Colorful Tulip

Yesterday was such a beautiful spring day, I just had to take a walk with my camera and capture nature’s blooms. I noticed this tri-colored tulip in front of a teal colored wooden fence and grabbed a shot. I like the contrast between the flower and the background. I also like how the background is darker, bringing out the color of the tulip and how only one petal is curved out.

What are your thoughts? Feel free to comment, like, and/or share this post.  Feel free to view more of my work at http://www.clsperkophotos.com. Thank you!

Steam Train in Black and White

Here is a shot of Strasburg Railroad’s steam engine #90 in black and white. When I capture steam trains, I like to process an image in black and white to maintain that vintage feel, or look. In this case, I also cropped it to a vertical format. Who knows? This shot could be used for a cover for a railroad magazine. That is all for now!

Opening Day at the Strasburg Railroad

I know it has been a few weeks since I posted something on my blog. I just don’t go out photographing as much during the winter months. I had a great reason to capture images on Saturday though…..

Opening day at the SRR was full of excitement as the (newly painted) #90 made its debut on President’s Day Weekend. I wasn’t the only one photographing the railroad either! From school-aged youth to us adults, many were either creating videos and/or shooting the railroad at the station, or at runby spots like off of Cherry Hill Road in Ronks Pennsylvania.

As I was looking for a new spot to shoot, I received a call from my friend, Don. Not happy with the place I was at, I met up with him at Cherry Hill – my first time capturing runbys here (or there?)

This was one of my favorite runby shots! Feel free to use this posted image as a screen saver, as well as, sharing it with your friends, but please do not remove my watermark. Greeting cards, magnets, prints, canvas wraps, and metal prints may be purchased of this image via http://www.clsperkophotos.com. Thank you!

The Winter Blues

So, what do you photograph when the weather is too cold? Set-up still life! Using an old wooden book shelf, a textured gray vase, red silk flowers, and a black velvet backdrop, I arranged this image. When I first checked this one out, it looked like a painting to me. Now, I did arrange several different images using the things listed above, but this one is my favorite.

Using textured items will enhance your still life. I also prefer window or natural light instead of flash or studio lighting – although there isn’t anything wrong with using un-natural lighting. Be sure to mount your camera on a tripod so your photos are tact sharp.

Prints, canvas wraps, and metal prints of this image may be purchased at http://www.clsperkophotos.com. Planning a Valentine’s Day party? I also sell flat and folded greeting cards in sets of 25 via my website! Thank you!

Wheels and Steam

On my most recent visit to the Strasburg Railroad, I arrived on time to watch and photograph engine #475 being prepared before her runs for the day. A lot of work is done before passengers are allowed on board the train. Of course, the engineers have to load the coal, and wipe her down after letting out the steam, etc. The whole process takes atleast 2 hours!

This was one of my shots that has become a favorite of mine. I used a technique called the Lomo Effect. This filter darkens the edges, but unlike the Holga filter, the image is in color instead of black and white. To me, the color and the effect works for this image. Feel free to use this posted image as a free screen saver and please share this post with your family and friends. Thank you for your continued support!

My Best Shot – Holga-ish Style

When I captured my Bucket Still Life image, little did I know what a jem it was. It was published in Shutterbug Magazine’s Web Profiles column in January of 2010, accepted by Pentax Photo Gallery, and published in the Photographer’s Edge 2011 spring issue. I also sold a print and several greeting cards.

My question now is can I approve it in some way? Well, I decided to play with some effects and ended up using the holga-ish filter. This filter darkens the edges of the image and changes it to black and white. Once this was done, I warmed up the tone to give it the sepia feel. Both images are shown below, the color one being the original.

What do you think? Do you prefer the original, the holga effect, or do you like both? Feel free to comment. Oh, and if you are interested in purchasing a print, go to http://www.clsperkophotos.com. Thank you, and keep shooting!

 

 

 

Merry Christmas to you!

I would like to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Years too!

Attached is a shot I captured at Longwood Garden’s Music Room. The place was decorated in holiday attire, including the pretty pale blue ribbon and wrapped package.

Feel free to use this posted image as a free screen saver for the holiday season! Please also share it with your family and friends. Thank you!

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