Summer Sunset in Troy, PA

The Pennsylvanian landscape is awesome.  Tons of hills and greenery all around.  Here is a shot I took after a long day of fraccing.  Don't call me a nut, I always carry my camera around with me during my trips to the field. I was lucky to get this shot before it started storming. If you look close on the left hill or mountain the locals call it, there are wind turbines.  Several of them are up there and will be popping up on here soon.

New surroundings, new camera!

Hey all, it has been over a month since I posted on my blog.  Our move to Mars, Pennsylvania has gone well and we are finally settled in.  I could not help but pounce on a great deal The Camera Store had on Canon EOS 5D Mark II cameras.  Ever since I got hooked on photography, and especially landscapes, I lusted for a full frame camera body.  I am not a fan on paying an "early adopter" tax that comes with the hype of a new piece of technology and after nearly 2 years on the market, I bought this camera.

Lots of people laugh when I say I am from Mars, PA.  It is lovely town north of Pittsburgh that is surrounded in lush green vegitation and forests.  I can't wait to take autumn photos with the amazing colors of the season. Anyway, I hope to get back on the photo a day train again!  Here is the UFO of Mars, PA with the new camera resting on it.  I applied a black and white treatment using Nik Software's Silver Efex Pro

©Matt Graham 2010 - The 5D Mk II has landed!

My first HDR (High Dynamic Range) photo

I have been amazed by high dynamic range (HDR) photography for a while now.  I can't believe how it can make a tricky exposure shot into something that I actually saw in the field.  Back this summer, I woke up at 4:30 am to head out to Kananaskis to catch the sunrise hitting the mountain peaks.  I took some good shots including the shot "Elbow River Sunrise".  What stuck me with awe was the source of the great light over the foothills. 

My problem was trying to get the right exposure...too bright, too dark, TOO frustrating. 

But this was due to fact that I did not know my digital camera had a limited dynamic range.  What's that?  Well dynamic range is the luminance values from darkest to brightest. The human eye has a dynamic range of much greater than that of a digital camera, so using post processing is critical and I use Photomatix.  Also check out Trey Ratcliff who is a HDR master.  He is coming out with a book " A World in HDR" in Mid December. ©Matt Graham 2009 - Foothills Sunrise (HDR)