Change in Twitter Name

As regular readers of this blog know, I began the Manual DSLR Project in 2010 to chronicle my journey of learning to use my Nikon D300 in manual mode. I also started a Twitter account using the name, manualdslr, through which I shared my post and other photos.

It is now mid-2013 and manualdslr does not clearly describe all that I do. Therefore, after receiving advice from Joe and Trevor at Digital Photography Cafe, I have changed my Twitter, Instagram, and tadaa name to...(drum roll please)...MikeKennamer. Oh well, that wasn't really all that exciting, was it?

My hope is that this new user name will help me to continue to connect with photographers, but also with writers and others that I know through my business, Kennamer Media Group, Inc.

Interested in hearing more about my decision to change user name? Are you considering a similar change? Then check out the Digital Photography Cafe show that addresses my question.

The End is Near!

Okay, don't panic. Not that end, but...

The first phase of the Manual DSLR Project will end in less than a week. I started this project 360 days ago with the goal of learning how to use my Nikon D300 in manual mode. I had heard others talk about shooting in manual but it seemed like a mystery to me. Wow! What a ride it has been.

I have learned so much in the past year but know that there is so much left to learn. Look for a reveal of the next phase of the Manual DSLR Project in the next few days.

Best...Mike

Happy Valentine's Day! Thinking Spring!

Just a quick post today to wish you all a happy Valentine's day and to share springtime thoughts. What a gorgeous day it was today! I am seriously getting Spring fever. To share that Spring fever with you I dug back into the archives to find a photo of a tulip tree in our backyard, taken in March 2009.

This was well before I started the Manual DSLR Project, so I cannot explain why I shot this as I did. It's almost embarrassing. What was I thinking?

Anyway, this was shot at ISO 1600, f18, 1/160 sec. It was shot with a 300mm macro lens. Oh my!

How would I have approached this differently today? It was shot in the afternoon so I might use ISO 320 or 400 and maybe open up the aperture a bit (probably to f 6.3 on that lens) and use an appropriate shutter speed based on those settings. Oh well. That's why I started this journey almost  a year ago, so I could learn and be better today than I was then.

I did apply a develop preset in Lightroom 3 called PH Soft and Dreamy with a goal of softening it a little.

So happy Valentine's Day to you. All the best...Mike

My Favorite Photos of 2010 - Number 1 - My Dad

Here it is! I have been posting my ten favorite photos of 2010 and we've come to my favorite. Although I took some good trips this year and got some cool photos, my favorite is little more than a snapshot. It was unplanned with all natural lighting and I just happened to have my camera in my hand.

I had spent the day at my parents' house helping to replace a roof on a workshop that was damaged in a storm. At the end of the day I was at my truck preparing to leave when I noticed one of their kittens playing on a tree that had been downed in the same storm. The tree had been cut but not yet removed from their front yard. As I took that photo I noticed that my dad had walked up to the edge of the carport where the evening sun washed across his face, though he was still very much in the shadows. He was watching the kitten so I turned the lens from the kitten to him. Here is the result.

This photo shows a kind, gentle, hard-working man who dropped out of high school to fight in World War II then returned to complete high school after the war. He retired several years ago but remains very active. At age 84 he and my mom raise cattle, grow a gigantic garden that benefits half of the community and remain very active. You might say that I am prejudiced in selecting this as my favorite of the year. And you would be correct.

I hope you enjoy! MK

My Favorite Photos of 2010 - Number 4 - North Head Lighthouse

I am continuing to count down my favorite images of 2010. This is one from our October trip to coastal Oregon and Washington.

Hope you enjoy.

My Favorite Photos of 2010 - Number 5 - Rock City Barn

This is a continuation of my countdown of my favorite images of 2010. This one was taken at Sequoyah Caverns near Valley Head, Alabama. For many years Rock City has advertised on barns across the Southeast countryside. This one is in better shape than most.

I was at a church picnic when I took a walk and took a pic of this one.

Enjoy! MK

Happy New Year!

It's official! 2011 is here. Wow, I'm feeling old. This time of year is ripe for football, parades, and resolutions. While I am not making a resolution I am beginning to think about what I'll do when the Manual DSLR Project concludes. I didn't start until April, so I still have a few months left. I'm having so much fun that I plan to continue along a similar vein.

Here are some of my ideas for next year's self-improvement project:

• Manual operation of my flash (Nikon SB-600). I could really use this as my knowledge of flash operation is limited. I might even find a reason to get a second flash. :-)
• Working through each project outlined in David Ziser's book, Captured by the Light, something along the lines of Julie and Julia, only I can't have dinner parties and eat David's recipes. The tough part of this one is the models. Anyone have a bride and groom manikin you'd like to donate? I don't think my kids or my cats would tolerate being dressed as a bride and groom. I haven't bought the book yet, but have seen it in the stores and it looks like great fun to work through.
• Really digging into subtractive lighting techniques. When I was a kid I remember riding by Leon Kennamer's studio oblivious to the genius who worked inside. Frankly, I couldn't afford an SLR so my photography was limited to a Kodak 110 and about a dozen cartridges of film per year, so I wasn't thinking much about photography at that time. (In case you wonder, Leon was not a close relative, but all the Kennamers in our area were related, so I can claim him as a relative.)
• A 365 project with specific assignments for different days of the week. For instance, Mondays might be "Outdoor Mondays". Tuesdays might be "Alphabet Tuesday" where I would rotate through the alphabet and photograph something that starts with "A" the first week, "B" the second week...

This is a shot from our October trip to Portland, OR.

If you have other ideas I'd love to hear them. I'm still thinking. Thankfully I have until April to decide.

Though I said I wasn't going to make a resolution I suppose I should resolve to print my photos more often and to back up my images religiously. I use an awesome photo processor called Meridian Pro. They always do a great job, have an excellent selection, and I have received terrific customer service. I am about to try a new canvas print service (Zaza Gallery).  The prices look good. I'll let you know more about the quality after I receive my first order.

So, Happy New Year! I look forward to interacting with you on this blog and through Twitter throughout the next year. I might even break down and do a Facebook page. Or not!

All the best...Mike

One Step Further: Custom White Balance

My last post was about setting white balance manually. Tonight we take it one step further by discovery the wonders of custom white balance. Okay, "wonders" might be a bit much, but custom white balance on the D300 is pretty cool and easy.

The process is quite easy. But let's first talk about why you would use custom white balance.

If you are in a situation where you want your white balance to be correct in camera and you will be shooting in the same location with the same lighting situation, you may want to use custom white balance. I wouldn't use this feature for shooting an event where the lighting would change from one scene to the next. However, if I were doing a product shoot in a studio where the lighting would be the same, this might be an excellent option.

This photo has nothing to do with the post, but since this is a photo blog...

Now the process. First you hold down the WB button and turn the wheel to PRE. Then hold the WB balance down until PRE starts to flash. Then take a shot of your scene. If the lighting is adequate and the WB setting worked, you will see Gd at the bottom of your viewfinder and Good spelled out on your LCD display. Your custom white balance is now set and ready to go. What this means is that the white balance is set from a white or gray object in the original scene.

You can actually save more than one custom white balance setting and select them just as you would any preset.

Hope this helps. Have a safe and happy New Year's eve!

Forming Habits & Thinking Before You Click

Sixty-eight days into this project and time to reflect on what I've learned so far. The first thing I've learned, I suppose, is that operating a camera in manual mode is NOT as mysterious or as difficult as I had led myself to believe before I started this project. Wow! You shoot in manual mode!!! It really seemed that elusive to me.

It is really not as difficult as I had imagined, though it does require a couple of things--both of which are reflected in the title of this post: forming habits and thinking before you click. Let's look at each individually.

Forming habits - How do we form habits (good or bad)? We practice. Good habits are formed while practicing good techniques. Bad habits, as you might guess, are formed while practicing bad techniques.  A former music teacher taught me that "Practice does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect".

Another old adage is true: "The more I practice the better I get." Photography is something that is best learned by doing. If you have been doing this all your life and have all the principles down then it is likely that you can pick up the camera after six months of not taking any photos and nail the exposure. However, if you are like me--just learning--then you need to be shooting every day or two to develop that technique that will make you consistently good. That seems to be the greatest value of this project. It makes me remember to practice and to practice well. Another value of this project is to make me think before I click.

Thinking Before You Click - This one is also important. I have learned that I am a better photographer when I think before I start activating the shutter release button. What do I think about?

1. Is the camera ready? Check the ISO, white balance, and other settings to assure that I don't shoot an outdoor shot in full sun using the same settings used when I shot that indoor party last week. Think about the settings. 
2. Think about composition. I was listening to a podcast last week (forgive me as I do not remember which one) when I heard this great piece of advice: As you start to take a shot, as yourself, "What is my subject?". "Just over there" is not a satisfactory answer. For instance, my subject for the photo above was the barn and the background was the mountains. (ISO 200, F8, 1/640) Sometimes, the subject is very prominent while the background is less obvious. A macro or portrait is an example of when you might see a clear subject with the background being less important. Here is a shot of my son, Lane, in the foreground with a blurred stream in the background. (ISO 160, F8, 1/15, ND2 filter) The goal here was a tack sharp subject (Lane) and a nice background that is somewhat out of focus. Since I want the viewer to focus on Lane, I purposefully put the stream slightly out of focus.
3. Think about what you are going to do with the photo. In the film days, we would take 24-36 shots of what we hoped would be good and would send off the film to have 4 x 6 prints made. Only then would be know if we got a great shot. Today, we know very quickly if we have a winner, but sometimes we don't do anything with them. I know people who actually leave all their photos on the memory card in their camera. What a waste! Photos are meant to be enjoyed, and it's hard to enjoy them while they are sitting on a memory card in the camera. So when you take that shot, you might imagine what you'll do with the print. For instance, I would love to have the Little River shot shown on an earlier posting printed on aluminum. (Still trying to decide which vendor). I have taken some shots that I knew would make a good note card or greeting card. By having an idea of the use of the photo, it becomes easier to know how to compose the shot. 

Well, that's all for this post. I'm off to New York City on Friday, so expect to see some NYC shots soon. Maybe I'll get another chance to post before I leave Thursday night. Until then...MK

Little River in the Great Smoky Mountains in HDR

Spending the weekend with extended family in the Great Smoky Mountains. This was taken using a Nikon D300 with a 24-70 kit lens equipped with a ND2 neutral density filter. (This is the only lens that my ND filter will fit). Shot at ISO 160, F11, 1/5 sec. on a tripod. Bracketed at one and two steps above and one and two steps below. Processed with Photomatix Pro.

This is the first time I've used a neutral density filter to try to "slow down" the action of the water. Yesterday was overcast (as it is much of the time in the Smokies), so light and lens flare was not much of an issue.

Headed home tonight to spend Memorial Day at home. More from the Smokies later. Hard to believe it's less than 2 weeks til our NYC trip.

Adios.