Photo Tip: Road Less Traveled ____ 2013/04

A good route to success in outdoor photography is finding a niche that you love. Find your passion; focus like a laser. Be a big fish in a small pond. My particular niche is sea kayaking. As a vehicle, the sea kayak transports a photographer to unique photo ops, sometimes just a stone’s throw out […]

Photo Tip: Foreground Elements _____ 2013/03

In the field, I often stalk through a potential photo op with the viewfinder glued to my eye, seeking just the right composition or perspective. If I plan well, I’m scouting before the light gets good—in the afternoon for a sunset shot, or the day before for the sunrise. What I’m scouting for is foreground. […]

Gopro Hero2 and WiFi Remote Review, Sea Kayaker, December, 2012

GoPro Hero2, Sea Kayaker, Dec 2012

I review the GoPro Hero2 camera and WiFi Combo Kit (Backpack plus Remote) in the December, 2012 issue of Sea Kayaker magazine. The GoPro Hero2 is a tiny, waterproof videocam, the market leader in POV cameras. The wrist-mount WiFi Remote adds flexibility of use and efficiency, using a screen that’s identical to the Hero2 LCD. […]

Photo Tip: Suction Cup Mount ____ 2012/10

I biked to the local Ace Hardware last week and picked up a pair of suction cup mounts.  Ace sells USA Progrip® Suction Cups online for $4.79/pair; free shipping if you pick it up at a local store. The rubber cup diameter is 3”. They have a ¼-20 female thread, so to mount a ball […]

Expedition Critique

“Old wisdom says, ‘Find out what you did wrong and never do it again.‘  New wisdom says, ‘Find out what you did right, so you can be sure to do it again.‘  The old way suggests moving ahead while looking back over your shoulder. The new way suggests moving forward by finding safe footholds and […]

Expedition Trip Photography Plan, Part II—the Photo Plan ___ 2011/04

Some photographers travel to shoots without researching the site. The idea is to have “no preconceptions”, I suppose, or to look at scenes as they unfold with “fresh eyes”. I like the idea of “no preconceptions”, but I think the more you know about a place the better prepared you are, and the better you […]

Expedition Trip Photography Plan, Part I—the Gear ___ 2011/03

Two years ago, I wrote about photography on a longish kayak trip (Ten-day Power Trip, 06/2009) in Baja, a trip without the ability to charge batteries. My solution then was extra batteries and plenty of flash memory, coupled with judicious use of those resources. A solar charger didn’t make sense—the trip wasn’t long enough—and a […]

2010 Favorite Images Critique ___ 2011/01

I thought it would be instructive to look at some of my favorite 2010 images, with a story and critique about the shot. I worked the birds by kayak pretty well early in the year, and then got in some hikes and backpacks to scenic places in the summer and fall. Although I also did […]

More 2010 Favorite Images Critique ___ 2011/01

Five more favorite images from 2010. It bares repeating: keep that viewfinder glued to your eyeball and look, look, look . . . Mazama Ridge after Sunset: 2010 wasn’t a good year for Northwest wildflower photography. The mountain meadow flowers were late; many never made it. I made numerous visits to Mt. Rainier, but I […]

Lightroom 2 Spot Removal (on steroids) ___ 02/2010

Finished image after clone and cropping is much stronger than original.

The Spot Removal tool introduced in Lightroom 2 was a nice feature, part of set of tools that allowed manipulation of individual pixels on RAW files. Almost coincidently, though, manufacturers introduced dSLR cameras with self-cleaning sensors that worked so well Spot Removal was rarely needed for dust touch-up. I nonetheless use the tool frequently—for wildlife […]