El Dave Photography

I'm really enjoying using my laptop as a backdrop. Not only is it faster than building a background from scratch, it pulls double duty as a light source. The light it puts out isn't overwhelming though, so you will still need lamps (or candles, or flashlights, etc).

The background is a photo I took inside the Milwaukee Museum of Art. I'm always on the lookout for interesting textures and scenes, and the Museum has both in spades. I ended up with several shots that will make great backgrounds! Once the weather gets above freezing here in Chicago, I can't wait to get out and grab as many urban shots as I can.

Setup for these laptop shots couldn't be simpler. Just bring your intended backdrop up in Fullscreen, make sure your monitor is straight, set up your lights (making sure none of them are pointed directly at the screen), then snap away. All that's left is some color tweaking in Photoshop to help tie it all together.

Drop it like it's EXIF, baby.

Camera:	Fujifilm FinePixS2Pro
Exposure:	0.333 sec (1/3)
Aperture:	f/5.3
Focal Length:	74 mm
ISO Speed:	100
Exposure Bias:	0/100 EV

Orientation:	Horizontal (normal)
X-Resolution:	72 dpi
Y-Resolution:	72 dpi
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows
Date and Time:	2008:03:04 18:51:03
Timezone Offset:	-6, -6
Exposure Program:	Manual
Date and Time (Original):	2008:03:04 18:35:03
Date and Time (Digitized):	2008:03:04 18:35:03
Shutter Speed:	1584963/1000000
Brightness:	266/100
Metering Mode:	Center Weighted Average
Light Source:	Daylight
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Focal Plane X-Resolution:	630 dpc
Focal Plane Y-Resolution:	630 dpc
Sensing Method:	One-chip colour area sensor
Exposure Mode:	Manual
White Balance:	Manual
Focal Length In 35mm Film:	111
Saturation:	High saturation
Compression:	JPEG
Image Width:	1488 pixels
Image Height:	2024 pixels

Be good,
-Dave

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