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05/17/2006 01:55:14 PM · #1 |
I wanted to share the "rest of the story" with you, as this shot had a difficult time coming to DPC.
Background info: I was delighted with the challenge, "Holy Places." It's the first time in a long time that I've been excited to shoot and knew exactly what I wanted to do. The Salt Lake Temple is especially holy to me, as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, it represents the most sacred of everything I know. It is not an ordinary place of worship, but a building specially dedicated to the teaching of the most sacred knowledge and giving of special ordinances that allow for eternal progress for those members who have kept the commandments.
It is where I was married to my husband for time and all eternity. It is where I go when I want to find the peace within. It represents all that is sacred and holy to me. Because of the sacred nature, photographs are not taken inside once a temple is dedicated.
Now for the story of the photo: Life is busy. I made arrangements to have my one available evening to shoot the temple and grounds, only to be reminded that I was watching my grandchildren that night. They don't handle staying in one place well, so that was out... until my sweet hubby came to the rescue and said he'd cover for me.
After 7 challenges with starting scores in the low 4's, I would be shooting a subject I loved! The shoot was fantastic, even with the wind that kept the reflecting pond from allowing some shots I wanted. There was a sense of peace that reminded me of why I do this. As the sun went down, I headed over to the nearby highrise that allows a public view of the temple.
Standing on the 10th floor, looking through the window, I watched the glow of the sunset settled above the Great Salt Lake. The lights on the temple slowly came on until the whole building was aglow. I situated my tripod and took some shots, readjusting until the framing was exactly right. The lights were on inside the building and reflected badly on the window. I did all I could with the polarizer and positioning to eliminate them. Often, people try that shot, but rarely get it because of the reflections.
The shoot finished, I hurried home to download the shots. Three came up and then the dreaded blank shots showed on the rest of the shots. My CF card had corrupted! I used my image recovery software... no luck. I called the company only to be told to send it in and they would recover the photos and send me the fixed CF card. That would take a long time. I checked with others to find out what they use, bought it, but couldn't get the key to unlock it in time to try it before it was time to leave for the Red rock GTG. I was out of luck.
I reshot many possibilities on the GTG, but none as good as what I had taken at the temple. While on the GTG, I had accidently formatted instead of erasing the data, loosing some shots (sounds like I tough on images), so I'd gone on the net and found a free image recovery software, ZAR. My laptop didn't have any of the software loaded and it was at home. It worked fine on my GTG shots.
When I got home late on Monday, I unlocked the bought software, tried it and it failed. The temple shot was not to be.... Wait, I could try the ZAR software. It couldn't hurt. Over 318 images came up! Much better than 3. I recovered what I could. Yes, the image I wanted was there. Open the RAW... nothing but visual noise. Try the JPG, it worked but was very compressed. Possibly, there is another shot that I might try. It's a better overall shot, but there is a reflection showing. I'll see if I can work with it and if the RAW will open. It did and I did.
There you have it. A shot that would not come off the CF disk, could not be opened and had a major reflection that mas minimized within Basic editing... and my highest personal score ever, but entered in Night Shots. But that is another story....
Becky 
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05/17/2006 02:04:31 PM · #2 |
Holy moly becky, that is some story.
The photo, btw, is grand! A very "wow" photo! :) |
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05/17/2006 02:09:17 PM · #3 |
| An even sweeter 6th place finish, then. :) Good thing you were able to recover those shots! Congrats on your finish and a new personal best. |
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05/17/2006 02:17:18 PM · #4 |
Perseverance, thy name is "Rebecca"! I grew up next door to a couple Mormon families, and my stepchildren are Mormons, so I have a great deal of experience with (and respect for) the values of your church and its people. Congratulations, again, on a fine architectural shot.
Next time you have to shoot from within a building, take a large sheet of black construction paper, some black tape, and some scissors. You can custom-cut a cone to extend from window to lens, eliminating all internal reflections. You have to get the camera real close to the glass, but we used to do it all the time.
Robt.
Message edited by author 2006-05-18 01:05:46.
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05/17/2006 03:38:52 PM · #5 |
Thanks, everyone. Bear, I'm going to remember that tip, and even better yet, I'm going to put the basic supplies in my camera bag. I'm often getting into situations I'm not prepared for. ;-)
Becky
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05/17/2006 04:06:53 PM · #6 |
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Perseverance, thy name is "Rebecca"! I grew up next door to a couple Mormon families, and my stepchildren are Mormons, so I have a great deal of experience with (and respect for) the values of your church and its people. Congratulations, again, on a fine architectural shot.
Next time you have to shoot from within a building, take a parge sheet of black construction paper, some black tape, and some scissors. YOu can custom-cut a cone to extend from window to lens, eliminating all internal reflections. You have to get the camera real close to the glass, but we used to do it all the time.
Robt. |
great tip bear, thanks for sharing.
Great shot BTW it really comes off as majestic in a way. |
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05/17/2006 11:31:44 PM · #7 |
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05/18/2006 10:34:54 AM · #8 |
Congratulations on such a fine placement, Becky. The image is beautiful. That's quite a lot to go through to recover a lost image but it definitely was worth it.
Where/How bad was the reflection? What steps did you take to minimize it? I can't see where it was looking at your entry, you did quite a good job removing it.
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