Cherry

Lighting info:

posted by Duncan Mcnairnay

Editing photos in Lightroom

The other day I packed two cameras, picked my favourite two lenses, jumped in the car, picked up my friend Natasha (who’s always up for shooting if I lend her a camera), and headed north on Highway 8. We wound up not where we were hoping to be (in Petersfield), but that’s another story… On the way to getting “lost”, we stopped on Highway 8 to get a few shots of some hay bales. I remember the first time I learned about focal length. The Photo 1 teacher was showing us examples of photos shot with wide angle lenses, compared to photos shot with longer lenses. I distinctly remember one shot – it was a hay bale, sitting in a field, with long, yellow textured grass all around it. The grass seemed to stretch out towards the bale, like if it was trying to claw at it. It was that one picture that was burned in my mind, and I’ll never forget that feeling of excitement over the magic of photography and its creative opportunities. Of course, right after that class, I ran out and took a million shots with my wide lens, trying to capture that magic.

As we were approaching this field yesterday, I remembered that hay bale shot and got inspired to get some good old hay bale shootin’ done, like a good Manitoban photographer. Once in the field, I wasn’t feeling it, but I still shot about 10 frames. It wasn’t until I got home and started making some virtual copies in Lightroom that I started having fun. Now, although your hay bale shoot may not avail to much (or you might feel uninspired), just throw Lightroom in the mix and have some fun. This is why I love Lightroom.

Original Shot:

My first Edit:

My alternate edit:



Posted by f/action member, Gabrielle Touchette.

THANK YOU!

Well, now that the dust (or snow in this case) has cleared, and the f/action launch party is now over... we at f/action would like to thank those of you who made the effort to come out and support our group! It's no fun navigating the first blizzard of the year, but some of you were real troupers... and we even had one guest drive all the way from Kenora for the show!

Thank you to all of you who came out. We can't say it enough. We really appreciate your presence and your support!

For those of you who are wondering - we did achieve our goals with the show! Despite the weather we still more than met our attendance goal and with a slight profit after expenses, we were able to fund our new website (http://www.fslashaction.com/) including set-up and hosting for one year, postage to send art to Calgary for the fundraising benefit for a Canadian journalist & photographer being held hostage in Somalia for a $1 million ransom, and finally the deposit for the rental of our next gallery exhibition in June 2010!

That's all we were hoping for - and so we thank you!

HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL AGAIN SOON!
f/action

PS. You made us feel this great...

f/action launch party photos

f/action has been an art collective for over a year now, and last Friday was finally our first official art exhibit as a group. Despite Winnipeg getting hit by the first blizzard of the year, we still had a decent turn out! (That’s Winnipeg for you… snow dumping in early October doesn’t stop anyone from going out!)

Along with artwork on the walls, we also had a silent art auction and projection art. Musical performances were also graciously donated by Oak Tree (Chad Kroeker) and That Damn Cash Band. We were absolutely delighted to see everyone who came out (and, at that, in steady streams throughout the night). Thank you to everyone who came out to support local art! We are planning for more art exhibits in the coming year, so stay tuned for details on that. If you missed Friday’s exhibit, our work will be exhibited at Photo Central’s gallery until the end of the month. (499 Notre Dame Ave., 2nd floor)

f/action is Ailsa Dyson, Dallas Ludwick, Duncan McNairnay and Gabrielle Touchette. Our group portfolio can be viewed at: www.fslashaction.com.

Here are a few photos from Friday night:

Posted by f/action member, Gabrielle Touchette.

launch party!

Tonight is a pretty big deal - we, as f/action, are finally launching our website and putting on a great show and art exhibit to celebrate! Art will be up on display (some for sale) and there will be a silent art auction of work donated by all 4 f/action members. Can't wait to see everyone there, and looking forward to many more art exhibits as a group!

information about the show can be found here

My First Poster!

I don't know why writing that reminded me of "My Pet Monster", but it did. Maybe because I was a kid in the 80's... or maybe because when you are supposed to design a poster from scratch and you're looking at the big white photoshop canvas... it really does feel like a monster of a job!

Well, having no (and I mean zero) design experience, this was a daunting task. How do you make something eye-catching, interesting and informative... from scratch?! We knew that we wanted to include one image per artist - and that was it. So this is what I came up with:

I would LOVE get get some feedback (good, bad, super bad...!) on this, my first poster. Anyone with any design experience - lay it on me... I can take it! Even if you don't have a hot clue about design, let me know what you think! This won't be the last f/action poster... so we might as well get some pointers now!

Posted by f/action member, Dallas Ludwick

Rock'n Roll Heart

Photographing live music is what I personally get the most enjoyment out of shooting. Living in Winnipeg has given me the opportunity to experience this genre to its fullest.

posted by Ailsa Dyson

3 Habits for Successful Phtography

Teaching at PrairieView I see a lot of beginning photographers. Like most enthusiasts they are looking for the secret to getting photos looking like the professionals they admire. After buying this expensive camera or that fancy doo-dad they are still unhappy with their shots and I have to break it to them that the secret is not in the gear. Unfortunately the secret to good photography is the long road of dedicated practice. However, nothing is more discouraging than beginning a long journey that you can't even see the end of so I suggest three habits to get into that are different enough from each other to break the monotony and keep you working towards your goal. Here they are:

1.) Shoot, shoot, shoot! - Yes, I know. You are doing this already, but it is #1 for a reason. This habit involves everything from fiddling with the bells and whistles on your camera to trudging out into the snow to dragging your heavy DSLR with you absolutely everywhere you go. If it means passing more frames through your camera, then do it. Most people think that being a photographer stops here, think again.

2.) Consult - Not only does it give you a break from the gear, asking other people what they think about your photographs gives you tips on your strengths and your weaknesses. Do you find yourself having to explain what the photo is about or do the subjects speak for themselves? Getting to know someone who's work you really admire can be a great resource for suggestions as well as a critical eye. Even getting together with other amateurs every once and a while for an informal critique helps. Photographers have an attachment to their pictures that has been known to cloud their judgment as to whether it is what they really wanted to capture. The more outsiders you bring in, the easier it is to see your photos from another point of view.

3.) Print - I personally think that a framed photo hanging on a wall for many to see is the happiest place for a photographic image to be. I'd go so far as to say that it is the purpose of photography. Good pictures are so beautiful, why store them away in your hard drive... set them free. And yes, you're right, there is the internet, but in terms of quality of presentation, screens can't hold a candle to paper print. Don't just print.... print BIG! Nothing has impact like a 11x14 or 16x20 hanging in a room. Printing big forces you to choose only the very best of the best of your shots, which encourages self critique. Everything is enhanced in a big print, including flaws, so you must limit your prints to those ones where you did everything right. Double the size, double the emotional impact. Any monkey can make a decent looking 4x6 to magnet to their fridge, but it takes an artist to present a piece as it should be, for all to enjoy.

posted by Duncan McNairnay

Solo Exhibition at Platform!

If you find yourself in the Exchange District over the next three weeks, please step into the lobby of the Artspace building and check out a mini solo exhibition that I have mounted there right now!

The Artspace building is located at 425-100 Arthur Street in Winnipeg. It is the huge character building that directly overlooks Old Market Square... it also has huge hollywood-style letters spelling A R T S P A C E on the roof. Basically, it's hard to miss if you're in the area.

The space where my series is showing is called the "P121" of Platform Centre For Photographic & Digital Arts. It is a wall where members of the gallery can show works that are finished, in progress, or anything that Platform deems is "wall-worthy"! I would like to thank Platform for giving me the opportunity to use the space - it is so great to see your work (finished or not) up in a public place! For more information on Platform, visit: http://www.platformgallery.org/

The work that I am showing is currently under the working title "Plastic Series" and is the initial phase of the project. This is an ongoing project during which I intend to carry through all four seasons and travel to more locations within Manitoba to complete. A few months ago, I blogged a few of the "winter plastic" images I created on a very cold day. With this exhibit, you can pretend it's spring again...

Posted by f/action member, Dallas Ludwick

Sunset Beach, Manitoba

f/action took a day trip to Grand & Sunset beaches on lake Winnipeg this summer to explore the lanscape and snap some nature shots.

posted by Ailsa Dyson

Perfect light? Almost!

I took this picture back in June... it's my new secret shooting nook at Kilcona Park. The lighting was perfect, the texture and lines were to die for, and my subjects were totally into it! Definitely one of my favourite shots from June.


Posted by f/action member, Gabrielle Touchette.

Masquerade

I was invited to document a performance entitled Masquerade by a local dance troupe. Here is a sample.

posted by f/action member Ailsa Dyson