As promised, some more of the pictures that have been processed for web. As most of the rest, they were captured with the Leica M9-P, and mostly wide angle lenses, the ones at night, obviously tripod mounted. We use the Sirui, carbon fiber with the added Sirui bullhead. Not the 12 inch light one, but one a little sturdier where we don’t necessarily need a cable release for long exposures, since Leicas don’t have a mirror.
Hope you enjoy them and more to come!
Prague, the beautiful city, part II
May 20, 2013 By 2 Comments
Prague, the beautiful city
May 15, 2013 By 10 Comments
We just returned from a visit to this amazing city. I had visited many years back, and fell in love with it. So it was our choice and I hear that right now it is the most visited capital in Europe. Judging by the amount of people we saw, yes, it is 
This city had very little destruction during the war and most of its monuments are intact, and to add the beauty of the old city, the river and the iconic Charles Bridge certainly grants the attention.
The prices of lodging and (excellent) food are pretty reasonable, on the “affordable” side, the city is kept very clean and safe. You can find about any kind of service a visitor could want, friendly waiters and people you ask for directions, and if there are any pickpockets or thieves (as in any big city), we really didn’t see any. We felt safe at all times, even begin at the Bridfge with Leicas around our neck at 4AM (only time you can get a relatively empty bridge. We got up early twice, and at 5AM it is daylight already in May, so I can only guess what it will be later on.
We had mixed weather. When we arrived, it was chilly and had isolated showers, to a tremendous downpour one night, fortunately caught us at the hotel. Then it turned very hot, which made it a little difficult to spend as much time outdoors as we would have wanted. Nights were fine, not chilly at all, by the tail end of the trip.
We had a hotel room with skylights that provided excellent views if a little acrobatic abilities and a love for risk to take advantage of the “perches”. I only used the Leica on this ventures one time, afraid to drop the camera down to the group, 4 stories down. This is that one, taken the a 90mm lens and cropped to a pano.
ALl the images here were taken with the Leica M9P, and a few lenses, mainly the 24 Elmarit, the Voigtlander Nokton 35 f/1.2, which I am replacing with the smaller and lighter Leica 35mm and the 50 Lux f/1.4 ASPH.
I will be posting many more images in the next few days, and so will be Alfred. We took a lot of pictures, that it is overwhelming to go through them, let alone prepare for web.
Leica files require very little processing, but I like playing in the computer and add mood to some images, so you will see a mix of straight or enhanced images. Such is my way.
It was a very enjoyable trip and the memories will last forever, especially that we were able to enjoy the company of my son and his wife for a few days.
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Miami Renaissance Festival
April 16, 2013 By 2 Comments
The festival was at Cauley Historical Square for the past 3 week-ends and we visited every Sunday, getting to be familiar with many of the participants. Although this location is not as big as the one in Deerfield Beach, the abundance of trees provide a shade in many places, providing shelter from the inclement heat of the sun.
The amount of shows available is great, you can’t go bored over there. Stage shows plus jousting and archery, even tug of war in the Field of Dreams. Nice food and drinks and a killer frozen mojito at the Good Knight Pup, where the Grand Finale took place every night before they closed the festival at sunset. Lots of dancing, music and good vibes. Everyone friendly and very family oriented.
As many of you know, we have gotten rid of our big DSLR system and are shooting mostly with Leica gear. Leicas are rangefinders, with manual focus. it’s been a learning curve for me, Alfred was used to zone focusing. But a learning curve that I’m enjoying very much and really don’t miss what we did before. Al least we stay clean LOL
All of the images here were taken with the Leica M9P, digital rangefinder, lenses used were 90mm Elmarit f/2.8, 50mm Summilux Asph f1.4, 28 Elmarit f/2.8 Asph, 24mm Elmarit Asph f/2.8, 35mm Summicron Asph f/2 and Voigtlander 35mm Asph f/1.2
Apertures according to the need and circumstance, Auto ISO most of the time although manual ISo and mode for the horses blurs.
We find the contrast and colors out of the camera are outstanding in the Leica files, coupled with the fantastic glass.
Enjoy!
Leica goes Calle Ocho
March 24, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Calle Ocho, as SW 8th St is sometimes referred to, is the heart of Little Havana, one of the oldest Cuban communities in Miami. There is the Domino Park, a club for seniors sponsored by the City of Miami, where there are games, mostly domino, although you can also see chess.
We decided it would be a good place to try out the new equipment, although we are not very savvy when it comes to people photography. We know how to approach a bird, but this is unfamiliar territory for me. Alfred has done it more often. I felt right at home the minute we stepped in the little but crowded park. And not because we are seniors :-0 but because of our Cuban ascent. Now, pointing the camera boldly to peoples face was quite an adventure. I have done candids before and I enjoy them, but these people were seating right in front of us and unless you wanted a wide angle of the whole park, you had to get close and point at them.
Guess what, they were so totally in to their game, they paid us no mind. The fact that there are a lot of tourist buses unloading tourists with cameras certainly helps. They have been there, done that and had no intentions of ruining their next move in the game because of us. After a bit, an older lady seating by herself on a bench got up and started shouting at us: “Photography, pictures, enough, stop”. I looked at her and was almost tempted to tell her I was looking for interesting face and she wasn’t one, but another couple close by quickly told us to ignore her and told us to take as many pictures as we wanted.
After a couple of more minutes, we started walking back to the car stopping at a very cool store full of cuban souvenirs, and had some cafe cubano.
Here are some pictures, taken by either Alfred or myself. Both with Leica M9-P, and lenses were Leica Elmarit 90mm f/2.8, Leica Summilux Asph 50mm f/1.4 and Voigtlander 35mm f/1.2
You can easily guess at the f stop by the depth of field. Needles to say, Leica lenses are manual focus and the M9 is a range finder that has no provision for an electronic viewfinder, as will be the case with the model in production M type 240.
So the trick is to pair the lines in the little rectangle in the center of the lens. Looking for a contrast area, and making the lines merge. If you are shooting horizontally, you pair the lines vertically and viceversa. Piece of cake. Yeah, right!
Anyway, it is a fun experience, the contrast and color of the files are unbelievable out of camera. You can only shoot Aperture, manual or bulb. The f/ stops are in the lens, together with the depth scale in the focusing ring, and the shutter speeds are on a dial on the top of the camera. If you are shooting Aperture priority, you can set the compensation to be on the ring in the back, avoiding to go to the menu.
Alfred is more conservative when it comes to editing, but I like to play around, so bear with me.
Here they are:
The Grove according to Alfred
March 12, 2013 By 2 Comments
Yesterday I posted some of my shots from the Grove. Alfred had other ideas and was mixing Lensbaby with traditional lens work and here are some of his picks. Enjoy!
Photographed while waiting to turn, real nice vintage Ford pick up truck, sweet !! Lensbaby Edge 80
Family enjoying ice cream at a bench. NEX-7 Lensbaby Edge 80
Motorcycle cruising the Grove. Image focused manually while panning. NEX-7 Lensbaby Edge 80
Customers watching the afternoon NBA game at a local watering hole. NEX-7 Lensbaby Edge 80
Old Shimano shifter. RX-1 on close up setting wide open.
Lady cruising by, taken from the hip while walking. RX-1 f 5.6
Old Lincoln Continental very well kept. RX-1 wide open at f/2
Lensbabies make it to the Grove
March 11, 2013 By 2 Comments
Sunny Sunday afternoon in Coconut Grove, armed only with the Sony NEX 7 and a Lensbaby Composer Pro, with two optics, Sweet 35, which I’m more familiar with, and trying to get used to the Edge 80. This one is not as easy to master as the 35, but it can yield very unusual results, since you get a slice of focal plane as opposed to 35 where is mostly a sweet spot. I normally work wide open, exaggerating the effect, but I promise one of these days I will try fro smaller apertures and a more discreet or subtle bokeh.
All the images have been initially processed in Lightroom, then taken into CS6 to be primed either with Totally RAD’s Radlab or Silver Efex 2, or both. I’m liking working the image in color, then taking it to BW and actually liking the B&W renditions from Radlab, even a bit mire than Silver Efex, although they don’t have as many presets. You can save your recipe too, btw.
Here are a few keepers. We need to go out and practice more, but it looks like the Edge is going to bring us mots of fun.
If you want to know how to work them or to get one, visit the Lensbaby website, lots of good info, forums and examples.
Old Continental, Sweet 35, edited in Radlab
Sweet 35, edited in Radlab
Lensbaby Edge, from the ground, edited in Radlab.
Edge 80, edited in Radlab
Edge 80, processed in Silver Efex 2 and Radlab
Edge 80, wide open, processed in Radlal
Edge 80, processed in Radlab
Edge 80, processed in Silver Efex 2
Edge 80, processed in Silver Efex 2 and Radlab
Edge 80, processed in Radlab and Silver Efex 2
Edge 80, edited in Radlab
Edge 80, processed in Radlab
Edge 80, edited in Radlab
Edge 80, edited in Radlab
Bikes chained. Sweet 35, edited in Radlab
Epcot with a flare
March 7, 2013 By 6 Comments
We both love Epcot, not only for the great food but for many photo opportunities. This time, although I did something I’m just beginning to play with, architectural, I did a lot of non-conventional stuff, but that’s where the fun part is, and in my evolution as a photographer, I am more concerned in having fun than in the glory of it
Here are some examples, with a brief description of what was done or the concept behind.
Have a great day, everyone!
Sony Nex 7 with Lensbay Sweet 35 optic. Processed in CS6 with Radlab.
Slow motion dancer’s feet.
Lensbaby Sweet 35. As shot.
Sony NEX 7 and Lensbaby Sweet 35 with macro converters. Textures added and finished in Radlab.
RX-i in SCN mode (scene selector). in camera process, only available as jogs
An 8″ exposure, no tripod, just leaning on fountain’s border. Processed with radlab.
1/15 s/s close up of a belly dancers feet. Finished in Radlab.
Close up in slow shutter speed to capture the motion of the dance. I didn’t go for the face because it would be a distraction.
Lensbaby abstract, bending the lens. Finished in Radlab.
Carrying the NEX-7, Tripod and lights by Alfred Forns
March 6, 2013 By 4 Comments
Carrying the NEX-7, Tripod and lights.
First order of business was looking for a tripod. Our first logical choice was a Gitzo one series but it did not prove to be a good choice. Folded, it was still longer than I wished and the current price is incredible. Looked at other brands but came up empty. Went to our local Camera store, Pitman Photo, to see what was available
and came up with a winner. My friend Glenn recommended a Sirui, never heard of the brand but proved to be a winner. Chose the T-025 which is a carbon
fiver, five section and comes with a ball head/arca release clamp. I folds to 11.8”, 1.8 lb and supports 12.8 lb. Sturdy and functional. Btw price is right at just
$219.95
Sirui Tripod partially open
The tripod has a peculiar design for folding, the legs go upward so when the tripod is extended you have a section sticking up.The overall height is not great but sufficient for its intended use. The center column will also raise to give you more height. Shooting the fireworks at Epcot we tried several long exposure images checking for steadiness with fine results. Something important to keep in mind is using a remote, if not, be very careful pressing the shutter. For a more solid tripod, we use this other model and just take the bullhead from the little one.
Sirui model T-2205X
Now we needed a bag to conveniently carry “all” the gear. In the past I have relied on Domke for my Leica gear. The bags are made of canvas have no padding except for the bottom and no dividers so lots of gear fits in a small package. The two most useful are the F-6 and F-3X. Either would carry the gear but not the tripod, that had to be attached to the outside rings, not totally convenient.
Next, I looked at Lowepro, which is my favorite brand for larger camera equipment. Started looking at the sling models since they seemed interesting. For my intended use, I need something small, easy to get to and fitting close to the body. The Passport Sling II seemed good so back to the store for a look. I Was impressed at first sight.
The bag can be worn on you back, side or front depending on needs, its comfortable and not bulky. But the most amazing thin is that I can fit the tripod inside the bag because of its peculiar shape. Also added one extra insert from a Domke bag (single) which can hold a camera with lens. The way I have it configured it has three inside inserts. For storing lenses I buy extra rear lens caps and glue them back to back so two lenses can be fitter together. We are working on a belt bag for carrying the RX-1 since it has a fixed lens. It is great having two focal lengths available, already mounted.
Bag Model F6
Last but not least was the light. A flash was not an option and we wanted LED lights. For lights you want to be able to regulate the output and temperature.
They have to be battery powered and small enough to carry. After looking at many different models we settled on the Dot Line DL-DV320C ….. it also fits in the bag !!!
Planing to get another one, so we can carry one on each bag. So far have only used it for portraits at night working just fine. The ability to change the color temp was important since the ambient light was mixed and created a non pleasing tone on the model.
The light can be mounted on the tripod for precise placement and freeing our hand for shooting. Will also be trying the light for macro. Battery life is good for about one and a half hour.
Portable LCD light
To update our new shooting outfit, we have added two Voitglander 35mm f/1.2 aspheric, Leica mount, with adapter for NEX and a Leica 90 f/2.8 El-Merit.
Un the future, we would be adding a 50mm Summicrome f/2.
The bigger tripod we carry on its sling bag, and the little one, when we use it, it’s get attached to the bottom of the Domke with small bungee cords.
Fieldtrip to Shark Valley by Fabiola Forns
February 19, 2013 By 15 Comments
The trip to Shark Valley, regardless of the 11 mile road work, proved to be very interesting. I would say even better than the Burrowing Owls at Brian Piccolo Park.
We had been very disappointed with our session at Anhinga Trail, which we found very neglected and with very few subjects for this time of year.
Backlit Great Blue Heron and catfish. We had to run for this one and he never gave us a good light angle.
Snowy Egret dancing the water looking for fish.
Shark Valley, although not shinning like other years, still gave us plenty to do, especially it was a good workout for photo skills, since the light kept changing rapidly (very common in Florida). As we came in, it was overcast, and we had to work in ISO 800 to get any kind of shutter speed.
Although I’m a fan of Auto ISO on my Sony cameras, I don’t trust old 7D over ISO 800 and don’t want to have surprises. So I prefer to change manually and make sure my picture is taken at the best possible, given the action gives me time to make decisions.
Great blue Heron expressing his unhappiness at another bird in his territory.
I usually prefer to work wide open, which means f/5.6 on my extended 100-400L IS.
Unless I want more depth of field for more than one subject or very close proximity, blurring shoulders and such.
After mid-morning, the sun was shinning very bright, and the contrast was brutal, especially to get the Snowy Egrets,, that read 4000 s/s even at ISO 400. I didn’t consider going under that, since speed is a bonus in most cases and I’m happy with the grain at 400 ISO, in other than gloomy conditions.
The images opened up the blacks nicely in Lightroom and all the highlights were there after checking them. I was very happy with the results, even though the contrast was very high at the end of the morning.
Juvenile female Anhinga ready to throw herself at the tree. They are not the most graceful landers.
Here are some pictures, and this is a location that we will probably repeat in the second term of the class. Hoping the road work is better by then. If you plan to visit, allow yourself extra time because of the stops you have to make on a one line road.
May the light be with you!
Tricolored Heron in full breeding colors.
Snowy Egret posing on his Everglades habitat.
Purple Gallinule showing their ability to walk the reeds.
Green Heron enjoying the first rays of sun that morning.
Tricolored Heron getting ready to come in after a round of fishing.
Snowy Egret having his crown blown by the wind.
From Courtship to Relationship- by Fabiola Forns
February 17, 2013 By 9 Comments
Anhinga courtship (Anhinga Anhinga) could be extremely amusing and very fast, as we were able to witness this past Saturday morning at Shark Valley, West entrance to Everglades National Park, while there on a Miami-Dade College photography class.
There had been some action, especially with Purple Gallinules that were very abundant and in plain view, some Snowy Egrets and Tricolored Herons dancing the water, the invariable and always present great Blue Herons.
It is breeding time for many of them, even a big alligator was rumbling calling for a mate. Early for them, but this year, the water level at the park is on the high side, accelerating some things.
A male Anhinga was doing his ritualistic wing dance to attract a female. Sure enough, this beautiful female answer and flew in. Some of us were standing right in front of the nest, that had just fledged two big female chicks, still hanging around the area, not missing a beat.
The first few kisses, full breeding plumage.
Well, it was love at first site and they proceeded to kiss and fence and celebrate the beauty of the day and the getting together. A couple of minutes later, they mated and, as expected, he climbed down the tree and brought a beautiful green branch, to her absolute delight
Getting to know each other
The actual moment of the first mating.
One more branch and another mating, before things settled and the nest was officially inaugurated. Let us hope that they can produce healthy chicks and no cold front gets in their way. It will be a beautiful location to photograph, just across the narrow canal, and as branchy as you can expect from a nest.
The first branch after copulation.
Feeling newlywed pride.
A new branch for the belle.
It was a privilege to witness the beginning of a new cycle of life.
