Hollywood Sign Panorama

This image speaks for itself, since the Hollywood Sign is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world. I've enjoyed shooting panoramas for some time, mainly because the format allows the photographer to portray a different viewpoint on a subject, and they're great for city skylines, which I tend to photograph often.

Here's a little history on the famous letters above tinseltown:

The sign originally read "HOLLYWOODLAND," and its purpose was to advertise a new housing development in the hills above the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. The developer contracted the Crescent Sign Company to erect thirteen letters on the hillside of Mount Lee, each facing south. The sign company owner, Thomas Fisk Goff designed the sign. Each letter of the sign was 30 feet wide and 50 feet high, and was studded with light bulbs. The sign was officially dedicated on July 13, 1923.

The sign is located on the southern side of Mount Lee in Griffith Park, north of the Mulholland Highway. Its altitude is 1,578 feet.

Click on image to view larger.

Here are a few tips on shooting panoramas:

• Make sure there is sufficient overlap between photos.
• Ideally you want about 20-30% overlap between the photos so your panorama software can accurately stitch the pano together.
• Level tripod head and camera.
• Ditto above - your pano software will have a hard time stitching your pano if your shots are not level.
  
• Manually set white balance and exposure.
• If you can, set your camera to manual exposure in order to ensure a consistent exposure across the entire panorama. Otherwise, you'll end up with weird lighter or darker patches, especially in the sky.
  
• Find an interesting view.
• While skylines are obvious (and often very common) panorama subjects, try something different, such as a vertical panorama of a tree or a horizontal crop of buildings to show abstract patterns to create visual interest.
• Use panorama editing software.
• There are many editing tools out there, and many of them are free. I tend to use the panorama tool included in Photoshop CS2 and above, but I've also had great results with AutoStitch, which is a free download.
  

Warner Bros. Water Tower Metamorphosis

My "real job" is at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, CA. My building is just under the famous Warner Bros. Water Tower, where Yakko, Wacko, and Dot were kept in the animated series Animaniacs (remember that show?)

The water tower was recently painted and I decided to take a photo of the paint job every day.

Click on the image to view larger.

Chinatown and Shooting at Twilight

Twilight is my favorite time to shoot cityscapes. To get that beautiful, rich blue sky, you only have about a 10-15 minute window in which to shoot, about 20 minutes after sunset. There is still enough ambient light in the sky to provide some fill light on the buildings, and you can use a long-ish exposure to blur traffic and taillights.

These photos were taken in L.A.'s Chinatown.

Chinatown

Canon 5D, Sigma 15-30, F/5, 1/10 sec, ISO 200, tripod mounted

Click on the images to view larger.

Los Angeles Moonrise

I have always loved the moon, and I love photographing it as part of a landscape. I've been waiting to take the photo below for at least a year and a half, because various factors have always gotten in the way: I wasn't in town during the full moon, it was cloudy on the night of the full moon, or it was the wrong season and the moon wasn't rising anywhere near downtown from this angle (if you haven't noticed, the location of the moonrise differs dramatically based on moon phase and season because of Earth's orbital tilt).

Anyway, I *finally* got the image I've been waiting for on Tuesday night! Unfortunately it wasn't the clearest night, but the LA smog helped paint the sky in beautiful blue and pink pastels.

I probably wouldn't hang this photo in a gallery or even on my wall at home, but it's very satisfying to finally 'get' the image I'd been imagining for such a long time.

Los Angeles Moonrise

Canon 5D, 70-200 f/4, 1/6s f/10 iso100 tripod mounted

(click on the image to view larger)

Winter in New Hampshire

I grew up along the California coast, and a snowy New England scene still seems exotic and magical to me. These images were taken around Wilton and Hollis, two tiny towns in southern New Hampshire.

See more of my photos of New England at: http://www.pbase.com/dellybean/new_england

December in Pebble Beach

Pebble Beach, California and the surrounding Monterey Peninsula is one of my most favorite places on Earth. I'm lucky to be able to visit there quite often because I have family there. On a recent visit for Christmas, I snagged a few pictures in the late afternoon of a gorgeously clear December day.

These were taken with a Canon 5D and either a 24-70L or 70-200 f/2.8L lens.

To see more of my photos of the California Coast, click here: http://www.pbase.com/dellybean/bigsur

American Apparel Spoof

Since moving to LA, one of my favorite pastimes has become people watching. Particularly watching what people wear. Sometimes I can't believe what some girls think is an acceptable, even attractive, outfit. I call this game "What is that girl wearing?!"

For Halloween I decided to spoof my hatred of all things Ugg, leggings, lamee, and big belts, and do it up blonde style. Of course, I couldn't do this without going all the way and doing a photoshoot. These are the resulting "American Apparel ad" spoofs. Enjoy!

For the technically inclined, these were shot with my Canon XT and a 24-70L lens. They were taken in my apartment with low ambient light and are primarily lit with a 550EX speedlite that was mostly bounced off the ceiling. Much of the post processing was done with Kevin Kubota's Actions.

Griffith Observatory

A clear night in LA, if you can get one, is the best time to visit the Griffith Observatory. The recently renovated art deco Observatory is beautiful, and the views of the city can't be beat.

These were shot with a Canon Rebel XT, and either Canon 24-70L or Sigma 15-30, and a tripod.

Autumn in Wine Country

There's something irresistible about wine country for me. The beautiful vineyards, the gorgeous surrounding scenery, the romance of the winemaking process... it's all captivating. Over the weekend, I went up to Santa Barbara Wine Country to taste some yummy wines and photograph the harvest season. Here are some of my favorites from the day.

To see more, click here: http://www.pbase.com/dellybean/sbwinecountry

California Sunset

There's really nothing like a California sunset. These photos were taken from a lookout off 101 just north of Santa Barbara.

4th of July in Boston

The 4th of July is one of the best times to be in Boston. It is, after all, where the American Revolution began. The city pulls out all the stops and throws a week-long party called Harborfest, which culminates in the famous Boston Pops Concert and Fireworks Spectacular along the Charles River on the night of the 4th. During the week, locals and tourists alike can go on harbor cruises, see revolution reenactments, tour historic buildings, and see parades. You can even see the Declaration of Independence read out from the balcony it was originally from in 1776.

Here are some of my favorite photos from the long weekend:

Faneuil Hall:

The beautiful Boston skyline in the late afternoon:

Another view:

The famous Swan Boats, docked for the evening:


Fenway Park:


The Middlesex Fife & Drum Chorus:

Sunrise on Boston Harbor:

Kristin & Doug's Engagement

I met up with Kristin & Doug on the steps of Trinity Church, which is where they met for their first date. We had a lot of fun walking around Boston on a beautiful summery afternoon. They have a great attitude and I got a lot of shots of them laughing at each other!

Kristin & Doug may have their reception dinner at Hampshire House, which is famous for being the facade of Cheers.


The Charles River Esplanade makes a beautiful green background.
They are thinking of using Boston's iconic gaslamps as a theme for their wedding, so we made sure to take some pictures with one:


It was easy to tell how in love these two are. They couldn't keep their lips off each other! ;)

The O'Briens

The O'Brien kids were so much fun to photograph! They were so photogenic and had great ideas for poses.

Abby, Molly, and Robby

Abby

Molly

Robby

The Mackey Twins

Beautiful Catherine and Caroline join older brothers Jack, Thomas, and Connor. These two beauties were nine weeks when I took these photos last weekend. They were absolute angels -- they might have a future in modeling! Welcome to the world, girls!

Catherine & Caroline

Catherine

Caroline

Catherine & Caroline

Caroline -- I love those big eyes!

Christy and Scott

My two roommates (and friends) recently became engaged, and I am the lucky photographer who got to shoot their engagement portraits! Not only are they adorable together, but they're wonderfully photogenic subjects, too. Scott is a talented director and Christy is talented at just about everything. I'm certain they have a bright and happy future together. Congratulations!

We shot these on a warm Saturday at El Matador Beach in Malibu. Some thin fog made for perfect, diffused light for these naturally-lit portraits.

Lots, lots more to see at http://www.pbase.com/dellybean/christy_scott

Perfume commercial, much?

I loved the wave action around the rocks and was waiting for this dramatic moment.

See, they're really just goofballs behind those model looks ;)

This is probably my favorite image from the session.

I just love sepia for engagement shots. It's timeless and warmer than black and white.

Are they cute or what?