Day #21 – A Photo A Day 2013
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is today, and while I was not able to go out to take pics, I do have a nice pic of a place that I pass by and visit often here in San Francisco.
Today’s pic is of the Martin Luther King Jr. Fountain in Yerba Buena Gardens. I love the fountain itself, but one of the nice things is that you can walk behind the fountain! There you will find quotes from the man himself; in this picture, the lovely green glow behind the water is of the illuminated glass panels that bear the etchings of those words.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Fountain
Day #20 – A Photo A Day 2013
Oooof! Today I am feeling worse than yesterday – no fair! I had photography plans for today!!!!
Ah well. So, today I give you… another window view from breakfast yesterday. (this time, panning to my left)
I like varying colors and the worn look of the window decal.
Worn Out Coca-Cola Window DecalWorn Out Coca-Cola Window Decal
Day #19 – A Photo A Day 2013
Despite not really feeling well, I made a bad decision to go to breakfast with Chris. Breakfast tasted wonderful, but my stomach is quite angry at me for selfishly trying to give my body sustenance!
It is my intent to go back to this restaurant when I am well and do a proper review of the offerings there, since I really did enjoy my meal other than the pain that my body is in, which is obviously no fault of that fine establishment.
This is the view I had at the counter that Chris and I supped at:
Lunch In The Window
It’s not a fancy place, but I think that adds to the charm. It’s lack-luster decor certainly doesn’t deter customers, as that place is always really busy.
Day #15 – A Photo A Day 2013
It certainly looks as if I will be visiting Mission Creek Park more often – I like the views, and also it’s a nice place to stroll and look at the scenery and watch people play with their dogs too.
For some reason, I love urban graffiti, especially so when it’s on an abandoned structure. This building is on a dilapidated dock… I wish that I could get inside to take pics of whatever might be in there, but the whole structure does look really unstable, so it’s probably a good thing that the access has been fenced off.
Mission Creek Park Abandoned Dock
Day #14 – A Photo A Day 2013
This evening I went for a walk – I was on a mission to photograph in the light of the sunset/twilight, and a few days ago I scoped out a spot that I thought would be interesting.
I brought my SLR, my point-and-shoot, and of course, my iPhone. I ended up taking a few with my iPhone that I liked quite a bit, so I think that over the next few days I will post those pics before I upload a few from my SLR.
Mission Creek Park Sunset
Here is one of my favorites that I took on my iPhone, again with Pro HDR.
Look for more from that park in the coming days!
Day #12 – A Photo A Day 2013
Today I give you TWO pics, simply because I could not decide between the two!
Again, using the Pro HDR app for iPhone, I have re-visited the “Seasons of the Sea” at Yerba Buena gardens…
Seasons of the Sea HDR
… and close-up:
Close-up Seasons HDR
Holding still for these shots was difficult at best – if I’m going to use this app much more, I need to invest in a tripod.
Day #9 – A Photo A Day 2013
Flights to San Francisco have been delayed due to weather (I am guessing most likely fog or a really low ceiling) so I am still sitting here at the Portland Airport, listening to live music entertainment! (I think that I’ll post the video I took in another post – it’s amusing!)
So, having time on my hands I decided to play with the Pro HDR app again. There is a steady stream of people walking by so I thought hmmmmm, wouldn’t it be nice to get a longer exposure and see them as a blur?
I decided that it would be fun to see how long of an exposure I would get with this HDR app, and wondered if that movement would translate well into the picture:
Portland Airport – HDR with Movement
I am pleased with the outcome! In fact, I have a few apps that have “longer shutter speed” so that you can get longer exposure times out of your phone, and I feel like Pro HDR did a better job of that than the apps that I have which are specifically designed to do that.
To be fair, I have not tried out those long exposure apps with night time exposures – just daytime, so before I write them off completely, I have a bit more experimenting to do.
For now, it’s Pro HDR for my long exposure needs.
Day #8 – A Photo A Day 2013
HDR is an aspect of photography that has intrigued me for quite some time now, and I am finally beginning to dabble in it a bit with my SLR.
Although I haven’t had the results that I have hoped for, I continue to experiment and I am not going to give up until I get the results that I am striving to achieve! Perhaps I need to read more on the subject.
Just a few days ago, I came across an app for my iPhone that claims to do the HDR work for you, so I decided to give it a go based on a plethora of good reviews.
Here is the result of my first experiment:
HDR Experiment
The app is Pro HDR and it is really easy to use. Set your phone on a stable surface or attach to a tripod and it does the bulk of the work – first it analyzes the light/shadow in the room, and then it takes two pictures to layer. That process takes around 20-30 seconds – that’s just an estimate as I didn’t actually count how long it took to finish.
Once the processing has finished, you then have the opportunity to adjust various levels of the picture: Brightness, Contrast, Saturation, Warmth and Tint. Beyond that, there are also crop, frame, text and filter options to add to your photo.
It’s easy to use, and I think that it’s an app that I will be apt to use very often which means that I am going to have to invest in a Joby tripod! 😉