I recently participated in a photography event at the Chicago Botanic Garden. 25 photographers were granted private access to the Orchid Show. This event was coordinated through the Out of Chicago photography community.

Not only did we have 2 1/2 hours of access to the exhibit before it opened to the public, but we were also allowed to use a tripod. The tripod provided me with a number of advantages:

• Use of long exposures (up to 20 seconds) to maximize image quality by leaving ISO at 64
• Ability to keep camera stable while holding a diffuser and/or foam board in my hands
• Easier to achieve precise focus on the smallest of details
• Able to use extension tubes for extreme macros without concern over camera shake
• Ability to shoot multiple exposures for blending in post (more about this below)

The only downside to this level of access is that it required me to leave my house by 5:30 am to get to the Chicago Botanic Garden on time!

For several of my pictures, I blended exposures using different aperture settings. Quite often, I would capture one image wide open and a second image at a very narrow aperture (f/22). During post processing, I start with the wide open exposure to achieve the soft, blurred backgrounds that could not be achieved with a narrow aperture. However, with the wide open exposure, I usually wasn't able to achieve enough depth of field to render the fine details of the flower in focus. So, I then stack the narrow aperture version of the picture on top of the wide open one--and brush the sharp detail into the frame only where I need it. In my view, this blending approach provides the best of both worlds--an overall soft, abstract photo with enough detail in the areas where more sharpness is desired.

CLICK HERE to view my pictures from the show.

Here are a few of my favorites:

OrchidsGroup of purple and white orchids at the Chicago Botanic Garden at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Illinois on March 17, 2018 OrchidOrchid at the Chicago Botanic Garden at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Illinois on March 17, 2018 OrchidOrchid at the Chicago Botanic Garden at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Illinois on March 17, 2018 OrchidOrchid at the Chicago Botanic Garden at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Illinois on March 17, 2018

All photographs were captured with my Nikon D850 camera and Nikon 200 f4 Micro lens.

While visiting Iceland, I was surprised at how crowded many of the sites were--especially considering that I was there in the middle of the winter. I discovered that many of the locations in Reykjavik were impossible to photograph at sunset due to the number of tourists in the frame at all times. However, the sites were generally clear of people at sunrise. And, getting out before sunrise is easy during winter in Iceland as the sun doesn't rise until 9:00 am.

One location that I hoped to photograph was the Sun Voyager sculpture. However, at sunset, people are lined up to take pictures of each other while they stand next to the sculpture. Many people stand right in front of the sculpture to capture selfies. It's a line of people that doesn't end until the light is gone and the photograph is no longer worth capturing.

So, I returned at sunrise.

The only problem is that the snow surrounding the sculpture had many deep footprints from visitors approaching the sculpture well before sunrise:

In my view, these footprints ruin the image. So, I cleared the footprints as best I could using Photoshop. Note how in the following picture I have activated the upper layer--the one in which I addressed the footprint issue:

And, here's the final image:

Sun Voyager sculptureSun Voyager sculpture in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 17, 2018

I returned the next day and captured a photograph of the sculpture that I like more--because I think the sunrise was more colorful the next morning:

Sun Voyager sculptureSun Voyager stainless steel sculpture in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 18, 2018

This morning, my "Diamond Beach" picture won Imaging Resource's "Photo of the Day". CLICK HERE to view Imaging Resource's Photo of the Day page.

This photograph was captured in February during my trip to Iceland. This was a memorable photo shoot. Before going to the beach, our photograph guide instructed us to be sure to always have an escape path from the ocean in case of a big wave. You don't want to have to retreat only to step against or onto a big chunk of ice. Fortunately, I heeded his advice.

After spending a fair amount of time composing this photograph, I was looking through the viewfinder when I suddenly felt an ice cold wave hit my shins. To my surprise, the water also rushed under the sand that I was standing on. I nearly fell as I quickly retreated from the water. I was also surprised to see the large piece of ice starting to slide toward the ocean. This is a dangerous beach and I was relieved to make it safely away from the water.

My waterproof boots were filled to the brim with freezing saltwater. Unfortunately, all of my other socks were back at the hotel and more than an hour away. Our photography guide generously offered to let me borrow a pair of his wool socks. Otherwise, I would have to spend the rest of the day with freezing, wet feet. It took me quite some time to get all of the dirt and sand off my wet feet before putting the dry wool socks on. Once we were back in the vehicle, I told the guide that I would return the socks that night, but that the best I could do was dry them with the hair dryer in the room since there weren't any laundry facilities there. He said that "proper" wool socks don't require washing--and that those socks had not been washed in a couple of years. Beggars can't be choosy, but I wish he wouldn't have told me that!

This is the third photograph from my Iceland trip to win a "Photo of the Day".

This marks the 52nd time that one of my photographs was recognized by Imaging Resource as its "Photo of the Day". A photographer is limited to one winning entry per month, so this series of winning images stretches back more than four years. Click here to view all of the winning entries over the past few years.

Diamond BeachImaging Resource's Photo of the Day for July 20, 2018

During my Iceland trip, I visited the Hallgrímskirkja church. This Lutheran church is located in the center of downtown Reykjavik. It is a very popular tourist destination.

I arrived at the church just before the doors opened at 9 am. When the church opened, I entered with about 25 other people. I saw it was going to be difficult to capture photographs of the interior of the church without having to contend with a lot of people in the frame. So, I decided to take the elevator up to the bell tower for the aerial view of downtown Reykjavik.

Downtown ReykjavikDowntown Reykjavik from the Hallgrímskirkja church tower at Hallgrímstorg 1 in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 16, 2018

I enjoyed taking a number of pictures from the tower. It's a good thing that I visited the church first thing in the morning, because it wasn't long before it became very crowded. When I first entered the church, I thought that 25 visitors was a lot and that I could patiently wait for the scene to clear. But, that was not to be. The church became more crowded with every passing minute. Before long, at least 100 people were in the church at any given time.

The only way to get up to the bell tower is by elevator. Despite the $9 charge to use the elevator, by 9:30am there were at least 75 people waiting in line to take the elevator up to the bell tower. The elevator only holds 5 or 6 people, so people were waiting 30 to 45 minutes to go up to the tower.

I came back to the church later in the morning and it was even more crowded. I returned in the middle of the afternoon and it was worse.

So, I decided to talk with someone who worked at the church. I explained that I photograph a lot of churches--and that I was finding it impossible to take pictures inside the church with all the tourists. I asked if it would be possible for me to meet someone after the church closed--so that I could get a few pictures of the interior without anyone in the frame. To my surprise, my request was granted!

I came back to the church at closing (5 pm) and was permitted to shoot for 10 or 15 minutes with private access. That was sufficient time for me to get the bigger views of the interior of the building. I was able to capture pictures of the ceiling, sanctuary and pipe organ during the day--even with the crowd.

Hallgrímskirkja churchHallgrímskirkja church at Hallgrímstorg 1 in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 16, 2018

Later that night, I went back to the church for pictures of the exterior during the blue hour. The crowd was far worse than it was inside the church. Just when it looked like it was going to be impossible to get any pictures (people kept standing directly in front of my lens), I captured this image:

Hallgrimskirkja churchHallgrimskirkja church at Hallgrímstorg 1 in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 16, 2018. The church of Hallgrimur is a Lutheran church that stands 244 feet high--making it the second tallest building in the country. It took 41 years to build the church and it was completed in 1986.

These pictures were taken on a cold weekday in February. I would hate to see how crowded this location is in the summer.

I don't photograph people very often. Once a year, I break out the studio lights to capture some portraits of the youth baseball players that I coach. This year, I'm managing an team of 11 year old players.

The set up for these pictures was relatively quick and easy. The backdrop was a collapsible green screen--it pops open into a 4x6' panel. I used one strobe (Einstein) inside of a Buff softbox. I used a couple of my Nikon speedlights to illuminate the background. I asked a parent to hold a piece of white foam board on the shadow side of the player to provide a bit of fill. The entire photo shoot (10 players) only took about 90 minutes.

This was the first time I tried using the green screen. It sure made extracting the players an easy task...it took me less than 15 seconds to select and extract a player from the frame!

Here are some of my favorites. Please note that I did not design the poster template. I purchased the template (including the fonts) and then customized it for this shoot.

Elagha twinsAli (left) and Mo (right) Elagha of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018 Connor O'ReillyConnor O'Reilly of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018 Brian McBrideBrian McBride of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018 Rafe SlagerRafe Slager of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018 Conner StackConner Stack of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018 Brian McBrideBrian McBride of the 11U Orland Park Warriors baseball team in Orland Park, Illinois on June 20, 2018

When shooting landscapes, most photographers prefer adverse weather to clear, cloudless skies. However, strong wind and sideways rain are enemies of photography.

While in Iceland, I experienced some very unfavorable weather conditions--even for the Icelandic winter. I participated in a photography tour led by Tony Prower. It started on February 20th and ended on February 24th. Here is the weather forecast from the hotel:

Note the 100% chance of rain every day until Sunday. The tour ended Saturday night. One of the tour participants pointed out that just because the forecast calls for a 100% chance of rain for a day doesn't mean that it calls for rain all day. It just means that it is expected to rain at some point during the day. That's true...but here is the hourly forecast that typically appeared:

This was the first time I ever saw a forecast with a 100% chance of rain for each hour over a 48 hour time span. And, take a look at the consistent wind! So, we experienced sideways rain on a regular basis.

One day, we were shooting inside the ice cave at sunrise--so that photo shoot proceeded despite the weather. But, once that photo shoot ended at 10 am, we were unable to leave the hotel for the next 24 hours.

One might think that this is typical of Iceland in the winter. Iceland certainly has its share of adverse weather conditions, but this was an unusual streak of bad weather even according to the locals.

Here's how the weather forecast looked for the days after we left Iceland!

A few things helped offset the miserable weather:

• I arrived in Iceland three days before the start of the tour to explore Reykjavik. The light was good and I captured many pictures during that time.
• Despite the forecast, there were breaks in the sky for a couple of hours each day--and those breaks usually occurred near sunrise or sunset. Despite having only a few hours of shooting, those hours were productive.
• It's much better to have a dramatic sky than a clear, cloudless one.

In the end, I was pleased with the photographs that I captured during my visit. To view my favorites, please click here.

Diamond BeachDiamond beach by Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon in southeast Iceland on February 23, 2018 Sun Voyager sculptureSun Voyager stainless steel sculpture in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 18, 2018 Dyrholaey sea stacksReynisfjara black sand beach and Reynisdrangar basalt sea stacks as seen from Dyrholaey near Vik, Iceland on February 24, 2018 Iceland ice caveIce cave at the Vatnajokull Glacier, the largest glacier in Europe, near Jokulsarlon, Iceland on February 21, 2018 Vestrahorn MountainVestrahorn Mountain in the Stokksnes peninsula in Southeast Iceland near Hohn, Iceland on February 22, 2018. Note that this is a composite image--a blend of the picture of the mountain range with a picture of the sky (and reflections) from earlier in the photo shoot.

This morning, my "Icelandic Horse" picture won Imaging Resource's "Photo of the Day". CLICK HERE to view Imaging Resource's Photo of the Day page.

This photograph was captured in February during my trip to Iceland. This was the very last picture that I took during that trip--it was captured at our last scenic stop before our guide dropped us off at the hotel near the airport. I rushed to get this image as the other tour participants were already back in the vehicle waiting for me. In the interest of full disclosure, this is a composite photograph (a blend of two separate pictures--the sunset and the horse).

This marks the 51st time that one of my photographs was recognized by Imaging Resource as its "Photo of the Day". A photographer is limited to one winning entry per month, so this series of winning images stretches back more than four years. Click here to view all of the winning entries over the past few years.

Icelandic SunsetImaging Resource's Photo of the Day for June 23, 2018
(Note that this is a composite image--a blend of a photograph of the sunset with a picture of the horse.)

During my recent trip to Iceland, I visited the famous Hallgrímskirkja church in the center of Reykjavik. This church stands at 244 feet high and is the second tallest building in the country.

The Hallgrimskirkja church is a major tourist attraction. At any given time, there were nearly 100 people inside the church. It was impossible to capture any photographs of the interior (other than ceiling shots) under those circumstances.

While I was inside the church with the huge crowd of tourists, I concentrated on taking pictures of the ceiling. For this particular image, I used a fisheye lens. The fisheye lens captures a very wide perspective--nearly 180 degrees. So, I was having difficulty even getting this picture without people standing in the corner of the frame!

Someone helped me by asking some of the tourists to step back for a moment while I took the picture--so that I could get a clear view of the ceiling. Once I captured the image, a couple of tourists asked if they could view the picture. So, I showed it to them on the back of my camera.

One woman said, "My God, it's beautiful!" Then, the woman standing next to her said, "It looks like a cockroach". I had to laugh. In my mind, this picture will forever be remembered as "the beautiful cockroach".

Hallgrimskirkja ceilingCeiling of the Hallgrímskirkja church at Hallgrímstorg 1 in Reykjavik, Iceland on February 19, 2018