*This is a 2/26 re-edit of this post. I first published it on 2/24 running the photos in color. Since then I came up with a b&w conversion I am much happier with – so out went the color.*
I rushed last weekend to complete some more work on the buffer project. I know I’ll continue when the weather gets nicer but I wanted to get some more images while the snow was still around. It seemed having the contrast would make the images more graphic and this past Monday onward the forecast called for warmer weather (40’s) and rain. Surely, the snow would be gone within a few days…
Well, we still have 6″-8″ left and now are due for 10″-16″ more, starting tonight and continuing into Friday.
I have reworked the five images from the previous buffer posts (here and here) with the new b&w conversion.
Some equipment and software notes:
- All of the raw images were processed in Aperture 3, some received additional work in Photoshop.
- The b&w conversion was done in Aperture 3. I created a platinum-esque preset which tones the image and alters the tonal curve a bit.
- The top five images are composites made with the Canon TS-E 24mm II lens, in each case combining three images into one.
- I’ve been testing a new tripod head, the Arca-Swiss C1 Cube. It’s a joy to use – simple, very quick, rock solid, and an engineering marvel. Its built-in levels are quite accurate and negate the need to add a bubble level to the camera’s hot shoe. I’ve come to love the fact that it has two pan controls. One at the bottom and one at the top, above the leveling controls. This way you can orient the head with the bottom control first (a rough line up or if the head needs a different orientation relative to the tripod), level the head, and then fine tune the pan with the topmost pan control. Since the head is already level adjusting the top pan won’t throw it out of alignment.
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Update – 2/16/11: The Buffer Gets a Gallery