The fog has returned to Bratislava after very few fog less days. Today I thought I go up to the top of the SNP bridge, but in the end, the fog was just too thick to be worth it. I would just not see anything. Actually I like to check out web-cams before I go to the city, to get an idea how the conditions are. For Bratislava I like the ones one can find here. They really can help :)

This is a single exposure edited in Lightroom and Photoshop.

Technique: Photoshop Blend, Number of exposures: 1, Camera Model: Sony a7R + Metabones MkIII Adapter, Lens: Canon 16-35mm F2.8, Focal length: 16mm, Aperture: 16, Middle exposure time: 30s, ISO: 160, Tripod used: yes, Location: 48.139544, 17.103889

This was the closest I could get under the new Old bridge while taking photos of it on Sunday. I got right at the fence, and thankfully, my tripod was high enough to have the camera over it :)

This is a three shot HDR, created in Oloneo Photoengine, finished in Photoshop. I actually used two different ISO settings here. As I set the middle exposure to 30s, as I wanted a smaller aperture for the DOF, I had to bump the ISO to 400 for the +1EV.

There are few topics I want to mention today, so here goes :)

Free copy of Macphun Focus CK

If you are running a MacOS system, you may find this offer interesting. Until the end of the month, you can get Focus CK from Macphun, for nothing. Focus is used to create blur effects as tilt shift and similar. And did I mention you can get it for free? :) Download it here from the Macphun website.

8000 fans

So yesterday, finally my Facebook page passed 8000 fans. Thank you very much to everyone who liked my page, and I hope there be more and more of you :)

Stolen photo

I hate this topic, but from time to time one has to return to it, as there is no other way. I try to be very lenient with the use of my photos. As long the use is not commercial, there are no edits on the photo performed and one links back to this site, everyone can share my photos as much as they want.

But if a person takes a photo, implies that he/she took it by not including the author, and even modifying it, that something I can’t tolerate. And this is one example of this. This person on Instagram is really a thief, and not only of my photo, but many many more. By pretending to be the author of them, he amassed quite a big following, while stealing other work.

In this cases, I like to leave a comment, give the person a chance to correct the error. Even if he just admitted his mistake and edited the post to show who the true author is, I would be satisfied. But this person is just a thief and instead of doing so, he just deleted the comment and blocked everyone else who also commented on the stolen photos.

I hate this, because now my only option is to file a copyright infringement claim. I love taking photos, I love sharing my work. It motivates me to do more, share more. But people like this add a really sour taste to everything.

If you speak Croatian, here is an article about this thief, and few examples of his other stolen photos. And here is a link to my original photo as posted on this blog. Also you can check out the rules for using my photos here, on the Licensing page.

The new Old Bridge

I went out today, to check out how the reconstruction of the Old bridge continues. So here is for you, my first photo of the new Old bridge (not sure if they will changes the name). It’s this crazy green now, and it looks really good. So may new walkways and viewing areas that will be great for photos, and so many lights that when turned on will make it look great in photos. I can’t wait until they open it to public as I was not able to get closer right now.

This is a HDR from 4 exposures combined in Oloneo Photoengine, finished in Photoshop.

How about another fog shot today. This one was a really crazy evening, with the visibility being the worse I ever seen in Bratislava. And so you can compare, I’m including a photo from the same spot, taken during a clear day. The difference is just crazy. The bridge is completely hidden.

This is a single exposure, edited in Lightroom and Photoshop. I had to add quite a lot of contrast and a little bit of color, clean up dust spots and add noise, to prevent color banding.

I sometimes feel so stupid. Like today, when I decided to go down to Danube, to take a few photos. Of course I didn’t taken into account at all, that there is a huge amount of moisture in the air, and it’s quite cold. That means the rocks near the river were crazy slippery, partially covered with snow and ice. Luckily, I have quite a good balance, while holding a tripod in one hand, and I didn’t end up in Danube :) But it was quite funny, when even the tripos got covered with a think layer of ice.

So here for you, another foggy shot. This one is a HDR from two exposures, created in Oloneo Photoengine (used very mild settings, as I only wanted to darken the bright spots on the bridge) and finished in Photoshop.

Technique: Photoshop Blend, Number of exposures: 2, Camera Model: Sony a7R + Metabones MkIII Adapter, Lens: Canon 16-35mm F2.8, Focal length: 16mm, Aperture: 10, Middle exposure time: 10s, ISO: 100, Tripod used: yes, Location: 48.135830, 17.128345