It’s been almost a year to the day since I posted my “want to do” list so I thought I’d take a few moments to review, and update the list. So first let’s lock at last year’s list:

Tom’s 2007 “Want to do” List:

• Shoot more triptychs!!! - Well, still haven’t shot anything that would make a good triptych. It’s been 5 years now since I’ve shot any so maybe it’s just time to move on. If I see something I’ll photograph it but it’s not going to be an active goal.
  

• Shoot more panoramas - All types - flat, cylindrical, 360 degree VR, Gigapixel stitched. My brother built me a really nice panorama head and I’ve been using it a bit. I have troubles aligning and blending the images in Autopano Pro so I need to practice that. - I’ve shot a few Cylindrical and 360 VR panoramas in the past year -  http://www.tnphoto.ca/360. Unfortunately I sold my XTi as well as my Sigma 8mm fisheye lens. I had planned to buy a 15mm full frame fisheye which would be more useful for me with my 5D but I don’t have the funds right now. I can still make VR panoramas but it’s harder to align the images. I also tried to make a Gigapixel stitched panorama but it turns out that my computer is not powerful enough to process the 80+ images. I would need to but a huge hard drive and I don’t want to do that right now.

• Star trail photo. I’ve been wanting to shoot one of these for years but still haven’t. - Still haven’t done this… I still want to though.
  

• Light Painting. I’ve already done some this year but the results weren’t spectacular. - My tastes have changed somewhat and I no longer interested in this except for two scenarios. 1. Light up interesting road signs at night and 2. light up a tent from the inside at night.
  

• Astrophotography. I’ve already talked with my brother about building a barn door mount. A barn door mount or double tracker is a mount that slowly moves a camera at the same speed as the earth rotates to keep stars from becoming star trails in a long exposure. I actually built one of these last year but it was made out of plywood and was really flimsy. I now want to build one out of aluminum. My brother will build it for me. He is a machinist so I just need to draw up a drawing. -In the past year, I’ve photographed the moon, a comet, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus. No really spectacular shots but I had a great time. I’ve given up on the idea of building a barn door mount. I don’t think it’s worth it and I’d be better off buying a proper telescope mount but again lack of funds.
  

• Build a lighting trigger so I can photograph lighting during the day. I already have a circuit idea in my head so it’s just a matter of actually sitting down and building it. Whether it will work or not is to be seen. - My circuit idea didn’t work out and I’ve also decided that I don’t need another thing to carry around with me. If I shoot lightning it will be when it’s dark. I actually shot some lightning last weekend at my brother’s acreage but I haven’t had a chance to even look at the photos yet.
  

• And finally animal photography at the zoo. In the fall of 2005 I specifically bought a couple extra CF cards for this but I haven’t been to the zoo since then. - Well what can I say…. I’m not interested in photographing captive animals. If I go to the zoo of course I’ll bring my camera but officially it’s off the list.

So that is that. It seems by looking at this list that I haven’t accomplished all that much. I think though, that this past year 2007-2008 has been my best photographically and I’m really happy with the images I’m created. Looking at this list I’m also amazed how much my interests change. I’m the type of person that gets really bored if I work on a single thing too long. I have countless hobbies and interests. I think it’s good though because it helps me grow.

So now on to my 2008 “list”. I’ll going to short and sweet this time.

• Make a photo coffee table book with mountain photographs and self publish it through blurb.com. I’ve already started thinking about the layout and the content but I still have a lot of work ahead of me.
• Shoot a “project” that is not my typical landscape image. I’m still searching for a concept or theme but nothing seems right or it’s already been done.
• Catch up on my post processing, editing, website, etc. I am so behind it’s not even funny!!!

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

Ok, I lied.

A few months ago, I wrote here that I sold my film SLR and that from now one I was going to be 100% digital. Well, that wasn’t completely true, I sold off my 35mm film SLR I still own my grandfather’s 1960’s era Flexaret VI medium format TLR. So while I’m still committed to 100% digital for my serious work, there is no reason I can’t have a little fun.

Last week I was in one of my moods, I wanted to do something different, something creative. I’m not exactly sure how to put this in words but essentially I wanted to shoot a series of images that look and feel old and have a “gritty” quality to them.

At first I thought I would just shoot with my Canon 5D and simulate the effect in Photoshop but then, I remembered that I still had my grandfathers old TLR and that it would be perfect for this project.

The next day, I went down the the camera store and picked up a few rolls of medium format B&W film, film developing chemicals, and a developing tank. If I was going to do this, I was going to do it all.

………………………………………..

This first photo is just a test shot from my first roll of film. I’m still unsure if I’ll include it in the final “project”. If you’ve seen the film “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” you may notice that one of the scenes was shot in this exact spot. Of course Brad Pitt didn’t stick around to pose for my photo. This is the McDougall Church on the prairie west of Cochrane, Alberta. I believe it was the first church in Southern Alberta built in 1875.

After developing the film in my basement “darkroom”, I scanned it on an old flatbed/film scanner I got from work they they wanted to recycle. The scans are poor quality but more than good enough for the web and the small prints I plan to make. In fact, I think the lousy scans actually add to the “look” I’m going for. In photoshop, I adjusted the contrast, added a little grain and gave it a slight sepia tone.

McDougall Church, Southwest Alberta
Flexaret VI TLR, 80mm fixed lens
Ilford HP5 Plus developed in Ilfosol S
1/400 second at f/16

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

Some time ago a photographer posted a photo of the moon on an internet forum. Another member responded by asking “Why did you take the photo of the moon? It’s been done do many time before.”

The “moon” can be just that, the moon, or it can be any iconic subject out there - the Half Dome, Antelope Canyon, Mount Rundle, etc. There are photographers out there that will go out of their way to avoid shooting icons simply because “they’ve been done before”. Well, I’m not one of these photographers. If I come across an icon I will photograph it. Why? Because no matter how good all of the other photographs are, I want one that I shot myself.

Galen Rowell said it nicely in his book Mountain Light - “At the heart of all photography is an urge to express our deepest personal feelings, to reveal our inner, hidden selves, to unlock the artist. Those of us who become photographers are never satisfied with just looking at someone else’s expression of something that is dear to us. We must produce our own images, instead of buying postcards and photobooks. We seek to make out own statements of individuality.”

So, although I’ve already posted it here, here is my version of the moon.

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

You want to spend the day out shooting in the great outdoors so you grab your camera bag and head out the door. But wait, before you rush out, stop for a bit and think about the other “gear” that will help you get a killer shot. I’m not talking about camera accessories specifically. I’m talking about all of the little things that enable you to get the shots you otherwise couldn’t.

I have a duffel bag full of things that I like to throw in the trunk of my car whenever I go out shooting because you never know what will come in handy.

So what’s in my duffel bag you ask? I’ll tell you.

• Spare socks and shoes - Cold wet feet are unpleasant and in low temperatures even dangerous. Frost bite is no joke. With extra dry socks and shoes you can chase the light and not have to worry about the occasional puddle, or wet grass.
• Rubber boots - I put these on when I know that I will need to stand in shallow water to get the shot I want. I wouldn’t want to hike in these but it sure beat wet feet.
• Hip waders or chest waders - Not just for fisherman anymore. Really helpful if you want to shoot in deeper water or cross a small river. When crossing rivers I like to use a hiking stick to help keep my balance and I put my camera and lenses in a dry bag to keep them dry if I loose my footing and fall in.
• A small towel - To dry my feet. Also helps keep my camera dry in a very light rain or drizzle.
• Lights - A small headlamp, a 2 million candle power spotlight, and a small gas lantern. For the occasional light painting that I like to do.
• A small reflector and diffuser - To help with contrast when I’m shooting closeups or macro.
• Maps, compass, and notepad - For scouting locations, figuring out where the sun will rise and set and to write notes.

These are the few non-essential items that sometimes become essential. Depending on your location and shooting style you might want to bring more, less, or even something completely different.

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

If you’ve been following this blog regularly you’ve probably noticed that the time between my entries has noticeably lengthened. There are several reasons for this. First, I’ve re-started my exercise “program” which just consists of of 30-40 minutes of riding my bike every other day. I hurt my back about a year ago and stopped riding because of it. I’m also trying Yoga and and so far enjoying it. Second, I’ve started learning Spanish. Woohoo, I’m excited about this! I bought the Rosetta Stone software and have been working through that. Not every night but at least every other day and each lesson takes 1 - 1.5 hours.

Although I haven’t photographed anything new since mid January, I’m still trying to dedicate some time to photography. For example, I just signed an agreement with a Stock Agency - All Canada Photos . Another thing I’m very excited about. I’ve only sent them a few of my images so far because I need to prepare the Tiff’s before I upload them. This again takes time.

So yeah, just a quick note to say what I’ve been up to and to say that I haven’t dropped off the face of the earth. And although I’m nowhere near finished processing my photo’s from Mexico I’m posting one as a “Photo of the Day”

Playa del Carmen
Canon G9, 1/160sec at f/5, Circular Polarizer

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

It’s been almost a week since I returned from my trip to Playa del Carmen, Mexico. I shot around 700 images in my week there and while I’m still going through my first round of edits I thought I’d take this time to share my thoughts and experiences with the Canon G9 camera.

Overall the G9 is a very capable camera and I was very pleased with it. The image quality is great and I really appreciated all of the manual controls the camera had. Best of all, I was pleased to get all of this in such a small lightweight package. I found the camera controls very intuitive (at least to me, already a canon user) and I was comfortable using the camera even without reading the manual.

As you can probably guess, the G9 has a few drawbacks but honestly I don’t think they will come as much of a surprise to anyone. The files are noisier than files from a DSLR, the autofocus is slower especially in low light, and as nice as the 3″ LCD is, I still prefer to use an actual viewfinder of my 5D.

Now a few sample pictures. I chose these specific shots to help show the camera’s capabilities in a few different environments - rather than show all landscapes, etc.

Resort Pools at Night
15 seconds at f/4.5

I really liked the illuminated pools and palms at the resort. I shot this shortly after the sun had set to retain some colour in the sky. I also used a 3 stop ND grad filter, upside down to better record the sky and to keep the pool from being too bright.

Caribbean Sunrise
1 second at f/8

The beach at our resort. I loved coming here at sunrise when the beach was mostly deserted. I would sit there and just listen to the waves crashing on shore.

1/250 second at f/3.2
fill flash at -1 2/3 flash exposure compensation

The main reason for this trip was that a couple friends of mine, Chris and Cathy, were getting married down there. I had the opportunity and privilege to shoot some photos. If I had known ahead of time that I would be going this, I would have brought my 550EX flash and a diffuser with me. The built in flash on the G9 is obviously not the best. Regardless, I am still very pleased with many of the wedding photos.

Chitzen Itza
1/200 second at f/4.5

Chitzen Itza is a mind blowing place and I am truly grateful I had the opportunity to see it. If you ever have to opportunity to go there do it. It’s just amazing!

So if I had to do it over again would I still shoot with the Canon G9? Absolutely I would! The camera was just perfect for a trip such as this. If I was going on a “photography first” type holiday I would bring my Canon 5D and my arsenal of lenses but for everything else it’s the G9 all the way.

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

I’m off to Mexico later on this evening for a week of fun, sun and complete relaxation. When I first thought of what gear to bring, my immediate thought was to travel “light” and only bring my Canon 5D, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens and my Canon 70-200mm f/4 L lens. Well, it turns out, that even this lightweight kit is still fairly heavy. Since this trip is about friends and fun first and photography second (a couple of my friends are getting married down there) I decided for an even lighter kit.

After some thought and internet research this is what I decided to bring:

Camera: Canon G9. This little beauty has an equivalent 35-210mm image stabilized lens, full manual controls, and allows me to shoot in RAW. I can even attach an adapter to use my polarizer and ND Grad filters (more on this later). The camera also has a live histogram, automatic exposure bracketing and a nice macro mode. I added a quick release tripod plate and an after market hand grip. The hand grip really improves the ergonomics of the camera and can be bought here. I love it!

Tripod: Where ever I go, I like to bring a tripod. When I want to travel really light, I like to bring my modified Slik Compact with a Manfrotto 484 head and a Kirk quick release clamp. This whole setup weighs just over 1kg.

Lens adapter: I love my filters and quite honestly, I don’t think I could shoot without them. Mounting filters on the G9 is easy. You can simply purchase the optional lens adapter that has a standard 58mm filter thread. The canon lens adapter was sold out when I was ordering my G9 so I ended up buying one from Lensmate. It was approximately the same price as the Canon version but unlike the Canon it is made out of aluminum not plastic. Since all of my filters are sized to fit a Cokin P holder I took my Cokin P holder and my 58mm adapter ring and attached them to the lens adapter.

Filters: As I said. I love my filters! My standard filter kit consists of soft and hard edge 1, 2, and 3 stop ND grad filters, a 4 stop ND filter, a circular polarizer and finally a Blue and Yellow polarizer.

Portable Storage: When you shoot Raw, like I always do, your memory cards fill up FAST! Rather than carry lots of memory cards I like to travel with two Hyperdrive Space portable hard drives. My two Hyperdrives have 40GB and 80GB hard drives respectively and allow me to shoot with out having to worry about running out of memory. I carry two Hyperdrives because I like to have multiple copies of my photos in two different locations. One Hyperdrive lives in my day pack and the other in my duffel bag. This way if one unit gets lost, broken, or stolen I still have a complete copy of all of my images.

Accessories: In addition to the above gear, I’m bringing my camera battery charger, 2 camera batteries, 2 2GB SD cards, and my trusty hotshoe bubble level. Also not pictured ere is my custom Hyperdrive/iPod charger.

There you have it! My ultra lightweight camera kit. When I return from my trip I will post my thoughts on how things went and hopefully post a few pictures. Stay tuned!

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

I drove out to Vermilion Lakes (in Banff) this past Sunday to photograph the igloo that someone built there. My plan was to shoot the igloo with Mount Rundle in the background with a lantern placed inside the igloo to give it a nice glow but unfortunately, some genius decided it would be fun to destroy it. I was also here last Tuesday and it was fine then. Why do people do this??

Since my original plan was ruined I could do nothing but look for other compositions. This is my favorite shot from Sunday.

Canon 5D, Canon 45mm TS-E, 2 Stop ND Grad Filter, Polarizer, 4 Stop ND Filter

3.2 Second at f/16

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca

I went out shooting to the mountains yesterday and all day the sky was gray and the light was flat. Big scenic landscapes were out of the question so I focused my energy on finding and shooting more intimate scenes. I found this ice under a bridge in Canmore, Alberta. I was crossing under the road on a frozen creek when I saw this wonderfully backlit graphic scene. I mounted my 90mm TS-E on my camera and took several compositions. I shot this particular image at 1/160 second at f/8 (with the lens tilted). Later on, I used Adobe Lightroom to convert it to Black & White and to tone it this golden colour.

Happy New Year everybody!!! 

Tom Nevesely Photography - www.tnphoto.ca