January, 2013 - David Mathre Photography

Six-Years Ago (24-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Vacation. Day 4: Hurtigruten Coastal Voyage Traveling North.

In addition to transporting passengers, the Hurtigruten ships are working ships that carry freight, mail, automobiles, and fresh food between several ports along the Norwegian coast. Many of these stops occur during the night, and only last for short (15 minutes to 1 hour) periods of time. The schedule for the first full day of the northbound voyage stops at the following ports: Florø (04:30-04:45); Maløy (06:45-07:30); Torvik (10:20-10:45); Ålesund (12:00-15:00); Molde (17:30-18:30); Kristandsund (22:00-23:00). We spent the early afternoon walking around Ålesund including going to the restaurant Fjellstua situated on top of the town mountain Aksla. Although the restaurant was closed, it has the best view in Ålesund. I was able to take several images which were then combined into a wide panoramas of the town. We got a bit confused as to where the ship was docked, but did ultimately get back before it departed.

Inflatable Lifeboat Containers on the Hurtigruten M/V Kong Harald while docked at Maløy. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 800, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/20 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Inflatable Lifeboat Containers on the Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald while docked at Maløy. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 800, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/20 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Lighthouse outside Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 28-70 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 200, 70 mm, f/6.7, 1/180 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Lighthouse outside Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 28-70 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 200, 70 mm, f/6.7, 1/180 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Heron Fishing at Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Heron Fishing at Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Lighthouse while leaving Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8.5, 1/250 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Lighthouse while leaving Torvik. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8.5, 1/250 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Max Mammut while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 230 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Max Mammut while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 230 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Lighthouse while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/9.5, 1/350 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Lighthouse while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/9.5, 1/350 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Approaching Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 200, 12 mm, f/9.5, 1/350 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Approaching Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 200, 12 mm, f/9.5, 1/350 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Lighthouse and Ship while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 122 mm, f/10, 1/400 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Lighthouse and Ship while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 122 mm, f/10, 1/400 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Lighthouse while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Lighthouse while Traveling to Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec). (David J. Mathre)

M/V Kong Harald Docked at Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/13, 1/640 sec). (David J. Mathre) — MS Kong Harald Docked at Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/13, 1/640 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Ålesund Winter Panorama. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 400, 24 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). Composite of 3 images combined with Kolor AutoPano Giga Pro. (David J Mathre) — Ålesund Winter Panorama. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 400, 24 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). Composite of 3 images combined with Kolor AutoPano Giga Pro. (David J Mathre)

Ålesund Winter Panorama. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 400, 24 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). Composite of 6 images combined with Kolor AutoPano Giga Pro. (David J Mathre) — Ålesund Winter Panorama. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 400, 24 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). Composite of 6 images combined with Kolor AutoPano Giga Pro. (David J Mathre)

Ålesund Harbor in Winter. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 100, 12 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Ålesund Harbor in Winter. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 100, 12 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Wall Art in Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 195 mm, f/5.3, 1/400 sec). (David J. Mathre) — Wall Art in Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 195 mm, f/5.3, 1/400 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Dusk After Leaving Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 35 mm f/2 lens (ISO 400, 35 mm, f/2, 1/800 sec). Raw Image Processed with Capture One 7 Pro. (David J. Mathre) — Dusk After Leaving Ålesund. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 35 mm f/2 lens (ISO 400, 35 mm, f/2, 1/800 sec). Raw Image Processed with Capture One 7 Pro. (David J. Mathre)

As I mentioned at the beginning of this series of posts, I am getting ready to revisit Norway. At the time of the 2007 trip I only had a DSLR for about 6 months. There were many things about it I didn’t know – I was very early in the learning curve. By reviewing and analyzing the old images, I learn from my mistakes. When I look at the images that I took during that trip I cringe knowing that I could have done a better job – composition, exposure, focus, etc. I typically include camera settings with the description to help when I analyze the images. Since then cameras have improved significantly. Likewise the software used to process the images has improved. The new software lets me fix or improve the older images, and in some cases I have reprocessed the images. One of my goals for this upcoming trip is to take fewer, but better images. Comments and criticisms about these images are welcomed.

Six-Years Ago (23-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Vacation. Day 3: Bergen and Embarkation on the Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald.

When we woke in Bergen, the sky was clear and there was new snow on the ground. The locals said that it had been raining for the last 50 days. I think many took the day off to enjoy the sun and snow. The Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald would not be departing until later that night, so we had the day to visit Bergen. As part of our travel package, we had a one day Bergen Card for transportation and various attractions. After spending some time outside around the Bergen harbor and Bergen Fish Market, we took the Fløibarnen Funicular to the top of Mount Fløyen. We also visited the art museum to see some of Edvard Munch’s paintings. Finally, as it started to get dark we made our way to the Hurtigruten terminal. I’ve included a fisheye view of my cabin and the stateroom at the front of the ship. As we learned later in the voyage, rooms near the front (or rear) of the ship move the most in heavy seas. Since then I always try to get a cabin near the middle of a ship for any voyage that may experience heavy seas.

Early Morning Fish Market in Bergen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 800, 10.5 mm, f/3.5, 1/50 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Early Morning Fish Market in Bergen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 800, 10.5 mm, f/3.5, 1/50 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Early Morning Bergen Harbor. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 800, 12 mm, f/4, 1/50 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Early Morning Bergen Harbor. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 800, 12 mm, f/4, 1/50 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter View of Bergen from the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 200, 10.5 mm, f/8, 1/250 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Winter View of Bergen from the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 200, 10.5 mm, f/8, 1/250 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter View of Bergen from the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 200, 10.5 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Winter View of Bergen from the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 200, 10.5 mm, f/8.5, 1/320 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter Troll at the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 35 mm f/2D fisheye lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/2, 1/1250 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Winter Troll at the top of Mount Fløyen. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 35 mm f/2D fisheye lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/2, 1/1250 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter Bird in Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Winter Bird in Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/6, 1/160 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter Female Statue in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Winter Female Statue in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Statue of a Young Boy. Winter Art in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/5, 1/100 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Statue of a Young Boy. Winter Art in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/5, 1/100 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Bench and Phone Booth in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/4, 1/60 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Lutefisk in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/4, 1/60 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Lutefisk in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 35 mm f/2D lens (ISO 100, 35 mm, f/4, 1/60 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Hurtigruten Waiting Area in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/10 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Hurtigruten Waiting Area in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/10 sec) (David J. Mathre)

M/S Kong Harald from the Hurtigruten Waiting Area in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/8 sec) (David J. Mathre) — M/S Kong Harald from the Hurtigruten Waiting Area in Bergen, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/8 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Fisheye View of My Cabin on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/15 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Fisheye View of My Cabin on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/15 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Fisheye View of Erik's Stateroom on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/30 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Fisheye View of Erik’s Stateroom on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/30 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Fisheye View of Erik's Stateroom on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/10 sec) (David J. Mathre) — Fisheye View of Erik’s Stateroom on the M/S Kong Harald. Image taken with a Nikon Dxs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 1/10 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Six-Years Ago (22-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Vacation. Day 2: Oslo to Bergen.

On Day 2 we herded the group and all of the luggage to the train station using public transportation. We then boarded the Bergen Railway high-speed train from Oslo to Bergen. All of these images were taken while on the train. The train stops at the highest point on the line at Finse (1222 meters above sea level). When we got to Bergen there was a bit of a glitch. The hotel where we were supposed to be staying didn’t have any records of our reservation. The hotel knew they had a problem with 20+ folks with luggage sitting in the lobby. After several hours of discussions and phone calls rooms were found for everyone. By then it was too late to see much of Bergen.

Train Conductor Signaling the Oslo to Bergen Train to Go. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 28-70 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 100, 70 mm, f/4, 1/60 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Church Steeple from the Oslo to Bergen Train. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 310 mm, f/9, 1/320 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Winter View from the Oslo to Bergen Train. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 100, 10.5 mm, f/4.8, 1/90 sec). (David J. Mathre)

Steam Rising. Image taken on the train from Oslo to Bergen Norway winter of 2007. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 175 mm, f/8. 1/250 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Snow Making Machine. Image taken on the train from Oslo to Bergen Norway winter of 2007. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/6.3. 1/160 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter Cabin in Norway. Image taken on the train from Oslo to Bergen Norway winter of 2007. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 175 mm, f/8. 1/250 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Conductor on the Bergen Railroad at Finse, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 10.5 mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens (ISO 100, 10.5 mm, f/4, 1/60 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Bergen Railroad Engine at Finse, Norway. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 28-70 mm f/2.8 ens (ISO 100, 28 mm, f/2.8, 1/60 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Winter Stream in Norway. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 28-70 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 100, 70 mm, f/3.5, 1/50 sec) (David J. Mathre)

Six-Years Ago (21-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Vacation. Day 1: Oslo.

In preparation for an upcoming trip to Norway, I am going to do several posts revisiting a family trip to Norway in 2007. Some of images have been posted before, and some will be new. The trip started in Oslo. I flew in from New Jersey, and the rest of the family flew in from Florida. All together, I think there were 22-24 in the group. On this first day, we toured Oslo. At the end of the day we had pizza with Arnie. It took a fisheye lens to get the whole group in one image. During this trip, I was using a Nikon D2xs camera with 7 lenses (10.5 mm fisheye, 12-24 mm, 28-70 mm, 35 mm, 50 mm, 80-400 mm, and 85 mm). For my upcoming trip, I want to travel lighter.

National Theater and Ibsen. Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Nobel Peace Center. Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Artillery Guarding Oslo at the Akeshus Fortress. Winter in Oslo Norway. (David J Mathre)

Roald Amundsen. Arctic Museum, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Family in Norway, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Glass Menagerie, National Theater, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Orchids, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)

Sunday (20-January-2013) — New Jersey

Technology: Geo-Tagging Image Metadata.

I really like the ability to have GPS data imbedded within the metadata of my images. It helps me remember exactly where I took the image, and especially now with Google Maps and Bing Map be able to zoom in from a satellite image. For a few years I had been using various Solmeta GPS devices that plugged into the 10-pin adapter on Nikon camera bodies. Unfortunately, during a winter photography workshop in Yosemite the device managed to short out the electronics in my brand new Nikon D3x. Ouch. The camera had to be sent back to Nikon to be repaired, and because the failure was caused by a non-Nikon device the repair was not covered under warranty. Since then I have been wary of attaching a GPS device directly to the camera.

The solution since then was to add GPS location data to the image metadata after downloading the images to my computer. I have a Garmin Rino 530Cx device that I used to record GPS tracking information. Many smart phones can do the same thing. You just need to be able to download the GPS tracking information, and extract the time-based location data. You do need to make sure that the clock in the camera is relatively accurate (including time-zone and daylight savings adjustment). You can then compare the time that an image was taken with the GPS location and add the location to the metadata. Doing this one image at a time, however takes too long.

The current versions of Nikon View NX2 and Lightroom 4 have a feature where the GPS metadata can be added to many images. I prefer using View NX2 because the information can be added to the RAW image files (as well as JPG and TIFF image files). With Lightroom 4, the GPS data is added to a sidecar file for proprietary RAW images — although the data is added directly to JPG, TIFF, PSD, and DNG image files.

The process to add GPS location data to image metadata within View NX2 is as follows. (1) Select the files to update (limited to 500 images at a time). (2) From the Edit tab, select Log Matching — OK the GeoTag message.

(3) Add the *.GPX file that contains the GPS log data for the time period that the images were taken. [Other supported GPS log files include *.nmea, *.nma, and *.log. There is also an option to correct for differences between camera time and GPS time if you didn’t synchronize the time between the camera and GPS before hand.] (4) The program will then compare the image time with the GPS log file and place an x next to the images that will be updated. If there was GPS data in the image files, the new data will be shown in Red. (5) Select Save — Yes to overwrite the GPS data.

After updating the GPS location metadata in the image files, I need to update the database catalogs in Lightroom: (1) Library – Select the image files to be updated (2) Metadata – Read metadata from file [Note that this will overwrite any metadata added since the image file had been added to the Lightroom Catalog.]

Within Media One Pro, updating the image database is a little bit different: (1) Within the Organize Panel Window (clt-5) Select the images to update (2) From the Action Tab select Rebuild Item (ctl-B). One could write a script to do this.

One gotcha that I ran into is that even though the current version of View NX2 (2.7.1 64 bit) was updated to handle Nikon 1 V2 Raw files, if the metadata for these files is updated with GPS data as described above, the updated file is no longer recognized by View NX2. For now that is not a problem for me since I am using the Nikon GPS attachment with the Nikon 1 V2 camera.

One other note, you do need to be connected to the internet to use these features since there is a strong connection to Google Maps.