Two Lenses, Two Focal Lengths, Same f stop

One of the fascinating things for me about photography is how changing the focal length of the lens you are using can subtly or dramatically change the look of a photo. Going from say 17mm to 300mm would be dramatically different. Which is the subject of a post I want to do someday, where I try to keep the subject approximately the same size while changing the focal length drastically... say from 8mm Fisheye to 300mm Telephoto.

What I wanted to see here was how differently a photo would look using a 100mm v. a 200mm lens. This was spurred on by taking this first shot of an ornament given to my family by my brother in law for Christmas. After taking the first one I found myself wondering if I could take essentially the same shot with my old manual focus 200mm lens.

I was intrigued by how similar they looked after processing. The older lens lacked contrast and the exposure was not quite the same, but they are quite similar upon initial examination. If you look closely though there are subtle differences some due to having to move the tripod further away to keep the relative size of the ornament the same and some due to the change in focal length exclusively.

I think I need to pursue this line of investigation more closely. It would be a fascinating thing to explore in a blog post when I have the time to sit down and write in a lucid manner.

Focus Stacking...

So... I have been wanting to try this for awhile. What have I been wanting to try you ask? Focus stacking. A method of increasing the area of a picture that is in focus, by combining multiple individual photos focused on different parts of the image into one image.

Who cares you say? Me. And a few friends. I am just as interested in selective focus on a single part of an image as the next guy. That is why I have lenses like my DA* 55mm f1.4 which can give me a VERY thin slice of a photo in focus and blur the rest especially when set to f1.4 (or wide open). In Macro photography, due to how lenses work and how close you are getting to your subject, even if you stop your lens down to f11 or f16 you are still going to get just part of the subject in focus.

Because of that some clever chap decided to find a way to combine, or stack, parts of different images into a single image that shows only the in focus parts of the image. So, if you take enough photos with the focus point just shifting slightly between each photo, you can get a picture of something close up but have the WHOLE THING in focus.

Here are just three of the 9 images I used for my first stack. 

This one has the leading edge of the flower in perfect focus, but the rest of the flower is not even though the lens was stopped down to f8.

Here the focus is further in.

And here the focus is on the rear petals of the sunflower.

And here is the finished product, nicely stacked, blended and in focus.

I have a way to go in mastering this technique, but I hope to get quite facile with it, when needed.

Here is the source of my knowledge so far: https://photographylife.com/how-to-focus-stack-images

Van Lady Love... Interesting name wot?

The second night of shooting for my local HOA, there was a band called Van Lady Love whom I had never heard of. They were pretty darn good and I enjoyed shooting them. My concert photography muscles were a little flabby, but I got a few I liked. They were pretty energetic and it was tough to get shots that were really clear.  I think the movement in this one adds to the shot.

Part of me still wishes I had exposed for the sky and had silhouettes for these two.

I really like this kid on her dad's shoulders, capturing a cool moment without intruding is fun for me.

A Bunch Of Hot Air Never Looked So Good!

I got to uploading these photos and realized how many I had gotten that I liked, could have processed even more, but I think this is enough. I realize that I am more image centric than verbose here on my blog. I think that is OK, don't you? I mean... it IS a photography blog, might as well post some images.

Hot air balloons are a pretty cool thing, I have always loved seeing them fly, but have not yet been in one. (Some day) They can be devilishly hard to photograph. They are large, but have lots of small details, most balloon festivals start launching around dawn, so you end up with wildly varying exposure compensation settings, depending on backlighting, direct sunlight, sky vs. shadow. I was forced to look at my LCD and review more often than I like to just to make sure I had the right exposure. After the morning was done I realized I was on matrix metering rather than spot metering. Sigh... explains a lot.

Despite the technical challenges of exposure, composition can be tricky, these suckers are big, REALLY BIG! You can go from 10mm to 100mm+ in a blink, and NOBODY makes a lens with those specs! My workhorse was my Pentax 16-85, I also shot a few with my DFA 100. Which is constraining for me, as I usually go wide or go home. This was good, it forced me to look at my compositions differently. Hopefully successfully.

Now on to the parade of images. I will try to not distract from your viewing too much, but I will comment here and there.

I love the juxtaposition of one balloon against another and the textures of the balloon shapes. It almost reminds me of a kaleidoscope when you get a bunch together.

Sunshine, mountains & hot air balloons, what more could you ask for?

I have always been fascinated by the willingness people have to shoot flames into a fabric bag. The heat and power are heady, and the results awe inspiring. Still a little scary though.

Kissing?

Sometimes zooming with your zoom rather than with your feet can provide a nice variation in composition. I honestly can't say which one I like most, but I think the first is the most interesting.

Yes, there were lots of people there. For whatever reason I do not/try to not/forget to include people in my shots, I guess maybe they are less interesting than the balloons?

Chasing them into the surrounding neighborhoods was a highlight for my kids. (Me too if truth be told, but a little nerve wracking when you are the driver AND trying to spot them too!)