Harold Davis's Blog, page 45
September 19, 2020
Tow-Mater
This is a cross-section of one our tomatoes harvested from our raised-bed garden, photographed on my light box. But for the pandemic, I probably never would have been growing vegetables—so consider this my fruit from my Victory Garden!
Tomato Slice © Harold Davis
September 18, 2020
World on Fire
I created this image during the 2019 fire season, using a marble, direct sunlight, and a small loose glass lens for the refractions (the simulated fire). I suppose the image title says it all, but this is of course only a small marble, and not our world. Let’s get it together to save our wonderful earth before it is too late!
World on Fire © Harold Davis
September 16, 2020
Webinar Noir on Saturday
Please consider joining us this Saturday, September 19, 2020 at 11am PT for our very special and distinctly somewhat offbeat webinar noir.
Noir is black, or dark. So “noir” can refer to a style that employs blackness of attitude and affect, black and white imagery, and/or a specific look—classically that of 1940s Hollywood, with Dames, Private Eyes, Fedoras, and more. Noir imagery, as in our webinar, is usually, mostly, but not always, monochromatic.
In this webinar, Harold will take a deep dive into noir as a style, and how noir can be used to create contemporary photos. Along the way, you can expect readings from Dashiell Hammett and Thomas Pynchon, and even a guest appearance from a Maltese falcon.
In the second half of the webinar, Harold will use examples from his own work to demonstrate implementing noir in specific Photoshop case studies.
Click here for registration and here for more info. Please also keep in mind Printing, Proofing, and all about Paper (a benefit for the Equal Justice Initiative) on Thursday, September 24.
Click here for our upcoming webinar list.
Alone © Harold Davis
What: Noir | Stylish Black & White
When: Saturday, September 19, 2020 at 11am PT. Duration between one and two hours, including Q&A
Where: On your computer or mobile device from anywhere via Zoom. Zoom authenticated registration and a tuition payment of $29.95 are required for enrollment. Seating is limited. The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SraMSnHCTnS2dTol-JlzIA
Details: Noir evokes black and white films of the 1940s with “dames”, private eyes in fedoras, low-key lighting, and harsh shadows. More generally, a sense of “noir” has come to mean a range of stylish black and white techniques.
This webinar noire will look at a range of monochromatic techniques, from the subtle to the wonderfully crude and edgy. Low-key imagery, working with harsh shadows, the Blossfeldt effect, and LAB inversions will be covered. The webinar will conclude with suggestions for incorporating more noire in your own work.
There will be ample time for Q&A.
Tuition: The tuition for this webinar is $29.95, and requires prior registration. Seating (on a first come, first served basis) is limited. You must register via Zoom to be enrolled in this webinar! The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SraMSnHCTnS2dTol-JlzIA
Approaching the Brandenburg Gate © Harold Davis
About Harold Davis: Harold Davis is a bestselling author of many books, including Creative Garden Photography and Creative Black & White Second Edition, both from Rocky Nook. He is the developer of a unique technique for photographing flowers for transparency, a Moab Master, and a Zeiss Ambassador. He is an internationally known photographer and a sought-after workshop leader. His website is www.digitalfieldguide.com.
September 14, 2020
Copyright for Photographers | Free Public Service Webinar for the Photographic Community
What: Copyright for Photographers | Free Public Service Webinar for the Photographic Community
When: Saturday, September 26, 2020 at 11:00am PT (2pm ET). Duration between one and two hours, including Q&A
Where: On your computer or mobile device from anywhere via Zoom. This is a free webinar, but pre-registration is required. Seating is limited. The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_AUjet6SNRzyhIDWBBv-NTA
Details: Most serious photographers realize that copyright is important, but the extent of how important is not always clear, and the details of how to obtain a registered copyright can seem shrouded in mystery. In this “public service” webinar, prominent intellectual property attorney David Deal details how to protect your work, and how to proceed when your work is infringed. David’s suggestions and recommendations will be illuminated with true accounts from the frontiers of copyright law as it practiced in real life. The discussion will be moderated by photographer (and David Deal client) Harold Davis.
There will be ample time for Q&A.
Who should attend: If you are interested in copyrighting your work, this webinar is a must.
Number of Seats and Tuition: This is a free webinar, but pre-registration is required. Seating (on a first come, first served basis) is limited. You must register via Zoom to be enrolled in this webinar! The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_AUjet6SNRzyhIDWBBv-NTA
About David Deal: David Deal is the founder of and principal attorney at The Law Office of David C. Deal, P.L.C. David is a nationally recognized intellectual property attorney, specializing in copyright infringement matters on behalf of photographers and businesses throughout the United States and Europe. David has successfully litigated cases of all sizes and complexities in a majority of Federal jurisdictions.
His website is www.daviddeal.com.
About Harold Davis: Harold Davis is a bestselling author of many books, including most recently Creative Garden Photography from Rocky Nook. He is the developer of a unique technique for photographing flowers for transparency, a Moab Master, and a Zeiss Ambassador. He is an internationally known photographer and a sought-after workshop leader. His website is www.digitalfieldguide.com.
Apple Slice Playdate © Harold Davis
Number of Seats and Tuition: This is a free webinar, but pre-registration is required. Seating (on a first come, first served basis) is limited. You must register via Zoom to be enrolled in this webinar! The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_AUjet6SNRzyhIDWBBv-NTA
September 13, 2020
You are invited to our SIP party [a free event]
Please come to our sheltering-in-place party on Sunday, September 27. BYOB (of course!). RSVP is required. The party starts at 2pm PT (5pm ET) and won’t be the same without you!
We are celebrating our photographic community and our upcoming 200th day of SIP (eeek!). So let’s party like it never ends! [only kidding about the never ending thing, but let’s party]
Please wear a costume if you feel like it (but not required). We do request clothing, at least where the webcam sees you!
BYOB and refreshments. There is no planned instruction (although you never know where Harold might segue way!). There will be plenty of talk about photography.
We really are all in this together!
As noted, this is a free event. Click here for more details, and here to register (RSVP).
Fireworks in Budapest © Harold Davis
Fireworks in Budapest (August, 2017): original blog post.
September 11, 2020
Lest we forget—9/11
These photographs of the World Trade Towers were made when I lived and worked as a photographer in New York in the 1980s. The upper two were made for an aerial photography assignment.
World Trade Towers aerial (vertical) © Harold Davis
World Trade Towers aerial (horizontal) © Harold Davis
New York Skyline with World Trade Towers © Harold Davis
World Trade Towers from Brooklyn © Harold Davis
World Trade Towers plaza © Harold Davis
For more about these photos, click here. For the story of my New York, New York image shown below, click here.
New York, New York © Harold Davis
September 9, 2020
Photography on Black Webinar on Saturday Sept 12, 2020
Photography on Black, on Saturday September 12, 2020 at 11am PT, will feature a live-action photography segment showing how to create striking images on a perfectly black background. In addition to showing how to capture multi-shot black-background images, this webinar will demonstrate successful post-production of images on black. Click here to register, and here for more information. Hope to see you there!
What: Photography on Black
When: Saturday, September 12, 2020 at 11am PT. Duration between one and two hours, including Q&A
Where: On your computer or mobile device from anywhere via Zoom. Zoom authenticated registration and a tuition payment of $29.95 are required for enrollment. Seating is limited. The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_EZbniD4eQ1G6C3A2Usw9nA.
Details: Imagery that presents a subject on a black, or very dark, background can be striking. In fact, the most iconic monochromatic photographs frequently involve a black background. In this webinar, Harold shows how to photograph with a bracketed low-key sequence to achieve perfect black backgrounds, and how to post-process images to enhance the black-background effect.
There will be ample time for Q&A.
Nesting Bowls and a Nautilus Slice © Harold Davis
Tuition: The tuition for this webinar is $29.95, and requires prior registration. Seating (on a first come, first served basis) is limited. You must register via Zoom to be enrolled in this webinar! The registration link is https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_EZbniD4eQ1G6C3A2Usw9nA.
Camellia Japonica © Harold Davis
About Harold Davis: Harold Davis is a bestselling author of many books, including most recently Creative Garden Photography from Rocky Nook. He is the developer of a unique technique for photographing flowers for transparency, a Moab Master, and a Zeiss Ambassador. He is an internationally known photographer and a sought-after workshop leader. His website is digitalfieldguide.com.
Apple Slices, a Spiral, and a Webinar Recording
OK, so things here are weird today. If the pandemic and putrid politics of hate weren’t bad enough—today we are living in twilight, enveloped by darkness. You’d think it was night outside. The fires that have blanketed the west coast states are forming a neutral density filter high in the sky, combining with the normal Bay area fog, and casting a lurid, dark orange tinted twilight.
On that note, or maybe not, here are some apple slices on the light box (this is a notionally pink apple, but it looks more like red to me once it has been sliced and placed on the light box).
There’s always one in every barrel! © Harold Davis
Next up, a combination of small rocks in a spiral on the light box with root vegetables and fruit.
Spiral of Pebbles, Fruit, and Root Vegetables © Harold Davis
Check out Hydrangea Blossoms and Rock Spiral for a related image.
Finally, do check out the cool recording of The Solace of Nature webinar on YouTube, co-starring photographer William Neill, and in recognition of the publication by Rocky Nook of Bill’s Light on the Landscape and my new book, Creative Garden Photography.
September 7, 2020
Peppers and a Pear
My idea with these yellow (actually, close to orange) peppers was to create a lattice composition on the light box. The lattice should be arranged so that it had a three-dimensional look. This is inherently non-trivial with a light box composition, because to take advantage of the back lighting one needs to keep the subject close to flat and two-dimensional. So I worked towards this effect by “hooking” the stems of the cut-out pepper slices through one another.
Orange Peppers © Harold Davis
This single pear called out to me as an image worth creating on its own, with the symmetry along the vertical axis of the two seeds the primary driver of the composition.
Pear Slice with Two Seeds © Harold Davis
Related images: Lady Pink Apples Slices with Lemons; Flower Made from Radish Slices; Chiogga Beet Slices Arranged as a Blossom; The Beet Goes On; Kiwi Fruit Slices; Red Onion Slices; Pear Slices.
September 4, 2020
Very Excited to List Four New Webinars!
Phyllis and I are very excited to list four new webinars through the autumn. Hopefully, there will be something for everyone from newbie to the most advanced photographer. We’ve included a free event in with the mix. It is our goal to keep supporting our community of photographers during these puzzling and challenging times, and to come out the other side healthy, stronger, more creative—and ready to capture the inner and outer worlds.
Click here for the full schedule of our upcoming webinars. Here are the new webinar listings:
Get Your Camera Off Auto | Saturday November 7, 2020 at 11am PT click here for registration. Click here for more information. Seats are limited.
Exploring the World with Harold Davis [Free Webinar] | Saturday November 28, 2020 at 11am PT click here for registration. Click here for more information. Seats are limited. FREE!
Harnessing the Power of Composition in Your Photography | Saturday December 5, 2020 at 11am PT click here for registration. Click here for more information. Seats are limited.
Mandalas and Patterns on the Light Box | Saturday December 12, 2020 at 11am PT click here for registration. Click here for more information. Seats are limited.
Road Less Traveled © Harold Davis
