Two Pics

Two pics taken with the Leica D-Lux 4 on a recent walk with my dogs through the Windy Hill Open Space Preserve.

Black and white photo taken as the early morning fog was dissipating. The fog back lights the tree giving a interesting glow to the picture. 

Photo taken along a creekside path with light filtering through the trees and surrounding foliage. Lots of color contrast and range. The Leica D-Lux 4 is a versatile little camera that is easily carried in a jacket pocket and is easy to use even when you have two large dogs on leash. Shooting in RAW gives you good quality images that are easily fine tuned in Adobe Lightroom.

Hanging On

Yes winter is still hanging on here in Northern California.We have had rain every day this week and not just a little. So I'm sharing some pictures I took this week with my Leica D-Lux 4, I'm one of those folks that won't drag out my Leica M-9 in the rain. All pictures were post processed with Adobe Lightroom 3.0

In between rain storms this little gem was sitting out ready to be serviced and put back on the street for spring and summer fun.

The clouds are moving out leaving a smattering of rain and a lovely blue sky in its wake.

Horses out in their pasture grazing away waiting for more rain to return. Silver Efex Pro 2 was used to convert to a antique plate look with a tattered frame to accent the old and aged look.

Interesting building and lovely light filtering through the trees highlighting the building and green foliage.

On the top of the hill this lovely villa sits behind stone walls and wooden gates. Processed in Silver Efex Pro 2 I turned the image into a black and white image and then using the add a control point I brought back some of the color to help direct the eye to the stone wall and villa itself. Note I also added just a touch of color to some of the plants in the front of the picture to give the illusion of natural light.

More storm clouds moving in over the foothills. Viveza 2 filter was used to bring out and contrast this photo.

D-Lux 4 Musing

Some thoughts on the Leica D-Lux 4, its usefulness, quality of build and quality of images. In the last year I have taken in excess of 4000 exposures with my D-Lux 4 over 154 days shooting this camera. My first thought is I take this camera with me more than any of my other cameras so size and easy access has played a important factor in its heavy use.
I have tried the camera in all the different modes available and have found that I shoot in aperture priority mode the most. The macro selector switch allows for very acceptable macro focus shots with very close focus distances. Some of the other settings that I have found useful are the burst mode in snapshot mode that I have used to capture continuous action shots. Other scene mode choices that are useful are high dynamic and portrait. The movie or video option allows for limited video capture at acceptable quality levels.
The build quality is excellent, battery life has been more than acceptable and still holds its charge at original levels. Wear and tear, all I can say is that I have dropped the camera several times, it has been in and out of all types of weather and the camera still works and looks great. Plus I still have almost two years left on the three year factory warranty.
I will continue to use this camera for at least this year before I consider upgrading to a newer camera. The Leica D-Lux 5 seems to have upgraded the zoom range and some other minor functions but not enough for me to upgrade at this time. The D-Lux 4 takes excellent photos and is extremely flexible for people want more photographic control than your every day compact cameras.
Pictures for this week taken with the D-Lux 4:

 Winter Skies

 Antique Look

 Trespassing is Frowned Upon

Wild cat that lives creek side.

Sights

Cornucopia of images taken with the Leica D-Lux 4. Everything from lovely skies, trees and landscapes to a interesting building and friends.
First on a quiet lane colorful trees highlighted by the blue sky and clouds. Rendered with Adobe Lightroom and Topaz Labs Adjust 4.

Fallen leaves lead up to the estate gates. I got a little damp while taking this photo as I had to get the camera very close to the ground to get the perspective I was looking for. Rendered with Adobe Lightroom and Topaz Labs Adjust 4.

One of my dogs special friends just waiting for another treat. Rendered with Adobe Lightroom and Topaz Labs Adjust 4.

While wandering down a private road I saw this house under going renovation and just had to have a closer look. What I found was that the exterior had been decorated with artwork etched into the exterior coating. Rendered with Adobe Lightroom and Topaz Labs Adjust 4.

Who ever the artist was they certainly were talented.

Last of the wall etchings, you just never know what you will find when you are out exploring.

A special friend Daisy who just can't wait for her carrots. Rendered with Adobe Lightroom and Silver Efex Pro.

Misc

Leica D-Lux 4 pics taken this week. I'm always looking for interesting things that occur naturally to photograph. Sometimes it is people, places or inanimate objects. Here are some miscellaneous subjects taken during my daily excursions.  9/04/2010 Had to add a few more pics from Saturday morning taken on a leafy back road.  

This leaf is naturally framed by light filtering through the trees.

Even though it is still summer this leaf is already sporting its autumn colors.

Straight over the top, looking straight down on the leaf highlighted by the stem casting its shadow across the leaf. Subtle color change is a surefire indicator of fall being just around the corner.

Stuck - a leaf blown in the wind gets caught in the bark of a redwood tree. Nice contrast in color and texture and no this photo was not staged.

Looking up - A old stone gate post with what is left of a light post as the light is filtered through the trees. Converted to black and white with Silver Efex Pro.

Spokes - What is left of this old wooden wagon wheel now posing as a garden ornament.

Rest - Ten year old German Shepherd takes a rest and waits patiently while I take a few more pictures.

Contrast - strong contrast of light, dark and structure in this close up of a stone bridge. Converted to black and white with Silver Efex Pro.

Contrasting Light

More Leica D-Lux-4 pictures taken the week of August 8-14th. Starting with these roses taken through some trees as I peered into this hidden garden. The image was captured with a manual exposure setting of -1 and 2/3. I used this setting so that the light coming off the flowers would not be blown out and to enhance the darkness behind the flowers. Processed using Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop CS5.

A old sink that had been discarded beside the road. The sink is highlighted by the filtered light coming through some trees and rust in contrast to the original color.

A peaceful creek setting taken mid day again I used a manual exposure setting of -1.0.

I located this lizard lounging on the bank of a pond and slowly got close enough to get this shot without disturbing him. I try not to disturb wildlife when taking pictures if at all possible.

Here are a few black and white photographs that were processed using Silver Efex Pro. The highlights in the boys hair where heightened using Color Efex Pro 3 and applying the Glamour Glow Filter.

A pond scene with the dark water contrasted by the sun drenched foliage, make for a interesting picture with reflections highlighting the water.

Dark to light gives depth to this picture as the strong light at the rear of this picture draws ones eyes from the front to the rear. I metered on the subjects face and shirt and it worked out well.

Using Light

Today's pictures were taken with the Leica D-Lux 4 and concentrates on light and how it impacts your pictures.

This flower picture was taken in program mode at minus 2 exposure. The result is that the flower itself that was strongly over exposed compared to the background is now properly exposed and the background is under exposed and the results are what I was visualizing when I took it.

I this picture the available light was bright sunlight that was filtered through the trees and nicely highlighted these leaves. The details in the leaves were brought out with Topaz Labs Detail 2.

This picture was taken in extreme lighting conditions and then processed with Nik Software Color Effects Pro. I used the glamor glow filter to accentuated the warm colors and darken the background for further contrast in the image. The way the light fell on this fern again called for under exposing the photo by -2 1/3 so that I didn't blowout the highlights.

This last picture of a boy and his dog works well in black and white as well as color. The strong contrast of light coming through the trees and reflecting off of the leaves help make this picture work. Photo was processed in Nik Software Silver Efex Pro.

Contrasting Elements

A few interesting pictures taken with the Leica D-Lux 4.

1940's Chevy truck sitting out in the open air waiting for service. This photo was taken at a local garage that has a interesting client base. On any day you may see everything from a new Bentley to a vintage Ferrari. In this picture the brightness of the chrome grill is what caught my eye and is in complete contrast to the dirty windshield and faded paint.

Close up of the grill converted to black and white using Nik Software Silver Efex Pro. The reflections off the grill really jumps out at you.

Going back to nature a overgrown garden cart with strong filtered light highlighting the leaves and spokes of the wheel. You never know where you may find a interesting photo opportunity. That is one of the reasons I try to carry a camera with me. The D-Lux 4 is great for throwing into your pocket or purse.

I'm not sure who is more interested, looking through the glass a safe way to meet new friends.

Caught by Light

Thought I would share two recent pictures that highlight the use of natural lighting conditions to make a interesting picture. I like looking for naturally occurring lighting effects to highlight my pictures. Some seem to be just right as they occur naturally and give a great shot just by moving into a good position to use it as in the first photo.  Other times you see the picture and have to adjust the light a little to get the dramatic effect you envision as in the second photo.

Photo one was taken with the Leica D-Lux 4 and the natural light following over his shoulder highlighted the picture. I saw how the light was accenting the subject of the photo and just had to move my position to best take advantage of it. There is no post processing on this picture other than resizing it and converting from raw to jpg.

In this photo I was working mid morning on a sunny day with filtered  and shadowy light falling on this flower. To further focus in on the subject of the picture I set the camera the Leica D-Lux 4 to F4 ISO 80 1/800 and -2 exposure compensation. This did the trick it highlighted the natural light and framed the photo just as I had envisioned it. No post processing was needed just conversion from raw to jpg.

Lighting Effects

Pictures taken this week in different lighting conditions using the Leica D-Lux 4.

A field of wild flowers shot from under the tree line and looking toward the hills. Processed in Adobe Lightroom 2.7 and Topaz filter Adjust 4.

A darkened sky highlighted with Nik Software Color Effect Pro to give the look of night time with moonlight accentuating the highlights.

A tree lined and sunlit country road processed with Nik Software's glamor glow filter adding warmth to the picture.

A sunlit meadow with contrasting shadows was converted from color using Nik Software Silver Effect Pro to give this photo a nice antique look.
All of these pictures were taken with the purpose to highlight shadows and color contrasts to hopefully make them more interesting to the viewer. The use of filters in the processing of these pictures was used only accentuate those highlights.

Quick Shots

Sharing a a couple of quick shots from this week.

 Old tractor that is still in use even thou it may have seen better times. 

(Leica D-Lux 4)

 The blue skies have returned after a weekend of rain. 

(Leica M-9)

Fast running water taken hand held at 1/8 sec. 

(Leica D-Lux 4.)

Working truck still going strong despite its heavy use. 

(Leica D-Lux 4)

Here are the owners of said truck hard at work with a beautiful back drop. 

(Leica D-Lux 4)

A black white landscape to end with taken on a overcast morning with some sun light breaking through the cloud cover to light up flowers and grasses. 

(Leica D-Lux 4)