Ok, here’s a few of mine. I don’t know if they represent my “favorites” per se, but I tried to choose some that were different enough from each other to provide some variety.
This first one was taken over a place called Tenmile Creek in Oregon with a drone:
The subject is very clear. The bridge fills the frame, but there is enough water on either side to give a little bit of context. I like the little patches of grass on opposite corners to add some different texture and color, in particular because the green is complementary to the red of the car. The lighting was lovely that day and I like the shadows cast over the roadway and the overall warmth of the image. The red car in motion crates a sense of dynamism.
I did wonder afterward how it would’ve looked reframed to include the bridge’s shadow cast onto the creek, but I think that would’ve very much changed the feel of the photo and it would’ve lost some immediacy and impact imparted by the tight framing.
Another one, taken of a parked, scrambler-style motorcycle:
To me, an interesting subject, I like the sort of post-apocalyptic vibe of this bike. I’ve framed it to remove all clutter and distractions, and also allowed me to tie everything together with a pseudo-monochromatic color palette. I love the many different textures, shapes, and lines provided by the asphalt, wall, and glass, especially after a fresh rain. I like the specular highlight in the rearview mirror, which I think gives a little pop in a somewhat dark scene. I like that if you look closely you can make out enough of the writing on the license plate and sign to allow you to place the image in Japan.
Here’s one taken at a beach in San Diego, just after sunrise, from my hotel room balcony:
My vantage point (on the 3rd or 4th floor) provided a more interesting view than ground-level, although it also limited my options somewhat because of the narrowness of the balcony. Anyway, I was trying to capture the sort of surreal and serene vibe and intentionally overexposed to get get the sand, sea, and sky to sort of run together and blow out at the edges. I love the emptiness of the beach, miles away from the city skyline lost in the encroaching marine layer in the far background. I like the soft color palette, contrasted with the dark palm trees in the foreground. The wind in the palms and especially the seagull blurred in flight add some dynamism to an otherwise tranquil scene.
Ok, last one. This is a shot from the recent Pikachu Parade here on Okinawa:
This is obviously just kind of a quirky subject. I wanted to convey the absurdity of this sort of endless procession of ridiculous, enormous Pikachu. I used a film simulation (Adox Color Implosion) to push the colors in sort of an exaggerated way, although I did tone done the effect by turning down the Vibrancy and Saturation a little. A wide-angle lens would have captured more Pikachu, but also way too many spectators, and the impact would have been lost. The way this shot is captured, I like that the frame is filled with the Pikachu, but you also get a glimpse of the crowd for context. I used spectators on either side of me to provide some framing, and also give the viewer a sense of being in the crowd themselves. I like that there is no dead space in front of or behind the Pikachu, which creates the possibility of endless Pikachu in either direction, which I think heightens the absurdity. I like that the gray asphalt and construction barrier provide a neutral backdrop for the brightly-colored Pikachu to pop even more. It almost looks like I masked the Pikachu and desaturated everything else, but I didn’t - it just worked out that way.
Anyway, that’s probably enough to give you an idea. I’m not claiming award-winning work here, but I think these are fairly good compositions and I’ve tried to explain why. I hope I’ve conveyed that these images are the result of very deliberate choices made by me, both during the time of capture and post-processing.
