Chinatown 2012 Part 2

San Francisco

I had two security gaurds and one cop meet me to tell me that I could not take photos. If someone was breaking into my car I would have to wait 40 minutes to get one cop to take a report. They said I needed a permit to take a photo. This is the one I got before they made me move on.

Update here is a video of Carlos Miller Arrested at Occupy Miami Eviction for photography.

I have been past the Transamerica Building many times but I have never noticed the base of it. What a difference it makes to walk instead of driving.

Chinatown 2012

I recently took a trip to Chinatown in San Francisco they are celebrating their New Year which took place on January 23rd. There is a parade taking place on Febuary 11th. The great thing about HDR is it makes me practice bracketing, something I was lazy about before HDR. Now that I have my camera set up for bracketing, if I am shooting something that is static (not moving such as people) I leave it set up to bracket. Sometimes I find one of the braketed exposures (a + or - exposure) nails the exposure. Like I said I would not recommend bracketing for people because it kills the moment. It would be a shame to have a great expression that was over or under exposed.

The shot below is not HDR one exposure covered the full dynamic range. It was under exposed to saturate the color. All the rest are HDR.

Broadway Plaza Christmas 2011 HDR Warmed Up Version

I have not had a chance to shoot anything lately, but I have been thinking about the images I took at Broadway Plaza and woundered what an HDR with the color tempature changed from daylight to shadow. Here is the resulting image it looks quite a bit warmer.

Hangin With R C Concepcion

Last night I had the privilege to hangout with R C Concepcion and 24 other people on Google +. R C Concepcion  is one of the Photoshop guys on Photoshop User TV. Photoshop User TV is a show that I watch once a week for tips on Photoshop. Google + is a social network like Facebook you group other members into circles (Family, Friends, Photography , Photoshop............ect.) then you can read their posts.  In the hangouts you can see the other members (if the have a video camera), you can share links, your desktop and talk to each other.  Its almost like you are in someones living room, but in the comfort of your own home. Its amazing how much you can learn from the people on Google + , you can connect with people all over the world. R C Concepcion is in Florida and I am following people from around the world. We talked about photography,HDR and many other things. I even had a chance to compliment R C on his HDR book.

Broadway Plaza Christmas 2011 HDR

While picking up some gifts for Christmas I saw the tree in Broadway Plaza and could not wait to get back to take the following shots. Believe it or not these shots were taken with in ten minutes of each other. Make sure you click on the images to see a larger view.

Fine 49 HDR

I was going to Pet Co. when I walked in I was shocked. The store had been gone for over a year. The trip was not a total waste. I came across a 1949 Cadillac Fleetwood 75. I knew exactly how I wanted to process the images. First shoot in HDR and then convert to a high contrast black and white then selectively tone the image. The toning worked because of the era of the car. It also worked because the images were shot at mid day the car picked up the blue sky and it got rid of the gaudy color of the buildings trim. Take a look at the last image. Make sure you click on the images to see a larger view.