March 7, 2012 – A year of portraits – Justin Hill

03.07.12 Justin Hill

Today’s portrait is of Justin Hill back stage at the Glema Mahr Center for the Arts in Madisonville, Ky during rehearsal for Madisonville-North Hopkins High School’s production of “Into the Woods” where he plays the role of The Big Bad Wolf.

The school’s music department will be performing the Stephen Sondheim musical at the Glema Mahr Center for the Arts in Madisonville. Shows will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 9 and Saturday, March 10th.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @36mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/100, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels, some dodging to lighten up the shadows in the eyes and some burning down on the edges of the photo.

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Photo Pop

March 6, 2012 – A year of portraits – Tray Carr

03.06.12 Tray Carr

Today I’ve decided to use an environment portrait of Madisonville-North Hopkins’ Tray Carr as he kneels down in disbelief while students from Hopkinsville, Ky swarm their team following their Region 2 basketball championship victory over the Maroons Tuesday night at Madisonville. The Maroons played a great game, but the Tigers pulled ahead in the second half for the win.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/500, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels with a little burning in on the Hopkinsville players to put more emphasis on Tray.

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust – Medium Details

March 5, 2012 – A year of portraits – Lindsey & Courtney Peyton

03.05.12 Lindsey & Courtney Peyton

Today’s portrait is of Lindsey and Courtney Peyton just before the Region 2 boys semi-final basketball game at Madisonville-North Hopkins High School in Madisonville, Ky, Monday night. They are avid Maroon fans and I’ve seen them at just about every game I have covered for north this year and decided to capture them for my daily portrait.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @32mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/500, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels, some dodging to lighten up the shadows in the eyes and a little of burning down on the edges of the photo to darken the background of the gym.

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Simple Pop

March 4, 2012 – A year of portraits – Jim Pearson, Self Portrait

03.04.12 Jim Pearson

This week the West Kentucky Photography Club’s year long challenge series is to photograph someone or yourself using a empty picture frame. I decided to incorporate it into my year long portrait series by doing this self portrait on the Paducah and Louisville Railroad track that run along side my property. Everyone that knows me can understand why.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @65mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/250, f/8 with an ISO of 1,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Exposure Correction and Photo Pop

March 3, 2012 – A year of portraits – Rupert Furgerson II

03.03.12 Rupert Furgerson II

I’m hoping you get the fact that Rupert Furgerson II has just a little bit of Scot in his blood from this portrait I shot of him Saturday for my year long portrait series.

Rupert is the president of the Clan Fergusson Society of North America and lives here in Madisonville, Ky and quite an interesting person.

I’m working on hooking up with different groups in the area that are into re-enacting or other groups that I feel would be interesting to do a portrait on and Rupert is the first.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @29mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/200, f/5 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels and some burning down the background just a little.

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Exposure Correction and Simple Pop

 

March 2, 2012 – A year of portraits – Gabe Dillingham

03.02.12 Gabe Dillingham

Today’s portrait is Gabe Dillingham. Many of you may remember that I spent a month in 2010 photographing him daily for that year’s photography project. Gabe is the son of Matt and Tina Dillingham. Tina works for The Messenger in our Advertising Department.

Gabe was visiting our office today as the schools were dismissed three hours early due to the storms that were forecast to pass through our region and The Messenger has a good area for weathering out tornado warnings and other types of severe weather. The PJ’s were because his school was participating in the Dr. Seuss Read Across America event and the kids were allowed to come dressed in their PJ’s for the day.

What you see here with him, he calls his tornado kit. iPhone to play video games, a laptop computer, flashlight, food and a Dr. Pepper, all setup on one of the small tables in our Advertising Department. I think they had to take cover once during the storm that passed through and he along with everyone else rode the weather out safely.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @24mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/50, f/3.5 with an ISO of 5,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using auto levels

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Exposure Correction and Photo Pop

 

 

March 1, 2012 – A year of portraits – Gregory Acker

03.01.12 Gregory Acker

Today’s portrait is of Gregory Acker at Jesse Stuart Elementary School in Madisonville, Ky. Gregory teaches world music at local colleges and universities, and is an artist-in-residence in community/educational settings around Kentucky. He served two terms in the Peace Corps in Africa, and continued his studies with master drummer Abraham Adzenyah of Ghana. He is also a musical instrument-builder. He is a member of the Kyene Drum Ensemble that is devoted to the study and performance of West African and African Diaspora Music. For more information about his work visit their website at: http://www.kyeneonline.com

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @24mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/400, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

Post Processing
Photoshop CS5 using levels, and slight dodging and burning

Filters Applied
Topaz Adjust, Exposure Correction and Clarity

 

February 29, 2012 – A year of portraits – The Christian County Colonel

02.29.12 The Christian County Colonel

Continuing with my mascot portraits, today’s picture is of the Christian County High School’s mascot, the Colonel during their 2nd Region basketball game against the Webster County Trojans at Madisonville, Ky Wednesday night.

Post processing was done in Photoshop CS5. Photo was cropped from it’s original horizontal format, levels were adjusted slightly and the Topaz Adjust Clarity filter was applied for this final look.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 18mm f/2.8
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/500, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000 – File Type: Nikon RAW

 

February 28, 2012 – A year of portraits – Dave O’Connell

02.28.12 Dave O'Connell

Today I decided to do an environmental portrait of Dave O’Connell, one of our sports reporters at the Messenger newspaper where I work here in Madisonville, Ky, at his desk in the newsroom. He is originally from York, Pennsylvania where he graduated from York College of Pennsylvania and loves covering the sports beat for the paper. He has a blog at http://www.the-messengerblogs.com/oconnell/ if you’d like to follow him.

Post processing was done with Photoshop CS5 where I adjusted the mid-tones using the Levels command, a little color correction and I applied the Topaz Adjust “Simple Pop” to sharpen the final image.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @34mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/80, f/4.5 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 27, 2012 – A year of portraits – UHA Fans

02.27.12 UHA Fans

Today’s portrait is of two UHA fans at the University Heights vs Livingston Central girls regional basketball game at Christian County High School in Hopkinsville, Ky. I’m not sure if they were representing the team mascots or what, but I think they made for a good picture either way.

Post processing was done in Photoshop CS5 with adjustments in Levels, some slight burning in on the background and in Topaz Adjust I used the Exposure Correction and Photo Pop filters to achieve this final photo.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @31mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/200, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 26, 2012 – A year of portraits – Taelor Morse

02.26.12 Taelor Morse

Today I captured this portrait of Taelor Morse, a young member of my church here in Madisonville, Ky. He’s in the fifth grade at Pride Avenue School and his teacher is my niece, Kelly Gates. A nice young man that is full of energy and seems to be on a quest to acquire all the knowledge he can as he’s always asking questions, which in my book is great!

Photo was processed using Photoshop CS5 with no cropping from how I shot the original photo. We were standing at the entrance of the sanctuary and the lighting was really nice. By using a f/stop of 2.8 I kept my depth of field really shallow to blur out the background. I didn’t have to make much in the way of levels adjustments on the mid-tones, but I did do some burning down a little around him to help draw the focus to him. For the final touch I applied the Topaz Adjust filter called “Simple Pop” to apply a little bit of snap to the sharpness.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/30, f/2.8, ISO of 1,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 25, 2012 – A year of portraits – Ashley Rose

02.25.12 Ashley Rose

This is my great niece Ashley Rose. Last week I had a portrait of her son to be, Damion, for my portrait of the day and this time I chose her for my subject. She’s a hard working mom to be that attends college here in Madisonville, Ky and works at Kroger while doing so. She’s a very loving and strong woman and I’m proud to call her mine!

I captured this portrait in the living room of her grandmother’s house as she was setting on the couch reading a book. I really liked the strong back-light that was coming in from behind her which gave this high-key portrait look. I wanted the portrait to have a soft portrait look to it and after some minor exposure adjustments in Photoshop CS5 I used the Topaz Adjust Film Collection called Retro Style I combined along with the Soft Focus I filter for this final effect.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/60, f/4, ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 24, 2012 – A year of portraits – Jim Pearson

02.24.12 Jim Pearson

I shot this self portrait using the iPhone Hipstamatic camera using the James M Lens and the Rock BW-11 film. I wanted something radical for this self portrait so I shot several images using some radical cropping in the camera to capture this shot.

I did most of the post processing of the image using Photoshop CS5 after I loaded the image to my computer from the iPhone. I did some burning in on the highlights to tone them down and also on the mid tones and shadows to darken them as well. For the final image I played around with the image using the Topaz B&W Effects plugin until I got a look that I liked and added the warm tone.

Technical Details:
Camera: Hipstamatic for the iPhone 4
Lens: Built-In Camera lens
Exposure: The iPhone doesn’t record shutter speed or aperture information
Apps Used: Hipstamatic and Photoshop CS5

February 23, 2012 – A year of portraits – Paula Pace

02.23.12 Paula Pace

Paula Pace has been a waitress at the Dixie Pan Restaurant in Nortonville, Ky for more than 20 years and as you can see she’s fond of ear piercings. Always cheerful and mindful of the people that come in and out of her life on a daily basis. If you stop by for a meal pick her station and you won’t be disappointed… breakfast is my favorite.

Today’s portrait was done mostly using the iPhone for shooting and processing. Post processing was done using the Snapseed app and the Crossprocess app combined and then I boosted the saturation up slightly using Photoshop CS5.

Technical Details:
Camera: Built in iPhone 4
Lens: Built-In Camera lens
Exposure: The iPhone doesn’t record shutter speed or aperture information
Apps Used: Snapseed, Crossprocess and Photoshop CS5

February 22, 2012 – A year of portraits – Nathan Justice

02.22.12 Nathan Justice

Nathan is the 8-year-old son of Roxann Foster, one of my co-workers at The Messenger newspaper. As with most kids his age he’s full of energy and lets the world know that he’s around, where ever he is. He’s in the second grade, loves video games, basketball and his favorite player is Michael Jordan.

Post processing was done with Photoshop CS5. I cropped the photo slightly from it’s original, adjusted levels and did some dodging and burning on the background and in the shadows. For the final look I used the Topaz Adjust filter “Detail Light” to do my final sharpening. I will note that I had a very high shutter speed because I shot a few pictures indoors first and forgot to change the ISO when we moved outside behind the paper for a better background and lighting.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 @56mm
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/2500, f/2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 21, 2012 – A year of portraits – Mike Howton

02.21.12 Mike Howton

I captured this informal portrait of a friend Mike Howton as he was covering the Dawson Springs boys District 7 basketball game for the Dawson Spring Progress newspaper at Caldwell County High School in Princeton. Mike has been hooked on the photography bug ever since his mom let him start using her Argus at the age of 8 or so. He got his own camera, a Patrika, at the age of 9.Today his camera of choice is his Nikon D700.

This portrait was processed using Photoshop CS5 using levels, a little burning in on the wall behind him and the Topaz Filter “Photo Pop” was applied for the final touch.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/640, f/2.8, ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

 

February 20, 2012 – A year of portraits – John Earnest Jr.

02.20.12 John Earnest Jr.

John Earnest Jr. has been a part-time police officer with the city of Princeton, Ky for 22 years. His primary job is that of a Agriculture Engineer with the University of Kentucky’s research center which is located in Princeton and he’s also been doing that job for 22 years.

The photo was processed using Photoshop CS5 where I make adjustments using the levels command, did some darkening of the wall surrounding him by using the burn tool and then finished off the portrait by applying the Topaz Adjust filter called “Photo Pop.”

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/640, f/2.8, ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

 

February 19, 2012 – A year of portraits – Damien Rose

02.19.12 Damien Rose

Today’s portrait is the first one I’ve taken of my new great, great nephew Damien Rose, because he hasn’t been born yet. He’s the son of my great niece Ashley and still likes about 5 months or so before he makes his entrance into the world. He will be my second great, great, which is great!

I used Photoshop CS5 to make some minor adjustments to the photo in levels and applied the Topaz Adjust filter “light pop” to round it off. I also cropped it in a little bit and did a little dodging on the midtones of the sonogram.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/60, f/3.2 with an ISO of 800
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 18, 2012 – A year of portraits – Abraham Browning

02.18.12 Abraham Browning

I was on the way to the zoo in Evansville, Indiana today and I came to a screeching halt almost when I saw Abraham Browning on the side of the road and I knew I had to capture him for my portrait for the day. Sometimes you just stumble across pictures… just gotta keep an eye out for them. He was advertising a tax preparation business called ‘Liberty.”

Today’s photo was processed using Photoshop CS5 with some slight adjustments in levels, cropped the image slightly and applied the Topaz Adjust Clarity Filter to finish it off.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm f/1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/320, f/9 with an ISO of 500
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 17, 2012 – A year of portraits – Mike Griffith

02.17.12 Mike Griffith

I captured this portrait of Mike Griffith as he was waiting to enter the gym at Hopkins County Central High School in Mortons Gap, Ky for senior night. His son, Landon, is a senior on the Storm’s basketball team. Mike is retired from the Hopkins County Health Department and was a basketball referee for 35 plus years.

Photo was processed using Photoshop CS5. Color balance was corrected, levels were adjusted slightly and the wall in the background was toned down some using the burn tool. Also, some fill light was applied using the RAW plugin. The Topaz Adjust “Detail Light” filter was applied to sharpen the final image.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Nikon 50mm F.1.4
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/400, f2.8 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW

February 16, 2012 – A year of portraits – Lee Carter

02.16.12 Lee Carter

Lee Carter was a 3rd Class Petty officer aboard the USS Sigourney (DD-643) Destroyer from 1950-1955. During this time he circled the globe twice while in the Navy and served a tour with his ship off the coast of Korea during it’s war there leading up to the signing of the cease-fire treaty. A man proud to have served his country.

Photo was cropped slightly from the original photo to remove a bright window in the background.  Post processing was done with Photoshop CS5 with levels being adjusted, slight burning in on the background to darken it down and then I applied the Topaz Adjust “Simple Pop” filter and applied a black edge to the photo.

Camera: Nikon D700
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/4.5
Exposure: Matrix Metering, 1/80, f/4.5 with an ISO of 4,000
File Type: Nikon RAW