Lunar Eclipse

 

Last week during the lunar eclipse that a large majority of the East Coast of the United States experienced I forced myself out of bed at 2:30AM to try and get a few good pictures of the moon.  I hadn't really done any research on how to photograph eclipses but figured that with my tripod and a few different attempts I'd be able to figure it out.  The biggest problem I had was the weather.  It was very frigid and very windy which made my hands frozen and my patience tested.  I would have taken more time photographing had it not been so very cold.

It was initially a difficult task because I had trouble with the technical aspects of shooting a dark moon against a dark sky in my parking lots with bright lights.  My best attempt is shown above. I bumped up my ISO to 1600, made the shutter speed shorter (About 1/30 I believe), and had the aperture very low.  This image above is slightly blurry, I think because I had the aperture so low.  In the future I'll increase my depth of field and hopefully will have better results.  This was also shot with my 135mm and not my 300mm which I'll surely change next time as well. 

Nikon 50mm F 1.8

I just took the plunge and purchased my first prime lens.  Hopefully will have unboxing and test pictures soon as well as maybe some portraits.

Definition: Aperture

Since I decided to put Aperture in the title of my blog, I thought it might be a good idea to really give it a solid definition.  The dictionary definition is: "In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture of an optical system is the opening that determines the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. ...".  In more normal terms, when you look at a lens it has a whole where light enters.  The aperture of the opening describes the width the the diameter.  When speaking about aperture, new photographers will often gets confused because the higher the F-Stop number means that the opening gets smaller.  A really good description can be found here.

An example of using a wide aperture to get a shallow depth of field.  The ladybug is in focus, flowers going out, and background is totally blurred.

I often find myself shooting in aperture mode because it allows me to easily use the auto features in the camera, with only a minimal number of options to tweak.  I am hopefully going to get a Nikon F/1.8 50mm lens soon so I can really start trying out small depth of field photos and getting shots in low light.  The aperture setting is one that is often misunderstood but once you can understand how it affects exposure, you can really use it to your advantage.

Lights on the Bay: Christmas at Sandy Point State Park

On this cold/brisk weekend my girlfriend, roommate, and myself went to AAMC Lights on the Bay at Sandy Point State Park.   The light show was sponsored by the Anne Arundel Medical Center as well as numerous car dealerships.

Driving through the show was fantastic.  They had tons of displays, some with motion, and apparently they offered 3D as well although we didn't choose that option. 

Shooting in these conditions were difficult because all automatic settings weren't giving me the results I wanted.  Autofocus also wasn't doing its thing well because of the low light situations so I had to switch to old school, all manual.  I used mostly ISO 1600, shutter speed at 40, and aperture at 5.6.  Overall I liked the results, although I should have played more attention to focus on a few of the shots.

Blackwater Wildlife Nature Reserve

Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge is a short 90 minute trip from Annapolis so I thought that it would be a great trip for a Saturday.  The refuge is more than 27,000 acres of swamps, marshes, inlets, and tidal areas with mixed amounts of salt, fresh, and brackish waters.  My girlfriend and I were able to see multiple birds including hawks, vultures, and a bald eagle.  They have a wildlife drive set up for cars, bikes, and pedestrian traffic as well as multiple wooded trails for hikers.  While our hikes were very peaceful and quiet (the kind of quiet you can only get in the outdoors!), we saw sparse wildlife.  I will come back again in different seasons, possibly during a specific bird migration period, to see what other types of wildlife and species of birds we can spot. 

For photographers they have at least one bird blind that looks out over a marsh like area, although on my trip we were unable to see any birds in that location.  The entire wildlife drive has multiple points to pull over and get out of your car where you can easily spot birds on the water and in the forest.  These vultures we spotted were along the side of the road, approximately 6 to 10.  They were very large and imposing creatures.

I had a great time getting outdoors, traveling somewhere new, and getting some good birding pictures.  I got the idea for this trip from an article in Outdoor Photographer where it was a highly recommended location to visit in Maryland. 

What Blogs Do I Frequent?

Well before I started this venture into blogging I was reading blogs daily.  I mostly use the Google Reader application to keep track of the RSS feeds and blogs that I read.  I have them divided up into a few categories, only one of which I'm going to talk about now: Photography Blogs

Photography Blogs: 

• Digital Photography School has daily updates which include tips, techniques, how-to articles, technology reviews, and post-production information.  Its a very blog to start with because it is broad and updates often.  A few of the posts I've been reading recently from them are: You're only 50mm away from being a better photographer and 13 Most Popular Tips

•  PhotoJoJo updates about 2 or 3 times a week.  It has some tips and articles but more often I read it because they sell interesting photo gadgets and merchandise.  Its a good place to go to see new types of accessories and interesting gifts.  My most recent favorite was the: Camera Lens Mug (Nikon of course)

• Photofocus  is updated frequently with more profession tips and news.  They do cover news, tips, and equipment but also cover the niche of professional photographers and ways to become a professional (make $$).  The main write is Scott Bourne who is a large figure in the community.  A recent article I enjoyed was: Five Questions Every Serious Photographer Should Ask Themselves

•  Digital Shot seems to be a little off and on again.  Sometimes they'll do posts a few times a week and then not again for a month.  That being said, I do like they primarily cover tutorials.  Even if I feel like I have a good feel for a type of shooting, reading a tutorial often reminds me to examine the basics and take my time.  They recently had a post on Landscapes which was interesting.

• Photo Radar  posts daily with tips and images.  I usually check out their image of the day which is generally very good and can provide some daily inspiration and show you what others are doing.  They also have a section on techniques which tends to have very quick, basic, 10 step tips that you can glance over before you go out shooting.

•  Photo Critic is another broad tips and news website that covers all things photography.  Their tagline is: "Doing cool things with Photography" and it sums up what they are trying to accomplish with their posts. This post on Must Read Books is very informative and inspirational.

• Digital Photography Review  is a site that bases itself right in the depths of photography hardware.  Its always the first place I look to check out specs, prices, or comparisons and reviews.  They also post firmware updates on their feed which saves me time from checking myself.

• http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/  has good photojournalism stuff and pictures

• Places to buy photo things:
• Amazon
• CraigsList
• B&H
• Adorama

Cathedral of Learning - Nationality Rooms for Christmas

Christmas Tree at the PPG Ice Rink in Pittsburgh

At the end of November I was able to take a trip with my mother and my girlfriend to the nationality rooms at the University of Pitt.  The rooms were adorned with their respective holiday decorations from around the globe.  The lighting wasn't ideal but I was able to capture a few good shots of the art that was put into each and every room.  I enjoyed the details that went into every room, from the type of wood used in the floor to the glass used in the windows, it was authentic to the culture being represented in that room.

I think these dog/wolf chair toppers in the Ireland room are awesome!  They are very intricately carved and add a nice touch to the otherwise already cool chairs.  The detailing on the roof of the room for China is also amazing.  The room itself was very ornate, with the dragon above the main table being the centerpiece of the area.  Its quite large and imposing, with the dragon staring down towards those in the room.

 

Artwork on the ceiling of the China room and an excellent globe against stained glass in another.  I would love to have that type of globe for my house, it had multiple spheres of information encompassing the map.

Solomons Island - Enjoying the Bay

 Before Thanksgiving I was able to make a trip with my girlfriend to Solomons Island.  The trip was about an hour and half drive but well worth the time.  I think I got some of my best pictures of the year.  I also experimented with using a signature/watermark on my favorite images.  I haven't had any problems with theft, but thought it added a nice classy look to the pictures.  I've also added a border to a few of my favorites.  My favorite part of the trip came towards the end when we were lucky enough to watch a group of blue heron's feeding the bay at sunset.  I never realized what strange dives they make into the water, as I'd only seen them feeding in small streams, rivers, and inlets.  It was a great experience and a great day!

 The above picture is actually a gull, not a heron like the rest, just FYI

Please let me know what you think about the pictures and watermark :-D

Thanks

Still Life: DuClaw Brewing Company Swag

So in a moment of inspiration I took my new DuClaw brewing glass (A promo for their newly tapped Devil's Milk Barleywine, which is quite good) and tried some macro photography on the glass.  One side says 'Hell Yeah' and the other 'Devil's Milk 2010'.  After first trying hand held with my 18-135mm, I busted out the tripod and the 70-300.  I was able to get a few good shots but the lighting wasn't anywhere near ideal.  It makes me want to make a softbox, but I'm not sure if I've got time for that small project this week.

Also walking around Ritz photo yesterday I was checking out the 50mm 1.8 (no AF-S) and it would probably do a good job also (better yet if I got the reversal ring!).  Anyhow,  Cheers!

Self Portrait in the Afternoon

Staying Busy

Well I've been reading a few blogs recently which have had posts about self-portraits.  I'm not much of one for the normal narcissistic, holding the camera up to your face style of picture.  I went with a more multiplicity spin, which I admit I've done before, but still makes me smile when its all done.  Due to the dynamic lighting of my living room, the shadows did change a few times in the light, which made my end image have clear signs of where the Photoshop layer masks intersected.  That being said, I'm happy with the outcome for a lazy Sunday afternoon.  Hopefully some beer or wine pictures this week.  Cheers!

Truxton Park Photo Hike

Light playing across the Bridge

Foot Bridge in Fall

This weekend I was able to take Sunday and go for a photo walk.  I originally started thinking that I'd be able to explore the Bacon Ridge Natural Area.  After driving around the area for almost an hour I'd seen no parking lots, but did stumble across a very creepy abandoned hospital.  I used HDR to try and capture the nuances of the light and of the decay.  The fall foliage and the eeriness of the building made for a good Halloween capture.  After not being able to find any way into the hiking trails of Bacon Ridge I drove to Truxton Park.  I'd only been to Truxton Park previously once to catch crabs, but I hadn't walked through the woods before.  The weather was perfect and it was a very nice day to stroll through the woods and near the water and take pictures.  The entire set from that day can be seen here: Truxton Park Set.  After taking nearly 75 pictures I went home and spent a few hours in PS editing what I'd gotten.  My favorite photos ended up being either macro shots or shots where I was able to capture the details of the light and shadows that day.  I was also able to stalk a Great Blue Heron pretty closely for about twenty minutes, but never got a take-home shot.  I wished that I had brought along my 300mm lens when I had that opportunity because it would have allowed me to get much closer with my optics.  Overall I felt that it was a very successful trip, albeit in a place I didn't think I was going to end up.

Changing your Perspective

Alone in the Clouds

I read an article today on Gizmodo that discussed clever photos taken by changing your perspective (45 Clever Photos).  That made me think about the images that I've taken where I've had to change my perspective in order to get a creative shot. The shot to the left required me to lie under the swings and wait for the perfect moment to take the image of the swing against the background of the sky.  I'm going to try to remember perspective the next time I go out shooting and maybe it'll more quality, creative shots.

Autumn Leaves: Still Life

Yesterday I went for a brief walk to try and take in some of the leaves before the rain hits this week and many of them fall.  I took the picture to the left as a still life of what autumn looks like in my current area. I'm not usually much of a still life fan, I think mostly because I don't have a lot of experience with lighting techniques for still life or macro images.  This shot was just using natural light, diffused through the overcast day.

Got a lot of traffic yesterday from my facebook post, so welcome anyone who is new to reading, please feel free to leave comments.  I'll be up in Baltimore later today so I'm not sure if I'll get any new pictures up for tomorrow but I'll hopefully be able to post something.  Possibly about the types of blogs that I read daily to keep up to date with the news and keep myself inspired.  Cheers!

FOLLOW UP: This photo has been very hot on Flickr at Autumn!  Go comment :)

Bay Fishing Trip

Birds at Dawn

Well I spent my Saturday on a fishing trip on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay.  We got the marina well before sunrise, which is a time of day that I rarely see, but it one of the best times to take photographs.  On the way out I was able to grab a few shots of the gulls flying before dawn.  The sun came up right before we got to our first trolling spot.  The sun rose directly over this small tree covered jetty which was a great subject because the shadows of the trees created a nice silhouette. I took a few shots while the boat was moving, but the image to the right was my favorite.  We were able to catch quite a few perch on the trip and overall it was quite a success. I took all the images in .NEF format, light editing in PhotoShop and Picasa. The entire set can be seen on Flickr at: Bay Fishing Set. 

Hardware wise I used only my D60 with my 18-135mm Nikkor lens.  ISO was mostly set on Auto setting.

Putting the little guys back

Autumn

Fall has again arrived and we're in that magical two week windows when the leaves have changed but not fallen off and the clocks haven't gone backwards yet to take away the nice daylight.  I plan on getting out this weekend and trying to capture some of the unexplored areas around my new city.  I'd like to get up and go early but I doubt if my body will agree with that goal.  Should have some to post early next week.

I've been looking pretty hard at the Nikkor 50mm F/1.8 to add to my collection.  Its relatively inexpensive, great in a low light, and solid for portraits.  My only hesitation is that it won't AF because my D60 doesn't have in-camera focusing.  Nikon doesn't seem to make an autofocusing 50mm F/1.8 so I may have to do all manual.  If that's the case I may throw in for a reversal ring for macro's as well.  I'd like to get some macro shots this weekend, but we'll see what I run into out there.

Well I burnt my fingers yesterday on the stove so typing is painful so I'm out

Style

TA-DA

Well to validate my existence, I've added a picture.

My main areas of photographic inspiration come from nature and the outdoors.  I enjoy taking everything from a bird in flight, to a serene landscape, to macro's of insects.  I usually do a mix of wide angle and zoom, depending on the situation, usually not to exceed 18mm wide or 300mm telephoto.  I've done some other projects with people or still life, but I don't feel as if I'm as experienced in those areas and need to continue work there.  I don't think I'll ever want to do portraiture or large events, that just doesn't seem to strike my interest like capturing the beauty of nature does.

I'm a user of Adobe Photoshop PS4, Color Efex Pro, GIMP, Photomatic 3.0, Picasa, and occasionally online tools to edit and tweak my photos.  Unless I'm doing HDR or can't access my own machine, I mostly stick with PS.  I feel very comfortable navigating through the software and enjoy the ability to adjust levels and curves on the fly. 

TTFN

Starting Line

Well I guess I'd better introduce myself before getting into anything else.  My name is Dan, I'm 23 years old and currently living in Annapolis, MD.  I've been interested in photography for about 5 years.  I took up the hobby during my freshman year at Penn State University where I majored in Information Sciences and Technology & Security and Risk Analysis.  Since then I've been published a few times, once in a local magazine, once in a travel brochure, and I've got a collegiate licensed image selling in downtown State College.

I hope the use this blog to share my experiences in photography as well as to motivate myself to expand my horizons and take more photos.  I hope to post my favorite images to the site as well as link to my Flickr page.