Three HDR images of the Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Crossing progress as of March 22, 2014
Tag: louisville kentucky
HDR Photos of Progress on the Ohio River Bridge North Tower
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The Ironworkers and Carpenters have been very busy over the winter and the North Tower of the Downtown Span is progressing well. In this first image you can see the tower base as it stands today. The Ironworkers are tying the rebar for the next section and as soon as that is done the Carpenters will form that section for the next concrete pour.
I regret that I was under the weather for the first two months of this year and unable to get out to the Ohio River Bridges project very often. In looking back at the images from the end of 2013 I can see that there has been a great deal of progress. I’m back on the job now and will be posting on a regular basis as I did throughout the end of summer and into fall.
All of these images today are HDR images processed in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 and Aperture 3. As is my standard practice I shot everything handheld in three frame bracket sets of +2, 0 and -2 EV exposures. I applied 60% anti-ghosting during the merging of these three exposures and used the Balanced Preset as my starting point. After merging them and applying the preset I went back into the tone mapping settings and changed the Detail slider to Accentuated and the Drama slider to Deep. That is all I did in NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 before returning the merged file to Aperture 3 where I adjusted the color channels, sharpening, contrast and applied a small vignette.
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In this image the Ironworkers are working with the crane Operator to lift more materials onto the tower scaffolding. They have to communicate with the Crane Operator using hand signals and radios to safely manage material transfers. I am always amazed at the skill of these crane operators to place everything from a small bundle of steel reinforcing to massive concrete forms on the job with pinpoint accuracy.
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In this HDR image the concrete form is being removed from the angled surface of the eastern side of the eastern pier of the North Tower. The carpenters have unbolted it and rigged it for the crane Operator to lift it and transfer it to a waiting barge until it is needed again. Seeing the Carpenters alongside these forms gives scale to their size. Once again the Crane Operator and the Carpenters are working through radio and hand signals to safely move this massive piece of concrete form.
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For this HDR image I chose to shoot the removal of the concrete form in a vertical format to better capture the cranes and the upward momentum that the project exudes as it progresses.
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This HDR image shows both bases for the North Towers of the Ohio River Bridges Project Downtown Span. The progress that is being made really comes out in this HDR photo. The concrete forms have been removed from the base of the western side of the towers and scaffolding is surrounding the transition point as the base morphs into it final cylindrical shape which will be approximately 150 feet in the air when it is completed.
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This HDR image shows a cooling manifold being lifted into place. It is used to distribute cooling water through the concrete as it cures. When concrete cures there is a lot of heat inside it; this is due to the catalytic reaction of the materials that are used to make concrete. Without cooling this reaction would cause the concrete to overheat and lose it’s strength. The cooling process goes on until sensors built into the structure provide the information to show that it is safe to stop cooling the concrete and allow it to finish curing.
I’m really glad to get back to shooting the Ohio River Bridges Project and posting my work again. I hope that small hiccup at the beginning of the year won’t be repeated and I can complete my project of documenting the Ohio River Bridges Project and the men and women who are doing it.
HDR Images of a Winter Day in The Parklands of Floyd’s Fork
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This image is an HDR image captured in The Parklands of Floyd’s Fork in Louisville Kentucky. The trees and landscape were covered in ice which was creating a magical prismatic sparkle when the sun shown on them. I wanted to capture those colors and in making that attempt learned just how difficult that is.
As I reviewed the images back in my studio I could see faint hints of the colors that were being reflected as the suns rays diffracted through the ice but nothing was as spectacular as what I saw in person. I realized that my human experience was much more intense than my camera could record. Even with that discovery I’m still happy with these HDR images that resulted from that shoot.
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I especially liked the way the sun was illuminating the tree line while a cloud was shading the foreground in this image. The reflections on the ice around the vegetation are a nice way to bring the light forward in the scene while still reinforcing the sense of cold in the photo.
This image is also HDR and I think it really shows how extending the dynamic range through shooting brackets for HDR, with a strongly backlit subject, can capture a broad enough dynamic range to render the scene.
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When I’m shooting landscapes I like to include man made structures in the scene to show how they can exist in harmony with the natural environment. This bridge abutment with it’s strong geometric forms contrasts nicely with the flowing water of Floyd’s Fork. The bridge itself forma a frame to the sunlight’s reflection on the water. The railing along the top contrasts and reinforces the ice coated branches rising above it too.
This too is another case where the use of HDR technique in shooting, a three exposure bracket two stops apart, and HDR processing allowed me to capture information in the shadows as well as in the highlights. The extremely wide dynamic range of this scene could not have been captured as easily, if at all, with a single exposure. That is the main reason I totally embrace HDR photography even when I’m striving for strong realism in my images.
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I liked this landscape because the sun was filtering through the trees creating a starburst of light while casting strong shadows across the landscape. As in several of these HDR images the HDR techniques of shooting and processing allowed me to capture the feeling of cold while gathering enough detail to make the image interesting.
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I like the contrast of the complimentary colors of oranges and blues that are a major component of this composition. As in all of today’s images the use of HDR was the determining factor in the success of this shoot.
In closing today I’d like to say that whatever your feelings about HDR photography it has a place in photography. If you haven’t explored high dynamic range photography you are missing a valuable method that can open new vistas and expand your vision. Go on give it a try you too may find it is a wonderful tool that will allow you to express yourself in ways you have never before found possible.
Waterfront Park Winter in HDR
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Last week I decided to see what Waterfront Park looked like after several days of sub-zero weather and a couple of snow storms had blanketed the park. I wanted to emphasize the feeling of the coldness and crispness that winter on the Ohio River produces. I chose to shoot the above image because it seemed to encompass so many elements that identify the city and at the same time reinforce the brittleness and chill that was in the air. I was drawn to the complimentary colors of the gold in the sunset and the blue shadows on the shoreline. The river had been dropping for several days and there were shelves of ice layered one above the other at the river’s edge.
I knew going in that I was going to make these images as HDR images and shot my customary bracket set of three exposures at +2, 0 and -2 EV. I merged the three files into one high dynamic range image using NIK HDR Efex Pro 2. After merging them I applied the Balanced preset, adjusted the Detail slider to Accentuated and the Drama slider to Deep before returning the merged file to Aperture 3 for final processing. I chose to make these images in HDR because there was such a broad dynamic range in the scene from very dark areas along the shore to sunlight streaming through the bridge and around the skyline in the back of the images. Whenever there is such a wide dynamic range I find HDR processing allows me to show the scene as I saw it during my shooting.
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This second image is also a three frame bracket set taken much later in the evening. I was hoping to convey the quietness and solitude that a winter evening in Waterfront Park offers to those who venture there in January. I liked the way the street lamps illuminated the pathways and the shadows they cast across the ground. The lights on the Kennedy Bridge in the background are direct color compliments to the cobalt sky and clouds while the muted greens and yellows of the grass and street lamps that occupy the middle and foreground carry the eye along toward the river.
My HDR processing for this image was very similar to the first image though I did spend a little more time adjusting the color channels to get the feeling that I experienced as I surveyed the scene and decided to capture it. As with the previous image my goal here was to reinforce the icy cold that we are experiencing this winter here in Louisville.
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I have been photographing the Big Four Bridge for several years and because of that I have to really study the scene to come up with something fresh to shoot. For this image I wanted to capture not only the beautiful sunset but also the snow on the ground and the feeling of winter. Once again the complimentary colors of the oranges of the sunset and the icy blue of the shadows were primary elements in my composition.
This image too is another high dynamic range image using NIK HDR Efex Pro 2 and Aperture 3 to process it. My goal with my HDR work is to present a realistic, if heightened, vision of natural and manmade elements that evoke strong feelings in the viewer.
Bright Blue Morning in Waterfront Park
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This HDR image of Waterfront Park and the Ohio River was taken from the Big Four Bridge a couple of weeks ago. It was a cold crisp morning and the blue sky seemed Continue reading “Bright Blue Morning in Waterfront Park”
