Moody Fingers

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Moody Fingers


These are both older pieces and I probably have more recent images that are technically better but.. these are 'my' personal favourites!

-- from Moody_fingers - (?)
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"Come to me..." Was pretty much my first signature piece that said portrait photography with a creative twist!! So this one has a special place in my heart :)


-- from Moody_fingers - (?)1: How long have you been involved in photography?

I have been properly involved in photography since mid 2006 when I bought my Canon 20D.

2: Equipment you use?

I use a Canon 20D, Canon 18-55 kit lens, Canon 50mm 1.8, recently purchased Canon 70-200mm f4 L, Canon 580ex Flash with Gary Fong lightsphere and a manfroto tripod. Along with a couple of filters.

3: Mac or PC?

I have a PC but I'm not fussed..

4: What inspires you?

What doesn't inspire me?? :D Everything inspires me!! From doing the dishes to fellow flickrites! Anything that's a little quirky and fun..


5: Preferred subject matter?

I prefer people! I love capturing the very essence of people....
Giving them an image of themselves that is timeless, beautiful and unique to thier personality...

6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.

Something I really want to capture... that's a tough one..
I guess I want to capture a moment that really mesmerizes the audience on an intimate level.. one of those "I shouldn't be looking at this, but I can't look away.."

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?

Sometimes my husband but usually Flickr... I have some wonderful contacts on here that usually tell me what's good or bad..!
I have been getting some extra landscape advice from Jonnyfez recently too!

8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop

I'm meant to be studying for a certificate in photography as we speak.. However the practical has overtaken the study... :S As for photoshop.. all self taught! Trial and error.. best form of learning!

9: Plans for the future?

To become Famous!!! Jokes! ;-)
I have recently set up for a photography business and hope to make my passion my way of a living..

10: In one word, describe your photography.

Quirky

Ecstaticist

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Ecstaticist


-- from ecstaticist - (?)
This photo was taken on a bright morning close to dawn. The light was really bright, but coming from a side angle and still had some of that magic quality about it. This is shot handheld with my Casio. No significant post-processing on this. Just a bit of a crop


-- from ecstaticist - (?)
This is shot from a float plane. I chose it as an example of my post processing. The original was dark and noisy with little contrast. This looks more like what we saw from the plane. Again, shot with my Casio.

1: How long have you been involved in photography?

Since I was 10 years old, so 33 years. I bought old 120 cameras in my early teens and did things like star trails. The large format often produced really nice results. I still have some of those photos. In junior high school I learned the darkroom. I loved spending time with the equipment in the red light. Enlarging and printing was very fun, and that's where I learned SLR photography as well with a Pentax K-1000. I bought my first digital camera in 1995, an Apple QuickTake 150 with 640x480 resolution.

2: Equipment you use?

I use a 2 year-old 5MP Casio EX-P505 digital point and shoot for nearly all my photos. It is very small and I have it with me all the time. It has an exceptional macro function and a good lens. If you visit my profile you can see it with a link to more info about it. I would recommend it to anyone for macro photography. I also use a K-1000 SLR, a Canon Rebel XT and a Sony DSC-H9 (borrowed occasionaly).

3: Mac or PC?

I am a Mac user. I have been in the computing industry for 15 years. I was a PC user for a few years around 2000 out of work-related necessity, but came back to Mac with Titanium PowerBook. I now use a MacBook Pro. I do own two PCs and a Linux machine as well. Some of the comments I have posted on flickr photos have been posted using my BlackBerry, which I have with me all the time as well.

4: What inspires you?

Light and curvature. Great light is the thing that always catches me, and 95 percent of the photos in my stream are natural light. Curvature is fundamental to beauty, and it is nascent in even the most linear abstract image.

5: Preferred subject matter?

Again, anything that exhibits interesting lighting. I have 1200 droplet refractions in a set on my stream. A dew or rain drop catches light and concentrates it somehow, refracting it and changing it. They sparkle and I am drawn like a moth. I also love reflected light, especially on water, which you see in my aerial shots, sunsets, and my Flood creations. Also, light on curves...this is why I do so many flower macros.
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6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.

I need a better, faster camera to do street photography. Anonymous people going about their lives...this fascinates me but I don't have what is required right now to do good photography of that nature i.e. a decent telephoto.


7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?

My wife. For example, the other evening I wasn't sure about two versions of Golden Lion I had produced. She picked the better one right away and it was on the Front Page of Explore a few hours later.


8: Qualifications/training in anything? ie: Photoshop

I have no formal training in PhotoShop, but I am an avid user. Because my camera tops out at ISO 400, the images are quite often noisy...too noisy. I use a PS plugin called Neat Image that my friend Mosippy turned me on to. I works really well to take out noise without altering the image.

I use a lot of PS functions in general to treat my photos. Not always, but quite often. I want my photos to be the way I remember the scene, not the way my camera captured it through its inadequate CCD and arbitrary JPEG compression. I find the debate about post-processing to be overwrought. Film photogs have been post-processing in the darkroom since forever. For me, photography is art, and the opening and closing of the shutter is just the beginning of the process of realizing your artistic intent...no limits.

I also use Flaming Pear plugins for fun, like Flood, Aetherize and Kyoto Color. I use DxO Optics Pro 4 for improving dynamic range when needed. I use Apple's Aperture as my organizing tool, but I plan to switch to LightRoom when I upgrade to CS3.

9: Plans for the future?

I definitely hope to upgrade my equipment. I am waiting for the right time. I really want a swivel, live-view LCD on the camera I buy. The Sony DSC-H9 is incredible in this regard, and it will likely be my next camera. Ultimately I want to be able to shoot RAW so I can really work with the images properly. That will require a significant investment in a DSLR set-up. It is something I have planned to do for some time, but my two-year old is my priority right now and extra money goes to her needs.

Eventually I would like to set up an internet-based framed print business, but most of the works have right now are not high res enough. Luckily the world never runs out of subjects. Lots of time for that.

Mainly I love photography as a way to really see the world rather than just pass it by, so I will continue to carry my camera with me at all times.

10: In one word, describe your photography.

Improving.

Jody9

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Jody9

The first image was taken in the spring at Gorman, California while the wildflowers were in their glory. It's the cover image of my website,
www.jodymillerphoto.com

-- from jody9 - (?)

This second image was taken in the Lake District of England in Ullswater, Cumbria. It was selected last month by the Tate Gallery in London for their 40-image exhibit entitled "How We Are Now".

-- from jody9 - (?)

1. How long have you been involved in photography?
Since I was very young, and seriously, about 35 years. I got really interested in my late teens, and studied in workshops with Jerry Uelsmann at the University of Florida in 1973, and then at the Ansel Adams Friends of Photography workshop in 1982, while Ansel was still able to actively teach. It was the greatest period of growth in my photography. I then studied privately for a couple of years with one of my instructors at the workshop, Arthur Ollman. He continues to nudge me to this day.

2. Equipment you use?
Currently, a Nikon D40x with an 18-200 zoom and a 10-20mm zoom. I've only owned those for about 4 months now. A lot of the work you see here on flickr was done with a Canon point and shoot. I have used just about every type of camera and for my early landscape work (the Britain series in particular) I used a Pentax 6x7. I also use Diana, Holga, and Fujipet toy cameras, and a ZeroImage pinhole camera.

3. Mac or PC?
I use a PC at home, and at work I use a Mac. I love them both for different reasons.

4. What inspires you?
Beauty. I look for the beauty in everything, even the ugly. My desire is to connect with beauty and communicate it.

5 Preferred subject matter?
Landscape in general, though I shoot many "types" of landscape. I do some macro work too, though I'm not as satisfied with much of it. I especially enjoy night photography for its surprising results.

6.Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you really want to capture.
A truly evocative cinematic moment, with a human subject. I'm not that good at shooting people.

7. When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?
I have my teacher, Arthur Ollman, who has been my muse and my best source of constructive criticism for over 25 years. He always finds a way to push me out of my comfort zone. My husband is also a wonderful photographer and gives me great feedback.

8. Qualifications / training:
I'm an art director and animator for television and have been in that field for 35 years now. It melds beautifully with my photography. I taught myself photoshop about a year and a half ago. I still don't know enough about it.

9. Plans for the future?
I've always wanted to own a gallery, though whether that's a brick and mortar storefront or an online gallery remains to be seen. I would love to showcase the work of those artists I admire and give them great representation. My current fantasy plan, though, is to sell everthing I own, buy a camper van and set off to tour the continent and shoot whatever and whenever I want!

10. In one word, describe your photography.
Appreciative.

Dew Wipe

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Dew_Wipe

-- from dew_wipe - (?)


-- from dew_wipe - (?)

1: How long have you been involved in photography?
I've been involved in photography for about two years.

2: Equipment you use?
I use a Canon Digital IXUS 70. And of course always enhance the quality of the shots, or manipulate them in photoshop. I love photoshop :)

3: Mac or PC?
Both :)

4: What inspires you?
Flickr of course :P Other photographers, my friends, movies, faces... And boredom. Boredom is a big inspiration, then I sometimes just HAVE to do something creative ;)

5: Preferred subject matter?
People, faces, portraits. I love faces :)

6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.
Hmmm... Maybe a flying bird.. I dont know really!

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?
Lars V! He's my best friend and a great photographer (Also on flickr :)

8: Qualifications/training in anything? e.g. Photoshop
Haven't had any education within photography. Just started for fun :)
Learned some photoshop in school though, and the rest I've learned on my own.

9: Plans for the future?
Right now, I have no plans... I just enjoy life and live in the now I guess. I work as a graphic designer at the moment and will keep doing that for a while. Thou it would be great to combine it with photography!

10: In one word, describe your photography.
Weird! :P

Fort Photo

FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER: Fort Photo


-- from Fort Photo - (?)

Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico is a dream location for combining two of my favorite activities: birding and photography. This image has had very little post-processing, I was thrilled the way the silhouettes and golds turned out. I also like how it's both an avian capture and a landscape at the same time. Bosque has to be one of the best spots on earth for doing nature photography in general.


-- from Fort Photo - (?)

I decided to feature this image as I do quite a bit of night photography, and this one while being one of my all-time favorites has not gotten as much attention as some of my other work.

1: How long have you been involved in photography?

Over 25 years ago I got my first camera-- a pinhole camera kit. I've been shooting with SLRs for over 20 years.

2: Equipment you use?

Cameras: Nikon D70, Nikon N90s, Nikon Coolpix 4500, Polaroid Land Camera, Kodak Instamatic 124. Lenses: 17-35mm f/2.8D ED-IF AF-S Zoom-Nikkor, 300mm f/4 AF Nikkor, 50mm f/1.8 AF Nikkor, 105 f/2.8 Macro AF Nikkor (non-VR version), Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF Zoom Nikkor, Tokina 28-80 F2.8 AT-X, Kenko Pro telecoverters at 1.4x and 2x. Flash: Nikon SB-28 and SB-15, Sunpack AF 4500 or something heh. I have an external cable, slave and bracket for flash as well. Reflectors made from car sunshades, a mess of filters (most used: polarizer, ND, ND grad, warming, didymium) plus a bunch of stuff I'm sure I have forgot hah.

For my 4500 coolpix, I use it primarily for digiscoping distant birds these days and for that use either a Nikon TelesMicro ED6 x 18D monoscope (amazing optic, also doubles as a field lens/microscope) or my Nikon 60mm ED Fieldscope with various eye-pieces. My tripod is a non-exciting Bogen 3021 with a variety of heads, but I really need to upgrade here. I also use a monopod, bean bags and a window mount for my camera.

3: Mac or PC?

Work on a PC but like Macs too.

4: What inspires you?

I find inspiration everywhere I look. Whether it’s the incredible biodiversity on our planet that I love to study and photograph or if it’s an emotion I’m feeling-- there always seems to be something pushing me to go capture more images. Also being here on flickr has proved to really invigorate and inspire me all the more with the great photos one can find everyday and the encouraging comments my friends share.

5: Preferred subject matter?

Not really any, I like many genres ranging from street to studio. But in practice I tend to post landscapes, birds, and other nature images most often which makes sense as I am completely fascinated by the natural world.
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6: Name one thing you haven't caught with the camera that you REALLY want to capture.

A whole list of birds that are still eluding me such as Mountain Plover.

7: When in doubt about your art, who do you confide in?

My wife has a BFA from Oregon College of Art and Craft and is a wonderful sounding board for ideas and critique.

8: Qualifications/training in anything? e.g. Photoshop

Photoshop, Gimp, Photomatix, LucisArt, Nikon Capture NX, DxO Optics Pro, and LucisArt among others. Back in film days I led a darkroom lab for a black and white photojournalism college level class but have not been in a darkroom in years since the advent of the digital darkroom.

9: Plans for the future?

I want to continue pushing myself to grow as a photographer. In a lot of ways I feel that digital cameras and the digital darkroom have opened a new frontier in photography and a number of us on flickr and elsewhere are on a journey of exploration in that frontier. It's getting to the point where it's literally quite exciting to log on flickr and see what the amazing artists here have come up with next. Also I am focusing on trying to get my work out there more via both for profit and not for profit channels. And I of course have a long list of equipment and workshops I would love to spoil myself with, but in the end I think just getting out and taking the best images I can manage is the most important goal.

10: In one word, describe your photography.

Passionate