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elviskennedy > Old Gas Station.  Elvis has been playing around with HDR ( high dynamic range ) photography. A plugin from NIK Software called HDR Efex Pro can be used within Apple's Aperture to help create these HDR images. Elvis is finding that one trick to this is finding subjects that are suitable for the HDR process. A dramatic sky helps. As does a colorful scene. Here is one example.  This is an old gas station in Hickory Corners, WI. The population looks to be about 20. There's a church, the old filling station and a small engine repair business. Come to think of it, that's a lot of industry for a town of 20!


Actually, this filling station in not in operation and is simply a labor of love for one of the locals. He likes to collect old gas pumps and signs. One day he figured that he had enough stuff to put together and re-create this very nice scene. Even the old Kent Feeds sign on the right is classic.  

See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Old Bridge in HDR.  Covered Bridge 2.  Here is another HDR shot.  It's of the interior framework of the oldest remaining covered bridge in the state of Wisconsin.  The HDR process really brings out the wood grain on the left and also shows great detail on the rafters above and cross beams on the right.  Shot with a Nikon D3s and a Nikon 14-24 f/2.8 AFS lens.

It was made with a 5 shot sequence (-2, -1, 0, +1, +2) using Apple Aperture and the NIK HDR EFEX Pro plug-in.  See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Box Girder bridge over the Mississippi River.  Wisconsin to Iowa.  Some photographs require lots of planning, testing and trial and error.  Others are seen only if you are looking
and are willing to take the chance to make them.


On a trip west Elvis happened to be crossing the Mighty Mississippi River at Prairie du Chien, WI.  A thunderstorm had just moved through and as the headlights hit the rising road of the box girder bridge the scene below unfolded.  

As usual when seeing nice opportunities from a moving vehicle, Elvis was thinking, "That would make a pretty nice picture, but it's a long drive, I'm tired, how can I stop in the middle of the road, bla, bla, bla".  But the sign welcoming travelers to Iowa read, "Iowa, The Land of Opportunities", so Elvis decided to take a chance.  He drove back across the river, turned around, waited for a group of cars to pass and parked his car slap bang in the middle of the road with the high beams on.  He quickly grabbed his trusty Olympus OM-1n with 50mm lens and put it on a tripod.  He set the aperture at 2.8 and watched the needle as he switched between shutter speeds.  Estimating a time of 2-3 seconds based on the needle movement he took one shot at 2 seconds and another at 3 seconds.  Then quickly ran to the car to get off the middle of the highway, at night, in the rain.  Whew!

A month passed (vacation over, film sent in for processing) and the yellow box of Kodak Kodachrome slides finally arrived.  The reward for taking the chance and not passing up the opportunity was in that little yellow box. 

See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Winter's Icy Grip.  Branch in Ice.  On the shores of Lake Michigan the waves crash into a break wall.  The spray is caught by the wind.  100 yards downwind the spray settles onto small branches.  Misty drop by misty drop it freezes on the branch.  Then onto itself.  Months of this accumulation results in photographic opportunites like this.  Nikon D3s with Nikon 105 AFS VR lens (1/1250 at F/8, ISO 200).  More at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Pilgrimage to the Holy Land.  Lambeau Field in HDR.  The holy land, the shrine, the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field.  Elvis thinks it does a boy good to make a pilgrimage whenever possible.  It cleanses the soul.  It focuses the mind.  It reminds us of what is truly important in this life.

So it was that Elvis made his way to Lambeau Field in beautiful Green Bay, Wisconsin.  Even on a non-gameday it's a special place.  The history.  The championships (now at 13 and counting).  The memories.  Ah...

Nikon D3s with Nikon 14-24 lens

HDR ( high dynamic range ) shot with a -2, -1, 0, +1, +2 sequence adjusted with Apple Aperture and NIK HDR EFEX Pro software.  More at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Lingering Winter.  Elm Leaf in Ice.  It's almost May and winter still rules the land in Wisconsin.  But it does provide some photographic opportunities.  The warm (ish) to cold cycle turns melting snow into blocks of ice.  Elvis recently obtained a macro lens for the first time in his life and it has proven to be a fun tool.  Lots of otherwise mundane objects look interesting when viewed magnified.  Here's an elm leaf emerging from a block of ice.  Nikon D3s with Nikon 105 VR Macro lens
Note the detail in the veins of the leaf.
See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > California Dreamin'.  Old Church.  Stopped in at a church, I passed along the way...  (With respect to the Mamma's and the Papa's.  Besides, all the leaves were brown and the sky was grey.).  Elvis did pass this church along the way and as the sky looked good he decided to take a 5 shot HDR (high dynamic range) photograph.  Using the trusty Nikon D3s and the newly acquired 14-24 lens a sequence of -2, -1, 0, +1, +2 was made.  This is the result.  Photograph made along Kelly Brook, just outside of the major metropolitan area of Spruce, Wisconsin.
 Note the small cemetary on the left, the outhouse on the right and the LP gas tank in rear.  All surrounded by fields.  Very rural scene.  How many people fit in the church do you think?  25?

See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Cana Island Lighthouse in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin.  For more go to www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Cana Island Lighthouse in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin.  For more go to www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Sometimes it's easy to forget just why we take pictures.  Some times it's to create art.  Other times it's just for fun.  Many times it's to document an event or a person or a place.  But for some hard-core photographers it's about production.  Gotta make the images.  Elvis thinks this attitude kills creativity.  If you start making photographs for the sake of making photographs all inspiration is gone.  And when inspiration is gone the likelihood of making something worthwhile goes effectively to zero.

Another sure way to zero-creativity madness is when we focus (pun intended) on equipment.  Gotta get that new Nikon lens or that new Canon 60D, then my photographs will be great.  You get the new thing and start snapping away.

Without a specific purpose it's difficult to create something, anything, worthwhile.  If you're in that rut, stop.  Think about what you're doing and why you're doing it.  Only with purpose can we get inspired.  Only with inspiration can we create lasting photographs.  It's not about the doing, it's about the why.  Even if the why is simply to have some fun.  Elvis thinks having fun should be a specific purpose in everyone's life.

Trees on Cana Island in Baileys Harbor, Wisconsin.  For more go to www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > No one is quite sure how Egg Harbor got it's name but there is a legend that Elvis prefers.  The story goes like this; From an article in the Door County Advocate of April 26, 1862. The story indicates that three or four Mackinac boats left Green Bay to deliver furs to the trading post on Mackinac Island.  The boats stopped at the yet unnamed harbor to rest for the night.  While rowing ashore there was a race to see who would reach the shore first.  Food from the mess baskets was thrown at the leading boat and food quickly returned.  First, hard tack was the missile of choice, but soon eggs flew through the air.  When the boats reached the shore, the battle continued until the eggs were gone.  Everyone enjoyed the fun and the story of the battle which was often repeated by the voyagers.  The harbor was then identified as Egg Harbor.  See more HERE.

The most photogenic billboard in a very photogenic place is for the Shipwrecked Restaurant & Microbrewery that is neatly painted on an old, abandoned silo.

Taken with Nikon D3s and Nikon 24-70 lens on a Gitzo tripod topped with a Really Right Stuff BH-40 ballhead.

From the blog www.elviskennedy.com
elviskennedy > Sunset photographs are great.  But they are usually cliche'.  Elvis likes to point his camera AWAY from the sunset and catch the great, saturated colors that sometimes grace the sky opposite the sunset.  

Standing on the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin's beautiful Door County afforded Elvis such an opportunity.  The diaphenous waters went from green to blue.  The sky went from blue to pink.  Trees and rocks for framing.

Taken with Nikon D3s and 14-24 lens atop a Gitzo tripod with Really Right Stuff BH-40 ballhead.  7 shot HDR ( high dynamic range ) sequence of -3, -2, -1, 0, +1, +2, +3.  Aperture of f/8.

From the blog www.elviskennedy.com
elviskennedy > Taking pictures, like a lot of other things we do, is a learned skill.  The more we practice, the better we become.  The opposite is also true.  Get out of practice and your muscle memory and other skills diminish.  The great trumpeter Doc Severinsen used to say this about his trumpet playing abilities, "If I miss one day of practice I know it.  If I miss two days the band knows it.  If I miss three days everyone knows it".  While it's not necessary to photograph every day, the threory holds true about pratice and skill.  Ignore your camera for a while and your skills will be like this old, abandoned house;

From the blog www.elviskennedy.com
elviskennedy > Pining away for new or upgraded equipment is a fool's game.  Use what you have.  Until (if ever) your photographic equipment fails you, or fails to perform to your needs - you're good.
  
Elvis knows what you're thinking; "Easy for you, Elvis, you've got a top-of-the-line Nikon and quality glass".  True enough.  But understand that Elvis used to roam the Lambeau Field sidelines taking pictures of the mighty Green Bay Packers.  The old Nikon D100 just didn't cut it in terms of speed or in image quality.  The newspapers Elvis worked for demanded high pixel count, even though they printed medium quality jpegs no larger than 6 inches by 6 inches.  So a Nikon D3 it was.

Short of sports or weddings (or battlefield or space photography) you simply don't need that much camera.  Elvis sometimes shoots with a Nikon D7000 and thinks that in many respects it's better than the D3.  The D3 wins in speed and high ISO (low light) shooting, but the D7000 wins in almost every other category.  Reviews of both cameras coming soon to www.elviskennedy.com.

Pining for something better (or newer, faster, etc.) leads to stress.  Be happy with what you have and you'll be happy.  Like what you have and you'll have what you like.

One shot HDR image made with Nikon D3s and Nikon 105 macro lens.

From the website www.elviskennedy.com
elviskennedy > Sometimes you can drive or hike out to the spot you think could make a great photograph.  Sometimes you stumble upon those spots, and if you're prepared, you can work your magic.  Other times you need to sit and wait for it to come to you.  Such was the case for the photograph below.  

Elvis was away from home, in a hotel room, without a vehicle.  Heavy wind, rain and lightning kept Elvis from venturing outside in the storm.  

The trees were partially blocking the view but by putting them at the bottom the thought was they could make a nice frame or at least add some contrast to the sky.  Elvis took 67 shots over the period of 2 hours hoping to catch the lightning, and this is the only frame that did.  The deep, angy sky adds drama to the lighting bolts.  Patience was a virtue.

Taken with a Nikon D2x and a 20-35mm lens.

From the blog www.elviskennedy.com
Old Gas Station. Elvis has been playing around with HDR ( high dynamic range ) photography. A plugin from NIK Software called HDR Efex Pro can be used within Apple's Aperture to help create these HDR images. Elvis is finding that one trick to this is finding subjects that are suitable for the HDR process. A dramatic sky helps. As does a colorful scene. Here is one example. This is an old gas station in Hickory Corners, WI. The population looks to be about 20. There's a church, the old filling station and a small engine repair business. Come to think of it, that's a lot of industry for a town of 20!


Actually, this filling station in not in operation and is simply a labor of love for one of the locals. He likes to collect old gas pumps and signs. One day he figured that he had enough stuff to put together and re-create this very nice scene. Even the old Kent Feeds sign on the right is classic.

See more at http://www.elviskennedy.com.
elviskennedy > Old Gas Station.  Elvis has been playing around with HDR ( high dynamic range ) photography. A plugin from NIK Software called HDR Efex Pro can be used within Apple's Aperture to help create these HDR images. Elvis is finding that one trick to this is finding subjects that are suitable for the HDR process. A dramatic sky helps. As does a colorful scene. Here is one example.  This is an old gas station in Hickory Corners, WI. The population looks to be about 20. There's a church, the old filling station and a small engine repair business. Come to think of it, that's a lot of industry for a town of 20!


Actually, this filling station in not in operation and is simply a labor of love for one of the locals. He likes to collect old gas pumps and signs. One day he figured that he had enough stuff to put together and re-create this very nice scene. Even the old Kent Feeds sign on the right is classic.  

See more at www.elviskennedy.com.
Old Gas Station. Elvis has been playing around with HDR ( high dynamic range ) photography. A plugin from NIK Software called HDR Efex Pro can be used within Apple's Aperture to help create these HDR images. Elvis is finding that one trick to this is finding subjects that are suitable for the HDR process. A dramatic sky helps. As does a colorful scene. Here is one example. This is an old gas station in Hickory Corners, WI. The population looks to be about 20. There's a church, the old filling station and a small engine repair business. Come to think of it, that's a lot of industry for a town of 20!


Actually, this filling station in not in operation and is simply a labor of love for one of the locals. He likes to collect old gas pumps and signs. One day he figured that he had enough stuff to put together and re-create this very nice scene. Even the old Kent Feeds sign on the right is classic.

See more at http://www.elviskennedy.com.
Camera: Nikon Corporation (Nikon D3s) |
more details: exif |
original size: 4254px x 2830px |
Current: 600px x 399px |
Other sizes: S • Medium • L • O • save photo |
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Keywords: corner horse shop high truck range red sky grafitti eagle wisconsin tires mobil kent gas pump feed signs pumps hdr hickory mobilgas goodyear gas station digital photography d3 wi 1424 d3s hickory corners
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