Simple pictures
Category Archives: Architecture
RAW vs. JPEG with the Fuji
RAW vs. JPEG. This subject is bound to start almost as many fights as Nikon vs. Canon (neither!) and can be argued either way. Unlike the choice of two camera companies that produce almost identical products, the RAW vs. JPEG decision can have long lasting effects on your image library. Ever since I went beyond the Auto modes on my first DSLR, I have been shooting RAW. At first, it was a crutch because RAW files are much more malleable and can be massaged to hide mistakes in exposure, white balance and almost everything else but composition and focus. I’ve progressed now to using RAW so that I can develop the photograph after I take it and then worry about conversion to black and white, adding curves, clarity and so forth.
The downside to this approach is that every image needs attention to some extent. I do have a default preset for each of my camera’s that I apply on import into Lightroom, but I end up tweaking every image regardless. I’ve been experimenting on using the generated JPEG’s from my X-E1, but RAW has spoiled me. The JPEG’s are great and I think I could be perfectly happy with them, but after seeing what I can do with the RAW files, it’s tough to give up that control to a computer.
Anyway, on to the pictures. This weekend had me in Pittsburgh for a friends wedding, so I walked around the Pitt campus before the reception and then stopped at Mt. Washington after. Sunday I managed to find a few hours to get out hiking at Ohiopyle again. I stayed around the Ferncliff area and wanted to get some different angles of the main falls to see what I could come up with. The water was a bit low so there were some more places to go.
A Day at the Museum
Since today was the first day official day of Christmas break, my family and I went down to the Children’s Museum in Pittsburgh. It was a blast and I had just as much fun (or more) as my daughter. While there, I didn’t have much time to focus on anything but playing with her and snapping some pictures of her, I managed to get a few abstract style shots.
Photos from the underground
This past Saturday, my wife and I reserved a spot in the Laurel Caverns lower caving tour. This set of caverns goes about 45 stories deep and the majority of it is unlighted. There is a good amount of climbing over and down rocks as well as some crawling. The spaces can be very tight. This was my first time doing something like this, and I had no idea what to expect. It was amazing at how pitch black and quiet it is when you’re that far underground. The mind starts to wander and think about what would happen if the flashlights failed. Anyway, here are the pictures (all taken with an OMD E-M5). The first is above the mountain, the next are far below it.
After the caving tour, my wife and I spent the night at the Summit Inn. This hotel was built around 1902 and sits on top of a mountain overlooking the town of Hopwood. In this day and age, finding places with this much character is tough. The woodwork is beautiful and in the lobby sits a large stone fireplace with plenty of old wooden chairs around it.
