Category: Photo Techniques

Six-Years Ago (27-November-2011) — New Jersey

Backyard Autumn Nature in New Jersey: Talking Doe.

I was testing the sharpness of the Nikon 600 mm f/4 lens coupled with a TC-E III 20 teleconverter (effective 1200 mm, f/8 aperture).

Talking Doe. Backyard Autumn Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 600 mm f/4 VR lens with a TC-EIII 2x teleconverter (ISO 1400, 1200 mm, f/8, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)
Talking Doe. Backyard Autumn Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 600 mm f/4 VR lens with a TC-EIII 2x teleconverter (ISO 1400, 1200 mm, f/8, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)

Ten-Years Ago (22-November-2007) — Hawaii

Gone to See Hawaii. Big Island Photography Workshop with Thom Hogan. Day 5: Volcano National Park.

Peridot Crystals (Pele’s Tears). Image taken with D2xs camera and 105 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, f/22, 1/60 sec, flash). Thom was curious what I was taking macro images of in my hotel room while waiting for dinner.

I have always been fascinated by crystals. Before I retired I learned to solve chemical structures using single-crystal x-ray images. I love whenever I ever find a crystal in nature.

alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Peridot Crystals (Pele’s Tears). Image taken with D2xs camera and 105 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, f/22, 1/60 sec, flash). (David J Mathre)

Ten-Years Ago (22-November-2007) — Hawaii

Gone to See Hawaii. Big Island Photography Workshop with Thom Hogan. Day 5: Volcano National Park.

While we were out on our morning photography composition lesson outside of Volcano National Park, I found this black volcanic rock with yellow-green sparkles. I brought it back to the lodge where I had a macro lens, and spent the afternoon trying to get some pictures of the crystals. Later on I discovered that the crystals were a semi-precious gem known as Peridot (Pele’s Tears).

Peridot Crystals (Pele's Tears). Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 105 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, f/22, 1/60 sec, flash). (David J Mathre)
Peridot Crystals (Pele’s Tears). Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 105 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, f/22, 1/60 sec, flash). (David J Mathre)

Ten-Years Ago (18-November-2007) — Hawaii

Gone to See Hawaii. Big Island Photography Workshop with Thom Hogan. Day 1: Kailua Kona.

Ten years ago, I arrived in Hawaii to attend a photography workshop with Thom Hogan. It was hard to believe the day before I was in Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge in northern Colorado. At that time, I had only been taking pictures with a DSLR camera for just over one year. Soon after getting the camera, I found Thom’s web site which became a very helpful resource as I was learning to use the camera (much more useful than the Nikon manual provided with the camera). I purchased his guides for the D200 (and subsequently the guides for all of the new Nikon cameras I have used. These guides are by far the best resource for understanding the capabilities of the Nikon digital cameras. I saw a note in Thom’s web site that there was a late opening for his Hawaii workshop over Thanksgiving week. I signed up right away since I knew that there was a lot more that I needed to learn to become a better photographer. The first evening in Hawaii, we went down to the beach for sunset. I took these two pictures of boats with the sun setting behind them. Little did I know, it would become a contest between some friends on a Semester at Sea voyage to get images of boats or ships in front of the setting sun.

Sunset and Sailboat off Kona Beach, Big Island Hawaii. Day 1 of Thom Hogan's 2007 Hawaii Photography Workshop. Image taken with Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
Sunset and Sailboat off Kona Beach, Big Island Hawaii. Image taken with Nikon D2xs and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
Sunset of Kailua Harbor from Kona Beach, Big Island Hawaii. Day 1 of Thom Hogan's 2007 Hawaii Photography Workshop. Image taken with Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm DX lens (ISO 100, 24 mm, f/9, HDR 9 images 1/800 to 1/20 sec). (David J Mathre)
Sunset at Kailua Harbor from Kona Beach, Big Island Hawaii.  Image taken with Nikon D2xs and 12-24 mm DX lens (ISO 100, 24 mm, f/9, HDR 9 images 1/800 to 1/20 sec). (David J Mathre)

Five-Years Ago (16-November-2012) — New Jersey

Backyard Autumn Night Sky in New Jersey: Star and Leonid Meteor Trails.

The sky was clear so I put a couple of cameras out with wide-angle lenses to try to capture some Leonid meteor trails.

Late Fall Night Star Trails and Leonid Meteor Trails over New Jersey. Composite of 35 Images taken with a Nikon D800 and 16 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 100, 16 mm, f/2.8, 1 min). (David J. Mathre)
Late Fall Night Star Trails and Leonid Meteor Trails over New Jersey. Composite of 35 Images taken with a Nikon D800 and 16 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 100, 16 mm, f/2.8, 1 min). (David J. Mathre)