Wandering around Bisbee, Arizona recently brought me to this store. I am not sure what kind of store it is but it was obviously very photogenic and perfect in my opinion for a grungy HDR.
Obviously whomever owns the store is an artist, so this artist photographed it to create something art-worthy of that artists work. Because it is s funky it makes the grungy look
During our winter wanderings through Arizona we discovered Cool Springs, Arizona along Route 66. From a photographic standpoint, this was a must-shoot location. It is now a vintage museum of memorabilia from the bygone era of Route 66 and interstate travel in general.
It is out in the desert and on the slopes of the Black Mountains and while we enjoyed a 85 degree day, this location is no doubt a harsh environment during hotter times of the years. Built in the mid-1920’s, the road was designated Route 66 in 1926 and as you head west from Cool Springs the road gets steep and windy.
You cant help but wonder what it must have been like to travel from Los Angeles to Chicago in August. Cars slogging up the hill in intense heat and travelers thirsty and dehydrated. Cool Springs would have been a wonderful site.
I thought this was a perfect location for a light grunge HDR image. I did not like the distortion I got with my super wide, so I shot this with a 35mm, vertically, and in sections. I then did the HDR processing in Photomatix and finished by stitching the 6 image
I was in one of the old homesteads in Cades Cove in the Smokys photographing the inside for HDR when these hands started creeping out of the floor. I could not believe it and snapped away.
It was like they were trapped and wanted out or something. I had to really work this in Photoshop to get them to show up more and here is the result.
Have any of you photographers seen this as well? By all means please share your ghost stories.
I was teaching workshops in South Dakota a few months back and before catching my flight I had the afternoon to kill so I zipped out to Badlands National Park and spent 4 hours shooting.
It is a great park to shoot and I had a great time, albeit brief. I am also a big fan of Topaz software and processed some of the images in B&W Effects from Topaz. The reason i did that was because early in my shooting the sun was quite high and there was haze on the horizon.
When you have the haze it desaturates the sky and is not so appealing. Convert to B&W and the sky is a shade of gray and works much better. Here are some shots:
