The Alphabet Project

I recently started a photo forum for some of my close photography friends. As part of doing so I try to come up with different photo assignments for us to do to try to expand on our photographic knowledge. In doing so I came up with the idea of shooting the alphabet. Check the blog as I try to find objects around that represent each of the letters in the alphabet.

Art crime

Had a little fun with the poladroid software I mentioned in an earlier post. A friend of mine who posts in a photo forum I participate in said the original image I posted looked like a crime scene for art supplies. So after some thought and her help this is the final image. Shot with the 50mm I believe.

Guitar man

I shot this photo several years ago and was never happy with the color version so after lots of thought and several attempts I finally came up with this black and white version. This was shot at a Blue Grass festival I was covering with an 80-200mm lens. Can’t remember exactly what camera I was shooting with at the time. Lots of dodging and burning with this one though.

It’s been awhile

Ok, back after a lapse in posts. Been kinda neglecting the blog, but have gotten back to shooting quite a bit lately. I’ve gotten to spend my lunch break at work wandering along the river and have came across several different photos. I’ll be getting them posted as I get time so stay tuned.

Help-Portrait

Pass it on!

Shake it like a Polaroid picture

I have recently stumbled across one of the coolest FREE apps I have found in a long time. It's called Poladroid. It is a Polaroid photo emulator. Just open the program, drag your image to the little camera on screen. The photo will pop out and then you can wait on the image to develop or use your mouse to shake it around to speed development. Very cool fun. It's as close as you can get to a Polaroid since they stopped making film. I've been having tons of fun with it. The novelty may eventually wear off but I doubt it since I'm easily amused.

Sky and light

This light just caught my attention while I was parking my car a few days ago. There happened to be a dark cloud moving in on the right of the frame and a jet stream trailing away from the light. I always keep a camera handy for when a photo presents itself. Shot with a Nikon D200 and 50mm f/1.4 lens. Converted to black and white. Not much else in the way of post processing. What you see is what you get. Sometimes something simple can make a nice photo.

On a side note, you may have noticed a donation button in the right hand column of my blog. If you find anything useful on my blog or you just have some spare change laying around feel free to drop some coin. I'll try to keep posting when I come up with something interesting.

Til next time. Keep shootin'!

A sad day for film

I got a Nikon camera

I love to take a photograph

So mama don't take my Kodachrome away

- Paul Simon

Well, Kodak has made the announcement. The reign of Kodachrome is ending. You can read more about it here.

Kodak retires Kodachrome film

It is a sad day indeed. Granted, I have never shot a roll of Kodachrome. But it always makes me sad to see film disappear. Especially one with such a history. I have always had a fondness for film. There is just something magical about it that I don't feel with digital photography, but that being said, I don't shoot alot of film anymore, simply because my DSLR is always with me and ready to go. It's day's like today though when I hear about the announcement from Kodak that makes me realize that I am one of the reasons films are being discontinued. I need to shoot more film. Photographs taken on film, many of which were shot with Kodachrome, (ie Steve McCurry's Afghan Girl) were the inspiration for me picking up a camera. Time to dust off my film cameras and go shoot some film. There's just something about holding a roll in your hand. RIP Kodachrome.

Snow in May

Ok, so not really snow in May. Just me digging through the archives again. This is one I shot a couple winters ago when there was a light snow on here in Kentucky. I really liked the natural blueish tint to the photo and how the snow was sticking to the thistles and the fence post. The roll bale in the backgroung just added to the image for me. Can't remember the camera settings. Sorry to any of those interest in those details, but I think I did use a 50mm lens and I know it was shot with the D200.

Point and shoots and model trains

A lot of times when I go places I like to travel light with my camera gear. Even times when I have my D200 with me I will reach for my point and shoot. One such occasion was the Tri-State 26th Annual Model Train Railroad Show at Greenbo Lake in Ky. I love trains of all sizes and hadn't been to the model railroad show since I was a child and thought it would be a good opportunity to do some macro photography. I packed all of my gear as usual but opted for my point and shoot once I arrived at the show. A long as you take your time, plan your shots, know the limitations of the equipment and allow for the shutter lag you can come up with some pretty nice stuff. My point and shoot is an older 5 megapixel Canon SD400. I love it. Right now it does everything I need it to do. It is beginning to show some battle scars but is serving me well. Check out my favorite pic of the trip below.

Life, Luck and Preparedness

As a photographer you have to be prepared. That means having your camera with you all the time. Even though I don't work full time as a photojournalist anymore I rarely go anywhere without a camera of some sort with me. I didn't have my lens that I would really have wished for for the photo but I did have my camera and a moderate zoom with me so I was able to make a few snaps of a scene I might have otherwise missed. I was prepared. Throw in a little luck for being in the right place at the right time and I ended up with the photo of the mother cow cleaning off her newborn calf in the snow covered field. The calf couldn't have been more than a few minutes old and I was lucky enough to be traveling past during the first minutes of its life.