Art in Agriculture

Art in Agriculture:
There is art in everything,  you just need to know how to capture it.  The shot below was done by Brigitte a few years ago.  We were approached by a Tomato Grower to do some photos for their business.  We met at one of their fields in Byron, Ca. just before sunrise.  We wasted no time getting busy.  Brigitte saw a beautiful opportunity using the sunrise as a backdrop.  She quickly placed herself in a great position to perfectly capture the moving harveter and leading lines.  The dynamics of this shot made it very difficult: Shooting a moving object in very low light, handheld, while standing in muddy tomatoes.  Once again she shows her dedication, drive, and eye for the shot. 

Here is the image, and a sample of how it was used by the client

See more ag images at www.captivatingphotos.net

Charred Remains

Charred Remains:  I had a meeting today in Vallejo, Ca.  Since there was a lot of driving involved, I took my camera with me.  After the meeting I decided to explore the area.  My travels took be over the bridge to Mare Island, the former Navel Base.  I drove all over the facility looking at all of the cool spots for future photography,  and then headed out a different way than I came in.  As I reached the outer edge of Mare Island I saw smoke.  I stopped at what looked like a building that had just been bombed, and the wreckage was still smoldering.  I must have just missed the fire department because there were still flames in some spots.  I grabbed my camera an explored the site for about an hour walking through the twisted & charred remains.  I could feel the heat rising up from the ground, and the scene reminded me of the lava flows on the Island of Hawaii.  It was an old warehouse about the size of two football fields, built in a time when they used real wood and heavy beams.  I was very dramatic and humbling to walk through.

Sports Photography

Two years ago we decided to pursue Sports photography.  We had an opportunity to shoot a Marathon in Sacramento for a larger company.  Since then we created www.captivatingsportsphotos.net  and have gone after the market offering our own brand of Sports Photography.  There was a ton of learning involved, but we have managed to work out many of the kinks and roadblocks.

Shooting large events and capturing thousands of quality images in just a few hours is not easy by any stretch of the imagination, and is not for everyone.  I personally like it because it is a hi-energy situation, and challenges me to be my best.  In our sports photos we try to provide good action shots while including the landscape, this helps provide a sense of place.  This image was taken at the Wine Vine Run in Paso Robles, Ca. The course runs through the Meridian Winery, so we like to show the grape vines in the background.

Sometimes you just get lucky!

Sometimes you just get lucky!  A few years ago I was driving in Tracy, California, looking to do some photos of wind turbines against the green foothills.  As I drove back into town I saw a plume of black smoke up ahead.  I passed under the Grant line Rd overpass, and when I got to other side I looked up to see this truck fully engulfed in flames.  It was a very dramatic scene, and just ahead of the wreckage was the driver on his cell phone.  I could only imagine the phone conversation, "Hello Boss, I am going to be a bit late....and ummm, well ummm  I had a little fender bender.....ummm....."

I titled this image, A bad day at work.

This is dedication

Brigitte, my wife,  is a true professional photographer with a passion for birds, and Sandhill Cranes is one of her birds of choice. Her dedication, and patience is amazing....I don't have it,  and few people do.

What does it take for an award winning shot?

We spend one or two days previewing the area looking for nesting pairs of birds; looking at the accessability, and how the light will be in the morning.  When she is ready for the shoot we get up two hours before sunrise and drive to the predetermined site.   Operating in the dark, Brigitte quietly moves into position often climbing fences, rocks, crossing creeks, and hiking distances while packing in all of her heavy gear.........  On this particular day she fell and sprained her ankle.

Keep in mind that this picture was made at the end of May in the hi Sierras,  so it was about 37 degrees.
Brigitte laid still in a Camo Blind for about 3-4 hours....Freezing

What was I doing?  I was snoozing in the nice was vehicle.

Sunset and Night photography

While playing around with some new lenses last week I stopped on Treasure Island to do some sunset and night images of the San Francisco skyline.  This shot was made from 5 photos stiched together in photoshop with the sunburst added in post production,  Shot with a tripod mounted Canon EOS 1d mark 4 with a Canon 24-105mm lens.

Surgery

I recently had a cool opportunity,  I did a photo shoot for a Surgical clinic who needed images for their new website.  The biggest problem was shooting all of the images in the wide aspect ratio shown in the webpage below.  The fun part was getting all dressed up in the scrubs, cap, mask, and booties.  We spents about 8 hours shooting Pre op, post op, and the operating rooms to get about 20 good images.  In planning for the shoot we showed up with big lights, reflectors, and several other items, but in the end most images were shot with a single flash bounced off of a big white ceiling while balancing with ambient light.

See more of our work at:
www.captivatingphotos.net
or
www.captivatingsportsphotos,net