Macro Videography - Nikon D90

Vimeo version

A short compilation of video clips taken with my Nikon D90, my Nikkor 50mm f1.8, and various extension tubes.

DIY Photography Light Tent

So I just got our wedding bands in from our friends at Diamonds and Gold of Green Bay. ...for those that don't know, I'm getting married! :)

I was really excited and wanted to take some pictures of them, but I didn't have a decent lighting setup for macro photography. I had remembered reading about building your own light tent on strobist.blogspot.com (a fantastic site, by the way) and thought I'd give it a shot.

I couldn't remember the exact instructions, so I pretty much made up the rest as I went along.

First off I grabbed:
my Nikon D90
my 50mm prime f1.8 Nikkor lens
my Nikon SB600 flash with stand
my YN460 flash with stand
my wireless flash triger
my macro adapter
my Leatherman
an old cardboard box
some white paper
and some tape


Next thing was to cut holes in the sides of the cardboard box. Then tape the paper over the top of it.

Then I taped a piece of paper on the inside to create an infinity curve.

After that I set up my SB600 on the left with the wireless trigger and the YN460 on the right as a slave flash.

I slapped on my 50mm prime with the macro convertor and after some work I got some pretty sweet pictures. Not bad for free!

And after some Photoshopping they look pretty professional.

The setup works pretty well and for as little as I'll use it, you can't beat the price. I would recommend using at least 24lb. paper so you don't see as much of the grain in the paper. Also, I had to shoot at around f11 otherwise I'd have about half a millimeter in focus at a time.

Loining Engagement Pictures

I recently did a photo shoot for my friends Ross and Mary Chris. They were great to work with and pictures turned out fantastic.









Visit our Facebook page for more pictures.

Raivu Industries Video Shoot

I recently did a video shoot for Raivu Industries talking about their new ministry Raivu for Kids. I'm working on editing the video and I'll post it when it is complete.

For more information about Raivu Industries, visit their website raivuindustries.com or raivuforkids.org




Visit our Facebook page for more pictures from the shoot.

PhotoPop - 11 FREE Photoshop Actions

Hey guys! I'm excited to announce the release of PhotoPop, a collection of 11 Photoshop Actions designed by yours truly. Best of all they're FREE!

I created these actions to be a companion for any photographer. Most other action packages I found were too bold and ended up either blowing out or darkening the image too much. PhotoPop is designed to add small effects to help your photos "pop" without changing the style of your original shot. They are so flexible that you can use more than one at a time for added effect. There are also bolder actions for when you want a different artistic look.

What is included:

Normal - This is the default action for use with most photos.
Sharp - The same pop, but with a sharper look.
Darker - If your image is too light and is getting washed out by Normal, try Darker.
Lighter - If your image is too dark and is getting crushed by Normal, try Lighter.
Subtle - If Normal is still too bold, try Subtle.
Vivid - PhotoPop cranked up a couple notches.
Soft Focus - PhotoPop with a soft focus.
HDR - PhotoPop using a HDR look.
Lomo - PhotoPop using a lomography look.
B&W - Black & white with a little pop.
Quick Vignette - Most photographers like to add a subtle vignette to these effects, so I included an quick, easy action.

I hope you enjoy! Feel free to comment and let me know how they worked for you. Send over any pictures and I'll post them on the blog.

And here's what you've all been waiting for:
Download PhotoPop

For more examples of PhotoPop in use, visit our Facebook page.

These actions were designed in Photoshop CS4 and have been tested in CS3. I don't know if they work in any other versions. Test them out and let me know. UPDATE: Special thanks to IrishTom for testing them in CS2 and Photoshop 7 and letting us know that they work.

To use PhotoPop, unzip the file into: Photoshop > Presets > Actions. Then load Photoshop and open your Actions panel: Window > Actions. Click on the drop down menu and select PhotoPop to load the actions. Then click on the desired action and press play at the bottom of the panel.

Legal stuff: Feel free to download and use these for commercial use. Do not redistribute without my written consent.

Thanks!