I've never really been a fan of HDR images. There are a lot of examples on Flickr; some really boost the colors to near-cartoon levels, and others push their photos to a have a more dreamlike look. While many are interesting, I don't want that look for my photos, so I decided I didn't like HDR.

Well, like I ask my kids to at least try something once — "How do you know you don't like it if you've never tried it?" — I decided to give HDR photos a legitimate try. So yesterday on a trip to Plymouth I took my tripod and did some shooting while Jill did a little shopping. New England winter photos probably aren't the best to play with colorful HDR photos, but it did show me something: a more subtle use of HDR can really enhance photos — especially those with big variations in light and dark areas — without having to push it to overly-unrealistic looks.



I put some of my HDR photos on Flickr. I'll keep experimenting — especially when the colors of spring arrive — but I think having another photo tool available to me is a good thing to have, and I don't have to push it as far as some photographers do. (I agree with a commenter who said that too much HDR makes the technique the subject of the photo, rather than the actual photo subjects.)

If you're interested in creating HDR photos, check out this how-to.

Here's 2009's soundtrack. This is the first year that there's no real punk or hardcore on my annual list (not that I didn't listen to any, but there were no clear picks for 2009). Perhaps I'm mellowing with age?

1. People Under the Stairs: "Acid Raindrops (Instrumental)"
2. The Beatles: "Dig A Pony"
3. Beck: "Chemtrails"
4. Neko Case: "This Tornado Loves You"
5. The Smiths: "Rusholme Ruffians"
6. Vampire Weekend: "Bryn"
7. Interpol: "PDA"
8. Wire: "Perspex Icon"
9. Pixies: "Velouria"
10. Rush: "Far Cry"
11. Paul McCartney: "I’ve Got A Feeling"
12. Lee "Scratch" Perry & The Upsetters: "Jungle Lion"
13. Q-Tip: "Won’t Trade"
14. Chali 2na: "Comin’ Thru"
15. RJD2: "A Beautiful Mine"
16. Squarepusher: "Hello Meow"
17. Radiohead: "15 Steps"
18. People Under The Stairs: "Trippin’ At The Disco"
19. Rodrigo y Gabriela: "Triveni"

Update: if you want to hear these, download a podcast of these songs (73MB).

A merry Krampus to you and yours! Hope you're not on the naughty list...

It might be the remaining NyQuil in my system clouding my judgement, but this video was the funniest thing I've seen in years:

Boston.com's The Big Picture published their three-part Year in Photos of amazing and moving shots: part 1, part 2, part 3.

Christoph Niemann uses leaves to illustrate ideas. (via kottke)

This graph that shows that younger people are more supportive of gay marriage than older people. As one person commented, "Looks like the debate will solve itself (mostly) in 20 years or so." One can only hope...



Somewhat strange that a couple of the most supportive states (Maine and California) have recently repealed gay marriage laws. Perhaps it shows that younger people don't vote as much as older people.

Joe Posnanski wrote a good post about the Yankees payroll. It's something all of us non-Yankees fans know and complain about, but even as a fan of the high-spending Red Sox I can't help but agree when he writes "You have one team (and only one team) playing the video game on cheat-mode."

The following is a screed about the Yankees payroll. If you are a Yankees fan uninterested in a screed about the payroll, don't read it. You won't enjoy it. Go out, buy a championship T-shirt, reminisce about this great team, enjoy the victory. I'm telling you: Don't read it.

As for the rest of you: The following is a screed about the Yankees payroll. I rarely write about it because it's like writing about the heat in Phoenix. ... But with the Yankees winning the World Series and then talking about how it showed the team's character, well, yeah, I thought maybe this once.

(Looking at this and my last blog post, it's clear I have to move on from baseball and my hatred for the Yankees...)

Like we didn't all know this already...