After a few weeks working in the field, we are happy to see that Toad Hollow Photography is back at it again with a fresh list of weekly links for everyone to enjoy. This week's list features tutorials, special features and great photography from all genres of photography. We really hope that you pull up a chair, grab a cup of coffee, and have a great time perusing these links as much as the Toad did himself in bringing this post to you.
TUTORIALS
5 Tips To Urbex To Get You Started With Photographing Urban Decay – for those who are seeking to find and photograph abandoned places, this is a great article to help you start on your journey. Urbex is a very popular form of photography that typically finds the adventurer in a long forgotten location capturing architectural details and the effects of years of neglect and decay on a structure.
Photography Composition: The Definitive Guide – photographer Anton Gorlin has pulled together a fantastic guide on composition that is incredibly comprehensive. This is definitely worth your time.
A Quick and Easy Way to Enhance Skin Tones Using Photoshop – learn how to enhance skin tones in four easy steps with this video tutorial that is just over 12 minutes in length. Each step of this process is shown right on-screen, allowing you to quickly visualize the concept and see how to apply this to your own workflow.
Everything you ever needed to know about lights in under 30 minutes – this in-depth video presentation discusses in great detail the various options available to us as photographers and videographers today. If you are looking to start on your light collection, or are hoping to expand your existing tools, you should come away with a great idea of what you need and why.
How to Pre-visualize, Shoot, and Edit a Landscape Photo – landscape photography is much more than just heading out to a spot and pressing the shutter (at least most of the time!) and coming away with an award-winning shot. This video covers the entire spectrum of capturing and processing awesome landscapes including the importance of pre-visualization and follow through.
The entire start to finish process to make ultra large format wet plate photographs – wet plate photography can produce antique feeling shots that are highly sympathetic to certain subjects, particularly things that are old or made up to appear old. This 26-minute video takes us through each step of applying this type of photography in your personal practice.
How To Get An Ethereal Look In Lightroom – Lightroom is an amazing piece of software that is frequently underestimated for its power and ability to help craft amazing pictures. This tutorial takes you through each step, with screenshots to illustrate the ongoing process, showing you in fine detail how to fully leverage Lightroom to create great images.
SPECIAL FEATURES
Striking drone photo series places class divide under the spotlight – photography can be used as a tool to study many different aspects of the human condition, and this particular study shows the vast differences in the modern world between those who have wealth that lives alongside those who are stricken to poverty. This profound study was conducted with drone-based photography to reveal a broad and wide view of this contemporary problem that plagues most regions of today’s world.
A Star Trail Timelapse of the Perseid Meteor Shower – the universe around us is often a mystery to most of us, and here we find one photographer trying to capture an amazing meteor shower in timelapse to reveal at least one of its secrets. Two short timelapse presentations were created from the frames captured in the field during this event, and they are both absolutely fabulous.
90-Year-Old Photographer Continues to Delight the World with Amusing Self Portraits – you are never too old to join in the self-expression that is possible in today’s world of photography, as we see here in this feature that shares the work of a 90-year-old woman who creates truly amusing pieces. The combination of incredible concepts coupled with her ability to then use post-production as a tool to finalize her vision is special and is sure to inspire everyone who sees it.
These incredible underwater images from a scuba diving photography competition will change how you see the ocean – there is an entire planet living under the surface of our oceans, one that is often unnoticed and unexplored except for those who are curious and brave. This series of shots form the basis of a photography contest, and as a collection, they showcase the amazing world that lies just beyond our natural terrestrial existence.
German tourist releases epic video of his trip to Vancouver Island – Part One | Part Two – for those who enjoy incredible landscapes and the unique perspective that drone photography can create, this pair of videos from a tourist who visited Vancouver Island are great examples of how compelling this form of media can be. These videos were created from a series of location visits on the island and give you a great look at how incredible Vancouver Island truly is.
GREAT PHOTOGRAPHY
Venice – İlhan Eroglu shows why this spot is a favorite for photographers in a picture that is full of rich contrast and drama. The old architecture that sits on the world-famous canals is full of sharp details in this shot that finds further interest in the colors that dance across the cloud-laden skies.
Chateau Banana, France – I find myself never ceasing to be amazed at the myriad locations that can be found in the world that exhibit urbex themed locations, as we find with this great post that features an abandoned Chateau somewhere in France. The rooms photographed are perfectly staged and furnished, leaving us all to wonder about the origins and intent of the last owner to actively curate this interesting collection of things.
Steam – old steam locomotives make for wonderful and romantic photographic subjects, particularly when captured in stunning landscapes that accent the overall feel of the picture. Pascal Schirmer shares a great rendition of this theme with a locomotive making its way through a snow covered landscape as it heads towards the camera.
game over… – moss and decay literally drip from the ceiling and walls of this long forgotten basketball court captured by Urban Vagabond. The dark contrasts found in this scene add to the dramatic and gloomy feel of this shot that reveals a space that hasn’t been used in many years.
Colors in the Night – combining long exposure photography with the fast-moving action found in the heart of a city at night, this shot from Alfon No delivers great crisp details of the architecture against the elements of light trails from fast-moving traffic. This photograph is full of great features that are waiting to be discovered, framing this all with a sense of strong dynamism.
Gate E – Bob Lussier grabs a black-and-white shot of the entranceway to Gate E at the baseball park that hosts the Boston Red Sox. The bright lights of the stadium throw bright light into the stadium itself, helping to add to the drama found inherently in black-and-white photography.
Inside Painted Church – the unique character and spirit found in Hawaii is found and captured in this great picture from Evan Gearing taken inside a church. Evan uses an extremely wide-angle lens to capture this scene allowing him to see the entire interior and all its wonderful colors and facets.
diamond in the sky – Benny Bulke shoots an amazing architectural feature found in Antwerp that showcases a modern addition on top of an old firehouse. This picture was taken and processed as a black-and-white to fully bring out all the nuances in light and shape, creating a stunning picture that takes on the look of a diamond gleaming in the sky, as promised by the title of the piece.
Minimalism and Birds – Scott Wood explores the concept of minimalism in photography with this shot of a lone bird in mid-flight. The shot exhibits great detail in the bird and is captured at just the right moment to reveal great detail along with a feeling of momentum.
Tuscany's Mists – I love the ethereal nature of landscapes covered in fog as I often head out in November and December to capture scenes like this here on Vancouver Island. Daniel Metz shares a breathtaking example of this type of eerie image in a shot captured in Tuscany as a beautiful palette of colors plays across the undulating landscape.
Richmond County Courthouse – historic architecture is a favorite photography theme of mine, and here we find Mark Summerfield sharing a pair of shots of a significant courthouse constructed in the mid-1700’s that still stands today in terrific condition. Mark describes the history and some of the architectural features of the building to add background to the shots.
Kirkjufell Iceland – if you appreciate long exposure images, this is a great example of this genre of photography captured by Etienne Ruff at the incredible waterfalls in Iceland. This shot exhibits fantastic detail in the rugged landscape finished off perfectly by the silky waters of the fall and the fast-moving clouds above for a real sense of movement.
Ship Harbor Trail – Acadia National Park – let’s all join Wayne Beauregard who shares a terrific shot of an oceanside park that features compelling natural rock formations that lead out to the ocean. A set of wind-swept trees stands looking out over the beautiful vantage point adding a perfect dash of artistic tension to the picture.
House Goals – this shot from Daniel Casson features a limited color palette that gives the scene a distinctly cinematic feel to it. In this picture, we see a small wooden house surrounded by the green vegetation of the setting with a horse grazing in the fields for a perfect touch of artistic tension.
Grey on Grey on White – if you enjoy rural-themed photography that features old barns and a true bucolic feel, you will love this black-and-white shot from CJ Schmit. Taken in the United States, this shot was captured in the depth of winter and reveals a snow-covered farm with a quintessential barn for great character.
东水门大桥 – this is another long exposure piece featured in this weeks list, this one of a bridge span that splits the picture in half as an incredible cityscape emerges in the backdrop. 宫城飞雪 turns the waters into a smooth and mystical surface in the foreground with the long exposure that perfectly frames the city in the distance.
Moraine Lake, Banff, Canada – the azure lakes of the Canadian Rocky Mountains are great photography subjects explored by adventurous photographers from all corners of the world. This great shot of one of the iconic lakes in the area is posted and shared on the blog of Mark Paulson.
Antwerp Central II – the fabulous architecture of the inside of this center creates a bit of a nostalgic look, post-processed to perfection by Vic Perri who takes advantage of the dark contrasts to highlight the drama found in the building. Train tracks create a perfect natural leading line in this picture to take you into the frame visually where all the great details await discovery.
2 Comments
great list! thanks for including my tutorial 🙂
Thanks for linking to me page, I am glad you enjoyed my photos of the abandoned “Chateau Banana” ????