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2022-12-07 08:00:00

Damn.

Backlogged Photos

2022-12-10 15:57:20

Time to make the opportunity to review my backlogged photos, and a new opportunity for me to make new photos.

Books I've Read In 2022

2022-12-28 20:26:44

Not a complete list, because I am notoriously lazy about logging these things. But overall, I did manage to surpass my goal of 22 books in 2022.

Next year I want to integrate more non-fiction titles which is a challenge for me. I read books to escape reality as opposed to reading about reality.

Also, I’ve updated the Library page to include 2023 books to be read and a rating system.

Changes

2022-12-31 09:17:56

A quick list of things I want to accomplish for the new year; or more accurately, “Changes I need to see in 2023.”

• Learn Spanish
• More meditation & yoga
• Learn Adobe Bridge, PS and LR more
• Quit smoking
• No alcohol
• No Soda
• Lower BP

Learn Spanish with the Duolingo app in small increments everyday. Attempt to retain it by using it in the real world as opposed to just going through the lessons and forgetting it. I know people who have done this and with good results. Success in this will be able to have conversational Spanish by the end of 2023. Bonus: the Italian & Spanish languages are similar so the Italian module is downloaded as well. Two languages in one year? Ambitious!

Meditation and yoga almost daily. I have the software to do so such as Apple Fitness + and Music meditation. Guided podcasts, etc. I just grabbed a new padded floor mat to help with this. Success here will be lower BP, increased flexibility, calmer mind, more patience.

Learning Adobe products should be easy. I have the fundamentals down because I’ve been using it for years. But I want a deep dive. This will come in handy for my photo archive organization. The end result will be an organized archive system where I can easily find and use any one photo on demand.

After the NYE party on Saturday, the pipe and tobacco will be stored away in a tote. I am over smoking and the removal should help. I need to purchase some gum or mints to help with those cravings. This will help me breathe easier, lower my BP and overall health.

Stopping alcohol consumption is not difficult for me, even when I am at a bar I can refrain. I should see less weight and overall health as a result.

Lowering my BP should be my number one priority this year. Less, salt. Less sugar. Less eating out. Increase my cardio with more walking, yoga. More supplements and eventually the diuretic prescription again. All of this should help me lower my weight and eventually those readings will come down.

When I fall (and I will fall), get back up, learn from my mistakes, and continue pushing forward because failure is a byproduct of growth. It’s all part of the process. If I plan on recycling the exact resolution I’ve made every year since 2018, perhaps it’s time to try something different. Now that I have the right tools, making 2023 the year I follow through on my New Year’s resolution is entirely up to me.

IPhonetography Tips

2022-12-27 00:28:00

There are phases I go back and forth with in my photography such as mobile-only for awhile or a professional camera. This article will discuss my continuing fascination with iPhoneography and tips on ho to make it better.Clean the lens on your iPhoneOur iPhones get stuffed inside pockets, purses, backpacks, etc. You’ve seen how dirty your screen can get, now go show your camera lens some love. A clean lens will give you sharper, higher-contrast images. Make it a habit to regularly clean your iPhone camera lenses.CompositionKeep your compositions simple or minimal. Duh.Shoot from various anglesiPhones are compact compared to a heavy DSLR or mirrorless camera. This makes it far more effective when shooting high, low or at various angles. Put your iPhone on a tripod mount and explore all those options too.Get a new camera (app)The stock iPhone camera app is brilliantly intuitive, but you can get more control with other dedicated camera apps such as Halide or Camera+. These allow you to adjust settings manually, shutter speed, ISO etc. This seems like an appropriate time to mention editing apps.Post-Process FunThere are plenty of amazing iPhone editing apps but only a few are really worth your time as a serious photographer.Adobe Lightroom
Hipstamatic
Snapseed
VSCO
Everything else are just fad apps.With the above apps, you can adjust image exposure, crop to improve the composition, correct image white balance, add beautiful color effects, improve sharpness, and so much more. Many of these apps also offer advanced features, such as vignetting, noise reduction, and masking. If you really want to have fun with editing images, there are specialist applications that’ll remove image backgrounds, objects, and apps that’ll stitch layers images together.I enjoy editing images. It’s a fun way to enhance your photos, and once you’re done with the basic enhancements, you can have fun adding creative effects.Shoot It Until You Get ItDigital photography has an advantage over film in that you can afford to shoot a lot. You can also make a lot of mistakes that can be forgiven quickly. Pick out your best images later. Don’t delete any photos while you are out shooting. Wait until you are done to properly review.Zoom with your feetAll cameras have two types of zoom options: optical zoom and digital zoom. An optical zoom is created by the camera’s lens. A digital zoom is made by cropping an image. The iPhone deletes pixels to create a zoom effect. Digital zoom destroys the quality of your images.Don’t sacrifice image quality, just zoom with your feet. Move closer to your subject if possible. If it isn’t possible, then shoot your image and crop later. The difference in quality is improved and you’ll be happier.Hold your phone like a cameraI always shoot in landscape mode (phone is horizontal instead of vertical.) I also almost always shoot with two hands on the iPhone for control and stability.

Photo Curation

2022-12-10 14:23:19

Not photo “editing”, instead, photo culling and photo curation.

The art of choosing the photos you care for, the art of image selection. If I shot a thousand photos, which few photos will I select that I want to hold on to?

Now that I have all my images organized in the Archives on one external hard drive, it is time to cull and curate. Keep the keepers and remove the rest.

Photographic Progress

2022-12-03 00:26:00

The frustration and anxiety caused by obsessing over what makes a “good” photograph is what prevents the majority of we photographers from evolving creatively.I am learning that the quicker I can focus on a subject matter or a theme, the quicker I can progress.