A trip to Tampa, Florida (Part 2)

The first thing we we're going to do was to head down to Clearwater Beach. It's about a half hour away. Driving without the doors on was pretty difficult to get used to at first. You're trying to concentrate on the road while things are whizzing past you in your peripherals.

 

We stopped on the way back to grab some shots of the Jeep.

 

Upon leaving we ran into some wildlife.

Remember the previous post that I mentioned about hanging out of the Jeep? That's the pelican I was talking about. (By the way, all images shown can be clicked on to be viewed larger.)

We came back to do some cannonballs into the pool.

...On to Part 3

A trip to Tampa, Florida (Part 1)

Took a trip down to Florida with my dad and my buddy Jamie for a week. We had to rent a car cause there was only one car at the house. I usually try to rent a convertible, cause you know, vacation. And it's also Florida, hot and sunny. And finally, we're photographers and you never know when you might have to hang out of a of a car traveling at 35mph struggling to photograph a pelican that is flying what seemed to be at arms length. Cause that happened.

We called the car rental company to book our rental before leaving Chicago and the rental company didn't have any convertibles which was a bummer. 

The flight was good, but was stuck in the middle seat during the most insane cloud formations and colors I've seen from the sky to date.

Touched down, got to the rental garage, and they told us to pick any vehicle with the trunk open. I spotted a bright red jeep with it's hatch swung open way down at the other end before the man could even finish that sentence. Score! And people think I need glasses.

The doors and roof came off that next morning and so did part of my skin the day after that because we forgot sunscreen. But before the doors came off, we needed to run to Home Depot for a ratchet and hex tool. By the way, don't expect to be let through airport security with a ratchet. Something about it being a metal object and the length of it. The hex tool thingy is a T50 and there are two screws per door. Upon walking out we noticed a storm between us and home and left part of the roof at home. So we got rained on.

Jeep doors off (1 of 1).jpg

I printed on Bamboo FineArt paper and this is what happened

Actually, I wish I could share what happened and while I tried taking various photos of the print showing the texture and the kind of look it had but it didn't work too well. I will say I'm about to throw out all my glossy lustre paper and make the switch to a fine art paper though. 

A couple of bullet points:

  • It raised the black point a considerable amount
  • which gave it less contrast, making it easier on the eye
  • yet still held it's punch

Believe it or not, this is the look that I've been trying to edit my photos to. I attached the sample print below but it doesn't do it justice at all. The feel of the paper itself is something I have never felt before either. Below that, is the original image of Yosemite Valley.

I guess the only other option would be, to buy a print and find out for yourself.     ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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Yosemite Valley Hahnemuhle Fine Art Paper
Yosemite Valley rocks trees - Web Prepared.jpg

Foggy Days Are Photo Days

It was pretty rainy today. Most people would disregard any outdoor activities. But any experienced photographer knows better.  I noticed it stopped raining and the sun was hiding behind a curtain of fog. It was already pretty low and sunset was happening within the hour.

I knew I had around 30 minutes to get to the city. 

Made it.

▶ My gear list: http://goo.gl/yqZCsS

Chicago Skyline Sunset Anchor in Lake Michigan Water.jpg

Fun in the snow with Fantasy Life

Went out Sunday to utilize the last bit of snow on the ground and another excuse to shoot the 200mm f/2. 

▶ My gear list: http://goo.gl/yqZCsS

Tyler Harney Photography-Fantasy-Snow-200mm-f2-(6).jpg

Epic snow shoot with Kaereilly

We couldn't have asked for better timing. It started snowing the moment Jamie and I pulled up to meet Kaerielly at our photo location. We ended up at a permission wall just off of Kedzie and I-55. Really cool place where artists are allowed to graffiti part of a wall with their design. We plan on coming back during the summer for a dusk shoot with the studio strobes.

 

▶ My gear list: http://goo.gl/yqZCsS

 

Tyler Harney Photography-Kaereilly Snow Shoot_ (13).jpg

Jamie did some filming but unfortunately ran into issues with the Moza Air gimbal we just bought last month. Typical equipment failure out on a shoot especially after all the testing we did at home.. 


Final images from the shoot

The incredible Nikkor 200mm f/2

Got my hands on the Nikkor 200mm f/2 this past weekend. What an epic lens. I don't have much to say other than wait for the next two blog posts for photos taken with this lens. It's definitely on the heavy side, coming in at 10lbs with the D850. The weight is good especially being a 200mm prime to hold steady. The speed of the autofocus and sharpness is incredible.

▶ My gear list: http://goo.gl/yqZCsS

 

Tyler Harney Photography- Nikon D850 with 200mm f2.jpg
Tyler Harney Photography- Nikon D850 with 200mm f2-2.jpg
Tyler Harney Photography- Nikon D850 with 200mm f2-3.jpg

A Spontaneous Trip To The Big Apple

My friend Nicole and I have this thing where we go 5-6 months without seeing each other and one day we'll call each other up to go out and shoot photos. We'll always get on the topic of traveling and where we want to visit next. When we got back this time, we found a super cheap flight to NYC in two weekends also remembering that both of us had $50 travel credit with United Airlines from the time we went to Seattle Washington and had delays on our outbound trip. In the end, we each paid $60 for a round trip to New York and couldn't pass it up.

We decided against am Airbnb and chose to stay at Pod 51 in Midtown. I have to say, it was the perfect location but it was a small room and you don't have a bathroom for yourselves. There are 4 bathrooms on each floor, each with their own showers. We never ran into problems with bathrooms not being available though.


▶ My gear list: http://goo.gl/yqZCsS

We headed to the World Trade Center and checked out the mall. Incredible architecture, photos for days. We ended the trip with a visit to the Rockefeller Center.

Empire State Building 2018

Empire State Building 2018

Manhatten Bridge and the World Trade Center at Night

Manhatten Bridge and the World Trade Center at Night

Gentle Snow Over Pine Trees

It snowed today. And it snowed a lot. I've been wanting to get out and get some 120fps footage ever since I got this new D850 camera. I originally had the idea to film some slow-motion footage of the snow falling in front of one of our malibu lights near dusk but it snowed so much during the day that the malibu lights were fully covered. Out with that idea.

 

Paired with my 70-200mm f/2.8E, I set up on my front porch and aimed up to a group of pine trees/cones in my front yard. One of my favorite clips to date.

 

 

A Quick Trip to Tampa, Florida

Took a recent trip down to Tampa with my dad for the week after Christmas. Like always, I didn't really have a plan for stuff to do while down there so on the first day I went to hang out at St. Petersburg. I tend to visit St. Petersburg on every trip down to see what has changed. They're still disassembling the pier that I believe they started last year? I liked that pier, although I never got to explore it, I did get a pretty cool sunrise shot of it a few years ago.

St. Petersburg 2014

St. Petersburg 2014

Although the pier is no longer with us, the wildlife is probably why I keep coming back. Pelicans, seagulls, squirrels and occasional dolphin fins. 

Equipped with the new Nikon D850 and the 70-200mm f/2.8E, I'll sit on that ledge all day.

St. Petersburg 2017

St. Petersburg 2017

There was a lot of pelican activity the day that I was there... Just on the other side of the harbor...  My luck.

I decided against moving and shot photos from where I was sitting, the same ledge that I always sit at. Remembering, it's a game of patience. 

Are they getting all the good shots?!

Are they getting all the good shots?!

I've been spotted!

I've been spotted!

These two guys were getting closer and closer so I decided to step back a little bit. 

Tyler Harney Photography-St.-Petersburg-Pelican.jpg
Tyler Harney Photography-Petersburg and pelican.jpg
Laying in the grass, army style, about 15 feet away.

Laying in the grass, army style, about 15 feet away.

I can't stress this enough when shooting wildlife, or any animals for that matter, you really need to get eye level with them. Not only will that fill your frame but it will also make you feel like you're actually there in front of them. You also have a perspective of what they see.  So next time you're shooting photos of your pets, take a seat and start snapping away.

Tyler Harney Photography-Petersburg woman pic and pelican.jpg

Anyway, that was St. Petersburg. Here's another example of getting eye level with you're subject. Sorry for the quality as it was a screen grab from one of the 120fps videos I shot while there.

Tyler Harney Photography-Petersburg and squirrel.jpg

The following are a few other photos I shot while down there. I used the new Nikon D850 with the 24mm 1.4G and 70-200mm 2.8E.

You can check out the rest of my gear here: https://kit.com/TylerHarney/photography-gear-list