Cody Green » flickr

Where’d the blog go?

Cody — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 03:53:09 +0000

Wow, last semester kicked by butt; I’m glad it’s over! It’s sad to think that I didn’t write a blog post all semester. I’d recommend you add my Flickr photostream to your rss reader instead of my blog feed , at least I always post to Flickr and you’d know I was still alive.

I put together a collection of my favorite images from my first year of photography over on my Flickr site. It’s crazy to think I’ve only been doing this for a little over a year, but it has become one of my favorite things to do; I just need more time to do it. Brandon and I went to a Joe McNally lighting seminar in Houston; it was awsome! I’ve read Joe’s blog all year and his books are a must read for any photographer, so to see him in person was by far the highlight of my year. The only problem is I left the seminar regretting the fact that I own Canon equipment; Joe does everything with Nikon equipment and it doesn’t take him long to show you why Nikon is kicking Canon’s butt in flash photography.

Since it’s now 2010 I know I should make a new year resolution, but I think setting out some goals would be a better idea.

Goal 1: Take More Photos

As a beginning photographer you can never take enough photos. I’m a bit of an equipment junky, I see a shot and immediately want to purchase equipment so I can take that type of photo. In 2010 I want to start pushing the limits of what I can do with all the equipment I currently own (and it’s more than enough to make some damn good shots). I want to buy the Canon 5D mark III next year because my 40D is dead from taking too many photos not because it’s the hot new camera; like how I snuck a purchase into the goal, lol

Goal 2: Be Healthy and Happy

With juggling work and school my health tends to take a low priority and my quality of life tends to be nil. I want to focus more on making sure I’m around in 10 years so I can actually use my degree.

Goal 3: Put the Toys Away

I’ve lived the bachelor life for quite awhile, and looking back I’ve have had no shortage of toys, trips, and fun. I want to try and go a year without buying everything I want and try to limit it to what I need. I know several of you are laughing you ass off right now, but you’re the people I expect to help me stick to this

Well, that’s enough writing for me. See you in another six months….

Goal 4: Update This Website

…… 3 out of 4 ain’t bad

Fourth of July

Cody — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:17:17 +0000

Yesterday, Megan and I decided to go to the College Station Lions Club’s annual Fourth of July Celebration at the George Bush Presidential Library. I’ve heard about this event for several years from my friend Adam, who plays with the Brazos Valley Symphony, but I’ve never made it out due to the fact it usually rains.

When we arrived at 8PM it was over a 100°F, but luckily there was a strong breeze and the temperature quickly dropped to the mid 90s. There were several events for families and kids and various performers on stage. The Brazos Valley Symphony was the last to perform and did an outstanding job. For a small community the fireworks show was pretty good and lasted for almost 10 minutes.

Check out the slide show and leave some comments on my Flickr pages. Below are a few of my favorite shots from the night and photography comments.

Fireworks 1

Fireworks 2

Fireworks 3

Fireworks 4

For those interested in the photography details continue reading… I had read several blogs yesterday morning that talked about photographing fireworks and most of them suggested using at least a 200mm lens. So Jeremy was nice and let me borrow his Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8; which by the way is one of the best pieces of glass I’ve ever used. The only drawback of having this glass on your camera is the fact it is HUGE. You really draw attention which is something you don’t want as a photographer. After walking around for a bit Megan and I returned to our chairs out in a field next to the parking lot about 100 yards from the main stage. After I set up my tripod and fired off a few test shots we waited for the fireworks to begin. At about 10PM the show started and I was very surprised to realize that 70mm was not wide enough to get most of the fireworks in the frame. I was going to switch over to my 50mm glass but I figured I would miss too many fireworks in the process. In the end I’m kind of glad I stuck with the 70mm focal distance because it helped frame the shots and give the fireworks character versus every shot simply capturing the full firework. I shot all the fireworks at f/11, although the Flickr metadata says f/10, and I kept my shutter on bulb and used my Canon remote switch to trigger the shutter and customize the exposure time.

Luchenbach Car Show

Cody — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:08:41 +0000

A few weekends ago I went to the Luckenbach Rod & Custom Car Show with some of my family. If you’ve never been to Luckenbach it’s kind of just a building know as the post office with a very small bar and big stage in the back.

Luckenbach Post Office

Bar Behind Luckenbach Post Office

The car show pretty much allowed anything with four wheels to enter. So there were some cars that were crap but I was surprised with some of the cars I did see; 3 Shelby Cobras. Below are some images of my favorite car at the show.

Shelby Cobra

There were a few new model Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers. The Camaro below looked really sharp and some kid kept saying “look, it’s bumblebee”.

2010 Camaro

Overall the car show was pretty cool, although I would not recommend going to one in the middle of the day during summer; we should have gone first thing that morning. Check out my Flickr set to see more photos of the show.

Fredericksburg Trip Photos

Cody — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 23:56:52 +0000

I just finished some quick edits on the photos from my Fredericksburg trip and I’m in the process of uploading them to Flickr.
There are two sets:

The photos are still uploading so it might be an hour or so before everything is done.
When I get some time I’ll blog a bit about the trip; It was a blast!

Bonfire Memorial Photoshoot

Cody — Thu, 21 May 2009 20:40:03 +0000

Monday I got this wild idea to wake up before the crack of dawn and shoot the Bonfire Memorial as the sun came up. Wow, it was not a wild idea, it was a great idea! Only problem was my brain doesn’t work so well at 5 AM. It was one of those “I can’t brain today i have the dumb” moments. I took some great shots that looked awesome on the LCD screen but I didn’t realize until later that I had three major problems: I left the ISO at 800, I had my McDonald’s coffee cup in a few of the pictures, and I had my camera back in a few other pictures. Doh!

Right before the sun came up (~5:30) I was able to dial the white balance down and make the sky turn an awesome shade of blue. However, I noticed ghost lights in the shot. I wasn’t sure what it was or how to fix it so I kept shooting. Well after the shoot I was told that I was getting a reflection between the UV filter and my lens (stupid Canon filter). So I went back to the Bonfire Memorial at 8:30 that night to see if I could reproduce the shots. I was able to get the sky a dark blue but I didn’t like the color as much as the morning shot. The ghost lights showed up again and I took the filter off to make them go away. I’m going to have to find a filter that doesn’t have this problem.

I should have the pictures up on Flickr by the weekend.

[flickr]http://www.flickr.com/photos/codygreen/3545391509/[/flickr]

George Bush Presidential Library and Museum Photos

Cody — Thu, 21 May 2009 20:24:21 +0000

I went up to the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum on Sunday to take some shots to find a good bridal portrait location. I was surprised how nice the pond behind the museum is so I shot almost 1.3GB of photos. Only wish it had not been early afternoon; the light was not great. Watched a photographer take some shots of his future daughter-in-law. He was really good at posing her and telling her what to do, but he seemed a little light on the camera knowledge.

Once I was done shooting at the museum I headed over to the administrative building. I was surprised to see a few photographers waiting their turn to shoot; popular place on Sundays. I was lucky enough to be there while a pro photographer waited for the bride to show up. We started talking and next think I know he let me tag along for his shoot. It was a blast! He gave me an outstanding two hour lesson on photography and tips for shooting bridal portraits. It amazes me how generous some photographers can be at sharing their knowledge.

[flickr]http://www.flickr.com/photos/codygreen/3544492610/[/flickr]

Murder Mystery Dinner

Cody — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:38:44 +0000

So Scott had a great idea to host a murder mystery dinner. Megan and I had a great time. The theme was based in the 1920s and was centered around a speakeasy. Megan was the daughter of the mob boss who was killed and I was a reporter who wanted the boss dead. Luckily neither of us were the killer and both of us guess the correct person at the end of the night.
This was the first time I was able to use all of my camera equipment. I set up the ezybox to the left of the camera and a umbrella to the right. The room was very dark so I’m really happy with how the photos turned out.

Ring Dance

Cody — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:34:27 +0000

Well Megan was nice enough to let me bring my camera to Ring Dance. We had a great time, but my pictures are really bad. Just goes to show you that you can’t buy your way into a great shot. I have all the gear and I screwed up on exposure 101 that night! Still a few of the pictures are interesting and I told people I would post them.

My Best Shot of Maggie Yet!

Cody — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:30:51 +0000

My Lastolite ezybox came in and I figured I’d try it out on my most willing model, Maggie. She never gripes, is extremely photogenic, and always has a smile (well until she gets sick of my taking pictures and not playing with her). So the ezybox is a 24″x24″ to the left of the camera. The shooting area was really tight and the model was constantly moving so the light source is pretty bright. But I like how it makes her supper white and black and that yellow ball just pops. This is by far one of the best pictures I’ve ever taken of Maggie!

Night Shots on TAMU Campus

Cody — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:26:49 +0000

My second strobe came in and I was dying to try it out; only problem is it was dark outside. Well I figured I could light my way out of that problem with 2 strobes; haha. While the shots are not terrible, they are not great either. Night photography is trickier than I expected.