Nikon D300

Double exposure of a Palm Tree.

Do you own a Nikon D300? Would you like to learn how to make "In Camera" Double Exposures like these? [click to continue…]

Room with a View

by Sherri on October 7, 2009

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View of Utica Reservoir in Alpine County, CA at sunrise, from inside our tent.

Fall has arrived. That said, I will be wrapping up my summer series on Utica Reservoir soon. Then, my focus will be on Fall images. This photo was shot from inside our tent at 5:30 in the morning. I didn't feel like messing with the tripod, so I shot this at ISO 3200. My camera (Nikon D300) does very well at the higher ISO's. I can also reduce the digital noise using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. Even so, I couldn't reduce the noise enough for my liking. So, what did I do? I took this image into Photoshop CS3 and applied "Cutout," one of my favorite artistic filters. It did exactly what I hoped it would. It covered up all the noise and rendered an image that was pleasing to the eye. I hope you like it! Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.
paragliding5 Paraglider flying over the Cronan Ranch, Pilot Hill, California. This week is the week for starting new things. On Monday, I started "Monday Makeover." Today, I am starting something else new and exciting. I am going to post a photo that makes me say "WOW." But, that's not all. I'm going to tell you why I think it qualifies as a WOW photo. 5 reasons why this photo makes me say WOW! Feeling or emotion - The first thing I get when I look at this photo is a feeling. While I can't actually say I know what it feels like to take off like this guy is doing, I can feel it in the photo. Composition - I love the composition. The elements in the photo are well balanced and are very pleasing to the eye. Color - The color really pops in this photo. I did use the Nikon D300 preset for Lightroom, to add a little punch to the color. Lighting - Even though this photo was taken in April at 1:40 in the afternoon, the lighting works for me. The way the wing is illuminated by the sun really catches my eye. Timing - The fact that this was shot during take off makes it a really strong image too. These guys don't always get enough lift to get off the ground. Don't go away just yet. I am also going to recommend that you look at this WOW photo by Kathleen Connally. If you would like to suggest a particular photo to be included in an upcoming Wednesday's WOW post, please send me an email @sherri@sherrimeyer.com. NOTE: The idea for "Makeover Monday" and "WOW Wednesay" were both inspired by junk email or snail mail I have saved. I knew they would come in handy for something someday! Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.

Quad Adventure in Truckee, California

by Sherri on May 4, 2009

jeff-riding-quad Jeff riding his Quad along the shore of Prosser Reservoir, Truckee, California. This shot was taken during our recent road trip to the Truckee/Lake Tahoe area to capture travel, adventure and lifestyle photos for our stock files. The first stop during our road trip was at Prosser Reservoir for a little Quad fun and photos. This photo is one of my favorites from our photo shoot. Photo Details - In Camera This pan photo was shot on a Nikon D300 with a Nikon 70-200 zoom lens attached, using the following camera settings: ISO 100, shutter speed 1/10 sec., aperture f 20. Post processing in Lightroom I set the Clarity to +100 and the Vibrance to +45. Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.

A Shot in the Dark

by Sherri on April 15, 2009

bonfire Three men standing around a bonfire in silhouette, Auburn, California, taken with the Nikon D300. This shot was taken at the annual April Fools party we attend nearly every year. I have always wanted to photograph the bonfire, but not bad enough to set up a tripod or use high speed film. Now that I have a Nikon D300, I decided to give it a try. I am very impressed with the quality of images that can be produced with this camera at night. It's also a lot of fun. If you own one of these cameras, I encourage you to go out for a night shoot and give it a shot. How I got the shot Camera settings for ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture are as follows: ISO 3200, SS 1/400 sec., f 7.1. Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.
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Photo #1 - Double exposure of a man in silhouette and a cloudy sky at sunset.

After writing my post "D300 Double Exposure" a couple of weeks ago, I've had several D300 owners contact me wanting to know how to make them. I decided since there was so much interest in this subject, I should write an article on "How to make multiple exposures with a Nikon D300." Making multiple exposures with the Nikon D300 is really quite simple. But, if you are like me, it's a lot easier to be shown or guided by someone, than it is reading the camera manual. Choosing a subject First, choose a subject you want to practice on. Don't be too particular about the subject at first. Just practice and have fun. You will learn what works and what doesn't. Also, there really isn't really a right or wrong way to do it. If it pleases you in the end, that's all that really matters.
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Photo #2 - Double exposure of a couple.

I have found that people make great subjects for multiple exposures. There are a lot of different ways you can shoot multiple exposures of people.
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Photo #3 - Double exposure of a Daffodil Plant. In the 1st photo, I focused on the first flower. Then, the wind came up and I took the 2nd photo.

Flowers also work really well and have unlimited possibilities. You are really only limited by your imagination.
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Photo #4 - Triple exposure of a Narcissus Plant.

Setting your Nikon D300 for multiple exposures
  • On the back of your camera, press the menu button at the upper left.
  • Select the shooting menu. Press right arrow on the multi selector button, to access the shooting menu.
  • Press the down arrow, until multiple exposure is highlighted.
  • Press right arrow and highlight number of shots. I recommend starting with 2 (the default), which gives you a double exposure.
  • Press the right arrow again and the number of shots will be highlighted. To change the number of shots, press the up or down button until the number you want is selected. Then, press the OK button.
  • Highlight auto gain and press the right arrow. Highlight either ON or OFF and press OK. Normally, you will want to leave the auto gain set to ON. This will automatically adjust the gain for multiple exposures. However, if your subject has a dark background, or you want to adjust the exposure manually, then set the auto gain to OFF.
  • Highlight done and press OK.
You are now ready to take your first shot. After taking your first shot, look in the monitor to see what you got. Then, frame and take your next shot. Note: After the first exposure is taken, if no operations are performed for 30 seconds, the camera will end the multiple exposure mode. Now, when you want to take another photo with the same amount of exposures, all you have to do is to return to the shooting menu, press the right arrow 2 times and your ready to take another multiple exposure. Other Tips Keep in mind that simple backgrounds work best. Also, the use of a tripod would make creating multiple exposures easier in some cases. However, I did not use one for any of these photos. How you can participate There are so many different ways to create a multiple exposure. Do you have any ideas you would like to share with the readers of this Photo Blog? Awesome! Feel free to add them in the comments section below. Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.

Spring Has Sprung!

by Sherri on March 29, 2009

narcissus31 Narcissus blooming in my yard, Auburn, California. This photo of the Narcissus Plant was taken on the same day this Narcissus photo in my previous post was taken. How I got the shot These Narcissus were shot on a Nikon D300, with an 80-200 zoom lens attached. I choose 3:30 in the afternoon to photograph them, so I could take advantage of my favorite type of lighting, backlighting. The shutter speed, aperture and ISO used were: 1/2000 sec., f 4.0 and ISO 200. For post-processing in Lightroom 2.1, I set the Clarity to -100 to give it a soft look and pushed the Vibrance to +100 to add punch to the color. Coming Next - "How to make multiple exposures with a Nikon D300." Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.

D300 Double Exposure

by Sherri on March 4, 2009

narcissus Nikon D300 double exposure of a Narcissus plant in my yard. I've been trying a lot of new things with my Nikon D300 lately. The most recent thing I tried was a multiple exposure. The first sign of spring here in the Sierra Foothill's is usually the abundance of Narcissus "springing" up everywhere. I decided they would be a good subject to use for my multiple exposures. I can remember making them many years ago with my Canon A-1. With the older cameras, you had to do a lot of math to create them. Making them with the D300 was a "piece of cake!" All I had to do was decide how many exposures I wanted to make on a single frame and it did the rest. Enjoy! Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the orange button, or enter your email address and click on "subscribe." Visit our Stock Photo Website for links to photo galleries.

The Eyes Have It

by Sherri on February 4, 2009

Cocoa watching the coyotes from our bedroom window. This photo was shot at ISO 3200, 1/800 sec, f 2.8 on a Nikon D300. I've been going through my backlog of images editing, reorganizing and looking for a photo to use in today's post. I was looking at a series of our dog, Cocoa, watching four coyotes from our bedroom window. I had to choose one out of the bunch and this one stuck out from the rest. Why? That's what I had to ask myself. They were all very similar. There were several that were perhaps as good as this one in some ways, but seem to be missing something. After analyzing them all, I chose this one because "the eyes have it!" I realized the eyes were truly the most important aspect of this story telling photo. This one was clearly the winner! Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the link and choose your reader, or type in your email address. Visit our Website for links to photo galleries.

Frozen Leaves

by Sherri on February 2, 2009

Frozen leaves, Auburn, California. These leaves were just too pretty to not get noticed. I found them lying in a ditch in my neighborhood, during my early morning walk. To get this color effect, I used the "Direct Positive" preset in Adobe Lightroom 2.1. I also set the "clarity" to +100 in the development module. This photo was also shot on my Nikon D300 at ISO 6400. This was a low-light situation and I didn't have a tripod with me. So, I decided it was another good opportunity to experiment with the higher ISO's on the Nikon D300. Thank you for visiting. If you would like to leave a comment, simply click on the "comments" link (add your message in the box) at the bottom of this post. You can also sign up for a "free" subscription to this Blog. Just look in the upper right hand side of the Blog under "Subscribe to Sherri's Blog." Then, either click on the link and choose your reader, or type in your email address. Visit our Website for links to photo galleries.