Here is a simple video of the open drift at Pat’s Acres Racing Complex (PARC), Canby, OR, December 10, 2011
Customizing Sliding Door header
Some of you have asked about customizing
the sliding door header of this WordPress theme.
Select a picture you want to insert. Using
software (I use Photoshop), size it to 320
x 200, 72dpi. Add your title. Upload it, choosing
to “Set as feature image.” That should do it.
The link below gives all sorts of useful information
about this template.
Wayne’s WordPress blog
Posted in Uncategorized
1 Comment
Unlock your potential with Focus Lock
You probably already know all about Focus Lock on your DSLR. However, perhaps you haven’t considered
using it to your advantage. Or perhaps you use manual focus as a rule, and haven’t considered what Focus Lock
might be able to do for your photos. Before we explore the potential advantages of using Focus Lock in AF mode,
let’s review the feature.
When using auto focus, your digital camera will attempt to focus on your subject, which won’t always give you the desired results. Sometimes the camera will think whatever is centered in the viewfinder is the subject. If you have made some custom focus selections, it may focus instead on one of the focus indicators in your viewfinder, rather than the center one or an average. Focus Lock lets you override that feature in a manner of speaking, or fool your camera instead of letting the camera fool you.
Center the shot on the most important element of the picture, the one you want crystal clear. Depress the shutter button half way. Holding the button halfway down, move your camera to compose the shot the way you want it, then complete the button depression.
The shot on the left, below, was taken in AF mode, not making use of Focus Lock. The camera chose to put the background in focus. For the shot on the right I centered the shot on the bird feeder, pressed the shutter button halfway (getting the focus indicators to blink while positioned on the bird feeder) to lock the focus, then composed the shot and completed my pressing of the button. The subject is sharp now, and the background is fuzzy.
Bird feeder on deck
Bird feeder #2
Yet another way to make use of Focus Lock is when you shoot through glass. Make sure your subject is in focus, not the window/glass/reflection, using Focus Lock, then shoot. Or turn it around if you have an interesting reflection in the glass (usually NOT the photographer!), and either press the shutter quickly (bypassing focus lock) or get the reflection in focus first.
Go shoot, experiment, capitalize on one of the benefits of DSLR by shooting the same shot lots of different ways without needing to reload!
Posted in Photography
3 Comments
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Taking the day off today, hope you are too, but I just wanted to say Happy Thanksgiving to anyone following this blog.
I give thanks for each of you, your insightful comments, and pray that you are having a wonderful holiday, wherever you are.
Posted in Uncategorized
9 Comments
Why would you ever use THAT mode?
Some digital camera users probably wonder, why would I ever want to use
the RAW + L mode (if you are a Canon user)?
It uses up tons of memory, produces duplicates of each image, and they all
look pretty much the same to me (the RAW and the L of each image).
And some Canon users, or digital camera users if they also have a similar
mode on their camera, may already know why
(or, with just a small amount of thought, may realize why).
However some users, Canon or not, may pose that question for themselves.
Alas, I must admit, I did (obviously, without giving it much thought beforehand.)
So I experimented, looked at the metadata (all that information about the shot
that is stored along with the image), and thought about it a little. Let me share
with you my reaons (and if you have some of your own, feel free to share them
through comments on this BLOG post!).
Using one of the several images I took during my experimentation, here is a
subset of the metadata I was talking about (so you can figure it out for yourself,
if you are so inclined).
Canon EOS Rebel T2i
Manual exposure, 1/80, f/9.0, ISO 400, 100mm lens.
Subject: small off-white statuette, in the rain, of a fairy sitting under a mushroom;
distant leaves as background.
Manual exposure, AF.
Image size: 5184 x 3456
RAW: 21.2MB file
Large: 5.0 MB file
I’m sure you have figured out by now it is (a) all in the post processing,
and (b) deadlines.
I have much more latitude in what I can achieve using Adobe Photoshop or
Adobe Lightroom with the RAW image. But if I am shooting to a deadline,
I need to send off the image BEFORE any post-processing.
So think about the subject, your post processing plans, and deadlines. Then go out
and experiment with your camera (one of the many reasons we LOVE digital – right?).
Think about more than just the shot, then go out and have fun! (I’ll talk more throughout
this season about different modes, and what I have found through playing around.)
And here is a much smaller version of the image I shot for this post.
Mushroom Fairy
Posted in Uncategorized
7 Comments
Fall Festival
Volunteered to help the Cedar Hills Rec Center with their Fall Festival just before Halloween. I know, Thanksgiving is almost here; but I wanted to share this video/story. So I expected to help collect tickets/money, as in years past, but it turned out they were short a photographer! So I got to shoot stills and video for them all day. Here is the result, at least as far as the video goes (and I had a great time).
width="400" height="225" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen>
Cedar Hills Recreation Center Fall Festival, 10/15/2011 from
Ken Coomes on Vimeo.
Posted in Uncategorized
8 Comments
Barrels of Fun
In the middle of the season, having discovered the joy of editing video, I thought it might be fun to put together a less serious look at drifting. The drivers are all better than they appear here – I just put together of few of their “outtakes” or “bloopers” for a laugh. Then I had no choice but to add a “fun” audio track, as well . . .
width="500" height="281" frameborder="0">
Barrels of Fun
from
Ken Coomes on Vimeo.
Another little “lesson” I learned, though. The original video had the title screen shot, white text on a black background, as the “thumbnail.” Alas, on a black background, that doesn’t show up well. And, if sized very small at all, the video controls hide the title, and it just looks like a “hole” in your page. So I made use of the custom thumbnail selection options Vimeo offers to remedy that situation.
Posted in Videography
4 Comments
Timing is Everything
I saw this squirrel “robbing” bird seed from our back yard neighbor’s bird feeder.
The first time I saw him on top of the feeder I ran to get my camera, whipped off the lens cap, turned it on, set the white balance, and stepped outside (luckily, I do believe in having an SD card and charged battery in the camera at all times, and I clean the lens after I use it.)
Dining upside down at its finest.
After dinner, he opted to search for a show.
Still, the best I could do was get a shot of him upside down on the feeder, and then in another, non-feeder position after he scampered off the thing. Leaving the camera ready, on and set, I waited a short while, and he came back. I managed to catch him on top of the feeder this time.
Then another version of “timing is everything” caught up with me. The neighbor placed an umbrella shaped guard on top of the feeder within two days, so the squirrel would not be sneaking any more snacks. Good thing I shot when I did . . .
Here is the birdseed thief casing the joint
Posted in Photography
9 Comments
XDC at PGP
The Xtreme Drift Circuit, or XDC, also comes to the Pacific North West.
Billed as Seattle, the actual venue is the Pacific Grand Prix (PGP) kart track in Kent, WA.
The drift fans enjoyed the XDC show on August 13, 2011, at PGP.
width="400" height="225" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen>
XDC at PGP, 8/13/2011 from
Ken Coomes on Vimeo.
XDC Round 5 and REMIX Car Show, PGP, Seattle, WA, August 13, 2011
Posted in Events
5 Comments
FD Round 5, and ProAm Round 3
Evergreen Drift, Formula Drift THROWDOWN, Round 5.
Also EVD ProAm Round 3.
Evergreen Speedway, Monroe, WA, July 22-23, 2011.
The biggest weekend of the year for the EVD Drift crowd. Formula Drift comes to town, and the local drivers perform in front of the FD judges and the FD crowd.
width="400" height="225" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen allowFullScreen>
Formula Drift Round 5, EVD ProAm Round 3, 7/22-23 from
Ken Coomes on Vimeo.
Formula Drift Round 5 (Throwdown) and ProAm Round 3 competitions, July 23, 2011
Formula Drift Round 5 (Throwdown) qualifying, July 22, 2011
Formula Drift Round 5 (Throwdown) and ProAm Round 3, set up and practice, July 21, 2011
Posted in Events
Leave a comment