Merry Christmas, C-Brat Friends!

J

JamesTXSD

Active member
For a bit of Christmas cheer: we participated in the annual Lighted Boat Parade last night. Last year, our SunCat took first place in the small sailboat category. In winds gusting to 29 mph, sharing the cockpit with the generator, we mixed it up with the big boys. Definitely had the cute-factor in our favor. We were wet to the skin from spray and sweat (temp was in the upper 70s when we finished the parade). Last night, the wind was 10-15, temp in the mid-60s... and a light drizzle. We entered the C-Dory this year, and were dry and comfortable in the cabin. No chance of a prize this year, since we were the smallest boat in the big powerboat category... and some of those folks have a lighting budget that's more than our boat cost. But, we had fun and got lots of cheers from the people watching.

The neighbors came out and clapped for us as we came down our canal. We'll leave the lights on for one more night, then they're coming off so we can get back out there and play with our boat!

Hope your holidays are merry and bright!

Best wishes,
Jim B.

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PS - I sat by one of my sailing buds at the skippers' meeting. He said, "We've got our rain gear, we're ready to go." I said, "We've got our windshield wipers, we're ready, too!" :xlol
 
Jim-

Great card and photo!

That MOON is suspiciously LARGE!

Or was it the telephoto lens?

Makes no difference, great work!

Merry Christmas!

Joe.
 
Sheesh! Can't anyone enjoy an image just for the image's sake? :wink

I recently retired from 32 years as a professional photographer. We had been digital for years, including a full digital lab. So, every shot I do has some... umm, enhancement. Do you think all those pretty girls I photographed were actually that good looking? Well, OK, most of them were, I just made them look even better.

For those of you looking close: there are about 8 layers on that image. The original, then a duplicate layer with more shadow density added (to darken the sky and houses), then removal of the portion of that layer around the boat (to keep the boat lighter). Then color correction of both of those layers to add a bit more blue to it to give the appearance of early evening. Additional burn to darken the edges more. In my post above, there was mention of drizzle... yep, no moon, no stars, just black. So, I added the moon. To make it more interesting, a bit of a glow around the FULL moon (which won't happen for two more nights :mrgreen: ). Well, that ol' moon wouldn't look real if there wasn't a reflection of it in the water (see that?). And if you look really close, there is some detail shadow that I airbrushed into the moon. Then added the text, with a glow around it to match the moon. Still another layer with the blue and cream colored lines. To give some interest to that line, it was beveled to add yet another dimension. Saved the original with all those layers, then flattened and converted to a jpg to be able to post here. I actually shot that early this morning when I went out to get Joan her Sunday paper (in the rain). From shooting to posting here, took about 10 minutes, including the enhancement. Kinda takes some of the romance out of the whole thing now, doesn't it? 8)

The trick to a good PS enhancement is to match the color, direction of light, and perspective so that you can't tell. Over the years, I've presented seminars to professional photographers associations on lighting, enhancement, business, etc. A good shooter doesn't just take a photo, he creates an image. It should happen in your head first, and then make it look that way in the finished image. So, Merry Christmas again, ya ol' Scrooges! :xnaughty

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
It's Magic! Or something like that!

Thanks, Jim, for the low-down and coming clean!

Now you can tell Santa you've been a good boy and deserve a good treat!

I'll leave the rest up to the Blonde and the tropical weather!
 
Since we're all getting into the holiday mood around here, we thought we'd share this. I bundled up and braved the elements today to hang the Christmas stuff. Oh, the adverse weather conditions we work in down here! :lol:
Christmas_lights_going_up_2006_2.jpg
 
416rigby":2qjy62s3 said:
Since we're all getting into the holiday mood around here, we thought we'd share this. I bundled up and braved the elements today to hang the Christmas stuff. Oh, the adverse weather conditions we work in down here! :lol:
Christmas_lights_going_up_2006_2.jpg
Click to expand...

"Bundled up," eh? Not even close to the bundling we did today before hanging lights and wreathes.....and we moved FAST too! so we could get inside to warmth :xlol

Happy Holidays C-Brats!
 
Absolutely fantastic photo Jim. Thanks for the explanation on how it is done. It gives me some ideas on how to create better photos.
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Dave dlt.gif
 
The other day when we were out on Lake Washington son Joe handed me his old digital camera. It's an Olympus C-2020Z. He showed me how to turn it on/off., how to put it on "P" and how to snap pictures. He said that's all I need to know. So I've been doing that and it's fun. When I was a kid I remember looking at a book of photos entitled "The Family of Man" and being so truly moved by those images. Even today I can see in my mind's eye some of those pictures, of joys and sorrows. . Sometimes when life is flying by it is a remarkably good thing to capture an instant and savor it. Merry Christmas guys. May there be Peace on Earth some day.
 
dotnmarty":10td2b21 said:
... Sometimes when life is flying by it is a remarkably good thing to capture an instant and savor it. Merry Christmas guys. May there be Peace on Earth some day.
Click to expand...

Words to live by. Digital cameras have made it easy to capture that instant and be able to review it right now to know that you have it. We carry a camera with us every time we go out on the boat - you never know when those dolphins will play alongside the boat... or you'll see that one boat that takes you back to what first captured your interest in boating... or a glorious sunset... or that big smile on your boating mate's face. Digital makes it easier to make a photo log of your adventures; so easy to add a photo to text. In my industry, some called it "memory insurance." I've probably mentioned it before, but we do a newsletter about our travels (done that for years, we're at issue 39 so far this year) for ourselves and family. Joan keeps them in a three ring binder by year (and so much easier to keep up than a photo album). Then, it's also my job as we get close to the holidays to narrow all those images down to a few for Christmas cards. It will be an especially tough one this year with our C-Dory travels.

Keep shooting and posting, y'all.

Happy Holidays,
Jim B.
 
Not only is it easier to capture those "memory insurance" moments, but you can easily enhance them or even change them with a digital photo.

Jim – have you ever thought of doing a web site of your travels? With your righting skills and photographic skills, I bet it would be a knock out.
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Dave dlt.gif
 
Jim B. I have been going through the entire "Gaff Mag" searching each and every picture of the fine fishing equipment they have to offer looking for your credit line. I am sorry to say I have not found it yet, but I promise to keep on looking until I do.

For those not familiar with "Gaff" I am posting an example of their fine fishing equipment here: :xlol
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Mike-

Thanks for the photo! Looks interesting to this old salt of the sea.....

Offhand, I'd say the GAFF'S equipment is in a very fine state of tune, broken in, but not abused, and, despite the GAFF'S moniker, definitely not a hooker.

Joe.
 
Jim --
Congrats on your beautiful Christmas card -- we've made a print and posted it on the frig for all the family to enjoy this Holiday -- you have given us all a beautiful gift and thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas to you two and to all --
 
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