[ PIXEL VIKING ]

[ Introduction ]

Hi, and thank you for visiting. My name is Rico Bergholdt Hansen - I'm Danish and live in the City of Odense, Denmark, where I was born October 20th, 1972.

Above: Self-portrait (December 2006) - Below: Me, the early years... :)

The [ PIXEL VIKING ] photoblog is a place where I post my digital photos. It is also my return to the world of photography. My first real encounter was way back in 1994, when I purchased a Canon EOS 1000F to take with me to the USA. I spent a year there as an Au Pair. During that year, I traveled quite a bit and shot a lot of great photos (or at least I think I did). You can see those photos if you visit my personal website: BERGHOLDT.COM.

The 1000F was stolen at the railway station in Chicago along with 13 rolls of film (ready to be developed). Needless to say, I have no photos of my final three-week round trip around the USA by rail. However, I do have lots of shots taken in various national parks in the Rocky Mountains and on the east-coast (mostly New England and Virginia).

April 2006, I purchased a Canon EOS 30D with one lens - the EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. May 2006, I added a Lensbaby 2.0 (with a macro kit). Many accessories have been added along the way (see below). The photos in this photoblog will mostly be nature shots and architecture (castles, farm houses and manor houses). However, I also have an interest in astronomy, so I will give astrophotography a try. I will also be shooting some night shots (traffic, city lights and more). The ocean isn't far away either, so expect the occasional beach or harbour shot as well.

I'm very much still an amateur when it comes to photography and this photoblog will be a good way of improving my photo skills. Feel free to comment on any of my photos. Your opinion matters - especially if my photo skills could improve because of it.

[ Related websites ]

Photoblogs.org - An index of photoblogs.

CoolPhotoblogs.com - Another index of photoblogs.

VFXY Photos - Daily photoblogs in one place.

Photo Friday - The weekly photo challenge.

The Photobloggies - An award site.

Photoblog Awards - An award site.

Weblog Awards - An award site.

RssReader - I get my RSS feeds with this application.

Dpreview.com - The ultimate EOS 30D review.

The-Digital-Picture.com - A good EF-S 17-85 lens review.

Radiant Vista - A community with tutorials and more.

Lensbabies - Selective focus SLR camera lenses.

Sandisk - The maker of my CF Ultra II 2GB memory card.

Lowepro - The maker of my camera bag (Rezo 140 AW and Stealth Reporter D300 AW).

DxO Optics Pro - Automatic image quality enhancement.

Photomatix - HDR software - Increasing dynamic range.

Noise Ninja - Removing noise and grain from digital photographs.

LucisArt - An amazing Photoshop plug-in.

Virtual Photographer - A free Photoshop plug-in.

AutoStitch - A powerful tool for creating 2D panoramas.

Auto FX Software - Photoshop filters.

Flaming Pear - Photoshop filters.

Schneider Optics - B+W optical filters.

Hoya - Hoya optical filters.

Camdapter - Use a hand strap with no battery grip installed.

Astropix - E-books on astrophotography by Jerry Lodriguss.

ImageVuex - My slideshow software.

Really Right Stuff - Accessories for photography afield.

Lightsphere II - Inverted Dome Diffusion System for flash photography.

Kamerasiden - A danish camera site with reviews and forums.