Continuing the Saturn V theme, here's the second of three detail studies showing part of the first stage of the rocket.]]>

Continuing the Saturn V theme, here's the second of three detail studies showing part of the first stage of the rocket.

It's time to move back home from California so this week I'm running a collection of images I shot while visiting Space Center Houston and Johnson Space Center last weekend. This was my third visit down there as part of a great program they run for Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts and similar organisations. The kids get to spend the night, after the space center closes, doing a bunch of fun, aeronautically-related activities among the exhibits then we all "camp out" for the night in the Spaceship Gallery under one or other piece of space hardware (this time, Drew and I slept underneath an Apollo-Soyuz docking adapter, for example).

Aside from this being great fun for the kids, it also gives photographers like me amazing access to the exhibits when there is practically no-one around! I shot a few more images inside the Space Center but my main aim was to complete a set of Saturn V images I've been working on so we also spent an extra hour or so with the big rocket at JSC.

This shot was taken with a fisheye lens to create a rather abstract, ovoid from the cylinder of the rocket's first stage.]]>

It's time to move back home from California so this week I'm running a collection of images I shot while visiting Space Center Houston and Johnson Space Center last weekend. This was my third visit down there as part of a great program they run for Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts and similar organisations. The kids get to spend the night, after the space center closes, doing a bunch of fun, aeronautically-related activities among the exhibits then we all "camp out" for the night in the Spaceship Gallery under one or other piece of space hardware (this time, Drew and I slept underneath an Apollo-Soyuz docking adapter, for example).

Aside from this being great fun for the kids, it also gives photographers like me amazing access to the exhibits when there is practically no-one around! I shot a few more images inside the Space Center but my main aim was to complete a set of Saturn V images I've been working on so we also spent an extra hour or so with the big rocket at JSC.

This shot was taken with a fisheye lens to create a rather abstract, ovoid from the cylinder of the rocket's first stage.

A while back, I posted an infra-red shot taken from Tunnel View but, for the more traditionally-minded, here's a standard optical spectrum version of the same shot. In the distance, you can see El Capitan on the left of the valley and Bridalveil Falls on the right.]]>

A while back, I posted an infra-red shot taken from Tunnel View but, for the more traditionally-minded, here's a standard optical spectrum version of the same shot. In the distance, you can see El Capitan on the left of the valley and Bridalveil Falls on the right.

One of the most spectacular views we came across while in Sequoias National Park was from the top of Moro Rock. Getting to the top of this large granite outcrop took a bit of a climb but, from 7500 feet, the panorama was breathtaking, especially since the roof of the cloud layer that day was at about 5000 feet.

Standing on the top, the cloud looked like an ocean sweeping westward with waves, albeit very slow ones, crashing into the west-facing slope of the Sierras. It was mesmerising to watch.]]>

One of the most spectacular views we came across while in Sequoias National Park was from the top of Moro Rock. Getting to the top of this large granite outcrop took a bit of a climb but, from 7500 feet, the panorama was breathtaking, especially since the roof of the cloud layer that day was at about 5000 feet.

Standing on the top, the cloud looked like an ocean sweeping westward with waves, albeit very slow ones, crashing into the west-facing slope of the Sierras. It was mesmerising to watch.

I could easily have spent a whole day inside Grace Cathedral during my visit to San Francicso. It's a gorgeous building with so many interesting little details that set it apart from many other cathedrals.

I already mentioned the fascinating scientifically-themed stained glass but here's another example - a large, brass chi-rho symbol embedded into the floor of the nave partway down the aisle. There's also a labyrinth on the nave floor behind me (I may post a shot containing it later). Both of these make great foreground elements in shots of the whole nave, adding even more interest to shots which are already fascinating due to the majesty of the building itself.

Knowing that I wanted to make the symbol a major part of the composition, I set up right above it with the fisheye lens and shot this image. Of the pictures I've processed from the cathedral, this is definitely my favourite so far.]]>

I could easily have spent a whole day inside Grace Cathedral during my visit to San Francicso. It's a gorgeous building with so many interesting little details that set it apart from many other cathedrals.

I already mentioned the fascinating scientifically-themed stained glass but here's another example - a large, brass chi-rho symbol embedded into the floor of the nave partway down the aisle. There's also a labyrinth on the nave floor behind me (I may post a shot containing it later). Both of these make great foreground elements in shots of the whole nave, adding even more interest to shots which are already fascinating due to the majesty of the building itself.

Knowing that I wanted to make the symbol a major part of the composition, I set up right above it with the fisheye lens and shot this image. Of the pictures I've processed from the cathedral, this is definitely my favourite so far.

I finally got a chance to play with some daytime long exposures while on the Yosemite trip and this is one of the first images I created using my "black filter", the B&W ND1000 10 stop neutral density filter.

Shooting with a filter this dark poses some problems, the worst of them being that you can't see through it to focus. I found myself setting up the shot with the filter removed then locking the focus and attaching the filter prior to shooting.

Another (obvious) problem is calculating the exposure required. You may be able to use automatic modes if the light is strong enough that your calculated shutter speed stays below 30 seconds but I was shooting in manual so just figured the exposure for myself (take the meter exposure without the filter then adjust the shutter speed by doubling 10 times to find the exposure with the filter installed). Even after this, I typically had to shoot a couple of images to get the exposure exactly where I wanted it.

The final problem relates to white balance. This filter imparts a significant, warm colour cast to the image. This can be corrected pretty easily in post-processing but I learned that switching the camera to auto white balance (a setting I pretty much never use), cleans things up in the camera pretty well.]]>

I finally got a chance to play with some daytime long exposures while on the Yosemite trip and this is one of the first images I created using my "black filter", the B&W ND1000 10 stop neutral density filter.

Shooting with a filter this dark poses some problems, the worst of them being that you can't see through it to focus. I found myself setting up the shot with the filter removed then locking the focus and attaching the filter prior to shooting.

Another (obvious) problem is calculating the exposure required. You may be able to use automatic modes if the light is strong enough that your calculated shutter speed stays below 30 seconds but I was shooting in manual so just figured the exposure for myself (take the meter exposure without the filter then adjust the shutter speed by doubling 10 times to find the exposure with the filter installed). Even after this, I typically had to shoot a couple of images to get the exposure exactly where I wanted it.

The final problem relates to white balance. This filter imparts a significant, warm colour cast to the image. This can be corrected pretty easily in post-processing but I learned that switching the camera to auto white balance (a setting I pretty much never use), cleans things up in the camera pretty well.

Forests offer great potential for abstract fun through camera movement. All those lovely vertical lines produce great streaks if you move the camera upwards during a long exposure. This kind of thing is pretty hit-and-miss, though, so it generally takes me a dozen or so attempts before I find one shot which has the right mix of basic sharpness and streaking. Too much streaking and you end up with a series of stripes and pretty much no indication of what the subject was. Too little streaking and you end up with what is just basically a blurry picture.

Of the batch of shots I took that day, this was the one that balanced the sharp core and streaking best for me. You can still tell that the green areas are lichen covered tree trunks but the streaking gives the whole image a rather dreamy feel. What do you think?]]>

Forests offer great potential for abstract fun through camera movement. All those lovely vertical lines produce great streaks if you move the camera upwards during a long exposure. This kind of thing is pretty hit-and-miss, though, so it generally takes me a dozen or so attempts before I find one shot which has the right mix of basic sharpness and streaking. Too much streaking and you end up with a series of stripes and pretty much no indication of what the subject was. Too little streaking and you end up with what is just basically a blurry picture.

Of the batch of shots I took that day, this was the one that balanced the sharp core and streaking best for me. You can still tell that the green areas are lichen covered tree trunks but the streaking gives the whole image a rather dreamy feel. What do you think?

Apologies for forgetting to post an image yesterday – I was down at Space Center Houston with a bunch of Cub Scout and, despite having pictures queued up and ready to post, I completely forgot to press the relevant button!

We’re moving back to San Francisco today for another image taken in the Nob Hill area. This shows the Fairmont Hotel in the foreground and the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental Hotel in the background. I stayed at the Mark Hopkins and very much enjoyed it. On the plus side, the view from the top floor restaurant and bar is breathtaking. On the negative side, they left a bad impression on me with the $6.50 price tag on a 16oz bottle of water in the room (but you can probably ignore that complaint as the whining of a cheap Scotsman, however).

One lesson I've never managed to learn while out shooting in a new city is to take notes. This shot offers a prime example. Jesse Nichols, who graciously showed us around downtown San Francisco a couple of weeks ago, took us into this beautiful, art deco foyer in some office building or other. I was so taken by the ceiling (and the fact that the doorman was happy for us to take pictures of it!) that I completely forgot to note down where we were! If you happen to know, please drop me a comment so that I can update the description.]]>

One lesson I've never managed to learn while out shooting in a new city is to take notes. This shot offers a prime example. Jesse Nichols, who graciously showed us around downtown San Francisco a couple of weeks ago, took us into this beautiful, art deco foyer in some office building or other. I was so taken by the ceiling (and the fact that the doorman was happy for us to take pictures of it!) that I completely forgot to note down where we were! If you happen to know, please drop me a comment so that I can update the description.

On my second day in San Francisco, I had intended walking from my hotel all the way past the Golden Gate Bridge to try to get one of those iconic shots of the bridge from the beach that's just south-west of it. By the time I got to the Fisherman's Wharf area, though, two things were apparent. Firstly, it was going to be a long way (there are hills in San Francisco!) and secondly, it was going to be completely pointless since the clouds were covering the bridge (I didn't see any part of the bridge that whole day).

Rather than call the day a dud, I decided to take a wander into the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park. Am I glad I did! What a fascinating place that is. They have half a dozen or so historic ships, all beautifully preserved (or under renovation) and all set up with loads of fascinating information boards. It's definitely worth the visit if you are even slightly interested in maritime history.

This particular image shows the steam ferry "Eureka" which is powered by a fabulous and enormous single cylinder "walking beam" engine.]]>

On my second day in San Francisco, I had intended walking from my hotel all the way past the Golden Gate Bridge to try to get one of those iconic shots of the bridge from the beach that's just south-west of it. By the time I got to the Fisherman's Wharf area, though, two things were apparent. Firstly, it was going to be a long way (there are hills in San Francisco!) and secondly, it was going to be completely pointless since the clouds were covering the bridge (I didn't see any part of the bridge that whole day).

Rather than call the day a dud, I decided to take a wander into the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park. Am I glad I did! What a fascinating place that is. They have half a dozen or so historic ships, all beautifully preserved (or under renovation) and all set up with loads of fascinating information boards. It's definitely worth the visit if you are even slightly interested in maritime history.

This particular image shows the steam ferry "Eureka" which is powered by a fabulous and enormous single cylinder "walking beam" engine.