Halloween

Ghost Adventures Live

It’s only a few minutes away. I’m checking out the site and reading some of the background on the place. Wow, it was horrible. What started as a hospital with grand plans of treating mental illness turned into some crazed laboratory where they did experiments on unwitting patients. Sounds pretty sad and gruesome. If all goes well this should be a pretty cool event.

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How to photograph pumpkins – The artrojasdesign Way

I’ve been asked quite a few times how I take pictures of the flaming pumpkins. In actuality, it’s very simple and doesn’t require expensive cameras or tricky setups. I’ve listed the camera equipment I use and the settings. You should be able to do the same thing with your DSLR or Point and Shoot camera.

Equipment:

My camera is a Canon Rebel XTI with an 18-200mm OS lens. Any camera body and lens will work, you just need to be able to set the camera to use a long exposure; meaning you have to control the shutter speed.

The camera is mounted to a tripod. This is pretty much essential for these photos. There is no way you can hold the camera for 1/2 to 2 full seconds and expect anything more than a blur. You can get Gorilla Pods from BestBuy relatively cheap. You can also use any hard flat surface to hold the camera. Even a box will work as long as the camera doesn’t shake. I use both portrait and landscape shots when I take pictures. You may find you are using portrait the most since the flames will be pretty high and won’t show up in the shot otherwise.

A shutter release is good to have but not absolutely necessary. As long as your camera has a self-timer of 10 or 2 seconds you’re good to go.

Taking the shot:

I set my camera to ISO 100. The shots will be long exposures and I want as little noise as possible. Pick the lowest setting you have.

I put the camera in Shutter (Tv) priority. I usually start with a 1 second exposure and experiment from there. After awhile you may need to increase the exposure to capture the details.

Put the camera on the tripod or sturdy surface.

Set the timer or use the remote function so you can trigger the camera.

Line up your camera before you light the pumpkin. Use a flashlight to focus on it and get the right distance for your lens. You’ll want to be able to zoom in and out without having to get too close or adjust positions. You also want to be ready for those first few seconds, that’s when you can get some wild results.

With the camera set, light the pumpkin then move back into position quickly. Check your focus since now it should be very easy for the camera to lock in on the pumpkin.

I stand off to the side and trigger the camera. I just keep taking photos and checking my results. Try longer exposures like 2 – 5 seconds for a really "after burner" style effect. Slow speeds like 1/40 or even 1/500 will show wisps of flame that almost look like liquid.

To get the higher shutter speeds you will need to increase the ISO settings. I usually go to ISO 1600 or at least ISO 800 to get past 1/100. I usually try a couple at this speed but much prefer the 1 second exposures that you see in my pictures.

Try all sorts of different settings and check them in the preview. But take a whole bunch and see what you get!

Even if the pumpkin isn’t on fire and you use tea lights the same technique applies. Put the camera on a tripod, set a long exposure (1 sec is still a good choice) and set the timer. Check what you have and adjust accordingly.

Good Luck and have fun!!

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Another victory in the company pumpkin carving contest

Well isn’t this something? Today at work we had our Halloween party and contest. Prizes are given out for the best costume and the best pumpkin carving. This makes the second time I’ve won the competition with my carvings. I went with the Asylum Joker and Batman for my Heroes and Villains motif. One pumpkin, two carvings.

I have to admit, the competition was less than rigorous considering only five pumpkins were entered. But, in the end, I walked away with the $50 gift certificate to Target and that’s all that matters!

So now what happens to them? Actually, these will go on display for tonight and tomorrow. I am planning on carving several more pumpkins tomorrow and then lighting them up at the end of the night. No sense in doing just one when there are so many available!

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Worst. Disguise. Ever.

A perfect storm of alcohol and permanent marker. Let this be a lesson to you, it’s all fun and games until you take your Halloween getup too far!

I’m not sure who the guy on the right is trying to be, but the fellow on the left looks to be making a tribute to Catwoman with his disguise.

Basically these Mad Scientists got drunk, use permanent marker to disguise their faces and then tried to break into someone’s home. Obviously, their get away was foiled when the police where able to identify them and tie them to the crime.

The ciminal mastermind isn’t what he used to be.

assclown.jpg

They make their mark in mug shot history

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