My first crack at HDR images. It seemed only fitting that my first attempt be with photos from my favorite place on Earth.
I don’t have a camera that does bracketing so I had to manually adjust the shutter speed for each exposure. All in all, I’m pretty happy with how they came out. what do you think?
As you can tell from the watermark, I don’t have the full version of photomatix. I’m not sure if I’m ready for that investment yet.
As we find ourselves in December once more, I’d like to present the third annual Hubble Space Telescope imagery Advent Calendar for 2010. Keep checking this page – every day, for the next 25 days, a new photo will be revealed here from the Hubble Space Telescope, some old and some new. This year there is also a temporary RSS feed for the calendar. I continue to feel very fortunate to have been able to share photographs and stories with you all this year, and I wish for a Happy Holiday season to all those who will celebrate, and for Peace on Earth to everyone. – Alan
Advent calendars have been a tradition in my family for as long as I can remember; my parents still get a calendar for all the grandchildren every year. So finding this magical combination of family tradition and astronomy was quite pleasing.
National Geographic is once again holding their annual Photo Contest, with the deadline for submissions coming up on November 30th. For the past eight weeks, they have been gathering and presenting galleries of submissions, encouraging readers to rate them as well. National Geographic was again kind enough to let me choose some of their entries from 2010 for display here on The Big Picture.
People who know me know that photography is a major part of who I am. Looking through this small sample of submissions for this year’s National Geographic photo contest, however, has helped me realize that my own photography SUCKS!
Look at this amazing collection. Do it! Do it NOW!
Praying Tibetan monks seen through flames, distorted by the heat shimmer above the mass cremation of victims of the earthquake in Yushu County on April 17, 2010. (AP Photo) #
Lava spurts out of the site of a volcanic eruption at the Eyjafjallajl volcano near the Eyjafjalla glacier in Iceland on March 27, 2010. (HALLDOR KOLBEINS/AFP/Getty Images) #
Photographer Jamey Stillings speaks very casually about his relationship with
bridges. Even though his photo studies began over 20 years ago when he
was an MFA student. Even though he has been obsessively documenting the
construction of the Colorado River Bridge at the Hoover Dam for over year. Oh,
and he almost forgot to mention that his son’s name means “bridge” in another
language. In fact, Stillings seems almost surprised at the recurring
theme.
I’ve been across Hoover Dam a few times since construction started on this engineering marvel; it’s always interesting to see how much progress has been made from the last trip.
Announced at the beginning of February, the 18-megapixel Canon EOS 550D
(marketed as the EOS Rebel T2i in North America) is the successor to last year’s
15-megapixel 500D / T1i. Putting aside the increase in pixel count, the 550D /
T2i offers a 1,040,000-dot LCD screen with an aspect ratio of 3:2, a 63-zone
metering sensor – identical to the one used in the higher-specified EOS 7D –
subtly redesigned controls, standard ISO settings of 100-6,400 (expandable to
12,800), simplified Live View focusing and an improved video mode featuring
1080p Full HD recording at 24/25/30fps and 720p HD capture at your choice of
either 50 or 60fps, with full manual control over exposure and gain. Supporting
SD, SDHC and even SDXC memory cards, the Canon EOS 550D / T2i is currently
available priced at £699.00 / $799.99 for the body in the UK / US, respectively.
