Vaperturemorning run
Posted on June 16, 2014
This is one of my favorite photos, not because of the lovely colors or the wonderful city backdrop, but because of the motion. I find motion in still photography to be one of the most challenging techniques, especially when the motion has to do with people. Traditionally, long exposure photography that captures motion is in a nature setting where the photographer places his camera on a tripod and then exposes the shot for 15-30 seconds so that water and clouds will take on that lovely smooth appearance we’ve all seen in those beautiful landscape images. Capturing motion with people requires a completely different skill set. You have a use a neutral density filter on your lens so that you can increase the exposure time without letting too much light in. You have to have your focus just right, which is quite difficult with moving subjects and manual focus lenses. You have to have the exposure just right or your subject will end up so blurry that you can tell it’s a person, or not blurry enough so that it only looks like the image is out of focus rather than in motion. You have to keep your camera VERY steady so as not to blur the background, which is quite difficult when you’re not using a tripod and shooting at f 1/10 or 1/20. And you have to do all of this in less than a second before your subject runs away and makes your shot impossible. The whole thing sounds like a big hassle, and while it does lead to quite a few messy photos, when you get it right the results make for really interesting and original photographs. Taken with a Zeiss 21mm f2.8 Distagon manual focus lens with a B+W XSPro ND Vario Filter, handheld at 1/30, Shutter Priority mode with vario filter adjustments to ensure an aperture of at least f/8.
purchase
you might also like
parasol
Posted on May 27, 2014
Memorial Day of 2014 was one of the most beautiful days of the past few years… warm, sunny, just perfect. I came across this young woman using a parasol while strolling through Four Freedoms Park on Roosevelt Island, and just had to capture the image. There is a very long stretch of pure white marble on the Western side of the park facing the city where the sun gets reflected so brightly that it created this wonderful scene of highlights and shadows that was perfect for a B&W photo, and the out of focus background has an almost dreamlike quality to it that I love. Taken with a Zeiss 135mm f2 Apo Sonnar manual focus lens.
purchase
you might also like
spring bride
Posted on April 24, 2014
cloud cathedral
Posted on April 9, 2014
If there’s one thing that I’ve grown to appreciate since I started in artistic photography, it’s clouds. I never realized what interesting images clouds can produce, and this is one of my favorite example. This photo reminds me of all the wonderful images of the airy, bright, and incredibly detailed cathedral ceilings that we’ve all marveled at. The wide angle lens with it’s signature distortion creates the “shape” of this photo with the clouds and the city skyline all appearing to reach towards a central point. This was a very rare opportunity to capture this photo from such a perfect vantage point, and this would display beautifully in a simple gallery frame or floating canvas. Taken with a Zeiss 15mm f2.8 lens at f/5.6.
purchase
you might also like
queens crescent
Posted on March 12, 2014
Crisp, clear black and white photograph of a lovely crescent moon over Queens taken in the middle of the night with a very long 25 second exposure. If you look closely, you can spot Venus in the top right corner, and if you look even more closely, you can see the slight celestial motion that the long exposure captured. Venus is not a distinct spot of light, but rather a small dash, and the moon is not a thin well-defined crescent, but rather a thicker version of itself. It’s amazing that there was enough motion of the sky during the 25 seconds that the camera shutter was open, but it’s there, and it’s beautiful. Taken with a Zeiss 50mm f2 Makro Planar manual focus lens.
purchase
see the queens crescent collection
white on black on grey
Posted on February 26, 2014
Stunningly clear reflections in the cold winter water with a perfect balance of light and dark. This is one of my favorite photographs with it’s incredible balance of tonality and composition. It displays beautifully in a medium sized print with a white mat and black gallery style frame. Available as 1/50 Limited Edition prints. Taken with a Carl Zeiss 35mm f2 Distagon lens.
purchase
you might also like
keep it real
Posted on February 17, 2014
This guy had the right idea last summer… taking a peaceful nap in the shade of one of the gorgeous trees in Madison Square Park. I love the grainy-ness and the deep blacks in the image… they make it more interesting and artistic than just a standard sharp focus photo that you’ll see much more often. Street photography is so difficult in New York, but when you nail one, you really get something special. Taken with a Zeiss 35mm f1.4 Distagon lens at f/2.
purchase
you might also like
partnered
Posted on February 9, 2014
Venus partnered with a beautiful crescent moon in the early morning sky. It’s so rare to see stars in New York because of all the light pollution, but when they’re visible, it’s a gorgeous site. The blue, grey, and green undertones in the sky create a perfect canvas for this rare celestial scene. These subtle background tones will probably not show up in full details on a regular computer monitor, so be prepared to be surpassed (and very impressed) when you order this as a print. Taken with a Canon 5D Mark III and a Carl Zeiss 135mm Apo Sonnar manual focus lens at f/11 and a 5-second exposure on a tripod.
purchase
you might also like
drinks
Posted on January 24, 2014
TGIF! Friday is finally here, and this image is probably on everyone’s mind already.
Wine glasses are one of the first things I photographed when I was first learning how to use a DSLR camera, so even though this image was taken recently, it is still a little nostalgic for me. I love the contrasty detail in the reflections. I love the mirror-like transparency through three rows of hanging glasses. And I love the hints of soft blue and purple out of focus in the background. This photograph is a perfect piece for a dining room, a wine cellar, or a restaurant. It would look stunning in a simple gallery frame.
Taken with a Carl Zeiss 135mm f2 Apo Sonnar ZE mount lens for Canon.
purchase
you might also like
nymphaea
Posted on January 23, 2014
I love the vertical composition and the sharp, sharp focus on the petals of this tropical waterlilly, or Nymphaea if we are going to be proper about it. This image was taken with a Canon 85mm f1.2 lens which is known for it’s sharpness and beautiful soft backgrounds, both of which are showcased very well in this photograph. Perfect for a large canvas or simple gallery frame.
purchase
you might also like
after the storm
Posted on January 22, 2014
This is the first sunrise after the snowstorm last evening. The muted greys, reds, and oranges blend so beautifully together. I haven’t seen a sunrise with a color palette this painterly in a while, and I’m excited to have this printed on a huge canvas like a 30×45. Taken with a Zeiss 135mm Apo Sonnar lens mounted on a Canon 5D Mark III camera, f/11, 1/10, -0.7EV.
purchase
you might also like
painted
Posted on January 3, 2014
The river looks as if the brush in ‘artist’ painted it, but it was a lens, not a brush, that did the painting. A Zeiss 135mm APO SONNAR lens was allowed to exposure this image for 20 seconds, and this is what it captured. The still reflections on top of the moving water created this painterly like effect, and I love the dramatic effect created by shooting in black and white as compared to the softer effect in color.
purchase
you might also like
studio
Posted on January 2, 2014
Another classic image from an artist’s studio that pairs well with the limited edition photo ‘artist’. This image was taken with a Zeiss 100mm f2 Makro Planar lens which is famous for it’s sharp detail and soft background that renders very artistically as compared to other long lenses. An artistic lens for an artistic shot in a true artist’s studio… right on! I would love to see this image on a giant canvas on a stark white accent wall.
purchase
you might also like
fallen
Posted on November 7, 2013
This is one of the first fallen leaves I came across in early September on a neighborhood basketball court. The evening sun was hitting is just right to make it stand out and catch my eye.
I used a Zeiss 28mm f2 manual focus lens mounted on a Canon 5D Mark III with the aperture wide open and my lens right at the minimum focus distance for the lens. I love the close-up with context view that shooting very close with a wide angle lens provides, and ever since I experimented with this technique, the minimum focus distance is probably the first spec that I look at whenever I’m considering a new lens. The usual alternative of using a macro lens for close-up work can also yield really great photos, but they are completely different than a close up with a wide angle. There is no context with a macro lens… it’s all about the detail of the object being captured. A close-up with a wide angle creates a story though, and that’s what I love about the technique.
This image came out of the camera with a very 3D look at feel that I loved as soon as the shot appeared on my screen, and it’s the photo that started me down the path of trying to perfect the “close-up with context” view.
Vaperture 