Sponberg's Photography

Pacific Heights

2012-02-26T20:26:00.000-08:00

These photos were taken in my neighborhood: Pacific Heights. The steetlight above indicates how steep the street is.

These wires power the muni buses and street cars in San Francisco, which are emission free.

Another steep hill with Alcatraz in the background.

Marin Headlands

2011-12-20T00:45:00.000-08:00

Part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area

From a WW2 bunker

St. Peter's Basilica

2011-12-20T00:35:00.000-08:00

Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano

Vatican

2011-12-20T00:29:00.000-08:00

The art in the Vatican and museum is breathtaking. To give an example, this hallway leading to the Sistine chapel was really long. The ceiling was lined with art. Very detailed art.

Rome

2011-12-20T00:26:00.000-08:00

The Collosium

Amalfi Coast 2

2011-12-20T00:23:00.000-08:00

This was in Amalfi

Amalfi Coast

2011-12-20T00:22:00.000-08:00

This was in the town of Positano

Pompei

2011-12-20T00:21:00.000-08:00

Square in Pompei

Ponte Vecchio

2011-12-20T00:13:00.000-08:00

The Ponte Vecchio bridge in Florence still has stores and houses in it.

Venice

2011-12-20T00:06:00.000-08:00

One of the canals in Venice

I AMsterdam

2011-12-20T00:02:00.000-08:00

The I Amsterdam sign in museumplein

Amsterdam

2011-12-19T23:58:00.000-08:00

I went on a European trip at the end of October through the middle of November. This was taken at a canal in Amsterdam.

Fall at Innsbruck

2011-10-04T19:11:00.001-07:00

Fall at Innsbruck, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

Any day in October over 70 degrees is nice. The leaves are changing colors at Innsbruck.

This was taken with my Olympus E-PM1

Canon 60D, Olympus e-pm1, Canon S95

2011-10-01T15:03:00.001-07:00

Canon 60D, Olympus e-pm1, Canon S95, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

Here is a comparison of my cameras. They are, from left to right, a Canon 60D, an Olympus e-pm1 (pen mini), and a Canon S95.

The Canon S95 is compact camera. It is the size of a point and shoot. This camera is definitely pocketable. At the time, it had the largest sensor in a body this small. The sensor size is 1/1.7". It provides a little more functionality than a typical point and shoot, as it has modes for Aperture priority, Shutter priority, and full manual. It takes pretty good pictures, especially for a compact. As the ISO increases, the quality goes down pretty fast. It takes excellent quality at ISO 200. The lens is fixed. It has a nice fast aperture of 2.0, but only at its widest zoom.

The Canon 60D is a DSLR, with an APS-C sized sensor. It takes amazing pictures. The quality of its images are clearly better than the other 2 cameras. Its capable of taking excellent quality images through ISO 800, and really good quality through ISO 1600.

The Olympus e-pm1 is a micro four thirds camera. The sensor is smaller than APS-C, but is still pretty big, and a lot larger than 1/1.7. The body size is like a compact, but the lens sticks out, so its just a bit too large to be pocketable. Like a DSLR, this camera has an interchangeable lens system, using the micro four thirds mount. Also like a DSLR, this camera has a hot shoe, so external flashes can be used. The camera is capable of taking excellent quality images through ISO 500, and good quality through ISO 800.

The micro four thirds camera is a great compromise between size and image quality. It is closer in size to a compact, and is closer in image quality to a DSLR.

Image sensor sizes, from the wikipedia article Image sensor format:

Neighboorhood Moon

2011-09-13T21:27:00.001-07:00

Neighboorhood Moon, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

I took a photo of the full moon rising over our neighborhood. I hit the tree with a strobe at the beginning of the 5" exposure.

Quaker in golden light

2011-09-09T18:04:00.001-07:00

This is a photo of Popeye, my pet Quaker parrot. I took this photo as the sun was setting. I added a flash to really bring out the details.

I increased the shutter to bring down the ambient. I set the color balance around 3800k to make the sky a little more blue. I used a CTO on the flash to warm the light.
430 EX II cam right with CTO
Exposure 1/250, f/8, ISO 200

Leaves with Waxing Gibbous Moon

2011-09-06T19:12:00.001-07:00

This is a photo of leaves in my back yard, with a waxing gibbous moon. I used an off camera flash to bring out the leaves. Without the flash, they would have been just a silhouette. The flash was located high camera right.

Corporate Parking Ramp

2011-08-31T21:30:00.001-07:00

Corporate Parking Ramp, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

I've been really getting into lighting, and have learned a lot from the Strobist blog. The blog was started by David Hobby, an American photographer who used to work for the Baltimore Sun. The blog has become so successful that he now runs it full time. Time Magazine named it one of the 25 best blogs of 2010.

The focus of the blog is to promote photography lighting techniques, especially using mobile flashes.

I decided to apply what I've learned, and create a photo and submit it to an assignment / contest. You can see the other submissions here.

This photo was taken at Medtronic, Inc. north of Minneapolis, MN. The huge parking ramp, though mostly empty at night, is never empty. There is always some activity. Perhaps it is the midwest work ethic, but you will rarely find a time when a car isn't moving here. Even after 12am.

I used a wide angle lens to capture a sense of the size, and light trails to capture the motion. The image would almost be peaceful, if not for the moving vehicle.

Thai Yoga Massage

2011-08-28T21:24:00.001-07:00

Thai Yoga Massage, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

Heather just got certified for Thai Yoga Massage. It is a technique that focuses on stretching, deep tissue, and energy. I did a photo shoot for her so she would have photos of different positions to use for marketing. Sarah did the makeup, and was the recipient for the photoshoot.

Minnehaha Falls

2011-08-28T20:28:00.001-07:00

Minnehaha Falls, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

Photo of Minnehaha falls from Minnehaha Park, which came into the possession of Minneapolis in 1889, making the it one of the city's oldest parks. Minnehaha falls is a 53-foot waterfall, located on Minnehaha Creek, a tributary of the Mississippi. The falls was named by the Sioux Native Americans. The waterfall freezes over during the winter.

Kia Soul

2011-08-23T19:46:00.001-07:00

Kia Soul, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

My wife's car broke down, and needed a new transmission, which cost about as much as it was worth. So this is her new ride (and my new photo model). Pictured here next to a walking path we always take our dog.

Rocky Island, Apostle Islands National Lakeshore

2011-08-06T22:00:00.001-07:00

Rocky Island, Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

This photo was taken on Rocky Island, one of the 22 islands that make up the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. The islands, located near Bayfield, WI, were protected in 1970. It is known for its collection of historic lighthouses, and sea caves. The islands are the spiritual home for the Lake Superior Chippewa. Nobody is allowed to permanently live on the islands, however, rangers live there for part of the year, and campers can visit during the summer.

Vintage

2011-08-06T21:33:00.001-07:00

Vintage bicycle, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

Vintage garden, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

These photos were taken at a friend's wedding. The bicycle was placed out in the open, obviously the location vendor wanted it to be noticed. I thought the best look for these photos was to make them look vintage, by applying "bleach bypass". Bleach bypass is the technique used to shoot saving private ryan. The resulting images usually have less saturation, more contrast, and more graininess.

Popeye yawning

2011-08-06T16:54:00.001-07:00

Popeye yawning, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

I take a lot of photos of my pet quaker parrot, Popeye. I was using him as a model, and I think he got tired after I took too many photos.

Top of the Baths

2011-08-06T12:06:00.001-07:00

Top of the Baths, a photo by sponberg on Flickr.

For the first photo on my blog, I chose one of my favorites. This is one of the most spectacular sunsets I have ever seen. The sun colored the sky and clouds, there were Volcanic islands in the distance, palm trees near shore, and huge boulders that seemed out of place for a Caribbean island.

This photo was taken at the top of the Baths. The Baths are granite boulders on the island of Virgin Gorda, in the British Virgin Islands. The boulders were most likely placed from volcanic activity.

In order to capture what my eyes could see, I had to expose the foreground (below the horizon) different from the sky. I used the in camera HDR mode.

HDR is high dynamic range. The camera automatically takes 3 shots in a row at different exposures. The alternative is to set bracketing on your camera, which would give you more control over the exposure levels of each different shot, but then you need to merge the shots together using software.