This isn't as good as Kathleen's excellent photography from A Walk Through Durham Township, Pennsylvania but it does show some of the excellent colors surrounding us here. On another note check out my recent post on my blog and let me know what you think. I'm reading a biography on Ansel Adams and read an interesting statement.
I accidently posted two pictures today, so act surprised tommorrow if you already saw the other one. On another note check out my recent post on my blog and let me know what you think. I'm reading a biography on Ansel Adams and read an interesting statement.
Ok, I need your opinions again. Color or Black and white I did a bunch of cleaning up on this one because it had a bunch of powerlines and junk that I found disctracting. Here's the original if you are curious. The truck isn't in focus as much as I had hoped for, but that's what happens when you hold the camera out the top of a moving car through a sun roof. :)
I took my kids to a park the other night and between them and their cousins they scared off every goose, duck or other type of bird around this pond. It was interesting to watch them as they floated along. Most of them tended to stay in little groups, but this one duck I noticed seemed to go to each group and each time the group would swim away. I guess we'll never know what made this guy an outcast but it was kinda sad watching him swimming all alone.
I'm not really so vain as to think you want to look this close at me. I have been wanting to experiment with up close shots and for a lack of willing subjects I used myself. Just messin around. And, I'm not normally quite this serious! :)
Here's a little color...From a couple of weeks ago during a early morning walk.
It's a little more centered than I intended, but oh well. Oh, and I lied when I said one more black and white yesturday. Here's another. :)
Ok, one more black and white. Nothing special, just messing around just after sunset. Process: Slight crop, gradient map adjustment layer with black and white gradient. Clone tool to clean up the leaves on the top and bottom edge. Two passes through Neat Image to remove noise. I'll get back to color stuff some time...or maybe not. :) Here is the original if you are curious.
This time the grain is natural. I was playing with ISO as the sun was setting at a playground.
More black and white
I am quite fond of black and white lately.
Without grain or With grain?
Pulling out another shot from my trip to Chicago. This is of an art object called Cloud Gate. It is a giant bean shaped object made from highly polished steel plates. You can't see the seams at all where the plates meet except for when you go underneath where they left the seams on purpose. It was pretty neat. Brandon has a cool shot of it here. There was a orchestra playing in front of it entertaining what looked like a high brow dinner party.
Hey...I need some opinions. What are your feelings about the rollover section on the main image? I liked it at first, now I'm not sure. I keep wavering back and forth. Please chime in with your opinion! :) Thanks.
I got up really early the other morning with the intention of getting some good sunrise shots. I wandered around for a couple of hours as the sun was coming up and took a bunch of pictures. I think there's one other shot that I actually cared for all the rest looked like junk. Oh well...guess that's how it goes.
I don't know about you but I never get tired of these dramatic cloud shots. Technically they aren't all that complicated. Take a picture on just about any day where there's a decent amount of clouds. They don't have to be very dramatic at all. The original of this shot is nothing like what I ended up with (which some might disagree with also.) Take it into photoshop and goto image/adjustments/auto level. I normally don't care for auto leveling shots, but here it works to bring about those dramatic colors. Then hit ctrl-j (not sure of the command for you Mac users just duplicate the main layer) change the top layer's blending mode to overlay and back it off with the opacity of the layer as needed. I took mine into Neat Image to remove some noise and smooth it out some. There you have it...crazy apocolyptic like clouds in the sky.
I'm not quite sure why, but this one keeps appealing to me. I've decided to quit trying to reason to myself about what I post and just post what jumps at me. So here it is.
Another shot from Chicago along Lake Michigan. This area is right next to the Adler Planetarium. I shot some new stuff the other day, but out of 50 or so shots I only liked one which I posted yesturday.
I've read alot of books in my life. Some on photography (I certainly need to read more of these.) Some on computers. Some fiction. Some non-fiction. But this is the book I've read the most and continue to turn to. It'll change your life if you let it.
There was a discussion the other day on Chromasia about photography as either being or not being an art. A comment was made that art is only art if it "challenges ideas and preconceptions." Like David from Chromasia said "I think this is an overly restrictive and highbrow definition..." But, isn't that something to attempt to do from time to time? To challenge a person...to elicite some response? Sometimes it's just a "hmmm" or maybe a "wow."
I guess my point is, what does this photograph elicite in you? Maybe it's joy and comfort. Maybe it's anger or pitty. The book itself is nothing but ink and paper. But, the message that the ink conveys demands a response.
Nothing particularly grand or revealing, but it appeals to me for some reason. It's the just outside of the room in this shot.
Ok, back to Chicago scenery. Hopefully I can pick up my camera and shoot something new in the next couple of days. I have been fairly lazy as far as shooting because I took so many shots during my trip to Chicago. Nothing extrodinary about this one, but it just sticks out to me for some strange reason above the other shots I have prepared.
Something a little different than Chicago scenery. This is Brandon doing his paparazzi impersonation before realizing he had the lens cap on still. :)
Yet another Chicago shot. Off in the distance you can see the carousel that sits on top of the Navy Pier. I almost got my camera really wet messing around by the water's edge trying to get some good splash shots.
Not much to say here. Saw this little girl playing by one of the beaches we visited along lake Michigan in Chicago. I couldn't decide whether I liked the color version or monochrome version better. I keep leaning towards color, what do you think?
Update: Monochrome seems to be winning out, so I swapped them. :) Thanks for the comments!
Continuing with shots from my trip to Chicago. This is a combination of two shots down the right side of the Navy Pier in Chicago. The shots together end up unbalanced, but I wanted to show you some more of Chicago, plus you can see to the far right the lighthouse from a previous shot. This is the same section of walkway, although several hundred feet to the right, that I shot the lighthouse so you get an idea as to how far away from it I was.
The Navy Pier is an interesting place. It's a section of land that jutts out into lake Michigan and down the right side of it (as you are facing lake Michigan) there are shops and restaurants and many boats docked. Along the top is a large carousel, mini golf and other attractions.
It's particularly neat when you get out to the farthest point and you are looking out into the lake. It's a great place to just take a seat and watch the birds and water and take it all in. Very peaceful and soothing. Every now and then they'll have a band playing Jazz or some type of music out near the end as well. It's one of my favorite places to visit in Chicago.
The subway in Chicago is superfast! :) We've become pro's at getting around Chicago during our several trips there. Using the buses and subway you can get around pretty well.
Some facts about the transit system: CTA has approximately 2,000 buses that operate over 152 routes and 2,273 route miles. Buses provide about 1 million passenger trips a day and serve more than 12,000 posted bus stops. CTA's 1,190 rapid transit cars operate over seven routes and 222 miles of track. CTA trains provide about 500,000 customer trips each day and serve 144 stations.
There was a little bit of a scare while we were in Chicago this last time. One of the Metra trains, which are kinda like the subway but faster with less stops, derailed and a couple of people died. We weren't on any of the Metra trains this time, but the last time we were there we had jumped on one of them.
UPDATE: Thanks to all who voted for me on Photofriday. I got a noteworthy for the Blur competition. Thanks again!
This is one of the outside hallways in the Fourth Presbyterian Church in downtown Chicago. It was quite interesting to be walking along the hustle and bustle of Michigan avenue amongst what seemed like a million or more people and then to step off to the side into the courtyard next to this church. It suddenly became quiet and peaceful. The inside of this Church was quite impressive and grand. The Church was built in 1914 following the destruction of their previous worship location by the great Chicago fire and under went restoration and recreation that finished in 1995. It now sits in the middle of the great shopping known as the "Magnificent Mile."
As we walked the downtown area of Chicago I saw at least 4 newlywed couples. This one struck me because of the smile on the bride's face. I'm not much of a romantic, but these two seemed extremely happy. Hopefully that lasts in their marriage. Too many people take marriage and the family so haphazzardly.
This is the ceiling in a room in the Chicago cultural center. It was quite an impressive place.
It's on the edge of invading these total stranger's privacy, but I saw Brandon's picture and had to put up mine! :) We got back from Chicago yesturday and I haven't had time to process many pictures. I took enough to keep me busy for a month. Not that they are all that good, but I like several of them. You might disagree, but that's your right!
I'm out of town for a couple of days, so if I don't get back to you quickly that's the reason! I'm in Chicago for business and a couple of days of non-business! Hopefully I can return with some good shots.
I'm not ready for the leaves to start falling! I don't want winter...can we boycott winter this year? Please?
This is the same area that I took this shot.
I don't really like bugs. I was out shooting by a stream and heard this guy fly past my head. It sounded like a huge bee. It's alot bigger than it looks here that's for sure. Right after I shot a bunch of him sitting like this I watched him take off and tackle a moth mid air. He took the moth and it looked like he was shaking the life out of him. Then I got a bit too close and he flew to another bush while carrying the moth. Here is a shot of him holding the moth while hanging from a leaf with one leg. I thought about making this a seperate post but it's kinda gross and I didn't want to look at it for a whole day! I'm not sure what this thing is, it seemed like a cross between a dragon fly and a spider. I was surprised at how close I was able to get to him. For awhile he really seemed to be posing for me. :)
I was surprised at how this turned out.
I've seen several others with a similiar shot and I've been wanting to get one too! So here is my sunflower shot.
Whatever you eat or drink or whatever you do, you must do all for the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31
Brandon and I went out and messed with some night shots again. People looked at us like we were escapees from the mental institution, but it was fun!
No, it's not mine. My wife would find a gun and shoot me if I brought one of these beauties home! :)
Probably not old compared to some but it certainly was in need of a paint job!
Not sure if there are actually 200 or not, but this is my 200th picture! I don't really even like gum drops, but that's what I thought of when I saw this picture. :)
While doing some yard work I found this nest with a couple of eggs in it. I'm guessing they are blue birds, but the bird that kept hanging around the nest wasn't a blue bird. Not sure.
A shot from a sight seeing train we rode the other day. If you are curious about the angle I wasn't on top of the train. Look at this post and look about halfway down the train, you'll see how I shot this.
For some reason I have this fascination with electrical poles. I think it's the how-in-the-world-does-that-work thing in me . It's crazy to think that flowing through those lines are the electrons and photons (I think...) that power the air conditioner that is keeping my house cool, the lamp next to my computer and much more in my house.
John 15:5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.
I haven't really had much to say lately. I'm kinda in a slump as far as photography is concerned. It's been so hot it can't hardly stand to go outside at all.
This is one of those shots that you get every now and then that are totally unexpected. I took my camera to my son's t-ball game and hadn't really planned on taking any shots. I had taken pictures at several previous games and they all start looking the same. So, I was a bit bored and just wandering around the area by his field when I saw this girl and snapped a couple, not really thinking much about it. When I got back I dumped everything and saw this and loved it immediately.
This is the inside of a new IBM eServer we installed at work yesturday. It's pretty sharp and super fast! :)
Another shot from the garden at the Barnes Jewish Childrens Hospital. I was amazed at how frequently these helicopters kept coming and going. But as you walk around the hospital you realize how many sick kids there are and it's heart breaking. My niece