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Welcome.

I'm Phillip Mackenzie, a new photographer set to rock the world from the rolling hills of State College, Pennsylvania. I've been a taking pictures since I was old enough to hold a camera without dropping it. I have only now just started to make this lifelong obsession into a career. You can follow me and my personal and professional journey on this blog. Enjoy the ride.

You can also find out more by email and instant messaging (AIM: phillipmackenzie), and finding me on Facebook. And you can always add me to your Technorati favorites.

The latest.


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Fun Fridays | Photoshop Blending Options

So…in my free fifteen minutes after lunch I stumbled on this article from Michael Flarup’s PixelResort:

The Power of Blending Options

As I tend to be entranced by shiny, Web 2.0-like icons, I was intrigued to see this example that consisted of the same three layers, only having their blend modes altered!

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So I tried some experimenting…I don’t think I like it better than my current logo…but it does open up some interesting possibilities!

Here’s my old one:

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And the “chrome” logo:

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So go check out PixelResort…he has some great icons from Wall-E that he just put up today.

Catie R - Your blog looks great! That's some fancy blending, thanks for sharing! I'm going to try it out!

Vote for me!

Scarlett Lillian (a big inspiration and one hell of an incredible photographer) has a contest on her blog for someone to win a custom blog from Flosites…and she’s letting her readers decide, so go vote for me, entry #13 of today’s selection.

Here’s my entry…now go vote!

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Danielle | Fashionable

I did some shooting for a friend a few weeks ago, and here are a few that I’ve finally had time to give some photoshop lovin’ to! It’s pretty amazing what kind of awesome backdrops you can find if you just stop and turn your head while you’re walking down the street! One of my favorites:

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Fire escapes come in handy for more than just an escape route:

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I love this one:

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Also love the grittiness of this shot:

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Arts Fest 2008 and the Countdown to 3G

Unless you’ve been traveling the galaxy for the past few months, you’ve undoubtedly heard that the iPhone 3G is coming out on July 11…tomorrow! People in New Zealand have already gotten theirs, and we have our own camper here outside the AT&T store (no, we sadly do not have an Apple store downtown here…yet).

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It also just happens to be Arts Fest this week here, so literally slammed up against this guy’s tent was a large water-dumping station for the kids to play in. Here’s the setup on the main strip downtown right now:

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In case you’re wondering, the AT&T store is up behind the landscaping on the left side of the street. Stay tuned for my photos from our trip to Pittsburgh and more from Arts Fest!

Voyage to Pittsburgh

Well…maybe not a voyage, just a car trip. But since it took us more than $60 to fill our tank for the first time, it felt more like the cost of an ocean crossing!

We stayed overnight with two of our friends, Wes and Kristine, who live just a stone’s throw from one of my favorite stores, Trader Joe’s. They took us to a fabulous cupcake bakery for dessert simply called “Dozen.” I only had my iPhone with me:

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They had the most delectable cupcakes there that I think I’ve ever eaten. If you’re ever close, you must go…it’s totally worth a detour!

The next morning, we went to an authentic French bakery that at least ten different people have mentioned to me on multiple occasions. We may have been a little skeptical at first, but one bite of the croissant and it was like food nirvana. It distracted me so much I didn’t even get a photo. But visit his website and you’ll see plenty. Amazing food. Just amazing.

Next, of course, we went by my dad and stepmom’s house, where we brought my little sister some clothes for an early birthday present. She was totally obsessed with taking them out of the bag, and then stuffing them back in. She finally posed…doesn’t she look like she’s a Baby Gap ad?

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And then down to Shadyside to visit my favorite fruit store:

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Followed by lunch at a little Peruvian café, after which Emily decided to model on the staircase:

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Afterward, I went down to Pitt’s campus to take a few shots while Heather and Louise took Emily to a knitting store. I did some experimenting with vertical 180-degree shots…I’m calling them “vertiscapes.” Here’s one of the Heinz Chapel and Cathedral of Learning:

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And another of the inside of the chapel (it’s really quite beautiful):

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The rather imposing Cathedral of Learning (I swear it could look like something out of Gotham City from this angle):

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And this curiosity outside the Carnegie Museum, hand-painted with all the letters of the alphabet:

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I’m really only now beginning to fully understand the photographic possibilities of almost any place at all, and I’m now fully appreciating the ability to experiment and come up with something that I haven’t seen anyone else do before, particularly with an oft-photographed landmark!

A great and relaxing, though short, trip. More soon from Arts Fest 2008!

Brand New 5D

If you can’t tell from the outrageously awesome bokeh in this next shot, I just got a new Canon 5D! I was so excited I had to start taking photos with it right away…and one of our cats just happened to be near me, and he graciously posed for me:

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We’re off to Pittsburgh for a few days starting tomorrow, so I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend! More soon!

Tracy - Awww... what a cutie pie! I want a 5D! *sigh* Someday...

Phillip Mackenzie - Hi Caroline! Thanks for the comments! That shot was with the 50mm/1.4 lens. It's definitely one of the best Canon lens deals going...I think you can get it for around 300 bucks, and it's absolutely razor-sharp, particularly from f2 on up, and would make some absolutely fabulous photos on your 350D as well! I also have the 17-40mm/4 and the 70-200mm/4 as well, which are also pretty tack-sharp the whole way through their range. The most important part is that I don't do any in-camera sharpening and wait until the very last step in Photoshop. Then I run either Kevin Kubota's Magic Sharp (which you can buy as a stand-alone action if you call his studio), or more recently I started using the "A Better Web Sharpen" action from the Boutwells in their new TRA2 pack (http://www.gettotallyrad.com).

Caroline McKenzie - Hi Phillip, I came across your site and really love your crisp photos!! what lens' are you using on your 5D if you don't mind me asking?? Im only using a 350D canon but REALLY need to upgrade! Keep up the nice work! Caroline