Discovering Alaska

I’ve only been on one cruise in my life. I went with my family up to Alaska.

It was amazing.

Words can hardly describe the beauty of this frigid and rugged land.

I found this shot while digging through the archives, and decided to give it a retro look. Because…

I’ve been watching Ken Burns: The Civil War (shameless amazon affiliate link) over the past few weeks. It is an incredible documentary on the United States Civil War.

The black and white photographs shown throughout the series, taken at slow shutter speeds with primitive cameras, are stunning, simply stunning.

It’s further proof that you don’t need a lot of tech to capture amazing moments.

Even though I still jump on the gear train, and want to buy the latest toy, like the new Nikon D800, classic photos are good reminders that subject matter and composition are infinitely more important than gear.

Let me give you some back story for this image…

I was visiting my sister in DC, and we got to spend some time walking around the city.

The most prominent building is of course the Capitol Building. It’s one of the first things you focus on.

It is an imposing and intimidating structure. You almost feel it might envelop you as you approach.

At the same time, the DC area feels rather intimate, as no building can be taller than the Capitol Building.

As I walked around Washington, I felt as though I was stepping back through history, surrounded by the mystique and grandeur of the monuments honoring great heroes of the United States of America:

• Martin Luther King, Jr.
• George Washington
• Abraham Lincoln

I also saw the White House, Supreme Court, the Pentagon…

I was truly awestruck; filled as it were with a patriotic reverence.

As my sister and I walked up the gentle rise approaching the Capitol Building, we stopped several times so I could take photos. Looking back over the National Mall, we commented on the power of the buildings and how we were proud to be American Citizens.

We reached the steps of the Capitol, taking in the stately seat of the United States Government.

Then I noticed that someone had left an empty juice bottle on the ground.

Thats when it hit the fan.

I was flabbergasted!

My sister was incredulous!

“NOBODY puts trash on MY Capitol!” she cried.

And she picked up the bottle and placed it in the appropriate receptacle.

Show some class people!

Men did not love Rome because she was great. She was great because they had loved her.

Pianissimo - My Kid Brother at the Piano

I took piano lessons when I was a kid.

I wasn’t too bad either, for a seven year old, or however old I was.

But, my instructor was so focused on precision and being perfect, that I didn’t develop a love for the instrument, and quit.

Any talent or skill must first be loved, before it can become great.

I’m glad to say though, that my dream has been lived out through my brother. He can play many songs that I’d enjoy being able to play, songs such as Rhapsody in Blue, The Entertainer, and Claire de Lune.

This photo was taken while he was playing.

Watching PBS as a kid and reading books about the planets, learning about the space shuttle and apollo missions. One of my science classes in Jr. High focused strongly on study of the solar system. I took an astronomy class in college and even did a report for a Philosophy of Engineering class regarding manned exploration of Mars.

This winter, in the cold and bleak, I was bored so I decided to turn my camera to the stars. Amazingly (to me) you can see the Orion Nebula (albeit dimly) through a moderately zoomed lens. You can probably see it with the naked eye if the sky is dark enough.

So I thought this was pretty sweet, I started researching telescopes, and ways to mount a DSLR to them, equatorial mounts, the whole bit.

Then I remebered the hubble space telescope, and checked out the website at spacetelescope.org. As it happens, the Hubble space telescope has taken a rather famous image of the Orion Nebula. Below is an animation showing my photo of the Orion Nebula, versus Hubble’s.

I guess a gazillion dollar telescope orbiting space is going to take better pictures than me.

Who’d a thunk it?

Check out a larger version of the Orion Nebula (taken by the Hubble Space Telescope) here.

Two bills before Congress, known as the Protect IP Act (PIPA) in the Senate and the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House, would censor the Web and impose harmful regulations on American business. Millions of Internet users and entrepreneurs already oppose SOPA and PIPA.

- Google.com

 
Sign the petition to stop SOPA and PIPA here: https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/

 
And contact your Senator and Representative.

 

They have the most beautiful Christmas decorations I have seen anywhere.

Simple, elegant, festive, with a focal point on the Nativity Scene and Crucifix.

It is also one of the most beautiful churches I’ve seen anywhere.

Holy Cross is celebrating their 100th year as a parish! Not bad.

The winners are:

Mark Colliton - "Power Station from Chelsea Bridge"

David Crombie - "Oxtonge Lake Sunrise Web"

Thomas Payer - "Maule on the Float Pond"

Andrew Duncan with “Searchlights Over Auckland”

I’ve emailed the winners with their invite code and I look forward to seeing their work over at HDRSpotting.com!

“There were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.’”

May you have a Very Merry Christmas!

Bee

This photo was taken with a macro lens. A macro lens is designed to take pictures of small objects close up. You’d need a linguist to tell you why it isn’t called a micro-lens.

This photo is a pseudo-HDR, rather than combining three separate images, I just tonemap one image. You don’t get as much dynamic range, but in full sun, that doesn’t really matter.

There were also humming birds around. However, they eluded me for the most part and I didn’t get any good pictures of nature’s helicopter.

So while I wanted to get a picture of both the birds and the bees. I had to settle with the bees.

Oh well, the hummingbirds will be back next year.

P.S.

If you like my photos, consider purchasing my photobook. It features many of my best and most popular photos, printed on high-quality glossy paper!

Click here to check it out.

I will be giving away three hdrspotting.com invite codes. These codes allow you to submit photos to hdr spotting, which is invite only. HDR Spotting is a great way to promote your HDR photos.

How do you get a code?

Just post a link to your best High Dynamic Range photo in the comments section at this page: HDR Spotting Invite Code.

The three best photos submitted win! I’ll be announcing the winner on Christmas morning after Christmas!