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18
Jul 2011

Urban Angles

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Welcome New Monkeys!

The Photo “Going Home,” went quite viral yesterday on Flickr and we had a lot of new visitors to the site. I just wanted to say thanks for all the favs and comments. I’m glad you guys like it because it’s one of my favorite photos too.

So, enjoy the site and if your curious about the voodoo that I doodoo, remember to check out the Tutorials and Technical Mumbo Jumbo. If nothing else, it should help you waste a few hours of the work day.

Daily Banana – Urban Angles

I spent an entire day just walking the streets of Lisbon Portugal, looking for cool colors and textures. Walking great because it gives you the ability to spot a lot of things that would go unnoticed if you were traveling by car, for example. In fact, this little street isn’t even accessible by car.

I know all that camera gear is heavy but suck it up! It’s worth the trouble. Besides, there’s plenty of port wine to be found in Portugal. A few swigs should take the edge off the pain.

Check out the previous posts from this colorful district of Lisbon: “Urban Color” and “Urban Texture.” Or check out all my photos from Lisbon by visiting the Portugal Gallery.

Urban Angles - Lisbon Portugal

Filed Under: Architecture, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Travel
27
May 2011

The Heart of Lisbon

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reflections FTW:

Out of the 5 days that I spent in Lisbon Portugal, this was the only day where it didn’t rain. — Well, it didn’t rain all day anyway… On the other days it was raining cats and dogs. Giant wet cats, and you know how pissed off cats get when they’re wet. And dogs, lets not forget about them, they stink up a damn storm when they’re wet. Ha! Stink up a storm… because it was raining, get it? Anyone? — Crap, I completely lost my train of thought…

Now, a cool little side effect occurred while I was dodging pissed off wet cats and stinky dogs. All around, pools of water cast cool reflections of everything. It was pretty awesome actually. Almost every shot that I framed around the city had a reflection of some sort in the frame. It was like my own little “make look cool” button for composition.

This is the statue monument of Dom Pedro IV in Rossio Square, which is affectionately known as the heart of Lisbon. There are lots of little shops, restaurants, and bars lining each side. So when you get tired of shooting HDR reflections and dodging giant falling wet animals, there are plenty of cool little spots to have a break.

Check out other HDR Photos of Lisbon, Portugal.

Daily Banana – The Heart of Lisbon

Elia Locardi - HDR Portugal - Heart of Lisbon

Filed Under: Architecture, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Travel
05
May 2011

Belem Tower At Sunrise

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magical, miserable mornings.

There’s not doubt that sunrise is a beautiful time to shoot HDR Photography but why does it have to be so damn early? I mean, come on universe. Really!?

*Sigh, I know, I’m always ranting about getting up too early to take pictures and I constantly ask myself, if I hate it so (VERY) much, then why do it?

Well, the simplest answer is to show you the HDR image below. It’s shot during one of those magical (horrible), beautiful (miserable), awesome (dreadful), early (too early) mornings. I had to get up at 4:00am to get here in time but despite how much I complain, It was totally worth it.

So, forgoing anymore random complaining, I present: Belem Tower at Sunrise (Torre de Belém).

The tower was commissioned by King John II to be both part of a defense system at the mouth of the Tagus River and a ceremonial gateway to Lisbon (Lisboa), Portugal. Belem Tower was built in the early 16th century and is a prominent example of the Portuguese Manueline style, but it also incorporates hints of other architectural styles. — Don’t be silly, of course I copied that from Wikipedia. ;)

View some more HDR Before and After Photos of Lisbon, Portugal.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 16mm f/8 Iso: 100
- 9 Exposure Brackets (-4,-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3,4)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Sharpened Edges with Topaz InFocus (Global Setting of 0.25)
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro (Default Setting + 10 to Structure)
- Used the Photoshop High Pass Filter (Foreground Only)
- Selective Noise Removal
- Selective Contrast areas to enhance lighting effects
- Got up early and played in the mud for this one

Daily Banana – Belem Tower At Sunrise

(move the slider to compare HDR before and after)
HDR Photo - Belem Tower Sunrise - Lisbon Portugal
Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Sunrise and Sunset, Travel
25
Apr 2011

Urban Texture

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texture FTW.

What could have possibly possessed me to take this photo? Hmm, certainly not the Heineken Truck. Nah, not me. ;)

Like many European Cities, Lisbon is full of color and texture. What makes Lisbon special though, is the fact that it’s way overdue for a pressure washing. It has a wet, mildewy, grungy feel that I found quite appealing for photography. It sort of falls under that “beautiful decay” category.

My last post, Island Bay, was a beautiful and serene seascape with a distant island on the horizon. Today, It’s a dirty, grungy city scape. So what will the next post be? You’re going to have to stay tuned to find out.

While I can’t promise that I’ll always make sense, I ‘can’ promise to always provide a variety of interesting interestingness that keeps things interesting.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 20mm f/8 Iso: 100
- 7 (Handheld) Exposure Brackets (-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro
- Sharpened Edges with Topaz InFocus
- Applied A High Pass Filter
- Did a rain dance in the rain. Redundant = yes.

Daily Banana – Urban Texture

(move the slider to compare before and after)
HDR Photo (pic) - Lisbon (Lisboa), Porugal - Urban Texture
Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Travel
21
Apr 2011

Urban Color

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multiple choice.

Most of the shots I find are a result of countless hours of walking. Setting out on foot really gives you an edge with exploration, especially urban exploration. If I would have driven down this street for example, I probably wouldn’t have ever thought of shooting it.

On this day, as I ventured further and further into the back streets of Lisbon, Portugal, I found this cool little district where all the buildings lined streets, sagging between two hills. It was almost like the whole area existed inside of a bowl. Street after street would dip down to the bottom of the bowl only to climb back up on the other side. It was pretty cool. Some of them had stairs leading down and some of the less declined paths had cobblestone roads like this. I spent a bit of time traversing each street to find interesting little compositions. Occasionally, I’d get the inquisitive eye from the locals when I’d lay down in the street to get a low angle shot.

So, if I would have driven instead instead of walking, I would have, (A): I probably died from all the crazy Portuguese drivers, and (B): Never taken the time to properly explore the area.

Also, If you’re feet hurt after a long day of waking you could, (A): Quit whining like a little school girl, or (B): Pick up a bottle of the local port wine (girlish whining optional).

Check out more HDR Photos of Lisbon.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 14mm f/8 Iso: 100
- 7 (Handheld) Exposure Brackets (-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro
- Sharpened Edges with Topaz InFocus
- Selective Saturation and Contrast
- Don’t be silly, of course I tweaked the building colors

Daily Banana – Urban Color

(move the slider to compare before and after)
HDR Photo Pic - Lisbon, Portugal - Urban Color
Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Travel
04
Apr 2011

No Way Out

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attention detail disorder

Sometimes it’s the simple things that catch my eye. I’m always reminding myself to slow it down a bit and pay attention to small details. It’s a good practice because HDR can really help those simple little details come to life.

The shot below is from the interior of The Tower of Belem in Lisbon, Portugal in what I can only describe as the dungeon. — I don’t know for sure because I never read the tourist signs. I know this totally disproves the attention to detail thing I just harped on but there you go. — The important thing here is noting the water flecks on the glass behind the bars. If you look at the before and after comparison, you will notice that the original exposure had enough light pouring through to destroy most of that detail and color, making it a perfect candidate for HDR.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 20mm f/4 Iso: 100
- 5 (handheld) Exposure Brackets (-2,-1,0,1,2)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro
- kept it simple

Daily Banana – No Way Out

(move the slider to compare before and after)
HDR Photo - Lisbon Portugal - No Way Out
Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Lisbon, Portugal, Travel