Daniel Ruf

File Hunting

                            "Do all you can to make your dreams come true."  Joel Osteen

A couple of Fall's ago my friend Mike Houge, mikehouge.typepad.com , and myself made a trip to the Arrowhead region of Northeastern Minnesota to photograph around the Gooseberry Falls and Lake Superior regions.  I remember spending a lot of time at the site of the blog image trying to get a particular capture of this scene of which the hardest part was straddling this small portion of the Gooseberry River, which is downstream of the falls area. I can't even imagine what Mike was thinking as I tried to execute several "rubber legged" approaches to the situation.

When I got home it was one of the first files I looked for after downloading the results of this particular session, but was disappointed by the results and left the file as unworthy of consideration.  It seemed that the HDR exposure range was not good enough to render a final execution that I could appreciate.  It's not a new story, but a learning curve about the importance of not being too hasty when one is onsite and needing to fulfill the personal assignment.

The other day, as I was file hopping, I happened to realize that, judging by the file arrangement for the session, I had apparently walked away to do some other captures at the scene, and then returned for some final attemps.  As "luck" would have it I did made several other exposures which were indeed had appropiate outcomes for a final image.

This scene was taken with my ol' trusty Canon 50D, processed in Photomatix HDR software and finished with applications in Photoshop CS5, NIK Color Efex Pro and NIK Viveza.  The results are above and once again a reminder to myself that shooting sessions are never over and that file reviewing is a necessary part of digital photography just as it was with traditional film photography.  As artist, we are evolving in our approaches to our work as well as are the tools we use.  The more learning and research we do the more our approaches and tastes change, which will be reflected in our work.

Life is learning and change....and yes, about the journey.

Thank you for visiting...post a comment...it doesn't take courage to do so and will be appreciated.

Go Baylor...Sic 'Em Bears. 

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

http://500px.com/pigs4u

People, Too?

"There are many teachers that could ruin you.  Before you know it you could be a pale copy of this teacher or that teacher.  You have to evolve on your own."

Berenice Abbott

Yes, I too can photograph human beings,  but I try to capture a special moment and I usually am more comfortable around family.  In the case of the first blog image the family was in San Antonio to atttend the Valero Alamo Bowl and we happen to be walking along the beautiful River Walk.  My daughter and granddaughter were on the other side feeding the pigeons, a task that my granddaughter loved to do, and, with the backdrop of the various store fronts, the right pose presented itself.

My daughter has a surprisingly deep affection for our two granddaughters, which I find incredible considering the trend of a lot of today's young adults.  Yes, she is absorbed with her Ipod, her job and friends, but when it comes to her niece's she is a first class auntie and I'm so proud of the affection she gives towards the girls.

The capture is from a Canon 50D, processed in Photoshop CS5 and then worked in the Topaz B&W Effects plug-in.  I used a transparency filter to bring a little faded color back into the image and then added a slight blur to the entire scene.  With a layer mask I then brought some of the original color back into the primary subjects and the pigeons.

In this second scene at a court yard inside the Alamo area I was hoping to get a capture of the beautiful lighting in this fountain area, but finally went with the smallest amount of "human intervention" that would work.  This was processed in Photoshop CS5 with Nik HDR Efex and then converted to a black and white using Nik Silver Efex Pro 2 which emphasized the lighting as well as the textural qualities of the scene.  Again, using a layer mask, I brought back a hint of flesh tones in the young girl.  I'm really glad that I didn't walk away from this scene and decided to wait for an opening when the crowd melted away.

I often surprise myself when I do these types of portrait situations since I spend a large part of my time searching for grand landscapes, clear waters or summer skies that are void of appearances by people.  I guess, when one really thinks about it, people probably have more of an influence on our lives compared to our surroundings which can define the person that one becomes.

Thank you for joining me today and please feel free to comment.

SIC 'EM BEARS!

My book "Places I've Been, Things I've Seen" and new book "Take What's Given" can be purchased online at-  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1868649

For more views of my work visit;

"A Piece Of Work", Spirit Lake, Iowa  http://www.apieceofworkinc.com

Lanesboro Art Center, Lanesboro, Minnesota   www.lanesboroarts.org

BetterPhoto.com   http://www.betterphoto.com/Premium/Default.aspx?id=251674&mp=V

http://500px.com/pigs4u