1895 Benz

This charming vehicle is the oldest New Zealand car and has been restored to its original condition by Daimler Benz museum in Stuttgart and is one of only two remaining models in the world!

This photo is a 5 shot HDR to pull in the background taken at the Southward Car museum.

Canon 7D, Tamron 10-24mm f3.5-4.5 Di II, Focal length 10mm, Exposure 1/800sec at f3.5, ISO 1600, Focus auto, Flash none, Filter none.

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Pointon Rusty Old Austin

This rusty Austin was taken at the Pointon Museum earlier this year: www.pointoncollection.co.nz

HDR processing was mainly done in Photoshop CC as a 32bit image. Photomatix was used to add the final touches.

Canon 600D, Tamron 10-24mm f3.5-4.5 Di II, Focal length 13mm, Exposure 1/500sec at f8, ISO 400, Focus auto, Flash none, Filter none.

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1927 Austin 12/4 Saloon Interior

This delightful photo of the interior of a 1927 Austin 12/4 Saloon was taken at the Pointon Museum earlier this year: www.pointoncollection.co.nz

I would highly recommend a trip to the museum if you are in the area. The owners are so forthcoming with information, you will find you can easily spend a whole day there!

This image was shot using natural light without a tripod. Three images were taken with 2 stop difference between them. I've used Photomatix to generate a BW HDR from where some post processing was completed in Lightroom. I do hope you like the old school feel. This is my first attempt at mimicking the look and feel of a 100 old photograph.

Canon 600D, Tamron 10-24mm f3.5-4.5 Di II, Focal length 10mm, Exposure 1/125sec at f8, ISO 6400, Focus auto, Flash none, Filter none.

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Old Store - Staglands

Staglands has a small and old mining town. This image is a composition of 3 shots taken hand held with normal dim natural lighting only. OK, it was dark inside so I had no option but to shoot at 3200 ISO. The image is grainy but that adds to the mood and time period of the scene. The slowest image was taken at f3.5 1/6 sec. With another lens this image would not have been possible, but this image is just another perfect example of how amazingly versatile this small lens is due to its brilliant image stabilizing. Photos combined into a HDR image using Photomatix.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/6 - 1/60sec at f3.5, ISO 3200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Tools Galore

HDR panorama taken at Cobblestones Regional Early Settlers Museum in Greytown, New Zealand.

This image was taken with a Raspberry Pi controlling my Canon 600D with a Tamron 18-270mm PZD. It is a 4 image 7 bracketed HDR merged into a panorama. Therefore this image consist of 28 photos. Bracketed shots taken with gphoto and HDR processing done with Photomatix. This is possibly one of the most complex photos I have ever produced.

For details on how to do something similar please see my blog article at: teach-me-photo.blogspot.co.nz

Click to view larger version.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 0.6sec - 1/4 to 1/320sec at f8, ISO 200, Focus manual, VC off, Flash none, Filter none.

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Old Derelict

A derelict building in Kate Sheppard Place in Wellington. Met a friend who owns a Mojo the other day, but I was not sure where his shop was. Well, while I was walking around looking for his place I came across this jewel of a building. Oh, before I forget, I did find my friend's Mojo. Please visit Ian at Mojo in the Vogel Centre in Aitken street. No discount sorry, but I promise possibly the best Mojo in New Zealand!

The pics below looks OK on the normal photos but I just had to lay on a bit of HDR to do justice to the character of this little building.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 80mm, Exposure 1/80sec at f8, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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General Practitioner

Well, I have mixed feelings about this shot, and maybe one day I will go and re-shoot it. Why am I conflicted? The main reason is the red car in the scene. Without the car I know the scene will look more empty, but on the other hand this partial car give some action and life to the shot.

Oh well, enjoy what I have for now. This truly is a very interesting and full of character building.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/320sec at f8 +-2EV bracketed, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Old character

This old building on the corner of Willis St and Ghuznee in Wellington (and incidentally where the doorway of my last post was taken), is really full of character. I just love the textures, architecture and age of the building. The images below were all taken on the same day. Slight HDR processing was used to turn otherwise hard midday sun photos into something optically more interesting. Oh, before I forgot all photos were taken as three shot +-2 stops sets (exposure bracketing), and the Tamron set to F8 since I know that is where the lens gives its best sharpness.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 76mm, Exposure 1/800sec at f8 +-2EV bracketed, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 270mm, Exposure 1/400sec at f8 +-2EV bracketed, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 270mm, Exposure 1/200sec at f8 +-2EV bracketed, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Doorway

Beautiful doorway from a building on the corner of Willis St and Ghuznee in Wellington. This shot would not be possible or have the depth if it was not for a bit of HDR from 3 shots all 2 stops apart. I am very glad I took the time to stop and take a couple of shots of the doorway. Initially I walked past it. Whoops, almost a missed opportunity.

One tip I can leave you with is that HDR works best with natural earthy colors, such as browns, golds, yellows and greens. Blue and red can easily become over saturated during your HDR processing. Keep that in mind when you shoot subjects.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/200sec at f8, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash popup, Filter none.

For more details read this page.

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Antrim House

Antrim house in Boulcott Street in Wellington. Now a heritage building. I had to get permission to shoot this as non professional/no profit. Keep in mind if you shoot property, you may need to get permission to do so for your own use.

The first image is a 4 shot panorama. It took quite a bit of Photoshop effort to get this photo straightened out since I shot up close at 18mm.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/125sec at f8, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash popup, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/100sec at f8, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash popup, Filter none.

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Rooftop plumbing

This image was taken at ground level of a building with this fascinating rusty old chimney pipe and a mish-mash of plumbing to its side. I just knew it would make for a good photo. See if you can spot the  pigeon sitting in the shade.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 169mm, Exposure 1/500sec at f8 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Party Window

This was a tricky shot. With it I was trying to marry two opposites. The well lit window with the buildings behind me reflected in the window, with the darkly lit interior or the restaurant inside. To make this shot, I set my camera to take three bracketed shots, 2 stop under exposed, one at normal exposure, and the last at 2 shots over exposed. The resulting three images were merged in software to get the image below.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 42mm, Exposure 1/1000sec at f8 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Trentham Tree

The weather was fantastic on the day, and after going to a local RC helicopter meet (no I do not have a RC), I took the kids to the Trentham park for some fun. While there I saw this amazing tree. I've also tried to take some vertical panoramas of the tree, but thus far my Adobe CS5 efforts have not been acceptable. So in the mean time, here is what I have for you to enjoy.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/125sec at f13 with +-2EV exposure bracketing and exposure bias +1/3EV, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 65mm, Exposure 1/200sec at f13 with +-2EV exposure bracketing and exposure bias +1/3EV, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Old pickup

I just love this beautiful old Ford truck. I was initially a bit disappointed at the low vantage point but it turned into a good photo at the end.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/640sec at f8 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Corrosive beach

During a work BBQ at Queen Elizabeth park, we took the kids for a stroll on the beach and my trusty Tamron 18-270mm VC PZD went along. One thing I have leaned is that the best HDR effect was obtained with the main subject well lit by the sun. I thought shots from the other side of the subject below having more dark and under lit bits, would do well in HDR processing but my results were average at best I am sorry to say.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/60sec at f13 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 100, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Wellington Cranes

There are some wonderful cranes on the waterfront  in Wellington. They do add to the atmosphere. I doubt if they are still serviceable, but that just makes them that much more interesting.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 155mm, Exposure 1/320sec at f10 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 42mm, Exposure 1/320sec at f10 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 42mm, Exposure 1/320sec at f10 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Navy in Town

I love the sea and I love anything maritime. Having spent most of my life inland I find Wellington a fun place to live with a lot to see and do. At about tea time walking to my desk I noticed a navy ship coming in to port. Unfortunately I could not go out at the time. So I tried to make the most of it in the harsh midday sun at lunch time.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 42mm, Exposure 1/320sec at f10 with +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/160sec at f10 +-2EV exposure bracketing, ISO 200, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Drag Truck

Who would think you can add two humungous turbos to what appears too be a three cylinder engine and thus turn a truck into something you can race with?

Well, this truck sure has a lot of "bling" and that caught my eye. This shot was taken without a flash, since that would have flattened the image too much. As you would by now have noted from my past number of posts of other images taken on the same day, I again selected to use exposure bracketing to save the day.

This image is a combination of three shots taken in close succession all 2 stops apart. That allowed for some slight HDR to rescue the highlights and under exposed areas. I am very happy with the results.

So, to those on the Net who are of the opinion that the Tamron 18-270mm VC PZD is not a good lens, all I can say is that it is not the lens that makes the photo, but rather the photographer. My word of encouragement to you the reader is that good photography is something easily obtained with a little perseverance. Most cameras will do. But, the key is to get out, shoot a lot, and shoot varying subjects. Challenge yourself.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 18mm, Exposure 1/50sec at f8 +2/3EV, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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65 Chevy Impala

Car photography is still tricky to me. It is difficult to take pictures with people walking about at a car show. Then on top of that the sky was overcast and colors were flat and contrast low. So what do you do?

Well, shoot with exposure bracketing, and hope you can save some pics in post processing. Pop over to a good HDR group such as http://www.flickr.com/groups/hdr_photos and you will see how effective a little HDR can be on man made objects such as cars. So, below my try at saving what is otherwise a pretty plain photo.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 39mm, Exposure 1/640sec at f8 +2/3EV, ISO 400, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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Buick at the Park

I think this is a 1955 Buick Special. I may be wrong. Please comment if I am. In any case, just in front of the gates of a local truck show, I found this beautiful vehicle waiting to be photographed. And it turns out the Buick delivered some of my best shots of the day.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 21mm, Exposure 1/40sec at f8 +2/3EV, ISO 100, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

Canon 600D, Tamron 18-270mm f3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD. Focal length 46mm, Exposure 1/50sec at f8 +2/3EV, ISO 100, Focus auto, VC on, Flash none, Filter none.

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