IM Digital - Photo Blog of Ivan Makarov

Where World's History Changed

2008-06-27T21:39:00.001-06:00

Where World's History Changed, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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Again, a bit more of American history for you. This is the site of President Kennedy's assassination in Dallas, Texas. This picture is taken right across the street from the spot where Zupruder filmed his famous video. Please scroll over notes to see where action took place. To read more about the surrounding events, visit here.

I found it interesting that there is a museum in the building where Oswald shot Kennedy, and that the square where it all happened has been preserved to look pretty much the same way it looked on that historical day of November 22, 1963, a day many of you remember. If you were alive that day, how did you find out about the event?

The Tip of the Giant

2008-06-26T23:37:00.001-06:00

The Tip of the Giant, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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One more view of the Fountain Place skyscraper in Dallas, Texas.

The Fountain Place

2008-06-22T19:47:00.001-06:00

The Fountain Place, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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One of the most beautiful skyscrapers I have seen. From the web-site:

"Fountain Place is a dramatically sculpted 1.2 million-square-foot office tower of green reflective glass rising 60 stories from a tree-lined water garden at Ross Avenue and Field Street in downtown Dallas. A symbol of superior architecture, Fountain Place rises out of an oasis of fountains, pools, trees and flowers on the northern edge of the Dallas central business district."

In the Heart of Dallas

2008-06-15T14:04:00.001-06:00

In the Heart of Dallas, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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I just came back from Texas, where I spent a few days. I've been to the East and West Coast, and Wild West, but never been to what they call Mid-West. I'll tell you this - they know how to cook over there. I also enjoyed wondering around downtown of Dallas. They have amazing sky scrapers there, and at the same time the old downtown where Kennedy was shot is still the same. Next few images will be from this trip.

Technical details - I know I'll get asked, so I say upfront - this is not an HDR. I took one exposure to get this image, but it was 25 seconds long. I used two filters - ND400 to get the exposure time from 1/125 to 25 seconds, and a 3-stop ND grad to control the contrast between the bright sky and not-so-bright foreground. Post processing was a simple RAW conversion.

The Rock Farm

2008-06-11T12:04:00.001-06:00

The Rock Farm, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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As I described before, this particular beach was not the safest place to walk around, as waves would often cover these sharp rocks, and we had to watch ourselves. MumbleyJoe told me that last time he visited this place back in January, the water wasn't nearly as close to the shore as it is now.

This was the moment the evening was officially over. Few minutes later colors disappeared and night took over.

The Edge of the Day at Golden Gate

2008-06-09T22:38:00.001-06:00

The Edge of the Day at Golden Gate, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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Besides being a good rocky beach, Marshall Beach also offers alternative views of the Golden Gate Bridge that most tourists coming to San Francisco do not see (the beach is a bit of a hike, and the trail is easily overlooked), and it's there that one realizes that this big famous bridge is just a tiny structure in a huge Bay, not the other way around, as pictures taken from the top may suggest.

The Rocks of Marshall Beach

2008-06-07T10:50:00.001-06:00

The Rocks of Marshall Beach, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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Last Saturday I met up with MumbleyJoe at Marshall Beach, a beach few hundred yards below the Golden Gate Bridge. The sunset was beautiful, but it is easy to get caught up in it and completely forget that the waves can crash on you out of nowhere. Several times during the evening we found our equipment and camera bags drenched in salt water of the Pacific ocean, and as I got home, I had to spend an hour dusting off the sand and cleaning tripod, lenses, filters and even camera body.

This was also my first outing with the new ND400 filter that supposed to help capture longer exposures. I loved using it, but it'll take some learning to start using it properly. In this image I combined two exposures, one for the sky and one for the ground. ND graduated filters will help me capture this in one shot, but they will arrive later this week.

Ancient Elements

2008-06-05T16:08:00.001-06:00

Ancient Elements, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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This is probably my last picture from the outing to Big Sur last Monday.

It bugles my mind to think that this rock at Garappata Beach has probably been standing on that beach for thousands of years, before any human have ever stepped a foot on the Coast of California.

Rocky Pt Bridge at Big Sur

2008-06-01T21:01:00.001-06:00

Rocky Pt Bridge at Big Sur, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

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A bit of American history for you.

Rocky Point Bridge is a twin bridge located just half-mile away from the identical bridge called Bixby Bridge, which you may see in the distance on the image I posted earlier. Both were built in 1932, and with their construction, it opened a whole new world for automobiles to discover, as previously it could have taken as long as three days to cross 70-mile stretch of coast we now know as Big Sur. These bridges began a new era of travel along the Pacific coast of California, and are now a popular destination to tourists coming to see Big Sur from all over the world.

The bridges are also famous as they often appear in movies and in TV car ads (hence, the look to this photograph that I wanted to portray). I'm not sure why Bixby Bridge tends to be more famous of the two - they look exactly the same to me.

The Day Ends at Hurricane Point

2008-05-29T13:45:00.002-06:00

Last week we've experienced big fires in Santa Cruz Mountains. While I feel sorry for people who had to evacuate out of their homes, or people whose property burned down, I was at the same time glad, since as a result of these fires, the atmosphere in the Bay area got contaminated enough to produce spectacular sunrises/sunsets. Outside of always-overcast Moscow, San Jose has the most unspectacular sunrises/sunsets I have seen. You have to wait for weeks sometimes for some clouds and red color to appear.

And I was right. During the past week, every sunrise and sunset was spectacular. Plenty of clouds, plenty of rich saturated red colors and drama - exactly what landscape photographer is looking for on the edges of the day and night. With that in mind, I took off to Big Sur Coast last Saturday, where I was lucky to witness this drama. Finding a good point to capture some coast and burning skies can be tricky in that area of ever-winding roads, but I decided to settle and shoot a few frames at Hurricane Point, where I captured this image. What you are seeing there is a famous Bixby Bridge in the distance, and from this point, I am looking North.

So there are still plenty advantages of living in Northern California - and one of the main ones is that I live just an hour away from perhaps the greatest stretch of Pacific coast you'll ever find.

Please see it Large.

2008-05-21T09:08:00.002-06:00

Vincent Versace, whose book I briefly reviewed below, appeared as a guest blogger at Scott Kelby's blog today, with an article that explores the theme of how to be taken by your photographs rather then how to take photographs. Great thought provoking read on creativity and why of photography, and take a look here to read it.

Gift of Nature + Two Books I am Reading

2008-05-21T01:08:00.004-06:00

This image is a result of the recent things that I learned in the process of trying to improve the overall level of my photography. I am currently reading two books that are changing my whole to how I see things, as well as how I post process my images. Let me share a few thoughts on these two books and why I like them.

The first book is Photography and the Art of Seeing: A Visual Perception Workshop for Film and Digital Photography by Freeman Patterson. I’m not sure why I did not get this book sooner, but better late than ever. This is not a book on exposure or on the rules of composition. It is much more – it is a book about how to truly see and how to better express yourself through your photography. The book is well written and is accompanied by beautiful images by the author, and every chapter makes you think more deeply about yourself, about the goals you may have about your photography and about what you may want to do next to take it to the next level. It has plenty of good exercises intended to help us develop the artistic vision. The reason why I like this image is because it was taken right outside of our Silicon Valley home (in other words, one of the more boring parts of California when it comes to nature). I passed by these flowers several times every day without ever noticing them, but one day I opened my eyes as directed by Patterson and visualized exactly this image. I am learning that I don’t have to be at a National Park to capture images I like. In fact, Patterson himself have taken good majority of his favorite images in his backyard.

The second book is Welcome to Oz: A Cinematic Approach to Digital Still Photography with Photoshop by Vincent Versace. First, take a look at Vincent’s portfolio (here is the link). He’s a brilliant photographer with a very unique style. Second, this is not just another book on Photoshop. Though various advanced Photoshop techniques are covered, Vincent’s goal with this book is to teach you a new approach to seeing the final image in mind. I love his idea of drawing an image map for various adjustments I need to make on my images. Our eyes see in a certain way, and Vincent does a great job of teaching difficult concepts of how to make images more visually appealing. He’s a brilliant teacher, and this book is a five-year work of his that he’s put a lot of soul into. Bottom line - it is a book about creativity. For this image, I used what I learned in the book to selectively adjust contrast, color and light in this image.

If you are like me and are looking for ways to take your creativity to a new level, these books may help you just like they are helping me.

Mt Watkins at Mirror Lake

2008-05-13T22:09:00.001-06:00

Mt Watkins at Mirror Lake, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

Chilnuana Cascades

2008-05-10T17:42:00.001-06:00

Chilnuana Cascades, originally uploaded by Ivan Makarov.

Please see it LARGE.

Located in the southern part of the Yosemite National Park
(near Wawona), Chilnuana Falls is reached by several mile hike, but the cascades extend into a nice stretch of mini-waterfalls that's only about 10 minutes away from the parking lot.

Merced River in the Morning

2008-05-08T08:59:00.001-06:00

Merced River in the Morning, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

What you are seeing floating down the river is the ice from Yosemite Falls. The temperature at night was still dropping below 0C at that time of the year in Yosemite, and part of the waterfall would freeze during the night and then unfreeze in the morning. How nature can freeze part of such a powerful waterfall I do not fully understand.

Lower Yosemite Falls from Merced River

2008-05-06T20:49:00.001-06:00

Lower Yosemite Falls from Merced River, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

To see my other pictures taken at Yosemite, click here.

Morning Light Hits El Capitan

2008-05-03T18:10:00.002-06:00

Morning Light Hits El Capitan, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

To see my other pictures from Yosemite, click here.

Apparently this spot, called Devil's Elbow, was Ansel Adams' favorite view of El Capitan and at least two of his famous pictures of El Capitan were taken here. I can see why.

I decided to change the pattern of my presentation of photos slightly. I want to focus more on projects and interconnected themes, rather than posting random images. Even though I already have new material posted, I'd like to finish my Yosemite images first. I think my work will make more sense when it is better organized and when there is connection between my images.

The Elm Tree at Cook's Meadow

2008-04-27T18:34:00.002-06:00

The Elm Tree at Cook's Meadow, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Bridalveil Cascades

2008-04-26T01:27:00.002-06:00

Bridalveil Cascades, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

"Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts." - Rachel Carson

There are many pictures out there of the famous Bridalveil Falls in Yosemite. Here are the cascades that run at the bottom of that waterfall.

Upper Yosemite Falls

2008-04-24T10:40:00.002-06:00

Upper Yosemite Falls, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

I recommend it in LARGE.

At 2425 feet (739), Yosemite Falls is the highest measured waterfall in North America. What you are seeing here is the upper section of it, which is a 1430-feet drop.

I took this with Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8. I think this image nicely shows the sharpness you can archive with this quality of lens. I'll have a more detailed review posted shortly.

The End of the Day in Yosemite Valley

2008-04-23T10:12:00.002-06:00

The End of the Day in Yosemite Valley, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

We just got back from three days in Yosemite National Park. We are lucky to live just 200 miles away from it, when most visitors travel thousands of miles into this magic place.

This is a famous view of the valley (the Tunnel View). I have an image by Ansel Adams taken from the exact same spot at my desk at work to help me relieve stress when needed. I, of course, had to come back there and create my own version as well as to share the moment and the view with you all. You can see the famous El Capitan, Half Dome and Bridalveil Falls from left to right, all in one view.

If you have not yet been to Yosemite, you have to visit it before you die.

Spring Time in California

2008-04-17T23:35:00.002-06:00

Spring Time in California, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

You see the trees blossoming all over the place here in Northern California right now.

The Edges of Nature

2008-04-13T15:15:00.002-06:00

The Edges of Nature, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

Please see it LARGE.

#51 Brian Campbell

2008-04-11T01:38:00.002-06:00

#51 Brian Campbell, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

To celebrate the start of the battle for the Stanley Cup, here is another hockey player that plays for the Sharks. Brian Campbell arrived in San Jose in February from Buffalo Sabres, on the day of the trade deadline. He's done very well in his role on the defense and the offense and the Sharks transition game has been nothing but outstanding.

He's got an interesting pre-game ritual where he skates around and juggles the puck in the air ala Tiger Woods.

To see his NHL career stats, click here.

By the way, the Sharks are 1-1 in the series against the Flames.

Beacon in the Night

2008-04-06T19:13:00.002-06:00

Beacon in the Night, originally uploaded by IvanoMak.

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One more night shot of the Oakland Temple. As I mentioned before, the size of the building and how it is lit makes it hard not to notice anywhere in the Bay on a clear night.

This image is dedicated to my Flick friend DanielKHC and his superb digital blending work, which works excellently for night exposures. I've used that technique for this image by blending differently exposed parts from three images to produce single better-balanced exposure, though Daniel got so good at it he now uses 14 exposures! I have a lot to learn, but I like this technique for the ability to make realistic-looking but nicely exposed images.