The * button (it’s on the back of the camera, behind the shutter release) is something I’ve mentioned to others before, but it’s still a really useful tip to impart. When faced with an image with a high dynamic range, but only wanting to take one properly exposed photo I would use the * button while moving the camera around the image to see where the bright and dark parts of the image would be.

For instance, I moved the camera to a dark part and pressed the button while moving around a few times and then repeated but while looking at a bright part of the image.

Knowing what the extents of the exposure were, I would then continue pressing the button part way between the dark and bright parts (usually closer to the bright parts) until my guesstimate of the exposure felt right.

It didn’t always work, but many times it was very close and only needed a small tweak.

Today I set myself a challenge of making a somewhat believable Photoshopped image. The challenge was to create a shot where I could be seen in the reflection of my sunglasses, which I was wearing at the same time.

The result turned out quite well, since recreating the same position of the glasses while holding them by hand proved to be difficult — even with me in front of the camera being directed by Justine! — so I had to do a lot more faking in Photoshop than I originally expected.

It might not be the best shot I’ve taken for the 365 days project, but I’m happy that it’s a believable enough shot.

There were a number of times on our trip where the lighting was dynamic enough that I wanted to try an HDR when I got home. HDRs are difficult without a tripod but the tip I mentioned previously where you use the * button is also how I managed to try and take a hand held HDR.

I’d use the * button to find a very bright and very dark section of the future image. I would then ensure the camera was set to spot metering, and position the centre focus point on one of the bright or dark sections; this is where the middle of the image would be — I’ll use a bright window as an example of the middle part.

Next, I’d find a dark part of the image and lock the exposure there, and move back to the middle where the bright section was. I turned off the Auto Focus, and I’d take the photo with the centre part totally overexposed, then immediately press the * button and take the photo again, but with the bright part properly exposed.

This way, the two images should be almost identical in location and focus with just the two different images for the HDR creation. Not as good as taking five shots with a tripod, but you make do with what you’ve got.

Side of a freight train at Amsterdam’s Centraal Station.

Taken while eating curry and fritjes (me) and mayonnaise and fritjes (Justine). We were waiting for our overnight train from Amsterdam to Munich and grabbed a hurried dinner from a crappy diner.

This is the last photo I took in Holland.

Taken while Justine and I were on a walk around the block. A bit overprocessed but I wanted to try and bring out the texture in my hair.

To me, this shot is almost all of Amsterdam in one frame. The canals, the bikes, the boats. All it’s missing are the upright but falling over buildings, there’s one in the top-right but it’s too hard to make out.

Two nights and three days was too long in Amsterdam. I loved the architecture; the canals and lifestyle were also unique but it wasn’t enough for either Justine or I to fall in love with the place.