H2Meyer Photography » 105mm

Why I shoot: the joys of photography

Hanmi — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:38:26 +0000

A quick thought just popped into my head about how much I enjoy proving to people that they are photogenic… not models, of course, but every day people… I started with friends and family and quickly learned that with the right lighting and angles, people truly are transformed. But the real fun comes with showing them the shot, right on the camera and seeing their faces light up. That is some powerful stuff, seeing someone change the way they see themselves right before your eyes. They also know that since they’re seeing it right after it was shot that no manipulation has taken place…

The other real joy comes with “seeing” the minutiae and finding beauty in the mundane, both of which have been greatly enhanced by my beloved macro lens, the AF-S VR Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED. The katydid shots below are a prime example.

Drumming Katydid

Hanmi — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 19:31:47 +0000

Drumming Katydid (Meconema Thalassinum)

Well, once again I’ve let being busy get in the way of my blogging. This has to be a quickie, as I have an appointment to get to… Short version: I found a drumming katydid (Meconema Thalassinum) on the ceiling of our front porch the other day. I brought her in and made a cozy mason jar condo for her and went to plotting how best to capture her likeness.

The next day I let her out and she immediately took to the gorgeous bouquet of flowers my husband had brought home. Wind and lack of colorful flowers marred our outdoor shoot, but the images in the kitchen window light turned out great. More to come – I’ll post a link when I get the gallery up on PhotoShelter.

In the mean time, there are lots of other new galleries posted!

EXIF: Nikon D700 | 1/250 s | f/9.0 | ISO 320 | Nikon AF-S Micro VR 105mm f/2.8

Ladybug vs. Aphid, Death Match on Wheat

Hanmi — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 08:44:18 +0000

Ladybug eating an aphid on a spring wheat seed head.

Happy autumn

Hanmi — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 17:13:58 +0000

EXIF: Nikon D300 | 1/40 | f/4.5 | 105 mm | ISO 800 | -1/3 EV

Shooting tethered with Aperture 2.0

Hanmi — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 19:39:00 +0000

Today I decided to play with Aperture 2.0’s ability to shoot tethered. Not really wanting to take photos of myself or my less than tidy office, I called in my dog Ellis to sit for me while I fired off a few frames. She patiently sat, lied down, looked pensive, etc. while I fussed with lenses, angles, etc. Sunday will mark our 9th year together, so I offer this post in her honor.

Nikon D300, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED
ƒ/4.5 | 1/40 | ISO 280

As for the software, shooting tethered worked fine–set up was very simple and intuitive. Just launch Aperture 2, plug a USB cable into the camera and computer, turn the camera on and under the “File” menu, select “Tether>Start Session”. You are now ready to shoot tethered.

The transfer rates while shooting seemed a little slow, but I imagine that’s to be expected given the file size [shooting RAW 14-bit]. I was very disappointed, however, when I ended the tethered session and had Aperture crash on me. No data was lost, but if I were shooting a client session and that happened, I would have had a canary. Not sure yet if this is a repeatable issue nor have I checked the forums for other reports. Luckily, the shots are also captured on the camera’s CF card, so there’s always a back up. Like anything new – be it equipment, software, or new techniques, always try it out first on your own time.

trapped

Hanmi — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 01:00:00 +0000

A honey bee is hopelessly ensnared in a pumpkin spider’s web.