Buffalo v. Truck

The Buffalo River wins!

While floating last weekend we came upon a truck that was caught by last weeks floods (just past Steele Creek campgrounds). Pretty crazy site to see and I'm not sure how they're going to get it out!

The Agony & The Ecstasy

The winners and losers from this past weekend's State Championship games I covered in Hot Springs.

Walking the Dog

Fog is super cool at sunset while you're out walking the dog!

Arkansas Twisters

Last week Super Tuesday didn't just describe politics in Arkansas, but the weather as well. I don't recall too many tornadoes in Winter, but that was not the case this February. I covered the aftermath of the deadly storms in Atkins for the New York Times.

My condolences go out to all the families that lost loved ones.

Super Duper Tuesday

I covered Arkansas' participation in Super Tuesday for the New York Times this week. They also had me follow the Huckster around as he voted for himself and then later on his watch party. It was a long 16 hour day, but a lot of fun. It blows me away that this guy may be our vice president one day.

The Catwalk

A few images from a recent runway fashion show held at the Arkansas Art Center. The show was part of the overall Delta Exhibition, which features Southern artists.

A New Year

the '80s in '08...





Leg wamers & leotards; mullets & cocaine...the 80s are back! Happy New Year!

Model Scouting

...from a quick photo session last week. This is Lollie, a tattoo artist at Inkjunkys in Conway. I've been looking for a person with a non-traditional look for some conceptual work I want to do in the future. This was more of a meet and greet than an actual shoot, so everything was set up rather hastily (just two lights and no hair/make-up).

Go Red

A few images from my shoot with the American Heart Association last week. The photos are part of their Go Red campaign. I shot the whole age spectrum from young kids to the elderly and everything in between. I think the images are going to be blown up and hung in hospitals and other public places around Arkansas.

Creating Mood/Combining Exposures

Nothing creates a mood like a cool-looking sky. But usually the best sky is a vastly different exposure than the ground beneath. I've tried combining photos before, but never really perfected the technique. This past Fall I wanted to show my Digital Darkroom class how to make one exposure from two in order to improve the overall tonal range of a photograph.

The above image is a combination of the three below. I used the brightest image as my primary photo. I layered the darkest image over the top and created a mask to only allow the sky to shine through. I then blended the middle photo to create the rich colors. After I had my exposure I created a Levels Adjustment Layer to correct the color cast (basically a white balance adjustment). I also used a Curves Adjustment Layer masked in certain areas to open up a few of the mid-tones. There was no need to increase the saturation or use Selective Color to pump up the reds and yellows since I already had a rich tonal range after combining the photographs. You could accomplish this same technique by shooting RAW and then processing the image twice: one overexposed and one underexposed.

The image was taken at Pinnacle Mountain State Park.