© Gunther Deichmann, Cuttlefish Sepia sp. - Alien afternoon...

Hi everybody... I am leaving this afternoon for a short one week trip to Palau to be with my friends and client at Sam's Tours, they are celebrating the Grand Opening for the completely renovated Sam's Tours premisses, the big party is on the 26 of October and I give you a full report with images once I am back next week, but now I have to run hence this Alien afternoon.... so much to do and no time left.
Until soon,
Cheers Gunther

© Gunther Deichmann, Germany
Simplicity...

On a personal note,
I really start to wonder where is this all going? Not one year goes by, more mega pixels, more this and more that, are we forgetting the real photography and now just competing in technology, you almost have to be a scientist, carry a calculator around bring your Camera manual in case you forgot which is which button.
I honestly dont know anymore, sounding frustrated, well sort off, but you cant blame me. I believe we spend to much time these days trying to figure out how things work instead of concentrating on the real issue, Photography.
Courses been offered for digital photography to teach aperture, shutter-speed auto-focus and so on, yes that is fine, but now it is getting a lot more complicated when you "need" to learn about white balance, big sensors, small sensors and the list goes on.

I firmly believe, in photography you need to have basic technical knowledge, I guess 10% is fine the rest should be creativity and that is YOU.
To many blogs and websites dealing with to much "techno" cr...., pages and pages of it these days, yes if you a systems engineer that maybe cool but not if you are a serious photographer. Let us be inspired by images from the masters of today and the past, we can learn so much from them, by just browsing through their images, take the good old Nikon FM2, now that is a real camera, manual everything, OK things have changed even for me I am also all digital, but nothing has changed the way I shoot, we must not forget, that it is not the camera which takes these great shots, it is only a tool, it is you and you alone who create these images, remember the image is created before you press the shutter and that is YOU.

The camera is only the executioner, you point it in the right direction, make sure the light is right, and all of this seconds before the shutter is pressed.
OK that is enough, we have arrived at the digital age if we like it or not, but please remember what I have mention above.
To finish what has been on my mind for quiet sometime is also the software, from Photoshop, Lightroom and Aperture, yes we need this now, but again how much do we really need, pages and pages on the internet, I call it total over saturation, is there some one out there who can explain some of these softwares in more simple terms, then maybe more people could understand them and if I like to go into depths with it, then I just buy a good old book.
Sharing advise and some shortcuts and tricks is fine, but honestly I cant look at these novels anymore!
The way we think these days, well I messed up this shot... easy I can fix it in Photoshop, wrong thinking, that is why I like softwares like Aperture, you cant move things around, get the image right in the first place and dont relay on Photoshop... that is not Photography. OK I made a mistake and underexposed by 2 stops, Aperture can fix that, but so could the darkroom before by push processing or clip testing, but the lab could not move and retouch things out of your frame and that is why I love Aperture and of course the ability to sort and file thousands of images, now that is an improvement from the old days.

As an Apple Certified Trainer for Aperture, I have embraced this software long before I become certified, my new darkroom... you dont get even tempted to move heads around..because you cant do it, but I can make some correction just like before, the good old fashion way, plus having the ability to sort and store thousands of images... what else do I need!
My final note: keep it simple, dont get over involved with all these technical pages and novels, learn the basics, use one camera system, and select one or two softwares instead trying to learn them all, and remember it is YOU and not the Camera who is ultimately responsible for this great image.

To view and not to read... please check out my website at: http://www.deichmann-photo.com
GD

New guidebooks on Palau Micronesia and Puerto Galera in the Philippines have been given some nice write ups in the i-mag Photography Magazine, a paradise pair, Palau and Puerto Galera two of the best dive destinations in the Asia pacific region. Thanks to i-mag Magazine for publishing this four page article in their current issue.
They have also published in the same issue a nice article on the recent GD PhotoWorkshop in Cambodia with the Philippine Center for Creative Imaging or PCCI.
You can download all of the articles as pdf files under Publications/Spread on my website at:
http://www.deichmann-photo.com/publications.html

For dates on photo workshops in Cambodia, Palau and Tibet please go the link provided below:
http://gdphotoworkshop.com/

For all your diving needs and or next vacation please check out the Philippine-Micronesia Alliance. The Divers Choice.
It is here where you can order these latest books direct online at:
http://www.alliancediving.com/book-orders.html





___________________________

The i-mag Photography Magazine was very quick and published in their current issue a nice article from our GDPhotoWorshop in Siam Reap, Angkor Wat, Cambodia.
The images are from the workshop participants and text by Jun Miranda, including the image from Luis Harder, who won the Apple Aperture software, with his photo of the little boy, the bike against the brown wall. If you like to read the whole story you can download it as a pdf file here located under Publications/Spreads
http://www.deichmann-photo.com/publications.html
For more information or if you like to view some of the images in our Gallery from the participants, please click this link:
http://gdphotoworkshop.com/


The great sunrise shot was taken by no other then Bebet Gaudinez,
the group photo is by my good friend and guide Savuth.

© Gunther Deichmann, Santorini, Greece 2005

You all know how much I love color and contrast! I am very much of a color person, however when you return from a trip like Cambodia, or be more specific Siam Reap and Angkor Wat, you start to think when you look at your images.
All my editing and adjustments are done using Aperture, and after my last trip during the final editing, I thought well, some of these ancient temples and ruins lead themselves more to Black and White.
With Aperture you can try and find the right combination very easy.
OK here we go:
Once you have your Raw files imported you just highlight the image you think could look good in BW, then you go to the adjustment panel click on the one with the + sign and now another panel opens up which contains the Monochrome Mixer, click on that one and there you go BW, but it gets a lot better than this, you have the options just like in the old days with film to experiment with different filters like red, orange, yellow, green and blue, every-time you click on one of these filters the image is changing, now it is up to you what you like best, there are so many more other adjustments you can choose from, this is just a quick way for you to see if the image looks better in Black and White, maybe you like Sepia, it is in the same adjustment panel, again the choice is yours.

I am a color Photographer but I found that some of the images from these ancient ruins look real great if not better in BW, so if you using Aperture give it a try and see what happens, it is so easy but the best part is if you dont like the changes you made your original is all out there in its colorful glory, Aperture never touches your Original. Last but not least, if you like to compare the two images, BW with the color one, then just hit the letter "M" on your keyboard, toggle on and of and see the difference. Please see below some images from the last trip, converted into Black and White, for more images (sorry all in color) please go to my website at: www.deichmann-photo.com
Until next time,
GD

I have marked the area with a red circle and the little + is where
you find all your BW tools, top right hand side on the Adjustment panel.






© Gunther Deichmann, all BW images above, Cambodia 2007

© Gunther Deichmann

It has been a year, well almost that I attended the Apple seminar with other top Asian photographers on Aperture, being on the advisory board for Aperture, we have come a long way since, all this happen during the Angkor Photography Festival in 2006.
Last year Martin Gisborne from Apple listening to what we had to say, what could be improved etc., etc.
Now one year later... I have just returned from Siam Reap from a Photo workshop and now next month the Festival again for the the 3rd year running.

How do we know it is happen? Well one criticism I have, nobody knows, a great event but poorly advertised, why I dont know.
Unless you are a Photographer and that is in question too, as a matter of fact I only found out about a month ago about this years program, maybe we as Photographers should not do the organizing, this is suppose to be for all, not only for Pro Photographers but upcoming ones too.
A super Idea and for sure down the road a success but only if everybody knows about it and not only a small group of people, I sincerely hope that this years festival shows more than just images of war, turn on CNN you have it everyday, I know the past only to well, I have been traveling to Cambodia since 1992, but believe me there is also so much beauty out there, not only the past, lets not forget it by all means, but lets try to take in the beauty around us, the Cambodians are some of the nicest people I have met and the culture is just beyond your imagination.
Is this festival really for the ones in need, or is it just a big party for the ones who can afford it?
I hope this year is going to be better, I be there for sure and I keep my eyes, ears and mind open, I have tried to make a donation this year but the organizers did not listening, nothing big, but every little bit counts I guess, or does it not anymore.
GD.

Please see below copied from the announcement:

ANGKOR PHOTOGRAPHY FESTIVAL
3rd edition
November 17th - 28th, 2007
Siam Reap - Cambodia

The Angkor Photography Festival, the first of its kind in Asia, was created in 2005 by Christophe Loviny, Gary Knight and Jean-Yves Navel. This year, for the third time, the temples of Angkor willbecome a hub for both famous and passionate photographers from across the world. The strong educational goals of the Angkor Photography Festival sets it apart from other photography events. Here, the participants contribute their art and their time, demonstrating that photography can change lives. The Angkor Photography Festival organizes free workshops for emerging Asian photographers, and plans to expand by creating a permanent school. In addition, it runs workshops for street children, and has created the Anjali center in Siem Reap to provide them basic schooling.
For more information please go to:: http://www.angkorphotofestival.com/

Bebet at Bayon Temple, during our Cambodian
GDPhoto Workshop, September 2007

Bebet caught by my Cell Phone at the Penguin Cafe
Malate, Manila, October 12, 2007

© Gunther Deichmann, Heritage Suite Hotel,
Siam Reap,Cambodia Sept. 2007

It's been long overdue, but now it is done!
I have up graded my website for my book Journey Through Color and Time, now the Journey continues, a fresh approach, more images from the book, great music and some video clips on the podcast pages an archive plus a lot more information. It has been a year since the launching of my book, well almost, 15th of November 2006 to be exact.
The website for the book has been around but in the meantime a lot of things have happen on the website front, with the arrival of iLife 8, well a lot of great stuff has now been incorporated, as matter of fact, most of it is brand new and so much faster.
Yes, here I go again, with my favorite word "Integration" yeah, I know cant leave it alone, but it is so true.
Creating the music in GarageBand, once that part is out of the way I just go to iWeb and stay there, have access to all my images including my Aperture Library, plus a very cool new assortment of templates to go with, now you dont have to be a rocket scientist any more, you can do it too and it is so much fun. There is a podcast dedicated to PhotoShelter, "Photo Stock Blues" another one for the Heritage Suite Hotel "Heritage Hotel Brandy Blues" and the cool one called "The Journey continues" these three are very new and I hope you like it, but enough now, check it out on the link below, watch, view and listening to the cool sounds, sit back and enjoy, let the Journey continue... as for me, I am going to have a Brandy right now.
http://web.mac.com/gdeichmann/Site/The_Journey_continues.html
GD

© Gunther Deichmann, Phnom Kolen Temple,
Cambodia Sept. 2007