Lafayette Park Pond #1, Infrared HDR Test

The Lafayette Park pond and bridge is one of those little garden jewels, maintained by neighborhood volunteers.  I remember visiting it in the '50s when it was a public wading pool.  This picture is made from three one-stop brackets shot through a Cokin P007 filter and processed in Lightroom 3, Nik HDR Efex and Nik Silver Efex Pro.  

Lens: Nikkor AF 24-85mm f2.8-4 IF 

Camera: Nikon D100

Exposure: ISO 200, three 1-stop brackets, 50mm @ f/16 @ 0.8s, Cokin P007 filter, Auto WB, tripod, RAW

Lighting: Daylight filtered through trees

Location: Lafayette Park, St. Louis GPS

Dates: Capture - June 25, 2006, Processing - October 27, 2010

Processing: Lightroom 3, Nik HDR Efex, Nik Silver Efex Pro, Photoshop CS5

Lafayette Park Entrance #7

The oppressive heat and humidity, yellow quality air and long work days have me longing for my favorite weather, namely 38F with fog and drizzle.  So to, cool off via sense memory, I decided to revisit one of my earliest digital pictures (#245 to be exact, one month into my adventures with a DSLR) made under those ideal conditions. I've been through several generations with this picture, but I'm finally happy with this tightly cropped, high contrast, the sepia and blue split tone version.  The workflow for this involved quite a few steps, but hey, I can feel the chill...

Camera: Nikon D100 

Lens: AF Nikkor 24-85mm f/2.8-4D IF (my workhorse)

Exposure: ISO 200, 85mm @ f/16 @ 1/20s, tripod, cable release, RAW

Lighting: Dusk Daylight, Auto WB. Set to tungsten WB for day-for-night effect

Location: Lafayette Park, St. Louis, MO GPS

Processing: RAW in Lightroom 3, Photoshop CS5, Nik SilverEfex Pro.

Infrared Willow #7, Lafayette Park

Revisiting one of my favorite locations, the pond garden at Lafayette Park and the willow tree that shades it.  This image started out as an infrared capture.  I like the technique best when it is not self-consciously infrared, yet still conveys a ghostly feel.  With film, the image making is was relatively straight forward.  With digital infrared, one would seldom want to use the dull red image without manipulation.  Here I'm going for the Ambrotype look from the 1850's.

Technical: Nikon D100, Nikkor 24-85mm f2.8-f4, ISO 200, Cokin Infrared filter P007 (similar to the popular Hoya R72, which I think is close to a Wratten 88a), tripod, 50mm @ f/16 @ 0.7s. RAW file processed in Lightroom 2.6, filtered through Nik Dfine to smooth some noice, then edited in Nik Silver Efex Pro to apply the Ambrotype custom style.  

Lafayette Part Entrance #6

One of my favorite spots, mostly because it is across the street from the Chocolate Bar. If you see a night shot here, I probably just had a Bailey's Brownie, which is the case here. Nikon D700, ISO 3200, 50mm f1.8, f/2.8 @ 1/4s handheld, auto wb. RAW file processed in Lightroom 2 to crop, adjust wb, add yellow split tone and pull back highlights in curves. There is no visible noise in the shadows.

Lafayette Park Pond - Infrared

Another angle on the Lafayette Park pond. I think I finally found the same colour tint I enjoyed with Agfa Portriga Rapid paper. Nikon D100, ISO 200, 24mm, f/11, 1/2s, Cokin A007 Infrared filter. Processed in Photoshop CS2. Some missing? Yes, I removed the bridge.