjoyed in the proletarian-ness of it.
The Philosopher in me wants to go far deeper into all of this.
The Art Historian in me wants to take the conversation in a different direction.

Believe me, I could go on.

But I won’t. Kudos if you’ve read this far!

One last thing (largely unrelated): given that the iPhone 5 was announced today, I think it’s appropriate that I submit an picture from the iPhone 4, the camera that got me interested in making pictures in a serious manner. And I believe today marks roughly the second anniversary of my iPhone. Nice.

iPhone 4. 645 Pro. ISO200, 1/15th, f/2.8 (all controlled by the app). Minor tweaks to bring the image closer to my memory, and a tiny bit of straightening to bring the flag vertical.

365.258 bloom

Bloom? Yes.

1) To me, this looks like a divot in a piece of bulletproof glass, or that glass with the wire all through, and ‘bloom’ is a (informal) synonym for blemish, which is a synonym of divot and pock, which this also sorta looks like to me.

2) This also has some semblance of a flower, sort of, though this a much more tenuous relationship than it has to divots, pocks, and blemishes.

3) One of these days, I’ll bloomin’ capture a bloomin’ drop properly.

But not today…

I got one that was perfect: the drop suspended in midair, the perfectly circular ripple, the backwash rising up from the center… Unfortunately, it was completely out of focus.

I got a couple that were closer, but none looked as good as this one, and none had the groovy shadow/reflection thing going on like this one.

I will keep trying until I get the obligatory droplet shot, and I will try to get some decent splash shots one of these days, but not today.

Good thing: I think I got the lighting pretty close to right, and I was really excited, thinking that I’d learned something new today… Alas, I had the lighting right from the beginning, thanks to Alex Koloskov, who I’m not going to plus mention, because I’m sure he’s seen (and discarded) hundreds of shots like this.

D7000. Vivitar 70-210mm f/3.5 Series 1 (Kiron), in Macro mode. ISO100, 1/250th, f/3.5. SB-700, zoomed to 70mm, at 1/64th power, fired laterally behind the pie pan (speaking of pie pans… I need to get a proper splashing dish.) (And an eye dropper.), and triggered via two Cactus v5 triggers. Cropped down by about half, and treated to about 3 minutes of slider play in Aperture.