Photos of Clouds

I’ve noticed that photos of JUST clouds are sometimes not so great. Even if it is an amazing sunset – aiming the camera up at only the clouds just doesn’t work so well (generally). I can’t figure out why this is – but maybe you have noticed this too?

I think it must have something to do with having a sense of perspective and scale. Clouds with a horizon are better than clouds without a horizon. This seems to be a fairly arbitrary rule, but it does ring true, so perhaps there is something anthropological happening in that humans need to know the distance and magnitude of upcoming weather.

Daily Photo – The Vastness

I know that photographers generally are especially mindful of things and scenes around them, and I wonder if landscape photographers are especially mindful of clouds.

I look at them like a Native American preparing for a reaping of the maize. I’ve really come to understand and respect a wide variety of cloud patterns, even though there are a few configurations and situations that evade me. I really enjoy being able to predict cloud patterns for the next several hours. I’m not always right, but it is a fun game to play with myself.

These humid, windy skies in Virgin Gorda made for a tumultuous tableau. Everything would change quite quickly, so it was harder to predict several hours away. But I did have a good feeling about this time in particular…

I kept a few of the islands in the bottom of the frame so you could get a sense of perspective to see how huge the clouds actually were.

The Vastness

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2012-05-10 19:10:23
• CameraNIKON D800
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time1/1000
• Aperture4
• ISO100
• Focal Length17.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

Great Villa!

I searched all around the internet to find a good place to stay with my family in the British Virgin Islands, and we decided on this place at Amateras. There were actually two houses all together with a big gathering house in the middle. That middle house is where we spent most of our time, mostly because the kitchen was there.

As far as photography goes, it was one of the best spots on the island! It was high on a hill, so there was plenty of good shots of both oceans. I hardly had to move for sunrise and sunset shots!

Regarding the PhotoWalk Today

We can use the Event I posted on G+ to share photos… here’s a little video about how it works… I think this is a really cool way to share photos from the event!

Daily Photo – Sitting in the Breeze

This is the other area of Amateras where we spent most of our time. We would make drinks and then relax outside and read books in the breeze. There is that warm ocean breeze that is not too cold or two hot. In the evenings, it did get a little cool, but it was still nice to sit out here and read books. I finished off two while I was here. They were both about time. One was called “The End of Time” by Julian Barbour — quite a nice book about physics. The other was called “The Fabric of Reality” which puts a different take on the whole thing…

Also from Virgin Gorda

Today’s photo was taken at the same beach as the video below. I could have taken pretty much the same photo with the Sony NEX-7, but I chose the D800 because I like the wide-angle lens a little better. I mean, I suppose it’s not a big deal, but I still get a tiny more flexibility with lenses when it comes to the D800.

However, if I only had the Sony NEX-7, I could get something very very close to this, I believe.

Daily Photo – The Edge of Virgin Gorda

I wish my D800 had a articulating screen! It’s so hard to shoot close to the ground, isn’t it? I mean, Live View helps a little bit, but it’s so tough to really know for sure.

There are certain positions you can get in (I call them the camera sutra) that can be crazy-painful. I’ve gotten a little better over the years, since I simply kind of “know” what the picture will look like without having to gorilla-pod my neck…

The Edge of Virgin Gorda

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2012-05-10 19:53:35
• CameraNIKON D800
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time0.5
• Aperture5.6
• ISO100
• Focal Length16.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias

Many Comments Yesterday – Responses (and an upgrade!)

The comments from yesterday got a little crazy, and I did my best to respond. You’ll also notice a massive-upgrade to the commenting system. What do you think?

Trey’s Variety Hour #39: Body Painting and Photography

Warning: If you are offended by nudes, watch the TWiT pixelated version in the podcast.
Opportunity: If you can effortlessly handle the naked naked, be sure to watch the embedded YouTube below! 🙂

Artists Paul Roustan, Alexa Meade, and Daniel Ibanez join me this week and show us a bunch of their artwork and tell the stories behind them.

*Bonus Notes:

– Awesome time travel movie I recommend: “Primer”. Give it your full attention otherwise you might miss something 🙂
– Barry Glassman, a colorblind photographer, of bgphotos.net is looking to pay someone to help him process photos. Go check him out if you are interested!

Thanks to Leo Laporte, Tony Wang, and Dave Veffer for helping out with the whole production!

Podcast Options – Get it free FIRST via:

• Option 1: Subscribe for free in iTunes
• Option 2: Subscribe to My YouTube channel
• Option 3: Other subscription options avail on the TWIT page

Daily Photo – The Magical Cave

The Baths on Virgin Gorda are filled with many tiny little caves here and there. For some, you have to crawl through sand or swim to get there. This one was one of the tightest and one of the most awesome! I thought it would be a great place to take a photo… I first went inside here with Justin Troupe and it was so awesome, I decided to return inside with my camera!

Because the light levels were so extreme in here, I went with a 7-exp shot in this situation.

The Magical Cave

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2012-05-09 14:25:38
• CameraNIKON D800
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time1/30
• Aperture8
• ISO100
• Focal Length21.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+2

Toad Hall – Virgin Gorda

A few days ago, I posted a video that I did while at Toad Hall. I received a few questions in email, and wanted to remind you there is a detail page for Toad Hall with a bunch of photos there so you can see what it’s like. I wanted to post this photo below of what it was like in the nearby Baths, which is just a short walk from this house.

Daily Photo – Kids in the Baths

This is my oldest son, Ethan, holding my youngest daughter, Scarlett.

I took the NEX-7 (see my ever-updating Sony NEX-7 Review) into the amazing waters of The Baths in Virgin Gorda. I feel more comfy taking my NEX-7 into “risky” situations because it is so small and light. It’s still fairly expensive, so that is a worry (!!), but I do find myself getting “more” shots with this camera in certain situations like this.

Kids in the Baths

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2012-05-02 13:26:19
• CameraNEX-7
• Camera MakeSony
• Exposure Time1/1250
• Aperture5.6
• ISO400
• Focal Length18.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+1.3

A Visit to the Counter-World

The HD version is up on YouTube now. This was a personal project where I put together some of my favorite photos to the music of Hans Zimmer. And, in case you missed it, here is a long story about a day I had with Hans in his studio.

If you are able to watch this full screen in HD with earphones – I recommend it! 🙂

If you are in Germany or having trouble seeing it on mobile, the Vimeo version will work.

Daily Photo – Massive Storm hits Virgin Gorda

This turned out to be one of my favorite spots on Virgin Gorda a few weeks ago. There is a long road that trails up and down the island. Along one side of the big mountain, there is a little spot where you can get this perspective. I went up there early to grab photos of the sunset, but I was greeted with the sight of a massive storm instead!

Massive Storm hits Virgin Gorda

Photo Information

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• Date Taken2012-05-03 19:52:12
• CameraNIKON D800
• Camera MakeNikon
• Exposure Time2
• Aperture5.6
• ISO100
• Focal Length24.0 mm
• FlashOff, Did not fire
• Exposure ProgramAperture-priority AE
• Exposure Bias+1

Behind-the-scenes

Enjoy this brand new video that we just shot down in the islands!

Daily Photo – The Mining Coast

And here is the final shot from the how-to video above!

Behind the Scenes

Here is a new video that I just made down here in the Caribbean for you. It shows how I set up to take the photo below, along with a few others!

To see my camera equipment, lenses, and stuff, jump over to the Camera Reviews page.

Daily Photo – The Abandoned Engine Room of the Coppermine

This coppermine on the edge of Virgin Gorda was a great find thanks to Stuck On Earth! I knew about many of the main places around the island to take photos, but I may have missed this place if I wan’t using the app. Be sure to go download it – and yes – we have plans to make it for other systems as well.

New Flatbooks Available

So many great authors and topics now! Hit Flatbooks.com right now to see the latest offerings. You’ll be impressed – and I’m sure you’ll find something you like there!

Daily Photo – Sunset in Virgin Gorda

I’m having a great time in Virgin Gorda! I took this a few nights ago while waiting on the Supermoon! I was here on the rocky coast (Savannah Beach) all alone when I took this photo, and I had an idea for a photo plus processing… it turned out to be much more painstaking than I originally thought, but I learned a few things along the way… the light and the motion of the water was so… intoxicating… that I wanted to bring it back to life here for you all…

Some Details

I know most of you don’t zoom into 100% on these photos, so I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the details of this one in particular.