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Adobe Events Facebook Online Life Photo Manipulation Projects

Photoshop Fun with Skip

Happy Birthday Skip! (8/30/12)

I will not get into all the gory details about Skip (my Cuz), other than we share similar humor, and Facebook has helped to instigate some things.

The other day, Skip updated his profile to this…

Profile Picture - Skip (Original)
Profile Picture – Skip (Original)

and at that time, I commented that there should be a “Shark Fin” in the background.

Shortly there after, I was emailed the original cell-phone file above.

So the game is on now…

What could I do to make this image more interesting?

Normally, I stay away from Photoshop “trickery”, but every now and then, it is good to keep the skills sharp…

Shark Attack

So up to Google I go to find some images and ideas…

Skip with Shark 1
Skip with Shark 1

For my first try, I just added a shark to the background, trying to make sure the wakes and waves looked real.

Skip forwarded this image to his mother… Not sure if they are still talking…

Keeping with the Shark theme, and to make life a little easier, I created this…

Skip with Shark 2
Skip with Shark 2

Facebook comment:

Skip – “Yes, it was this exciting, and I may have pooped my pants, just a little!

and from here, borrowing from a classic internet image…

Skip with Shark 3
Skip with Shark 3

Reading the comments on the various pictures, with Skip narrating…

Skip – “What a day that was! Smooth piloting just saved his life in the nick of time!!”

Skip – “and my waverunner was 6′ in the air while I was holding the camera ever so smoothly! :)”

and so endeth “Shark Day”…

Where in the World is Skip?

Late in the afternoon, there was a change in the meme…

I received a file from Skip, which turned into this…

Skip - Where in the World? 01
Skip – Where in the World? 01

Since this is a new Adventure, and I’m sworn to secrecy…

I can not tell you where this might end…

Tee Hee!

History in the making with Skip

After some much-needed coffee, and catching up on the comments, it seems that Skip has now found a TARDIS…

[4-6 million years ago] – Skips First “Interns”

In the early days, Skip had some problems relating to some of the new Interns that had joined the Project…

Skip with Project Interns
Skip with Project Interns

[1495] – Not Skip’s Last Supper

Not Skip's Last Supper
Not Skip’s Last Supper

[1816] – Uncle Sam Skip

Uncle Sam Skip (circa 1816)
Uncle Sam Skip (circa 1816)

[1903 Dec 17] – First Flight – Wright brothers

First Flight - Wright bothers
First Flight – Wright bothers

[1912 – April 15] – RMS Titanic – sometime after 23:40 (ship’s time)

Skip - RMS Titanic (1912)
Skip – RMS Titanic (1912)

Judging by the various pictures that we have found, it seems pretty likely that Skip had tapped into something…

[1937 May 6 – 19:25] – Lakehurst Naval Air Station – German passenger airship LZ 129 Hindenburg

Skip with the Hindenburg (1937) [Dean H]
Skip with the Hindenburg (1937) [Dean H]
Then there were the World Wars…

[1943 February 4–11] – Yalta Conference

Skip at the Yalta Conference (1943)
Skip at the Yalta Conference (1943)

[1947 July 7] – The Skip-well Alien Autopsy

The Skipwell Alien Autopsy
The Skipwell Alien Autopsy

[1963 July 24] – Skip meets two Presidents!

Skip Meets Two Presidents!
Skip Meets Two Presidents!

[1963 August 28] – Washington, DC – “I Have a Dream” speech

Martin Luther King Jr. speech - "I have a Dream" (1963)
Martin Luther King Jr. speech – “I have a Dream” (1963)

Then there was that one day is Dallas…

[1963 November 22 12:30 CST] – Dealey Plaza, Dallas TX

Skip in  Dealey Plaza, Dallas (1963) [Dean H]
Skip in Dealey Plaza, Dallas (1963) [Dean H]
[1969 August 15-18] – Woodstock Music & Art Fair, Bethel, NY

Still to this day, Skip is heard to say to friends – “I don’t remember that!”

Skip at Woodstock (1969)
Skip at Woodstock (1969)

and at the same time, he is known to say – “Are you experienced?”

Skip with Jimi Hendrix (1969)
Skip with Jimi Hendrix (1969)

[1969 July 20] – Mare TranquillitatisSea of Tranquility“, MoonApollo 11

Skip with Apollo 11
Skip with Apollo 11

[1970 December 21] – The King and the Crook

The King and Crook
The King and Crook

[1987 September 25] – While on set for “The Princess Bride’s”, Skip was able to capture this classic scene

Skip on set with "The Princess Bride"
Skip on set with “The Princess Bride”

[2004 February 1] – Superbowl XXXVIII Oops!

Skip has an Oops!
Skip has an Oops!

[2006 October 11] – “In Saturn’s Shadow

Skip takes a look back
Skip takes a look back

[2012 May 17] – Is Skip the next Carl Bernstein? or Bob Woodward?
or the mysterious man in the shadows….

Skip at a private fundraiser (5/17/2012)
Skip at a private fundraiser (5/17/2012)

[2012 August 30] – Skip had heard via various sources, that there was a party in town… Even with a hurricane blowing into town, he was able to witness history in the making…

Skip At The Republican National Convention (08/30/2012)
Skip At The Republican National Convention (08/30/2012)

[2012 September 24] – So Skip… What is your call on this one…

Skip, what is your call on this one? (09/24/2012)
Skip, what is your call on this one? (09/24/2012)

[2012 October 14] – Once again Skip shows his desire to be at the edge of everything…

Skip - Space Jump
Skip – Space Jump

[2012 October 30] – As fate would have it, Skip was one of the last people able to fly into New York City, and Hurricane Sandy could be seen in the distance.

Skip & Hurricane Sandy
Skip & Hurricane Sandy

[2013 June 08] – 30th High School Reunion!

Check out some of the picture Skip took during his 30th High School Reunion weekend!

Carpe Diem!

[2013 July 21 02:02 AM] – Geraldo and Skip after Last-call

Geraldo and Skip after Last-call
Geraldo and Skip after Last-call

[2013 July] – Skip takes pictures of Weiner

Skip's Weiner pictures
Skip’s Weiner pictures

[2013 August 19] – Shark, Shark, Skip!

Shark, Shark, Skip!
Shark, Shark, Skip!

[2013 August 23] – The Royal Birth

Skip's New Cousin!
Skip’s New Cousin!

[2013 August 29] – An Early Birthday present

Happy 48th Skip!
Happy 48th Skip!

At one with Nature

During a recent trip, Skip was able to meetup with old friend, Bryan!

Skip with his friend Bryan
Skip with his friend Bryan

While checking on the ‘neighborhood’, Skip Middleton startled some of the local wildlife, some of whom where NOT happy with his kind of paparazzi…

Skip with Bigfoot
Skip with Bigfoot

Skip in Space

With the help of S.R. Hadden, of Hadden Industries, Skip was able to take a quick trip, and capture this Kodak moment (See Date-line entry above).

Not many people realized, Skip left the planet, for his real mission, which had begun many years before… He was eager to compare notes with Dr. David Bowman later on in the “day”.

Skip with Tycho Monolith Anomaly 1 (TMA-1)
Skip with Tycho Monolith Anomaly 1 (TMA-1)

In an email/text to his mother, Skip, said “You should meet HAL! It’s so cool to talk with a computer! Should be Home in a couple of days! L8ter! – Skip”

Skip with HAL9000
Skip with HAL9000

Snapshots of Life

[No GPS data available] – Skip on alert!

Skip on Alert!
Skip on Alert!

[Budapest] – During one of Skip’s many adventures, he ran into this timeless traveler.

Skip - Budapest
Skip – Budapest

[Justin Bieber] – Ever since Justin Bieber’s songs first appeared in 2008, Skip has been a big fan. Then there was the big night, where Justin invited Skip to one of his concerts, and gave him an “All Access Pass”! Needless to say, Skip was thrilled, and even managed to capture this image.

Skip & Justin Bieber
Skip & Justin Bieber

Skip in the Movies

Skip does not always talk about his screen, but when he does, it is sure to be epic!

[1953 – “War of the Worlds“] – Scouting

Can Skip Survive?
Can Skip Survive?

[1968 – “Planet of the Apes“] – Scouting

Planet of the Skip
Planet of the Skip

With one sci-fi movie under his belt, and a couple of years of makeup, Skip reappeared on in another classic…

[1975 – “Rocky ‘Skip’ Horror Picture Show” – Behind the Scenes]

Rocky Skip Horror (1975)
Rocky Skip Horror (1975)

[1975 – “Jaws“] – Skip on set

What is it with Skip and sharks?

Skip's Jaws
Skip’s Jaws

[1977 – “Star Wars IV: A New Hope” – TEST SCENES]

Skip Wars
Skip Wars

From that Space-Time, he travel to another dimension on the small screen for a quick role…

For his next role, Skip added some weight, and was forced to strip down for his next part…

[1999 – Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me – TEST SCENES]

Skip Bastard
Skip Bastard

In his latest role, he had to squeeze into a metal suit… Not sure how he did it, but pictures very lie!

[2013 May – Iron Man 3 – TEST SCENES]

Iron Skip
Iron Skip

[2366 – Locutus of Borg: aka Startfleet Captain Jean-Luc Picard – TEST SCENES]

Skip-cutus
Skip-cutus

Skip in Music

Not everyone has a record album, and even few have a Greatest Hits!

Skip's Greatest Hits
Skip’s Greatest Hits

Various projects

Some of Skip’s adventures have even been known to be glamorous!

Skip Klum Carson
Skip Klum Carson
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Categories
Barn Lancaster County Photo Journal Photography Tone Mapping

Abandoned Barn – Colerain

During my GPS Drive in South-Eastern Lancaster, I crossed over Octoraro Lake bridge on Rt. 472, and when I neared Colerain on Kirkwood Pike, I decided to turn around in one of the new developments being built.

My GPS indicated that I could easily do a loop and end back on Rt. 472, and as I did, I found this wonderful abandoned barn in the ravine of the development.

After parking and grabbing my camera, I just started to walk around the barn, looking to capture some of the aged beauty of this building.

Hinge and Window
Hinge and Window
Hinge and Weeds
Hinge and Weeds
Window Tetris
Window Tetris
Weathered Silo
Weathered Silo
Empty Basketball Frame
Empty Basketball Frame

Looking at the rest of the development, I am not sure how long this barn will remain…

– Andrew
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Categories
Blogging Camera Equipment Gadgets Photography Tech Talk Thoughts Utilities

Searching for the Remote

No, I am not searching for the TV Remote, this time…

But a for a new Remote for my photography work.

Back when I first purchased my Canon XTi in 2007, I also purchased both the
Remote Switch RS-60E3 and Wireless Remote Controller RC-1, and have used them various times over the years, but after seeing a couple of recent Posts on Facebook and Google+, the thoughts of looking for something new has begun.

In reading the Posts, I was also left with what kind? A dedicated stand-alone unit or connected to my iPod Touch, and did I want to be able to program the unit?

Dedicated Stand-alone

The first article that I read was on Stand-alone units, “6 top remote releases tested and rated” on photozz.com that got me thinking about upgrading my old Canon Remote Switch RS-60E3.

In reading the article, the Hähnel Giga T Pro II Remote Control is the top pick, and has a video on YouTube showing one the various features, and runs about $100 USD form various outlets.

Mobile connectivity

In my daily reading, I also spotted a Google+ post in which the author announced that they had just received their TriggerHappy, and was excited to try it out.

In following the thread, I was also made aware of the Triggertrap Mobile combination, so my researching began.

Making the Connection

In the case of the Hähnel Giga T Pro II, there are two parts, the wireless transmitter and the receiver that sits on the camera. The unit easily does remote triggering, interval, and long exposures, but does lack any direct HDR functionality.

With both TriggerHappy and Triggertrap, you need cable from the camera to the Control device (iOS (or Android)), and there is a significant range in price for cables.

Cables

To connect my iPod Touch, the cables from TriggerHappy (E3) would cost $49.95, while the Triggertrap’s would require two different cables, a Triggertrap Mobile Dongle ($9.99) and a CL-E3 Camera Cable ($9.99). The easy price winner is Triggertrap.

Software

The Trigger Happy Remote App on iTunes is Free, and is currently at v 1.0.2 (8/8/12), while the Triggertrap (v 1.2.0 (8/2/12)) is available in two versions: Free (limited to 3 trigger modes (Cable Release, vibration sensor and time-lapse) and the Full Premium version at $9.99 on iTunes. The winner here is Trigger Happy, how do you beat Free!

Interface

Both software applications seem to be able to perform Remote trigger, Bulb, time-lapse, plus HDR captures, which is something that I am very interested in.

When looking at the HDR controls, the TriggerHappy app seems to allow 1/3 step increments, which allows for finer control, while the Triggertrap seems limited to full stops, so the Edge here seems to be TriggerHappy.

The real separation between the two applications seems to be the various triggers that are available, and the edge in this case seems to be Triggertrap with 5 sensors (Sound, Shock/Vibration, Metal/Magnetic), 4 modes (HDR Time-lapse, Distance-lapse, Motion detection, Cable release and Star Trail), as well as Facial Recognition.

Conclusion

I like the wireless concept of the Hähnel Giga T Pro II, but the price and lack of HDR capabilities takes it out of consideration.

A big concern of mine, when looking at both these systems, is having to carry and connect my iPod Touch, which my not seem like allot, but when you are standing in 2-3 of water in a rushing stream/river, it could be an issue. I also have to wonder what to do during the winter, when the iPod might be exposed to colder temperatures.

Update – (8/10/12 @ 23:18) – In a response to my original Post, I have received info on the “RAP-B-121-UN7U The RAM Universal X-Grip Cell Phone Holder and Clamp” by TripodClamps.com, which looks like a very promising attachment for hold the iPod to my tripod. Thanks Marty Cohen!

The TriggerHappy does seem to support finer exposure controls, with the 1/3 stop settings, but basic HDR exposures should be able to compensate for that, if correctly bracketed.

With all that has been written above, it seems that at this point, the Triggertrap system would be the most versatile and cost efficient purchase, and will be purchased shortly after the posting of this blog entry.

As always, questions and comments are welcome and encouraged!

– Andrew
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