A whirlwind of a week. I recently returned from a week in Disney on what I would call a pseudo vacation > Yes, It was time off, time away from home but we were there for a purpose. My daughters dance team qualified for the National finals held at the Coronado Springs Resort. We ended up having a very successful 4 days of competition. By the time the weekend arrived we were exhausted, but still managed to get in some park time.

I always take LOTS of pictures of the dances, trying to get that perfect action shot. This time around though  I wanted to concentrate on the emotions of the dancers during their routines as well as the compositions and lines of the dancers.  This is not the easiest thing to do when you are half way back in the hall even with a 200mm lens. iso’s of 1600, f2, f2.8, while trying to maintain a shutter speed of 1/400 or more. I seem to be having a problem getting the face crisp, but the rest of the shots are good. I will be experimenting with a monopod come regional time next year to see if that makes a difference.  Even though the wireless was very spotty I did manage to post a “photo of the day” for each of the days we were dancing. This one is from day two.

Naturally I took many shots of the surroundings, the parks and Britt meeting the Disney characters. Our resort had a large lake which provided me with some outstanding opportunities since there were ample amounts of large trees surrounding it.

I have been toying with HDR imaging over the past month and debating on trying a few photos using that process. Other than cropping and straightening I am currently not a believer in post editing and while I do own a couple of software editing programs I have no idea how to use them yet. I am sure the time will come when I must but for now the purist in me wins. HDR is just another tool, combining different exposures into one image, it provides a more artsy feel. Notice – I did not say artistic. Artistic is in the composition, artsy is in the manipulation. If my first result is any indication, I may have to explore this HDR outlet a bit more. All for now.

One quick post before things get crazier than normal around here. It is recital week for Britt and immediately after that it is off to Florida for Nationals. I hope to get some great shots in the next two weeks. Lots of Dance pics, going to try and get some of the famous fireworks photos and I am sure there will be some more indulgent spectacles I can come across. 

For today’s venture into my yard I was looking at layers and depths. I did not get exactly what I was looking for in my mind but it came out OK and looks really nice on the desktop.  I think by the end of the week they all will turn down and pending on the height I will have what I want. 

 

I think I may have found a working title. Twilight and dusk; we should add dawn to that mix, are said to be the premier hours of the day for taking photos.The magical and  mythical hours in which all the prisms align in beauty.

The only time I see dawn is when I am getting up for or already at work. Gone are the days of heading to West End 2 before the sun comes up and leaving before the brutal 2 pm sun straight up in the sky heat. That same 2 pm hour for which pictures outdoors are said to be difficult to take. White out!

My minor trials with constant lighting over the past 7 days has been very interesting. Different shapes using varied angles and distances. Use the shadows or eliminate them.I will be transitioning to strobes very soon and this should provide a entirely new experience.

Here is one with constant lighting courtesy of Home Depot

And with off camera flash positioned for effect, courtesy of the Canon 430EX II

I think I am going to be having a good time learning how to do this….

Till next time…

The beauty of life lies within its simpleness. I think many know this but few appreciate it or are unable to take the time to truly take a break and see the world around them. My desire to learn and explore photography I think is a way for me to step back and escape what has become a life of go, go, go, do, do, do. What did Bobby McFerrin say? Simple pleasure are the best?  How right he was.

A simple rose, fake or not, drools with the power of simplicity and beauty. The apple represents all that is good, all that is whole.  Pick one from your garden, one from a tree; natures gift of life. Then of course there is the worm factor or the insects feeding time…..natures nourishment……not much to do about the worms just do not get rid of the spiders! Webs make good pictures too.

OK, so some people laugh at this and desire a more extravagant way of life. Materialistic to a point. If done correctly the two do mix as long as it is tasteful…or tasty…

These were shot during my first attempt  with constant studio lighting. I used two lights but it looks like a third is needed to eliminate some shadows. And the background may need some fine tuning. The Rose/apple combo I used the 24-105 4.0. 1/5 sec at f4, iso 100. My first thought would be to use a faster lens so on the second shot i used an 85 at 1.8 1/80 iso 100. Looks like I will be working on light positioning. Definitely not as easy as it sounds.

Till next time…

I was recently in Denver on business. Denver as we all know is the Mile High city. 5280 feet. I am a sea level guy, 48 feet elevation. CAN’T BREATH! I was there a few years ago and had developed a wicked headache about three days into the 5 day long trip, this year I hydrated well in advance of traveling so the headache did not rear its ugly head, but oh my, how quickly the heart rate rises during minimal activity. A simple walk down the block was tachycardic. I was able to take advantage of some sightseeing and visited Red Rocks and the Breckenridge area. While at red rocks I was amazed at all the people excercising within the arena, using the bleacher style seating as a giant stair stepper. 

I was standing on the stage and looking up while I took this.Walking down was not too bad, although it was much longer than it looked from the top. On the way back up I discovered how truly out of shape I am because I had to stop half way up and catch my breath…..and people were exercising on this stuff!  I do not know the acclimation time for altitude, but I am certain it is not 5 days. I got home late at night and the next day feeling good about being back at sea level I noticed the initial signs of altitude sickness. Pedal Edema! Going to the Ocean now….