Alex Suarez Photography and Technology Blog

Sports Photographer, Liz Kreutz to Speak at CapMac

2010-03-06T01:37:00Z

As many of you know, I lead a photography special interest group (SIG) for Capital Macintosh (CapMac) in Austin, Texas. For this group I bring in top photographers in their specialty to speak on their area of expertise.

"Comeback 2.0: Up Close and Personal" Photos by Elizabeth KreutzFor March's CapMac Advanced Photography SIG meeting we will have a very special guest, world-class sports photographer, Elizabeth Kreutz will be speaking to our group about her documentary project with Lance Armstrong. Liz is the photographer behind the book Comeback 2.0: Up Close and Personal, a book chronicling Lance Armstrong return to the sport of cycling. Liz has also photographed the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Her work has graced the pages of numerous magazines, including Sports Illustrated, Triathlete, Inside Triathlon, Texas Monthly, and Tour. She has also worked as a freelance photographer for Triathlete Magazine, The Austin-American Statesman, and Carmichael Training Systems.

Next Meeting: Thursday, March 25, 6:30-9:00 PM
Location: Episcopal Church of the Resurrection - Parish Hall
Address: 2200 Justin Lane (map)

Note that the Parish Hall is East of the church building and its parking lot is accessed from Justin Lane. The parking lot entrance is directly across from where Muroc St. intersects Justin Lane.

This event is free and open to the public. Bring your friends! Hope to see you there!

For information on future (and past) Advanced Photography SIG meetings, please visit http://www.capmac.org/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=4408

Fun With Fish Eyes

2010-02-22T01:35:51Z

Fun With Fish Eyes, originally uploaded by Suarez.

Photograph ©2010 Alex Suárez. All rights reserved.

I had the pleasure of borrowing Tom Haymes’ new fisheye lens (AF DX Fisheye-Nikkor 10.5mm f/2.8G ED). Since he was visiting Austin, we walked over to the Capitol rotunda (the only round room I could think of at the time) to have ourselves some fun. I went to high school with both of these gentlemen in the early 80s where we studied photography. Tom and I also were roommates in college for several years. It’s good to get back together with old friends.

FYI--those portraits you see around the perimeter of the room are of former governors of Texas.

Thanks Tom, for letting me use your lens.

This is a very unflattering angle. It makes us look heavier than we are (we don’t need any help in that department) and it gives us double chins from looking down at the camera. I still think it’s a really fun shot.

MLK Memorial

2010-02-17T14:16:49Z

A detail view of the fountain at the top of the MLK Memorial in Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco.

Cirque du Mac

2010-02-16T03:40:40Z

More images from the Macworld All Stars' concert at the Cirque du Mac party.

Dr. Mac, Rockin'

2010-02-13T05:51:57Z

Dr. Mac, Rockin', by Suarez.

Photograph ©2010 Alex Suárez. All rights reserved.

I had the pleasure of seeing the Macworld All Stars play their once-a-year Cirque du Mac concert last night. They were amazing. They played some great classic rock from the 60s to the 80s. Led Zeppelin, The Cure, Tommy Tutone, etc. I'll be posting several more images in the coming days.

In this shot is my friend "Dr. Mac" Bob LeVitus. Bob is one of the world's foremost Mac authorities. He's a Mac columnist and has authored over 50 books on Mac and Mac-related topics, including many "…For Dummies" books.

I Won!

2010-02-05T03:52:12Z

I've been informed by the good folks at enlight photo, that I won their photography contest. Enlight photo makers of the Orbis™ Ring Flash. Here's my winning entry:

This photo was taken at a Halloween party. The backdrop is the twilight sky after a Texas hill country sunset. There were some amazing colors in the sky so I grabbed party goers as quickly as I could and had them pose in front of this amazing sky. The little devil shot was one of my favorites. I used a Nikon SB-600 with an Orbis™ Ring Flash as a main light on the subject and dragged the shutter to get the ambient light to fill in. Since I used a slow shutter speed (1/3 second) any motion of the subject or camera created dark halos in the sky around the subject as well as some bright areas that cut into the subject. This was deliberate and desired. I used a 12mm lens and got very close to the subject's head to exaggerate perspective making for the perception of a large head on a tiny body. The catchlight from the Orbis™ Ring Flash in the center of the eyes also adds to the unique look.

Camera: Nikon D300

Lens: Tokina AT-X 124 AF PRO DX - AF 12-24mm f/4

Shutter Speed: 1/3 second

Aperture: ƒ/5

Focal Length: 12mm

Strobe: Nikon SB-600 with Orbis™ Ring Flash triggered via an SC-29 cable.

Here are a few more image shot with my Orbis™ Ring Flash.

County Road 600 (color)

2010-01-27T14:30:41Z

County Road 600 (color) by Suarez.

Photograph ©2010 Alex Suárez. All rights reserved.

At the risk of going back to the well too many often, here is a horizontally shot color image of the tree I posted about two weeks ago. The prior vertical image emphasized the sky even more and this horizontal emphasizes the leading lines of the fence as well as the mountains in the background. What are your thoughts? Which do you like beter?

NOTE: For those of you in the Austin area, Pete Holland will be speaking at the CapMac Advanced Photography SIG this Thursday. Pete will be speaking on Infrared and HDR Landscape Photography.

Beer & Wine

2010-01-24T03:13:26Z

Beer & Wine by Alex Suárez.

Olds

2010-01-14T13:42:22Z

Olds by Suarez.

Barn on County Road 400

2010-01-13T14:52:54Z

Barn on County Road 400, originally uploaded by Suarez.