Shooting the Sun
AR 1476 - Visible Light by Orionid, on Flickr
Massive Sunspot AR 1476, and it's smaller relations AR 1477 and AR 1471 as seen on May 10, 2012. This storm is roughly eight times the size of Earth, and is so far relatively quiet, so no need for tinfoil hats and SPF 8,000,000 just yet. 1800mm equivalent, visible spectrum, Nikon D90 handheld.
Below is the same shot, just a few minutes later in Hydrogen-alpha and IR Spectra on a modified Nikon D50. This one shows either two new proto-spots that haven't been assigned numbers yet (and are too bright to be seen in visible light), or sensor dust. Based on relativity between frames, I'm leaning towards one each of dust and proto-spot.
AR 1476 Ha+IR by Orionid, on Flickr
AR 1476 - Visible Light by Orionid, on Flickr
Massive Sunspot AR 1476, and it's smaller relations AR 1477 and AR 1471 as seen on May 10, 2012. This storm is roughly eight times the size of Earth, and is so far relatively quiet, so no need for tinfoil hats and SPF 8,000,000 just yet. 1800mm equivalent, visible spectrum, Nikon D90 handheld.
Below is the same shot, just a few minutes later in Hydrogen-alpha and IR Spectra on a modified Nikon D50. This one shows either two new proto-spots that haven't been assigned numbers yet (and are too bright to be seen in visible light), or sensor dust. Based on relativity between frames, I'm leaning towards one each of dust and proto-spot.
AR 1476 Ha+IR by Orionid, on Flickr
BOOBIES!
Well, now that I've said what's on my mind, here's the rest of my babble:
I haven't had much time to work on photography or reprocessing lately. My memory cards are filling up slowly, my shot film shelf is overflowing, and photoshop is getting dusty. Why? Because I've been pouring all my creative effort into a webpage that I'd like to have online before I go shoot a wedding that I got roped into three weeks from now. You know, so my business cards actually send people somewhere other than a 404 not found page. It's not officially launched yet, but I figure since there's only 2.75 or so people that read my blog, I can post the working link here so you can watch the progress or toss out some constructive criticism.
Step on in, the water's fine.
For the most part, I have the framework pretty much finished. I'll be populating content to the photography gallery and the projects (blog-like) section over the next week or two before it goes live.
It's built on a wordpress platform, loaded into a GoDaddy server (please refrain politcal comments - I bought a five-year chunk before SOPA and I'm going to use what I paid for). I've also code-monkeyed the php here and there to suit my tastes.
Before moving onto the next paragraph, here's some big picture background. I'm not a professional photographer. I never will be. I enjoy it for the art. I enjoy doing crazy shit that shouldn't be done like converting instamatics to 35mm, making lenses out of soda cans, and taking a dremel to a nearly 100 year old box camera to give it a film-cylinder instead of a film plane. I'm always looking for ways to expand my art, try new things, and never stop learning. As such, I've hit the point now where the vast majority of that can be more easily accomplished through collaboration. I'm nearing the mechanical limits of what can be done with google and a backyard by onesself. I'd like to work with other photographers to see how they see the world. I'd like to work with models instead of filling up my apparently narcissistic portfolio with selfies. I'd like to cross media boundaries and print on cloth, sculpey (which I've done some test runs of), metal plating, and so forth. Basically, I want to get the best of G+ in this weird IRL doohickey-place-thingey. That's where the web site comes into play.
I don't plan on selling prints with it. The primary goal is to have an anchor point to a gallery of my better photo works so that when I hand out business cards, they'll have a nice, easy url and people can see a small portfolio that isn't overrun by all the esoteric and/or mundane shit I put on flickr. The secondary goal is getting regular subscribers to the projects section and integrating that with social media so friends/fans/loyal subjects can follow what I'm up to or dabble in varying levels of DIY. The contact section will have information about collaborating on projects and scheduled showings/galleries, and a small blurb about being able to work something out if you really really really must have a print. But mostly, I'd like it to be able to get people to say "Man, this guy has some off-the-wall ideas. I'd like to go work with him on something."
Well, now that I've said what's on my mind, here's the rest of my babble:
I haven't had much time to work on photography or reprocessing lately. My memory cards are filling up slowly, my shot film shelf is overflowing, and photoshop is getting dusty. Why? Because I've been pouring all my creative effort into a webpage that I'd like to have online before I go shoot a wedding that I got roped into three weeks from now. You know, so my business cards actually send people somewhere other than a 404 not found page. It's not officially launched yet, but I figure since there's only 2.75 or so people that read my blog, I can post the working link here so you can watch the progress or toss out some constructive criticism.
Step on in, the water's fine.
For the most part, I have the framework pretty much finished. I'll be populating content to the photography gallery and the projects (blog-like) section over the next week or two before it goes live.
It's built on a wordpress platform, loaded into a GoDaddy server (please refrain politcal comments - I bought a five-year chunk before SOPA and I'm going to use what I paid for). I've also code-monkeyed the php here and there to suit my tastes.
Before moving onto the next paragraph, here's some big picture background. I'm not a professional photographer. I never will be. I enjoy it for the art. I enjoy doing crazy shit that shouldn't be done like converting instamatics to 35mm, making lenses out of soda cans, and taking a dremel to a nearly 100 year old box camera to give it a film-cylinder instead of a film plane. I'm always looking for ways to expand my art, try new things, and never stop learning. As such, I've hit the point now where the vast majority of that can be more easily accomplished through collaboration. I'm nearing the mechanical limits of what can be done with google and a backyard by onesself. I'd like to work with other photographers to see how they see the world. I'd like to work with models instead of filling up my apparently narcissistic portfolio with selfies. I'd like to cross media boundaries and print on cloth, sculpey (which I've done some test runs of), metal plating, and so forth. Basically, I want to get the best of G+ in this weird IRL doohickey-place-thingey. That's where the web site comes into play.
I don't plan on selling prints with it. The primary goal is to have an anchor point to a gallery of my better photo works so that when I hand out business cards, they'll have a nice, easy url and people can see a small portfolio that isn't overrun by all the esoteric and/or mundane shit I put on flickr. The secondary goal is getting regular subscribers to the projects section and integrating that with social media so friends/fans/loyal subjects can follow what I'm up to or dabble in varying levels of DIY. The contact section will have information about collaborating on projects and scheduled showings/galleries, and a small blurb about being able to work something out if you really really really must have a print. But mostly, I'd like it to be able to get people to say "Man, this guy has some off-the-wall ideas. I'd like to go work with him on something."
So I finally made it out to the abandoned house around the corner. It's pretty much what I expected, although it wasn't as trashed as I figured it would be. Looks mostly like the original mess and looter damage, but not many signs of teenagers hanging out drinking and smoking. Too close to the road, perhaps.
DSC_2547_tonemapped by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2542a by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2519a by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2522a by Orionid, on Flickr
Afterwards, I got to thinking and decided I wanted to come back and shoot again, but I also was curious how it would look as a set if it were cleaned up a bit. The house is beyond repair, it was built at the turn of the century with stucco over a log frame and is crumbling but still structurally sound. So, I went to the county register and found out the name and address of the owner. I also found out that my guestimation was correct. Built in 1900 and last "upgraded" in 1925. Later on this summer, once my schedule becomes a little less hectic (and the wife and I find a place to live), I think I'm going to contact the land owner and ask about setting up a deal where we'll clean the place up a bit and take all the garbage out to the dump in exchange for being able to use it as studio space.
DSC_2547_tonemapped by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2542a by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2519a by Orionid, on Flickr
DSC_2522a by Orionid, on Flickr
Afterwards, I got to thinking and decided I wanted to come back and shoot again, but I also was curious how it would look as a set if it were cleaned up a bit. The house is beyond repair, it was built at the turn of the century with stucco over a log frame and is crumbling but still structurally sound. So, I went to the county register and found out the name and address of the owner. I also found out that my guestimation was correct. Built in 1900 and last "upgraded" in 1925. Later on this summer, once my schedule becomes a little less hectic (and the wife and I find a place to live), I think I'm going to contact the land owner and ask about setting up a deal where we'll clean the place up a bit and take all the garbage out to the dump in exchange for being able to use it as studio space.
So, I had to trek into DC yesterday to visit with my lawyer. I hate lawyers, and I hate the city. So, of course, I made the best of it by planning a few extra hours at the Botanical Garden. Here's a quick few that I've processed so far:
Rose Trellis by Orionid, on Flickr
Peach Rose by Orionid, on Flickr
Blacker Lotus by Orionid, on Flickr
What is? by Orionid, on Flickr
More to follow,
Rose Trellis by Orionid, on Flickr
Peach Rose by Orionid, on Flickr
Blacker Lotus by Orionid, on Flickr
What is? by Orionid, on Flickr
More to follow,
Subaural Radiance by Orionid, on Flickr
So, I've been without a post in a while, here's a TL;DR update with a pretty picture. I'm getting ready to roll out of shiftwork, and I have a slew of photography ideas lined up to get rolling. As normality returns closer to 1:1, I'll start by revisiting all the garish eye-sores I made while I was stuck in the HDR hole. Some softer tones and edges are in order. The attached photo is one of them, a single frame, lightly processed, previously ruined by too much HDR.
Also in the works is exploring a nearby abandoned house that I can reach on bicycle. It's going to be a recurring feature that I plan on visiting often to really get to know, as well as explore as a setting for model shots.
That brings up the next goal. I plan on starting to shoot models this summer. No, real models, not just selfies and family members. I started putting together a portfolio and it's half selfy. No bueno. This will change.
And then there's astrophotography. I picked up roughly $7,000 worth of telescope equipment at a flea market for $30. It blows my little $200 meade out of the water. Just a few more tweeks to the hardware setup and I should be good to go for full-blown 1800mm f/6 goodness. It'll be a steep learning curve, especially with the old cave astrola mount, but I'm up to it. Already have the calendar filled with local star parties.
Somewhere along the line, I'm going to strap a camera into a rocket, too, just for good measure. More Power *grunt*
The "Brownholio" Anamorphic Pinhole Camera.
So, this is what I spent my day off today (Friday) doing.
I started with an old Kodak Brownie Target Six-20. I liked it, but it didn't get enough use as is. Not crappy enough for lomography, not near as high quality as some of my other film cameras, so it was usually relegated to extreme sprocket hole panoramas on 35mm.
So, I voided the warranty, as I tend to do sometimes.
First, I started with the "brains" of the camera. The film plane.... errr... cylinder.
Before painting, I sanded the surfaces that were going to be painted or glued with 200 grit to help adhesion. I masked off the areas where the film would be sliding to keep it smooth, then put on one coat of plastic primer and three coats of flat black.
Next, I carved out a spot for it in the inner sidewall of the brownie. I had to get a little creative with metal bending and shaping to work around the pre-existing design.
Then I rearranged the location of the roller bars to hold the film against the cylinder, and tested the fit.
Once everything fit right and a few other minor tweaks were taken care of, I covered over the old red window, made a new red window to align to the 12-shot numbers (using only the even frames), and made a pinhole and sliding shutter out of 5-mil brass. Lastly, and most importantly, I ran a test roll through just walking around the farm.
First light:
So, this is what I spent my day off today (Friday) doing.
I started with an old Kodak Brownie Target Six-20. I liked it, but it didn't get enough use as is. Not crappy enough for lomography, not near as high quality as some of my other film cameras, so it was usually relegated to extreme sprocket hole panoramas on 35mm.
So, I voided the warranty, as I tend to do sometimes.
First, I started with the "brains" of the camera. The film plane.... errr... cylinder.
Before painting, I sanded the surfaces that were going to be painted or glued with 200 grit to help adhesion. I masked off the areas where the film would be sliding to keep it smooth, then put on one coat of plastic primer and three coats of flat black.
Next, I carved out a spot for it in the inner sidewall of the brownie. I had to get a little creative with metal bending and shaping to work around the pre-existing design.
Then I rearranged the location of the roller bars to hold the film against the cylinder, and tested the fit.
Once everything fit right and a few other minor tweaks were taken care of, I covered over the old red window, made a new red window to align to the 12-shot numbers (using only the even frames), and made a pinhole and sliding shutter out of 5-mil brass. Lastly, and most importantly, I ran a test roll through just walking around the farm.
First light:
