Month: August 2017

Macphun Intensify versus NIK

Lightning Storm KAC6786_1
Here’s the image processed with Adobe Camera Raw.
Lightning Storm KAC6786
Same image as above then processed with Macphun Intensify.  The clouds really pop with drama.
Lightning Storm KAC6786nik
I stared with the first image and then did a little post processing with Google’s NIK Color Efex Detail Extractor.  

This comparison illustrates that Macphun Intensify can give us the great results we loves with Google’s NIK Color Efex Detail Extractor.

Storm Clouds with Macphun Intensify

We had some great desert lightning storms during my recent workshop in Big Bend National Park.  Each of the images below is a composite of several lightning strikes to make the scene more dramatic.  The images have then been processed with Macphun Intensify to bring out the details in the clouds.

Lightning storm KAC082017
Composite image of lightning strikes in Big Bend National Park.
Lightning storm KAC082017stackintensify
Same image with a touch of intensity added thanks to Macphun Intensify
Lightning Storm KAC6989_7097intensify
Composite image of several lightning strikes.  Then processed with Macphun Intensify to enhance the clouds.
Lightning Storm KAC6989intensify
Single image of magnificent storm clouds in Big Bend National Park.  A touch of drama was added with Macphun Intensify.

I love what Macphun Intensify does to bring out details in a photo.  Thanks to a full range of sliders, I can bring out details and drama that enhance my photos.  Intensify really does “bring out the hidden beauty” of a photo.

Photographing the Eclipse: How Much Magnification?

How much magnification do you need to photograph the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017?

Sun KAC6341
This is the sun photographed at 10:21 in the morning, Canon 100-400mm lens with a 1.4x extender.  10-stop ND filter.  4000 shutter speed, f/4, ISO 100.

It’s going to take some magnification to photograph a big sun.

Solar eclipse, March 20, 2015, over Iceland.
This is the solar eclipse photographed in Iceland in 2015.  The lens is a 16-35mm on a full-frame camera.  I used the same 10-stop ND filter as above.  Notice how small the sun is in this frame.  (BTW, this is the same as using a 10-22mm lens on a cropped-sensor camera.)
Solar eclipse, March 20, 2015, over Iceland.
Solar eclipse in Iceland 2015 photographed with a 24-105mm lens on a full-frame camera.  I used the same 10-stop ND filter as above.  (This would be the same as using a 15-85mm lens on a cropped sensor camera.)
Solar Eclipse Sequence KAC1blog
This is a stack of images shot during the Iceland 2015 eclipse with the 24-105mm lens.  Then the entire image was cropped.  I used the 24-105mm because I wanted to build this stack later on in Photoshop.

Think about what lens you are going to use to photograph the solar eclipse on August 21, 2017.  The event will happen fast so the time to get prepared is now.

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