Carrie Furnace

In November we will be hosting a rather unique meetup at the Carrie Furnaces in Rankin, PA, but first a little history.  The Carrie Furnaces were part of the Homestead Steel Works located on the Monongahela River outside of Pittsburgh.  Today all that remains on this site are the number 6 and 7 blast furnaces.  Built in 1907,  the furnaces produced iron for the Homestead Works from 1907 until 1978.   

This facility appears quite large when you first visit, but as I researched the history  I found myself wishing that more of the site remained.   The unique thing about our visit in November is we will be the first group to ever photograph the location after dark!   I’m really looking forward to light painting parts of this facility.

For the picture above, I used a Lensbaby Composer Pro with a double glass optic.  Considering that pipes seemed to run in every possible direction, I used the Lensbaby to help simplify the shot. 

If you want to see more of this great location, check out the small gallery I posted on Flickr.

If you want to join us in November act quick, as of this writing there are only a couple spots left.  

Three

When I press the shutter these days I try to not only envision what I see through the viewfinder, but also what I envision in my mind.   Recently I was talking to another photographer who commented that he strives to get it right in camera and was not interested in playing on the computer.    When you take the image the camera has no idea about your creative vision, it just captures the photons.   I think most of us see the scene in our minds first and sometimes do not consider that the electronics of the camera might not be seeing the same thing.

This image is a good example of that concept.  I took it a few months ago while leading a tour at the Trans Allegheny LunaticAsylum.  When I pulled up this image the other day, I felt that it was more of a cold stark image and did not fully reflect what I saw in my mind when I took the picture.  In order to get a darker and I think creepier picture I used Topaz Adjust to realize my vision. 

This month Topaz is putting Adjust on sale for 50% off the regular price.  Just use the code “septadjust” at checkout.  You can also download a trail version of the software.  

Cowgirl in the Rain

Last Tuesday evening I was at the Prince William County Fair with a great group of folks from the Road Runner Photography Tours Meetup!   We were doing just fine and then mother nature decided that things should get more interesting.  So the heavens opened up and we decided to try and get under cover.  While hanging out someone noticed the great lighting that was on the cowboys and cowgirls.   Photography is all about capturing a moment in time.  Sometimes when we are lucky our work shows that exact moment.  

Working the Details

I love car shows but my issue has always been that they tend to be held during the middle of the day.  Not the best time of day for photography due to often harsh lighting conditions.  Recently I heard of a show in Great Falls, VA that is held early Saturday mornings.  That helps with nice light but distracting objects are another factor with car shows.  With lots of people walking around and backgrounds beyond my control, it’s really hard to get a nice shot of the car.  So that left me with one option, work the details.  I decided when I arrived that I would just use a Lensbaby with the Sweet 35 lens.  This lens lets me focus reasonably close and due to the out of focus edges keeps the viewer’s eye in the middle of the frame.    

In case you are wondering, this is the rear of a ‘63 Corvette with a split rear window.  

Palouse Day Eight

What a great trip we had  to The Palouse.  Eight days on the ground and covering over 1800 miles made for an epic photographic journey.  Best of all was sharing this with a great group of friends who are equally passionate in our pursuit of photographic art!  The photo above is of the iconic Dahmen Barn wheel fence in Uniontown, WA.    I shot this using an infra-red converted D200. 

Palouse Day Seven

On our seventh morning we were lucky enough to find this crop duster working a field.  We had seen these planes earlier in the week, but never so close to the road.  At times my 80-400mm lens was too much, especially when he would fly overhead.   It was amazing to watch as he never sprayed the road or us for that matter.   I think he made about a half dozen passes before moving on.  The hard part was choosing a favorite from the 170 images I took of this plane.  

Palouse Day Six

Regular readers of my blog know that I love old cars and trucks.  The Palouse was a jackpot for these old gems!   I shot this one with my infrared converted D200.