Stairway to .... possibilities

Sydney - Wharf Area (4), originally uploaded by mindy_w.

The thing about stairs is that they start somewhere and they generally lead you to a destination. They are used as a mechanism to deliver you to an end point. So much we concentrate about the destination, but not on the journey.

The picture is framed in a way that does not cap where the stairway ends, it could continue in a different direction, it could stop.

i need to constantly remind myself that in life, it is the journey that matters and to enjoy the view throughout. It's not about constantly climbing the proverbial 'ladder' - sorry mixed metaphors - don't you hate that? It's about learning, experiencing and being fulfilled by the things that happen to you during.

Photo Details
This was taken around the Rocks, where Sydney Dance Company is and Wharf 8. It was a really nice crisp day with not many people around. This is an HDR using Photo Matix and Photoshop Elements 7.0

mw

Homeward Bound

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mindy_w/3830103164/, originally uploaded by mindy_w.

You know, I enjoy living close to the city. Just yesterday, we had my sister's surprise birthday party (which I might add, we killed trivia and the family team won!! YES!!. [Happy Birthday Marissa] I drove my friends home as they live close to the city and then I drove myself home. So convenient, round trip was 20 minutes.

I really like driving through the city, it gives me a chance to look aroudn and see what's happening - whats the latest trends, where everyone's going etc. Although, it makes me feel like an old foggie when I'm driving home and everyone is out partying. But i feel comfortable that at this stage of my life, that i enjoy going home. I don't need to go out clubbing or drinking til the wee hours of the morning. I guess, that's not really how i roll.

Anyways, this shot was taken at dusk. Not a great idea to be driving and trying to operate a DSLR...hence the shakiness. I like the colours of this shot, its a bit of the gradient in the way the sky displays. This is another example of a HDR.

Anzac Bridge is great though, always interesting what billboards are up on those giant pillars. Beautiful view from Anzac Bridge, i must remember to walk that sometime.

Anyways, hope everyone has a beautiful weekend.

mw

My First HDR

Sydney - Rushcutters Bay (5), originally uploaded by mindy_w.

Hello,

This is my first HDR - High Definition Range.

I used PhotoMatrix to create this image, what you need to do is actually take the same shot 3 times but at different exposures. One should be very dark, second should be neutral and the last one should be very light. This is to get the greatest variety of colours. Some people do more than 3 shots, so you can choose how many you do.

What i also find useful is to use to the bracketing functionality that comes with most SLR's that takes multiple shots at different exposures based on your settings.

The post processing work is quite a labourious task, Photo Matrix is a v. intuitive program to use but here is my take on it:

1. Select 'Generate HDR' and select the bracketed photos that you wish to combine to make your HDR
2. When aligning your source images, you need to select carefully. Sometimes aligning based on horizontal and vertical shifts is not the best if its a moving target or you have not taken it with a tripod.
3. Have a play around with the 'Detail Enhancer' settings, the slider bar is useful to see the effect it creates. Settings will depend on what type of photo it is
4. Don't forget to go to the Tone Mapping tab and update the settings
5. Once you select 'Process' it combines the Tone Mapping settings and the Details Enhancer settings

Anyways, this was a beautiful dusk day at Rushcutters Bay. Thanks to my friends Lowell & Nelisa for being the models at the end of the bridge.

l8s
mw