Turf Paradise Horses and Models 5 April 2014

Coming Down the Stretch!

I spent a pleasant Saturday with Marni, and colleagues Hank and Casey at the horse track, Turf Paradise, in Phoenix.  It was nice to be with friends on such a beautiful day in Arizona.  Plus, I wanted to use a lens I normally don’t use all the time, the Canon “L” class 70-300mm attached to my Canon 5D Mark III.

Lovely Model at Turf Paradise

I thought I was only going to photograph horses.  But I was pleasantly surprised to find out there was also a model shoot going on for a video game.  So why not tag along and photograph lovely models along with the action on the track?

We Have a Winner!

Of course, I use Lightroom 5 as my main post processing platform.  I had to pull the shadows out on every shot, it seemed.  Plus I did some sharpening on all photos. 

On the models, I also used OnOne’s Perfect Portrait to soften skin and highlight the eyes. 

Another Lovely Model at Turf Paradise!

On some of the horses on the track photos, I used Macphun’s SnapHeal pro to eliminate rails, for instance, along the track.  On one shot, I used Macphun’s Focus2Pro to put everything except the horses out of focus. 

It didn’t take much time to edit these photos.  Probably took me less than an hour total.  Then I uploaded to both my Flickr and Zenfolio sites, write the blog, and post that. 

The Finish Line

Until my next adventure….

See you on down the road!

Jim Patterson

Bonus Photo... 

Done with Macphun's ColorStrokes

See all of my photos from this adventure on Flickr!

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Cave Creek Rodeo Finals 30 March 2014

Team Roping, Background Out of Focus with Focus2Pro

This is one of the finest smaller pro rodeos around.  It’s in Cave Creek, just a few miles north of Phoenix, in a very compact arena.  I’ve photographed this event before, and I thought I’d try another vantage point.  This time, I went to the very last row center stage.

Barrel Racing

I shoot primarily with a Canon 5d Mark III.  I mistakenly brought the Canon 70-200mm lens.  I was disappointed at first because I thought I needed more reach.  Yes, many of the photos I ended up with are cropped, but I’m still pleased at the output. 

Black and White with Silver Efex Pro

I used Tv priority, or shutter priority, setting the camera at 1/1000^th of second to capture action without blurring.  It was a sunny day, so I used ISO 100 and a sunny white balance, although since I shoot in raw I could change white balance in post processing.  I didn’t need to, though.

HDR Toning with HDR Efex Pro

I use primarily Adobe Lightroom in post processing.  I did use some plugins for the black and white photo, using Silver Efex Pro.  I like the look and feel of the black and white conversion; it reminded me of an old Lone Ranger scene.  I also used an output filter for HDR toning called HDR Efex Pro.  And I used MacPhuns’ Focus2Pro to put focus on selected areas of a photo. 

Rider Thrown from the Bucking Bronco!

My salute to all the cowboys and cowgirls of the PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association) and the people of the Cave Creek Pro Rodeo.  This is a dangerous and very hard business.  These folks go from rodeo to rodeo chasing wins.  All it takes is one mistake and they get nothing and have to move on.  Some people in Europe think they can insult Americans by calling them “cowboys.”  I always answered I WISH I WERE A COWBOY! 

Bull Riding, With Help from Focus2Pro

From Color to Black and White back to Selective Color

See ya on down the road!

Jim Patterson

Here are all my photos of the rodeo from Flickr….

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