Relay for Life Weekend

The Galveston Relay for Life was this last weekend, and a friend asked me to take pictures of the event. I've never done anything like that before, so of course I said sure I'd do it. I lost my grandfather and recently my uncle to cancer, so spending some time doing what I love for a good cause, not to mention gaining some experience while I'm at it just seemed like a good thing to do. It was lots of fun, and I took tons of pics. Now I've discovered what this "workflow" business is all about. 1200+ pics. Sorting, tweaking, retweaking. Deleting, Burning, saving. Make it stop! I'm still not done.

By the way, if you haven't heard about the American Cancer Society Relay for Life, here's some info. It's a carnival atmosphere, kids have games to play, there's usually food for sale, and is an all around good time in support of a great cause. Event are held all over, so find one near you and check it out. You don't even have to walk laps (but you can if you'd like), so just show up.

Old Red at UTMB

Old Red at UTMB, originally uploaded by Michael Seymour.

Somehow I removed this picture from the blog, so here it is again. This building is quite old, and even survived the 1900 hurricane. For more info, check it out here

Old Red is a challenge to photograph because of all the trees in the way. This is the best shot I was able to get.

More night time Kemah pics

River Styx

I'm not totally happy with this picture, but it was my first try using a slow shutter on in-coming waves. I am kinda digging the orange tint.

My step-daughter Meaghan

Here's an airy pic of Meaghan from Easter. Guys, she's not old enough, so don't even think about it.

Chess, anyone?

A while back my brother, Garrett, told me about these extra large chess pieces put out at The Strand in Galveston. The weird thing is, they aren't left out on Saturday when the real crowds are around. The only time I've seen them are just before or after work. This seems very strange to me, and if someone knows why it's done, please let me know.

I like The Strand. It reminds me of the few vacations we were able to take when I was a kid, and the memory of roaming through the stores, playing with the cheap toys, taking in the shot glasses, T-shirts and visors on a warm summer evening. Finding a chocolate shop made it even better. I also highly recommend Gruene, Tx for its nostologic, warm feel. A summer photo trip may be in order.

What a cool bench! I played with it a little in Photoshop to make the colors pop, but look at it - I love it!

First attempt at liquid, crystal clear eyes

I've seen portraits where the eyes are crystal clear with a sharp focus, and you feel like you could fall into them. I really want to be able to create the same effect, so I made Maddie pose for me against a tree in the last light of the day. After autofocus did its job, I manually worked on the eyes. Afterward, I used a curves layer to reduce the red and increase light, then an unsharp mask to increase the focus. It's a start, but I've a ways to go.

Here is my picture:

After a quick web search I couldn't find an example of what I'm trying to do in here. I'm sure I'll see something soon, and I'll try to remember to put a link on this post.

Found one: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/2043065013/sizes/l/in/set-72157594203939203/

NASA and the Beach.

Plenty to do in Houston.

I really like this one. My favorite time of day.

Monday already?

I never thought I'd photograph birds, but I've discovered it's kind of fun. The thought of looking at a collection after years of working on it makes me think it could be rewarding. I don't have a true telephoto lens yet, so it's a challenge to get in close enough to get any kind of shot at all without disturbing the bird.

Let's get it out of the way now...

By popular demand (meaning my family wants it) here is a pic of the cat - Socks. He's growing on me, especially when the devious little thing goes rummaging through my wife's purse at 1:30 in the morning looking for hair ties to chew on.

Sunken Dreams

Driving past these boats on the way to work every day, I never noticed the sunken one. Taking pictures has opened a new world to me, or at least a world I'd been going to fast to notice. I've read a number of professional photographers talking about slowing way down and truly looking around. It's not easy to do, but I now understand why they say it.

Oh to be a kid again!

Maddie-B and a little post-car wash clean up fun. You gotta love it when the weather gets warm again. She's just too cute.

Lady at the water

I just like this picture, but I'm not sure why. I wish I'd gotten her name and story.

The picture was taken on the North-East side of Galveston Island, where the ship channel meets the marshes.

Galveston Island

Needed to get out of the house yesterday, so I hit some range balls and then headed to Galveston to take pictures. The Strand is an obvious spot, as is the beach, but I headed over to UTMB around sunset to capture the buildings. Even had an interesting conversation with the UTMB Police while I was there. Apparently there's a building they would rather remain "secret". Shhhh, don't tell anyone (but here's a PUBLIC web site about it!). Now if you wanted to build a new building that you didn't want people taking pictures of, wouldn't you make the thing ugly and boring instead of one of the most interesting buildings on campus? I was told it even looks more suspicious if you carry around an SLR instead of a point and shoot. Um, sure - every terrorist group has extra cash to buy the expensive cameras instead of a perfectly good $150 pocket camera that doesn't draw attention and hides away in your shirt pocket. Like I said, it was an interesting conversation. I am happy to report the officer was very polite, and didn't ask to see what I was shooting. I showed him anyway.

The first post!

I'm no writer, so I feel a bit crazy starting a blog. However it seems like a good way to record my growth as a photographer, allow critique, and maybe have some fun. Besides, I read this article and it told me to.

About me...

Way back in high school I wanted to become a photographer, but the parents said 'Nope, you won't make any money.' Well, I was stupid and listened to them, and now here I am, thirty four years old and working for money. Yeah yeah, I know. Lotsa people work to bring home a check, but every one of them longs to do something they love. Now, the good thing about working for the check is I can afford a pretty good camera. Of course, some people don't think the camera matters (and I happen to agree), but a good SLR can't hurt either! By the way, Ken Rockwell's website is a great read (He's the guy that says the camera doesn't matter - I'll let him explain why). I love his sense of humor, and he, like me, is a color fiend. Check his gallery for proof.

I love color, and I'm trying to learn how to use the camera to capture the best contrast and saturation possible. Composition and subject matter too, but then, my subject is usually the color itself. I've so much to learn and the journey has just begun.

The tools...

I recently purchased a Canon Digital Rebel XTi, but I only purchased the XTi body. Instead of getting the kit lense, I checked forums, buyer feedback and sites like DPReview for a decent walking-around lens. Eventually I settled on the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 Image Stabilized USM SLR Lens for EOS Digital SLR's. So far I'm happy with it, but I'm already itching to buy a few more to allow for even more versatility. If you are thinking about buying your first dSLR, I discovered you won't want to forget a lens cleaner, a lens filter (Protect your expensive lens glass with a cheap filter!), and maybe even a lens hood. I forgot to buy a cleaner and felt like an idiot when I discovered I needed one. Now I have one like this, and it works fairly well. I'm still not sure if the clothe people use to clean their glasses wouldn't work just as well.

This is getting long so I'll wrap it up. I hope you enjoy my work. Please feel free to write critiques - good and bad. The bad ones aren't fun to see, but they do help me grow.

Hey, if you made it this far I'm really impressed!

Thanks for reading,
Michael Seymour