Clint Eastwood Forums
Other/Miscellaneous => Off-Topic Discussion => Topic started by: Americanbeauty on November 22, 2015, 05:12:04 AM
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Matt & KC suggested that it would be interesting, since quite a number of us seem to be passionate about photography, to start a thread dedicated to our very own photos. Well, this is it 8)
And if you want your uploaded photos not to disappear from the thread after a few months, here's a site where you can host them (forever and ever apparently) www.imgur.com (http://www.imgur.com). Matt posted a how-to HERE (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/index.php?topic=2338.msg222007#msg222007)
For those of you who would still like to continue discussing photographers and photography in general, posting photos found on the internet, no worries, the thread is still THERE (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/index.php?topic=5241.1340) ;)
I'll do the honors with this shot of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris (took it last year with my phone)
(http://i.imgur.com/NxbeX6A.jpg?1) (http://imgur.com/NxbeX6A)
Equipment: Canon G11, Nikon D80 and Nexus 4
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Beautiful shot, AB! And thanks for starting us off with this thread. I'm glad to have you back here to talk photography with. I'll post some of mine later tonight. This thread alone will inspire me to get out with my camera more. :)
Tell us about when you started, and what type of photography you love. Do you have any favorite photographers who inspired you? Have you studied, or are you self-taught?
I hope others will join in too. AB's photos may be a few steps above my level, but this isn't going to be about bragging or showing off, it's about sharing the LOVE of photography, and helping to inspire each other to be more active and maybe learn a few tips that would help us be better.
I was glad to see AB start us off with a camera phone photo, which emphasizes the point that this thread is for everyone who loves taking photos... don't be afraid to post your phone photos too.
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*Cue Bruce Springsteen's "My Hometown"*
So, I spent the weekend in my hometown... Cherry Hill, New Jersey. We're just over the bridge from Philly (plus a few miles). I'll often say I'm "from Philly" because that was our stomping grounds, and where we went once we got our licenses - either the Shore, or Philly.
But, I'm from Jersey. And pretty much everyone I meet outside of Jersey pulls the old "Oh, you're from JOISEY". And no, we don't talk like that at all in South Jersey. We don't talk like Rocky either (although my parents, who were from Philly, and all their friends did). The South Jersey accent is closer to a Virginia accent -- it's slightly .... very slightly southern.
And another misconception about Jersey is that it's an asphalt jungle, and a sewer. So, I'm about to show you some picture of where I grew up, and you can see if you can reconcile that with your impressions of New Jersey.
It was a quick trip, so I only got out to one landmark to photograph, and I thought of y'all here. I just had a feeling that there would be some fans here of covered bridges. Yes?
This is Scarborough Bridge, but all of us from Barclay Farms (a section of Cherry Hill) just called it "The Covered Bridge", and it is on "Covered Bridge Road". I walked through it every single day to school. It was so ordinary, that I never thought to photograph it, honestly. It was just as ordinary as your local grocery store or 7-11. In time, I realized it was special. And this time, I finally photographed it.
I have so many pictures, and I'm still going through them, but I wanted to get a few up tonight...
(http://i.imgur.com/alymTYH.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/iBZWIjM.jpg)
Is it as pretty as Roseman Bridge? Maybe not, but this one picture is the symbol of my childhood. Many many days and nights riding my bike under it, walking through it, sitting on the edge, smoking (anything), drinking, and making out here. Now here's the view of the Cooper River from the bridge:
(http://i.imgur.com/DxkFnTG.jpg)
And here's a little article about Scarborough Bridge (http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM8Y0_Cherry_Hill_Scarborough_Covered_Bridge).
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(http://i.imgur.com/51J1Mxp.jpg)
Flew over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge this weekend. O0
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Two more from my NJ trip (probably the last from this series)
Like AB, I love B&W photography -- but I couldn't help but indulge in the brilliant fall colors with the barn red bridge. But, it is striking in Black & White also. For this shot, I wanted to get it from ground level, so laid down in the street. In the old days, I would be able to bounce right back up and get out of the street in a second. I realized I'm a little slower now when a car started coming from behind me. Yeah, I've done a lot of dangerous stuff to get the photo I want. Anyway, it was worth it! :)
(http://i.imgur.com/NepC3aS.jpg)
And one more of brilliant NJ fall foliage:
(http://i.imgur.com/ImU3KYV.jpg)
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Love that covered bridge, Matt 8) so cool that you used to walk / ride through it when you were a kid.
For the story I started taking pictures and developing an interest in photography when I was in college, about 8-9 years ago. I was attending journalism classes at the time while some of my friends were taking photojournalism classes (it had to be one or the other).
I'm an introvert by nature so I like observing people and things. It's the perfect hobby. I photograph things that catch my eye. I know some people like to go out with a group and take photos (which is totally fine), but for me photography is something I enjoy doing on my own.
I've always admired concert photographers and their ability to capture and freeze that one moment during a concert when you can feel the intensity of a performance. So messy sometimes, but so beautiful. I do go to a lot of concerts, and whenever that's possible I bring my camera with me.
I like streetart and "urban exploration". I'm a city girl ;D
Favorite photographers? I like Winogrand, Steve McCurry, Lee Jeffries, Jason M Peterson (https://www.instagram.com/jasonmpeterson/ go check home out he does wonder with b&w) Plus there are so many talented street photographers on Instagram right now.
Fun fact: I always (always) hold my breath when I'm taking a picture. Which depending on the subject, can become a real problem :P I'm working on it lol
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Fun fact: I always (always) hold my breath when I'm taking a picture. Which depending on the subject, can become a real problem :P I'm working on it lol
I tried for about 20 minutes once to get a picture of two giraffes humping. He never quite made it in. You would have literally died trying to get that shot. ;D
Just looked up your photographers -- Steve McCurry -- love his Afghan Girl photo. It was one of the ones I was thinking of when I mentioned 'Napalm Girl" in another thread as being an image that is indelibly ingrained in the mind forever.
I'm really diggin' the Jason Peterson photography. That's the kind I love.
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Yeah. He's very very talented.
Another one that comes to mind is Henri Huet (war photographer, killed during the Vietnam war).
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I tried for about 20 minutes once to get a picture of two giraffes humping. He never quite made it in. You would have literally died trying to get that shot. ;D
Ha! Probably ;D
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This one dates back to 2010. First time I visited Canada.
It was around the end of October / beginning of November.
I decided to go to Stanley Park and walk along the Seawall. Took me about 4-5 hours ;D
And I took this shot. I was lucky to get that seagull 8)
(http://i.imgur.com/eKRw4OH.jpg)
Such a peaceful view. Kinda soothing too.
I realized afterwards that when you look at it from up close the sky kinda looks like a painting...
Btw, I don't like Photoshop and all that, not very good at it either lol, so most of my DSLR photos are unretouched (except maybe for contrast). For this one what you see is exactly what I saw at the time. No toying around with anything.
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The whole thing kind of looks like a painting! Beautiful shot, AB! O0 I'm sure that was worth 4 to 5 hours. :o ;)
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It was ::)
Whether I go to a concert or just go out with my camera I'm not happy until I get my "One Shot".
I get very frustrated if I don't get at least one good photo ;D
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And I took this shot. I was lucky to get that seagull 8)
I like that shot. I took a few similar shots the other night. I'm visiting my father in Florida, and we went to dinner at a waterside restaurant down the road. I had to leave him at the table for a few minutes -- the sun was just setting and I had about 5 minutes of good lighting. You know the feeling -- the shot is happening NOW *dash*.
I always take dozens of shots, even when I used to shoot with real film. And yeah, if I get that ONE shot, I'm happy.
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I'm no expert when it comes to photography and I took this photo of a double rainbow on my Iphone last year in Rome.
(http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n186/tgy1/iphone%20166_zpszq0aqwrg.jpg)
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Great photo, SK. I like how the inside rainbow lines up with the candle (or whatever the angel is holding).
As far as I know, there are no experts here, just enthusiasts. :)
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I am a manager in retail and worked Black Friday today and working the sale after Black Friday. I was about to go to bed and stopped by the board and I clicked on this thread. I am glad that I did. AB, Matt and SK those are pure pictures of serenity. I am going to bed with a smile. :)
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I like how the inside rainbow lines up with the candle (or whatever the angel is holding).
Funny. I never noticed that. I only saw the angel looking at the rainbow. :-[
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Nice one SK 8)
And yeah it does look like it lines up with the candle...and that the angel is looking at it ;)
I am glad that I did. AB, Matt and SK those are pure pictures of serenity. I am going to bed with a smile. :)
Hope you had a good night Richard!
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Most of the time that I actually get out of my town, I'm visiting someone and not able to do photography -- the time is always too short, and usually indoors. Same as usual, this last trip to Florida. I spent a few days in one of the most beautiful places in the U.S., and the only really good pictures I got were on the drive back - going 70 mph through the Florida panhandle JUST south of Alabama, the sunset was amazing. And then I saw two silos, and this swing. So of course I had to pull over and get some photos. I got eaten alive by the Florida state bird while taking them (mosquitos).
Here's one - haven't had time to go through them all yet to see if I have any better.
(http://i.imgur.com/izTJfIk.jpg?1)
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Btw, I don't like Photoshop and all that, not very good at it either lol, so most of my DSLR photos are unretouched (except maybe for contrast).
I wish I could take photos with my camera and get them to be exactly the way I want them. That's where I come up short -- the lighting and the aperture/speed settings. Plus, my camera is pretty low-end DSLR and I notice even when I have the lighting, and it's set on Program mode, they come out darker and flatter than what I saw when I was there. So I play with almost every photo to try to make it match what I saw. My goal isn't to improve the original scene, but to capture the beauty of the original scene.
In the photo above, I had to select the entire structure and use the "Dodge Tool" to remove shadows on the barn to remove shadows, and to brighten the grass. I didn't want to use Curves, contrast, brightness, etc. on the entire picture because it washed out the sunset. Then I wanted to add a bit of "vibrance" because in actuality, the colors were much more impressive than what my camera captured. And just since this is an appreciation AND learning thread, here's the original:
(http://i.imgur.com/mEeL6p0.jpg?1)
I also like to crop my photos, when possible to wide-screen.
Now, I also do darkroom film photography (although I haven't in some time now), and I KNOW that photographers manipulate in the darkroom to get what they want out of the photo. Photoshopping is just the darkroom equivalent for digital media. So, I don't MIND using Photoshop at all, I think it's almost necessary to have the strongest visual impact. But, I personally dislike OVER photoshopping and altering the photo (adding things that don't exist, like the moon, etc.) And I wouldn't try to create a sunset if there wasn't one, but I think it's fair to do a little dodging/burning, cropping (you'll always do that with an enlarger in the darkroom), and contrast levels.
I don't see it as a cheat, but I DO have a bit of jealousy (or a lot of jealousy) over someone who doesn't need to do that at all.
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Here's an interesting one --
Even though I said above I don't manipulate with photoshop too much unless I'm trying to make the captured image as beautiful as the original subject. Well, then there's black & white. ;D Almost everything looks better, IMO, in B&W.
This photo is an original vs. retouched. It has a LOT of work to it. I'll let anyone interested point out all the stuff I did. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/1U0uSuu.jpg?1) (http://i.imgur.com/w0pQcr8.jpg?1)
ORIGINAL EDITED (Final)
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Yeah, I get you.
But I'm soooo lazy and PS is just too complicated for me ;D
I use filters when I'm taking a photo with my phone and posting it on Instagram. It's so easy. The Arc de Triomphe one I played with the contrast and added a black & white filter. The fog was real ;)
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Here's an interesting one --
Even though I said above I don't manipulate with photoshop too much unless I'm trying to make the captured image as beautiful as the original subject. Well, then there's black & white. ;D Almost everything looks better, IMO, in B&W.
Couldn't agree more 8)
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The Arc de Triomphe one I played with the contrast and added a black & white filter. The fog was real ;)
The fog is gorgeous on that photo. It really looks like it is a photo from 100 years ago. It has such a timeless look to it. I love it.
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Yeah, I get you.
But I'm soooo lazy and PS is just too complicated for me ;D
I use filters when I'm taking a photo with my phone and posting it on Instagram. It's so easy. The Arc de Triomphe one I played with the contrast and added a black & white filter. The fog was real ;)
Yeah, it's time consuming. It almost ruins the fun of it all because I need to sift through 100 or so photos, pic about 5 of the best ones and then play with each one for 10 minutes.
But, then again... if I didn't do that, I would have photos that also would ruin the fun of photography for me because they'd be so disappointing.
It's a necessary part of it, for me.
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Oh, and if you have Photoshop and want any help with it, I'll see if I can point out some of the most effective tools. Once you get going, it might only take a minute for most photos.
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(http://i.imgur.com/rM6mMKJ.jpg?1)
Sunset untouched -- silos and grass brightened a bit.
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Nice! ⬆
I use Photoscape by the way, even though I have Photoshop.
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That's the one I suffered for... I didn't grab my tripod and I needed about a 1.5 second lens speed. I had to sit and use my knees as a tripod, which is how I did get the beautiful sunset. Looking through the viewfinder, I knew I wasn't getting the grass and silos bright enough -- and I had to give up because I was getting eaten alive by bugs.
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Ha. What we do for a shot! ^-^
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Decided to try a little additional work. I like it better. This would be wall-worthy.
(http://i.imgur.com/2InxN8u.jpg?1)
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Definitely!
Do you print your photos?
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I don't usually print them. I only have one that's blown up and hanging up -- I'll post it in the thread eventually. I kinda like these newer ones better.
And I wasn't going to post any more silo and sunset pics, but what the hell... I like this one a lot -- the lighting on the silo looks more natural to me.
(http://i.imgur.com/Ib88X2T.jpg?1)
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Here's a triptych I put together with photos taken this past summer in San Francisco.
I liked these 3 shots individually and since their common element was the bridge... :D
No PS at all on any of these.
(http://i.imgur.com/ViI3qzs.jpg?1)
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Fantastic shots! O0
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Oh they're OK I guess.
I really like the middle one for some reason.
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I love photographing bridges. I used to be able to get on job sites during construction and go up in crane baskets to shoot them. I'll have to dig around and see if I can find anything - the engineering firm was able to keep the originals, but I got one or two.
(Pre-digital. I shot on slide film for actual projectors for their town meetings.)
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Here's one during construction of the Bayside Bridge, which spanned Tampa Bay to link St. Petersburg to Clearwater (Florida).
(http://i.imgur.com/X217CI5.jpg?1)
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oh that's cool 8)
Here's the GGB again.
(http://i.imgur.com/XDIoQ8O.png?2)
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On these, I'm shooting on my decent camera, a Nikon N8008, and whatever slide film I'm using is high contrast... I actually had to tone these down slightly.
But, they've been through a lot. First, taken on punchy slide film.
Then developed to prints (Very expensive process, I believe these were about $75 a shot back in the early 90s).
20 some years later, they're finally scanned (today) ....
Very punchy. I settled them down slightly with actually removing a little saturation and vibrance. They don't, however, look too good in B&W -- there's too much going on.
Anyway, this pic is cool because you can see one of the crane baskets in the foreground. We were not OSHA compliant in any way, shape or form. Normally, I'd be nervous in one. But you know how it is when you're trying to get that shot, you really can only think of what you've gotta do to get that shot. I walked beams at that full bridge height without a safety cord, wearing only a hard hat and life preserver, and loved every minute of it.
(http://i.imgur.com/Xc5fuIb.jpg?1)
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oh that's cool 8)
Here's the GGB again.
Where are you at to get that shot?
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Last bridge construction shot -- this time I changed it to B&W because the subject was simpler and it worked better. These are the footprints of the bridge -- the pile drivings.
(http://i.imgur.com/v9K3OUT.jpg?2)
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Where are you at to get that shot?
Land's End Coastal Trail (one of my favorite spots in SF) :)
You bridge photos are impressive. Mainly because unless you see this, you don't really realize how much work goes into building these structures. It's one thing to see a bridge, it's another to see how it was built.
How long did it take to build the Bayside Bridge?
By the way, these crane baskets look scary! :o
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Land's End Coastal Trail (one of my favorite spots in SF) :)
You bridge photos are impressive. Mainly because unless you see this, you don't really realize how much work goes into building these structures. It's one thing to see a bridge, it's another to see how it was built.
How long did it take to build the Bayside Bridge?
By the way, these crane baskets look scary! :o
It was a 3 year job. A lot of coastal environmental protection on one side of the bridge to preserve rare species habitats. It made it so a lot of the work had to be done with small crews and not a lot of heavy machinery.
I was giving the foremen heart-attacks because I didn't have any fear at the time, and I remember telling the crane operator to take it higher, and he said it was as high as it went -- he was kinda dumbfounded.
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I've always wanted to get out to San Francisco specifically to photograph the GGB, so I'm jealous.
I found this photo of the completed Bayside Bridge from a somewhat similar angle on Flickr, photo credit to: "Christopher George". Placed it beside my construction photo to get an idea of the work that goes into the construction.
(http://i.imgur.com/ZMwILba.jpg)
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I love photographing bridges.
I was going to post this shot last week but thought no one would be interested. It's not a stunning shot but it's a pic of the Sydney Harbour Bridge from underneath. Really only one end of it. I took it a couple of years ago when we were on a harbour cruise and thought it would be cool to show a different side of the bridge from the one everyone sees.
(http://i.imgur.com/urC9BWw.jpg)
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I like it. Keep posting, SK. I like to see everyone's photos. Yours brought to mind a really good memory for me. My grandmother took me to NYC when I was 14. It was my first time there. We went on the Circle Line cruise, and I had a little 110 camera (bear in mind this is 1979). I got so excited by the bridges, that I asked her to buy me more film. And more film. And more. And more. And ... well, I think I shot about 8 rolls of film on that 3 hour cruise. And film on the cruise ship wasn't cheap. She took me on that trip for saving for over a year of her social security payments. I was a troubled youth, and it was the first time I felt really loved by someone. And so your picture, even though it was't the same bridge, reminded me of that earliest excitement of photography.
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This one was taken from an airboat ride through the Florida Everglades. It's one of the few I've printed and framed for a friend.
(http://i.imgur.com/EUT4X3K.jpg?1)
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This one is for KC, who likes cute & cuddly. This is a zoo pic.
(http://i.imgur.com/BcjfZR0.jpg?1)
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(http://i.imgur.com/KCk9s6A.jpg?1)
This is a marina in Gallatin, TN.
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Here's a fun one....
I was really disappointed with some pics I got from my last trip to Florida. I posted earlier that I was having dinner with my father at a waterside restaurant, and the sun was setting, so I took off to get some pics before the light was gone. When I looked at what I got, most were blurry -- there wasn't enough light. I did get one pic that was clear, but it was horrible. There was no subject, the composition was crap, and it was a throw-away. Sometimes I like to take one like that in Photoshop and just go nuts on it to see if I can make it interesting. So here's the before and after. I like the after... it's more like a painting. It's not a great photo, but it does help with Photoshop skills to do these kind of exercises.
Before:
(http://i.imgur.com/DkoCHKW.jpg?1)
After:
(http://i.imgur.com/vKzNUNn.jpg?1)
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This thread title sounds slightly elitist. I asked AB to do a thread like this to distinguish it from the thread for great pics we find online. But, this is for ANYONE here to post pictures that YOU take. No matter what level you consider your photography, we'll enjoy looking at your photos.
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This one is for KC, who likes cute & cuddly. This is a zoo pic.
(http://i.imgur.com/BcjfZR0.jpg?1)
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww ...! It's a red panda, no? 8)
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Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww ...! It's a red panda, no? 8)
It's a red panda, yes! Of course you knew that. I wanted to see if you'd know, and you did. :)
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Before:
(http://i.imgur.com/DkoCHKW.jpg?1)
After:
(http://i.imgur.com/vKzNUNn.jpg?1)
To be completely honest, I don't dislike the "before". It needed cropping for sure. It's not uninteresting.
Oh and I like the previous one in Tenessee. I like the reflection on the water. Very nice.
This thread title sounds slightly elitist. I asked AB to do a thread like this to distinguish it from the thread for great pics we find online. But, this is for ANYONE here to post pictures that YOU take. No matter what level you consider your photography, we'll enjoy looking at your photos.
Yeah. Elitist. I thought the exact same thing. We could always change the title to make it sound a little more welcoming.
Like... *Photographers welcome! Show us YOUR stuff!* or something like that :D
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We could always change the title to make it sound a little more welcoming.
Like... *Photographers welcome! Show us YOUR stuff!* or something like that :D
Yes! That would be better. You can edit the first post of the thread.
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One of my favorite photographers is Clyde Butcher (who studied under Ansel Adams, and you can see Ansel's influence in Clyde's work). Clyde shoots on large format, but that was way too much for me. When I decided I wanted to expand my photography more into their style, I built a darkroom and bought a medium format Mamiya RB67.
(https://chemicalcameras.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/dsc079851.jpg)
And here's some photos from my darkroom.
(http://i.imgur.com/Rewv7Ru.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/32aoS2w.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/w08L9ic.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/L9EZ2x2.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Nyuv8RT.jpg)
What's really great about medium format photography is that if I wanted to I could blow any of these up pretty huge without significant loss of detail. I haven't done that yet - none of these were printed on anything larger than 8" x 10". And as tempting as it is to want to push the contrasts or play with these a little in Photoshop, after all the trouble to develop my own film and print them, using all the cool techniques that I spent many long hours trying to perfect, it doesn't feel right to even pull them up in Photoshop. So these are just scanned directly from the 8x10 prints.
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This one was taken from an airboat ride through the Florida Everglades. It's one of the few I've printed and framed for a friend.
(http://i.imgur.com/EUT4X3K.jpg?1)
I love this shot! But I also find myself searching for any hidden alligators in it! :o
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This thread title sounds slightly elitist. I asked AB to do a thread like this to distinguish it from the thread for great pics we find online. But, this is for ANYONE here to post pictures that YOU take. No matter what level you consider your photography, we'll enjoy looking at your photos.
This great topic has had a name change. 8)
The Photographers thread: Show us your stuff!!
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I love this shot! But I also find myself searching for any hidden alligators in it! :o
There are probably a lot of them! If you're on a large airboat, the drivers will bring a bag of marshmallows and throw a few into the swamp. Within seconds, alligators pop up to snap them up.
I was on a small boat for that shot, and it was one of those days when you're aggravated because you don't think you're getting anything. I've been in the 'Glades and have seen Bald Eagles and have always wanted to get a really great shot of one. So it seemed like a failed trip to come home with no wildlife, just swamps. Nothing like what Clyde Butcher would have come home with, I'm sure. But, I too fell in love with the simplicity of the water lilles and the marsh path. It came out beautiful printed and matted and framed.
I lived close to Clyde Butcher's studio when I lived in South Florida, and his studio/museum is spectacular. He does workshops in the Everglades, and I spoke with his wife about signing up for one. I got a little scared at the idea of spending two days in hip boots in the Everglades swamps. I never did it, and I regret that.
Here's a cool article of someone who did just that, and a picture. They're insane. But his photos are worth it.
http://www.tvnewscheck.com/playout/tag/clyde-butcher/
Click here - I made the Google search easy. Now THAT is some beautiful photography: Clyde Butcher (https://www.google.com/search?q=clyde+butcher&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjRmaPjvtrJAhWG7CYKHX8ZBPsQ_AUIBygB&biw=2560&bih=1467)
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Wow. It looks like HDR O0
OK try and guess where this one was taken, who that person is and what is happening ;)
(http://i.imgur.com/jsEnDUQ.jpg?1)
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I could make up a story, but as for guessing what is actually going on, I wouldn't have a clue.
Is this in Paris?
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I could make up a story, but as for guessing what is actually going on, I wouldn't have a clue.
Is this in Paris?
Yeah it is in Paris.
The posture of the person could clue you in actually. I think.
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Can you post it larger? I can't tell.
I do like the photo a lot, though.
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Can you post it larger? I can't tell.
I do like the photo a lot, though.
(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/16/a5b902c68380b1c422d857160947ee88.jpg)
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Okay I'm going to have to use my imagination because I have no idea. :P
It's a woman who is just moving in to a new flat, and she has that rolling wardrobe that she has to fit through the door, so she's got a tape measure with her to see if it will fit, but she looks more like she's measuring the floor.
She appears to be standing on her tip-toes? Or she's putting (golf putting). And if that's not a stick of sorts in front of her, then I'm way off. In that case, she is walking backwards, and about to step off the entry. (I don't think she's walking IN with her feet so arched up like that?)
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Hahaha. Nope. But nice try.
Think "world's oldest profession" ;)
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Think "world's oldest profession" ;)
Ahhhhh! See, my mind is too clean to have gone that direction on its own. ;)
So she's not barefoot - she's in stilettos.
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Ahhhhh! See, my mind is too clean to have gone that direction on its own. ;)
So she's not barefoot - she's in stilettos.
Bingo. And probably talking to a client.
Taken in one of the red light areas of the city.
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I'm glad I didn't guess it was AB! :o
(I know that would have meant you didn't take the shot, so the guess would have been that you had it set up or something)
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I'm glad I didn't guess it was AB! :o
(I know that would have meant you didn't take the shot, so the guess would have been that you had it set up or something)
I know what you mean. It had occurred to me, as well. Then I was thinking the door frame was a mirror, and that would mean we were looking at a reflection, and I was looking for evidence of that. I'm glad I didn't express that thought.
But, my very first instinctual guess was that it looked like Yoko Ono era 1968. So, for whatever that's worth. The woman's legs weren't that thin, but she was hot.
(http://cdn.playbuzz.com/cdn/41370293-8c6a-4ee9-839e-f9c9c6ac8046/68802ba5-dc4b-4ecb-87bc-45f74b53ccd0.jpg)
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The mirror thought came to mind too.
You know, in the close-up version of the picture, it almost looks like she's talking to a ninja turtle.
:uglystupid2:
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I still can't figure out what's in the background of that picture -- but that stick really threw me off.
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(http://i.imgur.com/gFt2wXo.jpg?1)
This one's for Christopher.
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This one was at a restaurant in the middle of the Everglades, the Miccosukee Restaurant (it's in a Miccosukee Indian reservation). They're right on the swamp, and had my dog with me while going down to photograph the swamp. I was warned the dog would make a great snack, and to keep her away from the swamp. Sure enough, this guy came along.
(http://i.imgur.com/Vx8TJyc.jpg?1)
That's as close as you'll get -- I wasn't using a zoom lens, it was my standard 35-70 (14-35).
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AB, if we just keep posting in this thread, maybe others will join in. I saw that KC has a camera/camera phone in another thread, so we'll get her to post here too.
SK needs to post more as well.
Conan? Christopher? Everyone has a camera phone nowadays.
Anyway, this is a through-the-windshield shot of Chicago. I didn't have time on a recent trip there to get pictures (story of my life -- always too little time for photography).
(http://i.imgur.com/9XxvU1R.jpg?1)
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Decided to go a little moodier with the rain clouds by using the dodge tool. Even though Gotham is supposed to be NYC, The Willis Tower in Chicago really reminds me of Gotham and the Batman movies. And since I was driving through just before a bad rain storm, it was perfect mood lighting.
(http://i.imgur.com/PMX6cLv.jpg?1)
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Took this one in San Francisco this past summer. With my phone. I have to say I kinda love it.
(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/18/258d3fd255f6fcc80896dc4dc3f2788f.jpg)
I like street photography. That's the only way I enjoy taking photos of people. Portraits are too intimate for me. Intrusive even. And I like capturing random (but meaningful, at least visually, to me) moments. I like to observe people from a distance.
The way I take my pictures pretty much reflects who I am as a person ;)
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I like the way you captured that moment. There's emotion in the shot. Loneliness, age, neglect, solitude (the street, the buildings, the man, all empty and left alone, falling apart), and the juxtaposition at the bottom of the street of the younger group of friends, bright shiny car. It's a great shot. :)
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(http://i.imgur.com/whE8a8B.jpg)
Driving straight across Missouri along I-70E, it was field after field of turbines. Again, no time to pull over, so I was able to snap this out the passenger window while driving. I'm sure it could be better if I stopped, but I was awake nearly 24 hours straight and hoping to make it back to TN before it got too late. This and the Chicago photo (above) were iPhone photos. There's a lot of grain. But, I still like it. (I've since upgraded to a Galaxy S5, which has a better camera.)
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This one's for Christopher.
Eh hem! ::)
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I like street photography.
Not quite the same, I know.
(http://i.imgur.com/vpG4fv3.jpg)
Taken from The High Line in NYC.
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(http://i.imgur.com/gFt2wXo.jpg?1)
This one's for Christopher.
Eh hem! ::)
Haha I did see this one.
It looks like something lurks in the lower right.
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Yeah, he's just sunbathing.
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I mentioned in the Holidays thread about a shot of San Francisco suburbs taken from the top of Mt. Davidson Park. I finally found it last night. Also couldn't post about Mt.Davidson without a photo of the cross.
(http://i.imgur.com/6xOjxN4.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/jASooXW.jpg)
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O0 Thanks for those. I'm surprised the cross is as light as it is -- I thought it was brown.
KC's pictures make it look so much darker too, like the movie does:
http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/index.php?topic=3743.msg223492#msg223492
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The sun may have been on the cross in SK's picture. It was backlit in mine.
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Another shot from the restaurant in Florida.
(http://i.imgur.com/P17srtK.jpg?1)
I think I've got something that doesn't include a sunset on my hard-drive here too...
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Here's one from KC's corner of the world.
(http://i.imgur.com/CRasXsF.jpg?1)
This was a few years back... "Strawberry Fields" in Central Park. I met the man who decorates the Imagine mosaic. He said people often bring him things for his designs, and that day, he got a few bags of bagels, so that's what he used.
This one isn't too sharp... it's a scan of a print. I have no idea if I still have the digital image file floating around. Fortunately, it's one I printed.
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^ Funny, I just passed that monument this evening, shortly after dark. There were still people hanging around, and recently-deposited flowers (though no formal decoration like the above). I was wondering if Matt had ever been there "in person." Matt, I know you probably told us back in the day, but I've forgotten.
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This was my first time to Strawberry Fields (I had been to Central Park once when I was young), and it was after I left here. So, although you may have forgotten a lot of things (I know I have) that wasn't something you'd forgotten.
I got lucky -- I didn't realize how big Central Park was. I recognized the Dakota, and then wandered to the park, and found it. No wandering around for hours looking for it. It was really special for me.
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Somewhere in the countryside. My last trip in Gers, South of France.
(http://i.imgur.com/HJnCbrP.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/L7YWqdh.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/VOxKknZ.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/ejeN03P.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/YGWLXpq.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/HrzhLta.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/hwYj7Eh.jpg?1)
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This was my first time to Strawberry Fields (I had been to Central Park once when I was young), and it was after I left here. So, although you may have forgotten a lot of things (I know I have) that wasn't something you'd forgotten.
I got lucky -- I didn't realize how big Central Park was. I recognized the Dakota, and then wandered to the park, and found it. No wandering around for hours looking for it. It was really special for me.
I was there in May 2014 and it's a beautiful spot in the park. My wife and I just sat on a bench watching people go by and listening to a busker play Lennon songs. I wanted to take a photo from the street of the Dakota building but it was under going renovations and there was a lot of scaffolding around the bottom of the building so this was a much better photo taken from the park.
(http://i.imgur.com/Y95r6Qb.jpg)
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Love that picture, SK. 8)
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Somewhere in the countryside. My last trip in Gers, South of France.
Looks like a beautiful place! And nice to see you and your grandson in the last photos. :)
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Not quite the same, I know.
(http://i.imgur.com/vpG4fv3.jpg)
Taken from The High Line in NYC.
Cool, SK. Love the High Line. The weather wasn't as nice when I took mine... ;)
(http://i.imgur.com/xiehaAA.jpg?1)
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I like this thread and since there's no shortage of images for a while, I'll keep posting. I'm glad to see others jump in here. Keep them coming!
I lived in Florida for 15 years, and had never seen the state capital, Tallahassee, until last year when I took an alternate route from Nashville to the Naples area. I was surprised to not see a city at all, but instead, a beautiful National Forest visible from I-10, which runs straight across the panhandle. I parked and hiked along the highway, trying to find a subject. I got pictures of trees, but I was frustrated because I couldn't find any focal point that really stood out, and I needed to get back on the road. I finally found this little fence, and decided it would do. It was November (last year) and the leaves were turning their autumn colors. I like this picture quite a bit. I wish I had more time to have explored the Forest and gone inside and really spent a few hours there. Maybe next time.
(http://i.imgur.com/wLaPfm2.jpg?1)
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Like the Golden Gate Bridge, my favorite bridge linking Philadelphia to Jersey is also a suspension bridge, the Ben Franklin Bridge.
I snapped this while driving -- another through the windshield shot.
(http://i.imgur.com/3gXq4TK.jpg)
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Taken in May 2014. I can't remember if I took this from the top of The Rockerfella Center or The Empire State Building.
(http://i.imgur.com/eJV31KM.jpg)
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I think it must be the Empire State Building (34th Street). The Met Life Tower and the Flatiron Building (23rd Street) are in the immediate foreground. Rockefeller Center is almost a mile further uptown. I imagine you can see Empire State from it, too.
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I posted one photo I took yesterday in the Season's Greetings thread.
Here's a couple more, from Central Park yesterday afternoon:
(https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5724/23849498602_bb5739c643_c.jpg)
(https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5631/23931868686_f8283fb0e8_c.jpg)
The temperature had gotten up 72° F/22° C, smashing the old record for the day! It is still 64°F/17.8° C as I type.
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This is at Beach Haven, on LBI (Long Beach Island) New Jersey
(http://i.imgur.com/WPHtSsH.jpg?1)
(http://i.imgur.com/GvBzWiG.jpg?1)
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I always hear the Beatles song "Free As A Bird" when I look at this picture.
(http://i.imgur.com/M2xQiQG.jpg?1)
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You'd never guess (from the palm tree), but this is also from Beach Haven, NJ
(http://i.imgur.com/otkFuoJ.jpg?1)
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We had a full moon on Christmas Day this year for the first time since 1977 ... the next one won't be until 2034. Because it was dreary and drizzly all day, I thought we would miss it in New York City, but as luck would have it, it peeked out from the clouds just as I was coming home from a late movie at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. This shot shows part of the plaza at Lincoln Center with a sculpture by Henry Moore:
(https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5660/23908628592_9e307dc587_c.jpg)
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It's cool that you were able to get the moon just by hand-holding it. That's a great shot.
I knew this thread would inspire me to take more photos. I went out tonight and I got my best photos of Nashville yet. I took them from the Pedestrian Bridge, and this is a shot of the bridge.
(http://i.imgur.com/FBnHNKr.jpg?1)
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And out of about 180 photos taken, I think this is my best one. I still have to spend some more time looking through them, but I'm happy with the lights reflecting on the water, and the cloud were perfect tonight after heavy storms all afternoon.
(http://i.imgur.com/aIkqH3c.jpg?1)
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My favorite vertical shot from last night.
(http://i.imgur.com/AyVn6dc.jpg)
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Sorry for repeating myself... I learned a few new tricks on Photoshop tonight and I think I've got another new favorite Nashville pic. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/q8SJSAX.jpg)
Those "star filters" are incredibly difficult to do in Photoshop (very easy to do with an actual star filter if you have one). I never even wanted a star filter, but tonight I thought this picture just needed some extra pizzazz, and alas,the star filter was just right.
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(http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/31/cd2c01135ccf7da6844dd5fbce49cc08.jpg)
I'm no photographer but this is one of my favourites that I took, I think it was one week before Christmas. :)
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A little envious you had snow around Christmas, Satu. ;)
That is a great shot. Love the color of the sky in the background too.
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That was especially what I loved about this photo, too. Sometimes during the winter the light gets almost magical and mysterious.
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I love it too! Are those bird prints in the snow?
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No, they're my foot prints. And our dog's paw prints. The snow was fresh, wasn't even plowed yet.
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AB, it's been a while since you've posted a picture. How about it? :)
Here's another pic from the Pedestrian Bridge in Nashville. I put on my long zoom to look around, and there wasn't too much of interest except this church and its twin steeples, and with the sunset colors, it was pretty. (That large thing on the right is part of the Bridgestone Arena, where the Nashville Predators (hockey) play, and a lot of our bigger concerts are held there).
(http://i.imgur.com/mqMbZKR.jpg)
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I'm here! I'm here! ^-^
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160102/bbe1645a91d0794a54662d66d253a766.jpg)
This one I took last April in Manhattan Beach (south of L.A.)
I like how I got the wave BUT what bothers me about this shot is that I cropped the mast of the boat. I should have looked up just a little bit more. Oh well.
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That's beautiful! Thanks for posting it.
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I'm here! I'm here! ^-^
It's good to see you back. I sometimes post more pics here because I like to see you back on the board to check the thread. So stick around or I'm going to look like a thread hog (and NO ONE would ever think THAT of ME, right? ::))
I like that picture a lot. I usually struggle with how I want to shoot moving water, whether to freeze it like you did with a quick shutter speed, or a slow speed to show the motion of the water. But I LOVE what you did here. Wonderful shot! O0
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You're not a thread hog Matt! ;D
I just had to work during the holidays and that meant less time being on the board.
I work in social media so I'm on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and message boards 8-10 hrs a day, 5 days a week and so when I get home the only thing I usually feel like doing is read a book or watch TV :P
But I get an alert every time you guys post something in this thread so I see your photos. Even though I don't always respond ;)
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But I get an alert every time you guys post something in this thread so I see your photos. Even though I don't always respond ;)
Oh, what Matt might do with that information. ;D
Or what I might do with that information. >:D ;)
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Oh, what Matt might do with that information. ;D
I already knew that! I noticed AB would show up shortly after a post was made in this thread. WHY do you think I have about 50 posts in this thread? >:D
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But, eventually, even after 30 years of hobbyist photography, I'm going to run out of photos to post. (Then you'll get the crappy ones.)
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(http://i.imgur.com/s0Za5RB.jpg)
The thing I like about this photo I took, is the deep blue sky.
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It's beautiful! And you were closer to the Statue of Liberty than I've ever been. ;)
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The thing I like about this photo I took, is the deep blue sky.
That's a great photo! :)
It's beautiful! And you were closer to the Statue of Liberty than I've ever been. ;)
:o You should go.
I mentioned a trip to NYC with my grandmother when I was 14 earlier in this thread. Well, to expand on that story a bit... (and to realize how special this all was, you HAVE to consider that she lived in poverty, and was a widow for many years living alone on Social Security) she wanted to show me the city, and booked us two tickets on a sightseeing bus. The bus took us to the World Trade Center, and I looked across the water and saw Lady Liberty, and nearly dropped my camera. My grandmother always made fun of me for that for the rest of her life... always remarking on my looking like I was going to fall over when seeing that across the water. That was the closest we'd get to it on the bus. Then we went to the Empire State Building, and the bus let us off for 15 or 20 minutes to look around. I told my grandmother we had to go to the top! She said we didn't have time to go to the top. I said "But we REALLY NEED to go to the top." We were only at the very beginning of the bus tour, and she said 'Okay, forget the bus... we're going to the top." And we ditched the bus, and went to the top. And, as luck would have it, of ALL the many pictures I took that day, I only have this one and it's of her on the roof of the Empire State Building.
(http://i.imgur.com/pGic4L5.jpg?1)
She then hailed a cab and asked me what I wanted to see... we would have our own tour. So I said the Statue of Liberty, and she said "Can't get there by cab." And my response was, "How do we get there?" (Do you want to smack me yet? The amazing thing is... she didn't.)
So that's how we wound up on that Circle Line cruise, which let us off at Liberty Island. And, can you guess what I wanted to do? "We have to go to the top!" She said "I can't make it up those steps, but you can go!" And I didn't want to leave her. I'm really glad I didn't. We just stayed on the island, and I took pictures, which I don't have anymore. But, I've been back a bunch of times. I've NEVER gotten a shot as good as SK's. :)
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(http://i.imgur.com/Jj6cQ1X.jpg?1)
Breaking the rules by shooting directly into the sun. The resulting "watercolor painting" look was a natural result.
It's a rusted old boat ramp on the Delaware Bay (New Jersey)
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AB, what's going on in this picture? It's not photoshopped or edited.
(http://i.imgur.com/ybRmU61.jpg)
And now that I've got your attention.... ehem... you have PMs to answer! :P
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Easy. Skyline / city reflected on a glass ball?
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Exactly! It's Cloud Gate (the Mirror Bean) in Chicago's Millennium Park. Here it is, zoomed out a bit:
(http://i.imgur.com/WXmnNlK.jpg)
And here's a better image of it from Chicago's travel website:
(http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/dca/Millennium%20Park/cloudgate800.jpg)
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Those are some really cool pictures Matt. Thanks for sharing!
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This is Radnor Lake State Park in Nashville, TN.
(http://i.imgur.com/o3BSo60.jpg)
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I uploaded a couple dozen of the photos I took in the blizzard today to Flickr. I'm sure there used to be a way you could link to a slideshow there, but I can't seem to find it, so I'll post the link to the album. To see the pics as a slideshow, click on the little "screen" icon above the title frame of the album.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/sets/72157661544486053/with/24487144791/
The first few were taken from my window, then a couple from my building's entrance. Most of them were from safely inside the Time Warner Center. I cropped most of them a bit, but didn't do much enhancing otherwise. A couple I tried it on looked too bright. This was a white-out day.
Here's one, just to have an actual picture in this post:
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1522/23941283694_0e3d876c14_c.jpg)
I was going to crop out the arm holding the phone/camera at left and the guy striding out of frame at right, but I decided I actually liked it better this way. What do you think, fellow photographers?
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Nice winter picture KC!
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Nice picture! I agree not to crop out the people on the sides. The people that are in the blizzard are the most interesting focal points of these pictures.
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Did you check out the other pics on Flickr, Matt? I'll post a couple more here if there is popular demand. ;)
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Yes, I did. Post them all! :)
I can't believe how many people were out there in that weather.
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I posted a picture of my backyard and antique rustic bench in the weather thread, but I got a better angle today, and the snow finally stopped. So this is the most we got:
(http://i.imgur.com/gmOekG6.jpg)
I didn't leave my property since the snow started to fall. KC is much more bad ass than me. The only focal point I've got is the bench. ;D
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Yes, I did. Post them all! :)
All 26???!!! :o
I can't believe how many people were out there in that weather.
I didn't leave my property since the snow started to fall. KC is much more bad ass than me. The only focal point I've got is the bench. ;D
We're New Yorkers. We don't let anything stop us.
I'll post a few at a time ...
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1609/23941294594_efb746fb5b_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/CtBoMh) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1480/24487153291_3c3cf9f03d_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/DiR4y8) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1503/23942644883_084504be08_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/CtJjb8) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1658/23941282324_17cac92e31_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/CtBk8J) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
Those four were all taken from my window about noon today. I went out a little while after that.
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All 26???!!! :o
You can if you want, but I guess that is a lot! :-\
Last photo -- is that guy running, or does it just look that way?
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A beautiful sunrise over the pacific last week.
(http://i.imgur.com/XMIzW4y.jpg?1)
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You can if you want, but I guess that is a lot! :-\
Last photo -- is that guy running, or does it just look that way?
He was running. I bet if I had managed to get into Central Park I would have seen some actual runners out there (fortunately, I always take Saturdays off myself). I also saw a few people on bicycles!
SK, that photo is gorgeous! You can almost feel the texture of the water and the sand. 8)
A beautiful sunrise over the pacific last week.
(http://i.imgur.com/XMIzW4y.jpg?1)
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Yeah, the sand looks more dense than the beaches that I've been too. Nice shot.
He was running. I bet if I had managed to get into Central Park I would have seen some actual runners out there (fortunately, I always take Saturdays off myself).
::) Why do I think you'll be running today? Maybe you should get some cross-country skis, or cleats. You just be careful.
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::) Why do I think you'll be running today? Maybe you should get some cross-country skis, or cleats. You just be careful.
The park was beautiful! The main drive was clear. It may have been a mistake to do the reservoir track, but there were plenty of others out on that bumpy lumpy compacted snow, too. Full sunshine most of the day. I did my usual Sunday jaunt, the six-mile main drive, plus instead of two reservoir laps, a single one and another 1 1/2 miles on the main drive, plus to and from home to total just about ten miles. And the only problem was crossing the streets to get into the park, and out again ... major swampy squishy wet slush, which is OK to navigate in serious boots but not running shoes.
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Hardcore.
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^ Sorry about the OT stuff! :D
Back to topic ... I had "Flickr Mail" today to tell me that I had been invited to add three of my blizzard photos to the group "Snow in the City" ... the first of the four in my last post on the previous page, and these two others:
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1695/23942635253_1775ec87a9_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/CtJgj6) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1714/24543273586_0ee59d2a99_c.jpg)
Blizzard, New York City, January 23, 2016 (https://flic.kr/p/DoNGaq) by K CoblentzNYC (https://www.flickr.com/photos/58839560@N07/), on Flickr
I'm not terribly active on Flickr, and I know nothing of Flickr groups, but of course I was pleased to have three of my photos selected. And of course I added them to the group: https://www.flickr.com/groups/1585872@N23/pool/
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I'm not terribly active on Flickr, and I know nothing of Flickr groups, but of course I was pleased to have three of my photos selected. And of course I added them to the group: https://www.flickr.com/groups/1585872@N23/pool/
That's very cool. I saw yours in the group. I thought it was all NYC, but then I saw this one, and knew it immediately.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/97210399@N05/24474423362/in/pool-1585872@N23/
Anyway, congrats on being included in the group's album. :)
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Here's one of mine, from 2013, going 'round in Tumblr... which reminds me I haven't taken a photo in months :o
(http://36.media.tumblr.com/0fcac248281520d8d13ebed8e9172d37/tumblr_mxnibdHOL81rkpyz1o1_1280.jpg)
Greenwich, London
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Wow, I love that, Xichado!
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Beautiful! Are you in London now?
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Beautiful! Are you in London now?
Yes. I have been in London for awhile now. Finished my BSc Film & TV Production course last June and doing a few bits and bobs in tv (and also as a tv and film extra :) )
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Here's another one, this one from October 2015.
My father's hands, he's slicing a chestnut (one from our crops in Portugal).
(http://41.media.tumblr.com/7506a504c497750b9209b8f271ebddc0/tumblr_nzensaX0Zh1rkpyz1o1_1280.jpg)
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(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c94/Nikovich_/Emoticons/BowNotWorthy-1.gif)
Xichado, this is absolutely amazing. Have you ever done an exhibit?
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(http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c94/Nikovich_/Emoticons/BowNotWorthy-1.gif)
Xichado, this is absolutely amazing.
Agreed! Love the bokeh in that second one. (I just learned that word.) (http://link.bandh.com/u.d?I4GjSyOyRSyos-9uQx1bY=4541)
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:) Thank you, guys.
Matt, I never thought about an exhibit, I always feel I am under-qualified... and I see amazing photographers with amazing photos and techniques WAY BETTER than mine. I am just trying to capture a (simple) moment and I don't have much of a technique or photographic know-how.
You can see more of my "moments" here (http://jrtorga.tumblr.com/tagged/J.-R.-Torga), that is my only exhibit ;)
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:) Thank you, guys.
Matt, I never thought about an exhibit, I always feel I am under-qualified... and I see amazing photographers with amazing photos and techniques WAY BETTER than mine. I am just trying to capture a (simple) moment and I don't have much of a technique or photographic know-how.
You can see more of my "moments" here (http://jrtorga.tumblr.com/tagged/J.-R.-Torga), that is my only exhibit ;)
Your gallery is beautiful. Please continue to post the images here in this thread for all of our members to enjoy them. As for not doing an exhibit, if you ever felt like doing one, you should. You're as good as anyone else. You may not know the techniques, but that's like saying Jimi Hendrix wasn't a great musician because he couldn't read music. Sometimes, it's just natural. Do it if you have the interest -- you're good enough.
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(http://i.imgur.com/iHrCPL6.jpg)
Another bridge in Nashville spanning the Cumberland River.
And Happy Birthday to American Beauty! There's a birthday thread for you elsewhere in the OT forum. Check it out!
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(http://i.imgur.com/XWRFukg.jpg)
NYC with the Metlife building, which was formally the Pan Am building featured at the end of Coogan's Bluff.
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Sorry, but I think that's the wrong MetLife building! That one is on Sixth Avenue, across from Bryant Park. The one that used to be the Pan Am Building is a couple of blocks east of Bryant Park.
Did you take that shot from the Empire State Building? Here's another shot from that vantage point that I found on Flickr. On the left is the green building with the MetLife sign ... on the right the "real" MetLife Building.
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8265/8712394115_ec1b6ca1a7_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/egTieD)
New York (North facing view of the Bank of America Tower,Rockefeller Center,Citigroup Center,MetLife Building & Central Park,from the Empire State Building) (https://flic.kr/p/egTieD) by Netty 78 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/90256396@N04/), on Flickr
Here's a story on the "other" MetLife building:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-08-28/blackstone-said-to-plan-nyc-sale-for-more-than-2-billion
PS, I like SK's photo a lot better than the one from Flickr. Those colors are way too gaudy!
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Two Metlife buildings!!
What a shame. The only shot I have of the real one is half of the building on the right. :(
(http://i.imgur.com/0Tf4N1s.jpg)
Taken from the top of the Empire State Building. 8)
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There you go! The Pan Am Building (most New Yorkers still think of it as the Pan Am Building) is on the far right. 8)
A much better shot than Netty 78's!
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I decided it would be a great day to do some photography. The white flowers only last a week or two before they fall off and become leaves. So here's a few more.
This first is a gorgeous farm across the street from my neighborhood:
(http://i.imgur.com/AOGvufZ.jpg)
This one is along the side of the road leading up to my street.
(http://i.imgur.com/3K0ukd9.jpg)
Then I did a little driving around.... more coming. :)
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And here's some Spring colors from Middle Tennessee:
(http://i.imgur.com/QakcYan.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/I6Bdld1.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/dvw3xnG.jpg)
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Great photos.
I love the pink and yellow colours in the last two. 8)
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Great photos.
I love the pink and yellow colours in the last two. 8)
Thanks! :) It's always a good day when I get out with the camera.
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Here are some pics I have taken over the past few years or so...
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=22667)
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=16177&stc=1&d=1404910821)
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=13876&stc=1&d=1398284984)
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=13877&stc=1&d=1398285046)
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=13879&stc=1&d=1398285135)
(http://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=13878&stc=1&d=1398285087)
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It's not at all surprising you'd take gorgeous pics with your eye for cinematography. I love that first one. Taken while driving? Stunning. I also especially like the last one you posted.
Great to see you add to the thread. Keep them coming. :)
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Matt took the words right out of my mouth! The third one, the lone tree with the sun shining through it, is another standout.
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It's gone a little quiet in this thread for over a month. Hopefully I'll get some nice sunrise shots in a couple of weeks. Taking a week off up the coast. Not camping this time. Nice cabin with a bed and a shower I don't have to walk 100 meters to.
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And no crocodiles! ;)
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(http://i.imgur.com/gHKjsqx.jpg)
A misty sunrise in Tennessee.
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That was taken out of the car window with my phone. I'm temporarily without my good camera -- I dropped my sim card down a slot of my computer tower and either have to tear it apart to retrieve it, or buy another.
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Here's a few more phone photos from an awesome airshow at McGuire Air Force base this past weekend.
(http://i.imgur.com/8ZblJXr.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/zb5u5sq.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/2Em57W0.jpg)
(Yes, he's upside down in that last photo.)
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St Giles in the Fields..
(https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/13254379_10208516395804056_8235113743197016853_n.jpg?oh=4db1c03e1be833c0ef449684194ee480&oe=57E5C638)
I snapped this beautiful church on my i-phone last night..
St Giles is in the heart of Londons West End..
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Love the gothic feel of that shot, Gant.
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Wonderful, Gant, looks like a painting!
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Thanks... I use my phone a lot, get some quite
Strange results sometimes...
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Great shot Gant. Looks like something outta those horror films of the 50's and 60's.
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A few pics from our week away.
Walking along the beach and I spot this pattern in the sand. Reminded me of Jurassic Park. :o
(http://i.imgur.com/vhIB5Kf.jpg)
A little after sunrise on a cloudy day.
(http://i.imgur.com/OaF2Q3t.png)
Sunrise on a clear day.
(http://i.imgur.com/bXZ2Vxy.png)
I couldn't seem to get a good shot of the moonrise. Always very grainy.
(http://i.imgur.com/0WCjyqa.png)
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Nice, SK!
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Thanks KC. :)
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I couldn't seem to get a good shot of the moonrise. Always very grainy.
(http://i.imgur.com/0WCjyqa.png)
I like the shot, but I think the grain is a bit much too, so I hope you don't mind, but I decided to see what Photoshop could do to reduce the grain. Do you like it?
(http://i.imgur.com/az30FlC.jpg)
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I like it best framed vertical:
(http://i.imgur.com/tk5eQMr.jpg)
And here it is with a little extra work to brighten it up slightly:
(http://i.imgur.com/RTrxQLG.jpg)
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And here it is with a little extra work to brighten it up slightly:
(http://i.imgur.com/RTrxQLG.jpg)
Much better. Great job. (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/Smileys/default/afro.gif)
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That's your photo! You had the eye and knew what you wanted, so you took it. So, don't feel it's manipulated or not yours now. If you want a full size edit, email me the full size image. This is fine for digital, but if you wanted to print, it won't work well.
As I've written before, this is how I like to use Photoshop -- to make the images look as good as they do when we take them, not really to alter them. When our photography or equipment lets us down, we can go in and make them right.
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Also, for any photoshop users who want to know how that was done:
I tried a few things... removing the grain by using the "Filter" -> Noise -> Reduce Noise, then playing around with the strength settings. This is what I needed to remove grain, but it acts as a blur filter. So the waves lost their crispness. Then I realized I'd need to select JUST the sky, because the grain wasn't noticeable on the water. With only the sky (and moon) selected, I did this again, and the grain was gone.
The sky was a little flat. I added a layer on top of this one, and selected "Filter" -> Render -> Clouds. This adds a 100% pattern on top of the images of a full clouded sky. I needed to adjust the opacity so it would just give the slightest look of some clouds in the sky, which wound up being only 1% to 3% (I forget now which), but just so slight. The cloud layer sitting on top of the full image meant I had to erase the clouds from the water. I used the eraser tool (a large one), and swiped right across the water section. The horizon was noticeable, so a very tiny blur brush was used to just softly trace the horizon to remove any noticeable line.
At this point, I like to merge the layers (I usually save an unmerged version) and then use the contrast and brightness (or curves) menus to play around until I'm satisfied with the contrast and brightness. No color filters were used on this one.
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A little stream in NJ:
(http://i.imgur.com/AzCofZQ.jpg)
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Sunset at Union Station, Nashville.
(http://i.imgur.com/aq4wzNJ.jpg)
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This roo is thinking "Eff off, I'm trying to sleep."
(http://i.imgur.com/ldHivpw.jpg)
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A Tennessee kangaroo? :o
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We have 18 Red Kangaroos in an open area at our zoo where the humans have to stay on a path, but the kangaroos are free to hop all around the area. This one decided to take a nap close to the path. Here's the same roo in color before lifting her head to shoot me her best Clint Eastwood glare. It was striking how much they seemed like dogs -- the way they sat, slept, and even liked human interaction.
(http://i.imgur.com/D7gkLny.jpg)
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For KC, the only person who I've ever known who thought these were cute.... even when they're not wrapped up in blankets. ;)
(http://i.imgur.com/Bc88T1s.jpg)
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Awwwwwwwwwwwwww!!! ;D
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Couple of photos from our wedding weekend. 😊 Americanbeauty came all the way from Paris and she gave me permission to put a photo of us here. Not taken by me obviously, but I thought these would be okay for this thread.
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160706/351959912bfd91f81b5aaa212390f87e.jpg)
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160706/b1a94db3196d9dffb209f3cf61272fc7.jpg)(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160706/eedd64137c93ff1f59a0a75135a719bd.jpg)
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These are great photos! Satu, you look gorgeous. And your photographer did a super job - love the way the colors were added into these b/w photos. Or, I guess with digital they do it the other way, and remove the color from everywhere else. In any case, the effect is very pretty.
Is the one with AB your wedding gown? Did someone stay with you all weekend to change your hair/makeup/wardrobe? ;D
AB, it's nice to see you here. :)
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Lovely photos, Satu and AB! Satu, I wish you much happiness in your married life! :)
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Great photos Satu.
Congrats and all the best. 8)
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The pink dress was the dress for the official part in the city hall, and for the evening dinner. The party was on Saturday, the purple/white dress is my official wedding dress. Lilac flapper dress was in case the weather got warm.
My friend did my hair on both days, and I did my makeup. :)
I love these photos too, colorless with a hint of color here and there. Just how I wanted it. The photographer was really good understanding my vision. 8)
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Very lovely pictures!
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We have 18 Red Kangaroos in an open area at our zoo where the humans have to stay on a path, but the kangaroos are free to hop all around the area. This one decided to take a nap close to the path. Here's the same roo in color before lifting her head to shoot me her best Clint Eastwood glare. It was striking how much they seemed like dogs -- the way they sat, slept, and even liked human interaction.
(http://i.imgur.com/D7gkLny.jpg)
I was at the Columbus zoo yesterday and they have the same sort of set-up for the kangaroos. There was one lying off to itself like that, but I didn't get a picture.
And great photos, Satu!
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(http://i.imgur.com/heS8mFb.jpg)
I took this shot last weekend in Newcastle. Perfect timing as the ship was leaving at sunset.
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(http://i.imgur.com/STOY59o.jpg)
Through the window shot while driving -- and unfortunately there's motion blur, but I still like it.
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I like the blur!
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Thanks. :)
This creek was impossible to get a photo of that was better than this, I went down a steep embankment to get down to shoot it, and then there was a cliff -- so I couldn't get closer, and I really couldn't go side to side much. It's not even all that impressive, but I like creek-in-the-woods images a lot, so I had to get one.
(http://i.imgur.com/8WaBmKw.jpg)
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Over the Delaware Bay in NJ.
(http://i.imgur.com/Wm6yJaW.jpg)
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My city Teresina turns 164 years old today. I have been in many wonderful places around the world but this is the one I belong and where I want to be as long as I live.
(http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh205/raissa_2008/potycabana_zpsbiwqpssz.jpg)
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That's a lovely picture! :)
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(http://i.imgur.com/UeDD6Zf.jpg)
Good mornin', America... how are ya?
(It's actually a sunset, but that song was going through my head when I saw this out the window.)
This is just above Nashville, TN.
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Here's a fun before/after. This was another through-the-window-while-driving shot while driving through the Pocanos. I wanted one good shot, but driving between two engagements with no time to spare to stop and take a photo. I didn't bring my good camera this trip, so this is a cell phone photo, and the quality was horrible -- the colors were bad, and it wasn't too sharp either. So I decided to play in Photoshop, and I got something I like out of it. Nothing I'd hang up and frame, but there's a lot of Photoshopping on this one to make it at least desirable.
(http://i.imgur.com/RsPVwse.jpg)
Before
(http://i.imgur.com/TpYil1Z.jpg)
After
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Here is just one of the pictures I took with my new phone during my weekend in the country last week. It was taken in my friend's garden:
(http://i.imgur.com/l2KcBm6.jpg)
I'd like to post more, but they mostly need cropping and/or some other touchups. When I get time!
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Tonight's Supermoon.
(http://i.imgur.com/S61djqa.jpg)
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^ Great shot! What did you use to get it?
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I used a 40-150mm zoom on a tripod, with camera on manual setting and bracketed just about every aperture/shutter speed combo. I took about 60 photos, and got about 5 with depth and shadows. Didn't have to play with this at all in Photoshop (just cropped it). But, I waited too long in the night, the moon was very high in the sky. Tomorrow should be just as good for getting the shot, and hopefully I'll remember to shoot earlier in the night when it's lower and maybe get to see some craters.
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Tonight's Supermoon.
(http://i.imgur.com/S61djqa.jpg)
Cool. Looks like cloud is going to ruin any chance for me to see it tonight.
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Without a tripod or a high-powered zoom, and with all of the light pollution in the city, all I could hope to do was show the moon with respect to a known landmark ... in this case the twin towers of the Time Warner Center, as seen from my building's courtyard garden:
(http://i.imgur.com/pDRFz9o.jpg)
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That's a cool shot -- you can see how bright it is. It's like a spotlight.
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I was in Austria this weekend so got a snap of the Danube on my i phone as it flowed past my hotel..
(https://scontent-amt2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/15095472_10210111152311972_418639501356652755_n.jpg?oh=7a0566f6d83dd41cf2d0e471c8e10237&oe=58C42BF0)
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What a moon tonight! I shot it when it was low in the sky this time.
(http://i.imgur.com/gOZGKSO.jpg)
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Spectacular, Matt! 8)
High clouds here tonight. The best I could do was go for the "atmospheric" ...
(http://i.imgur.com/yCAacYu.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/5EGAaO4.jpg)
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Great shots Matt and KC.
Driving to work just after 4am and the clouds parted for a couple minutes, so I pulled over and took this shot with my phone
(http://i.imgur.com/PsOMxr9.jpg)
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Very cool. O0
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"Do I know you, Friend?"
Welcome to the CEWB. Keep posting. O0
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Welcome to the board Squint Eastwood. (nice username too)
Great pic. Where was it taken?
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Hey Squint, what happened to the post where you showed us where that great pic was taken. With my memory I can't remember where it was. Please come by and post some more great pics. 8)
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No matter what trip I plan, there is never enough time to just do photography. Always places to go, people to see, things to do. But, I did manage to steal a few moments.
I'll post more later. This was this past weekend -- very beautiful spot in Boston.
(http://i.imgur.com/I6eH7Mn.jpg)
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(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20161207/72bcbf27f841a1b3608128d8eb82c933.jpg)
I was at my sisters' place in New Hampshire last weekend. I noticed this stream from her window and decided to take some photos. This is just one of them. Not a great image, but not the worst. It was a little cold out and on my way to run an errand so I wasn't going to hang around long enough for the sun to get into a better position.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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That's a great photo! O0
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That's a great photo! O0
Thanks, man!
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Just took this one today. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/NIFOuw7.jpg?1)
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I hope you walked across the bridge to take that photo? 8)
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I walked halfway across the bridge. But, I drove up Hawk's Hill (on the Marin County side) to get that shot. I did a little off-trail hiking to be able to get the angles I wanted. Speaking of off-trail -- that Mt. Davidson Park Cross was the biggest pain to photograph so far this trip. I tried to take the shorter hike, but it was just as long, and steep -- and had a few felled trees blocking the path. And then, the last 50 meters or so were these awesome stairs, ad you can see the cross -- and I literally felt I was on the Stairway to Heaven. And then, standing on top, it was really impressive. Definitely worth the hike. Of course, I took photos -- just don't have time or energy to go through them all yet. I'll post one later. :)
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I just finished going through my San Francisco photos. I have quite a few that I'm really happy with. This was the first trip I've taken in about ten years which was centered around photography. Here's my favorite pics from San Francisco. I was there just for a 23 hour layover, and spent most of it shooting the Golden Gate Bridge. It was my favorite spot of my vacation.
(http://i.imgur.com/Zamw4Gy.jpg)
This was from Baker's Beach, just before a rain storm. I love the clouds and the extra dimension they give the photo. It also keeps the light diffused and the colors warm, and alleviates the harsh shadows that would have been there with a bright sunny day.
(http://i.imgur.com/Lzt29pH.jpg)
I snapped this while walking along the GGB. I didn't even think it would be one of my favorite photos until later, when going through all of them. I've always only been interested in architectural and landscape photography, but I also try to keep an eye out for those small things that (literally, in this case) say a lot.
(http://i.imgur.com/pEHLYeO.jpg)
On the Marin County side, I had this spot picked out ahead of time as one of the places I wanted to shoot the bridge from. It was a little street with a fishing pier near a children's discovery museum. I got out of my car and took about 10 shots before the sky opened up with rain. I got back in my car and was about to head out, when I decided to take the road as far as it would go, which wound up being into a private industrial business entrance. I rolled down the window and took a few more. This actually winds up being MAYBE my favorite shot of them all. I didn't make the photo Black & White.... it's actually still a color photo. It was just that void of color in reality. I got lucky with the weather, because I wouldn't have wanted rain on my one day to photograph the bridge, and yet... it added the exact feel that I wanted to convey: Mystery, wonder, and danger, along with incredible beauty.
(http://i.imgur.com/5ds3Rvl.jpg)
From there, I left to drive up Hawk's Hill, and about 3/4 of the way up, is a scenic lookout. It was still raining, so I waited in the car for it to let-up, and once it did, God handed me a once-in-a-lifetime gift. The perfect rainbow, with the perfect backdrop -- just touching Alcatraz.
(http://i.imgur.com/f1f3toY.jpg)
From that point on, there was no more rain -- and I went to the top of Hawk's Hill to get shots of the sunset.
(http://i.imgur.com/DHGGYoy.jpg)
Then, finally time for a break, so I headed off to Chinatown for dinner. And of COURSE there was a perfect full moon that night.
I drove around a bit more, did the curved drive of Lombard Street, and went by Haight-Ashbury where there's now a Ben & Jerry's (and a lot of homeless people), and finally wound up at Coit Tower, where I was treated to this view of the city from the base of the tower:
(http://i.imgur.com/IEMLg2f.jpg)
I should also mention that I started off my trip with a trek up Mt. Davidson Park to see the Cross, but there have been plenty of photos posted of that before, so I'm leaving that visit out of this pictorial.
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Great photos Matt. Love the Chinatown with a full moon one. 8)
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Those are all great, Matt! I agree, the lock with "Ich liebe dich" is special in a different way. Are there a lot of locks? I know in some places there have been so many that they've had to remove them.
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Great photos Matt. Love the Chinatown with a full moon one. 8)
I really can't believe how lucky I got with that one day of weather. The full moon was there the night before when I was at the Santa Monica Pier also. I haven't even looked through those photos yet.
Those are all great, Matt! I agree, the lock with "Ich liebe dich" is special in a different way. Are there a lot of locks? I know in some places there have been so many that they've had to remove them.
No, there was only a small smattering of locks here and there.
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Those are some fantastic shots, Matt! Nicely done.
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Thanks! :)
Before flying to San Francisco, I did a couple of days in LA. This isn't a town I'd necessarily want to visit or photograph, but I had an old friend that I was meeting up with there. The only thing I really cared to do was see the Hollywood sign. I navigated my rental car to the Griffith Park Observatory, and drove up... and up... the hills. I didn't see one glimpse of the sign the entire time. I get to the very top and park, turn around, and BAMM -- there it was! I love seeing iconic things in person that I've always only seen on film. I enjoyed this part of the LA trip more than any other.
(http://i.imgur.com/NIfV17q.jpg)
This one below has been heavily manipulated in Photoshop. I wanted to get a photo of the LA Skyline, and this seemed as good a place as any to get it. But, the smog hovered over the city like a white filter. It's not worth posting photos of the skyline with the smog. I tried to "cut through" the smog in Photoshop, and it sorta worked, but it gives it this really cool 1960's scanned photograph look. I would have preferred a good clear shot of the skyline, but I'll have to be happy with this.
(http://i.imgur.com/cU9Scyc.jpg)
I then walked around Hollywood, saw some characters on Hollywood Blvd., and walked the walk of fame. I guess Clint still doesn't have a star? I didn't see it. I did find this:
(http://i.imgur.com/ZL111yW.jpg)
Also, saw Trump's star, and David Bowie's (which has become a makeshift memorial), and Bruce Lee's (which was one of the most popular for photographs. I thought a fight would break out when someone stepped on his star in front of a die-hard fan). But, none of this was great photography. So, with hours of daylight left, I headed off to the Santa Monica Pier.
The pier wasn't that special to me, because I grew up going to the Ocean City and Atlantic City boardwalks quite regularly, and it was really similar. But, decided to stick around for sunset and see what I could find to photograph. My favorite photos are probably these two, shooting into the setting sun which had created a golden hue over the water and sand.
(http://i.imgur.com/jGp9fy8.jpg)
I like this one because I imagine the bird is contemplating his life choices:
(http://i.imgur.com/UKaE3NF.jpg)
Then the sun set...
(http://i.imgur.com/PN9d66Z.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/sUbmFTs.jpg)
And that was it for LA!
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I really like the one with the boat and the other with the bird! O0 And it really does appear to be thoughtful. :D
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Stunning photos of San Francisco and LA, Matt. :)
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More great work, Matt! 8)
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I love a sunset photo. The colours, the beauty. Just stunning. 8)
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Yeah, me too. I can't remember who it was, but someone looked at my beach photos once and said, "Yeah, it's nice. But, I can't really get excited about it because I've been to Hawaii." Well, now I get it. After going to Hawaii, even I don't really like any of the beach photos I took from California. I'll get to posting some of those photos eventually. Still going through my California photos.
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I visited a friend in San Diego, and we went to the zoo. Of course, it's known as the best zoo in the country, so I was looking forward to it. Now, I wouldn't tell her this (and I'm safe saying it here), but ... it was a letdown.
They take a lot of pride in their zoo, so I wasn't going to say the Nashville Zoo (who no one has really ever heard of) is better. But... to me, it is. What the San Diego zoo has going for it, though, are rare animals. I feel like I'd seen a Giant Panda when I was a child at the Philadelphia Zoo (maybe they were on tour), but hadn't since. And, even though their two pandas were both sleeping, it was still cool to see them. I believe they're the only zoo in the U.S. that has the giant panda. So, that was special. And, they had four penguins. Not a lot... I've seen a lot more in Tampa at their small but beautiful Lowry Park Zoo. But, it's been a while, so I was happy to meet McKinney (a photo will be coming). Nashville doesn't have any bears, so seeing this huge grizzly (who woke up and stretched, showing me his huge paws) was kinda cool. And, we don't have hippos or koalas either. But, most of the rest, we did have. And we had in abundance. But what really bothered me, since I'm usually interested in photographing the animals more than just looking at them, is that nearly every exhibit had animals either behind glass, or behind a fence. These things are extremely rare at the Nashville zoo. Both glass enclosures and fence enclosures make quality photography very difficult. Plus, it's sad to think that these animals are in a cage all their lives. In Nashville, they built the habitats so that each was impossible to cross and leave, with some type of moats, or other natural things. If there are fences, which I believe the Elephants are in, they are in HUGE (yuuuuuge) areas, so the elephants can actually run and play, and not even feel that they're in a cage of any type.
So San Diego zoo, which I was expecting to be the best zoo experience ever, was just not. I'm going to have to get back to the Nashville Zoo soon and visit again -- now I have a new appreciation for it.
Anyway, here's all I got that's worth looking at, after spending the entire day at the zoo:
(http://i.imgur.com/CTqtV2g.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/HvSaIPp.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/VaV5S25.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/RxFzR7k.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/iKgAXZJ.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ZwKdyuo.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/yKOxCB8.jpg)
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^ That last one ...
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!
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I'm still going through my pics from my vacation -- this portion of the thread has become a bit of a travelogue, but I think that's useful for photography -- to share all the best places that you've photographed while on vacation. I also hope I don't completely thread-hog this topic. Please -- others jump in anytime. :)
The day after the zoo, while still in San Diego, my friend picked the perfect beach for photography -- The Children's Pool Beach at La Jolla. The beach has an interesting story. A local philanthropist (Ellen Browning Scripps) built a huge sea wall to break the waves to give families a relaxing beach where children could play without fear of the crashing waves. What they didn't expect, was that they created the perfect habitat for seals, who also enjoy lounging on the beach without the huge waves. The seals eventually took over the beach! On those days when the beach is still open to the public, it might not be the cleanest environment with a hundred or so seals lounging about, but then again, what an amazing experience it would be to share the beach with them! I visited during mating season, so the beach was closed to the public, but the seals were able to have the beach to themselves, and they sunned on the nearby rocks, or just flopped down on the sand -- all together, probably between 80 - 100 seals were there that day.
The first pic doesn't look photographically spectacular, but it should at least give an idea of the area, and the huge sea wall, which is now a perfect viewing point from which to enjoy the seals.
(http://i.imgur.com/BM9LvlP.jpg)
These seals were so comfortable on those rocks, one picture wasn't enough of them (I took dozens) I love the way the brown seal stretches out his little legs (and surprise to me, they are legs, not one big split tail) like he's on a recliner:
(http://i.imgur.com/tXK2wxu.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/TZgDur5.jpg)
These seals were hysterical. They sat on the edge of the rocks, and waited for the waves to crash, then they'd do that pose (gymnasts would have a name for it), enjoying the water as it splashed on them. They didn't hold that pose, they would relax between waves.
(http://i.imgur.com/c8Iq3TL.jpg)
And here's a closeup of one of them posing with the wave.
(http://i.imgur.com/oX2rmxo.jpg)
And let me tell you, he had the whole wall captivated and laughing at him.
We then took a break, since it was about 2 hours until sunset, and you know I can't miss a sunset over the beach opportunity. So, we found a nearby restaurant (The Living Room) and had a wonderful late lunch/dinner, at the only table with a beach view.
Then, it was back to the beach for photos.
(http://i.imgur.com/IhhHaRy.jpg)
Unfortunately, this beautifully relaxed sunset photo wasn't exactly reality -- my friend was complaining we wouldn't be able to climb back up the rocks to get off the beach if we didn't leave NOW because high tide was approaching. Fortunately, she got an important phone call, and went back up and I was able to stick around and get some cool shots.
(http://i.imgur.com/CQCgPb0.jpg)
Back up the rocks, probably 30 minutes past sunset, it was the reddest sky I'd ever seen.
(http://i.imgur.com/34oJHVi.jpg)
So, if you're ever in San Diego, this is a must-see spot.
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More great pics Matt. (http://www.clinteastwood.org/forums/Smileys/default/afro.gif)
Red sky at night, sailors delight!! :D
Can't wait for the Hawaii pics. 8)
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Can't wait for the Hawaii pics. 8)
Yes, they'll be next! First, I'll finish up California. This is the last spot for San Diego -- Balboa Park. It's a public park with gardens, museums, live music, shops, and restaurants.
(http://i.imgur.com/S4VPnHB.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/zgy3wFw.jpg)
This shrub had a spiderweb that had caught the sprinkler water, and it looked like beads of glass
(http://i.imgur.com/SPL4oPd.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/UIYz3qT.jpg)
I noticed a few things about this park that I haven't seen much of in Nashville -- lots of energy. Lots of people running, jogging, skateboarding, and even a lot of romance. Lots of couples in love, and this young lady was hastening off to her wedding (or her wedding photos). I didn't see her face, but liked the photo op anyway.
(http://i.imgur.com/RBRbYe9.jpg)
This sculpture is at the entrance of the Mingei International Museum:
(http://i.imgur.com/4gowpO2.jpg)
And, one shot of the beautiful ornate architecture that was everywhere (and man, what a blue sky!):
(http://i.imgur.com/03iRZG9.jpg)
And that's it for my California trip. 8)
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I just found this pic online -- the photographer had used the panorama function to show the entire beach wall that creates the Children's Pool, so you can see that the seals aren't in captivity, they come and go as they please. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/tnsm33c.jpg)
LINK (https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g32578-d255307-Reviews-La_Jolla_Cove-La_Jolla_San_Diego_California.html#photos;geo=32578&detail=255307&ff=238911182&albumViewMode=hero&albumid=101&baseMediaId=238911182&thumbnailMinWidth=50&cnt=30&offset=-1&filter=2)
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I found one more group of photos I'd taken while in California, and there's a couple of good ones there, so I'll post those too before getting to the Hawaii pics.
This is from Toes Beach right outside LA.
(http://i.imgur.com/iv1UCkv.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/utilUbJ.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/bVfCsiR.jpg)
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That last one I could see in a massive frame in someone's living room. 8)
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Funny you should say that. When all is said and done, I'll be picking one photo to do just that. At this point, I might like the one above it though better.
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You are a talented photographer, Matt. I grew up in California and was raised in La Jolla. Your photos make me homesick. I haven't been back to San Diego in more than a year.
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Matt, your photos are just spectacular. Being married to a highly skilled amateur photographer, I appreciated your comments about the sunset photo shoot. That sky leaves me without words! I'm not the most patient person in the world when bored, so try to find some way of keeping occupied when hubby decides to take pictures. Before kids came along, I used the camera that my father-in-law gave me (he who had his son trained by a famous photographer in Taiwan) to take pictures of the photographer. I'll have to dig some out and scan them as they are pre-digital by a couple of years. It does lend an element of fun to the waiting. I even learned to take pictures when we weren't out together.
I'm looking forward to more of your artistry in photos. :)
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Nothing great, just a couple of I pics I took while out on my walk this morning. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170203/d2d5f1acb25fa0232ca290119d657dee.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170203/46fb9166340ae118cc67f3f586d97bc1.jpg)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Brian, I love these shots. You prove that sunrises can be spectacular too (I've seen a handful in my lifetime) and there's something special about white birch trees. Keep 'em coming.
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Thank you, Matt. Glad you like them.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Matt, your photos are just spectacular. Being married to a highly skilled amateur photographer, I appreciated your comments about the sunset photo shoot. That sky leaves me without words! I'm not the most patient person in the world when bored, so try to find some way of keeping occupied when hubby decides to take pictures.
I guess you mean the comments about being nagged to avoid certain death from high tide? Haha, yeah. She was probably more than a little bored. She didn't worry about my impending death while she was on the phone. ;D
Before kids came along, I used the camera that my father-in-law gave me (he who had his son trained by a famous photographer in Taiwan) to take pictures of the photographer. I'll have to dig some out and scan them as they are pre-digital by a couple of years. It does lend an element of fun to the waiting. I even learned to take pictures when we weren't out together.
I'm looking forward to more of your artistry in photos. :)
Yes, please add yours -- I'd love to see them!
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You are a talented photographer, Matt. I grew up in California and was raised in La Jolla. Your photos make me homesick. I haven't been back to San Diego in more than a year.
Thanks. I guess you've been to see the seals a few times?
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Nothing great, just a couple of I pics I took while out on my walk this morning. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170203/d2d5f1acb25fa0232ca290119d657dee.jpg)
No not great. Bloody spectacular pic. 8)
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Wow! Thanks, man!
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Next stop was Oahu, Hawaii. I actually wound up going to Hawaii alone. Last minute changes, and I wasn't going to throw away the non-transferable airfare, so just decided to go by myself, and use it as a photography trip. As it turns out, it was really great that way. I didn't bore anyone with my photography, i communed with nature, and I really was able to be like a "real" photographer.... planning the day around where to be to make the most of the daylight, and where I wanted to shoot, etc.
However, there were a lot of events that were already paid for in advance, so I went to them. One was a luau, and of course you have to go to a luau if you're in Hawaii. I just didn't expect it to be so romantic, and sentimental, and sweet. There was one point during the Luau where they asked all the people who had been married for 25 or more years to go up on the stage, and a woman was up there without her husband because he wasn't at the luau, and they did a special song for them. Well, the Chief who runs the luau, was telling everyone to get up and dance with the person who loved you. And there she was, by herself on the stage (along with all the other couples). One of the fire dancers went up to her, and put his arms around her. Then Chief said, "and now, just because you may not have said it for a while, tell him or her that you love them." And the dancer looks her in the eyes, and says, "I love you". She laughs, "You love ME?" "I LOVE you." he replied. And there was no reason to not believe him. In his way, he loved everyone on that island.
It's not a great photo, it's just a snapshot. I used flash -- which I tried not to do all night because it was a live show, but I wanted that photo to come out. If you have a photo of something, you rarely will forget it. And I wanted to remember how loving that luau was. And if you're ever in Oahu, go to The Chief's Luau because it's rated the best, and I can't imagine a better one.
(http://i.imgur.com/rinbKaD.jpg)
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By the end of the trip, I had a favorite view, and I'll talk more about it later. But, this little uninhabited island, Manana Island (Rabbit Island), was the backdrop for the luau, and I wound up with an incredible sunset view of it later in my trip, which I'll post. But, this is my first photo of it:
(http://i.imgur.com/t4teiez.jpg)
With my flash off, and shooting without a tripod, most of my photos of the show didn't come out well. I would have needed better equipment, and mine is okay, but not pro-level. The girls all came out pretty blurry because those hips don't lie.
(http://i.imgur.com/0mfdBOf.jpg)
And then, there were the Samoan fire dancers:
(http://i.imgur.com/3kRc5x9.jpg)
He didn't come out that great either, but I think the fire looks cool since the lens was open so long and you can see the movement of the flame.
And here's a shot of most of the Samoan dancers:
(http://i.imgur.com/Zajjmiw.jpg)
All of the tattoo work you see on them is authentic. None is painted on. They're all done in ONE sitting, and not with ink, but with charcoal that is pressed into the skin. They do it according to Samoan tradition, and they don't always survive the ritual.
This was a very authentic luau, and I learned more there about Hawaii, the people, their traditions, and what the island is about than I did the whole trip. I was glad it was my first experience.
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Oahu turned out to be bigger than I originally thought it was. I spent my 2nd day in Hawaii driving along South Oahu, pulling over to photograph anything that looked appealing. This wasn't expected -- chickens, crossing the road, at their OWN stop sign. There's no cross street.
(http://i.imgur.com/6YOxDtH.jpg)
This is an alcove near Hanauma Bay. Scorpio would love this spot. It feels stalkerish just being up here, watching everyone swimming below.
(http://i.imgur.com/ofssjCN.jpg)
Standing on the volcanic rock floor of this cliff, it looked like a Clyde Butcher/Ansel Adams opportunity. They shoot in large format with film, but with my equipment, this is the best I could do.
(http://i.imgur.com/vzzzTak.jpg)
The Halona Blow Hole, South Oahu. It wasn't shooting up too high when I was there, but some of the people viewing it near me were explaining it can shoot up to 30 feet high or more at high pressure, enough to shoot someone standing over it into the air.
(http://i.imgur.com/b4UgWNl.jpg)
Then, I found my spot for the sunset, getting there an hour or two early. It was a beautiful spot, comfortable on the rocks just sitting, communing with nature, and in a sense, it was good that I tore the miniscus in my left knee just before leaving for California, because I was happy to just sit for a few hours, which I'm sure I wouldn't have done if my knee wasn't killing me.
(http://i.imgur.com/FUX1w8P.jpg)
The sunset always starts out golden and deepens in color:
(http://i.imgur.com/zGFiI9r.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/DzsNXJZ.jpg)
But, this sunset was more spectacular than any, and for the first time in my life, I was considering desaturating the colors because they looked fake, or like Mars -- but, this is real.
(http://i.imgur.com/771WYwk.jpg)
I haven't gone through all the pics for the rest of my Hawaii trip yet, but I don't think I captured a more sensational sunset than that one.
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Great shots, again! 8)
But you didn't answer the question that is on everyone's lips ... WHY did the chickens cross the road? ???
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Great shots, again! 8)
But you didn't answer the question that is on everyone's lips ... WHY did the chickens cross the road? ???
Thanks, and yes... you're right! I did solve that ancient mystery...
The chickens crossed the road to go to the Paalaa Kai Bakery! (http://msnsmileys.net/D/Drool/drool-19.gif)
(http://i.imgur.com/KW7wv71.jpg)
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Are they working on the egg-laying force there? ;D
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Well, they gotta do something to pay for their blueberry turnovers. They're hen-credible!
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OK, I now know how Matt feels about his vacation pictures!
Here are a few of my "snow day" pictures. All taken today, in Central Park, New York City.
(http://i.imgur.com/9rbpxIsh.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/VtkonZ5h.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/uZ5lFWeh.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/X4OqaVqh.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/81VgRIxh.jpg)
(This looks crazy dangerous to me ... but they were doing it. Down two flights!)
I'll put a couple more in a new post.
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Here's a few more:
(http://i.imgur.com/LenQ9sph.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/1GRmJYhh.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/83JaNayh.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/liyJnNRh.jpg)
The last one is the only one not taken in the park. It's in Columbus Circle, looking back at the park.
(By the way, all of these are "as is," without any editing or cropping.)
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Great shots KC. Do you still run when it's snowing?
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Yes, but not in the middle of blizzard conditions, which we had this morning. And I won't run on ice. The condition of the streets was still pretty bad when I set out this afternoon. I decided I'd walk my usual park route instead of running it today!
And I'm not going out tomorrow morning ... I'll run, or walk if need be, after work, when maybe they'll have had time to get the streets and the park drive properly clear.
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These are the best shots I've seen of this Blizzard so far. Great work! I think I prefer the last one best, just because the moon lighting up the sky is so gorgeous.
Is the library closed again tomorrow?
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Thanks for the compliment! Nope, looks like it's back to business as usual tomorrow.
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I posted the above and a dozen or so others on my Flickr page, if anyone's interested:
https://flic.kr/s/aHskNPgYeR
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I posted the above and a dozen or so others on my Flickr page, if anyone's interested:
https://flic.kr/s/aHskNPgYeR
It's a Darth Vader sighting!
(http://i.imgur.com/iIrKQ0I.jpg)
(3rd photo in the album.)
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Ha, I hadn't even noticed that! ;D
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Back in Hawaii, started out the next day with a Whale Watching catamaran cruise off the north shore of Oahu.
(http://i.imgur.com/cqDxwSY.jpg)
We were out there quite some time with no sighting of whales. I was shooting some other shots with my wide angle lens when we got a humpback whale sighting, so unfortunately I didn't have the proper lens to get a good close-up.
(http://i.imgur.com/0nMNHbP.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ozZzm8o.jpg)
And that was all there was. It was too early in whale season to see a lot of them. The humpback whales migrate down to Hawaii from Alaska to have their babies, and then they bring them back up to Alaska for the summer.
After the sail, I stuck around the north shore, and that's where most of the best surfing conditions are. There were surfers out that day, but the waves weren't too high when I was there. But, I loved the black rock that was everywhere along the beaches.
(http://i.imgur.com/HuizSSg.jpg)
My map showed a beach called "Sunset Beach", so I figured that sounded like the place to be at sunset, and found another chicken! I thought this would be a throwaway shot, but I like it a lot.
(http://i.imgur.com/AJsQ08H.jpg)
And then the sun set on another day.
(http://i.imgur.com/GUy4TfK.jpg)
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That chicken has come a long way since crossing the road! ;D
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He has an eggcelent sense of direction!
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Back in Hawaii, started out the next day with a Whale Watching catamaran cruise off the north shore of Oahu.
Beautiful images of Hawaii, Matt :)
I love Whales, very spectacular but to be honest, I prefer Scotland and Ireland. ;)
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I love Whales, very spectacular but to be honest, I prefer Scotland and Ireland. ;)
Oh, 2M! ::) :D
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I love Whales, very spectacular but to be honest, I prefer Scotland and Ireland. ;)
^ Ouch! ;D
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With luck, there will be many more photos of whales in this thread -- coming up around early September. :)
Here's some more from Hawaii...
The Byodi-In Temple in Central Oahu is a beautiful temple with memorial gardens that's a replica of the 11th century Phoenix Hall in Japan. While there, I overheard a Japanese tourist saying to his family that this one was more beautiful than the one in Japan.
(http://i.imgur.com/RPIvN0l.jpg)
Inside the temple is the Amida Buddha. I was sitting inside the temple where there are benches to meditate and reflect, when a Japanese woman came to make an offering and prayer for a loved one (I'm not as close as it looks, and there's no flash, so not disrespectful).
(http://i.imgur.com/sauNGB5.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/uBn0xp9.jpg)
There were a few koi in the lake surrounding the temple.
(http://i.imgur.com/h3VLcWr.jpg)
After leaving the Temple, I explored East Oahu
(http://i.imgur.com/MGvnqoh.jpg)
This was taken from a research pier in East Oahu that offers beautiful views of Mt. Olomana and the surrounding beaches.
(http://i.imgur.com/5ZbJsGP.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Xv3t9Xv.jpg)
Sometimes I will steal a subject of another photographer's photo (I was actually very far away using a long zoom.)
(http://i.imgur.com/pdzcQTb.jpg)
I also caught a couple having their wedding photos taken. Their photographer is behind them.
(http://i.imgur.com/9gFfrPK.jpg)
I climbed up to Makapuu Pt, and the view was so spectacular, I decided to stay until sunset.
(http://i.imgur.com/UgN8Rae.jpg)
I have so many photos of Manana (Rabbit Island). It was my favorite subject to photograph in Hawaii. This is the view from my spot on the cliff of Makapuu Pt.
(http://i.imgur.com/F8dKpqt.jpg)
A few hours later, this was the sunset, and my last view.
(http://i.imgur.com/EkJjhXU.jpg)
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That second-to-last one is especially beautiful. Something about the smallness of the island and the bigness of the sky and ocean. And the color of that cloud!
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Thank you. Since I was up on that cliff for hours, I'd lay back and close my eyes, and when I sat up and opened them, that's all I saw. I fell in love with that view. Glad you liked it. :)
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Matt, your pictures are a delight to look at. Thanks for sharing.
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When I had first arrived in Hawaii, a local said if you want to see the real Hawaii, get out of Waikiki. I took this so literally, that I hadn't seen the beaches of Waikiki at all. Fortunately, I had a helicopter tour booked to see the southern and eastern portions of the island, which seemed like the best way to see it -- far above the tourists and crowds. If you go to Oahu, and you want to get some great photos, I recommend a doorless helicopter tour. The site I booked my tour on didn't offer that option, and the photos would have been so much better without having to shoot through the small windows. Nonetheless, with a little bit of enhancement, the photos came out pretty good.
Here's Diamond Head, which as I've learned is a volcanic tuff cone. Although it looks like a regular mountain from afar, it's a crater, and there's a lot going on inside it. Our helicopter didn't fly high enough to see the full crater, but you can see it HERE (http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/parks/oahu/diamond-head-state-monument/).
(http://i.imgur.com/FB2e66h.jpg)
And here's Waikiki with Diamond Head in the background:
(http://i.imgur.com/8CfJ2N1.jpg)
This shot shows the sea wall around an Eastern portion of Waikiki Beach (on the right) to break the waves and make it more child-friendly. Each speck is someone on a kayak, boogie board, jet ski, or just swimming:
(http://i.imgur.com/gmOw9WC.jpg)
This photo shows Hanauma Bay. I didn't realize at the time how awesome it is. My favorite part of my Hawaii trip was snorkeling there the next morning, but I have no photos of that. The reef is absolutely phenomenal, and full of the same gorgeous tropical fish I used to buy for $75 a pop when I had a salt water tank. Only, these were as large as my forearm, not finger-sized. You can see the different areas of the coral reef from above. You literally start seeing fish about 10 feet from the shoreline.
(http://i.imgur.com/u29tvLo.jpg)
Just north of Hanauma Bay is the almost infamous Manana (Rabbit Island) again. Unfortunately, the Makapuu Lighthouse (bottom right) was under construction, so it's not as picturesque here as it would normally be.
(http://i.imgur.com/Ie956Ez.jpg)
The pilot went around and through the volcanoes of southeastern Oahu:
(http://i.imgur.com/0qZ9MSx.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/nAT8LLo.jpg)
We then flew over Pearl Harbor. The white structure in the water on the bottom right of this image is the USS Arizona Memorial. I have a lot of photos of it, but conditions weren't perfect that day. When they are you can see (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Arizona_Memorial) the Ship's remains still lying at the bottom of the sea.
(http://i.imgur.com/asEuHCW.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/VmPotWX.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/uNLUYKz.jpg)
That was the end of the tour. It was hours before sunset, and at the time, I wasn't motivated to find another sunset location (though I now wish I had, because I've seen some beautiful pics of Hanauma Bay at sunset since returning home). I would be leaving Hawaii at the end of the next day, and I was ready to go home.
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Brilliant pics again Matt. I need a holiday after looking at those pics. They wouldn't look out of place in a travel brochure. 8)
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It won't be long for you now, will it?
Are you going to Oahu, or a different island?
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Are you going to Oahu, or a different island?
Oahu. 8)
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Perfect. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to capture a sunrise as beautiful as this one:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lostinkaneohe/8002327682
That's Hanauma Bay. Good luck. We're all counting on you. ;)
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I do not think I would care for a doorless helicopter tour! :o
EDIT: I've now read this, and checked out the pictures:
http://www.ohanafun.net/activity/alex_air_doors_off_hana_crater/
Wild horses couldn't drag me onto one of those things. Come to think of it, wild horses would have more sense than to try! :o
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;D You're not someone I would think would be afraid of a little thing like a doorless helicopter. They are wearing seat belts, you know. ;)
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At this point, even I am tired of looking at Hawaii pics. I have this one last day that I just finished going through, and as it turns out, it was my favorite day for Oahu photography, so I'll share.
I started on southern West Oahu, and headed north. The further north I traveled, the more beautiful the beaches became. I especially loved the volcanic cliffs and black lava rock beaches, and the road became so beautiful as I reached Ka'ena Point with all the volanoes right along the road. I drove as far as the road took, which ended near Dillingham Airfield. These are the most beautiful sites I saw along the drive:
I liked this little sea wall. These walls are all over Oahu, and usually there are people fishing off them, or just hanging out. West Oahu was the most secluded coast by far, and even though it was just around noon, almost everywhere I went had no one around soaking up the immense beauty (which is what I like when I'm looking for prime photographic opportunities).
(http://i.imgur.com/gKUcHFS.jpg)
I believe this is Nanakuli Beach Park.
(http://i.imgur.com/1XFcZOO.jpg)
Further north, so probably Mali Beach Park (I wanted to get these posted before I forgot the names of all the places, but it took me a little too long. But, this is definitely in the area of central West Oahu):
(http://i.imgur.com/wvGQyOA.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/GVvaP83.jpg)
This is near Waianae, and my favorite spot for photography:
(http://i.imgur.com/HK4md9c.jpg)
Ka'ena Point. I was really excited to see this photo when I was going through the pics. I have to work on all my photos in Photoshop because I don't have pro-level equipment, and I have a pro-level eye. So I'm always disappointed. With a little work, I can get them to look great. I was so excited by this composition, that I worked hard on getting it right.
(http://i.imgur.com/GAUX8jy.jpg)
But then, I found this photo with the sailboat, which is nearly the same shot (without the sandy beach showing). Now I can't decide between the two -- they're like my children. Can't choose, so I'm posting both.
(http://i.imgur.com/5lhXNnB.jpg)
This was the last beach I photographed: Yokohama Beach. I was taking pics from afar, and noticed this interesting mini Stonehedge type thing going on... so I approached it. How nice of someone to leave this behind:
(http://i.imgur.com/r1Y3dcV.jpg)
After reaching the literal end of the road, I turned back to go south, and stopped to get a photo of what the drive on that little road was like. Glad I took it, because I really like this shot.
(http://i.imgur.com/ZPfdguV.jpg)
Because I didn't really know the area and was discovering it as I went along, I wanted one shot for my last sunset that would be spectacular. If I was knew the island better, I would have stayed in Waianae or Yokohama Beach, but it was a few hours until sunset, and I was actually bored and ready to go home (I was flying out that night), so I wanted to start heading back to Honolulu. I figured I could get nearly all the way back in time for sunset, and then go to the airport. I had my eyes on Ewa Beach, which was still "West Oahu", but south, so a quick drive to the airport. Unfortunately, I couldn't have chosen a less inspiring Oahu beach. It was flat, there were no volcanoes to make exciting backdrops, it was so like any other beach ever, and I had no time to get to a better one. I arrived just a few minutes before sunset. There was literally nothing to be the subject of the photo except for this little fence from a beach house, and their trees. So, it would have to do. I was at least lucky to have spectacular colors and clouds to make the shot interesting:
(http://i.imgur.com/VfbAquM.jpg)
And folks, that's it. It took 22 hours to get back home, which was awful. I will probably never go out to Hawaii again, but if I do, I'd love to go to the big island and see the active volcano.
So, for anyone visiting Oahu, my best recommendations:
Chief's Luau (located inside Sea World). I went to that one because it was the top rated, and yes... I can't imagine a better one. I paid for front table seating, which was nearly double, because I knew I'd want photos. But, if you're not there for photos, you can get by with a regular table. My tour guide made a point of letting me know that this luau is one of the smallest, with "only" 500 people, whereas others have many times that amount. So, every seat was wonderful. If you pay more, you get extra drink tickets, the same food, closer seating, and a different quality of lay.
A doors-off (doorless) helicopter tour.
Do NOT leave Hawaii without snorkeling at Hanauma Bay
If you're there during active whale season (February - April), do a whale watching cruise
Get out of Waikiki unless you're really into crowds or want to rent a jet ski
Without doubt, get in a car and drive along the West Oahu coast.
Good luck, SK. We're looking forward to hearing from you about your trip, and seeing some of your pics. :)
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Thanks for that great travelogue, Matt! And no matter how disappointed you were with the locale, that last sunset pic is truly spectacular!
(But I'm still not going to sign up for a doorless helicopter tour!)
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Okay, so you don't much like heights. How are you with 2000 degree lava? ;D
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Another great sunset pic Matt. All great pics though. 8)
22 hours to get home? Why so long?
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I won't check luggage, I just bring a carry-on, and my laptop bag. My carry-on has fit in the overhead compartment of every plane I've ever been on. I flew from Honolulu to LAX, and I had a 1.5 hour layover before my next flight (to San Francisco, which would then fly me to Nashville. But, LAX is a nightmare airport, and 1.5 hours wasn't enough for a connecting flight (it should have been). They actually made me go through security AGAIN, even though it was a connecting flight. This never happens. Then, they measured my carry-on and told me I'd have to check the bag and pay $25. This is a con. It's literally a carry-on bag, and it's not oversized. Their stupid measurements are smaller than they need to be so they can bilk customers for an additional $25. But the problem with the extra security point, and having to check my bag was that I was running very close to boarding time. So I had to go to a kiosk to check my bag, and the lovely kiosk said it was too close to flight time to check the bag. So I got into it with United Airlines, who wouldn't let me on the plane with my bag. They had to book me for a flight to Washington DC, which was a few hours away, as it was the only way to get me to Nashville that day.
I woke up at 4:00 that morning to get checked out of my room and for the snorkeling trip. My flight was at 10pm, so I was already tired, and then it was 22 more hours. I couldn't sleep on the plane because Hawaiian Airlines doesn't have moving air above the seats, and it was a bit claustrophobic without it. Plus, my knee was in pain, and the seats are small, and I was in a window seat, and it was pure hell.crammed into a small packed plane with a torn knee and going on 24+ hours without sleep.
I really was glad to be home.
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Okay, so you don't much like heights. How are you with 2000 degree lava? ;D
As long as it's being poured on my enemies, just fine! ;)
Sorry for your ordeal on the return trip. Bet there were some folks along the way there you'd have wished the lava on!
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I don't know about the doorless helicopter ride either. I might be freaking out like Jimmy Stewart in Vertigo the whole time. :o
(https://usercontent2.hubstatic.com/5338671_f260.jpg)
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A few simple shots taken in Maine a year ago today. All but forgotten until they popped up on Facebook today.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170221/d5a3628d9b3cae058d3c066d88638996.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170221/8b3a807024cab9e4882c29bc55041fa8.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170221/447c5b8ef0cd1d0b7aee86bef08e14dd.jpg)
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Sorry for your ordeal on the return trip. Bet there were some folks along the way there you'd have wished the lava on!
You wouldn't even believe my troubles with TSA agents. I was nearly arrested once in Boston. I've been really trying to not let them get to me, but it's really ridiculous to fly nowadays.
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Brian, tell us more about your shots. I can't quite make out what that is on the ice.
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Brian, tell us more about your shots. I can't quite make out what that is on the ice.
Yeah, I'm looking at it thinking, why is there a portaloo there?
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Brian, tell us more about your shots. I can't quite make out what that is on the ice.
Sorry about that. Not sure of the town, possibly Windham. I guess you'd call that an "ice house", they were fishing there. Taken one morning on the way home from my Dad's.
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I grabbed this with my phone camera while strolling in the 70° weather in Central Park on Saturday afternoon:
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3932/32963867602_24183236be_k.jpg)
I was lucky to capture the moment of maximum bubblification.
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What a great picture! Perfect timing, but the little girls and the red balloon make the shot.
So, this guy is a professional bubble maker. Have you seen him doing this before?
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Thanks, Matt! I've seen someone doing it at that spot in Central Park, couldn't swear it's the same guy. Another guy (I'm pretty sure) does it around Columbus Circle in the summer months.
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Here's a few shots of Center City Philadelphia:
This is from One Liberty Place's Observation Deck. It's 57 floors up, and the highest point for public access in the city. It was fully enclosed, which I was disappointed by -- the glass was dirty, and the colors usually get messed up when shooting through glass. In this pic, you can see City Hall with the bronze statue of William Penn, the famous PSFS building, and the Ben Franklin Bridge. Everything on the other side of the Delaware River is Camden, NJ.
(http://i.imgur.com/fDpNVrG.jpg)
City Hall with William Penn atop:
(http://i.imgur.com/UxA7ZXV.jpg)
The Giant Clothespin, which has been around almost as long as I can remember (built in 1976):
(http://i.imgur.com/tJxESS6.jpg)
The tallest building in Philly is Comcast Center. I liked how the glass building reflected the smaller more ornate buildings around it:
(http://i.imgur.com/NZZQqDi.jpg)
And finally, my favorite Philly Bridge, the Ben Franklin Bridge, as seen from Penn's Landing:
(http://i.imgur.com/t7UQlUM.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/jjsCg8t.jpg)
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Matt, you grew up in Philadelphia, right? I also want to ask about what the story is behind the giant clothespin. :o :D
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Matt, you grew up in Philadelphia, right?
How many times has Matt run up those stairs we see in Rocky, I wonder?
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Matt, you grew up in Philadelphia, right? I also want to ask about what the story is behind the giant clothespin. :o :D
I was born and raised in Jersey, just past Camden NJ which you can see in the first image. I was doing one of those "You know you're from Jersey if..." surveys and one of the questions was "You say you're from Philly". I don't really know why, but most of us do that. And yes, SK, I've Rocky Balboa-ed those Art Museum steps a few times. 8)
As for the Giant Clothespin, I'm glad you asked, because I looked into it, and found that the artist likes taking everyday objects and making them huge. The artist is Claes Oldenburg, and a Google Image Search brings up a lot more of his pop art:
https://www.google.com/search?q=Claes+Oldenburg&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiUwej1js_SAhVH_4MKHd2dAOUQ_AUICCgB&biw=2859&bih=1604#tbm=isch&q=claes+oldenburg+sculptures&*
I particularly like his bike tire:
(https://agmmcdn.s3.amazonaws.com/agmmcdn/2013/01/Bicycle-by-Claes-Oldenburg_hanneorla-Flickr.jpg)
And his ice cream cone:
(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/7a/97/9b/7a979b14d0bebe06e45b1000b1bedb38.jpg)
As for our Clothespin, other see some hidden meaning to it... like two lovers embracing, and the 76 symbol (the wire part, which shows the 6 on the side we see, and probably the 7 on the other side. It was commissioned for the Bicentennial, 1976, so that makes sense.
(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/8f/6b/72/8f6b72e4286fa682ffc670c05878282d.jpg)
Here's another I think is cool -- his three way plug looks like a cannon in the right setting.
(http://www.oberlin.edu/amam/images/Oldenburg70.38.jpg)
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Beautiful views of Sweden from my cabin this morning..
(https://scontent.flhr2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/17309781_10211260955336329_6656245982366808094_n.jpg?oh=8425d91a68d73cbb53838fff106e6b86&oe=5961140E)
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Oh Gant! You're in my favorite country? (Outside the U.S., and I'm not so sure about that anymore.) Whereabouts?
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Cool, I like it there a lot.. We flew to Stockholm, then boarded the cruise liner which set out for the night. My god those Swedes know how to party. Lots of bands performed, we went on last around 2 in morning..
It took most of the day to get back to Stockholm and the views were amazing (forgive my jokey pic) beautiful scenery.
I'm also a fan of their urban landscapes.. I've always liked the place and could almost imagine living there myself...
Most expensive beer in the world tho !!!
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Matt, those sculptures are cool! I especially like the ice cream cone. ;D
Beautiful views of Sweden from my cabin this morning..
(https://scontent.flhr2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/17309781_10211260955336329_6656245982366808094_n.jpg?oh=8425d91a68d73cbb53838fff106e6b86&oe=5961140E)
;D
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Back on page 1 of this thread, I posted some pictures of the covered bridge from my neighborhood growing up. Well, I guess the sign wasn't clear enough -- because a big truck got stuck under it. Bridge is closed indefinitely for repairs.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/videos/news/2914878195001/5372516564001/
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That's what he gets for looking back at the woman in the truck following him instead of watching the road signs! :D
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Taken during a walk in New Hampshire yesterday. Not great, but I thought nice enough to share. Beautiful weather!
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170410/08c3422544406c4dd15a72bc0481f317.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170410/387ef6e35d27369476e7d358546c6bd5.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170410/7f0ea11d6ac5eb9e8806fc548af79b10.jpg)
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Taken in Maine yesterday and today. Dealing with my dad's cabin. Back home now, in New Hampshire. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/64517fafd2b3772c89977e75bde2fc2c.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/f46eaedf12f1b9d4340d84f2b6fb2f2d.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/c66e43e2a159f1761135a00e6d382e11.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/88869ec90be9e081947ca66d41720492.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/ca294919776308e9b70880de6b50060d.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/14cee1ff93fbd71f19f0d6379f1eff30.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/39b0df158b77d7a715971e8603515e68.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/f41395362144271339915a990c47dabe.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/382a54b3bdcb2db0f44d13ac5696585d.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170529/2ab185bd26194464e4197e6cd806da74.jpg)
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Looks very peaceful, Brian!
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Yes, it's very nice. One of these visits I think I'll place a chair in the yard, have some coffee, do some reading and enjoy the sounds of nature.
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(http://i.imgur.com/ENtB07d.jpg)
I bought a new camera and took it up to the Pocanoes for a spin.
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Great pic! How far away were you?
Are you going to be able to see the eclipse where you are?
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I'm further away than it looks. I have this quite zoomed in. I'd guess I was maybe 75 yards away.
Are you going to be able to see the eclipse where you are?
No. >:( Like a dick, the greatest natural phenomena to possibly ever occur in Nashville, and I'll be in Alaska. I tried to rearrange my trip, and it couldn't be switched to another date. So, I'm going to travel to the next total solar eclipse in the U.S., which won't be too far away: 2024.
Not as grand an image, but I like it anyway. Also from the Pocanoes:
(http://i.imgur.com/OvUTn6o.jpg)
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And I thought the board would auto-censor that word on my post. Oh well. Now I know. ;D
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I guess the name is OK, or there would be quite a few people who could never get a mention around here! :D
I'm wishing I had made travel plans to see the eclipse while there was still time. I did check around a bit, but everything was sold out ages ago, apparently.
Oh, nice squirrel, by the way ... which reminds me of a sight gag from The Naked Gun involving Leslie Nielsen, a taxidermied mammal and a young woman on a ladder.
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Anyone know what this creature might be? I'm having a hard time finding out with a general Internet search.
(http://i.imgur.com/tJfjSAo.jpg)
It bit me while I was eating lunch under the trees on the plaza in front of the Library today. It is eensy. (That's about a square inch of a paper towel behind it.) Bite itches like crazy.
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Anyone know what this creature might be? I'm having a hard time finding out with a general Internet search.
(http://i.imgur.com/tJfjSAo.jpg)
It bit me while I was eating lunch under the trees on the plaza in front of the Library today. It is eensy. (That's about a square inch of a paper towel behind it.) Bite itches like crazy.
I don't know but that bug reminds me of a famous line from Major Dutch Schaefer in Predator. :D
Hope you are OK, KC. :(
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Beautiful August day in Salem, New Hampshire today, 8/06/17.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/8bdec763feaf9e3866fa004ba850e460.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/296b6007869a1920aa1918d1c9ca408f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/c7f1d0309065d82bc3b57ea5af040301.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/9605e144785384f7ace8fa4b38fc464e.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/f32ccbfe5bca0275030e985916ec5c5b.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/37543952a02510e96722b43c1c4128a5.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170806/a2dbdffe6f3caaea170829bb40f0fb5c.jpg)
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(https://scontent.flhr2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/20526206_10212707615461928_5859799004927004036_n.jpg?oh=0eafd0901e5ccbd5d48631b6f23f9265&oe=59F5950B)
Playing Dirty Harry pinball in Madrid, Spain this weekend..
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Great stuff! :)
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Recent stuff from all around.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170807/1d19ef99bf1aace18321046331b5b671.jpg) Kemi, Lapland - sunset
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170807/dea5a408e60a97ba5c1b5258fd11971a.jpg)
Cottage life! Another sunset
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170807/399a335ce642d599b3ec6c52c72c3971.jpg)
Reindeer, cottage life.
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Beautiful! What time was it when the first shot was taken?
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11:30 pm. :)
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Stunning, Satu!
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I went to Alaska last week, and took a ton of shots. I'll just post a few, and it will be some time between them because I have literally thousands of shots and I only want to post a handful so I don't bore everyone with my vacation photos. ::)
(http://i.imgur.com/XWF2t3j.jpg)
I had a bucket list of shots I wanted to come home with, and of course one was the bald eagle. They were harder to photograph than expected, because they like to sit at the very top of the tallest tree in the forest, and Alaska has some mighty tall trees. Ultimately, I had to settle for this shot, which would have been much better if the sky wasn't so white (there was very little sunlight last week in the Juneau area).
And here's one of many scenic shots:
(http://i.imgur.com/CW5qDz8.jpg)
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Those are great! Love the eagle. More, please! :)
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When I was taking this, I thought the gulls were in danger. Now I see he's actually looking right at the camera.
(http://i.imgur.com/LatvoU4.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Blg1hh8.jpg)
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When I was taking this, I thought the gulls were in danger. Now I see he's actually looking right at the camera.
Yikes! :o How far away were you?
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Yikes! :o How far away were you?
Not far enough. ;D
Just across the lake. I actually never thought there was danger because I was in a group of people. But, now seeing him tracking me and looking dead in the camera in several shots is a bit of an uneasy feeling.
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Not far enough. ;D
Just across the lake. I actually never thought there was danger because I was in a group of people. But, now seeing him tracking me and looking dead in the camera in several shots is a bit of an uneasy feeling.
That bear was hamming it up for the camera ... He thought you could get him a walk-on part in a Clint movie! ;D
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Happens all the time. ;)
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This area is the Idaho Inlet, west of Juneau. Saw some humpback whale spouts, but pretty far off in the distance.
(http://i.imgur.com/MBQBfPM.jpg)
Lots of otter, dolphins and harbor seals. This one poked his head up while we were kayaking.
(http://i.imgur.com/a0QhopM.jpg)
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Nice pics Matt!
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That seal wants a part in the movie, too! ;D
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We spent two days in Glacier Bay National Park. Day one was awful weather. Just cold, rainy and a low mist covered everything. We saw a tremendous amount of otter that first day, and as I'm going through my photos, I'm finding that I didn't get any good shots. The lighting was bad, and I don't think we got close enough, though I can't remember if I tried using my long zoom. But, although I didn't get a good shot of the otter, I do love this scenic shot. All those "bumps" in the water are otter, mostly swimming on their backs with their four feet in the air. A shot of trivia here -- can anyone say what a group of sea otter are called? :)
(https://i.imgur.com/6d8Lacj.jpg)
Sea otter are now one of my favorite animals. They are so cool. This article is really interesting, if anyone is interested in learning more about sea otter. Also, you can see some good pics, which are waaaaaay better than anything I got, and a nice video at the bottom: http://www.alaskamagazine.com/articles/featured/the-rebound-of-the-sea-otter/
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That seal wants a part in the movie, too! ;D
This seal really wants a part in the movie. ;)
(https://i.imgur.com/Ui6tFqc.jpg)
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A shot of trivia here -- can anyone say what a group of sea otter are called? :)
An otter-bahn? :D
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An otter-bahn? :D
An otterwise great answer, but no. It's a raft of otters.
(https://i.imgur.com/IGJcO1M.jpg)
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This seal really wants a part in the movie. ;)
(https://i.imgur.com/Ui6tFqc.jpg)
He otter be in pictures! :D
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Ya otter got it, or ya don't.
(I had to use a Boston accent to make that one fly).
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The 2nd day in Glacier Bay was as dark and gloomy, and cold and rainy as the day before. This was a bit disappointing for photography. We were in the midst of gorgeous glacier country, and we could only see what was a few feet ahead of us. This is Marjorie Glacier, which was kind enough to calve just as I was ready to photograph it. That's the big "explosion" you can see at the base of the glacier in this photo:
(https://i.imgur.com/B3eeuAC.jpg)
The glacier itself was about 200 feet tall, and we went out on a skiff to get closer to it than we could in the bigger boat. Without a size reference, it's hard to image how tall these are. But, if you see the iceburg that broke off in the foreground, our skiff would be about half to a third that size, or roughly the height of the small dark area on the bottom left side of the glacier. Behind the glacier, which we can't see at all, were beautiful, tall peaks topped with glaciers of their own. The challenge, photographically speaking, was keeping the lens dry.
A few hours later, the rain stopped, and though we still had a thick mist, and not much background scenery, I was happy to have enough natural lighting to get some good shots of this small island area inhabited with at least a hundred seals.
(https://i.imgur.com/Vt7I1Pv.jpg)
I have a wider shot of it elsewhere, but I like this one because a flock of puffins flew by just as I shot this. Puffins aren't extremely rare, but they're a lot more rare than the cormorants and seagulls. So I was happy to get them in the shot.
No puffins, but I prefer the composition of this shot. This may be the one I blow up and frame. Still looking for the right photo for that. But there's still lots more to look through.
(https://i.imgur.com/CB1Xx1a.jpg)
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Gorgeous, keep 'em coming.
By coincidence, another friend of mine is in Alaska right now, but the only pictures she takes are with her iPhone. NTTAWWT, but ... yours are better. ;)
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It looks like her weather is about as bad as it was when I was there. Is she in the Juneau area?
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They've been up there for a few weeks ... I had this note from her on August 11:
Until today (in Anchorage) it was sunny & warm, but now it rains. The air is good however, the salmon are running (we're watching), and we enjoy ourselves.
And a couple of weeks later, this picture, helpfully titled "Sky, beach, clouds, mts."
(https://i.imgur.com/vbtlqKZ.jpg)
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Nice! It looks like she's on the rails that travel from Anchorage to Denali (and beyond). Some of the people I met on my trip had also been to Denali, and they spoke of the amazing wildlife they saw there. If I go back to Alaska, I'll probably go up to that area. I've complained about the rain, but in actuality, as I've learned, this is the true Alaska. When the sun shines, the locals call it "cloud failure". Southeast Alaska is a temperate rainforest, so all those pictures of Alaska with the gorgeous blue skies and the striking glacier-topped mountains are anomalies. The week before I was there, the locals spoke of the gorgeous rainless week they had -- bright skies and warmer weather. It was the only nice week they had the entire summer, and they flocked outdoors to enjoy it. It sounds like your friend was there for that week as well.
Here's a wide shot of that island of seals. The pictures don't tell the whole story. They are great communicators, and you could hear them barking far away. Although it looks like they're just lying about, there's always a few sliding down the edge of the island into the water. They're fun to watch, and I did take a fair amount of photos of them.
(https://i.imgur.com/4TYa669.jpg)
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I like this shot because you get a peek through the clouds, and out of nowhere you see these huge mountain peaks right in front of you, which you had no idea were even there. At first, you think you're just seeing blue sky, and then you realize what you're looking at:
(https://i.imgur.com/ytNdvGN.jpg)
As the sun battled the clouds, trying to negotiate just a few hours of time where it could shine, I took this shot. It looks like it was shot with a blue filter, but it wasn't:
(https://i.imgur.com/0XDvwCl.jpg)
The sun wins the fight with perfect timing. We anchored down for a sunset stroll along the forest trail of Barlett Cove in Glacier Bay National Park:
(https://i.imgur.com/cc2BZXT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/TEsSNkd.jpg)
Beautiful lush moss covers everything but the man-made pathway. When you walk on it, you sink a few inches with each step. I've never walked through a rainforest, and I thought it was beautiful.
(https://i.imgur.com/2HSt4xz.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/pGO6f2z.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/ebEwTLm.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/CEGTTvK.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/FUuT48j.jpg)
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Those are all gorgeous! I love the radiant sun at sunset especially, and the one where the sun won the battle with the clouds.
Could you see any of the eclipse way up there? Of course ... even if you could, it was probably cloudy all through it!
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No one bothered even trying to look for an eclipse. The day I just posted was the day of the eclipse, which probably happened about the time we were at the glacier shown in that photo with the calving. It was just so thick with fog, we didn't see the sun until (as you see) just an hour before sunset.
How about in NYC? Did you get to leave the library to go outside and see anything?
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Yes! I had hied over to the local camera emporium B&H the day before (Sunday morning) and queued up for some of the last eclipse glasses to be had in New York City. They only came in five-packs, so I had four extra pairs to share with my colleagues in my office. My appreciative boss sent around an e-mail saying anyone whose schedule allowed it (some people work on public service desks) should take the opportunity to go outside and take a look. In our location, the peak time was about 2:45, which I arranged to coincide with my lunch hour. I got the following shot on my phone by pure happenstance:
(https://i.imgur.com/x5DVdWN.jpg)
You're seeing an office tower just south of the Library, where I was standing on the wide plaza off Fifth Avenue with a whole mob of other eclipse gazers. When I snapped this picture, the sun was slipping in and out of light cloud cover. You see the actual partially veiled sun at the upper right corner of the tower ... but look on the facade. That crescent spot is a reflection of the sun's reflection, about 70% eclipsed.
I had no idea I had captured that until a couple of days later when I was looking back through my photos.
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Yes! I had hied over to the local camera emporium B&H the day before (Sunday morning) and queued up for some of the last eclipse glasses to be had in New York City. They only came in five-packs, so I had four extra pairs to share with my colleagues in my office. My appreciative boss sent around an e-mail saying anyone whose schedule allowed it (some people work on public service desks) should take the opportunity to go outside and take a look. In our location, the peak time was about 2:45, which I arranged to coincide with my lunch hour. I got the following shot on my phone by pure happenstance:
(https://i.imgur.com/x5DVdWN.jpg)
You're seeing an office tower just south of the Library, where I was standing on the wide plaza off Fifth Avenue with a whole mob of other eclipse gazers. When I snapped this picture, the sun was slipping in and out of light cloud cover. You see the actual partially veiled sun at the upper right corner of the tower ... but look on the facade. That crescent spot is a reflection of the sun's reflection, about 70% eclipsed.
I had no idea I had captured that until a couple of days later when I was looking back through my photos.
Wow, it's spectacular! What a very cool and unique shot of the eclipse. You should find somewhere to send that, to whatever publication publishes photos of it. It's just such a cool perspective.
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I thought I'd share some images I captured with my iPad today. My finger got into one, but not bad. A rainy day at home in Salem, New Hampshire. View around the property. The Toyota RAV4 used to belong to my dad.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/5243d75fa7c623310884a704d9410b77.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/90bf1f74757603a4cebc432f7819e8b1.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/089e0147aa837d2a1031975484108574.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/b4611d67c67fc9c1b1014aa8cbd38f45.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/bc53c61f709a3594d6a9807b1f65c52b.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/4c796ad45de39133ba44d04321b5c3f6.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/22631484e6d31cadcf6de590786dab76.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/d815703cd25be61d5dccb9a70886f256.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/876ad1c3acb893e1720f451e06dc727f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170906/32462aab4075d5f5546ef6862b5faacf.jpg)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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Brian, did you move from Boston? iPads must have better cameras on them than they used to. My iPad (2nd Gen) has the worst camera of any device I've ever owned with a camera.
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Yeah, I've had some major changes the past couple of years. I moved to Salem, New Hampshire last April. Home on short-term disability: left knee surgery so no work until October. New Hampshire is nice. I like it here.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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New Hampshire is nice for skiing. Get that knee better and get out there and take some photos. It's beautiful out there.
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Lots of trees up there, I see.
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I thought I'd share some images I captured with my iPad today. My finger got into one, but not bad.
That's why they call it digital photography, I guess.
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That's why they call it digital photography, I guess.
;D
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Sunny Salem Sunday
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/91e777cc8846926608ab469faaec3604.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/90135e29e0ad9f80a611e4246f93e169.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/c30dd7e8a90c2a3cca479dbb3ec0b1e0.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/41b02858249f92d15225f5b93557a25c.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/403bebeead93b031fd65a6b57cb69070.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/70215b116f1f903e75720aff6038d9ea.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/cbead010fe14b8ad5820f11ea2223c44.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170910/dfb34183ed0ea4ffa5aac4c5a66c1260.jpg)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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Here's some more pics from Alaska. So, we're on a 60 passenger ship, much smaller than regular cruise ships, and the reason I wanted to go on this type of ship was for photographing whales. I had seen the humpbacks in Hawaii in January, and left feeling really discouraged that I hadn't gotten a good opportunity to photograph the whales. So, I followed them to Alaska where they migrate in the summer. I have to say that although I got better photos this time, I still feel discouraged because I didn't get a magnificent shot. And that's now my life goal. I'm probably going to keep following humpbacks around the world until I get a shot that I'm satisfied with. And I like that goal a lot, because I'll see some fantastic things trying to achieve it.
Anyway, here's the best shot I got:
(https://i.imgur.com/V6sGJoX.jpg)
Not bad, but not stunning. But, I did get to watch two whales swimming together and diving for about an hour, and that was breathtaking.
This is the same dive, just a half a second later:
(https://i.imgur.com/XtJYcG6.jpg)
Here's a whale diving, in sequence:
First you see them arch their back (and after watching them a bit, you start to get excited when you see this because you know you're about to get a tail sighting):
(https://i.imgur.com/5zVGhWx.jpg)
They lift their tail:
(https://i.imgur.com/AlsBtvo.jpg)
The back of their tail flips up:
(https://i.imgur.com/YPkyeAo.jpg)
The underside of their tail sinks into the water after them:
(https://i.imgur.com/dOGTqi2.jpg)
Here's a shot of the two together. I believe it's a mother and her calf.
(https://i.imgur.com/PdUoDGR.jpg)
One more shot:
(https://i.imgur.com/LdYK7pu.jpg)
And just to break up the monotony, another shot of the sun trying to fight its way through the clouds.
(https://i.imgur.com/kyIob6O.jpg)
We'd see a lot more whales later this night at dusk, but I don't think I got any decent photos -- it was too dark, and they were far away, but I'll post something later anyway even if it's not that good. ;)
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Thanks, Matt! Looking forward to more whale pix from around the world!
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Here's a few more from Alaska.
This one is the base of Baird Glacier, at Thomas Bay.
(https://i.imgur.com/wWa0ZbQ.jpg)
Tongass National Forest around Ford's Terror:
(https://i.imgur.com/5EQHerS.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/aaMoGmc.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/zOyntr9.jpg)
It was low tide, and the shoreline was just chock-full of mussels for as far as you could see.
(https://i.imgur.com/G0e2bXB.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/ysBsRCn.jpg)
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It was low tide, and the shoreline was just chock-full of mussels for as far as you could see.
(https://i.imgur.com/G0e2bXB.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/ysBsRCn.jpg)
Mussel Beach! :D
Lovely, Matt. Thanks!
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Mussel Beach! :D
;D I should have seen that coming!
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This batch of photos is from the Endicott Arm area. This first photo was taken on a gray/dreary morning and the photo was too flat, but such beautiful scenery. I needed to make it a B/W photo to give it a little bit of pop
(https://i.imgur.com/PIrvDrJ.jpg)
This is approaching Dawes Glacier, and the silt water was perfect for catching the reflection of the mountains and clouds:
(https://i.imgur.com/sbPrZ5R.jpg)
A little later in the day, and there was enough light to see some color:
(https://i.imgur.com/JWrcDZU.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/gdAyvRs.jpg)
This is a little cave in Dawes Glacier, which partially collapsed from a calving while we were nearby. You can see from this image how tall these glaciers are -- there's a small boat on the bottom left:
(https://i.imgur.com/A9AO7Fb.jpg)
Dawes Glacier again, that little cave from the photo above is on the far left side of the glacier:
(https://i.imgur.com/icAWZqV.jpg)
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Spectacular! It's great that you got the boat in the picture showing the cave. It's hard to get a sense of scale in landscape photos sometimes.
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So, a few more from Alaska. These are more photos from the same day as the first bear photos I posted. We counted fourteen bears in this area, four of which were cubs, and these families fished and lived together in harmony. It was an amazing thing to witness these bears fishing, and from what I can tell -- the females were fishing, and then taking it back to the shoreline where the cubs were waiting for dinner, and they'd eat together.
This first photo will explain why there were so many bears in this area -- the salmon were plentiful and leaping out of the water.
(https://i.imgur.com/jN0lc2t.jpg)
This cub doesn't yet have that deadly stare in his eyes like the father we saw earlier:
(https://i.imgur.com/i7ClD0R.jpg)
Speaking of the father -- here he is, and I think that's the same cub:
(https://i.imgur.com/vi9tYIz.jpg)
These are all brown bears (Grizzly Bears), but they almost look like two different breeds. This seems to be a female bear, and she has a totally different look from the father bear. I had my camera on her for a while -- she kept dunking her head under and coming up empty. I knew it was just a matter of time, and then she came up with this:
(https://i.imgur.com/pjIez0I.jpg)
And then took her catch to share with her cubs:
(https://i.imgur.com/rOxREOD.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/xlRJp9L.jpg)
That's her on the bottom left of the last photo... and as you can see, plenty more bears are wanting to get in on that salmon-eating action.
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Wow, those are terrific, Matt! How close were you to the action?
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I was on land on the other side of the stream from them. I would guess the stream was about 30 yards wide. At the closest, maybe 15 yards from the action -- they never came more than halfway across the stream. This photo shows a non-zoomed look at the scene where you can get a better idea of the distance between the camera and subject:
(https://i.imgur.com/V0Fh6EV.jpg)
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I spent a few days on foot in Juneau and it was soggy, foggy, rainy and dreary day and night. They do what they can to make the main strip in downtown Juneau colorful for the tourists.
(https://i.imgur.com/9pLLE8P.jpg)
This is inside the touristy-Red Dog Saloon, where you can order an Alaskan Reindeer Sausage sandwich and of course some Alaskan Ale, which I've been looking for since coming home.
(https://i.imgur.com/9kvQ3ha.jpg)
One of the more interesting land excursions in Juneau is The Shrine of St. Thérèse (https://www.shrineofsainttherese.org/holy-grounds), where you'll find some really gorgeous grounds owned and maintained by the Roman Catholic Church:
(https://i.imgur.com/fniXb5t.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/4sS26L2.jpg)
All these images are from the grounds around The Shrine of St. Thérèse.
(https://i.imgur.com/18IqxMc.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/63zjgkk.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/VTtNQWo.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/2PlOOud.jpg)
I think one more post will wrap up my Alaskan trip. :)
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In the photos of the bears the fish look almost photoshopped, especially in that top picture!
And 30 yards or so just seems so close! :o
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Thanks, Matt! Did you make your way through that labyrinth in the first picture from the Shrine of St. Thérèse?
I clicked the link you provided and was awestruck at the first image on the site ... a spectacular view of the shrine under the northern lights. Also, I found out that the second of your pictures shows the columbarium there ... certainly a beautiful place for one's ashes to repose, awaiting the Resurrection.
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In the photos of the bears the fish look almost photoshopped, especially in that top picture!
I was thinking the bears looked natural, but the fish looked photoshopped! :D
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Yeah, the fish does look photoshopped -- I actually agree with you. But, it's real. You can see the wake where he left the water.
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Thanks, Matt! Did you make your way through that labyrinth in the first picture from the Shrine of St. Thérèse?
That would have been a possibility, except that I was soaked to the bone and tired after having spent the day sight-seeing. I did enjoy it though. It was very beautiful and serene, and I was the only one there because it was pouring at the time, so I liked that I had the whole place to myself, but it was a short visit because of the rain.
I clicked the link you provided and was awestruck at the first image on the site ... a spectacular view of the shrine under the northern lights. Also, I found out that the second of your pictures shows the columbarium there ... certainly a beautiful place for one's ashes to repose, awaiting the Resurrection.
Oh, I know. I wished we could have seen the Northern Lights, but they're a winter event, mainly occuring September - April.
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I think it's more of a matter of needing dark skies to see them ... The sky is too light in the far north in the summer months. But auroras can occur year-round.
https://www.theaurorazone.com/about-the-aurora/the-science-of-the-northern-lights/the-best-time-to-see-the-northern-lights
I've had thoughts of taking a journey to northern Scandinavia in the winter just to try to see them, but then ... you can never be sure if they're going to show up, and then the sky has to be clear, as well.
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I just looked over that website, and it's frustrating that they won't give an answer to the question: How likely am I to see the Northern Lights? I get that it varies, but there's a statistical answer that they should be able to provide. They have these tours, and if you pay thousands of dollars to go on one, and go sit in negative degree weather from 9pm to 1am, they should be able to say "65% of our trips have resulted in at least one viewing of the Northern Lights". Or whatever number. There has to be a better answer than "We can't say". And if it was closer to 80%, then I'd think it would be worth trying it.
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“Within Without You” 10/18/17
Views inside & outside a tree in Malden. I liked the view standing at the base of this tree so I decided to capture some images. That’s the first five. You’d think the last six could be different trees but they are one and the same, just different angles. In one of the images, it appears the sun is splitting the tree in half from the top.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/18585c66b2c06c4ed81e58221bd7851b.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/f3003fb507e4bba22816b090803cbfd3.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/1060528b4f689f01d43c35c4df594a00.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/d6f969d0bc9d8ee9af91be53b59e6622.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/9ac59728b97b6f072d383a4bfb67ae4b.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/28a785cd8aae919b3e5c3fd7110faf0e.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/2049e7b1e6370301478bdce6f3983f92.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/711678933b2c68b5f8641b987abcfdee.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/7a37dc00989ec3ca92e844ea538774b2.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/175aaa89ffd05cd83d99056d1489e27f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171019/4a9ab7c37c1731e14092f9bdd0ced059.jpg)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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“Within Without You” 10/18/17
Channeling some George Harrison Sgt. Pepper's?
Here's a tree pic of my own -- see if anyone can guess the type of baby bird in this image:
(https://i.imgur.com/VFJthHm.jpg)
And my best Puffin photo:
(https://i.imgur.com/Uo1smu1.jpg)
This is Mendenhall Glacier, which is one of the glaciers that's easiest to get to if you're visitng Juneau. There's a visitor's center with parking, and a variety of trails. I missed seeing a bear here, and this was before I saw all the grizzly bears above, so I was disappointed because it seemed I just kept missing them, both here and at Eagle Beach, another great place to spot Eagles, Bears, and spawning salmon.
(https://i.imgur.com/G4c9G4R.jpg)
Here's one more shot of that father grizzly. He almost looks stuffed because he's so perfectly large and foreboding:
(https://i.imgur.com/YAKYiXp.jpg)
These last two are from the flight out of Alaska. I wanted to spend time in Seattle, so chose a flight that would give me a 7 hour layover -- just enough to photograph their iconic skyline. But, it meant stopping twice between Juneau in Seattle. First, in Sitka, and then in Ketchikan.
Sitka:
(https://i.imgur.com/BZEPGAY.jpg)
Ketchikan:
(https://i.imgur.com/zECEJDH.jpg)
And that's it for Alaska. Next: Seattle. :)
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Magnificent, Matt! I love that one of the grizzly, he looks like the essence of bear-ness.
Is that a baby eagle in the top pic?
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Is that a baby eagle in the top pic?
Why yes, it is! (https://i.imgur.com/F6MC8xq.png)
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Happy Halloween!
(https://i.imgur.com/UV6nUKCh.jpg)
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More Happy Halloween:
(https://i.imgur.com/Ft6mKK2h.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/HUs3C2Eh.jpg)
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Zoo pics from the Cincinatti Zoo:
(https://i.imgur.com/f7zBBRq.jpg)
The world-famous Fiona with her mother (her father died this week)
(https://i.imgur.com/QTHZsHz.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/egNiphv.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/XyB9BvZ.jpg)
I've never seen this animal in person or online before this trip. Anyone know what it is?
(https://i.imgur.com/GnVg5kS.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/M6cs1bI.jpg)
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Zoo pics from the Cincinatti Zoo:
The world-famous Fiona with her mother (her father died this week)
(https://i.imgur.com/QTHZsHz.jpg)
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
I've never seen this animal in person or online before this trip. Anyone know what it is?
(https://i.imgur.com/GnVg5kS.jpg)
Lycaon pictus, or African wild dog (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_wild_dog), African hunting dog, African painted dog, painted hunting dog or painted wolf. It is a canid native to Sub-Saharan Africa.
(I didn't know, but Google Image Search did.)
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Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
Lycaon pictus, or African wild dog (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_wild_dog), African hunting dog, African painted dog, painted hunting dog or painted wolf. It is a canid native to Sub-Saharan Africa.
(I didn't know, but Google Image Search did.)
Yes to all of the above. Now let's see if you can guess this one (without help from Google):
(https://i.imgur.com/8doIERn.jpg)
If you can't name the animal, then what two animals are his closest relatives? One is more obvious than the other!
And here's a few more pics:
(https://i.imgur.com/RPYHCNa.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/L4j37Zv.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/5cbrAwl.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/CT9LbeN.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/4cbYjSy.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/yeIgUGo.jpg)
With zoo pics, I like to zoom in very close or else it looks too much like a zoo pic. I try to avoid showing glass enclosures or fences in or around the area, or feeding dispensers. The one thing that's hardest to get around are the tags they use on some of the animals -- I notice them on all the birds, but not on the other animals. So shooting Ostriches, Flamingos and Penguins were definitely close-up photos. I got lucky on this picture, because although there are huge tags around the entire wing of the penguins, they were turned toward me in a way that they weren't shown:
(https://i.imgur.com/MduDaxh.jpg)
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Yes to all of the above. Now let's see if you can guess this one (without help from Google):
(https://i.imgur.com/8doIERn.jpg)
If you can't name the animal, then what two animals are his closest relatives? One is more obvious than the other!
It's that Irish animal ... an O'Kapi! :D
And they looks like they're half zebra, and half (short and unspotted) giraffe, so I guess that's the answer. I did take a quick peek at Google, but only to see if "okapi" was spelled right. ;)
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I haven't been to the Cincinnati zoo since I was a kid. Those are cool shots, Matt.
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It's that Irish animal ... an O'Kapi! :D
And they looks like they're half zebra, and half (short and unspotted) giraffe, so I guess that's the answer. I did take a quick peek at Google, but only to see if "okapi" was spelled right. ;)
(http://www.pngmart.com/files/1/3D-Gold-Star-PNG-Picture.png)
You get the gold star for that -- Okapi it is! And Giraffe and Zebra is also correct!
If you're still having fun, how about this one? There's no scale included to see the size, but they are about 2.5 to 3 feet long.
(https://i.imgur.com/3YYXgQS.jpg)
(^ Not a very artistic picture, so here's a few more):
(https://i.imgur.com/fGD9L5J.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/CMDhy0C.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/g9JeEuA.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8Ckm46Z.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/ecd07Ji.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Nudma9v.jpg)
I haven't been to the Cincinnati zoo since I was a kid.
Are you close, Christopher? I know you're in Ohio, but not sure what city. In any case, it's a great zoo -- and as adults, I think we can appreciate the zoo more than kids, if we allow our inner child to enjoy it. I don't think kids would get how rare it is to see these animals in person when they're as young as they are. To them, the goat in the zoo's petting zoo is as novel as seeing the snow leopard. But as we get older, we appreciate that some of these animals are near extinction, and that we miss out on how gorgeous our planet is if we don't see them. There's this quote from Rocky, Christopher you may know it -- so I won't quote it yet -- where Rocky is going to take Adrian on their first date, and the local mob boss's bodyguard tells Rocky where to take her and why. It's a funny quote, and it runs through my mind at least once when I go to the zoo. It's a laughable quote because it's ridiculous, but I think a lot of adults miss out on seeing these things because they're thought to be more for kids. The Cincy zoo has beer and wine sales. So, grab a camera, and go. It's a great day!
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I'm actually pretty disappointed in that last photo. I thought I got the best shot of Red Pandas ever. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera set with a fast shutter speed for capturing action, and the lens was too slow to capture the playing. It came out with motion blur, and I couldn't tell when looking at it on the little camera screen. I thought I had captured an action shot perfectly, and was really happy with myself. ::) To me, photography is like hunting, only you appreciate the animals, you don't hurt them. So getting that "prized shot" is as rewarding as I suppose it would be for Wilson to shoot the elephant.
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More Happy Halloween:
(https://i.imgur.com/Ft6mKK2h.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/HUs3C2Eh.jpg)
I love your street photography. I love the un-posed spur-of-the-moment everyday people shots that you take. I've never done that type of photography. In my photographic world, people don't exist -- it's just animals and landscapes, though sometimes there's a silhouette or city skyline. So I have a good degree of appreciation for this kind of photography, and just capturing people as they are, forever preserved in that one moment.
I looked at the zoo map for your Central Park zoo, and you have some great animals there -- though your photography of the people at the zoo might be more interesting!
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Are you close, Christopher? I know you're in Ohio, but not sure what city. In any case, it's a great zoo -- and as adults, I think we can appreciate the zoo more than kids, if we allow our inner child to enjoy it. I don't think kids would get how rare it is to see these animals in person when they're as young as they are. To them, the goat in the zoo's petting zoo is as novel as seeing the snow leopard. But as we get older, we appreciate that some of these animals are near extinction, and that we miss out on how gorgeous our planet is if we don't see them. There's this quote from Rocky, Christopher you may know it -- so I won't quote it yet -- where Rocky is going to take Adrian on their first date, and the local mob boss's bodyguard tells Rocky where to take her and why. It's a funny quote, and it runs through my mind at least once when I go to the zoo. It's a laughable quote because it's ridiculous, but I think a lot of adults miss out on seeing these things because they're thought to be more for kids. The Cincy zoo has beer and wine sales. So, grab a camera, and go. It's a great day!
I'm a bit north of Dayton so Cincinnati isn't a bad drive--two hours maybe. I've been to the Columbus zoo a few times as an adult (I did go as a kid too). I also went to the Toledo zoo as a kid.
And I think I know the line from Rocky you're thinking about. ;D
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If you're still having fun, how about this one? There's no scale included to see the size, but they are about 2.5 to 3 feet long.
(https://i.imgur.com/3YYXgQS.jpg)
I guess no one else is taking this one, so I will, though I partially cheated. I knew I had seen them in zoos myself, I had admired their rectangularity. But I couldn't remember their name, so I looked up "Rodents" in Wikipedia and got to it that way.
They are capybaras (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capybara), "the largest living rodent in the world," according to Wiki. (And who would want to be confronted with the largest dead rodent? :o )
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I love your street photography. I love the un-posed spur-of-the-moment everyday people shots that you take. I've never done that type of photography. In my photographic world, people don't exist -- it's just animals and landscapes, though sometimes there's a silhouette or city skyline. So I have a good degree of appreciation for this kind of photography, and just capturing people as they are, forever preserved in that one moment.
Thanks! I love street photography, but I'm too shy to do much of it. When I took the Halloween pictures, though, everyone was happy to have me do it, so maybe I'll be encouraged to do more in the future.
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They are capybaras (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capybara), "the largest living rodent in the world," according to Wiki. (And who would want to be confronted with the largest dead rodent? :o )
Correct, of course. That link you posted had some interesting information. Apparently, capybara sightings are common in Florida (never saw one in all the years I lived there). Another interesting factoid -- they're pictured on a Uruguayan coin, which has to make them the only rodent featured on currency.
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Correct, of course. That link you posted had some interesting information. Apparently, capybara sightings are common in Florida (never saw one in all the years I lived there). Another interesting factoid -- they're pictured on a Uruguayan coin, which has to make them the only rodent featured on currency.
(https://cdn3.volusion.com/aujxd.ayqsr/v/vspfiles/photos/623932043244-2.jpg?1417450529)
(https://cdn3.volusion.com/aujxd.ayqsr/v/vspfiles/photos/623932062368-2.jpg?1418023495)
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;D Rats!
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This is one of the best, most interesting off topic threads here on the CE Forum. Lots of great images.
I haven’t been to Maine since August and stopped to take these in Windham. The weather was nice, a little cold.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/d353ef3cfe7393496163a84d0e8e60b1.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/4afaf47a411ba3a545f1954cd15ce3d5.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/769e0d8d2313d788836145ded559b95c.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/5b26b8d3ae0b1649ad13336de6345320.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/c97f0e6a483eabccc7898ff587a98060.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/36d7f20bd5928b32d9bc904a0aec25ac.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/d5bcf0a23979b204ea63e68dac7188f6.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/0d5067095efcf561ee3433a465d709d7.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171126/6be8f1df457204c9ab7af1ddd4a2e72f.jpg)
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You live in a really picturesque area, so you're really lucky to have so much opportunity for great photography. I do like these pics a lot, but I notice that when you zoom in, you see more grain and they're a bit out of focus. Are these taken from the iPad, or your phone? Maybe you could put a camera on your Christmas list. I'm not criticizing at all, or I hope it doesn't sound that way. But, a camera will really help you develop your eye and you'll get better results too.
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Thanks, Matt. No, man, no offense taken, none at all. I use my iPhone so yeah, maybe I’ll try keeping my iPad handy going forward. Thanks for the advice. Glad you like the pics.
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Does the iPad have a better camera than the iPhone? ??? I suppose it would depend on the model for each.
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Quality probably isn't going to be much different between iPad and iPhone. What I meant to say to Jed Cooper is that since you like photography, and you live in such a beautiful area, get a camera... not one connected to a phone or tablet. Not only will it help you develop your eye just by looking through the lens, but you'll get better results. If you go with a DSLR, you'll be able to get extra creative with your camera. But, even just a point-and-shoot camera will give better results.
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On my way back from Alaska, I had a few hours layover in Seattle. I only had a few hours, and there wasn't much time to explore the area, but I knew the spots I wanted to hit, so stuck with those. Seattle was beautiful, and I'm convinced that I was there on the most beautiful day Seattle ever had, and the most beautiful sunset anyone there has ever seen. It was pure luck, and it will go down as one of my favorite photography days ever.
This is from Kerry Park, the best vantage point to view two iconic figures in one shot: one man-made, the other not:
(https://i.imgur.com/vAS20I4.jpg)
The only thing I could have wished for on this little layover was that the crane ruining my shot wasn't there that day. But, oh well...
This view was from the highway where there was a traffic jam. With traffic completely stopped, I had time to get a few shots of the Great Wheel.
(https://i.imgur.com/ESU2ZAF.jpg)
Mt. Rainier from Seacrest Park:
(https://i.imgur.com/xwp1MwX.jpg)
I'll save a few for another post. I'm running low on photos to share. ;)
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No, no, the crane in that first shot is great! It provides a pure horizontal to contrast with all the verticals, and helps organize the composition between the natural (trees in left lower foreground, mountain in right middle background) and the man-made (the cityscape proper). It's a great photo.
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No, no, the crane in that first shot is great! It provides a pure horizontal to contrast with all the verticals, and helps organize the composition between the natural (trees in left lower foreground, mountain in right middle background) and the man-made (the cityscape proper). It's a great photo.
:) Thanks for your unique viewpoint and your artistic and intelligent way of looking at this shot (a great combination). You've helped me like it a little better.
This is the same park (Seacrest Park) as the last photo in the post above. I had these two spots in mind for photographing the skyline and wanted to shoot both spots in day and night lighitng. So after getting Kerry Park in daylight, I came back to Seacrest Park for day shots, and stayed until the city lights came on. As I wrote above, I saw the most beautiful sunset I believe Seattle has ever had.
(https://i.imgur.com/2jX8MIk.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/dx2TW1D.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/dhnz1tU.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/xRRUSGm.jpg)
A couple more shots still to come...
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That was a gorgeous sunset! And the silhouetted guy with the pipe in the next to last shot makes it really special.
One more thing about the shot with the crane in it: It ties that view to a specific moment in time. Nowadays practically any photograph of a recognizable scene is like thousands of others that thousands of other people with cameras have shot over a period of months or years or decades ... in the case of natural features and the world's great man-made monuments, centuries even. Well, no more than a century and a half or so, if we're talking photographs, but you get the idea. That view of Mount Rainier from Kerry Park, for instance ... without half trying, I found these:
View of Mt Rainier from Kerry Park (https://www.google.com/search?q=view+of+mt+rainier+from+kerry+park&num=100&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi5wen75-zXAhUJPN8KHWkCCu4QsAQIJg&biw=1439&bih=914)
But that crane was lying athwart that view only for a brief moment of the historical record. And you captured it.
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(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/0efa2b41ae0ccc9ddc4163fe4b9a7298.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/c2e5ced6bafab0fa1aa79722cb3c30e3.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/b5417637994c7f3f50ccdff253747191.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/17c333899b346f1a22d4f2e2c1b6959d.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/3647b0520ada40507f658089491c06ad.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/d6290d6c16d128d15cc4797b3ef0f6b1.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/a4af1ba0f82b0699dd05d36774f1e879.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/8d94ad684d6e3ad5f993c7c2b44675f6.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/aa49cbb011aac30c97b8d0df7f8c10b5.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/195ac753236d98b38e4e1029766e4816.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/d0b9a31b1992b9b35a3c34e608b6986f.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/3bc80fd6dafc7d9d084d28f0672218f3.jpg)
Naples, Maine. Earlier today. First time using my iPad to take photos. Not sure how much space these would take up, I chose the smallest size when posting. This is where my dad spent his last days and I’m in the process of selling.
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(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171210/d0b9a31b1992b9b35a3c34e608b6986f.jpg)
I think this is your best shot yet. Nice composition. You have an interesting subject (the cabin) and good focus. Nice framing with the snow flocked trees.
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Thank you. 🙂
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I think it's more of a matter of needing dark skies to see them ... The sky is too light in the far north in the summer months. But auroras can occur year-round.
https://www.theaurorazone.com/about-the-aurora/the-science-of-the-northern-lights/the-best-time-to-see-the-northern-lights
I've had thoughts of taking a journey to northern Scandinavia in the winter just to try to see them, but then ... you can never be sure if they're going to show up, and then the sky has to be clear, as well.
KC! I've got great news for you! :)
From an email I got today:
Winter Norway - Northern Lights Promise: Winter is a special time to explore Norway's pristine, wild landscapes. The ground is covered in pure-white snow and the air is fresh, crisp, and pure. Clusters of cozy houses glow on the shores like embers. In winter you’ll also get the Northern Lights Promise: For 12-day Classic Roundtrip voyages from November through February, Hurtigruten is so confident that the Northern Lights will make an appearance that if they don't appear during your cruise, they will give you a 6- or 7- Classic Voyage free of charge for the following winter season.
More info here:
https://www.cruisenorway.com/explore/12-day-round-trip-coastal-norway-from-hurtigruten?utm_source=cc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cc-email-cnsolotraveler120218
Exactly what is needed: A guarantee! Do it!
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KC! I've got great news for you! :)
From an email I got today:
More info here:
https://www.cruisenorway.com/explore/12-day-round-trip-coastal-norway-from-hurtigruten?utm_source=cc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cc-email-cnsolotraveler120218
Exactly what is needed: A guarantee! Do it!
Tempting. But summer would be the best time to plan it. Right now, with temperatures in NYC in the single digits and teens, and a "Nor'easter" snowstorm coming in a couple of days ... I'm not sure I want to go on a wintertime cruise, even with Northern Lights! :o
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The morning of February 14, 2018 finds me at a doctor’s appointment across the street from Revere Beach.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/8f06dbbbbf7bebc46317678ad91e1fdd.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/039a07c05113c7af2a01982594b5c390.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/2932b0b3a9db2c1c9b8fe35c1c4ad7e0.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/142cd4f5736438f4a17168e67956d710.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/39cd985f78fe8620adeb7e5676c12ef6.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/736b3912dff977200662f3d2662c46a6.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/ab823f95bb5d1697271e62e7771e0d4e.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/32cc244536228851334122f0a9e87420.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/83f5a1c699ef46f50b49e9fcf6afe58d.jpg)
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A few quick phone camera pics from our Snow Day in New York City today:
Maison Kayser, the French bakery café where I took a break (inside) when I was going stir crazy ... They may have been a bit overly optimistic about the weather on the first full day of spring:
(https://i.imgur.com/DbTV5sV.jpg)
Pigeons have to make a living too, and they don't get a Snow Day:
(https://i.imgur.com/23uA2H4.jpg)
The witch hazel in my building's front yard has been blooming for a while now. Today it was probably asking itself "Why?"
(https://i.imgur.com/KpDOH6U.jpg)
My building's private garden ... across the courtyard is our sister building. This was taken at about 4 PM today.
(https://i.imgur.com/IGJWIwh.jpg)
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River’s Edge, Medford, MA. March 23, 2018. Spring battles through the final moments of winter.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180323/2f245d820e611677592739d3f2d7668a.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180323/fcb7b7c5152cc1f33dea14efa7db59be.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180323/1744b5dfd7872a19046e62d7d7e0d32f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180323/a9a824c5fef3c2110b5bce3f6d266f30.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180323/37c679bef0de6fefe3a415d44fa6ad6b.jpg)
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So much snow! Meanwhile in Tennessee
(https://i.imgur.com/l6dpIvF.jpg)
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^ I hear them calling in Central Park, even in the snow, but haven't managed to glimpse one yet.
Great photo, Matt! :)
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Look who I caught wandering through my backyard this afternoon...
(https://i.imgur.com/wLxl56U.jpg)
She had a mate hanging back in the woods a bit -- couldn't get a good pic of him.
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Here's her mate:
(https://i.imgur.com/wtKy3Q1.jpg)
It was snowing in Tennessee today, so that would make this a.....
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Great pics!
It was snowing in Tennessee today, so that would make this a.....
??? Snowy day in Tennessee? Snowy turkeys in Tennessee? Early Thanksgiving weather in Tennessee?
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C'mon, it's too easy! Someone help her! ;D
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Snowbird ???
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???
Temperature's risin....
Fever is high.....
Can't see no future....
Can't see no sky.
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???
Temperature's risin....
Fever is high.....
Can't see no future....
Can't see no sky.
Cold turkey has got me.... on the run
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180408/3a19c6d51985822c9ad517d5b7c45509.jpg)
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Ahhh, of course. 😎
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Cold turkey has got me.... on the run
Give that man some
(https://img.thewhiskyexchange.com/540/brbon_wil25.jpg)
And that cold turkey did have me on the run.... to get my camera before they scurried off.
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Pah, a pop culture reference. Can't expect me to get those.
Though, of course, the expression "cold turkey" is not unknown to me in other contexts. I really should have gotten that one ... might have, if you had said "It's 33° in Tennessee today," or something of the sort. I kept envisioning snow-covered turkeys.
(https://i.imgur.com/MtPx0Y9l.jpg)
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That is one sad looking... and cold... turkey.
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This House Finch family has built their nest on the top of one of the columns on my front porch. This spot houses a nest every Spring, but this is the first time the birds haven't been too skittish for photos at feeding time.
(https://i.imgur.com/08HLYId.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/eBAMyWw.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/EVTarXn.jpg)
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Awwwwwwwwwwwww! :)
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A couple more from outside Dad’s cabin in Naples, Maine recently, April 27. I took more but only wanted to include the best.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180519/e128d7c9c1a83491ead76c24305549e9.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180519/2bcfa2788892b87ab1cb3063c3fc9f61.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180519/cea3cc6d2c20c2a44b9a3634819a5df7.jpg)
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Looking good, Jed. I haven't traveled anywhere lately to do any special photography. But, there's so much to photograph without even leaving town. I photographed the birds in my front porch nest every morning to see the changes each day brings. They left the nest this morning. I had just taken this last one yesterday -- testing the wings.
(https://i.imgur.com/ztLEuOM.jpg)
Now that they're gone, I was going to pull the nest down and clean that area. But, a friend said the breeding Finches may not be done for the season, so I'll hold off until Fall.
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Thanks, Matt. I’m curious to see more of those birds.
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Sorry, I didn’t realize you had posted others of those birds. I just scrolled back a little and saw them. Very nice.
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Revere Beach. Wednesday, May 30, 2018.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180602/057483df709455846502654d97e76a13.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180602/9173f6e74028c8228e81b57f7192b690.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180602/682301a400a8000d4db7a2d8fd381c7a.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180602/a24840e37af7a5bec5e6bdb64a778971.jpg)
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Here's a shot I took tonight in the garden of my building with my phone camera. I find I can get much better pictures with it by using the Pro mode. There are only a few settings you can adjust, but they really help. (I have a low-level Samsung Galaxy.)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TUmzfoApkiXTIHTiDoKsCyg47OQwXXNoarDZmTnrNtFaA2AT5cTkNmsPBIWHdJvuyU7n6sKX_SAe-5VhDx25zE2UTE79hLque6SLd8SiKK3UhCsz3L7pu2kWT6R3S8eI4abW5OZ5Ag=w2400)
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Say hello to Scooter Cooper. We adopted him for a friend of Tina’s yesterday who’s moving and didn’t want him placed in a shelter. He’s hypoallergenic so that’s perfect for me since I’m allergic to cats & dogs. I took these yesterday with my phone.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/462f52769ef5d339c6d9690c4e36fccf.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/528a58e64eab8be5fc7ced67a7f4b5ce.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/22f9655d60f1ea523ebdb41919796a67.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/8fb47989a36f6e567e43cd3c7420f965.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/93f1bc41d684fbe8e61b185fff8bc501.jpg)
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Here's a shot I took tonight in the garden of my building with my phone camera. I find I can get much better pictures with it by using the Pro mode. There are only a few settings you can adjust, but they really help. (I have a low-level Samsung Galaxy.)
Very nice! I never played around to find there's a pro mode (I have a Samsung Galaxy also). I'm sure that will help -- I've always gotten pretty sub-par photos with my camera. Great tip.
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(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180703/22f9655d60f1ea523ebdb41919796a67.jpg)
These little terriers always look so happy. Maybe that's because God loves a terrier.
https://www.youtube.com/v/yC8rZq3oKuI
Thanks for sharing!
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Very nice! I never played around to find there's a pro mode (I have a Samsung Galaxy also). I'm sure that will help -- I've always gotten pretty sub-par photos with my camera. Great tip.
Thanks, Matt. Here's a couple more phone cam pix I've gotten lately:
"Manhattanhenge" effect on June 12, near Columbus Circle:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/vswI7oiAFzTyfGIyumiVlOuOqq2taf67l7jE7XfZMIT8K7CGq5JXo1_qhMapd9eYp6q2TH6uo9T02ljBtKpnaavrp52aWea952g70JqcXiWjbBmupJ5uL-mwMIRgGvcJPbK8C9FS6A=w2400)
A bit past the peak Manhattanhenge days, on June 25, West 40s:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/9cumeSVtUwuXr1J5ess66BHABrOH5E4Zczv8KNIaIDAewbK-Vp7JJHGhJ5jXgMgzFX4Icoah28fKu2TUixEQVi7_zcTslM8XPVi3PIib7z8JPS3SVw1fi336XnjzwiAlRXw2RUQ7pg=w2400)
Midday, overhead shot in Union Square Park, June 16:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/mCktO9FOG7sir4j1Jmw0eDlsBazwgNOqc3miGACccQdLF2NvfS8sT-JvTmdW1uGszxWpBNnBGitekMgIz0dB3lvrAEyt8qIMfK4m0uCvGJNnhG87wMtJxR-wjo6x1YrlUYlUgbxtaA=w2400)
Finally (no pro effects on this one) ... what could be cooler than a pit bull in shades? (Today, Seventh Ave. and 51st)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/KXhZyLPpR5FQPmYT7YcWOnjbI5avzUkHjtAxIT23UoGiR0DJgQPuqxphZMh2480pmuBhr735DLjGDAXXrt6iou-zG-EHT-qrct0tXKM0Yn4ntvI9hkS5ppfVv-iJ7mCC0atNIVzguQ=w2400)
PS, that reminds me ... Cute pup, Jed. :)
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Love these, KC. The Manhattanhenge photos are spectactular.
Been traveling, and this was yesterday at the New River Gorge Bridge, WV:
(https://i.imgur.com/1YSvviy.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/P0zkHKo.jpg)
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Nice! That last one reminds me of when my mother (an art teacher) was teaching me about perspective. Not much traffic on those tracks, I reckon?
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Bridges are my favorite thing to photograph, and there's a lot of pics that I've posted here in this thread of different bridges. I have a few more of the New River Gorge Bridge, now that I'm home and have gone through all the photos. If anyone is interested, the New River Gorge Bridge (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_River_Gorge_Bridge) was the longest single span bridge in the world when it was built, but is now the fourth longest. It's also one of the tallest (#3 in the U.S.). On October 20th, if you want to base jump off the bridge, it's closed to vehicles for just that. Somewhat tempting to go back to photograph that, but I wouldn't be jumping off. It's a long drive though from middle Tennessee.
(https://i.imgur.com/tPA2zuY.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/CbSqlvc.jpg)
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As an art lover, I am studying theater/cinema and last week we filmed a movie here in my city called "Intolerância" (Intolerance). It is a bold script written by our teacher that is independent movie maker. He chose the subway tracks as the set. It was great to take part in this.
(https://i.imgur.com/2mJQBt6.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/eoYCRau.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/PFAqIwK.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/I3m6Oqa.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/s9ywO3w.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Emjwsod.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/2pDEWNg.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/cHJwn1n.jpg)
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Terrific, Aline! 8)
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Bridges are my favorite thing to photograph, and there's a lot of pics that I've posted here in this thread of different bridges. I have a few more of the New River Gorge Bridge, now that I'm home and have gone through all the photos. If anyone is interested, the New River Gorge Bridge (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_River_Gorge_Bridge) was the longest single span bridge in the world when it was built, but is now the fourth longest. It's also one of the tallest (#3 in the U.S.). On October 20th, if you want to base jump off the bridge, it's closed to vehicles for just that. Somewhat tempting to go back to photograph that, but I wouldn't be jumping off. It's a long drive though from middle Tennessee.
(https://i.imgur.com/tPA2zuY.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/CbSqlvc.jpg)
These are great, Matt!
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The first post on this page is of the nest of baby Finches. Today I noticed one of the babies is grown and returned to hang out on my front porch. I know this is one of the babies because the mother bird fed him beak-to-beak like she did when he was a baby. I guess he's not fully adept at finding his own food yet. I went to get my camera, but she'd flown off. He stayed for a while longer.
(https://i.imgur.com/dWnaOUD.jpg)
And a few pics from my road trip. I drove through West Virginia up to Pennsylvania, stayed a few days in the Pocanoes, then visited my dad at his picturesque home on the Delaware Bay in NJ. This is the night of the All Star Game:
(https://i.imgur.com/xqaOXIm.jpg)
And this was the next morning, just before a good storm:
(https://i.imgur.com/APECj6H.jpg)
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Does anyone recognize this critter ... snapped on a sunflower at the Greenmarket today?
(https://i.imgur.com/kv7HzSQ.jpg)
I have more pix, if it would help.
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That is a really great pic. O0
I have no idea what that is though.
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Thanks, Matt! :)
A gardener friend couldn't identify it either.
I meant to add a comment to the first of your three lovely photos in your previous post, above: When you see two grown-up birds acting like mother and baby (one begging, the other occasionally passing him a tidbit), it's not necessarily so. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allofeeding
But in your case, it probably is one of "your" finches ... come back to hang out on his very favorite front porch!
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Hot August Day 8/17/18
Hawes Pool/edean Recreation Area in Norwood, MA
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/009aa3772adc389042637d917053dfa9.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/834f87c3996c0268bdd36d6d73d6f249.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/bf20b4d62a57bccc1c4434742cec87d0.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/8b918ca52565e557e3363661de18ba9d.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/31aac51610fcd6a90a13634fe6f1ba82.jpg)
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More...
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/66d03336107773f276537a5a5d4ea0be.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/d4e98f386f641fe3bf14107b20be08de.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/32bb1d4b8a4592d5ca923145c3b1b4f7.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/80266f920a8d9e1d6245bf54d5babe35.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/5c4223c978f8ccbc50a35ba7c6835451.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/775afbd33a33cd93c484928015eca95b.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/3fd5e143653facecaaa33d8a23822bf4.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/0a919fca11004e23a7905dcf3b349d1d.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/6ef649034e370ff357308d2736bfc50b.jpg)
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Not quite finished yet...
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/f90e250603a779a4dca341e15471d5c8.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/1524274ad2ff1c4dd51f340cb41a7bd6.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/402ef9509f55a1a738287ca58656c666.jpg)
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And finally, last but certainly by no means least... the world-renowned photographer (not!) with his soul mate, Tina.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180818/2d86fdf291eb920d05161817972e050d.jpg)
Tina’s son got us tickets to the Patriots/Eagles preseason game Thursday night. Not wanting to travel all the way home, we stayed overnight. Tina spent the first part of her childhood growing up in neighboring Norwood, so we stopped by so she could show me places she and her family lived and where they went to school.
In the first set of photos, I couldn’t resist capturing images from the middle of the creek. The next set of photos represents my fascination with a couple of old trees we passes by. Afterwards,
I had to take a few landscape images.
Tina had a great time revisiting her old neighborhood and I enjoyed all the stories she lovingly shared with me.
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I just got back from a trip out to San Diego and Tijuana. I didn't do much photography on the trip, but found the border wall an interesting subject.
(https://i.imgur.com/KLkRoR2.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/y7EGasW.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/W41Tr9L.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/RZ4QFeO.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/4ucBAfX.jpg)
I saw on the Travel Channel that the Caesar Salad (http://tps://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/11/where-was-the-caesar-salad-invented_n_6839542.html) originated in Tijuana, so tracked down the famous restaurant. They still roll the salad cart around and make the salad tableside. It was great. Actually, all the food I had in Tijuana was excellent.
(https://i.imgur.com/mmw8IqK.jpg)
The beach was crowded, lots of vendors walking up and down the beach selling toys, clam juice, or corn. The most memorable thing about the beach was that there were gold specks mixed in with the sand and water -- I took a photo, but it's a pretty boring shot. So, I'll share this one instead -- I find humor in it:
(https://i.imgur.com/XChMXUG.jpg)
Leaving the beach, you walk up about 50-60 steps, and on one of the landings a man serenaded his sweetheart. I hoped for a candid shot, but looks like I was caught.
(https://i.imgur.com/07LJUxz.jpg)
Here's a night street scene:
(https://i.imgur.com/1kcKz3P.jpg)
One of the more interesting things to see walking along the strip in downtown Tijuana was milk jug art:
(https://i.imgur.com/EdkJOLd.jpg)
The residential scene:
(https://i.imgur.com/WHXPibq.jpg)
For a Clint tie-in, our hotel was on Agua Caliente. Who can name the movie in which this name appears?
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If that's what it looks like 150 years later ... Agua Caliente hasn't changed much! ;D
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Remember this? I wondered what the heck it was.
Does anyone recognize this critter ... snapped on a sunflower at the Greenmarket today?
(https://i.imgur.com/kv7HzSQ.jpg)
I have more pix, if it would help.
I never got an answer, here or anywhere else, but I made another version of this photo of the little fellow my phone's lock screen wallpaper, so I look at him quite often. And yesterday I had the odd feeling that I was seeing a photo I'd taken in the pages of a magazine, when I opened my new Natural History magazine ... and saw this (obviously NOT my photo, but eerily similar):
(https://i.imgur.com/FoxZSWD.jpg)
Natural History identifies it as the larva of Harmonia axyridis, the Asian ladybird beetle. If he got to grow up before somebody stomped on him, he would look like this (or possibly a variety with fewer spots):
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Malb1.jpg)
By John Alan Elson (http://www.3dham.com/animal/malb.html), via Wikimedia Commons
So now I know!
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Very cool! I looked for him too, and couldn't find him. Your picture may be of a younger larva with his translucent legs.
(https://bugguide.net/images/cache/HLG/ZKL/HLGZKL8Z5LVHUHLRWHHR4HAHIHOH5HZREHYHEHUZPHJHIHYHWHFH4LBZEHVZML3H6HBZ2HZRILBZ2HBH8H8ZZLAH6H.jpg)
Now that we know what to google, there's lots of pics of them!
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^ Yup, I was going to post that picture too (it's the one I found that looks the most like my guy) but I thought people would be getting enough of bugs! ;)
The color of the legs may have more to do with what they're going to look like when they grow up (there are a lot of variants) than their age. I'm just guessing at that, though; don't really know if that's the case.
It is an invasive species that only got a foothold in this country in the past couple of decades, but it has now spread so widely that it's considered a threat to native species and biodiversity. Also they tend to invade homes in the wintertime in some localities. They are quite the little wonders at gobbling up aphids, though (why they were imported in the first place).
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(https://i.imgur.com/sJ4Xi0R.jpg)
A spooky scene for Halloween. Reminds me of a Hitchcock film!
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^Nice. Are they turkeys? They'd better not hang around too many weeks after Halloween! ;)
This little fellow has been my luncheon companion for the past week ... the scene is out in front of the Library. And that's my table leg he's ducking under.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/5T6eOsjoJ1FqCGEgAbZ4yNt7-A10Yd1ba6gEsJkT_AUIc3fbOfssCMcmlmlDySJd996nwLDZqBRWMxRKwzjQiIorrjvOjp9WnDQ2cvTooIEyZLTCKkAC1yAfR3UChUqwNyS_G7hOoQ=w2400)
He's an Ovenbird. And this little guy is a Gray Catbird:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/iRsSSHEcTHgoBdp4cR2h1glYNE66Yiy-JUI5-_SVasdTOHjqs3AyV29_DlHZz0W5k--Arm08kLZsIKFydhNlGHB3ifpqGb_pgNs6f5n4c_44P0mpOvTHM6pU7N7A7xI4pCHnkeMkCw=w2400)
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^Nice. Are they turkeys? They'd better not hang around too many weeks after Halloween! ;)
They're turkey vultures, and they're safe for Thanksgiving because no one in their right mind would eat one. They're ominous looking birds with a huge wing span. We have a lot of them in my area. They can't kill because their beaks aren't sharp enough, so they have to wait for an animal that's already been killed and already torn apart. They love roadkill. You'll see these appear in rather large flocks like this one wherever there's a carcass.
I've never heard of your two feathered friends. I don't' think we have them this far south.
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Ooh, gotcha on the vultures! :o
EDIT: You should certainly have both Ovenbirds and Gray Catbirds in your neck of the woods. Maybe the turkey vultures got them!
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ovenbird/maps-range
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Gray_Catbird/maps-range
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This is my little blackie. Six months ago, found this cutie on a sidewalk two blocks from my home and took her with me.
So scary in the first days, spent the whole day at the corner of the kitchen.
(https://i.imgur.com/NHRYhJM.jpg)
Some months later, all comfy and feeling the queen of the house.
(https://i.imgur.com/3WYx0PM.jpg)
Nowadays here she is, my beautiful panther.
(https://i.imgur.com/xXjjr6q.jpg)
She is everything a cat is supposed to be... inconvenient, wakes me up in the most inappropriate hours, greedy, stubborn and I just love her. :smitten:
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Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
And just in time for Halloween, too! :D
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And just in time for Halloween, too! :D
Isn't it, KC? :)
Listen the pictures look so big, I tried to post them smaller, I don't know why they look so big.
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I don't think they're too big, at least not on my computer screen. :)
If you want to make them smaller, you can do that with a bit of code.
The URL for an image goes between tags like this: [img ]https://i.imgur.com/NHRYhJM.jpg[/img ] (without the space before each "]").
If you put width= and a number, say about 700 for a nice convenient size, before that first "]", like this ...
[img width=700 ]https://i.imgur.com/NHRYhJM.jpg[/img ] (again, without the space before each "]")
... it will come out smaller, like this:
(https://i.imgur.com/NHRYhJM.jpg)
I hope that helps. And what a nice excuse to post a smaller version of that pic of that adorable kitty! :D
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I don't think they're too big, at least not on my computer screen. :)
Oh, I am glad hearing that, KC.
Thank you very much for the explanation, it looks much better the way you posted. I'll do that next time. ;)
I hope that helps. And what a nice excuse to post a smaller version of that pic of that adorable kitty! :D
I bet you loved to do that. :smitten:
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Celebrity sighting of the day ... :)
(https://i.imgur.com/olUMHCt.jpg)
The Central Park Mandarin Duck! :D
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The Central Park Mandarin Duck! :D
Wow, what a beauty!
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Wow, what a beauty!
Here's another:
(https://i.imgur.com/Wn3F3och.jpg)
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And one more ... can't resist, sorry:
(https://i.imgur.com/QkOhhbgh.jpg)
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Mandarin Duck's pal, the Wood Duck, and a couple of mallard companions:
(https://i.imgur.com/zDWPYtDh.jpg)
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That's a beautiful duck. I've never seen a Mandarin duck before! What is it doing in NYC? Was it brought in?
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Nobody knows what it's doing here, but it's been hanging out in Central Park (mostly) for the past couple of months. Speculation is it may be somebody's pet that flew the coop. At any rate, it's clearly an escapee ... it's banded:
(https://i.imgur.com/ToCTPDRh.jpg)
As the name suggests, they are native to East Asia. To find out more than you ever wanted to know, just Google "Central Park Mandarin Duck." :D
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I recently took a trip out to Vegas (my first time there) and drove across the desert to LA/Malibu/Hollywood for a few days. The weather for this trip was awful. It was cold (it snowed in Vegas a couple days after we left) and rained on and off the whole trip. What I was most looking forward to was the drive across the desert from Vegas to LA. I envisioned great photo opportunities, but it was just pouring most of the way. However, there were a few minutes where the rain stopped long enough to get some shots, and even better -- the clouds were amazing. So these are not your typical desert photos. I hope one day to do the drive again and expect to actually have blue sunny skies.
I thought Vegas was really cool. I loved how over-the-top everything was, the Great Pyramids, New York City, Paris. The hotel where we stayed was the most beautiful hotel I've ever stayed at. And of course we went to see The Beatles LOVE Cirque du Soleil, which was also great. It was a quick trip in Vegas, but I still managed to lose some money in the casino (I expected to) and take a few shots of the more famous sights. But not too much venturing around on foot this trip, so these are just pretty typical shots.
(https://i.imgur.com/iKrtP9O.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/BDBBbZU.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/eeA6E0z.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/BwTYRAF.jpg)
This is from the top of the world's largest ferris wheel (The High Roller):
(https://i.imgur.com/s3pcrcj.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/irC09Iz.jpg)
Speaking of the Beatles:
(https://i.imgur.com/WH0AHNx.jpg)
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And, my favorite part of the trip... the drive through the desert.
(https://i.imgur.com/iaYjp2o.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/WX2MSma.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/tOAFJob.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/OkzR5mu.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/M7qQsna.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/h8Q69hh.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/AbraPe3.jpg)
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I'm from Jersey, so beach and cliffs TOGETHER aren't natural to me. So I was pretty psyched by the view from the house where we stayed in Malibu (it's just about sunset). The line under the clouds is the ocean. The sky/ocean seem to blend in this photo:
(https://i.imgur.com/FYMOHEq.jpg)
Here's another brief moment without rain at Malibu Beach:
(https://i.imgur.com/w21bUkY.jpg)
Cacti and wildflowers growing wild near the beach.
(https://i.imgur.com/1KbUDRZ.jpg)
The rain would start in about 30 seconds from this shot:
(https://i.imgur.com/K1mHHqL.jpg)
We headed out to LA/Hollywood. Since it had rained the day before, the smog had lifted and you could get great shots of LA. Last time I was there, I was much closer to the skyline and it was just a haze.
(https://i.imgur.com/RBLLq9j.jpg)
I've always wanted to see the Capitol Records building. For those who don't already know this, it's built to resemble a stack of albums on a turntable:
(https://i.imgur.com/op0HvOW.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/nEeLnas.jpg)
And one more shot... this is the only time I've ever seen the Grand Canyon, and it was from the plane.
(https://i.imgur.com/G3FMhS9.jpg)
A proper visit to the Grand Canyon is a bucket list item for sure.
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A proper visit to the Grand Canyon is a bucket list item for sure.
For me too ... if only I weren't scared of heights! :o
Those are great shots, Matt! 8)
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Kane’s Donuts opened up a new shop on Rte 1 in Saugus, Ma. The location used to be the site for mini-golf, arcade, batting cages and an ice cream shop. It was decided to keep the landmark orange dinosaur.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/b1da9b2695860e3e1704e8df34e93ed3.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/99884d745ffec1fcc9d0341b792083cb.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/884b00336a89328924133a8fe7ef22e2.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/1c215cab114aeba85942878bd5a012a5.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/ebd1ab1f81b3f3a65588b4922ec7aba7.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/b86a52e338573e46ce4ab42c527ce5d6.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/485d9289b7f980dfeebb7bae6c4f1ce5.jpg)
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The only thing I miss about Revere is my kids when I’m not with them.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/1c2dafd264eafe89a1b0381c828c9f0b.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/c01d9479bceb18c6b28acf52f217cebf.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/7cfb29b332894d499b2c8f01cf88aea6.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/1391bb69930264e79fa3436031334c0b.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/7b958134c3b126ef6fe035b1616cf04d.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/f1dc7a2f6128c07df8d7c128014cc3fc.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/8b126e761561a410fe994ee45db60f04.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/592b3a69c3037d2d04476265379ee312.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/2b0365fb8bca25883589ae9c83275c82.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/54ac6fa46d3e4bad75ed30fc398eb3ca.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/ecde2e598158c4d17e55ca69058a81b2.jpg)(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190315/4d3f62953348b6b49c4cbfc3ad54f11c.jpg)
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The most photogenic bird in New York since the Central Park Mandarin Duck ... the Bryant Park American Woodcock.
Bryant Park is the large green space in Midtown Manhattan just behind the Library. I shot these on my lunch hour today. It was his lunch hour also! (They eat worms.)
(https://i.imgur.com/CBGPesn.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/BvHbigZ.jpg)
Why did the woodcock cross the road?
(https://i.imgur.com/3tr613F.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/ROMJjdk.jpg)
I'm told they are migrating, resting here briefly and will continue on north. :)
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That's an unusual bird. It reminds me of the sandpipers down the beach, but with different coloring.
I've got another nest of four or five baby robins in the same spot again this year over my front porch. They hatched while I was away last week. I'm not sure if it's the same momma bird, or if one of the baby birds from last year returned and built a new nest. But, I seem to have a new nest of Robins in that same spot every year about this time.
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(https://i.imgur.com/57ZOx3C.jpg)
I've been traveling around and taking photos, but not really having the time to go through them. My father's health was in decline, and I was spending more and more time with him in Florida. I took this picture last month at a Marco Island beach bar where we had dinner, drinks and a beautiful sunset, complete with jumping dolphins, and of course lots of gulls, herons, pelicans and egrets. This turned out to be our last sunset together. Unfortunately, he passed away this weekend, watching his beloved Eagles, in complete peace. I was looking through my photos for pictures of my last trip with him, and this one really touched me -- because I feel like that bird on the rock. He looks so alone, and so small in a great big world. And that's how it feels when you realize you're an adult orphan. You're never prepared to lose a parent, even when you think you are. This picture just seems to embody all those feelings, so I wanted to share.
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Aww, Matt, I am so sorry! But what a beautiful picture to remember him by.
And yes, I can well believe you are feeling a bit like that poor lonely bird just now. You are so right that you're never prepared to lose a parent even when you think you are.
I'm thinking of you, wish I could be another bird perching on that rock so it would feel a bit less sad and lonely.
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Very sorry to hear that, Matt.
That is a great picture.
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My condolences to you and your family Matt.
Beautiful picture.
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(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191214/3011cf15097d0bb900146dc1b86f8fd0.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191214/e2664aa950d1339a8c0a3ca2b45bea5a.jpg)
The first snowfall of the season, taken from the building I work in, located in Medford, Massachusetts.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191214/b7b364fa2d583c8afdefc8d4b35e7e2c.jpg)
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Matt,
I’m sorry about your dad, man. May God Bless him, and may he Rest In Peace. My heartfelt prayers and condolences go out to you and your family.
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Red Reflections, January 2, 2020 atRiver’s Edge in Medford, MA
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200102/98540c87a74cf17bfe427b7e5654b24e.jpg)
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That's a nice pic, Brian. I edited the size so the picture didn't skew the page. Happy New Year!
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Thanks, Matt, I appreciate your compliment and help. 🙂
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A Humbling Experience February 7, 2020
Walking With God
I went for a walk today, continuing physical therapy for my right knee. I look up to the sky and see an opening through the trees. All at once I feel vulnerable, yet humbled feeling the presence of God. I am not a religious man, but thank Him for this day, for letting me know He is always here, thinking of Him or not. The comfort and joy I briefly felt is almost indescribable. My outlook is usually the glass is half empty. Looking up, past the trees and into the sky and feeling God’s presence helped me to see, albeit briefly, that the glass is, indeed, half full.
🙂
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200208/14eae7d814c2a80a8d6346f89b156c4d.jpg)
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A Contemplative Walk
Pine Grove Cemetery
February 19, 2020
I change my route today, to extend my walking therapy. I decide to go through a local cemetery where I live in Salem, New Hampshire. I’ve passed it dozens of times since I’ve moved here, but this is my first visit. At first, what I feel is somber. I am always humbled when I enter a cemetery. The gloomy feeling of finality is always present. I look around and silently bless the dearly departed. It’s sunny out today so I decide to capture some images of nature. The sun is vibrant and alive in its’ glowing, powerful presence. While this is the final resting place for many, the sun watches over them and the living as always. I notice some dead branches and trees along the way and feel thankful God has granted me another day of existence.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/d96c05ed839f02f8021c3b9748533fca.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/5d3169a2be4ea290a61589d9b51c0d53.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/b43e389242517434409ae343e6e98c0f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/5e678accf7616e761d7f80ca4b694bc6.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/ab181a43d2f011dbdc23350b2c7785db.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/ace02b74502247db234a7b9bb41d1e60.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/bcd7b4f3a9385bde866309d8f82ccdd4.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/d772f1bba3e67d69855b9e0865f1a17f.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/79c3f2feedd84a25ed53c34c1a9cf683.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/2ad45d9c3fb976d47e0bf05f55f083d6.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/4e197295cf55ea1a58eceb3ff464adf6.jpg) (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200220/3159474e655290ffaa87f69ddb0186f0.jpg)
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Nice day out for a walk.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/67ac834ad5da19d5b1739830b16591ed.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/7ef5f5d4cc242c7ca3dd87d25339ce1f.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/8e27027b95d59eb3d18d925888d3e65c.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/c709fd2f393a415f7df15f07f46a925b.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/7cdc2e673e86e1d662a985ce38aba1b9.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/618c79a04a5fc9d9c89e2b60036aae39.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/fe386504a338342fadcebe966fb7ffaf.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200412/ea854cccc7781b08a768661f0819d585.jpg)
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Ooh! Ooh! Parhelia! :D (Second-to-last photo.) Schubert wrote a song about that!
https://www.youtube.com/v/_vvWqmKMyyU
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God Bless the Dearly Departed. 🙏🙏
Today was a day of paying respects. While visiting my brother Sion, I remembered the actor John Cazale was buried in Malden. Different cemetery but I thought I’d go pay my respects there, too. Very easy to find.
Something very special happened today, for the first time. I truly believe Mike said hello in his own way to me. As I was heading out, upon starting my car Led Zeppelin was playing on the radio! Yeah, Mike! Rock on!
Mom, Uncle Fred, Sion, Mike, Grandma & Grandpa I’ll have the biggest hugs for you when we meet again. You are loved and missed every day. God Bless. 🙏❤️🙏
I’ve only included the gravestone of Cazale because I’ve posted the others before so instead decided to share images of the sun I captured from each cemetery. Oh yeah, the image of the radio playing Led Zeppelin, too, that goes along with my story about my friend Mike.
Take care and stay safe, everybody. 🙏🙂
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200504/3a0129a86bb1b26939c744873940fffb.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200504/d69ee57632089d96ed572ab6bb17f0f5.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200504/9ea490bee69e487ba67934836a9edf8c.jpg)
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200504/225d3cb09c07c4666ab4e4e9c934b5d3.jpg)
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Since COVID, I've barely left the house. But, we have a huge sunflower field just 20 minutes from home. It's about 80 acres of black oil sunflowers, the tallest are over 7-8 feet tall, with flower heads nearly about a foot across.
(https://i.imgur.com/vxd9Qd6.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/iaurV29.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/tkjJ7kW.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/WtSKu3o.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/jKBXTNJ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/hCZ80XT.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8jkq11B.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/99ipoBz.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/qtLQryB.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/kg3piqB.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/GWTINne.jpg)
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Impressive shots of the bee!
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They're all gorgeous! :D
What equipment did you use? Were you that close on the bee/flowerhead shots? If so ... how'd you get up there?
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They're all gorgeous! :D
What equipment did you use? Were you that close on the bee/flowerhead shots? If so ... how'd you get up there?
You have an eye -- good catch figuring out how to shoot that bee from above,when they're 7-8 feet tall. These photos were from 3 shoots -- one was at sunset, which are pics 5-8 plus the pic of the bee flying away from the flower. I went back the next day in the morning to get bluer skies -- that's the rest of them except for the macro (close up) shots. The close-up of the bee and the extreme closeup of the flower head were taken in my front yard where I propped up some cut sunflowers from the field (they sell them by the stem) and waited for the bees that love my hibiscus bush to discover the sunflowers, which they did. So I was able to shoot down into the heads with a long zoom lens. Here's a pic from that same shoot -- on a hibiscus flower.
(https://i.imgur.com/orcIeed.jpg)
My camera is a Nikon D7200, and for the macro photos, I used a zoom with a maximum length of 150mm.
To get proper photos of the field, I think I'd need either a crane or a drone -- impossible to get any sense of the scale of the field from standing level with the field.
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I love the macro shots! If I ever really get into photography, that's what I'd like to do.
Speaking of tall sunflowers, though ... this afternoon, out in Central Park, I saw some that must have been ten feet tall, at least. The flowerheads weren't as big as the ones in your field. It's amazing to think that something can grow that much in a few months, starting from a tiny seed.
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(https://i.imgur.com/kg3piqB.jpg)
That's brilliant. Something you'd see in a wildlife magazine or the like. 8)
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I love the macro shots! If I ever really get into photography, that's what I'd like to do.
Speaking of tall sunflowers, though ... this afternoon, out in Central Park, I saw some that must have been ten feet tall, at least. The flowerheads weren't as big as the ones in your field. It's amazing to think that something can grow that much in a few months, starting from a tiny seed.
They're really amazing. Surprisingly, their beautiful blooms only last (at most) 14 days. This field is announcing the flowers are already drooping and they will close to the public sometime this week. They only opened last Sunday, so just a little over a week. The cut flowers I bought dropped their heads already, so I'm hanging them upside down to dry them out and then will harvest for seeds. I'll attempt to grow them next year myself. I don't expect a great result, but I had a lot of fun photographing them, so I'd like to give it a try.
A funny thing about shooting this field -- it's something I've always wanted to do. I thought I'd have to travel out of state to find a field, and was thrilled to find a local farm open to the public right here. But, I never expected my favorite pics from the shoot to be the macro photos, which you can do with any cut flower in your own yard. I can't help but be a little disappointed in the overall field pictures I took, since they just don't give any sense of scale. Here's one more of an attempt to capture the large field:
(https://i.imgur.com/xI3UYIv.jpg)
That's brilliant. Something you'd see in a wildlife magazine or the like. 8)
Thank you! :)
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That's brilliant. Something you'd see in a wildlife magazine or the like. 8)
Fancy playing a National Geographic photographer that has an affair with a house wife, Matt? Haha!
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Only if the housewife was Barbara Hershey 😉
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Fancy playing a National Geographic photographer that has an affair with a house wife, Matt? Haha!
"The Sunflowers of Madison County"! :D
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"The Sunflowers of Madison County"! :D
;D ;D ;D
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"The Sunflowers of Madison County"! :D
Those are poisonous!
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Incredibly good photos, Matt. Van Gogh did a whole series of paintings of sunflowers.
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Incredibly good photos, Matt. Van Gogh did a whole series of paintings of sunflowers.
Yes, but Matt's are more realistic! ;D
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Just another lovely sunset in London Town 8)
(https://i.imgur.com/gZ3Fing.jpg?1)
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^ Except for the time of day, this could be ...
Earth has not any thing to show more fair:
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.
Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill;
Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!
The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!
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Gorgeous shot!
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Very nice photo, Xichado!
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Walking In Malden
Sunday, September 20, 2020
After my brief hangover passed me by, I went for a walk Sunday afternoon. It was beautiful out. As I approach the baseball diamond on the corner of Bryant and Cross Streets, I?m instantly transported back in time to my junior high years at Lincoln School, which used to be only feet away until it was demolished.
The sight of the grass and the clouds are beautiful as I continue to the walking path, seating area and school markers. Passing them I see flowers at the corner of Cross and Henry Streets, where, in 2015 I lived for 20 months.
Funny where life leads you, whether you choose the path or not. 2015 was not a move by choice but 2020 is. I don?t plan on being where I just located to forever. It?s a gamble, a roll of the dice I had to take because my instinct and gut told me it was the right thing to do, and the right time.
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(https://i.imgur.com/OGvc8zE.jpg)
This week, Mars is as close to us as it will be for 15 years -- and during a full moon it is quite a sight. Check it out tonight, if you can. It actually looks a lot closer to the moon than this zoomed in image makes it appear.
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This is the first I've heard about Mars being visible. I did notice the moon, of course, when I was out a little bit ago.
And that photo is great!
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Nothing spectacular, just inspired to write down the first thoughts that came to me that morning.
God, January 9, 2021
I look out the window this morning and bear witness to God?s presence. It?s in the wind, gently breezing through the trees. It?s in the little squirrel I see scurry by. It?s on the ground with all of His creations. It?s in the beautiful blue sky as I cherish memories of Ma and Dad, Uncle Fred, Uncle Johnny, my grandparents and friend, Mike Sormanti. I am humbled and happy, and thank God for another day.
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I posted some pictures from West Virginia's New River Gorge a few years back when I visited. This is one of the most gorgeous places I've ever been. I noticed that this area is our nation's newest designated National Park!
(https://i.imgur.com/xppaTYm.jpg)
https://www.washingtonian.com/2021/01/15/theres-a-stunning-new-national-park-and-its-just-a-few-hours-from-dc/
Driving just beyond this toward PA, I stopped to get this pic:
(https://i.imgur.com/uWi5Ndx.jpg)
This was taken before I got my Nikon (all around better camera and lenses). So, I needed a little extra photoshopping to make these pics pop. I'm always concerned I over-photoshop, and try not to go too overboard. Lately one of my biggest pet peeves are overly photoshopped images that enlarge the moon or just really distort the subject in some way where it's more art than photo. I just try to get each image to look as beautiful in a shot as it is in person.
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You are a gifted photographer, Matt. This looks like a beautiful place!
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(https://i.imgur.com/KSGlQJs.jpg)
Under 6" of snow and it's still coming down. This is my backyard Cardinal. He's quite a sight with a snowy backdrop.
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(https://i.imgur.com/WBK6pPb.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/jXACmVU.jpg)
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Oh my, Matt! You need to make Christmas cards from those. I'll buy them!
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Oh my, Matt! You need to make Christmas cards from those. I'll buy them!
:smitten: Awwww, thanks.
Cardinals are skittish creatures, and very territorial. I had a Cardinal for several years that would peck at my back sliding glass door every day, seeing his reflection and thinking it was another Cardinal in his yard. Then, on Christmas morning 2019, he suicide bombed one of my back windows. I ran out there hoping he was okay, but his neck was broken. My heart was broken. I knew that bird. So a few months ago, I decided I wanted another cardinal, and started filling a feeder in the back yard, and then after a few weeks, finally, this one appeared. He only showed up once a week or so, and I didn't know enough about Cardinals to realize I had the wrong feeder, and the wrong seed. They like flat feeders or eating off the ground. So I bought a flat feeder, filled it up, and within a few hours, he was here. I fill it a couple of times a day now, and he is here all day now. He doesn't like me or my camera and I have to shoot through windows because he won't come near the feeder if the sliding doors are open. If he sees me (and he always does manage to see me) he flies off. He's been a challenge to both attract and to photograph, so these photos are particularly fulfilling. His wife comes by in the morning. She's as skittish as he is, so I've gotten only average photos of her, but I'm sure I won't give up until I have one I'm happy with.
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Maybe with time you'll get Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal to do this ... :D
https://twitter.com/lorifaithnyc/status/1362151914436231168
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Maybe with time you'll get Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal to do this ... :D
https://twitter.com/lorifaithnyc/status/1362151914436231168
Wow, city birds are much more used to people than my country birds. Mine require at least a 20 to 30 foot buffer zone, and no open doors or windows.
Here's the wife -- our snow is melting, so this is probably as good a picture as I'll be getting of her:
(https://i.imgur.com/rmH2sIC.jpg)
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(https://i.imgur.com/Ine9wZE.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/aS1lqPn.jpg)
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I want a sweater that color! :D (top picture).
What bird is that? The other guys too, for that matter.
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Amazing photos, buddy. Love those action shots of the bird in flight.
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Amazing photos, buddy. Love those action shots of the bird in flight.
Thanks! I keep trying to get action shots, but having to use a long zoom, my lens is slow, so most action shots come out blurry. (You can get fast lenses in long zooms, but they're in the $2,500+ range - usually for pros and sports photographers. The difference in the more expensive lenses is the amount of light that comes into the lens. The more light that can come in, the faster the shutter speed can be, and the quicker the action without blur. If I were to try to increase the shutter speed with my setup, the photos would come out dark.) So, that's another thing I'm actually kind of enjoying -- the challenge of getting these shots with the equipment I have. It's rewarding when you get a good shot.
I want a sweater that color! :D (top picture).
What bird is that? The other guys too, for that matter.
These are Common Grackles, in the Blackbird family. I've had crows/blackbirds, but had not seen these guys until feeding to attract the cardinals. These are the undesirables, or bird society's own "basket of deplorables". These are the birds farmers lose their livelihoods over: the #1 thief of corn and crops in the U.S. If we grew anything in my area, my neighbors would seriously take me to task for attracting these. What's crazy is that when they come in, they come in by the dozen. So at any given time, mostly in the afternoon, I can look outside now and see a Hitchcockian scene in the trees, a few on every branch.
While the birds fighting are both Common Grackles, the more blue one seems to be Purple Grackle. Sometimes I wonder about colorblind ornithologists, since I also have Purple Finchs which are a red hue:
(https://i.imgur.com/h7qe5GP.jpg)
What I like about the fight shot is the little guy sitting there like "I don't see anything" as the seed goes flying around him.
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I love that top picture of the Grackle coming toward the camera! It looks quite fierce.
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I love that top picture of the Grackle coming toward the camera! It looks quite fierce.
They're my backyard bullies. It used to be the Blue Jays, but even they move aside for the Grackles.
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The bird feeder has also attracted this guy:
(https://i.imgur.com/UtqawJF.jpg)
I used to not appreciate squirrels in the feeders until watching that video of the squirrel obstacle course (I posted it elsewhere on the board a few months ago). Now I don't mind that they have their fill -- they gotta eat too. What I liked about this shot is that I swear he's actually smiling as he waits his turn for the seed.
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I've come to appreciate squirrels more in the pandemic. When I'm out in the park, sometimes I stop and watch one scurrying around, just trying to remember where he put that nut. Cute little devils, just trying to make a living like the rest of us.
Oh, and I do know about grackles. I see them in the park too, sometimes. I should have recognized them in the second picture, but the guy in the top picture is a color I've never seen.
This is from the Cornell Ornithology Lab's All About Birds (https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Grackle/id):
The "bronzed grackle" race of the Common Grackle, breeding roughly west of the Appalachians and in New England, has the characteristic bronzy back. Birds of the Southeast, from North Carolina to Louisiana, often called the "Florida grackle," are darker green on the back rather than bronzy, and they're purple on the belly. An intermediate race along the Eastern seaboard is sometimes called the purple grackle.
And this is the picture they supply of a "purple grackle" ... I like yours better!
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/assets/photo/71542621-720px.jpg)
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The grackle seem to have moved on (thank goodness). I haven't seen hide nor feather of them in a few days now. The Jays are once again the rulers of the yard. They don't look so tough in these photos.
(https://i.imgur.com/aLa38SL.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/XZDjwLX.jpg)
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Fantastic, Matt! Thanks for sharing. While writing letters recently, I noticed a hungry critter outside, too. I captured multiple images, but this is the best one that doesn?t show the inside reflection of where I?m sitting. This is at my girlfriend?s place in Melrose, Massachusetts.
I hope everybody is doing well. 🙂
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Coming in for a landing! (Tufted Titmouse)
(https://i.imgur.com/PWsZoQv.jpg)
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Coming in for a landing! (Tufted Titmouse)
(https://i.imgur.com/PWsZoQv.jpg)
Cute! :)
Those are the little guys the Central Park birdwatchers most often get to eat out of their hands ...
https://twitter.com/theaterlover1/status/1365461210284642304
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EvMXu0NXAAAq4q2?format=jpg&name=large)
I keep the Manhattan Bird Alert Twitter page bookmarked for truly spectacular pics of local birds ... just now the biggest celeb is a Snowy Owl, the first one known to have spent time in Central Park since the 1880s.
https://twitter.com/BirdCentralPark
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I keep the Manhattan Bird Alert Twitter page bookmarked for truly spectacular pics of local birds ... just now the biggest celeb is a Snowy Owl, the first one known to have spent time in Central Park since the 1880s.
https://twitter.com/BirdCentralPark
I checked that twitter page out, and it's fantastic. The Snowy Owl is so majestic. We have a lot of owls in my area, so I hung an owl house in the backyard, and so far no luck with owls. The other birds seem to like it though.
I was following my cardinal with my zoom as he landed on the tree, then this happened. Pretty happy with my luck capturing it. It was over in a millisecond.
(https://i.imgur.com/bPB4fJh.jpg)
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Awwwwwwwwwwwww, so sweet! :)