Moved

To all those still subscribed/reading, this url, please note, I have discontinued my blogger blog and will be using wordpress here on out. Sorry for any inconvenience.

My website URL is still the same (www.vividcorvid.com), and the subscription feed is http://feeds.feedburner.com/vividcorvid, hope to continue to hear from you!

Rob Crow

Sweet Clementine

I know the song is Sweet Caroline, but come on, that's creative :) The Eastern Market in DC is a very cool place to get the creative juices flowing and snap some pictures of all things produce and art. There were some amazing photographers selling some pictures, and next time I go I have to make sure I grab some cards and spend some time picking their brains.

Greensleeves

Picture tonight is another macro shot while I was down at the Jefferson Memorial for the Cherry Blossom Race. Don't got much else to say, but I am glad that spring is here again.

Big Game

This is why I have fallen in love with the 35mm! Walking around the Carnival with the 18-200 was fun, but it restricted me to only shooting with a tripod (4.5 was too slow to hand hold even with VR). But with the 35mm cranked down to f1.8, almost anything was possible. Also the sweet Bokeh it creates is just amazing. I got to use a 70-200mm f2.8 on Sunday at the class, and when I can save enough money (and it may be a while), that's definitely going to be my next lens. I could hand hold it on almost every shot without even worrying about the shutter speed (something not possible with the 200-500mm).

Finally, I also want to direct some traffic over to my buddy Sam's website www.stricklerphotography.com, he's been doing some amazing work lately, and I hope that he can continue (Lee, its time to start a website!).

Full Range

Went to an HDR class today in Georgetown sponsored by Penn Camera. It was an amazing learning experience, and gave some great insight into this form of photography. It wasn't nearly as difficult to do the post processing as I thought, but it definitely takes a lot of pre visualization, and fore thought on what the final image will look like. We used Photomatix in conjunction with Lightroom, so maybe I will grab a copy one of these days and try making a few more...

The image below is one of the ones I created in the class of Rosslyn and the Key Bridge from Georgetown.

You Spin Me Right Round

The Carnival was in in town in Manassas, but man has the weather not been cooperating. What made for a great mountain biking day, made for a rather chilly evening. I put off going to the Carnival last night as it was raining, but forced myself to go tonight (I missed the Fair in Boise, and cursed myself for making excuses).

I setup a bunch of shots inside the Carnival itself (you had to pay $2 just to enter), but found the best shots outside the fence behind the Ferris Wheel. The cops, though, didn't seem to agree and parked right behind me the entire time I was shooting pictures and only drove away when I got back into my car.

Jaywalking

Older picture tonight. Found this little guy while crossing the street near the Inner Harbor in Baltimore. Had to snap a quick shot though, because as nice as drivers are on the East Coast, I didn't quite trust waiting too long...

Here comes the Sun

The GW Invitational was on Saturday on the Potomac River and the Cherry Blossom 10 mile run was on Sunday. Both gave some great excuses to head into DC and see the sights. On Sunday we were hanging out by the Jefferson Memorial watching the Cherry Blossom run, and whle waiting for my brother's friends to finish, I snuck a few shots over at the memorial. The sun was still rising and gave some great sun burst shots.

Powder Puff

Not much to write about today, maybe I will get more inspiration during the week. Picture was of some Dandelions down by the Jefferson Memorial from Sunday.

Dew Drop

I do have to say, as unsure as I was about buying a macro lens, I am definitely glad I did. The amount of stuff you see so differently when you look at it up close is amazing. I still haven't scratched the surface of stuff to take pictures of, but the amount of plants and animals I took pics of while back home was just staggering. Also what this, and the 35mm lens, have shone me is how great non wide angle lenses look. I had been using the 18-200mm for so long, looking at pictures without the edge distortion is a completely new experience. Also shooting prime (as difficult as it feels sometimes), does force you to look at things from a new perspective which is always a good thing.

Wide Mouth

Karl and my mom were a great pair of tour guides for me last weekend. They ran me to death, and got me into a lot of new areas of DC that I was completely unaware of. I have a ton of pictures to sort thru, and little time to do it before the next adventure. Plus on top of this, I haven't even started to post from the pictures I took on Sunday while I was back home...

One of the cooler places we went to was the Fish Market on the Potomac right next to 395. Very cool seeing all the floating barges selling all kinds of seafood (both alive and dead). We got some Crawfish and Oysters, and needless to say they were both delicous and FRESH! Going to have to hit it up again this summer to get some good old Maryland Blue Crabs.

In Bed

Got down and dirty to get this shot and ended up practically laying in the flower beds in front of the Capital. Luckily I had my Mom along for the ride to make sure I didn't get clipped by buses and cars going around the around about.

I had a few others that turned out well color wise, but ended up sucking in terms of composition, since it appeared that the building was rising out of a blossom. So I ended up going with the vertical one since it looked the best

Under my Umbrella

I usually don't take pictures of people. Don't get me wrong I find many pictures amazing and moving, but I just haven't developed the eye yet for capturing people in a moment that can do that for me. I am trying very hard to work on this and build better experience in a place I know I am not as strong in.

While walking around snapping pictures of the Cherry Blossoms, it became almost impossible to avoid people. When I was taking this shot orignally, I just liked the Magnolia blossoms and was trying to get a shot of the arching branchs. However, this little girl and her brother were running in and out of my shot, so instead of fighting it I just added them to the composition.

In Bloom

Long weekend of picture taking! Went all over DC and got some great shots of all kinds of stuff and places. Weather cooperated well, so I got a lot of work this week to filter thru the pictures.

I am sure this shot has been repeated a thousand times, but its still beautiful and I still wanted to share it because the Cherry Blossoms, regardless of the crowds, are amazing to see.

Buzzing the Tower

I have been intending to get this type of shot in Boise for years, since the Airport offers amazing oppurtunity for this type of picture, but I have yet to get around to it. But after coming out east, I saw a place similar and made up my mind I had to get it done. There is a place right next to Ronald Reagan Airport called Gravelly Point where you can stand right underneath of where the planes land. Its loud and bright, but a unique experience you have to be in to believe.

More Power

My romance with Smugmug may be over. This is about the fourth time in 2 months that I have had issues with uploading or viewing pictures... Very annoying, and becoming a deal breaker.

While walking around the inner Harbor of Bmore, we decided to maybe go to the Power Plant for lunch at the ESPN Zone. But after walking most of the day, we were too tired to hang out, and ended up going back to the apartment to crash. We did, however, walk over there, and I got a few cool pictures of the outside of the buildings.

Hang a Right

Annapolis was a fun town, hadn't really had the chance to walk around much in the past, and I was surprised at how nice the waterfront area is. It reminds me of all the other colonial type towns in the Maryland/Virginia area, but having the Naval Academy there gave it a special charm.

The round about near the harbor offered a great picture (in between cars).

Winging It

Took advantage of the nice weather on Saturday and went on a photo trip to Annapolis and Baltimore. Got a ton of pictures, but unfortunately most of them are city shots, so with the except of this one (and a bunch of flower macro pictures), almost all my shots are urban type pictures.

A bunch of kids were playing down by the water, scaring the birds up into the air and creating some great images of birds taking flight, which coincided with a perfect background of the Aquarium.

Pondering Pug

Gotta get back to posting more pictures of what I actually got into photograph for; animals and nature. The macro lens is fun, but it is still a tool, and will definitely help in the future when it gets warmer for me take pictures of plants and insects.

I know that dogs aren't a wild animal, but my cousin's pug was fun to chase around the lawn and try to shoot with the 35mm since the lighting was really low in the late afternoon. Its a great portait lens, and I will have to use it some more in the future when I get back to the farm to get some pictures of the critters.

Stovetop

Not much to write tonight, just still playing with the Macro lens everynight. Tonight is a picture of the stove top coils.

End of Laughter

Don't get the wrong idea, this isn't a serious post or anything. I just liked the concept behind this. My Aunt's garden had a bunch of inspirational words carved into rocks, but only this one happened to be broken, and made for the best image.

I have been trying to think of more conceptional pictures lately, and will probably start doing more still life and posed type pictures now that I got the 105mm (though if the weather gets nice again, the Cherry Blossoms will be calling my name...).

Bubble Bursts

Tried out some bubble photos today using a VERY makeshift setup in an attempt to try to emulate some of these shots. If you can't tell from the picture, I don't have studio lighting so I had to make do with a lamp. Still like the effects it created, but I do wish I had some flat white light.

Shots took forever, as I was trying to hurry and blow up the bubbles, then compose and shoot as quick as possible. The little gusts I created every time didn't really help my cause much...

The Is Have It

Back during Junior year of high school I used to play Boggle during some of my free periods with a bunch a friends (wow, that sentence sound nerdy even writing it...). But hey this was prior to Senior year, and we had to stay on the campus, so unless you had homework there wasn't much to do.

Found a bunch of game pieces while going thru stuff at the old house, so got lots of fodder like this for macro images.

Da Bomb

Got the new lens today! Was supposed to come yesterday, but UPS didn't deliver till 7, and so I didn't get it till tonight. Its pretty sweet, but I need to figure out if the VR is supposed to be as loud as it is sounding (might have to send it back :( ).

Anyway, hopefully it won't piss too many people off (not sure who even reads this thing), but I will most likely be shooting a ton of macro shots over the next few weeks trying out the new hardware :)

Shine Down

Got the inspiration today from one of my favorite daily blogs (Stuck in Customs). I love Trey's take on things and his excitement towards photography, it always gets me amped up.

Like a Drug

Quick post, I spent entirely too much time tonight trying to learn the Lightroom SDK, and now I am exhausted. I did figure out how to create my own Metadata, so we will see how much it helps with sorting/managing stock photos. Maybe I will try incorporate the FTP functionality in as well and try to drop out a few steps of the whole process...

This image is in anticipation of receiving the new lens I bought last week; the 105mm Macro. I love micro/macro photography, but the 18-200 and the 35mm just don't cut it, 1:1 can't be beat. I have a huge list of close up images I have been trying to capture for the last year or so, that I have never quite liked, so here's hoping its worth it.

Ms. Josephine

We grew up with chickens on our farm, it was a carry over from my mom's life as a Ag Professor's daughter. But not the 'normal' types of chickens, the nice exotic breeds. We named them all as well, so we grew very attached to the few odd balls (we had a blind rooster for about two years that liked nothing more than to just sit on your lap).

In addition we had three White Crested Black Polish hens like the one pictured below, that were named after three of the women that were our family friends (Ms. Hila, Ms. Josephine, and Ms. Retha), hence the name this time. This chicken though was at my uncle's home in Port Royal, Virginia.

Fallen Angel

Was down in Virginia this weekend for a family event, and my uncle's place is just a treasure trove of photo oppurtunities. As my cousin and brother said, he decorates in the 'Redneck Nouvea' style and has just a mishmash of stuff everywhere. (Needless to say, I captured a lot of pictures).

In their garden was this wonderful statue of an angel that I saw during the day and again right as the sun was setting. I almost didn't go get my camera, but after looking thru the pictures from the trip, I am definitely glad I did.

Light at the end of the Tunnel

Second post. This one again was kind of hard for me. This place is located behind the Tomb of the Unknown soldier and when you are in the presence of such a powerful symbol like that its hard to focus on anything else but the sombering feelings you get from seeing it.

But nonetheless, this image was kind of an amazing coincidence of location and time of day, because I caught the sun right as it broke below the roof of the outdoor theatre and sat between the columns. So I am thankful that I got to experience the moment at such a wonderful place, with such an overwhelming meaning.

Cemetery Row

I'm breaking my rules of one post a night tonight since this image was supposed to be posted on Wednesday, but Smugmug was down with technical issues... Not sure if I am going to continue with them or not after this year.

Anyways, here is a pic of some of the grave stones at Arlington. I felt reluctant posting this picture, even though I love it, because I don't know what the rules are on names on tombstones (should I blur them??). Regardless, I still liked the composition of this picture a lot, but I may have overdone it with the preset (a little too dark once online).

Eternal Flame

Weather was especially cold this weekend, and quite a bit dreary; but I convinced my mom to join me at Arlington and the Iwo Jima memorial. It was a first for me to finally see the statue and the Neatherland Carillon that stands next to it. This picture though is of the "Eternal Flame" that burns at the grave of John and Jackie Kennedy.

Lately though, I've been suffering from creative block and need to start mixing it up or get some inspiration, so hopefully over the next couple of days I can get some new ideas...

Lines of Sight

An upclose shot of one of the three silos on our farm. My parents always used to say there was one for each of us kids. I think that was a load of bull, but I still smile when I see them.

Ivy League

While wondering around the farm taking pictures, I saw some ivy growing up the chimney of our little hunter's cabin. I was shooting a few pictures when I saw a bunch of vines on a stump nearby. I shot a few vertical and then some underneath shots before I saw a perfect bokeh opportunity with the forest in the background. I had to unfortunately rotate this picture afterward to straighten the tree (resulting in some cropping), but I think with the added Lightroom preset it turned out great. Just one of those things I need to take a breath and frame up before pressing the shutter....

USDA Grade Adorable

Another gratuitously cute picture of the calf. Honestly I couldn't get enough of this little girl; she was just amazing as a photo subject. It was almost as if she was born to be a model. The one thing that I loved capturing were the bubbles that she kept blowing and the big eyes that were almost entirely pupil.

Under Watchful Eyes

A new baby calf was born on our farm a few days ago and I was lucky enough to be home while it was still with its mother. I wish I could have sat there all day taking pictures! It was almost magically watching them interact and seeing the calf prancing around the pen without a care in the world.

I had seen this a hundred times growing up, and it wasn't a new experience, but what was new was thinking of images to make and moments I wanted to capture. Next time I will come more prepared with a list, but it was still great and I will have lots of pictures for this week :)

Web Crawler

Sorry Mom, but I love this picture!

While visiting San Juan this past month, we were walking along El Morro near the coastline and there were literally HUNDREDS of these webs and spiders. I didn't know if they were poisonous or not (and didn't want to find out), so I didn't get nearly as close as I probably would have.

Iquana-saurus

Growing up I had two lizards (Fat-tailed Geckos), that I had with me for about 3 years. When I went away for college, I couldn't take the female with me (the male died) so I had to give it away to my brother's school. I kind of wish I had them around still to take some pictures of them.

My cousin has had this Iquana for four plus years and this thing has gotten massive. Right now its about 3 feet long and will continue to get bigger. The color and scales on this guy are just amazing.

Buffalo or Bison?

This picture is from the same trip as the LDS temple in Salt Lake City I posted earlier in the week. I had been wanting to go to Antelope Island for a long time, and the first time I was there it was the middle of winter and almost no animals were out. When I went with Lee, it was nearing spring, and we hit the jackpot. We saw a few herds of Pronghorn Antelope, Bison, and even a wolf. It was awesome. The Wasatch Mountains were still covered with snow, and with the sky being clear, gave some awesome views.

Falling Apart

On the drive up to McCall, Idaho you pass this set of barns every time. There are lots of old buildings lining 55 on the drive up, but this set just really stood out to me. One year I decided I had to get a shot off and just pulled over to capture a few for my own prosperity.

Temple Square

I posted pictures from the DC LDS Temple, but I was flipping thru earlier pictures and came back across some from SLC when Lee and I went down (have some great animal pictures I will have to sort thru and post). This picture was taken in the reflecting pool in front of the temple there and I think it turned out much better than the normal pictures where I included the sky.

Solitude

Didn't get out to take as many pictures as I would of liked over the weekend, but the weather on Saturday was just gloomy and grey, so it wasn't worth wasting time standing out in the cold. Sunday looked a lot better, so I swung by Manassas National Battlefield on the way home to check out the post snow conditions.

Cloud Cover

Glacier National Park is awesome. I posted before about it, but if you can pick one place to see before you die, I definitely recommend it. Its just overwhelmingly beautiful.

The main road thru the park, Going to the Sun Road, wraps around the peaks and mountains and lets you really see the terrain differences and just how high up the park really is. This picture is one of the many peaks along this road, but I couldn't for the life of me remember which one...

I know I am no Ansel Adams, but when I was looking at this picture I got the inspiration to modify it so it was reminiscent of one of his great works.

Atlas Shrugged

I have never actually read the book, but the Fountainhead is by far one of the best books I have ever read. It was one of those books where I was so absorbed with the story and characters I was actually upset when it finally ended. My buddy got me Atlas Shrugged for Christmas, so I will have to start working my way thru it soon.

When we went up to NYC before Christmas I wanted to capture some Taxi Cabs streaking thru the streets, and when I saw this statue, I knew I had my picture.

Snow Cone

Well, we didn't get dumped on, but we got enough to make it fun to drive in/out of work today. My new Subaru is a champ at handling the snow (Wyoming proved it), so it wasn't really a problem to drive; I was just hoping I would have an excuse not to. The wind tonight is ridiculous, and I am sure it will add a new level of fun tomorrow to the conditions.

This little votive candle was out on my porch during the storm over the weekend and made for some cool images.

Fire and Ice

A part of me hopes that we get buried with snow tonight. The rest of me of course doesn't want to have to dig out my car, but hey snow is still fun :)

I really like contrast in my pictures. Its an effect I am guilty of over using, but sometimes it just makes a picture pop. The choice tonight was between a half buried red stop sign or a half buried yellow fire hydrant. I couldn't get the sign quite right, so I ended up choosing the hydrant.

Oil Spill

More pictures from the snow. This picture was of the aftermath of the storm of the snow melting. I love the look of oil/gas on water; the rainbow colors and the patterns they create. There's a weird sort of beauty to the pollution...

Black on White

Wow, we got a ton of snow!! Took 2 1/2 hours for me to dig out both brother and my car this morning (mostly because I used a cake pan for the first hour), but after I borrowed a shovel it went MUCH faster.

I convinced my brother to venture out after breakfast for a walk and I got to shoot a bunch of pictures in the neighborhood, so I will have some ammo for the week. This picture was of some bushes along the sidewalk.

Off Limits

This picture tonight is in honor of the amazing amount of snow the east coast is being (blessed?) with this year. Honestly, I can not remember there ever being this many storms in one year in my entire life.

The picture below is at Grand Targhee ski resort from a trip my brothers and I made a few years ago. In a place like the Tetons, when they say an area is off limits, they mean it...

Red

Snowing again today! Hopefully I can get a few pics tomorrow morning since I am stuck in VA all weekend.

Random pic from days past of a Red Panda at the National Zoo (Woodley-Park) in Washington DC. It was a pretty crappy day with lots of misty rain, so I didn't get nearly the amount of pictures I wanted. But I am going to be photographing these little guys pretty hard this summer (if you don't know, the Zoo is free in DC...).

Faerie

Arguably, the best breakfast restaurant in Boise, is Goldy's off Capital. They serve some of the greatest food and people line up every Saturday and Sunday in anticipation of a good meal there. They used to have these AMAZING cinnamon buns, but because of the demand they stopped making them because they couldn't keep up.

There is this great light fixture in the middle of the restaurant made up of wire strands with light bulbs attached at the end of each. Superglued to each bulb is a pair of dove wings. It looks a little morbid (but still cool), but when you abstract it reminds me of a bunch of fairies or pixies floating thru the air.

Shinra

Title is a little vague tonight for anyone out there but the geeks. But when I saw this the other morning on my way to work, I had to take a picture and broke out the iPhone to capture it.

The title is the mega-corporation from Final Fantasy 7, and for some reason (don't ask me why), I thought of the smoke stacks as seen in the Trailer from back in the day...