Archive for Cityscape

Photography Without Labels

When Trevor asked me to contribute Cityscape and Landscape articles to the site last year I was honored. 2010 was a great learning year for me and in 2011, I’ve been able to reflect on all of my hard work for the past 365 days.  Honoring the gems and realizing my mistakes, It’s allowed me to focus on this new year with a new mind frame.  One thing I decided to remove is the word “scape” from my categories of work. I prefer to use the terms “City” & “Land”.  For me this broadens the subject matter for which I can write about, because recently I’ve been shooting a lot of different subject matter when it comes to city and land photography.  When I think of the word “scape”, I think of skyline shots, and sunsets over the ocean, but in fact city and land photography is so much more than that. In my recent adventures I’ve found ways to produce city and land images together, like the examples below.


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City & Land : Black & White

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Black & white photography, is a fairly new medium for me.  I knew I wanted to incorporate it into my workflow, but I didn’t know how.  I think shooting B&W has it’s place, and lately I have found some interesting ways to work with it. One of the tools I think is a must have for any photographer, is the ND filter. I swear by the B+W brand, and am addicted to the ND 10 stop filter.  During the day it’s an amazing tool, and 75% or more of the time I will convert these images to B&W.  If there are heavy clouds and moving elements, it will give you an incredible effect.

You can view my article on CurrentPhotographer.com called “Black Glass 101” to better understand this filter. Read More→

Cityscapes: After Dark

Allow me to introduce myself. I am known as an HDR photographer of cityscapes, landscapes, and urban exploration. About a year ago I decided to take photography very seriously. Some of the questions I had asked myself were, what did I want to photograph? What exactly were my intentions behind the camera? I thought Philadelphia would make a beautiful canvas to start my photography journey, and so it began. Most of the available time I had to shoot was during the evening, so I first set out with a tripod and cable release to capture non HDR long exposures after dark. I think any photographer beginning today with an interest in HDR can benefit from this structured workflow. Long exposures at night can teach you the discipline in which HDR photography revolves around.

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One of the hardest things about shooting after dark, is being able to see thru your viewfinder. These conditions also make it difficult to focus your lens. It’s always best before composing your shot, to zoom in and focus on an area that has available light. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve composed first, to discover that I can’t lock in my focus point. Once you have locked in your focus point, turn off autofocus. You don’t want your camera to refocus before the shutter opens. Read More→