Union Pacific 5514 Locomotive in Smithville, Texas

NEO "Matte noir" filter

Snapped this locomotive sitting on the tracks in Smithville, Texas.

Equipment: Fujifilm X-T5 camera. Fuji16-80 lens.

Added "forest stream" NEO filter

Original.  Added "Dirty Look" preset filter in NEO.

Original. Added some contrast to the skies.

This is a composite pic.  Using Luminar NEO I added some dark clouds and changed the lighting to match.  

Original unedited.

Composite. Added NEO wispy clouds.

Last Train to Denver.

Another composite.  This last picture was purely for fun.  Found a Rocky Mountains picture (stock) to replace the original sky. NEO has a great option for this sort of thing.   

If I had to do it over...

--Would get more perpendicular to the engine for a better full-side angle. 

--Use my wide angle 10-24 lens (didn't have it at the time).

--Use a tripod, use a ND filter, and open up the aperture.

--Makes me wish I had a fisheye lens...Up close with that engine may have produced some great close-up in-your-face engine pics. 

-The upside is I believe engines stop there periodically, so I may get a second chance.  One more reason to always have my camera with me. 

fotoboi.com

 My wife's oldest son who was already an adult when we got married, has a daughter who is four now.  I don't get to see her as much, but when I do, it's often at birthday parties and special events and I usually have my camera in tow.  So she calls me and knows me as Photoboy.  Photography is a hobby for me but hobbies cost $$$, and photography is no exception,  It would be nice to, at the minimum, recoup my equipment expense/investments which are probably around $8-10k. And there's always a "wish list" new lens or editing tool expense on the horizon.  

So I have thought about having a website in addition to this blog but the focus would be highlighting best pics, etc...Using Squarespace.com* I searched for Photoboy.com and it was for sale for $6,000.  Pass.  But fotoboi.com** was available for $55 for a three year term!  No brainer.  Plus Squarespace has a website builder with options to upgrade marketing options. 

Using a picture I took of myself, Befunky.com, Affinity Photo, and Luminar NEO, I created a logo/brand icon.  Befunky has a variety of artistic tools that "artsify" your photos that I have used quite successfully in the past.  

As hobbies go, we'll see how far I can build out the website and brand.  Then there is specializing services offered.  The quick money is baby/family photo shoots.  I also have a connection to a Real Estate agent who might like/need pictures for her homes.  For stock photos, pay per pic, there are places like Shutterstock, adobe stock, and Wirestock.  If I were selling the farm and going all in I would be doing all of them, but alas, I am not, it is a hobby.  I have to be careful to limit my entrepreneur brain and get too involved (time/energy/money) in another project that pulls me from my sweetspot, pastoring.  

*Initially I started searching using Godaddy but they are more expensive than Squarespace.  Specifically, Godaddy charges extra for website security protection whereas Squarespace includes it. So Godaddy was going to cost $80 versus $55 for the same three year term.  

**As of the date of this post I have not created nor published photoboi.com

Fujifilm X-T5 "Subject Detection Setting Airplane " to Capture Airplanes in the Skies

Taken in front of my church in north Austin around 6 pm.

Equipment: Fuji X-T5 with a Fuji 16-80mm lens.

I used the subject detection setting feature set for airplanes for the first time. This is found in the menu under Af/MF, Subject Detection Setting, then select airplane. You also can select Animal, Bird, Automobile, Motorcycle&Bike, or Train. I have added subject detection setting to the "Q" button (Quick Menu) for fast access.

The clouds over Austin today were amazing in any direction. So I left for work early, and threw my camera in the truck hoping to find a high point to snag some cloud pics. I pulled into the Hwy 183 walkover bridge at E51st. The next thing I heard a plane fly over my head! I was in the flight path of landing planes. What's better than sky pics? Sky pics with jets of course. Then I saw the Austin skyline. And finally, I thought the walkover bridge was worthy of a pic or two. But my favorite pic was when I got to church. Took that one standing in front of the church doors. No airplanes.

The moral of this story:

--BE PREPARED. Always bring your camera when you are driving. Keep a camera stand in the trunk.

--SLOW DOWN. Don't be in such a hurry all the time that you can't stop and take some pics.

--LOOK AROUND. You may have stopped for a pic of something that caught your attention, but there is often other photo opportunities hidden in the peripheral.

--POST REFLECTION: After your photo shoot always take the time to reflect on the event. Ask yourself, "What went right? What went wrong? And a really important question to improve your photography skills, "What would I do differently if I could redo it?" The primary purpose of this photography blog for me is to intentionally force me to think through the "Post Reflection" process and provide a place for me to record my findings. If others can benefit, all the better.

Now back to Airplane Pics.

The following pics are all in a sequence.  Flying towards me, then directly above me, and then flying away.  Using the object finder plane mode proved to be very effective. 

NEO:  I cropped a little and slightly enhanced contrast on these photos.  

Plane is coming towards me.  Sun is to my back/left.

Directly over my head.  Delta would be proud.

Now the plane is moving away from me.
The sun is to my front/right. Light source and location make all the difference. 

Skyline Downtown Austin, Texas

Skyline Downtown Austin, Texas