Brent

Brent, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.

* Exposure: 0.013 sec (1/80) [+]
* Aperture: f/5 [+]
* Focal Length: 85 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 320 [+]

Strobist Info: SB-800 into 43" umbrella shoot through mode at camera left in front of him at M 1/8 triggered via Nikon CLS/AWS. SB-600 at M 1/16 in same type umbrella camera right and behind him aimed at the wall at an angle. Flag in between my line of sight and that umbrella to prevent flare. This was was to light the background and provide some rim light. Strip light on either side of him (4', 2 bulbs each, each bulb 40 watts at 5000k). These provided a -2ev image and add some slight catchlight in the eyes.

About 1/2 hour before going to church this Sabbath, I had Brent sit down for a few photos. Here is one I liked.

Setup shot

Setup shot, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

As something different, here is a behind the scenes look at one of my recent photos.

Carl and Natalie with her Pike

Carl and Natalie with her Pike, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Natalie caught the only fish of our outing on Sunday. She caught this 11 lb Northern Pike on a spinnerbait in a back water slough area of the Mississippi.

She said she about had a heart attack when it happened. I was turned around and heard her scream. She looked in shock and was shaken! It attacked withing 6 foot of the boat with a loud surface splash and thrashing.

Natalie's Pike

Natalie's Pike, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Natalie caught the only fish of our outing on Sunday. She caught this 11 lb Northern Pike on a spinnerbait in a back water slough area of the Mississippi.

Oatmeal with Strawberries on Black

Oatmeal with Strawberries on Black, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

# Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200) [+]
# Aperture: f/1.4 [+]
# Focal Length: 85 mm [+]
# ISO Speed: 100 [+]

Strobist info and setup: I draped black cloth over a stool. I placed strip lights on each side and slightly behind (each on 4' with 2 bulbs, each bulb 40 watts at 5000k). This aided for focusing and add lighting of about a -3 to -2 EV. In a test shot the strawberry were visible but underexposed as I said by about -2 EV. 43" white satin umbrella with black backing on at camera right with SB-800 gelled at CTO 1/4. SB-800 set at M 1/32. White satin 43" umbrella with black backing behind and to the left high up at the ceiling (see setup shot) with SB-600 gelled at CTO 1/4. SB-600 at M 1/16. Both SBs triggered with Nikon CLS/AWS with IR pass through filter in front of on board flash.

WB was set for flash and so I had some low warm light from the 5000k bulbs and additionally warming with the gel.

I shot at f/1.4 to control the depth of focus and make sure the attention was on the strawberry.

**Real info**: Our strawberries are finally producing! We have been going out and picking strawberries from our patch. Sometimes eating them just then and there (brush the dirt off!). I got up Sabbath morning and took some out of the refrigerator and cleaned them while everyone slept. Wonderful strawberry aroma and delightful taste!

Breakfast Strawberries

Breakfast Strawberries, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

# Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200) [+]
# Aperture: f/1.4 [+]
# Focal Length: 85 mm [+]
# ISO Speed: 100 [+]

Strobist info and setup: I draped black cloth over a stool. I placed strip lights on each side and slightly behind (each on 4' with 2 bulbs, each bulb 40 watts at 5000k). This aided for focusing and add lighting of about a -3 to -2 EV. In a test shot the strawberries were visible but underexposed as I said by about -2 EV. 43" white satin umbrella with black backing on at camera right with SB-800 gelled at CTO 1/4. SB-800 set at M 1/32. White satin 43" umbrella with black backing behind and to the left high up at the ceiling (see setup shot) with SB-600 gelled at CTO 1/4. SB-600 at M 1/16. Both SBs triggered with Nikon CLS/AWS with IR pass through filter in front of on board flash.

I tried some with the second umbrella by me camera left but I got too hot of highlights and not enough exposure of rear strawberries. WB was set for flash and so I had some low warm light from the 5000k bulbs and additionally warming with the gel.

I shot at f/1.4 to control the depth of focus and make sure the attention was on the top strawberry. That worked fairly well, but I wanted even greater emphasis. So I then orton process with three layers. A gaussian blur of 20 applied to top layer and then with a layer mask I painted with a 50% brush over top the top most strawberry. While the gaussian blur contributes *some* the majority of the out of focus effect is simply from the amazing Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 AFD lens at f/1.4

**Real info**: Our strawberries are finally producing! We have been going out and picking strawberries from our patch. Sometimes eating them just then and there (brush the dirt off!). I got up Sabbath morning and took some out of the refrigerator and cleaned them while everyone slept. Here they are before I sliced them for our oatmeal (see another photo coming in my photostream). Wonderful strawberry aroma and delightful taste!

I pronounce you...

I pronounce you..., originally uploaded by carlcmc.

2008 Wedding of Sam Christensen and Jody Burkett © Carl M. Christensen

Diana and Jim

Diana and Jim, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Bride and Father of the Bride

Bride and Father of the Bride, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Andrew and his girlfriend

Andrew and his girlfriend, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

2008 Wedding of Sam Christensen and Jody Burkett © Carl M. Christensen

I think the bokeh and hair rim light from the sun add nice touches.

Edward, Katherine, Venito Jr., and Sonia

Edward, Katherine, Venito Jr., and Sonia, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

2008 Wedding of Sam Christensen and Jody Burkett © Carl M. Christensen

Katherine (Edward's soon to be wife) meets Venito Jr. and Sonia his aunt.

Father & Mother of the Groom

Father & Mother of the Groom, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

2008 Wedding of Sam Christensen and Jody Burkett © Carl M. Christensen.

Sam leads Mary down the aisle with Frank right behind.

Mother of the Groom

Mother of the Groom, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

2008 Wedding of Sam Christensen and Jody Burkett © Carl M. Christensen

Mary Christensen, Mother of Sam Christensen, pauses for a photo prior to the wedding.

Family Photo at the Harry P. Leu Gardens

Family Photo at the Harry P. Leu Gardens, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

We went the Harry Leu Gardens in Orlando. Beautiful roses, tropical plants etc. Here, on a walkway, we paused for a family photo.

Collecting Sea Shells

Collecting Sea Shells, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Brent, Natalie and Danielle at the beach gathering sea shells.

Getting Her Feet Wet

Getting Her Feet Wet, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Becky enjoying the water during the hot 90 degree summer day at Cocoa Beach, Florida.

Say Cheese, Not Wet!

Say Cheese, Not Wet!, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Brent, Natalie, Danielle and Becky at the beach.

Welcome to our Hotel Room

Welcome to our Hotel Room, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

The door to our hotel room at the Ritz.

Shall We Get Wet?

Shall We Get Wet?, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

We arrived at the beach mid-day with hot sun overhead and some clouds in the distance. The water felt cool at first, but quickly felt warm after a moment in it.

Arriving at the Hotel

Arriving at the Hotel, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

We just arrived at our room. We unpacked and I setup the tripod. Reflective umbrella with SB-800/600 camera left (yes you can see it in the patio door).

Family Photo at the Ritz

Family Photo at the Ritz, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.

* Exposure: 0.006 sec (1/160) [+]
* Aperture: f/8 [+]
* Focal Length: 85 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 250 [+]

This was on a round about. I set up my camera across the road in the middle of the round about. I chose an aperture of f/8 for acceptable focus and underexposed a bit - maybe 2/3 ev. I attached both my SB-800 and SB-600 to my umbrella in shoot through mode. I would have done reflected mode but I worried after setting everything up whether the Nikon CLS/AWS would be able to trigger it or not. The umbrella was camera left about 10 feet from me on the left. The umbrella was about 30 feet from the camera with both of the sensors on the speedlights rotated to face the camera. I had on the IR pass filter over the onboard flash. I had no problems with triggering the flashes. I used my remote IR shutter release with a 2 second timer.

After the limousines, BMWs, towncars etc passed and there was a gap in the traffic, I would run out and place my umbrella in the middle of the roundabout and then snap a few photos. I think this one turned out best.

We were in Orlando, Fl for 1 week. I attended AUA (American Urologic Association). We stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes which sits on a property and shares with the J.W. Marriott.

Beautiful Scenery

Beautiful Scenery, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.
* Aperture: f/9 [+]
* Focal Length: 26 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 250 [+]

I setup my camera on the tripod. I set the mirror lockup delay feature that delays the shutter from opening for a bit after the mirror flips up (to reduce vibration). I used my IR remote to trigger. I set the camera in bracketing mode of 3 shots at -2,0,+2 and started my 0 at a bit underexposed. From these images, I exported from lightroom a 16 bit TIFF for each one. These were processed in Photomatrix. The resultant 16 bit TIFF was then edited in Adobe Photoshop CS3 for a 3 layer Orton processing. Saved as JPG, reimported into Lightroom and then reexported to flickr from lightroom with tags applied. Whew...

I am going through a phase of liking HDR/Orton processing.

Our House

Our House, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Lone Tree Against the Sky

Lone Tree Against the Sky, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.
* Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125) [+]
* Aperture: f/11 [+]
* Focal Length: 20 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 100 [+]

3 RAW (NEF) exposures take with camera on a tripod. I set the shutter lockup delay feature and used my IR remote. I put it on bracketing and took -2,0,+2 EV exposures. Circular polarizer on. The sun was to camera right at 90 degrees. 16 bit TIFF generated which were then processed in Photomatrix Pro. Then the resultant 8 bit JPG was edited in Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Orton effect.

While there was much manipulation of the photo, the actual image itself is accurate. I haven't added or removed any elements. The clouds were there in that formation as was the hill/tree etc.

I really like how the clouds appear to be raining/wisping down towards the tree. I didn't notice this with my eye, but with an underexposure it was visibile.

Pedro the Little Dog - Enjoying the Sun

Pedro the Little Dog - Enjoying the Sun, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Carl and his beard

Carl and his beard, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

This is a photo I setup the lighting for Sabbath morning and had Becky direct me in a few poses from the other side of the camera. This is an example of short lighting with the lighted side of the face away from the camera. Some reflective fill on the other side with a bit of side/hair light as well.

Taken with a Nikon D80.
* Exposure: 0.003 sec (1/320) [+]
* Aperture: f/5.6 [+]
* Focal Length: 85 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 400 [+]

Strobist info: SB-800 into shoot through white satin 43" umbrella at Manual 1/2 at camera right. 3'x7' white sytrofoam reflector at camera left for some fill. SB-600 at M 1/16 on a telescoping tripod. This was positioned out of sight of the camera behind the 7' tall sytrofoam board but so that it could hit the side of my neck and hair for a bit of light. Both triggered via Nikon CLS/AWS.

I chose to stop down a bit aperture wise for this photo. I have been shooting a lot of portrait at larger apertures - f/1.4 ( www.flickr.com/photos/christensen_carl/tags/f14/ ), f/2.8 ( www.flickr.com/photos/christensen_carl/tags/f28/ ) with a few at f/4.0 ( www.flickr.com/photos/christensen_carl/tags/f4/ ). I decided to shoot at f/5.6 for a bit greater depth of field of focus.

After having my tonsillectomy, I hadn't shaved for a couple of weeks. Becky gave me a hair cut Friday evening. So I trimmed by beard just a bit to match my side burns and it matched well with my shirt for church!

Storm Clouds are Coming

Storm Clouds are Coming, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.
* Aperture: f/9 [+]
* Focal Length: 20 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 250 [+]

We have been receiving some rain off an on. I looked out this evening and saw this creeping up and over the shed. By the time I got my camera all set up, it had reached this position. The cloud cover is stretching over us! More rain ahead would be my guess.

Danielle and Emily

Danielle and Emily, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Danielle's new birthday gift - An American Girl doll named Emily

Candles

Candles, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Danielle blowing out the candles for her cake on the morning of her birthday

Brent Flying a Kite

Brent Flying a Kite, originally uploaded by carlcmc.

Taken with a Nikon D80.

* Exposure: 0.002 sec (1/500) [+]
* Aperture: f/9 [+]
* Focal Length: 18 mm [+]
* ISO Speed: 400 [+]

SB-800 on camera with CTO gel for a bit of fill. Circular Polarizer used as well.

I bought new kites for the kids. About a week or so ago we went out to fly them when we had a good wind.