HDR Travel Photography of San Juan

12 Jul 2011

Into The Dark

I felt a little too clean and sun soaked after yesterday’s post, “Manarola Moonrise,” so I thought I’d dirty things up a bit today with something dark and grungy. — Oh, I feel better already.

If you think “San Juan, Puerto Rico,” you probably don’t picture a shot like this. Step into the lower portion of Fort San Cristóbal though, and you’ll find plenty of dimly lit textured surprises.

Check out The Technical Mumbo Jumbo if you’re curious about The Photoshop Voodoo that I do do.

Daily Banana – Into The Dark

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Filed Under: Architecture, HDR Photography, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Travel

23 May 2011

Shelter From The Storm

By Elia Locardi 2 Comments

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cleaning the palette.

I thought I’d change it up a bit today and post something a bit more gritty. Lately, I’ve been working on landscapes with soft palettes, colors, and textures.. So today, I’m taking a break and reverting back to gritty, grimy, colorful, nasty textured, dramatic, cloudy things…

Don’t get me wrong, I like soft & subtle colors too but it’s sort of like I’ve been eating the same food over and over again. I mean, I love pizza and all but enough is enough. Let’s have some damn steak or something. (and yes, the pizza reference is because I’ve been in Italy for a while, and ironically enough, I think I’m having steak for dinner tonight.)

So, here is an HDR Photo from El Morro in San Juan, Puerto Rico. As I’ve said, Old San Juan is a great place to shoot because they allow the use of tripods all over town. There are also plenty of places to have pizza or steak, just in case you need to reset your palette.

View some more HDR Photos of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Daily Banana – Shelter From The Storm

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Filed Under: Architecture, Blue Hour Photography, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Travel

07 May 2011

Sunset At Paseo De La Princesa

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New to the site or just plain bored? Stalk the monkey on Facebook, Twitter, or Flickr.

watching the sun.

This is from my most recent trip to Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, along the very famous Paseo De La Princesa.

My buddy and I spent nearly the whole time traversing the old city at all hours of the day and night, trying to take full advantage the phenomenal Caribbean skies. We got to know Viejo San Juan really well by the end, even taking into account my drunken rum adventures.

Now, sunrise was happening WAY too early for us (mostly because of my Rum adventrues) so we tried to focus on sunsets instead.

**FYI, Sunsets happen at a much more reasonable time of day than sunrises.**

Even though you tend to see a lot of Sunsets and Sunrises in HDR Photography, they’re a staple for every type of Photographer. Often, there is way more planning involved than a simple game of “right place, right time.” Most photographers plot the times and positions of the sun way before they travel to locations.

If you’re curious about how I calculate Sunrise and Sunset Times and Positions, I’ve written a little blurb about it. Make sure to check it out by clicking here. It’s much better to know exactly where and when the sun will rise and set rather than just trying to be lucky.

Check out some more HDR Photos of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 14mm f/6.7 Iso: 100
- 7 Exposure Brackets (,-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Blended in Elements from the Original Exposure (See before and after)
- Sharpened Edges with Topaz InFocus
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro
- Used the Photoshop High Pass Filter (Foreground Only)
- Selective Noise Removal in the Sky
- Selective Contrast areas to enhance lighting effects
- Wind + Leaves + HDR = Bad

Daily Banana – Sunset At Paseo De La Princesa

(move the slider to compare HDR before and after)

HDR Photo - San Juan Puerto Rico - Sunset Paseo Princesa

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Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Sunrise and Sunset, Travel

19 Apr 2011

La Garita Del Morro

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sky drama.

If you’ve been to Viejo (old) San Juan, then you’ve no doubt noticed the garitas (sentry turrets). The Garitas line the ancient wall that surrounds Old San Juan and are so iconic to the culture and history of the Island of Puerto Rico, that they even appear on the license plates.

This prominent cultural representation coupled with the fact that they are extremely easy to approach makes them a popular subject to photograph. Everyone who visits Viejo San Juan with a camera has snapped at least one photo (or 50) of these iconic structures.

So how do you snap a unique photo of one of the most photographed objects in the world?

A healthy portion of Puerto Rican Rum helps, but the easiest solution is to pay attention to the skies.

I spent 4 sunsets shooting this location in order to capture the right amount of sky drama. It may have been a wee bit obsessive on my part but I was determined to get the shot just right.

Check out some more HDR Photos of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 24-70 f/2.8@ 24mm f/3.3 Iso: 100
- 3×7 Exposure Brackets (-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3)
- HDR Photography Processing & Tone Mapping using Photomatix Pro
- Stitched Vertical Panorama with Autopano Giga
- Post Processing & Color Correction in Photoshop
- Enhanced detail with Nik Software Sharpener Pro
- Sharpened Edges with Topaz InFocus
- Additional (aggressive) Selective Contrast
- Cropped Result
- sky drama

Daily Banana – La Garita del Morro

(move the slider to compare before and after)

HDR Photo (Pic) - Viejo (Old) San Juan, Puerto Rico - La Garita Del Morro

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Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, Blue Hour Photography, HDR Photography, Panorama, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Stitched Panorama, Sunrise and Sunset, Travel, Vertorama

15 Apr 2011

Windows In Time

By Elia Locardi 1 Comment

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Symmetry Loves Company.

I think I’ll call this style: off unsymmetrical symmetry, or how about, symmetrically unsymmetrical, or symmetrical offset. Honestly, I have no idea what to call it. — Regardless, it’s kinda symmetrical but it’s not. So really it’s not symmetrical, so then… Crap, forget it, I give up.

So if you’re a fan of symmetry or not, then you will like this shot, or not. Crap, I did it again…

This is a room from Castillo de San Cristóbal in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. It’s a great place with a lot of cool areas to explore. This one in particular really caught my eye. It was something about the symmetry or the lack of symmetry. Crap, there I go again…

Technical Mumbo Jumbo:

- Nikon D700 – Nikkor 14-24 f/2.8@ 20mm f/8 Iso: 100
- 7 Exposure Brackets (-4,-3,-2,-1,0,1,2) (-1 EV Shift)
- 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
- Additional (aggressive) Selective Sharpening
- symmetry loves company

Daily Banana – Windows In Time

(move the slider to compare before and after)

HDR Photo - San Juan Puerto Rico - San Cristóbal - Windows In Time

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Filed Under: Architecture, Before & After, HDR Photography, Puerto Rico, San Juan, Travel

13 Apr 2011

The Red Monkey

By Elia Locardi 3 Comments

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intoxicated photographic creativity.

In Old San Juan Puerto Rico, there are many vibrant & beautiful things to catch your eye. At night, it’s a feast for the senses, combining great culture, music, and interesting atmospheres. Add some of the local rum to the mix and everything seems to come alive. Add some of the local beer and eh… It’s not that great. Stick with the rum.

We stumbled upon this place after a full day of shooting. With sore feet and an intoxicated sense of photographic creativity, (not just from the rum), we decided to take full advantage of this amazing atmosphere.

Obviously the name, “The Red Monkey,” attracted me to this place. I just had to go inside. After ordering a beer at the bar and speaking with the owner, my buddy John and I set up to take some cool, vividly colored photos. The details were screaming at us, from the old wooden beams, to the white plaster walls coated in liquid red light, it was a visual feast (again, not just from the rum ).

At The Red Monkey, the management tried to create a cool and comfortable local environment by restoring this building to it’s natural beauty. If you make it down to Old Town, It’s worth checking out.

Check out more Late Night HDR Photos