Sean Duggan Blog

Autumn Road

Autumn Road
0.4 seconds at f/8
(click in the image for a larger version)

This was taken last Fall in upstate New York (Columbia County) while driving down a sleepy single lane country road. I took a series of shots on this road using slow shutter speeds, but this turned out the best.

For the safety-conscious in the audience, a few pertinent points:

1.) No other cars were on the road;

2.) I was not driving as fast as the blur in the photo makes it seem (my speed was almost pokey);

3.) I was perfectly safe and in control of the  vehicle at all times (I didn't even look through the viewfinder...just held the camera up and took the shot).

Dock in the Rain

Dock in the Rain
Kressbronn, Germany / August 2005
(click in the image for a larger version)

From last summer's 5-week trip to Germany. We stayed in the south on the Lake of Constance for two weeks and for much of that time the weather was cold, wet and miserable, but it did make for some interesting photographs! I don't think this image would be nearly as interesting (to me, anyway) had it been taken on a bright blue sky sunny day. With regards to the topic I wrote about two posts ago, this was taken while it was raining, an umbrella braced between the side of my head and shoulder keeping the camera dry.

The Porthole Fountain

Porthole Fountain
Portland, Maine
(click in the image for a larger version)

This was taken on the old Customs House Wharf in Portland, Maine last October during my jaunt through New England. Here's another view looking in through the windows.

Leaf on Fiberglass

Leaf on Fiberglass
Jan 14, 2006 (Click in the image for a larger version)

This is a post about not photographing.
Sometimes, because of the weather or other conditions, the act of going out with your camera may seem to be not worth the effort.

In the online digital photography class that I teach at the Academy of Art University, this is often a comment from some students when handing in their image assignments. Usually it is weather or light related and, due to the season, this is most often occurs in the fall or winter: "The weather here has been rainy all week so I couldn't take a good photo", or, "It gets dark so early now that I could find anything to take a picture of".

While it is natural for those new to photography to think that you need bright, perfect light and sunny weather to make a photograph, those who have been at it a while know that nothing could be further from the truth. Of course, there is always the personal comfort level to take into consideration; in some weather you may feel that it is just too cold or too wet to be out with your camera (especially if that camera cost you a considerable amount of money). But regardless of personal comfort, if you take the proper precautions to keep yourself warm and dry and ensure that the camera is well protected from a deluge, there are many interesting photographs to be made in inclement weather. As a creative assignment to keep my eye fresh, I often force myself to go out in weather or lighting conditions that I would normally consider to be less than ideal, just to see what I can make out of it.

In the case of today's image, this was taken in the rain, late on a very cold afternoon in the fading light of the approaching dusk. The view is looking up through the fiberglass panels that cover my back deck. I was actually sitting inside when I happened to glance out through the dining room window and saw an incredible combination of shapes and colors created by the leaves and the blue shadows from the peak of the house roof. Clearly a call to action to dress warmly, grab the camera and go outside!

So, if you're new to photography and seeing the world through the viewfinder, or if even it you are quite comfortable looking through a camera, don't automatically write the day off just because the weather is wet, or the illumination is not the "sweet light". Explore a little and see what you can find!

Digital Darkroom Notes:

This is a RAW exposure that was processed twice in Adobe Camera Raw in Photoshop CS2. The first processing was for the overall image. The second one was to bring out some detail and color in the leaf. A mask was generated for the leaf from one of the existing color channels and the two versions of the image were combined using this mask as well as opacity controls.

For those who think that such a combination is "cheating", let me add that, as I viewed the scene I could see much more color and detail in the leaf than the camera could capture in a single exposure (without the highlights blowing out to white). What I have done is in this case is reproduce an image that is as close as possible to how it appeared to me when I looked up through the fiberglass panel.

A final layer was created for some minor retouching of a few distracting items that were also on the roof.

For those interested in digital photography and digital darkroom techniques, I will be teaching several workshops this year at locations around the country, including the San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Fe and the coast of Maine. See the workshops page of my web site for scheduling information (NOTE: At this time there are several workshops pending that have not yet been added to that schedule).

Two Witches

Two Witches
Oct 31, 2005 [Holga]
(click in the image for a larger version)

From last Halloween. My wife and daughter were a great witchy duo.

Ship Restaurant

Ship Restaurant, Thomaston, Maine
Oct. 3, 2005
(click in the image for a larger version)

A closed-up roadside restaurant in coastal Maine. See the previous post for another image from this location. I also took some Holga and pinhole shots there but have not had the chance to scan those negs yet.

So many negs, so little time...

Voyage Into a New Year

Ship Weathervane, Thomaston, Maine
Oct. 3, 2005
(click in the image for a larger version)

I feel this is fitting for the first post of the new year since a weathervane conjures up ideas of determining how the wind is blowing, finding the right direction and setting a course for the journey ahead. The ship is symbolic of a voyage into the unknown (and what greater unknown than the future), while the house represents the safe harbor of home and family.

This was taken last fall during my sojourn through New England; found in a group of oversized nautical lawn totems at a closed-up roadside restaurant. There was also a giant lobster trap and wooden fish skeleton. The main restaurant building had the faux stern section of an old sailing ship protruding from one side (that will be tomorrow's post).