London - the Usual Bits.

[mij]

Just posted this on another forum, so sorry if you have already seen it.

Can you see Tower Bridge?

http://jotbin.com/files/ph/20061130/img_1898f.jpg

Shot at 300m with Sigma 70-300 and it was a hazy day, but I liked this one simply because it reminded me of the "Where's Wally?" type of books.

Thursday was my first time out with a tripod (which helped me realize the importance of getting a decent head), and as I had to go from Waterloo to London Bridge to get my bus home I decided to walk between them and take advantage of the view...

http://jotbin.com/files/ph/20061130/img_2057f.jpg

http://jotbin.com/files/ph/20061130/img_2062f.jpg

http://jotbin.com/files/ph/20061130/img_2072wf.jpg

http://jotbin.com/files/ph/20061130/img_2080f.jpg

The lights on the towers (left one in particular) and the crest were really bright so I took a second shot underexposed by one stop and using a mask blended those parts into the original short to bring out some detail.

Loads of firsts for me in these - I have never done borders before, let alone proper night shots, blending layers, fixing perspective distortion, and cloning out light trails in the sky (there was a lot of air traffic) - so all constructive comments are greatly appreciated.

Michael.

[DRB]

Well for your first time out with a tripod this is pretty good stuff Michael!! I can't comment on the PS stuff but you certainly seem to have done well exposing for the night stuff :) Look forward to seeing more of your work :)

[Witch]

I like Tower Bridge "Hiding" in the first one!

The night shots are cool too - it's excellent fun isn't it - I had my first go earlier in the year and I'm totally hooked now I must admit! The purple London Eye would be my favourite - where did you focus for the Millenium bridge/Tate Modern one? Looks just a touch soft to my eyes.

Now you've got the bug I'll look forward to seeing more of these!

[oldgit]

Very good shots. Be pleased

[Mr THX]

Yea I like those, especially the coloured reflections in the Tate Modern shot. :thumbs:

[Dal]

i really like those, i wanna get some photo's of the london eye, what shutter speed were you using as i can only do upto 15 seconds.

[DoubleT]

WOW. really nice photos there...good work!!! were you on a boat????

[Northline]

They're all good shots ... particularly like the nightime stuff. . . and the sky detail really makes the Tate Modern stand out as an image. Well done.

[photostar_1]

Really good. Love Tower Bridge and the Eye.

[chewyuk]

Great shots, well cropped and framed too.

[Forbiddenbiker]

Very nice, The three bridge shots are super, nice sky in the Tate shot as well.

You don't half zig-zag when you walking. ;) :D

[mij]

Thanks for the comments everyone. Despite the inconvenience of the tripod it opened up so many new possibilities that more than made up for it.

I like Tower Bridge "Hiding" in the first one!

Me too, it was a bit out of place with the others but I thought it would be nice to include Tower Bridge from an unusual angle. And they do not get much more unusual than 3 miles away in Nunhead!

where did you focus for the Millenium bridge/Tate Modern one? Looks just a touch soft to my eyes.

On the edge of the Chimney then recomposed slightly. I am so unsteady handheld that I am not very good at judging sharpness, just about impresses me! I think fixing the perspective distortion in PS (with the skew option) did lose a little too though as the buildings on that one needed needed a bit more straightening than with the others.

i really like those, i wanna get some photo's of the london eye, what shutter speed were you using as i can only do upto 15 seconds.

That was 6 seconds at f/6.3. I opened up a bit more on that one as I was trying to freeze motion best I could, though I do not think it made much difference. They were all using the Sigma 17-70 lens at ISO 100.

WOW. really nice photos there...good work!!! were you on a boat????

Nope, just walking along the Embankment and walks. It is just a case of finding suitable breaks between all the boats and clutter on the river. That is why the London Bridge shot is cropped differently otherwise you see a big piece of wall in the foreground which I could not avoid, though I think I would have cropped it like that anyway.

Michael.