Rich Tone Monochrome Black and White

I ordered the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX20 a while back because I needed a camera that could stand up to dust and wind and all the good stuff that comes from working outdoors all the time. It was on sale, and photo quality was a secondary concern. I’ve been playing with it for a few months now though, and there are some settings that are intriguing. Not mind-blowing, not killer image settings, but settings that sound purely consumer oriented that I kind of like to use. One is called “rich tone monochrome”. Without reading about it in the manual (Heaven forbid!) I think it takes 3 images and mashes them together in one, in-camera HDR image, but in black and white. It’s an idiot mode for sure. It has the potential to make some interesting images though. I’ve been too busy with work lately to do much more than a quick post, but here’s some heavy equipment shot with the “rich tone monochrome” settings applied. Some of the shots show a little noise or grain, if you can call it that, but it’s not, to my eye, objectionable. All shots are straight out of the camera, only cropped for size. On a side note, the video feature of the camera is pretty darn good, and I find myself using it much more often than I anticipated.

Thanks for looking. _____________________________________________________________________

I’ve written and illustrated two children’s books that are now available in print and digital versions; Coyote Life, and The Cat’s Glasses. If you’ve got kids, check them out. If you enjoy them, please leave a review, tell your friends, etc. Thanks.

Don’t forget to check out some of the fine art prints for sale in my Etsy shop.

My wife Leah also makes and sells some pretty cool leather stuff like minimalist wallets and camera straps. Check out her Etsy store for some cool gear. 

Photography T Shirts and Stickers at Redbubble:

Ricoh GR High ISO Shots

I’m really beginning to enjoy the Ricoh GR high ISO capabilities. I’ve been using the new Ricoh GR now for a month or so, and it continues to impress me. It’s quick to focus and the high ISO images are much better than the Ricoh GRDIV. I always added grain to the tune of 40, 40, 40 in Adobe Camera Raw (amount, size and roughness) with the GRDIV, and I quit doing that around ISO 1600 in the IV. Now with the Ricoh GR I have to add some grain and grit to get the same feel even at 6400. The new sensor is pretty smooth.

Thrift shopping in Moab is always an adventure. It seems like there couldn’t be too much turnover in a small town, but there actually is. Lots of good stuff to find. The old Memory Lane store seems to be under new ownership; it’s called the “Three Sisters Thrift“, and while it’s still a little dark, it’s much cleaner and nicer than it was before. I even noticed a computer at the counter! A real step up from the old Memory Lane days.

These photos should demonstrate to a degree the Ricoh GR High ISO ability. All of these photos are taken with the new Ricoh GR shot in manual mode at ISO 6400. I’ve processed them the way I normally do, with a little curves adjustment and a little added grain. I think the new Ricoh really is a decent step up from the GRDIV, but it’s still essentially the same camera – just better. A real pleasure to shoot with. 

Thanks for looking. _____________________________________________________________________

I’ve written and illustrated two children’s books that are now available in print and digital versions; Coyote Life, and The Cat’s Glasses. If you’ve got kids, check them out. If you enjoy them, please leave a review, tell your friends, etc. Thanks.

Don’t forget to check out some of the fine art prints for sale in my Etsy shop.

My wife Leah also makes and sells some pretty cool leather stuff like minimalist wallets and camera straps. Check out her Etsy store for some cool gear. 

Photography T Shirts and Stickers at Redbubble:

Using the new Ricoh GR – more shots and thoughts

UPDATE – Sorry about the lack of images – Imgembed folded and stopped hosting images. I still love the Ricoh GR and it continues to be one of my main cameras. I use it almost daily. Check out tons of Ricoh GR and now GRII images on my Tumblr, my Flickr, and if you “like” my strayfoto Facebook page you’ll see I usually post a photo a day. Thanks -Quinn.

I’ve been shooting and playing around with the new Ricoh GR since I got it last Friday. I’ve noticed a few things about it – mainly the way it contrasts with the Ricoh GRD IV. The GRD IV didn’t focus slow and it rarely hunted other than in very low light. The new GR blows it away in practical use. It’s speedier to use all around. I wrote before I didn’t think it turned on much quicker, but in real-world, day-to-day use I was wrong. It’s noticeably quicker to turn on and much faster to turn off.

I recently drove slowly from Vernal to Moab and since I had the new GR with me I took some shots along the way. These are processed the way I normally would handle a file from the GRD IV – shot in raw, tweaked and converted in Adobe Camera Raw. The files are easy to work with.

In color, the settings in ACR require a little different treatment. While I felt I could select “auto white balance” 90% of the time with the DNG’s from the GRD IV, selecting the same and applying it to the GR files results in a much warmer color than a I was used to with the GRD IV files. I’ve found it’s better to select “as shot” or to manually adjust the temperature balance with the GR. The only difference in the two images below is the white balance selection in Camera Raw. I have no idea how it will display on myriad screens, but it’s dramatic. And actually, I’d choose some sort of manual setting that’s somewhere in the middle I suppose.

As you can see, the “auto” setting produces files that are noticeable warmer than “as shot”. It’s not really a big deal but it’s much different than what I was used to doing with the GRD IV.

If you’ve driven south along the 191 you’ve probably photographed this sign.

Thanks for looking. I’ll be on the river again this week, and hopefully I’ve have more river shots and some video of the pathetic low water rapids we’re plagued with this year.

Thanks for looking. _____________________________________________________________________

I’ve written and illustrated two children’s books that are now available in print and digital versions; Coyote Life, and The Cat’s Glasses. If you’ve got kids, check them out. If you enjoy them, please leave a review, tell your friends, etc. Thanks.

Don’t forget to check out some of the fine art prints for sale in my Etsy shop.

My wife Leah also makes and sells some pretty cool leather stuff like minimalist wallets and camera straps. Check out her Etsy store for some cool gear. 

Photography T Shirts and Stickers at Redbubble: