002/365 - Never Forget September 11, 001

Nikon D200, f/9, 1/160 sec, and ISO 100

© 2011 Eric Adeleye Photography.

This is a HDR photograph of the 9/11 memorial created by Cape Fear Community College interior design students. The memorial was unveiled to the public and dedicated on September 11, 2011 at a ceremony in Castle Hayne, North Carolina.

September 11th, 2001 was such a terrible day that I'll never forget. On this day 10 years ago, I was at work in Bristow, Virginia at New Skies Satellites in the Network Operation Center. It was so surreal to witness the tragic events of this day. In the face of evil, the world changed on September 11th. The loss of the lives of loved ones on that day and in the wars that followed is so tragic. As a veteran of the United States Army, the consequences of this tragic event hit home for me in a very real way. My fellow service members would be called upon to defend our country again. It was time for my generation to face this latest incarnation of evil that plagues our world. I knew 9/11 that at some point, the United States of America would call its greatest treasures, its men and women, to go to war. The ripples from this dark day continue to touch the lives of people around the world unto this very second. I pray for the day peace when abounds, when the great sons and daughters of this country no longer have to wage war. I'll never forget nor should the rest of humanity forget how 9/11 changes the history of earth!

Nikon D200, Vivitar Series 1 19-35mm, ISO: 100, Aperture: f/9.0, Shutter: 1/80sec, handheld, no tripod was used.

001/365 - Black is Beautiful

Nikon D200, Nikon 35mm f/1.8 DX lens, f/14, 1/80 sec, and ISO 100

© 2011 Eric Adeleye Photography.

Lista (Model) MM # 1891900

This is day 1 of my Project 365. What better way is there to kick off my photographic odyssey than by discussing the photo shoot with Ms. Lista that took place on 10 September 2011. I often collaborate with my good friend Tommy Penny of Tommy Penny Photography who setup the shoot with Ms. Lista through Model Mayhem. Ms. Lista was phenomenal, very professional, and showed no fear when it came to trying various poses in and out of the water. Tommy and I have a very good rapport and we kind of feed off each other creatively at times during shoots which is always good. When Tommy and I work together, we function like wrestlers at a tag team match. Tommy and I also help each other out with holding light stands and reflectors too, I don't have a dedicated assistant. I'm not the greatest photographer and I always believe that I can learn from anyone regardless of where they are as a photographer or model. Photography is about capturing that one special moment in time and immortalizing it. When I look back at this particular shot, I can see the entire sequence in my mind as the wave is rushing to shore and surprises Ms. Lista right as I press the shutter button on my Nikon D200. During the shoot my SB-700 wasn't acting right with the Interfit triggers that I have. To be honest, the Interfit triggers are junk, and very unreliable. I'm saving up for some Pocket Wizard IIs and an SB-900 at this time. 200 plus photos later and the shoot with Ms. Lista was done. This photograph was shot in Nikon RAW, processed in the following order:

Adobe Lightroom 3.4
Adobe Photoshop CS5
Silver Efex Pro 2.0

Since I was experiencing problems with my triggers, I had to mount my SB-700 flash on my camera which is the absolute last resort for me most times if I use a flash. I'm all about the strobist movement, but when your triggers give you a fit, you got to work through the problem and go with Plan B. Always have a Plan B during a photo shoot.