Thursday, April 22, 2010

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.

Closeup of a bag of Clementines  at the Eastern Market in Washington DC

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

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.

Tree leaves closeup shot

Monday, April 19, 2010

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!).

Stuffed Tigers and Lions at the Carnival

Sunday, April 18, 2010

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.
HDR City image in Rosslyn, VA

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.

Ferris Wheel at Carnival in Manassas, VA

Friday, April 16, 2010

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...

Cross Walk Art in Federal Hill Baltimore, Maryland

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

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.

Sun shine over the Jefferson Memorial

Monday, April 12, 2010

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.

Dandelion Flowers

Thursday, April 8, 2010

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.

Drop of dew on a blade of grass

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

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.

Fish at the Fish Market in Washington DC

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

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

Flower Bed and Capital in Washington DC

Monday, April 5, 2010

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.

Little Girl Under Oriental Umbrella

Sunday, April 4, 2010

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.

Cherry Blossom Trees on the Tidal Basin in Washington DC

Friday, April 2, 2010

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.

Plane Trail at Gravelly Point in Washington D.C.