photos
morning ablutions
31/01/2012 21:50
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso6400 f/4 1/100 sec - Michael Grobe
Another Hollywood project with a tight deadline caused a few nightshifts and early mornings at the facility here in Mumbai, so I could grab a few shots of the colorful life happening just below my office window right at dawn.
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 (until the 1DX comes along...) makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography. I use it for fast and responsive street photography, too. The 10fps bursts helped even with this image to capture the right moment with the smile of the woman.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
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night barber
15/01/2012 01:03
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 16-35mm F/2.8 L II USM - iso8000 f/2.8 1/100 sec - Michael Grobe
Back in Mumbai for some time to supervise some Hollywood stuff in Bollywood. Got a first chance to do some drive-by shooting on the way from the facility to the hotel, which needs some fast shutter speeds, as the driver is racing across the bumpy roads of Mumbai. A barber shop next to a hospital. And there is always life in the streets atacking all your senses...
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 (until the 1DX comes along...) makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography. I use it for fast and responsive street photography, too. Those 10fps bursts help you catch the right moment shot from a fast moving car.
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM: great ultra-wide angle zoom lens for street photography. The wide 2.8 aperture is necessary to give you decent shutter speeds for low light street photography, while still maintaining enough depth of field.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
goetz of the iron hand
14/11/2011 03:17
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso160 - f/2.8 1.6 sec - Michael Grobe
Schloss Schwarzenberg in Frankonia, Goethe opens his 1773 play "Goetz von Berlichingen" in a tavern near the castle. The famous quote of "Goetz of the Iron Hand" can still be used to give excuse and justification for ones malicious tongue...
"Mich ergeben! Auf Gnad und Ungnad! Mit wem redet Ihr! Bin ich ein Räuber! Sag deinem Hauptmann: Vor Ihro Kaiserliche Majestät hab ich, wie immer, schuldigen Respekt. Er aber, sag's ihm, er kann mich -".
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor with gorgeous 1080p video, great high ISO noise performance.
Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM: awesome image quality, as-good-as-it-gets, a lifetime investment.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
the fifth white tree
01/11/2011 04:56
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso800 - f/5.6 - Michael Grobe
During a few days of business meetings in London I stumbled upon the fifth white tree.
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II to straighten perspective with shift and create that magical miniature look with it's tilt.
Zacuto Z-Finder Pro 3x: the Zacuto viewfinder is invaluable to properly focus a TS lens using the tilt feature. Through the viewfinder of the camera it is very hard to get the exact rotation and location of the plane of focus right, but judging it through a Z-Finder Pro 3x in live view (going to 5x or 10x magnification for absolute accurate focusing) gets it done quickly and precisely.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
to be a photographer
24/10/2011 03:17
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso800 - f/2,8 1/250 sec
I had been asked, what it takes to be a photographer. While that is a very subjective and personal question, for me this might be a possible answer.
The urge to get up before dawn to hike into the the dessert carrying too much of your gear to the perfect spot to catch the first rays crawling over the dunes painting the mountains gently while freezing your hands off capturing the moment you had envisioned and hoped for to be found in loneliness.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor with gorgeous 1080p video, great high ISO noise performance. The image has been taken with the 1Ds Mark III, but I recommend the newer 5D Mark II with comparable image quality and slightly better ISO performance.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
last clouds of summer
28/09/2011 04:55
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso320 - f/5.6
- exposure blending of 7 HDR exposures - Michael Grobe
Another summer gone by.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
light my way
21/09/2011 04:46
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/8 - 1/500 sec - Michael Grobe
A distant memory of New York, taken from Liberty State Park looking over to Liberty Island.
Light my way by N.F.D. the offspring of the legendary Fields of the Nephilim.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
slovenian beauty
09/09/2011 02:01
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso160
- f/2.8 1/160 sec - Michael Grobe
Not only truffle pigs, but also beauty to be found in Slovenia.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM: awesome image quality, as-good-as-it-gets, a lifetime investment.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
slovenian truffle pig
01/09/2011 16:12
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso1250 - f/5 1/200 sec - Michael Grobe
Back in lovely Slovenia again to supervise a commercial shoot. Spotted this rare sight in the evening just next to our shooting location deep in the country side. From far it looked like a strange monster dog, but then it turned out to be a giant truffle pig. Following this master through the meadows and woods, that is how the Slovenian truffles are hunted down, which you can eat aplenty in Ljubljana...
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso1250 - f/5 1/200 sec - Michael Grobe
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM: awesome image quality, as-good-as-it-gets, a lifetime investment.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
summer over germany
23/08/2011 02:06
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso100 - f/4.5 - 1/400 sec - Michael Grobe
Finally some summer in Germany after all the cold and rain. So the best thing is to jump on a plane and explore the world from above, when you are lucky enough to have a flying friend. And I love to take a shift and tilt lens with me into the skies, as this lets you rotate your focal plane exactly where you want it for that special look.
The gear used to create this image:
FK 9 Lightplane: the light way to fly
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II to straighten perspective with shift and create that magical miniature look with it's tilt.
Zacuto Z-Finder Pro 3x: the Zacuto viewfinder is invaluable to properly focus a TS lens using the tilt feature. Through the viewfinder of the camera it is very hard to get the exact rotation and location of the plane of focus right, but judging it through a Z-Finder Pro 3x in live view (going to 5x or 10x magnification for absolute accurate focusing) gets it done quickly and precisely.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
white storm
22/07/2011 03:33
The Comic Con started today, time for the "White Storm" website to go online. A few weeks back we shot a trailer for the movie in a Studio in L.A. and lots of background plates and material in Death Valley. I had the pleasure to join the project as vfx supervisor and contribute additionally the vfx and set photography. The trailer is still in post production, but the website is worth a first look and the director Bruno Werneck is presenting the project at Comic Con in San Diego.
Image from timelapse sequence shot with Canon EOS-5D Mark II and TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L
been shooting
23/04/2011 05:13
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - photo by Andre Cantarel
Haven't posted here for a few weeks, but actually a lot has been going on. Went back to L.A. for three weeks for some business and shooting. I had the pleasure to supervise a VFX driven movie shoot there, including location photography and extensive work in the greenscreen studio. I will post detailed "making of" and "behing the scenes" once the project is released. Now back in Germany at the right time for some more car photography in beautiful spring, some consulting work and RND for the possible next big gig. Blog posts on those to follow as well as some "behind the scenes" and "how to" on texture photography.
photo by the secret director
photo by the secret director
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor with gorgeous 1080p video, great high ISO noise performance.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
alien invasion : Mil Mi-24
10/03/2011 20:07
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso160 - f/4.5 1/40 sec - Michael Grobe
Rocket launcher of a Mil Mi-24 shot during an extensive VFX photography session at Luftwaffenmuseum in Gatow, Berlin. More stuff to follow from that shooting soon.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor with gorgeous 1080p video, great high ISO noise performance.
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II to straighten perspective with shift and create that magical miniature look with it's tilt.
Zacuto Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x: the Zacuto viewfinder is invaluable to properly focus a TS lens using the tilt feature. Through the viewfinder of the camera it is very hard to get the exact rotation and location of the plane of focus right, but judging it through a Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x in live view (going to 5x or 10x magnification for absolute accurate focusing) gets it done quickly and precisely.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
resurrexit
09/03/2011 19:35
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100
- f/8 - 1/250 sec - Michael Grobe
Resurrexit - an agnostic abstract. Taken in Belvedere, Vienna.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
and the scissors danced
04/03/2011 18:43
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100
- f/6.3 - 1/80 sec - Michael Grobe
Found the dancing scissors in Belvedere in Vienna. Since it is ballseason right now, it must have been a waltz. I layered two exposures, one with the scissors in focus and one out of focus shot through a hedge. There is some lovely historical architecture in Vienna providing the flair of the city.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
vienna coffee house
02/03/2011 05:01
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso5000 - f/4.5
- 1/25 sec - Michael Grobe
One of those great afternoons at a Viennese coffee house, Cafe Schwarzenberg. You can spend a whole afternoon just ordering a coffee, no one will push you out to make room for the next party. Try that in L.A. ... where the check comes a second after your plate is empty.
After all you wont stop at that one coffee, as there is Kaiserschmarren, Apfelstrudel and Sachertorte, Gulaschsuppe mit Salzstangerl ...
And there is music as well, piano and violin create the perfect ambience.
The Tilt and Shift lens allowed me to place the focus on the upper part of the wall and through the window, while gently fading the musicians out of focus.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II to straighten perspective with shift and create that magical miniature look with it's tilt.
Zacuto Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x: the Zacuto viewfinder is invaluable to properly focus a TS lens using the tilt feature. Through the viewfinder of the camera it is very hard to get the exact rotation and location of the plane of focus right, but judging it through a Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x in live view (going to 5x or 10x magnification for absolute accurate focusing) gets it done quickly and precisely.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
delorean.de relaunch
28/02/2011 20:59
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 1/250 sec - Michael Grobe
15 years online - and now a relaunch: www.delorean.de
All you need to know about the stainless steel gullwing beauty. Contributed a few images and a trailer to the redesigned website. Recommended for all DeLorean fans and classic sports car enthusiasts, still the leading website about the DeLorean in Europe.
delorean.de from Michael Grobe on Vimeo.
The gear used to create this image and the video:
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor with gorgeous 1080p video, great high ISO noise performance.
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography. Fantastic 1080p video shooting as well.
Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM: awesome image quality, as-good-as-it-gets, a lifetime investment.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the video was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
Apple Final Cut Studio: all in one solution for editing, color grading, sound editing and dvd creation on Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
bavarian woods
27/02/2011 23:54
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso160 - f/14 1/80 sec - Michael Grobe
Almost an aviation shot... but taken from a hill in the deeper bavarian woods in Ostallgäu.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM. The 70-200 is my most used lens delivering great results.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
land of the moonking
23/02/2011 19:01
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso100 - f/4.5 1/800 sec - Michael Grobe
On June 13th 1886 Ludwig II King of Bavaria died mysteriously in Lake Starnberg, being declared crazy and seized just the days before. Up to date the theories around his death are cultivated and his fans still believe in a murder complot. I wanted to capture a view from his famous castle Neuschwanstein conveying the mystery of the whole story and came up with this look into the surrounding mountains in deepest Bavaria. The tilt feature of the TS-E 24mm again translated my vision into the image I had planned to shoot and the final color grading was done to the raw image file in Lightroom.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV: one of the best low light and sports cameras today. Canon's best image quality as of 2011 makes this camera also highly desired for nature and landscape photography.
Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II: the image was shot with the discontinued version I predecessor, get the newer TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II to straighten perspective with shift and create that magical miniature look with it's tilt.
Zacuto Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x: the Zacuto viewfinder is invaluable to properly focus a TS lens using the tilt feature. Through the viewfinder of the camera it is very hard to get the exact rotation and location of the plane of focus right, but judging it through a Z-Finder Pro 3x / 2.5x in live view (going to 5x or 10x magnification for absolute accurate focusing) gets it done quickly and precisely.
Adobe Lightroom 3: the best tool for image management and manipulation on Windows and Macintosh.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
dog days II
01/02/2011 04:52
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso3200
- f/4 - 1/40 sec - Michael Grobe
A stray dog in Mumbai, India. Quite a contrast to the image of the hairdresser's dog from the last post. Different world indeed. There are uncounted stray dogs in the big cities of India. During the day with it's high temperatures and the humidity they are usually quiet and lay down tired, while in the night they become active. You can hear barking and dog fights all nights long. These fights leave a lot of the dogs with wounds and scars. We had a few stray dogs coming to the facility being fed by employees and thererfore defending their territory against other dogs. I created the picture sitting in the back seat of a car, waiting for departure. The Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM is a great walk-around lens for all the situations, where you want just one lens on a camera body covering most shooting opportunites that show up.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1DS Mark III: still Canon's professional fullframe flagship with 21 Megapixels, an upgrade is due at some point. I recommend the
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: also 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor in a smaller body with 1080p video, better display and lesser high ISO noise.
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM: great all-round zoom lens for all occasions, when one lens on one body is all you want to carry.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
dog days I
01/02/2011 00:28
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L USM - iso100
- f/2.8 - 1/50 sec - Michael Grobe
A hairdresser's dog in San Francisco. Since I had only a split second to shoot it (the dog was walking in) the camera was still set to the wide open aperture f/2.8 in AV mode and a low ISO setting resulting in a 1/50 sec. Ideal would have been ISO 800 f/5.6 and 1/100 sec to render deeper depth of field and a tad additional sharpness for the moving dog. But it is also a good example, that technical image quality is not the main importance in street photography, capturing the right moment is. The image was shot with the Canon EOS-1DS Mark III, that didn't have an auto-ISO setting. It is quite useful in these situations, as you can choose aperture and shutter speed in manual mode and let the metering system of the camera decide upon the correct ISO setting to expose the image. The newer Canon cameras have that feature, like the Canon EOS-5D Mark II, Canon EOS-1D Mark IV or the Canon EOS-7D and I use it regularly.
The gear used to create this image:
Canon EOS-1DS Mark III: still Canon's professional fullframe flagship with 21 Megapixels, an upgrade is due at some point. I recommend the
Canon EOS-5D Mark II: also 21 Megapixels resolution, fullframe sensor in a smaller body with 1080p video, better display and lesser high ISO noise.
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM: great ultra-wide angle zoom lens for street photography.
See my gear pages: recommended equipment.
my home is my castle
19/12/2010 00:11
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso640 - f/5.6
- blending of 3 hdr exposures - Michael Grobe
Not exactly my home, but the castle "Schloss Schwarzenberg" overlooking my small home town. Grew up here, so lots of memories, experiences and adventures. A small wooden cabin on a hill near the castle was and is a place as close as any place could get to "Aventurien"...
snowed under
12/12/2010 03:46
lighting the moon
24/09/2010 01:39
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 15mm 1:2.8 Fisheye - iso100 - f/11
- manual combination of 3 hdr exposures - Michael Grobe
Ever wondered as a kid who lights the moon at night? Found the secret place where they do it. Had to be here in Hollywood for sure.
Urban light sculpture at the LACMA in Los Angeles. While I use the fisheye lens mainly for HDR panoramas for movie post production, here it works quite well as an artistic tool.
hollywood fog
14/09/2010 11:55
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso100
- f/8 1/125 sec - part of stitiched panorama - Michael Grobe
People here in L.A. would immediately refer to bad weather, when there is fog, haze, or clouds covering the sky. The photographer in me would immediately think of carrying my camera up the hills and shoot well into dusk and beyond. Clear blue skies and atmosphere lack just the magic. The foggy haze here covers most of L.A. and reaches inbetween the Hollywood Hills.
close encounter
13/09/2010 04:50
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso1600 - f/3.5 2sec - Michael Grobe
A close encounter in the woods - or just some flood lights at a corner of Griffith Park. We were scouting for some spots for the next night time photography tour, while I spotted this shot, the tilt of the TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L added to the mystic mood here.
the ring
23/08/2010 06:58
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 1/2500 sec
- Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 1/2500 sec
- Michael Grobe
You can find some extraordinary folks on Venice and Santa Monica Beach. Especially this athlete on the rings shows some amazing exercises: George Berg.
coming home
17/08/2010 11:38
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso5000 - f/2.8 1/2 sec
- Michael Grobe
Sailors coming home late in the night, passing Venice Pier to find the moorings in the marinas at Marina Del Rey.
goodby for good
27/07/2010 23:35
alles in obi
11/06/2010 04:35
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/16 1/100 sec - Michael Grobe
Recently joined the shooting of the 40th anniversary commercial for OBI as vfx supervisor on the set in Slovenia. Always love helicopter shoots. The image above shows the difficulties of shooting a helicopter properly. To get the desired motionblur on the rotor blades, a shutter speed of 1/100 sec was used, but that means tracking the helicopter with the camera to achieve sharpness of the hull. So the camera goes into AF servo mode for focus tracking and you shoot continous bursts of images to capture the peak moment. Aperture was set to f/16 to be able to shoot a bright target in full sunlight with that slow shutter speed, for a wider aperture a Neutral Density (ND) filter would be needed but wasn't handy at the moment.
Shooting the helicopter wasn't the main task obviously, the usual set photography on a commercial or movie set to collect data for the vfx post production is mostly of technical nature and not to achieve creative results. You bring home hundreds or sometimes even thousands of images for texturing, digital environments and mattepaintings together with HDR 360° panoramas for lighting the computer graphics.
The commercial can be found here.
the last salute
18/05/2010 02:58
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso100
- f/8 1/1600 sec - Michael Grobe
Yesterday one of the greatest rock singers passed away, Ronnie James Dio. I just happened to catch this image the evening before. Even the sun throws the horns for a legend... the "Malocchio".
central park
17/05/2010 09:04
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso160 - f/2.8 1/320 sec
- Michael Grobe
In New York at the moment, enjoying fantastic warm spring weather in Manhattan. Shot the Sax player in Central Park over and through a bunch of benches. As always in NYC, there will be plenty of night time photography of beautiful Manhattan for me. Last time we shot a lot on top of skyscrapers for a movie production, this time I will stay more grounded. Photography from a tripod in the middle of Manhattan can bring you in quick contact with the police, but over in New Jersey you get the better shots of the skyline anyways...
miniature germany
19/04/2010 01:02
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso100 - f/3.5 1/160 - Michael Grobe
The great weather got us flying again. This time I took the 24mm shift+tilt. Tilting gives this miniature feel due to the tilted plane of focus and using that from high above can result in an unusual look at the usual. We were flying despite the volcanic ashcloud from Iceland, wasn´t really a problem at 300-700m flying altitude, only the range of vision was somewhat reduced, whether that was the volcanic stuff or just usual haze, who knows...
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso100 - f/3.5 1/500 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso50 - f/3.5 1/800 - Michael Grobe
maximilianeum
12/04/2010 06:56
Canon EOS-7D - 420mm (EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM +1.4x) - iso1250 - 1/3200 sec - f/4
- Michael Grobe
Some more shooting with a borrowed EOS 7D. Still have to figure, whether I really like this camera and it's image quality (it definitely has more high iso noise than it´s bigger sisters), but it gives great additional reach due to it's APS-C sized sensor. The EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM +1.4x Extender becomes a 672 mm full-frame-equivalent. So this shot was taken from several hundreds of meters away looking up through the trees near the "Isar" towards the flags on top of Munich's "Maximilianeum". Used a monopod to stabilze this 672 mm combo and the 1/3200 sec exposure assured a sharp photo.
last struggle of winter
20/03/2010 06:18
mulholland night
25/02/2010 23:51
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 - 1.6 sec
- Michael Grobe
Driving along Mulholland Drive at midnight. The million lights of L.A. shining through the bars of an electricity pylon. Btw... love David Lynch movies...
catch the wave
13/02/2010 00:52
blue dawn
11/02/2010 21:40
last thought of winter
11/02/2010 21:39
the little sun
22/01/2010 08:44
winter night sun
18/01/2010 04:15
daisy and the snow
11/01/2010 07:52
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso3200 - f/2.8 - 1/100 sec
- Michael Grobe
Daisy, Europe´s current low-pressure system brought lots of snow all over Germany and really cold temperatures. All that snow makes a lovely backdrop for some night shots. And at 1am, there aren´t too many guys plowing through the white scenery, it is quiet and one can enjoy the freshly fallen white stuff. If those cameras were just built with bigger buttons, so that you can easily operate with gloves on, it´s quite difficult to do that properly with modern DSLRs.
happy new year
01/01/2010 09:39
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso3200 - f/8 - 0.8 sec
- Michael Grobe
I wish everyone a happy new year!
These shots have been taken on Munich´s Olympiaberg, the highest point of the city with views all around. A couple of thousand people gather there each year to celebrate and make the little mountain disappear peacefully in fire and smoke.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM
- iso1600 - f/2.8 -1/5 sec - Michael Grobe
famous details
31/12/2009 03:55
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso400 - f/2,8 - 1/50 sec
Architectural details to be found on one of Munich´s most famous roofs. Frei Otto´s roof tensile structures.
A tele-lens can be a great tool for capturing details, despite it´s bulkiness the 300/2,8 becomes my favorite lens.
the roofs of munich
30/12/2009 04:23
island in the fog
29/12/2009 04:40
last sunset in berlin
24/12/2009 16:47
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100
- f/2.8 1/400 sec - Michael Grobe
Enjoying the last sunset before Christmas reflected in the Nikolassee near Potsdam, Berlin.
distorted night
09/12/2009 05:52
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/5,6 -
HDR exposure blending of 3 shots - Michael Grobe
The Olympiapark is becoming a favorite shooting ground... but then again, there is so much detail to be explored, each time I take my camera there, I find new opportunities. Spotted this one walking by the Olympic Stadium and chatting to a friend. First hesitated as I had to shoot through a fence. But then positioning the lens inches away from the fence got rid of any obtrusive lines in the out-of-focus area. Shot as a bracketed exposures to blend dynamic range detail together, I guess it was worth the freezing hands...
the last guest
18/11/2009 03:14
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso6400 - f/4.0 1/10 sec - Michael Grobe
The last guest in “Seehaus“ at the “Kleinhesseloher See” in Munich´s English Garden.
The lamps are indeed beer mugs...
Canon EOS-7D - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4.5 -
HDR exposure blending of 3 shots - Michael Grobe
biomorph
10/11/2009 05:04
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM - iso800 - f/7,1 6 sec - Michael Grobe
Biomorph: organic architecture. The famous roof tensile structures of Frei Otto.
digging in mud
27/10/2009 04:16
pangolin
24/09/2009 05:47
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 300mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/8 13 sec - Michael Grobe
Another night at the Olympiapark in Munich, photographing the timeless architecture.
Pangolin - das Schuppentier.
Incredible detail and sharpness rendered by the EF 300mm 1:2.8L IS USM in this 13 sec long exposure.
Detailed crop of image above.
the last adventure
15/09/2009 06:30
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso400 - f/8 20 sec
- composite of 15 images - tree-lighting by Udo Smutny and Michael Grobe
Another night out in the woods to create some light paintings in darkness. The barbarians, knights and wizards where shot on a small wall lit by a campfire, the moon and a 580EX II flash a few days later during a medieval gathering of old friends. Even the photographer was wearing a chain mail that night, which added another 15 kg to the usual 20 kg of photographic equipment, that he is lugging around.
The guys gather once a year in battle gear, to celebrate the old times as fantasy-role-players. They started almost 25 years ago, spent uncounted nights in a small wooden hut guiding their characters through quests and fantastic adventures...
... and maybe, when they are all retired in years to come, they gather again, grab out those 50 year old documents and finally finish the last campaign fighting the return of Borbarad, the master of demons.
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso3200 - f/6.3 1/2 sec - Michael Grobe
on the road again
01/09/2009 03:51
the skies over germany
24/08/2009 05:29
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 15mm 1:2.8 - iso100 - f/8 1/125 sec - Michael Grobe
Airborne... a friend flies the great ultralight planes FK Leichtflugzeuge and I take the chance to join him exploring the skies over Germany. Next time we take the older plane, where the doors can be left out, should be great for photography and maybe the hairstyle.
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 15mm 1:2.8 - iso100 - f/16 1/60 sec captured from HD video
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 15mm 1:2.8 - iso100 - f/16 1/60 sec captured from HD video
just a shoe
22/07/2009 02:10
2012 - almost done
21/07/2009 12:38
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso6400 - f/2.8 1/10 sec
- Michael Grobe
This Saturday we celebrated the exclusive Uncharted Territory wrap party for Roland Emmerich´s next blockbuster “2012”. Roland invited the in-house unit generously to his house for a really extraordinary festivity at an extraordinary and beautiful place. Our effects work for the movie is almost done, the last shots are to be finaled, soon...
I am wrapping up to go back to Germany for holidays... Munich beer-gardens, Schnitzel, Weisswuerste, Brezen and Radler are waiting...
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso6400 - f/2.8 1/50 sec
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso6400 - f/2.8 1/8 sec
4th of july
05/07/2009 12:41
l.a. gun club
27/06/2009 08:30
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso3200 - f/2.8 1/160 sec - Michael Grobe
Should we go to the movies or... to the gun club?
Completely impossible back home in Germany: you go to a gun club shooting on a friday night with your friends, choose the weapon and with a short instruction you get it handed over together with the ammunition. In a basket over the counter. Then you walk to the shooting range and shoot as long as your supply lasts.
If you asked yourself, what would happen, if anyone goes crazy with the guns there, a quick look at the personnel assures you, that they would use their loaded guns.
scheimpflug in alcatraz
09/06/2009 14:38
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5L - iso100 - f/3.5 1/1600 sec - Michael Grobe
Tilting Canon´s TS-E 24mm Tilt + Shift lens rotated the focal plane for an unusual depth of field. Called the bird in focus “Scheimpflug”, but it wouldn´t listen...
And I like crushing the blacks in this one, something that we always avoid in the world of feature films. Guess that´s why I like it once in a while...
jumping america
25/05/2009 15:17
san francisco
04/05/2009 02:43
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 1/3200 sec - Michael Grobe
Hiking in one of San Francisco´s parks.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/4 1/1600 sec - Michael Grobe
View to the bay from Alcatraz. The gulls and birds have taken over the small island long ago.
alcatraz
28/04/2009 12:42
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/8 1/160 sec - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 1/60 sec - Michael Grobe
Locked up in Alcatraz. Great location, if one ignores the other 300 tourists on the island...
There are some photographic opportunities once you aim your cameras away from the crowd. The boat trip to Alcatraz was part of a weekend in San Francisco.
hollywood hiking
13/04/2009 09:11
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso400 - f/6.3 1/800 sec - Michael Grobe
Hiking in the Hollywood hills on a Saturday afternoon. Two colleagues jumping on a hill, Los Angeles Downtown in the distance and some color processing in Lightroom.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso400 - f/4 1/640 sec - Michael Grobe
runway beauty and the plane
03/04/2009 14:08
hollywood moon
03/04/2009 12:40
california moon
31/03/2009 13:26
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/4 1/1000 sec - Michael Grobe
Dark of the Moon: Poems of Fantasy and the Macabre, Arkham House, 1947
More 600mm f/4
03/03/2009 15:37
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso250 - f/8 1/2500 sec - Michael Grobe
Need to get one of these amazing Canon Tele lenses one day... love the 600mm, but the 500mm f/4 is substantially lighter and a bit smaller, so you can even hand hold it for a while. The 600mm is simply too heavy.
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/800 sec - Michael Grobe
100% crop (actual pixels): the 600mm with the 5D Mark II reveal the heat distortion around the engines of a jet. Sometimes reality looks like a crazy bump map....
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/800 sec - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS 5D Mark II and Canon EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM
19/01/2009 13:59
Update:
Here is the short movie edited from the material we shot back then with the Canon EF 600 f/4 L IS USM on the 5D Mk II.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4.5 1/25 sec - Michael Grobe
Due to some late hours and pressing deadlines I have neglected this blog for a while. But I have been shooting...
In this case I had the opportunity to shoot my new Canon EOS 5D Mark II with the amazing Canon EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM, one of the worlds finest super-tele lenses. Since the 5DM2 arrived right before Christmas, I have been using it extensively and comparing it to my Canon EOS 1DS Mark III. My conclusion: the Canon EOS 5D Mark II delivers image quality on par with the Canon EOS 1DS Mark III and adds the long awaited low light capabilities up to usable ISO 6400 (12800 and 25600 are for emergencies only, when you need to get a photo at all). So both cameras make up a great team for all occasions, I still will grab the 1DS Mark III first for a shoot, as it has all the additional features of Canon`s Pro series bodies: weather sealing, superior autofocus (a real difference to the autofocus of the 5D Mark II), 7 brackets for HDR shooting (only 3 with the 5D Mark II, which is a deal breaker for professional use on a movie set), faster frame rate and a lot of other advantages.
But... when the last sun-rays hit the lens, the 5D Mark II starts to shine. While it can´t beat the Nikon D3 and D700 with its low light sensitivity, it comes close.
I was shooting the EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM at one of the photo shootings for a soon to come Hollywood movie together with colleagues (equipped with two Nikon D3´s). That lens is simply amazing. While you hate the weight and bulkiness (5.36 kg), you fall in love with the image quality it delivers. The shot below shows the beautiful bokeh and the incredible detail you can capture, when the lens is connected to a 21 MP 5D Mark II. The crop is at 50% magnification (1200x800 pixels at 100% scaled down to 600x400). Obviously a lens of that focal length requires a sturdy tripod and careful shooting technique: mirror lock up, remote release and either spot on autofocus or manually adjusted focus via live-view.
And what about the video capture....
of course we shot some video footage with the EF 600mm f/4 L and the 5D Mark II in HD video mode. More to come here, once I had the chance to edit the material. First impressions: I have a laughing and a crying eye (we say that in German, I guess it doesn´t translate properly to English). Why? Stay tuned...
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/500 sec
Photo by Greg Strasz
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/500 sec
50% magnification (1200x800 pixels at 100% scaled down to 600x400)
Photo by Greg Strasz
Here is the short movie edited from the material we shot back then with the Canon EF 600 f/4 L IS USM on the 5D Mk II.
600mm from Greg Strasz on Vimeo.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4.5 1/25 sec - Michael Grobe
Due to some late hours and pressing deadlines I have neglected this blog for a while. But I have been shooting...
In this case I had the opportunity to shoot my new Canon EOS 5D Mark II with the amazing Canon EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM, one of the worlds finest super-tele lenses. Since the 5DM2 arrived right before Christmas, I have been using it extensively and comparing it to my Canon EOS 1DS Mark III. My conclusion: the Canon EOS 5D Mark II delivers image quality on par with the Canon EOS 1DS Mark III and adds the long awaited low light capabilities up to usable ISO 6400 (12800 and 25600 are for emergencies only, when you need to get a photo at all). So both cameras make up a great team for all occasions, I still will grab the 1DS Mark III first for a shoot, as it has all the additional features of Canon`s Pro series bodies: weather sealing, superior autofocus (a real difference to the autofocus of the 5D Mark II), 7 brackets for HDR shooting (only 3 with the 5D Mark II, which is a deal breaker for professional use on a movie set), faster frame rate and a lot of other advantages.
But... when the last sun-rays hit the lens, the 5D Mark II starts to shine. While it can´t beat the Nikon D3 and D700 with its low light sensitivity, it comes close.
I was shooting the EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM at one of the photo shootings for a soon to come Hollywood movie together with colleagues (equipped with two Nikon D3´s). That lens is simply amazing. While you hate the weight and bulkiness (5.36 kg), you fall in love with the image quality it delivers. The shot below shows the beautiful bokeh and the incredible detail you can capture, when the lens is connected to a 21 MP 5D Mark II. The crop is at 50% magnification (1200x800 pixels at 100% scaled down to 600x400). Obviously a lens of that focal length requires a sturdy tripod and careful shooting technique: mirror lock up, remote release and either spot on autofocus or manually adjusted focus via live-view.
And what about the video capture....
of course we shot some video footage with the EF 600mm f/4 L and the 5D Mark II in HD video mode. More to come here, once I had the chance to edit the material. First impressions: I have a laughing and a crying eye (we say that in German, I guess it doesn´t translate properly to English). Why? Stay tuned...
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/500 sec
Photo by Greg Strasz
Canon EOS-5D Mark II - EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM - iso100 - f/5 1/500 sec
50% magnification (1200x800 pixels at 100% scaled down to 600x400)
Photo by Greg Strasz
death valley IV
07/12/2008 09:05
death valley III
02/12/2008 14:16
death valley II
02/12/2008 13:28
thanks giving in death valley
01/12/2008 13:06
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso200 - f/8 -30sec - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8 1/8000- iso100 - f/2.8
- Michael Grobe
No Turkey for the German guys for Thanks Giving... Death Valley instead. We (the Helicopter Boy and myself) went for a photography trip, getting up at 03:30 in the night to catch dawn at Ubehebe Crater around 05:30. Death Valley is quite pleasing in winter time, only 35 degrees celsius, not the 50 during summer. I will post more images in the next days.
shift and tilt
17/11/2008 13:27
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - TS-E 24mm 1:3.5 L - iso100 - f/4.5 - HDR exposure blending of 7 bracketed shots
- Michael Grobe
First shot with the recently acquired Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5 shift and tilt lens. Tilted to the right, the focal plane rotates away from the image plane, the power pole in the middle is in focus, while the ones to the left and right are out of focus. That Scheimpflug Principle opens some fascinating possibilities.
it rains in southern california
03/11/2008 11:51
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/5.6 -1/250 - Michael Grobe
Yesterday, a short but heavy rain came in from sea to Venice. This shot was taken just minutes before everybody ran away from the beach to seek for cover - here in L.A. a little rain causes the same reactions as a thunder storm elsewhere in the world. I guess people are too used to their sunny californian weather. Reminds me of London: the Tube breaks down in winter, when a few snowflakes fall and people run to the streets from their offices to take pictures of that white stuff on the sidewalk...
halloween in hollywood
02/11/2008 13:52
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 -1/100 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 -1/100 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 -1/100 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 -1/100 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/4 -1/100 - Michael Grobe
Halloween Parade on Santa Monica Blvd in West Hollywood/Beverly Hills, Los Angeles.
l.a. nights II
20/10/2008 10:57
venice beach
19/10/2008 22:16
l.a. nights
19/10/2008 14:36
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso50 - f/5.6 - 1/30 - Michael Grobe
Los Angeles at dusk shot from the Griffith Observatory.
back in l.a.
13/10/2008 12:27
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 - 1/640 - Michael Grobe
Venice Beach - lifeguard tower
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 - 1/1000 - Michael Grobe
Venice Beach - miniature sandstorm
Just arrived in L.A. a few days back, to find things haven´t changed much over here in the last decade (been working here in 1997). Just more cars, different cars than in the nineties, you see these Hybrid Priuses all over the place. Venice Beach still looks the same (except Baywatch isn´t shot anymore...). Charly Temmel still sells his famous Austrian ice cream at the Ocean Front Walk, but has closed his cafe on Third Street Promenade. Prices feel like they have doubled over the years, petrol is still “cheap” compared to our German prices. 30 degrees (Centigrade that is) in mid October is something to dream of in Germany. So I hope to find some time over the next few months to cover my impressions with the camera. But first it is: housing, bank account, mobile phone, driver licence, car, ... I do love cities with proper public transport, something that most likely won´t ever happen in L.A.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f/2.8 - 1/4000 - Michael Grobe
A Heidelberger in Los Angeles....
london calling
04/10/2008 03:58
Sony Cybershot DSC-P9 - Michael Grobe
London. Drilling platform of the European film industry. Hectic. No escape. Sometimes beautiful. Sometimes carpet in the bathroom.
Some old shots from London a few years back, 2002-2004. All taken with a point-and-shoot Sony then - more likely as memories than composed pictures. Lived there for almost 3 years altogether working at a few of Soho’s post production facilities.
These images have been posted on www.grobifx.com originally, I move them over here for their proper retirement.
munich sundown
03/10/2008 05:33
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso50 - f/4.0 - HDR exposure blending of 5 shots
- Michael Grobe
First of a series: Dusk at Olypark in Munich. All shot as bracketed exposures for HDR blending and tone-mapping. HDR exposure blending together with iso50 gives a clean and noiseless image. Still the 21mp files of the 1Ds Mark III amaze me every time I zoom into the shots to reveal the fantastic detail captured. Can’t wait to get hold of a new 5D Mark II to see how the same resolution performs with iso settings from 1600-6400. Good to see Canon release some competition to Nikon’s D3 and D700, although I am not the only one, who had wished, they had developed a 12-16 mp sensor instead of another 21 mp. Imagine the possible low light sensitivity: you might have been able to shoot images at iso12800 with the same low noise as lets say iso3200 on a Nikon D3... That could be shooting a 1/125 at f/4 handheld in a candle lit environment. Another aspect of the 1Ds Mark III will apply to the 5D Mark II as well: only the best resolving lenses will satisfy with that resolution. Most likely the Mark II will replace my 5D as second body and hopefully complement the 1Ds Mark III with it´s low light capabilities to form a great team for all shooting conditions. This series will be my last impressions from Munich this year. Moving to L.A. for a few months I´ll be posting Californian stuff in the near future (I hope a demanding job there still leaves me enough time for some photographic exploration). So after all the Indian adventures it is “from Bollywood back to Hollywood” now...
goodby germany
30/09/2008 21:39
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso1600 - f/2.8 - 1/1600 - Michael Grobe
Winter is closing in, fall has taken over with cold and foggy grayness. A silhouette defying the cold october evening enjoys the last light of the sun on “Olympiaberg” in Olympiapark, Munich.
Time to leave the country for a warmer place...
Once in a while I like to name these posts after songs, this one is “Goodby Germany” from “And One”. The right music for the moment is the soundtrack to my life.
night trip
28/09/2008 06:23
bejeweled
27/09/2008 15:30
indian wedding
19/09/2008 03:16
Canon EOS-5D - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - is1600 - f/4 - 1/30 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-5D - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - is1600 - f/6.3 - 1/30 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-5D - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - is1600 - f/4 - 1/640 - Michael Grobe
During my stay in India, I had the pleasure to attend an Indian engagement and wedding ceremony. Spanning over 3 days, the celebrations differ quite a bit from our european weddings. Always remembered will be the groom traditionally riding on a white horse to the wedding venue, where the bride and her guests wait. We have stuff like that only in fairy tales... The groom’s family and guests join the procession, dancing to the tunes of a “louder than everything else big band”.
You get to see the women dressed in colorful sarees and their hands and arms painted with henna. The men dressed in stylish Indian clothing, if they avoided the kind of standard business suits, that look the same all around the world.
hippies hate water
06/09/2008 18:59
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso800 - f/7.1 - 1/4000 - Michael Grobe
The Hippie-Trails to India still seem to be alive, or some of the species have survived in Goa since the 60´s and 70´s...
The image shows some grainy noise, which can easily be explained. It is a 1700 x 1700 pixel crop of a 5624 x 3736 pixel file shot at iso 800, showing the amazing detail captured, but obviously emphasizing the inherent noise.
the kids of rajasthan
29/08/2008 16:04
take off
23/08/2008 15:47
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM -
iso400 - f/5.0 - 1/6400 - HDR composite of 3 exposures
- Michael Grobe
To get the detail in the clouds and the shaded underside of the lantern, a HDR capture was necessary. 3 shots (-1.3 ev, 0 ev, +1.3 ev) were merged in Photomatix. As a fast moving object, the bird was only in the first exposure (0 ev), so that guy is technically LDR (low dynamic range), only the background and the lantern are merged. I had to wait a while and shoot a few times, to get this one. Birds tend to do what they want, not what the photographer would love them to do...
bombay boys
22/08/2008 16:13
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8 - 1/160
- Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8 - 1/200 - Michael Grobe
Guys having fun and showing off after the celebration of Holi. Whenever you show a camera, there are different reactions around the world, but in Mumbai you always find a group, who wants to pose for a picture.
LEICA APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100 on Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III
20/08/2008 05:30
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/2.8 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/4.0 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/5.6 - Michael Grobe
A few months back there was the tough decision, whether to stay with Canon or switch to Nikon, as the D3 was released. I decided to buy the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III as it fits my professional needs best with its 21 megapixels. It is a great advantage to have that resolution for visual effects photography on a movie set. And Canon allows to adapt a variety of lenses from different manufacturers like ZEISS, LEICA, MAMIYA, PENTAX and others. So you can choose among the finest lenses available.
The 1Ds Mark III being very demanding with lenses to deliver the full resolution, that it is capable of, I started to look for lenses with outstanding performance. After reading a few reviews, especially Diglloyd´s ZEISS ZF lenses and his insights on the Leica APO-Summicron-R 90/2 ASPH, I bought a Contax ZEISS AE 35/2.8 Distagon and recently a LEICA APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100, both used, but optically in perfect condition. LEICA lenses don´t come cheap, when new, so it is a good idea to look on ebay. As long as you buy from an ebay shop, you have the right to give it back here in Germany, if it doesn´t meet your expectations. Something you can´t do, if bought from private party.
I choose the APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100 over the APO-Summicron-R 90/2 ASPH, as they ought to offer quite similar performance (the Summicron leading by a bit), but the Macro-Elmarit offering the welcome close range up to 1:2 magnification. Read Erwin Put´s columns on Leica lenses for details.
I won´t get into deep technical reviews of lenses with all their characteristics and performance (see Diglloyd and Puts for that), I will evaluate just the rendering of a lens under my personal shooting conditions and what they bring to the table for my requirements.
That said, today I took the first shots with the APO-Macro-Elmarit and if deeper exploration over the next few weeks doesn´t prove me wrong, I have to say, that this a truly outstanding lens. Just the one you need on a 1DS Mark III. Have a look at the beautiful bokeh (the look of out-of-focus areas) in the shots above, while the lens renders amazing detail and sharpness even wide open at f/2.8. It seems stopping down isn´t necessary to improve performance. The following 100% crops show the actual pixels: dust and a hair on a synthesizer´s keyboard.
I can´t wait to shoot more with that lens...
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/2.8 - actual pixels
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/4.0- actual pixels
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - Leica APO-Macro-Elmarit-R 1:2.8/100- iso100 - f/5.6- actual pixels
portrait
19/08/2008 13:40
sandy feet
16/08/2008 03:30
bollywood sleeps
15/08/2008 06:11
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso100 - f8 - 30sec - Michael Grobe
Film City - a large studio complex in the hub of the indian film industry: Bollywood in Mumbai. The state government has built Film City at the outskirts of the National Park, Goregaon, where leopards, tigers and snakes call the shots. I took the shot from the rooftop of a 22-story apartment building, just before dawn. Luckily the guard at the entrance was sleeping, when I entered around 4 am, so no questions, what I would want on the roof in the middle of the night. It was a great experience to witness dawn over Mumbai from that height. Just had to stay in the middle of the roof, as there were no railings to keep me from a final flight...
The next image is a HDR (high dynamic range) composition of 3 single shots. I used Photomatix for the exposure blending to get all the fine detail in the shadows as well as in the highlights and the sky. The exposures were taken at -1.3ev, 0ev, +1.3ev. Sometimes a range like -2,0,+2 or even wider is better, that depends on the dynamic range, that a given scenery presents to your camera. For professional work on a movie set, I normally shoot 5 exposures from -4,-2,0,+2,+4 ev, or even 7 from -6 to +6 ev, that gives enough dynamic range in most situations for real HDR image based lighting in 3D computer graphics. For pure artistic photography, that dynamic range is in most cases over the top and produces a lot of data (the 21mp raw files of the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III are around 25 mb each). If the scenery presents an extreme range from shadows to highlights, one should measure the dynamic range using a spotmeter, then bracket the exposures accordingly. It doesn´t hurt too much, to have more exposures than necessary, but it definitely hurts, if you didn´t capture the necessary range and find that out back home after the shoot...
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8 - 2,5sec -
HDR exposure blending of 3 shots
dark fields
14/08/2008 05:33
he who walks behind the rows
13/08/2008 05:46
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso200/400 - f5.6 - 20sec/30sec
- composite of 6 images - Lighting by Udo Smutny and Michael Grobe
Another composite of my last lightpainting session in bavarian outskirts. Luckily there was no wind, so the leaves were kind enough to hold still for all the 20-30 sec exposures. Backlight is again a 1 million candle power halogen spot, front lighting is a rather blueish led-flashlight. The colors have been graded to taste and the layers have been handpainted on top of each other to reveal the right amount of light for key, fill and rim.
Inspired by Stephen King`s “Children of the Corn”.
togetherness
11/08/2008 18:11
the tree and the lamp
11/08/2008 17:44
holi - festival of colors
11/08/2008 00:39
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso400 - f4.5 - 1/2 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8.0 - 1/200
- Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8.0 - 1/200 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso1600 - f4.0 - 1/30
Holi - the festival of colors. A spring festival in February or March (this year it coincided with Easter) celebrated all over India. On the first day bonfires are lit to burn the demoness Holika, on the second people start early in the morning to throw colors in each others faces. That means dry color powder as well as liquid water colors. Children use balloons, water guns and their fathers don´t hesitate to pour full buckets over each others heads. As much as I would have loved to shoot right where the action is, I had no water proof housing for my camera and on the first night already a ballon full of liquid color missed my camera by only a few inches to explode on my chest. The camera is weather sealed, but you really don´t want liquid red color on your camera body and lenses... So next day I chose to wait inside, till the action is over and explore the aftermath in the afternoon. That little dog would be clean again after a few days I was assured, like the kids, who had fun with him...
reach for the stars
07/08/2008 20:53
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso200/400 - f5.6 - 20sec/30sec - composite of 8 images - Lighting by Udo Smutny
What do you do during a nice summer evening at the bavarian countryside...
First you have a proper “barbecue” - we call it “Grillen”, which requires lots of dead meat and beer or “Radler” for the ones like me.
Then at midnight you go into the wild for some shooting. Grab your camera, tripod, a few lenses and lots of light...
Lightpainting... a technique I used for some surrealistic photographs 20 years back and recently re-discovered. You shoot at night outdoors or in a dark studio indoors with a long exposure (e.g. 20 sec or as long as necessary) and reveal your objects by lighting them in painting style. You use your light source like a brush.
While often photographers try to light everything in one exposure, I prefer a different approach for static objects. I light every part of the image on separate exposures and combine them later in Photoshop. That leaves me much more control and freedom to create the desired lighting and I guess it is a tribute to my history as a Technical Director, lighting shots for feature films in the realm of 3D computer graphics.
For the shot above, 8 exposures were taken, a 30sec at iso400 for the stars and 7 20sec at iso200, while lighting the objects with a 1 million candle power (55 watts) halogen spotlight. The spotlight needs to be in constant movement to prevent hotspots, smooth circling provides softer light. The blue color was introduced later in Photoshop, easily possible, if the objects are lit on separate exposures.
I am going to get lights with 2 million candle power, as that will enable me to shoot at iso100 without extending the exposure times further, resulting in better image quality due to lesser noise.
Lightpainting is a technique, which I will explore deeper, it is great fun and delivers the unusual covered in darkness. It is for the night creatures, who love to be on the move, when others sleep...
faces of rajasthan
05/08/2008 17:49
the eagle has landed
31/07/2008 04:25
the colors of rajasthan
30/07/2008 01:59
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso400 - f11 - 1/750 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso200 - f4 - 1/500 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso400 - f11 - 1/500 - Michael Grobe
In late 2007 we went to a small town in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by a salt desert in Rajasthan, for the shooting of a Bollywood movie. It was a great experience, to be in this world of colors and textures, would have loved to stay there for a couple of days longer to have more time for photography. It seemed as if I had been the first european guy there, at least it felt like that to me. It was sometimes quite tricky to take pictures without someone in front of the camera, a few guys were quite keen to be on every photograph. So they constantly moved into frame with a smile...
It is a different and beautiful world out there, if you have the chance, go off the usual tourist track and explore the real beauty of India.
synchronicity
27/07/2008 02:15
last exit for the lost
27/07/2008 02:15
where the night has
become elizium
for the sleepless souls
and our days to come
may be i'll just pass away
or may be i'll stay
but i feel alive with you
and i feel some kind of heaven
hear me
give me some kind of heaven
At The Gates Of Silent
Memory
Fields of the Nephilim
parallelism
26/07/2008 13:05
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso400 - f3.5 - 1/1600 - Michael Grobe
This photo of a series had to be taken silently without the attention of the subject, otherwise the opportunity for this shot would have been destroyed. So the camera (EOS-1Ds Mark III) with the EF 70-200mm attached rested on my knees, while I was sitting. Zoomed to almost 200mm, live view enabled me to focus manually to precisly focus the shoe, the aperture wide open limited depth of field. Using autofocus would have had a great chance of missing the exact focus. It takes some practice to shoot hand-held with live view at 10x magnification for focussing, especially on a shaky boat.
The 100% crop below shows the actual captured detail.
100% crop - actual pixels
holy cow
26/07/2008 03:48
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f8.0 - 1/80 - Michael Grobe
Yes these guys are all over the place in India, in the cities, on the streets. And they have the right of way. Imagine that in New York, London or Berlin...
But then... I´d love to have some elephants around in Munich... I know they can become dangerous, but I definitely would prefer them to all the dogs in the parks...
live the dream
24/07/2008 15:06
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - ZEISS ZF 35/2,8 DISTAGON -
iso100 - f4 - 1/40 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-650 - Kodak Ektachrome 100 - Michael Grobe
What is a classic sports car all about? What makes it so desirable that you switch off your rationality and don´t even think about it´s uselessness for daily transport? Emotions - there are cars that deliver pure emotions. When you approach, you get weak knees in anxious expectation of sliding into the drivers seat. The cockpit fits you like a tailor-made suit, you sit just a few inches above the asphalt, that soon will fly beneath. The design is futuristic and almost timeless, not the average modern day car, but a masterpiece of one of the few world class designers.
John Z. DeLorean`s DMC-12 is one of those cars. Designed by Giorgio Giugiaro and developed with the support of Colin Chapman`s Lotus, the car became a stainless steel gullwing beauty - dream of an extraordinary man.
By the way... the first photo shows the smooth rendering of the Contax ZEISS AE 35/2.8 truly a great lens delivering a destinctive and admirable look. I highly recommend the ZEISS ZF lens line for shooting with a high resolution camera, that needs only the best lenses to deliver the maximum quality.
at world`s end
21/07/2008 02:38
lost in the clouds
16/07/2008 18:02
Wasserfuchli
15/07/2008 03:53
mumbai harbor
12/07/2008 21:39
sleeping beauty
12/07/2008 03:00
dark forest
11/07/2008 03:50
Canon EOS-650 - Kodak Ektachrome 100 - Michael Grobe
Another slide-scan of photographs, which I took during my first stay in New Zealand in 2003. Cold morning mist covers the snowy top of the mountains while the forest still sleeps in darkness. It is the most amazing and beautiful country I have seen and I would love to stay there, if it wasn´t at worlds end...
marine drive in mumbai
10/07/2008 13:00
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso1600 - f5.0 - 1/8000 - Michael Grobe
Shot from a fast moving car, exactly exposed to my taste, the sky and the sun burning away while the silhouetted people in the foreground still show detail and the skyline of Mumbai Harbor fades in the haze. No additional post-processing was necessary, apart from the standard sharpening. A situation like this ended up with a wrong exposure, if you are on evaluative metering, with all cameras I previously owned. Looks like the latest breed of Canon gets it right here. Having detail in the sky and in the foreground would require a hdr capturing of the scene, as the dynamic range is far to wide for a standard low dynamic range digital capture. As hdr (high dynamic range) capture with a slr camera means exposure bracketing (in this case at least 3 shots, 0ev, -2ev, +2ev), how do you accomplish that, when you are shooting handheld from a moving car... Real hdr capture in a single exposure is one of my favorite points on the wish list for future camera developments, but it is likely to take a few years, before we see that.
But here the image shines because of the burned sky and sun, so additional detail wouldn´t make it any better.
saree
09/07/2008 22:23
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso400 - f6.3 - 1/500 - Michael Grobe
Indian saree flying in the wind through a hole of a ferry boat`s cabin wall. I like the beautiful and rich colors of indian clothes, they often stand out from their surroundings and compliment darker skin tones. Back here in Germany, people love to darken their skin in summer or by going to solaria, while in India everyone seems to long for fair skin, the TV channels are full with advertising of skin whiteners. Maybe one always wants, what is on the other side...
the 2000 dollar car
08/07/2008 18:04
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso3200 - f5.6 - 1/30 - Michael Grobe
This picture shows the target group for the 2000 dollar car: an indian family, riding altogether on a motorbike. The 2000 dollar car would only be slightly more expensive than a decent new bike and most likely provide more safety to these families for their travels. I shot this one from a car window, while we were overtaking, iso 3200 made it possible, as the sun already had gone down and darkness was closing in.
monkeys on elephanta island
07/07/2008 03:43
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f6.3 - 1/160 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM -
iso200 - f5.6 - 1/100 - Michael Grobe
Caught some of the monkeys on Elephanta Island in Mumbai harbor with the 24-105mm, a great walk-around-lens for all occasions, where you just want to carry a single lens with your camera. But the EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM feeds the demanding 21MP of the 1Ds with better quality in terms of detail, sharpness and the bokeh is also much more pleasing and “alive”.
To explore the real capabilities of the 1Ds mk III there are a few special lenses beyond the best Canon L glasses: the ZEISS ZF lens line, some medium format lenses or the legendary LEICA 90mm f/2 APO-Summicron-R ASPH, which all can be used manually with adapters on an EOS body. For my professional work, where I demand high resolution, I use a Contax ZEISS AE 35/2,8 DISTAGON. Manual focus is anyway the way to go with live view from a tripod for perfect focus and manual stop down is a burden to take for that extra quality.
Go and get a review of the ZEISS ZF lenses from Diglloyd, worth every dollar, as the author provides one of the most comprehensive and detailed reviews to be found on the net.
If you are a Nikon shooter, the ZEISS ZF line is a no brainer, as you get it with Nikon lens mount originally, so it is manual focus, but no manual stop down. The author of this blog has been called “young enough to wait for a Canon EF mount version of the ZEISS lenses” by a ZEISS executive during a photo trade show in Mumbai, India in early 2008... whatever that means, a few months or a few years?
The LEICA 90/2 APO is very high on the wish list, if just the price of that good-old-german glass was a tad more on the casual side...
ardea cinerea
07/07/2008 01:14
albert einstein house
04/07/2008 01:35
Whenever you are in Berlin, Germany make a trip to
Albert Einstein`s Summerhouse in Caputh, Potsdam and
get a guided tour. The house itself feels in some
ways more depressing to me than inspiring as a home
for a genius. I guess that is due to the small rooms
covered in dark brown wood. But you will get some
insights of Einstein, his family and how they lived,
when they were at that place near the lake
“Schwielowsee”. The lake area itself is fantastic for
recreation, you don´t believe, that you are only half
an hour away from pulsating Berlin. Here is a link:
Einsteinhaus in Caputh (Potsdam), Germany
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM -
iso800 - f4.0 - 1/25 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM -
iso800 - f8.0 - 1/250 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso100 - f7.1 - 1/125 - Michael Grobe
Einsteinhaus in Caputh (Potsdam), Germany
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM -
iso800 - f4.0 - 1/25 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM -
iso800 - f8.0 - 1/250 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso100 - f7.1 - 1/125 - Michael Grobe
stranded
02/07/2008 03:52
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso100 - f4.0 - 1/640 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso100 - f2.8 - 1/2000 - Michael Grobe
A trip to Elephanta Island (Gharapuri Island) in Mumbai Harbour in March 2008 revealed these stranded boats, waiting for the elements to raise them to the dust, from which they came.
dark wings
02/07/2008 00:37
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso200 - f7.1 - 1/800 - Michael Grobe
“people once believed that when someone dies, a crow carries their soul to the land of the dead” - proem of “The Crow”
I don´t know if that bird there is even a crow, but it reminds me deeply of that movie, a favorite of mine and makes me wonder, how many great cinematic moments Brandon Lee could have given the audience, if he didn`t die while shooting that film.
So get the soundtrack from the movie, put on your headphones and fly away gothic style with “The Cure: Burn”...
dark moon
30/06/2008 15:35
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso400 - f6.3 - 3.2sec - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM - iso400 - f5.6 - 1.3sec - Michael Grobe
Some night shots at Royal Palms Estate, Mumbai, India taken in March 2008. In that “satellite city in the jungle” photography is not allowed. I managed to shoot for half an hour, before some guards came on a motorcycle and asked me to stop. One thing often helps in India with these problems, you immediately switch to your mother language... dann versteht man dich nicht mehr, man selber spielt den Unwissenden, der die anderen nicht versteht... und mit etwas Glück löst sich das Problem durch gehörige Entnervung des Gegenübers.
dark waves
30/06/2008 03:44
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso400 - f8.0 - 25sec - Michael Grobe
I love darkness. This one a 25 sec. exposure of the ocean waves coming and going between the rocks in Goa, India in March 2008. Note the spooky guy on the left. As it was almost pitch black, I couldn´t see him, he must have stood still for the whole exposure, probably a fisherman...
faces of euro 2008
29/06/2008 21:38
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso3200 - f3.2 - 1/60 - Michael Grobe
Great weather and great football... I admit, that I am not really a football fan, but European championships or World cups get even my interest. Watching an exciting match together with friends at a nearby pub or a public viewing area is great fun.
And another welcome opportunity to shoot some pictures. Technically another test for the low light capabilities of a 1Ds Mk III with the EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM and a 5D with the EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM. Gave me enough sensitivity to capture under street light conditions at ISO 1600 and 3200. I don´t like changing lenses, while I am standing on a wobbly table amongst thousands of crazy football fans, who don´t hesitate to give you showers with beer and sparkling wine, so I shot also with two cameras. The results are quite usable, even for printing. While a Nikon D3 would have given roughly another 2 stops of usable low light sensitivity with low noise, the Canons still produce very good results under these conditions. And I really like the 5616 x 3744 pixels of the 1Ds Mk III. As high resolution with great image quality at low ISO is an indispensable assett for my kind of “visual effects photography” for commercial and feature film shootings, I chose the Canon over the Nikon D3. Still everytime the daylight is fading, I wish I had one...
And by the way, Germany is in the finale.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4L IS USM -
iso3200 - f4.0 - 1/25 - Michael Grobe
Yes, there is no football without beer in Germany. Especially in Bavaria...
Some of the pictures got some flash fill from the 580 EX II, while the rest is available light and I preserved the orange mood of the street lamps in Lightroom.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso3200 - f4.0 - 1/100 - Michael Grobe
Interestingly this one (aswell as the title photo) is lit by the flash of another photographer, makes me wonder about the probability of catching another photographer`s flash in a 1/100 second...
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 16-35mm 1:2.8L II USM - iso3200 - f4.0 - 1/20 - Michael Grobe
Hmm... is this guy selling beer to the police?
old cheesy slides
29/06/2008 21:13
What should one do with some old slide-scans of
cheesy sundowners at the ocean...
One might say, you shouldn´t have taken the picture in the first place, but then, when you are at that beach you probably don´t feel cheesy about the view at all.
Thanks to the digital darkroom that can be fixed.
The images have been taken with my old trusty Canon EOS 650, the first serious of EOS cameras from 1987, which still just needs a fresh battery and a some film to work beautifully. I can still use my old lenses from that decade directly with my digital EOS bodies, don´t know of many technologies, which can provide that. Still I won´t switch back to film shooting at all, digital 35 is so much more enjoyable, has better image quality and you have the direct and full control in camera and in your computer.
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
One might say, you shouldn´t have taken the picture in the first place, but then, when you are at that beach you probably don´t feel cheesy about the view at all.
Thanks to the digital darkroom that can be fixed.
The images have been taken with my old trusty Canon EOS 650, the first serious of EOS cameras from 1987, which still just needs a fresh battery and a some film to work beautifully. I can still use my old lenses from that decade directly with my digital EOS bodies, don´t know of many technologies, which can provide that. Still I won´t switch back to film shooting at all, digital 35 is so much more enjoyable, has better image quality and you have the direct and full control in camera and in your computer.
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-650 - Michael Grobe
cross processing
28/06/2008 14:58
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso3200 - f3.2 - 1/40 - Michael Grobe
C41-E6 cross processing. Cross-processing is a technique used in analog photography where C-41 print film is processed in chemicals, that you use for the processing of E-6 slide film, or vice versa. Nowadays these effects can be easily achieved with certain Photoshop filters. I used the PixelGenius PhotoKit Color 2.0 with the C41-E6 yellow settings (they had been converted from color to black and white before). This way you can sometimes “save the image” by adding an interesting effect (nothing out of the fancy spectrum, which burns your eyes...). The images below all suffer from technical deficiencies: due to poor low light capabilities of the used camera and lens and a rolling and shaking train as the shooting platform, sharpness, detail and noise are way on the bad side. But with some enhancement in Lightroom/Photoshop, they reveal the mood of taking a train ride in Mumbai, India. That´s where people stand in the open door frames and even on top of the carriages during rush hours.
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso3200 - f4.0 - 1/60 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso3200 - f4.0 - 1/60 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso1600 - f3.5 - 1/60 - Michael Grobe
color and composition 2
28/06/2008 03:29
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4.0L IS USM -
iso400 - f5.6 - 1/125
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4.0L IS USM - iso400 - f5.6 - 1/200 - Michael Grobe
There is some barrel distortion when the 24-105 is shot at the wide end, but a big part of it is “natural”: most of the beautiful houses in Goa haven´t seen a straight line, when they were built.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 24-105mm 1:4.0L IS USM - iso200 - f8.0 - 1/1250 - Michael Grobe
color and composition
27/06/2008 02:55
Some abstract images, playing with smooth color and
composition.
Also shot in Goa, India.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso800 - f5.0 - 1/160
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso800 - f7.1 - 1/200 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso200 - f5.0 - 1/1600 - Michael Grobe
Also shot in Goa, India.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso800 - f5.0 - 1/160
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso800 - f7.1 - 1/200 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso200 - f5.0 - 1/1600 - Michael Grobe
the beaches of goa
26/06/2008 01:18
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso200 - f8.0 - 1/4000
After a year working in Mumbai, in April 2008 I took the opportunity to relax a few days in Goa, together with a director and friend of mine. We stayed in Calangute, a very nice “hippie” part of Goa.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM -
iso400 - f6.3 - 1/800 - Michael Grobe
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III - EF 70-200mm 1:2.8L IS USM - iso800 - f7.1 - 1/1000 - Michael Grobe
grobe-bilder.com online
24/06/2008 07:45
Canon EOS-20D - 28-70mm - iso100 - f5.0 - 1/800 - Michael Grobe
Finally after some sleepless nights of webpage design, www.grobe-bilder.com is online.
I will post all sorts of photographies, either related to my profession as a VFX Supervisor for feature films and commercials or my personal joy to capture the moment.
Photography is one of my great interests since I was a child and I got my first camera from my father, a Rollei 35. Professionally I use (nowadays digital) camera as tools to gather information for VFX (visual effects) post production, like high dynamic range (HDR) environments or reference and texture images.
Some advise on equipment, techniques and workflows will follow. So I hope you enjoy the pictures and maybe get some ideas about visual effects and photography.
The site is still under construction, only roughly done and will get a few updates and obviously more pictures, which need further preparation before publishing.
