The Daily Parker

Politics, Weather, Photography, and the Dog

What I've learned today about image editing

I'm continuing to play with Adobe Lightroom, and it turns out I've been doing a lot wrong for five years (i.e., since I first started shooting with a digital SLR). It looks like I'm going to shoot a lot more raw photos, because they allow modern software (like Lightbox and Photoshop) a lot more control over the final image.

And, of course, I discovered this using Parker as a subject. The results don't completely suck:

50mm, 1/60 at f/2.0, ISO 3200.

50mm, 1/15 at f/1.8, ISO 3200.

More photo editing

A few days ago I experimented with photo processing to try out a technique a photographer suggested. I neglected the most obvious transformation of the photo in question:

I've also downloaded Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, though I may want to go full-bore Photoshop in a couple of weeks. Lightroom looks like a fabulous way to organize photos, which would be helpful as I've got north of 25,000 right now and that doesn't include about 170 rolls of negatives I've yet to scan. It has some basic editing tools—nowhere near as powerful as Photoshop—and I'm just getting used to them.

I still won't get any photography books for my Kindle.

The 30-Park Geas, revisited

The 30-park geas can resume now that I'm done with school. Here's my progress so far:

/
City Team Park First visit Last visit Next visit
Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field 1977 Jul 24 2011 Aug 6
Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium 1980 Jul 28? 2001 May 12
New York Mets Shea Stadium [4] 1988 Sep 15 [1] 1997 Apr 19 [3]
Houston Astros Enron Field
Minute Maid Park [2]
2001 May 9 [3]
2009 Apr 7 [1]
Milwaukee Brewers Miller Park 2006 Jul 29 [3] 2008 Aug 11
Kansas City Royals Kauffman Stadium 2008 May 28 2008 May 28
San Francisco Giants AT&T Park 2008 May 31 2008 May 31
Chicago White Sox U.S. Cellular Field 2008 Jun 6 2011 Aug 1  
Cleveland Indians Progressive Field 2008 Jul 10 2008 Jul 10
Baltimore Orioles Camden Yards 2008 Jul 26 2008 Jul 26
Philadelphia Phillies Citizens Bank Park 2008 Jul 27 2008 Jul 27
New York Yankees Yankee Stadium 2008 Jul 28 2008 Jul 28
Washington Nationals Nationals Park 2008 Jul 29 2008 Jul 29
Atlanta Braves Turner Field 2008 Aug 13 [1] 2008 Aug 14 [1]
Oakland Athletics Oakland Coliseum 2009 Apr 25 2009 Apr 25
Detroit Tigers Comerica Park 2009 Jun 24 [1] 2009 Jun 24 [1]
Boston Red Sox Fenway Park 2010 Aug 21 2010 Aug 21
Pittsburgh Pirates PNC Park 2011 Jul 9 [1] 2011 Jul 9 [1]  
Los Angeles Angels Angel Stadium 2011 Sep 3 2011 Sep 3  
Miami Marlins New Marlins Ballpark 2012 Apr 19 [1] 2012 Apr 19 [1]  
Tampa Bay Rays Tropicana Field 2012 Apr 20 2012 Apr 20
Still to come
Arizona Diamondbacks Chase Field
Cincinnati Reds Great American Ballpark
Colorado Rockies Coors Field
Minnesota Twins Target Field
New York Mets Citi Field [4]
St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium
San Diego Padres Petco Park
Seattle Mariners Safeco Field
Texas Rangers Rangers Ballpark
Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Centre

[1] vs. Cubs
[2] Renamed Minute Maid Park in 2004
[3] I've decided not to count parks that were rebuilt after I started this geas in 2008.
[4] Shea demolished in 2009; Citi Field opened 13 April 2009

Last edited: 20 April 2012. This page replaces the original page started in 2008.

How to prepare for the zombie apocalypse: CDC

Via Bruce Schneier, evidence that the Centers for Disease Control have a sense of humor:

There are all kinds of emergencies out there that we can prepare for. Take a zombie apocalypse for example. That’s right, I said z-o-m-b-i-e a-p-o-c-a-l-y-p-s-e. You may laugh now, but when it happens you’ll be happy you read this, and hey, maybe you’ll even learn a thing or two about how to prepare for a real emergency.

This is a lot more entertaining than Internet Information Services configuration, no?

Possibly inappropriate medium

Generally, I prefer to learn new things by reading first, then doing. I mentioned Wednesday that I've grown dissatisfied with my photography skills, so naturally, I'll go first to Amazon. You know: read about a technique, try it out, post the results online, rinse and repeat.

So it seems somewhat odd to me that most of Amazon's top-rated books on photography—like this one on Photoshop—have Kindle editions that cost almost as much. Because nothing will help someone understand how to do advanced photo editing than 10 cm, 18 dpi halftones, right? Even stranger: the example I just cited has a companion DVD, which I assume does not come with the Kindle version. That, to me, puts the F in WTF.

More than the camera

I'm slowly coming around to the notion that no matter how perfect the composition, digital photographs almost always benefit from some post-processing. Back when I shot hand-rolled Tri-X from bulk and printed everything myself, I routinely changed papers and printing filters, dodged, burned, cropped, and distorted, in search of the perfect print. (I have a great before-and-after example that I will post when I receive the subject's permission.) Ansel Adams, recall, did most of his work in the darkroom.

Here's a 10-minute example of digital processing. Let's start with the raw photo; only the output size has changed:

The near-sunset direct light makes Leah look radiant. The expression—this was during our dad's speech—is purely her. And the reflections off the picture behind her don't distract me too much. Why would I change this shot?

Because I think it can look even better.

Now, I really don't have much experience with digital photo alterations. And I haven't invested in Photoshop; I'm just using Microsoft's Digital Image Suite 2006, which they have discontinued. So you won't see any dramatic changes.

First, let me desaturate slightly (to 70%) and increase the contrast slightly (to 130%):

Huh. I think that's a little better. She's better defined, and the light looks more golden than red. What if I do more? Saturation 30%, contrast 150%, and reducing the shadow level by 20%:

Too much? Maybe. OK, add more color up to 50% saturation, stay at 150% contrast, shadows down only 15%, and change the color temperature from 5700K daylight to 6200K (adding some warmth back in after the desaturaion):

I'm not sure which of these looks best. I'd appreciate feedback from the blogosphere. I will probably do another version that removes her stray hairs, reduces the ghost reflections behind her, and brings out her eyes just a bit more. Maybe I'll even buy Photoshop.

Half Moon Bay, Calif., 5 June 2010, 19:40 PDT. Canon 20D, 1/200s at f/6.3, ISO 800, 200mm.

Donald Trump's practical joke

Scott Adams likes to provoke people. On occasion, like today, he writes something that provokes other people. He makes a good case that Donald Trump's presidential campaign is a practical joke:

The magnificent part of this whole thing is that he's putting no effort whatsoever into concealing his prank. That's what I love about the guy. He knows that no level of clownery in a field of clowns will single him out as the one clown that doesn't really mean it.

He's a graduate of the Wharton School, which means his intelligence is in the genius range. He's a world-renowned businessman with attention to details. He's also famous for a trademark form of self-parody that has boosted his brand for decades. There isn't the slightest chance that this man hasn't looked at the birther evidence. He knows the President of the United States is American. That's the hiding in plain sight part of this prank. It isn't the least bit credible that Trump thinks the birther issue is real.

Some of you are thinking he's gone too far with the joke. Or maybe he went too far when he said we should take Iraq's oil by force as payment for a war they didn't ask for. This is not a man who thinks he might someday debate serious politicians in a public forum. This is a man who is winking at the camera and daring you to see the obvious.

Now, other than the silly assertion that he's smart because he went to the Wharton School (it's not Fuqua, after all), Adams hits a stand-up double with the post. I'm convinced.

Wink.

Old photos

I mentioned earlier today that I've got a new film scanner, which makes scanning negatives leaps and bounds easier than my old flatbed scanner did. As threatened promised, I've started sending people some copies. But unless someone spontaneously grants me publication permission, I'm going to restrict myself to posting only shots of subjects that have no privacy interests. Like this creek, for example:

My notes have that one at the Walters Ave. bridge in Northbrook, Ill., looking south, mid-November 1985.