On the weekend I was inspired to shoot some long exposures destined for black and white. Headed out to a nearby industrial field of gas tanks. What I really want to do is get inside here as I have some specific ideas – will have to get in contact with them. Unfortunately I was relegated to the outside so I made the most of it.
Also unfortunate was that I had a) too much light, and b) not enough wind. My vision for these exposures was to have the heavy sweeping clouds moving through the frame. Even stopped down to the max and with my trusty Lee Big Stopper shielding the light I was only able to get minute’ish exposures. Not enough for those clouds to really move.
But they still looked fairly interesting, particularly when strong-armed with Silver Efex Pro 2 into high contrast black and white. Ended up enjoying these quite a bit, even if they aren’t what I imagined.
I never experienced the chemical darkroom. The hassles, the chemicals, the waiting, the trial and error. None of it appeals to me. I’m sure those who slaved under the red lights and noxious fumes have a unique appreciation for today’s digital darkroom. The ease of revisiting and playing around with previous work is unparalleled. Something that was fairly “meh” first time around can find new life.
Such is the case with today’s entry. Experimenting with some different approaches to black and white conversions with Silver Efex Pro and for whatever reason thought back to this image taken early last year at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. I had originally posted about the unique geometry of the building here, but was never that satisfied with the image.
Here’s Round 2 – an absolutely different interpretation but I like it much more. The tones and textures that I’m toying with these days have a lot more density. Something worth printing.
Or perhaps it’s just a case of the tail WAG’ing the dog. See what I did there?
Killing time waiting for next tourney game, but no camera this time and great lines at the arena. iPhone and Nik’s Snapseed to the rescue.
Had a recent trip to Ottawa and with only an hour or so to photograph I captured these. The day was fully overcast and the mood somewhat sombre. I saw all of these in black and white as there was little color that added nothing to the scene. More a focus on line, perspective, and movement.
A door, all clean geometry against that crooked tree…
Government Congress Center…
Rideau Canal, which apparently was designed for joggers…
Some interesting stairs below the Congress Center…
All were processed to black & white using Nik Software’s excellent Silver Efex Pro plugin for Photoshop. Truly a great tool for developing authentic B&W images. Even better when printed to Epson’s Exhibition Fiber paper.
I couldn’t leave without capturing a more Ottawa-like image – this one from my hotel window in the early hours. This time it’s all about the color.
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