The last time we were up in Seattle we ran into a woman whose husband was deployed to Iraq. His call sign was 'Popeye' so they had a small stuffed Popeye with them and they were taking pictures with it everywhere they went. That way her husband was "with her" everywhere.
That sounded like an awesome idea, so we modified it a little bit. The next time we were at Disney we bought this Mickey Mouse keychain and he goes everywhere we go. He's in the strap of one of the camera bags and he makes appearances no matter where we end up, including Hawaii.
This shot is from up on the North Shore on Oahu and Mickey is hanging out on the coconut that Shanon had bought from one of the stands along the way. To me this is quintessential Hawaii. The beach, a plumeria, a coconut and, ok Mickey isn't exactly "Hawaii" but they are building a resort there!
I do want to point one of the technicals on this shot. This was shot at f40. No, I'm not missing a dot between the 4 and 0, it's really a 40. Highest f-stop I have ever shot at and honestly, didn't know the lens would go all the way up there. It helped me get a lot of the beach in the shot which I think is important to make the shot work.
Expect to see more random appearances by Mickey. You just never know where he's going to turn up next!
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Columns and light - Dayton, OH
I travel a lot for work and frequently I take the time to take some shots of the city that I'm visiting. Today I decided to start sharing some of them.
This shot, as you can see from the name, is in downtown Dayton, OH. I'm a big fan of architecture and this view struck me as really cool. I like the amount of work on the columns and the light and the lights inside the building add a bit to the picture by drawing you inside the building a little bit.
As I travel more I'll add to my collection and I'll post some of those pictures here from time to time.
In the meantime I've posted two more shots from this trip on my flickr page. Cruise on over and take a look at my Photostream!
This shot, as you can see from the name, is in downtown Dayton, OH. I'm a big fan of architecture and this view struck me as really cool. I like the amount of work on the columns and the light and the lights inside the building add a bit to the picture by drawing you inside the building a little bit.
As I travel more I'll add to my collection and I'll post some of those pictures here from time to time.
In the meantime I've posted two more shots from this trip on my flickr page. Cruise on over and take a look at my Photostream!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Purple Haze
1/500 200mm f3.5 0EV
Yep, it's a flower and yes, I like this shot very much.
I don't talk very much about the technical aspects of how I get shots like this because, well, to anybody but photographers, the techie stuff is really not all that interesting. But I want to chat about this one for a bit.
This shot was taken in 1/500th of a second. Let that sink in for a second. Is there anything else that you can think of that happens that fast that you can see? But here, you can. Right at the top of this post is what 1/500th of a second looks like.
Would this picture look the same if it had been taken 1/500th earlier or 1/1000th later? Honestly, I don't know.
Light changes, wind blows, people walk by, shadows shift. All of those things can change and make the next frame completely different. Enough for it to really change this small of an amount of time. I don't know that either.
What I do know is this. This 1/500th of a second in time has been captured, maybe for eternity.
If any of you have been thinking about picking up a camera at the store, or digging the old one out of the closet and dusting it off, DO IT! You can get a shot that lasts forever, and it may only take 1/500th of a second to make it happen.
Yep, it's a flower and yes, I like this shot very much.
I don't talk very much about the technical aspects of how I get shots like this because, well, to anybody but photographers, the techie stuff is really not all that interesting. But I want to chat about this one for a bit.
This shot was taken in 1/500th of a second. Let that sink in for a second. Is there anything else that you can think of that happens that fast that you can see? But here, you can. Right at the top of this post is what 1/500th of a second looks like.
Would this picture look the same if it had been taken 1/500th earlier or 1/1000th later? Honestly, I don't know.
Light changes, wind blows, people walk by, shadows shift. All of those things can change and make the next frame completely different. Enough for it to really change this small of an amount of time. I don't know that either.
What I do know is this. This 1/500th of a second in time has been captured, maybe for eternity.
If any of you have been thinking about picking up a camera at the store, or digging the old one out of the closet and dusting it off, DO IT! You can get a shot that lasts forever, and it may only take 1/500th of a second to make it happen.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Freedom Flyer
This balloon is based out of Tallahassee, FL and was one of about 50 at this year's Gulf Coast Hot Air Ballon Festival in Foley, AL.
Foley, for those of you who don't know, is not exactly a hotbed for hot air balloon activity. But for the last 7 years they have been putting on this festival and this year we took the time to go. It really is a god time, but photographically, it's tough.
First the balloons only fly right around sunup and right at sundown and on into dusk. Seems perfect, right? Not quite.
Hot air balloons are incredibly susceptible to weather. If the wind is above about 5-10mph they can't fly very well, which is why they fly primarily at dawn and dusk. But with that narrow of a window they frequently can't get off the ground until the sun is well above the horizon. This, to a photographer, can be a killer.
So, you improvise. You work angles and you find where the light is good. You wait for a cloud to diffuse the light so it isn't as harsh. You also get up at 4AM and stay until 9 at night so you can be there for the light.
I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, because I'm not. This kind of thing is bucket list stuff and there is nothing that can replace seeing hot air balloons like this one drifting over the trees just after dawn.
Throw a camera in the mix and you might just get something to take home with you!
Foley, for those of you who don't know, is not exactly a hotbed for hot air balloon activity. But for the last 7 years they have been putting on this festival and this year we took the time to go. It really is a god time, but photographically, it's tough.
First the balloons only fly right around sunup and right at sundown and on into dusk. Seems perfect, right? Not quite.
Hot air balloons are incredibly susceptible to weather. If the wind is above about 5-10mph they can't fly very well, which is why they fly primarily at dawn and dusk. But with that narrow of a window they frequently can't get off the ground until the sun is well above the horizon. This, to a photographer, can be a killer.
So, you improvise. You work angles and you find where the light is good. You wait for a cloud to diffuse the light so it isn't as harsh. You also get up at 4AM and stay until 9 at night so you can be there for the light.
I don't want to sound like I'm complaining, because I'm not. This kind of thing is bucket list stuff and there is nothing that can replace seeing hot air balloons like this one drifting over the trees just after dawn.
Throw a camera in the mix and you might just get something to take home with you!
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