TPPA Print Competition Recap

As part of my degree's curriculum, we are required to participate in the Texas Professional Photographer's Association's annual print competition.  Half of the summer Portfolio Development course is dedicated to prepping for this competition.  The event itself is part of a four day convention called Summerfest that includes workshops and lectures, as well as the print competition and show.  I'm so glad we had class and faculty input in preparing for this event!  It was quite the endeavor readying the students and I'm so impressed with how my professor handled the demands.

Three of the four photos are from the past two years of study.  Both the ballet images were taken during the spring of 2014.  First Position didn't require much additional editing, since it had already been in the school print show  back in 2014.  The black and white, Swan Song, was a new edit for the state competition and it's quickly become my favorite image from that photo shoot.

Tensile Strength was part of the spring 2015 semester.  I was so pleased with how this image turned out.  My model was awesome!  She makes it look easy, doesn't she?

The final image I submitted was a restoration.  I haven't done too many of these, but I love them!  It's very satisfying to take an old and worn photo and mend all the tears and imperfections of age.  This photo belongs to a family friend and dates to 1913.

The Photography Department has always had a very friendly and informal atmosphere, but the Portfolio Development class and print competition really increased the feeling of camaraderie.  It was a wonderful way to begin the ending of my journey there.

First Position

Tensile Strength

The Rest is History

Swan Song

Focus Stacking

Focus stacking is a technique I'd never practiced before last semester's Close Up and Macro class.  This technique solves the difficulty of photographing something close up, but not being able to have the entire scene in focus.

The camera focuses in bands and the closer an object is to you camera's lens, the narrower the depth of field (or the band) becomes.  This is where focus stacking comes in.  Using a tripod for stability, you take multiple images of the same subject, slowly moving your band of focus from the front to the back of the scene.  It usually takes 8 to 15 images to cover the entire scene.

You then take the images into Photoshop.  With two magic clicks of the mouse, Photoshop aligns and blends the images, selecting what it thinks is in focus in each one.  Ideally, you come away with an image that is in focus from the front to the back.  Sometimes, Photoshop has trouble identifying areas of sharp focus.  In which case, the photographer can go in and make corrections.

There are other softwares more capable of focus stacking, but when using Photoshop, it's critical to chose the right subject.  Using books as a background proved useful, since the program could easily latch on to the areas of sharp text.  When focus stacking is successful, its presence shouldn't be obvious.

Focus is on the front page edges.

Focus on the front curve of the horseshoe.

Focus on the text at the top of the page.

Print Show Entry: "Currency"

Focus on the front edge of the bill.

Focus on the middle of the bill.

Focus on the far back corner of the bill.

Of Impending Graduations

It's been such a long time since I posted any work.  Never fear - it isn't because I don't have any work to share!  This spring semester was a whirlwind of activity, especially near the end with print show.  I had two blissful weeks off before it was time to start the summer semester, which promises to be just as busy!

However, once these two summer classes are over, I will be one semester away from graduation!  December, here I come!  I can definitely handle some busy-ness when the light is shining so brightly at the end of the tunnel.

To start off a review of last semester's work, here is a High School Senior session.  K and I had a lovely time traipsing around Austin and Georgetown.  May I just say, Main Street Georgetown is a wonderfully quiet place for photography on a Sunday evening.  It was delightful.  Also, K is without a doubt the most mature teenager I have ever met.  With each birthday, I tell her that her age is finally catching up with her.  Many thanks for making this session so charming, K!

Macro and Close Up: Flowers

The semester has begun!  

Amongst the portrait classes I'm taking, I have an elective in my schedule:  Close Up and Macro Photography.

Fun second assignment: photograph two different flowers or plants, using 

natural light in a closed environment.

Looking forward to more fun with this class over the next fourteen weeks!

Thirsty and Flourishing

Tawny, dry, dull, thirsty. 

Lush, verdant, green, flourishing.

I wouldn't usually associate the second set of words with central Texas.  That's one reason I think landscape photography is so challenging.  But if I look at the detail and not the grand picture, I can find something I appreciate amidst the thirst.

Rainy Day Relief

Monday was a beautiful holiday from winter!  One of the benefits of living in central Texas is that (aside from the summer months of late May through early September, of course) the weather varies quite a bit.  Monday was a gorgeous, sunny 75° and today is grey, rainy and 43°.  We took advantage of the beautiful weather by going on an excursion to a local park and nature trail.

Winter Walk

My brother and I went for a walk at the local greenbelt yesterday.  I remarked to him that it would be so much easier to take really pretty landscape photographs if there weren't houses abutting the greenbelt.

Living in the middle of a suburb doesn't have to smother creativity.  Rather, it can cause you to become more creative.  You have to look carefully and think imaginatively.  Opportunities await in overlooked places.