A quick look at some of the industrial hemp production on WVU's organic farm. The legality of hemp production is a big deal in West Virginia, and I'm going to be covering the technical / legal side of it a lot in the future.
If you've never backpacked several days through a wilderness area, it may be hard to understand how a photographer/documentarian like myself could possibly leave my camera behind while hiking through one of the most beautiful regions of the state. If, on the other hand, you have backpacked before, you probably understand how much weight matters.
The high meadows of Dolly Sods
Proper backpacking means that you carry everything you will need for the entire trip on your back - water, clothes, food, shelter, cookware, everything. After days of hiking through rugged, slippery and mountainous terrain with more than 20lbs of gear, every single pound matters. I agonized about bringing my camera setup on this trip, but in the end, decided that a DSLR and lenses were luxuries I could not afford.
I did take my cell phone (a lower-end Samsung Galaxy model) to capture a few images, and while the grain and lack of detail hurt my photographer's eyes a little, I thought I'd share them with a disclaimer.
Final note: If you live in West Virginia, you absolutely have to visit the Dolly Sods wilderness. The high meadows, rock formations, beautiful creeks and waterfalls are resplendent. You don't have to spend days backpacking. Even a full day trip down a trail or two is worth the trip.
Lion's Head
Went exploring down near the Cheat River this past weekend. The sun, the water, and the off-road driving were perfect.
Look at these lovely people in love.
(All photos copyrighted by Sensational Images. Click here for booking info.)
When choosing the file format to shoot on your camera, there is no other way to go than RAW files.
Yes, it's tempting to just use the JPG file format we're all familiar with. But JPG files compress pixel information from its original (RAW) state. RAW files take up a lot more space on your memory card, but the things you can do with them are magic.
Take a look at this shot of a father-daughter dance from a recent wedding. I had turned my flash off a minute or two earlier, and forgot to flip it back on before shooting into the sun. The result of such a mistake is a totally unusable photo.
Unless you shot it in RAW.
Salvaging something this nice is totally impossible with JPG files. Look at how much information was preserved, even in the darkest parts of the photo. I pushed the capabilities of RAW editing to its limits to end up with this shot, so there is naturally a little grain in the shadows, but who cares?? It's a fantastic moment that would otherwise be lost forever. (And I promise, your clients don't care about that grain as much as you do.)
I hope these girls are still friends in their 20s and remake this photo.