Owl City Visits IUP

I wasn't even aware of what this event was when I opted to cover it for the campus newspaper,The Penn. My boss simply asked me if I wanted to shoot Owl City for them. Without question I always except any assignment given. My first thought was to assumed that I would be taking shots of owls or something. I had no idea that they were a band. After attending the short concert, held at IUP's Hub Ohio room, I quickly realized (after they played it) that this is the band that has a very popular song entitled "Fire Flies". I actually liked some of the songs that were played and overall my first experience with Owl City was fun.

Click on the above picture to read the article.

And just for fun here is a picture of an owl

All Photographs By: David Biblis

Water Refection Technique

Recently I learned a cool Photoshop technique that I wanted to share with you all. This technique adds a realistic water reflection to any photograph and is a very easy and fun effect. This technique adds something special to pictures and also adds more options for the potential clientele.





In this Photoshop video tutorial, you should get a basic understanding on how to easily add a realistic water reflection to any photo. It's a very easy effect to create and you can add it to any photo you like, although it tends to work best with images that don't already contain water in them. In the video below, I will be using a simple filter and a displacement map to create the water ripple effect, and a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer to give our water a little color. So open up your Photoshop Cs4 and follow along with my video. "Hope you enjoy"





NOTE:
This is a video made using a third party program that allowed me to convert my Powerpoint presentation into a video. There is a watermark on the video to grant the host credit, however the full presentation is done by me. The video itself shuffles through the slides fairly quick. Feel free to pause the video to follow along with it at your own pace.

Crimson Hawks Come to Play

The Crimson Hawks (18-1, 7-0), ranked No. 1 in the Division II Atlantic Region and No. 6 in the country by the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II Poll, remain undefeated in the PSAC West.




Above we see freshmen Danny Ayebo warming up with some incredible moves. Ayebo is from Indiana, PA and graduated Indiana High school. He is 6-8 / 215lbs and plays center.




6-6 / 220lb Darryl Webb a junior from Elkridge, Md., is a five-time winner of the PSAC Player of the Week Award. Webb is a definite asset for the Hawks and he will continue to put up the numbers and keep the teams winning streak rolling.

Pictures by: David Biblis

Creating High Dynamic Range (HDR) Photographs; Quick and Easy How To:

You need at least 3-shots to create an HDR image. With three shots you would have 1 shot regularly exposed, 1-shot 2-stops overexposed and 1- shot 2 stops underexposed.
Most point and shoot cameras allow you to change exposure settings. Advanced point and shoots and DSLR’s have a bracketing mode. This makes it easier to take sets of HDR images.

Bracketing
With bracketing, you can set-up sets of shots to be taken at different exposure levels automatically. Once set-up, all you do is hold down the ‘fire’ button and it will automatically run through the 3-5-7 shots at the exposure levels you set-up.
For most of your HDR, you will require a tripod to eliminate any camera movement between the shots. You can take HDR sets hand-held, but you must be leaning against a railing or wall in order to keep the camera perfectly still during the shots.

Merging your images with Photomatix
Although Photoshop does have a ‘merge to hdr’ feature, there is a better way to go for the merging and tone-mapping of your HDR sets. Photomatix is the program I use to merge my sets of HDR. It is easy and intuitive to use, and gives you great control over your image. (Photomatix also provides a trial version so pirate it)

Photographing people with HDR
You can photograph people with HDR selectively. This expands the ways in which you can utilize the benefits of HDR. For weddings, I take some HDR at the church. This captures the occasion in a way I could never achieve otherwise.

Avoiding over saturation or surreal HDR
It’s important to remember that you have complete control over your image. It is easy to stay within a regular color range but still gain a significant advantage by using HDR. You have to watch you do not overdo it with skies in particular.
The same is true for the overly processed ‘look’ that I often see on Flickr. There is a place for going in a different direction creatively with certain images. But you do not want all your images processed this way. On the other hand, you do not want to be so conservative with your HDR that it looks virtually the same as a regular image.

Creative Freedom
There are no limits on your creativity. I use a full range of Photoshop adjustment layers, filters, masking and plugins to go in many different directions with certain photographs. We have so many amazing creative tools to work with today; I’m not going to limit myself to staying within a regular photograph all the time. As the late famous photographer Fred Picker stated, ‘Photographers owe nothing to reality.’
I offer my clients both types of images. This increase sales and gives them more creative and marketing ideas. It also allows you to sell these unique images at art fairs and online.









Photos By: Dave Biblis

Byron Pitts Visits IUP

CBS News correspondent Byron Pitts had a dream just like Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. did.

He said his dream was to appear on television.

“I knew in college that I wanted to be a “60 Minutes correspondent,” Pitts said.

Pitts said that he had to overcome many obstacles before he became a correspondent on CBS.

Pitts, who was raised in east Baltimore, said he had a stuttering problem and didn’t learn to read until he was 12.

Experts told his mother he was mentally ill and should be in an institution.

Pitts gave this speech at IUP’s 20th annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. commemorative program, which was held at 7 p.m. Thursday at Fisher Auditorium.

Students, faculty and Indiana community residents gathered to hear his speech.

Pitts is now the CBS News chief national correspondent and the contributing correspondent to “60 Minutes.”

Pitts has won multiple Emmy awards in journalism.

The theme of the event was “Stepping Out On Nothing: The Future Meets The Present.”

The theme of the program was to go along with King’s message of non-violence and of the civil rights movement.

The evening of events featured musical performances from IUPVoices of Joy choir and dance performances from the African Dance Ensemble.

There was also poetry, prayer and speeches from members of the community and individuals at IUP.

The crowd was engaged and encouraged by Roger Briscoe, educational and school psychology department.

When thinking about the legacy of King we don’t always have to look into the past, said Pitts, who spent time at a hospital in Haiti, while covering the disaster.

“Stepping Out On Nothing,” is the title of Pitts’ 2009 book, which is about his life and how he has dealt with his struggles.

He said he was told by teachers at college that he was a waste of the university’s time and money.

Pitts said he tearfully began to fill out withdraw papers when he was told that he could not be in college.

He said a teacher witnessed the tearful scene and stepped up to help him.

“My stuttering and limited vocabulary was difficult to overcome,” Pitts said.

Every day he would learn to spell and say a new word in a sentence with his roommate, he said.

Pitts said he followed his dream of being on television after he graduated from school.

“If there’s a shortcut to success, the only one I know of is hard work,” he said.

Pitts said that the only way to get strength is to struggle.

He encouraged students to have faith in themselves and what they want to do.

He also said for students to dream big, but plan small.

A question session from the audience followed Pitts’ speech.

Attendees were also welcomed to a reception and book signing in the Fisher mezzanine.

Pitts said America is a good country despite all of its problems.

“Be good to her and she will be good to you,” he said.

“I believe in the power of dreams, the power of faith, and the power of hard work, to step out on nothing,” he said.

The event was sponsored by IUP’s African American Cultural Center.






Photos By Dave Biblis