Creative Photo Ideas

Wednesday 6 January 2016

ON A PERSONAL NOTE: FEELING HOMESICK FOR NORTH VANCOUVER

LOOKING TO THE NORTH SHORE JAN. 2016

Even though I moved away from North Van in the early 70s, whenever I see a picture like this one my heart skips a beat. I used to call these mountains my home and spent as much time as I could running along their trails with the freedom of a wild animal.

Thursday 22 October 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES; ARCHETYPAL IMAGES

'Time: The Dawn Of'
by Michael G. O'Brien

There seems to be something in black and white images that allows them to channel archetypal images that strike chords deep within us. These images can go beyond personal meanings to express something more universal. When I saw these people paddling out on the water with their rudimentary boards I felt connected with my ancestors who had done this since humanity's beginnings.

To process this image I used Analogue Efex from Nik software. I find that this gives me options that expand my ability to finish RAW file of an image the way I 'saw' it originally at time of exposure.

Sunday 27 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: IMAGINATION IS OUR ONLY LIMIT

photo by Tokihiro Satō

I believe that IMAGINATION IS THE ONLY LIMIT when it comes to what can be expressed or accomplished with black and white photography. Many thanks to those who are following this series....I hope it contains some things of interest and look forward to feedback and suggestions for another series and /or a workshop.
Speaking of unlimited imagination, today I discovered the sublime work of Japanese photographer Tokihiro Satō (see photo) whose imagination seems to be without limits.

John L. Tran said the following about Tokihiro in The Japan Times:

“Leaving the city and the sea behind, later works in the “Photo-Respiration” series center around snow and trees, and Sato hints that while in the forest producing these images he empathized with the pantheism of Shinto and the act of worshipping natural objects. Indeed it’s hard to imagine an artist from a culture other than Japan’s producing this particular blend of technical precision, intimation of the spiritual, and loving regard of the natural world that can be seen in these images.”

Saturday 26 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: INFRARED PHOTOGRAPHY

BLACK AND WHITE INFRARED PHOTOGRAPHY

Infrared photographs have a very special look and feel. By rendering skies black, foliage and stone white, these images possess strong contrast, pronounced grain and a distinct dreamy appearance that puts them in a category of their own.

Back in the day we used the legendary Kodak High-Speed Infrared Film / HIE which is now discontinued. It was notoriously fussy to work with (especially while on the road) and it was difficult to lay one's hands on a steady supply. The results, below, made it all worthwhile.

This tradition of infrared photography is now carried on with modified DSLR cameras.

all photos ©Michael G. O'Brien 2001

Salvador da Bahia and Olinda, Brazil

http://tinyurl.com/salvador4321

The Elevado Lacerdo
View of the Bay of All Saints
Salvador da Bahia, Brasil
©Michael G. O'Brien 2001

Going To Work On The First Morning After Carnaval
Pelourinho District, Salvador da Bahia, Brasil
©Michael G. O'Brien 2001

Looking Down Into The Pelourinho
Salvador da Bahia, Brasil
©Michael G. O'Brien

Friday 25 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: HOW TO SEE THE DRAMATIC POTENTIAL IN A SCENE

From the LAKESHORE SERIES
photo ©Michael O'Brien Aug 2015

Once you are fluent in the use of your camera and software it allows you to interpret scenes as intended. To be fluent with a camera means having command of the exposure, and other relevant, controls so that you're able to 'see' the potential in a scene then set up quickly for an exposure. Understanding the DRAMATIC POTENTIAL in a scene helps lead us to the photograph we want to create.
This fluency comes from regular practice, experience and experimentation.

Friday 18 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: HOW TO READ PHOTOGRAPHS

UNTITLED, STANLEY PARK, VANCOUVER, B.C.

photo by Michael O'Brien

When we look at a color image, the PSYCHOLOGY OF COLOUR plays a big role in our READING of that photo i.e. our personal, cultural and unconscious associations to the colours in the palette of that photograph. Since these associations to colour are absent in B&W pictures such as this one: we are free to take a much different reading of the photograph. For instance, for me, the green leaves would have worked well against the clear blue sky in colour, but what would the image be saying? In B&W the mass and weight of this tree come to the forefront, so does it's prolific output of leaves. I can almost hear this tree breath. None of this comes through in the colour version.

Saturday 12 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: GEOMETRY AND PATTERNS IN NATURE

From the series 'Beneath The Surface'

©MICHAEL O'BRIEN

click here to see series

Playing with GEOMETRY and PATTERNS is fun with black and white photography. It exercises the creative muscles while helping us see the shapes and patterns underlying all forms. Additionally, this strengthens our compositions of any subject matter, even when we make color photographs.

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: THE ART OF B&W CONVERSIONS IN THE CREATIVE PROCESS

CONVERTING a color RAW file into a black and white file is much like an alchemical process. It can be as laborious or simple as you want it to be. Countless books have been written on the subject yet practicing with a few simple tools will suffice to produce strong B&W photographs. I will be covering this approach in my workshop.

At the moment, my preferred software for CONVERSIONS is Lightroom, Photoshop, and Silver Efex. I can spend anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours developing an image in the POST PROCESSING stage; it depends on the image and what needs to be done to reach my final vision for that image. This can be an important step in the CREATIVE PROCESS and helps us develop our ability to see the potential that resides in a scene and in a RAW file made of that scene.  Below is an example of what Silver Efex can do with an image; left is the unprocessed RAW file in color - right is the finished image after processing in Silver Efex. We'll be teaching these techniques in our upcoming October workshop - 'Black and White Digital Photography' - details to come.

Friday 11 September 2015

THE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY SERIES: ARCHITECTURE

ARCHITECTURE is rendered well in black and white. The way this medium emphasizes tone, shape and texture makes it a perfect way to photograph structures and their details.

NEW YORK CITY