U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team (B/W)

This is my third of four posts of photographs taken at the retirement ceremony for Captain David Newton.  This post features a set of black and white photographs of the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.

The final post will feature more of the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team in color.  The real challenge of these photographs was the lighting.  The shots were taken outdoors in full midday sun – the least pleasing time of day with respect to lighting.  On the other hand, the bright lighting allowed me to use a high shutter speed and stop the motion of flying and twirling rifles.

Another photographic point to make about these shots is preparation.  Although I am happy with the photography, I was not adequately prepared.  These shots were taken with my 70-200 f 2.8L which performed well – as this wonderful lens always does.  However, I would have preferred to get closer and use a wider lens such as the 24-105 f4.0L to get more interesting angles and perspectives.  Regrettably, I was distracted (probably at the bar already) and the activity started before I was able to think about the performance and change lenses.  The result was a series of shots “on plane” with no opportunity to explore angled perspectives in the vertical plane.  The lesson to take away is one of understanding the shots you want to get, and being prepared before the activity begins.

A common theme that runs through this photography and the composition is the use of repeating patterns.  For more of my perspective and examples of using repeating patterns to add interest to photography, see my post “Repeating Patterns.”


Have fun and go make some great photography.
Craig

U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard

In my last post I presented some event photography from the retirement ceremony of a good friend (Event Photography – Retirement of Captain David Newton) and wrote a bit about my experiences with event photography.  In that post I promised to post some additional photos of the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.

This post is the first of three sets of photographs I will post featuring the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.  This set of photographs features color shots of the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard.  As regular readers of the Craig Corl Photography blog will recall, I generally don’t like to mix black and white photography with color photography although I occasionally break this rule.  The pending posts will feature some of the black and white photography.

The photograph above is another example of exposing for the highlights of the subject, allowing the bright background to blow out, increasing contrast and sharpening and also increasing the exposure to allow the background to blow out even further.  I discussed this process in greater detail in the last blog post - Event Photography – Retirement of Captain David Newton.  I intend on exploring this process further.  The question that comes to mind is “how far can I take this and still get good photographs?”



Stand by for more of the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.
Have fun and go make some great photography!
Craig

Event Photography – Retirement of Captain David Newton

Recently a good friend of mine, Captain David Newton, retired from the US Coast Guard after 25 years of service.  As the date of his retirement approached, Dave asked if I would take some photographs of the event.  For the loyal readers of this blog it should be clear that “event photography” is not something I normally do.  On the other hand, I thought it would be great fun to marry my artistic approach to Dave’s ceremony.

In addition to the challenge of trying something new while helping a good friend, this event was a real treat because it featured a number of interesting subjects including the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard, and the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.

I imagine event photography such as this is similar to the process and challenges faced by wedding photographers – a prominent genre of event photography.  While I have never photographed a wedding, I experienced some of the challenges that I am sure wedding photographers encounter on a regular basis.

Some of the challenges include:

1. Being in the right place at the right time.
2. Having the right lens on the camera while being in the right place at the right time.
3. Changing lenses in the midst of activity…risking missing that perfect moment.
4. Adjusting and adapting to a variety of light conditions.
5. Aunt Irma moving into the frame at the wrong time.
6. Fully prepping your equipment (batteries, memory cards, etc.).
7. And on, and on.

In the end, I had a great time shooting Dave’s retirement.  It was a fun challenge and certainly a target rich environment.

I have a number of additional photos featuring the U.S. Coast Guard Honor Guard and the U.S. Coast Guard Silent Drill Team.  I promise to post more images of these fine young men and women.

A photographic note regarding the first and last photographs.  The ceremony proper occurred inside.  The official party for the ceremony was back dropped by a set of windows with bright midday light shining into a dimly lit room.  This was further complicated by the white uniforms.  At first, I was horrified…these are difficult conditions to shoot.  Rather than fight the environment, I decided to take advantage of the conditions.  I exposed for the highlights in the uniforms and let the background blow-out.  I took this a step further in post processing by increasing the contrast dramatically while also increasing the exposure.  The result is this somewhat surrealist interpretation of the event.
Congratulations to Captain David Newton, USCG (Retired) and best of luck with your next adventure!
Have fun and go make some great photography!
Craig

Car Show at Saint Mary’s County Crab Festival (Part II)

As promised, here is my second installment of car photographs from the Saint Mary’s County Crab Festival.

The principal difference between these photographs and the first batch I posted (Car Show at Saint Mary’s Count Crab Festival) is that these are all black and white in contrast to the color photos in the prior post.

I would have combined the posts, but presenting the color photographs in one group, and the color in another works much better.

I enjoyed this opportunity to try something new with my photography.  I hope you enjoyed the final product as much as I enjoyed the shooting!


Have fun, and go make some great photography.
Craig

Car show at Saint Mary’s County Crab Festival

Last weekend was the Saint Mary’s County Crab Festival held at the Saint Mary’s County Fairground.  I love events like these – in addition to some wonderful crab cakes, fresh crabs, and barbeque, there were a lot of great photo opportunities.

For this post and one soon to follow, I will feature some shots of the car show that was part of the Crab Festival.  Shooting the cars was a fun challenge for me.  I have not done much of this type photography, so I was challenged to do something unique.

In the next post featuring more of these very nice hot rods, I will show a set of black and white photographs.
Have fun and go make some great photography.
Craig

More of the “Unfamiliar Abu Dhabi”

Over the last year or so, I have posted several entries on the theme of “Unfamiliar Abu Dhabi.”  The objective of this project is to capture those views of life in Abu Dhabi you might not otherwise see in the tourism and investment marketing material.  While the beautiful buildings, desert, and more traditional shots you would normally find can be striking, daily life in Abu Dhabi is equally interesting to me.  Here are a few photographs adding to the collection of the Unfamiliar Abu Dhabi.

To see other posts on this subject see:
The Unfamiliar Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi Dhows
Mosques in the Unfamiliar Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi Side Streets at Night


Have fun and go make some great photography!
Craig