Thanks to a little help from a volunteer model I created this ghostly image.
Ghost in the Cemetery
Category Archives: Photographs
Topaz Sharpen AI
Rachel, before and after using Topaz Sharpen AI. Click for a larger version.
The more I work with Topaz Sharpen AI, the more impressed I become. Topaz uses artificial intelligence to sharpen images that are not quite sharp.
Autumn Shoot with Beth
Fall is my favorite season for nature photography as you can tell by the number of photos I take per season. But I also love fall for outdoor portrait photography. The colors of fall make a nice backdrop for photographing people. These photo are from a favorite autumn photo shoot with Beth. I hope you take advantage of the colors of the season to do some portrait photography of your own. If you want to improve your portrait photography skills, check out the books at the last link below.
Fall Color Photography Guide to Marshall Pass and O’Haver Lake, Colorado
Marshall Pass is a beautiful fall color drive in southern Colorado, and still somewhat a secret. It does not turn up on most lists of the most beautiful fall color drives in Colorado. It is a beautiful drive with a lot of fall color photo opportunities.
Colorado Fall Color Photography and Travel Guide – 2022
Maroon Bells and Maroon Lake. Mid-morning. September 24, 2015.
Headed for Colorado this fall? Welcome to my complete Colorado fall color photography and travel guide with 131 photos, 18 maps, and over 100 pages of information (if you print it all out). I cover some of the best known fall color locations in Colorado, and one real gem of a road that is not widely known to photographers and leaf peepers. Spend anywhere from two days to two weeks exploring the beautiful Colorado Rockies at a gorgeous time of year.
Finding the Peak Fall Colors at the Best Locations
Autumn, Tahquamenon Falls, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Fall color will soon be sweeping the country (and already is up in Alaska). To make the most of it, you want to be at the right place at the right time. With some help from the internet, I will help you find the best fall color locations at the peak of the season.
Painting with Light
Painting with light is an interesting technique that gives you a different kind of look from using a flash unit or ambient light. As with other kinds of light you can make your subject as light or dark as you want. For these images I went with a darker, low key look.
Images That Move Me
John Moore was at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, 2007. He had visited with Mary McHugh earlier in the day. She had come to Arlington National Cemetery to visit the grave of her fiance, James Regan, who had stepped on a roadside bomb a few months earlier in Afghanistan. Later on he saw her laying in the grass and talking to the marble headstone. He captured this image. The whole story is here.
Fall Color Photography Guide to Marshall Pass and O’Haver Lake, Colorado
Marshall Pass is a beautiful fall color drive in southern Colorado, and still pretty much a secret. It does not turn up on most lists of the most beautiful fall color drives in Colorado. It is a beautiful drive with a lot of fall color photo opportunities.
Colorado Fall Color Photography and Travel Guide – 2022
Maroon Bells and Maroon Lake. Mid-morning. September 24, 2015.
Headed for Colorado this fall? Welcome to my complete Colorado fall color photography and travel guide with 131 photos, 18 maps, and over 100 pages of information (if you print it all out). I cover some of the best known fall color locations in Colorado, and one real gem of a road that is not widely known to photographers and leaf peepers. Spend anywhere from two days to two weeks exploring the beautiful Colorado Rockies at a gorgeous time of year.
Photos: Lamoni High School “Senior Night” Softball Win
The last home game of the regular season is usually “senior night”, and the Lamoni High School softball team did themselves proud. Taylor Henson started things off with a bunt down the third base line and she beat the throw to first base. A few plays later she stole home for the first run of the night. Chloe Belback hit a single, other players hit well too, and Karli Brown brought three of them home when she clobbered the ball for a double. At the end of the first inning Lamoni was ahead, 5-0. Lamoni added two more runs in the second inning and continued to score. Excellent defense behind the pitching of Taylor Henson held Seymour to zero runs for the evening. Lamoni finished the game with a 10-0 victory.
Happy Independence Day!
Photos: The Super Flower Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse, May 15, 2022
It was a beautiful night for photographing the lunar eclipse. This was early in the totality phase at 10:37 pm CDT. I picked this image as my favorite because I like the star background and especially the three stars in a row right below the moon. Not long after I created this image the moon slid in front of the middle star in this trio and, at least to my eye, it was not as pleasing a composition.
Happy Birthday, John Muir!
John Muir
Today is John Muir’s birthday! He was born April 21, 1838. He had a profound influence on how Americans viewed our wild lands and his influence led to the establishment of many of our National Parks and other protected lands. He was nicknamed “The Father of our National Parks”. Tomorrow, April 22, is also Earth Day, so I am combining the two in this article.
Here are photos from some of my favorite national and state parks along with quotes from John Muir.
One Photographer and Nine Outdoor/Travel Writers Pick the Best National Parks for Spring
Moon Over Balanced Rock, Arches National Park, Utah.
Are you planning a spring photography trip to one or more U.S. national parks? Where should you go? Which parks will provide the best photographic opportunities? Which parks are at their best in the spring?
Saturday Night Dance Performance at Graceland University
The dance classes at Living Art Studios in Lamoni Iowa teamed up with the Graceland Gadets for a dance performance Saturday night at Graceland University’s Shaw Auditorium. A large and appreciative crowd thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The Gadets alternated numbers with the dance classes. As the last indoor performance of the year for the Gadets, individuals were given awards for the year, and all of the senior Gadets were recognized.
Photographing Snow Geese by Flashlight, Moonlight, and Headlights
Shorty after midnight I drove out to a nearby lake to photograph stars over the lake. I chose going out after midnight because the moon would be high enough in the sky to light up the remaining ice on the lake.
Searching for a Photo Location
In late February I set out to find the location of my best Western Scrub-Jay photos, taken January 9, 2014. Why? Partly out of curiosity and partly because photo editors are asking for GPS coordinates of the nature and wildlife photos they might publish. 8 years ago my serious cameras did not have built in GPS units.
Why and When To Set A Custom White Balance
Why set a custom white balance? The answer is simple. To get the best, most accurate colors your camera is capable of producing. It is especially important when photographing people if you want beautiful, accurate skin tones. In this article I give you some shooting tips, answer common questions, and I cover the situations when it is preferable not do a custom white balance.
Oops! A Memorable Photo Shoot Incident.
It was two years ago today at about 4:30 in the afternoon. It was cold, snowing, and the wind was fierce, but Beth and I were determined to get a portrait of her playing the violin in the snowstorm.
“Laying Down On The Job”
Sometimes it is exactly what photographers need to do to get the shot.
Your Camera Loves “Middle Gray” – And Why That is Important
Sarah, Professional Fitness Trainer
Your camera is in love with middle gray. The quicker you learn how to deal with this infatuation, the better your photos will look, including all of your color photos.
It’s Winter!
It’s winter! Go out and play in the snow. Or photograph someone else playing in the snow.
Bobcat: Fast and Simple Tonality Adjustments with Adobe Camera Raw
Bobcat, Before and After a Tonality Adjustment
With the right software, you can make quick improvements in your images. There are some lighting situations where it is almost impossible, and certainly not practical, to get the correct white balance setting in the camera. This bobcat photo is an example. The best, fastest, and simplest solution is to get the right while balance setting after the fact using software like Adobe Camera Raw (ACR). A few minutes work with ACR can make a big difference in the look of your photos.
How to Photograph a Musician in the Cold and Snow
It was my happy privilege to do winter portraits of Beth Presler who is a superb violinist. This article has suggestions for photographing any musician on a cold, snowy winter day.
How To Series: Snowy Owl Photography
Snowy Owl looking for prey.
If there are cold enough temperatures and plenty of snow cover on the ground, the northern United States has a winter invasion of Snowy Owls. These are magnificent creatures and well worth your photographic time and attention. This series is filled with tips on how to find and photograph snowy owls.
A Snowy Owl Photo Expedition
Snowy Owl
What is a Snowy Owl expedition really like? This article is your chance to find out. Join me for a two day photo safari! I give you tips and photo suggestions along the way, and you get to see how I prepare, plan, and adapt on a photo trip. I tell you what went right and what went wrong so this is also about what to do when things don’t go according to plan.
How To Series: Winter Photography
Last Light on El Capitan, Yosemite National Park
In addition to all of the usual photographic challenges, winter provides some extra complications, especially in terms of metering. So I began this series of articles on winter photography. Check out the links below. The articles will help you meet the unique challenges of winter photography. So get out there, have fun, and create some great winter images!
How to See and Photograph the Geminid Meteor Shower
Perseid Meteor photographed from Rose Hill Cemetery west of Lamoni, Iowa. 4:55 am CDT, August 13, 2018. Cropped from the original image.
Tonight (Dec 13-14) is the night of the Geminid Meteor Shower. This article will tell you what you need to know to photograph what could be the best meteor shower of 2021. The meteors have their radiant (origin point) near the bright star Castor in the constellation Gemini. From there they can go in any direction across the night sky.
Ten Years Ago Today: The Photo That Broke My Camera
This is the last photo of a photo shoot that should have gone a little longer. But my camera broke. People kid about “If you take my picture it will break your camera!” so I was tempted to say to her “You broke my camera!”