Ever wondered about white balance? Wondered what conditions to use each under and what result you'll get? Here's a (very!) brief synopsis: More info on the photo(s): West African Dwarf Crocodile at the Minnesota Zoo - Tropics Trail Camera: Nikon D300 on tripod Lens: Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 Settings: 155mm - f2.8 - ISO ...
Split Rock Lighthouse
It's the icon of Minnesota. It's the place almost every photographer in Minnesota has photographed at least once in their lives. Images of it receive groans when viewed at camera clubs (because it's been photographed so often). It's one of my favorite and most meaningful places in the world. It's Split Rock Lighthouse. Split Rock Lighthouse was ...
Sleigh and Cutter Rally
Every year in Minnesota, if there's snow, you can count on there being at least one Sleigh & Cutter Rally in the area. This year there were two that I was made aware of. The first was on January 29th on the Eagle Valley Golf Course in Woodbury, MN. The second was a week later (Feb 4th) on the Washington County Fairgrounds in Lake Elmo, MN. I ...
Anatomy of a Photograph: “Frayed”
Recently a photography club I am part of had the topic of "Tangled in Blue" for a competition. It didn't take me long to come up with an idea and enlist the aid of my husband, Geoff to produce an image. I thought it might interest some to see the process behind the photo, both in setting it up and in the digital processing afterward. It should be ...
Merry Christmas
Happy Holidays to everyone! We at Tortoise Productions hope you have a wonderful holiday season and even better 2011. Thanks for stopping by! -- Geoff & Holly Kuchera(& Kaylee!) ...
Textures/Borders
If you've read any of my blog posts or seen any of my photography, you'll know that I'm a big user of textures and borders. The general idea is to take a texture/border and overlay it on a photograph (using any one of the blend modes offered in Photoshop) to add a little somethin'-somethin' to the end product. Some of the borders and textures I ...
Smithsburg, Maryland
Ah, Smithsburg… My mother lived in a small community on the northwestern edge of Maryland named Smithsburg. *comments removed due to resident objections* She was born there, lived there for all of her formative years, moved away for college and then away-away to Minnesota for 35 years. She and my father moved back several years ago to be closer to ...
World Hoops Day
A rare day which won’t happen again for another 100 years – both in date and in all the stuff I got to photograph! Equipment Carried: Nikon D300, 18-70mm, 70-200mm, 105mm, SB800 Flash, remote, tripod Equipment Used: Nikon D300, 18-70mm, 70-200mm, remote, tripod As a member of the Twin Cities Photography Group I get regular updates about events ...
Carver Dog Park
My final major commitment is done for the year and now I can get back to what I love... That and get back to work I've been putting off for way too long! Every once in a while a photographer must go out into the world and do something they wouldn't normally do - take some risks they normally wouldn't take. In my case, this week I decided to do ...
MN Renaissance Festival
I've been away for so very long -- first it was a trip out east to visit my mother in Maryland and then back home to the reality of too many commitments in too short a period of time. So, between commitments I managed to sneak in some time at the MN Renaissance Festival. No great yak yak about my thoughts and feelings this time -- just some ...
