Green Apple in Hand

My most recent assignment in my large format class was to shoot an object in hand. I got to use the strobes for this.

Then I decided to eat the apple =D

My most recent food endeavors.

Here's what I've been shooting food-wise. I'm just saying, my mom makes the best grilled cheese and tomato soup! Hands down!

Eh, not my favorite.

So this is what I turned in today as far as food goes. The ever exciting egg sandwich and some spaghetti with cheesy garlic toast. They both tasted pretty rad but I'm not happy with the way the pictures turned out. I've been working more than I should be. Blah.

Surreal Starbucks Cup

We're working on surreal images and working on them in Photoshop. Here's what I did this week. I plan on making more for next week.

New food pictures

This is my delicious turkey burger on a wheat bun with chipoltle sauce with bell peppers. I also fried up some homemade battered onion rings. Wonderful!

Deanna, Ryan, and I visited Sesame Inn in Mount Lebanon. It's pretty much an upperclass Chinese restaurant. It was very yummy!

Jerry Uelsmann

In my digital image management class we were assigned to make a composite based on Jerry Uelsmann's style. Jerry Uelsmann made strange images based on a couple different pictures that defined nature. Check out his work at uelsmann.net . I made my composite in Photoshop but Uelsmann would make his with film and is said to sometimes use up to 30 enlargers at a time for just one image.

Large Format

So I generally don't post pictures from my large format class because they are frankly uninteresting. In the class we shoot using very large cameras that use 8x10 film as opposed to the 35mm film that is put in a standard everyday camera. We're out of the film era now and shooting digitally so we've kept the same cameras but put a $10,000 digital back on it instead of film. All of the camera adjustments remain the same but instead of exposing film, we expose a large sensor. The advantage of using large format instead of 35mm is quality.
The purpose of this assignment was to adjust the camera on a lower aperture but get the entire subject (we were told to use a book) in focus. This can actually be a bit frustrating and difficult at first but I'm getting the hang of it.
The first picture is uncorrected and the second is corrected.

Environmental Pictures

These are some of my favorite pictures for my image bank in digital image illustration from this week and last.

In memory of....

Last month, a photographer who was in Libya taking pictures was killed. His name was Chris Hondros and I think that everyone should view his work at www.chrishondros.com - His pictures put what is happening overseas in persecutive. Just a warning, his pictures are war images and are at times disturbing, so clear the kiddies out of the room before you look. I find his work to be very moving- he was clearly extremely talented. He was widely known among reporters and photographers and you may even recognize his pictures from the newspaper. 

In my news photography class, every week we need to shoot a news event so I went to his candle light vigil which was held by family and friends on the west end overlook in Pittsburgh. The memorial was very nice and I'm very happy I decided to cover it. It was humorous to me that three quarters of those who attended were toting a professional camera. Not only because of the amount of them but who takes a camera to a memorial service? It was basically a second funeral. 

It was pretty easy to shoot without feeling like you were intruding because Chris was a reporter himself who took pictures of people facing tragedy often. If the person wasn't a reporter I feel like I wouldn't have been as comfortable. 

Okay, I'm finished talking, here are the pictures.

At the end of the night I was able to make this beautiful panorama of the Pittsburgh skyline. Breathtaking! It's very wide so unless you have a very large monitor like the one I'm using right now at school, you'll have to scroll to the right to see the whole pictures =P. I'm still working on editing it but I was just so excited I had to share it now!

Yum!

Here are my weekly food photographs for my weekly color management assignment. I made chocolate chip cookies and shrimp kabobs with Asian noodles- everything tasted pretty fantastic! You should be jealous.

I also stopped by the Sugar Cafe, a new coffee shop on Potomac in Dormont. I'm posting pictures of my americano, an iced vanilla latte, and a red velvet torte. Let me just say, the cake was-- wow! Crazy wonderful!