Featured Macro Photographer – Vickie Liptak

This week I would like to feature a photographer from the cold snowy state of Alaska.

Facebook has been a great place to meet other macro geeks and that is where I learned about this excellent macro photographer, Vickie Liptak.  Read Vickie’s interview and check out her great images.

#1 How many years have you been shooting.

While on a hike on Kauai in December of 2009 I bent down and took my first macro picture. From that moment on I’ve learned to take a closer look at nature and see the beauty that so many people miss.

#2 What camera, lenses, tripod make do you use.

I started out using a small point and click. I’ve recently bought a Cannon Rebel T3 and can’t wait play with more.

#3 What are your favorite subjects to shoot.

Small weird things like bugs, mushrooms, raindrops, spider webs, olive oil floating on top of my cooking rice, and anything that will make people will wonder “What is that?”

#4 Do you shoot a certain style of macro.

I’ve had no photography education, and do not read manuals so I would have to say my style is pure dumb luck.

#5 Have you won any awards, been published, or any other successes.

In 2010 I won Grand champion at the Alaska State Fair, and first place in my division, and judges choice in 2011. I have also sold prints, calendars, and greeting cards of my photos.  Of course being featured by Mike is an honor too.

#6 What program(s) do you use to process images.

Picasa 3

#7 Where are you from.

Born in Michigan, raised in Florida, spent 5 years in Tennessee before ending my gypsy travels in Alaska 20 years ago, where I live in Sarah Palin’s home town Wasilla.

#8 Your website, or blog address.

Works in progress

Nik Software and a Daffodil

I was looking at a potted Daffodil setting in the window sill and liked the way the two flower heads were positioned and also liked the green leaves in the lower part, and thought this might make a nice vertical panorama look.

Here is the set up in my stairway where I have the best natural lighting.  It is really dark outside so not quite enough good light so pulled out my LED light to help out. I’m using one of my printed backgrounds.

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Photographed it with my Nikon D7000 and my Tamron 90m macro lens, with f/stop set at f/16.

Here is the original out of the camera and cropped like a vertical pano.

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Of course the only way to process now a days is with the Nik programs, and my first step is in the new Color Efex Pro 4.

I had no idea’s on what I wanted to do with this image, so just played with the different filters until something appealed to me.  I actually ended up using a few filters starting with the “Detail Extractor” and then hit “add a filter” and played with all the filters again until I decided I liked the soft dreamlike feel of the “Polaroid Transfer”.  Last and this is a first for me, I added a border in the “Image Borders” filter. Here it is.

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Next step was to go into Nik’s Viveza 2 and do just a little fine tuning, I adjusted the flower colors and brightness a little. I put a control point on the background and moved the “Structure” slider to the left to soften the background a little.

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After this I decided to play a little more and go back into Color Efex Pro 4 and see if anything else would look good. As I clicked on all the different filters I ended up liking the soft hazy look and the muted colors of the “High Key” Filter. Sometimes it’s just the way you feel at the time of the processing, some days I like the dark dramtic moody look and some days the soft dreamy less colorful look.  This is today’s mood.

If you are thinking of purchasing from Nik Software, let me save you 15% use my code. “Moats”

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