A Moon Shot on a Very Cloudy Night

Canon 7D, Raw, 300mm, f/11, 1/125, ISO 200

Got a little break in the clouds late last night.  You can see some cloud shadows in this photograph. I took two dozen photos and this one shows the face of the moon and some clouds. I did some sharpening and noise reduction in camera raw. Also some exposure adjustment so the moon would show up clearer.  A  levels adjustment in Photoshop and I was done. Maybe I should have increased the ISO and some of the clouds around the moon would have shown up. Compare this to another full moon photo I took almost two years ago.

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Pink Calla Lily

Canon 7D, Raw, 59mm, f/5.6, 1/160, ISO 100

I was at Larry and Shelley’s yesterday to take some photos of Lily for her two month birthday. Shelley and I were in the backyard and she was very proud of this pink calla lily. The photo came out very nice and I really like the shadows falling across the lily. Since it is a raw image, I opened it up in camera raw and made a white balance adjustment. Then in Photoshop, all I did was a levels adjustment. Maybe I need to do something more exciting and artsy with my photos so I will have more to share with you.

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A Light Pole in Central Park

Canon 7D, Raw, 17mm, f/9, 1/320, ISO 200

It was such a gorgeous day and after having lunch with Larry, Shelley and Lily, Willie and I took the dogs and the camera to Central Park to go for a walk. We certainly were not the only people with that idea! I took some good photos which I will share with you. I put this one in today because Willie likes it. I like the shadow and the rust and texture on the pole, but I am having difficulty looking at it. My eye keeps going off the page. Start with the base of the pole and follow the shadow. Then go a little left at the top of the shadow and follow the trees to the pole. What happens? You go right off the page! There is nothing to lead you back down to the base and off again. Compare this image to the black and white geraniums I did last. You should be able to easily see what I am talking about. Let me know what you think of this image.

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Morning Shadows

Canon 20D, Raw, f5.6, 1/40, ISO200, Smart Sharpen, Nik Vignette Filter

I walked into my bedroom this morning and saw the sun casting a shadow on the front of a dresser. I really liked the look of it and how it made the grain of the cherry wood stand out.  My first thought was, “I want to photograph that!” I got my camera and took several photos. I liked this close-up one the best because of the wood detail. It has a lot of texture also. I didn’t have to do anything to the image except I sharpened it a little in Photoshop and added a very faint vignette so the center will stand out a little more and your eye will not go off the image.

Allen Ave Under the Overpass

I believe I told you I would bring something different to you today, and I truely believe I have. We were in Pasadena today and when we get off the freeway at Allen there is an entrance to the metro link gold line. I have been wanting to take a photograph of it for a long time. The one I am showing you today is of the freeway and metro underpass. The entrance is behind me. This photo I had not planned on taking until I turned around and saw it. There is a lot of texture and angles. I hope you will appreciate all that it shows.

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A Nice Tribute to Unconditional Love

I was finishing up the wedding photos today when Willie wanted me to take a break and go to the park with him and the dogs. I said ok, then no, I wanted to finish, and then I agreed to go. So Kyla and I went to the dog park and Willie and Donnan went for a walk around the lake. I needed to get outside so I was glad I went. I see the beautiful tribute path every time we go and have thought of taking a photo. Today I finally did. What a wonderful way to remember “man’s best friend.” I would say this was done over 20 years ago as you look at the dates. Maybe it is time to add another section?

A beautiful tribute…

All of these tiles look hand made and there are many, many of them. It gave me some practice on lens distortion and warp. It was a beautiful day today in the mid 70’s and I am glad Willie got me to go outside. As I am sure a lot of you know, time really flies when you are on the computer and life passes you by. Tomorrow is Friday, and I am hoping to drop off copies of all the wedding photos to my brother. I am going to a birthday party Saturday evening and then a Father’s Day barbecue at Larry and Shelley’s. My social calendar is so full!

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Another Photo From My Backyard

Last week I got the Photomatix software for HDR images. I was out today taking some photos of the Santa Ana River that runs through Huntington Beach to the ocean. Well, as you should be able to tell by my choice of photo for today, that did not work out very well! After I looked at the images I took, I grabbed my camera and went in my backyard. I asked myself, “What have I not photographed out here and what is the late afternoon sun shining on?” Well, this is what I found. It is a pot with a fern on my patio table.

A very bushy fern on my patio…

When we purchased this fern, I wanted to put it in a hanging pot, but Willie had other ideas. He used this very pretty pot we bought years ago at a fund raiser at Larry’s grammar school. It is one of my favorite pots and the fern looks very nice in it. I shot this at a very low aperture, f 2.8, so what does that create? A very shallow depth of field! The exposure was at 1/200th of a second and the ISO at 100.  Of course I love the sunshine and shadows on it. Still plugging away at the wedding photos!

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A Beautiful Springtime Lily

Larry gave me this great plant two years ago on Mother’s Day. It is now blooming again and I wanted to share it with you. I used my +4 Macro filter and I am happy with the way it came out. I did all of the post processing in Camera Raw. That is the first time I have not taken an image into Photoshop. I feel that is a step up and a big accomplishment. Of course I like the shadows and the texture of the stamen. Isn’t it pretty?

A mother’s day Lily….

I am sure this Lily has a specific name, but there are so many different ones, I do not know what it is. I just know it is very pretty. The plant is so tall, Willie has it leaning up against a ficus tree! The day started out gloomy and foggy, but ended up all bright and sunny. I took Kyla to the dog park today and she had a good time. Of course I was unable to take Donnan. I wish I could but he does not know how to behave! Making meatloaf for dinner – one of my favorites. It will be good, I know!

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5, No – 6 Things That Bother Me About Blog Posts

There are a few things that bother me about how many people write their posts. I am good at playing devils advocate and finding things wrong with others. Please keep in mind that these are my personal findings:

1. Not knowing where the author is located, the city, state and/or country
2. Authors who do not run a quick and easy spell check
3. It is annoying when people do not proofread their posts and they are full of many errors
4. I like to see a little info on the photos that are posted – some people put nothing
5. A sticky post or “about” page stating what the blog is about and why they are doing it is a plus – which leads me to a 6th thing
6. People whose theme comes with an “About” page and they leave it blank – either use it or delete it!

Now for today’s image.

A new pink geranium in my yard…

I saw this flower this morning and told Willie I could not remember seeing it before. He said it is something he has been working on to bring back to life. He did a really good job, didn’t he? When I zoomed in on the photo to look at the sharpness, I could see a little bug, just to the left of the center, partly under a petal. I used all three of my macro filters on this one, +4, +2 and the +1. I really would like to have a Canon 100mm macro lens!  Maybe one day I will!

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Back in My Backyard

I am somewhat embarrassed by my last two posts – well the dogs are cute, but that food, ugh! I really need to work on my food photography if I am going to attempt that again! I decided to go back to my yard and do some exploring. It has been a while since I photographed anything out there. I put my +4 macro filter on my camera, gave it a wide aperture and this is what I came up with. I totally shoot in raw with the Manual setting on my camera. I like to set my own aperture then do a little bracketing with the exposure to see what looks good. I hope you like this image.

Texture, shadows and a little color…

It is a beautiful day outside today. I can hear a lot of birds chirping as I am typing this. They must be enjoying the weather also. The dogs spent the morning outside lounging around. They are in the house now and Willie and I are getting ready to have lunch. I told him, “Let me finish this post first, I’m almost done!” I am sure you probably have people waiting at times for you to finish a post! I have some errands and shopping to do today, then back to the website! Have a good Tuesday.

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Calle Lilies

I was at a client’s house today regarding some real estate and they have a beautiful yard with flowers all around. I just happened to have my camera with me and I asked them if I could take a few photos. I photographed these calle lilies and some beautiful wisteria. I thought this would make a good last photo of the month. I would love to take some more photos there someday. 

The calle lilies are in bloom again…

I took this photo with my Canon SD800 which was in my purse! I took my 20D to the Canon service center today to get the sensor cleaned. It was late in the day so I will pick it up first thing in the morning. My little camera takes real good photos and videos. I did a few errands today and had a couple of appointments. All in all it was a good day. Nice to not have to worry about school this week but I still have some assignments to work on.  Now it is time to start thinking about my next month of photos!

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More Shadows and Texture

I was at Central Park earlier and I wanted to catch some morning shadows. I caught a few, plus many different textures! I liked this photo because of the contrast, along with the foregound, middle and background. It leads you down the path around the tree – do you want to know where it goes? It was a great morning at the park. Again, many people  taking advantage of the nice weather. I like to go off by myself to take photos but I really need Willie as my motivator. He always has  good suggestions.

Checking out the “jungle” trail at Central Park…

Willie is always wanting to learn more about taking photos. I tell him he needs to read his manual and discover what the camera can do. But like so many other people, he doesn’t want to learn that way! We were talking about the continuous shooting mode on his camera this morning. He said, “If I had known about that, I could have taken better pictures at the races a few weeks ago! That is what I was trying to do!” You know what I said to him? “Read your manual!” It is good advice for everybody – my teacher on Saturday morning keeps telling us that!

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Shadows and Texture

I enjoy photographing shadows and textures, especially in nature, so I am pleased with this image. I used my 50 mm lens at f8 and I am surprised there is not more depth of field. I will have to ask someone about that. I am really enjoying taking all of these photos to share with you and I like exploring and looking for new things to shoot. Some days it is hard to do, but so far I have not missed a day, even though there have been a few snapshots thrown in!

Jasmine roots wrapped around a bakers rack…

Yesterday in class I heard my instructor telling another student not to post photos of your dogs or cats. He said no one else really cares. As the owner, you have an emotional attachment to the animal and you see how cute and loving they are. So, I guess that makes sense and I will not post any more photos of Kyla or Donnan (unless I feel it is totally irresistible!). Really, I guess I get a little carried away sometimes and I am sorry! We never got to speak with the birthday boy yesterday but we left him a message on his cell phone and sang Happy Birthday to him.

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A Close-Up Photograph

I like this photograph. I was thinking about shooting this when I got up this morning but I was not able to get to it until about half an hour ago. I used my +4 macro filter, outside, with the sun low coming from the West (of course).  I guess the 18  is the length of the wrench. It is a big one! This post is rather late today and I do apologize for that. I am having fun exploring new things to photograph and getting different lighting effects. This one shows a lot of texture and shadow.

A very much used tool that has seen better days…

I had a busy day today. I took my father-in-law to get his cell phone looked at and we ended up getting him a new one, then we did a few more errands with him. I took my laptop to my computer guy Steve to get it worked on. Then I took Kyla to the dog park and I did not have my camera with me! It was kind of spur of the moment. I took her with me to go to Steve’s and then we just headed for the park. She had a good time sniffing everything. Willie and Donnan joined us a little later. I will have one more post for this month. I hope it is a good one!

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My Little Yellow Ducky

It was a sunshiny morning so I wanted to take advantage of it and take a pretty shot of my little yellow ducky. Isn’t he cute? He is made from beautiful Lalique crystal in France. This was given to me by the same dear friend who gave me my beautiful Lalique butterfly. I miss my friend. My ducky has cute little web feet, feathers on his back and wings with a very strong bill and sharp eyes.

How I love my little yellow duck…

He doesn’t go swimming too much. He is just to look at and enjoy. Class was good last night. The instructor is so good and really wants us to learn a lot. It is a fun class and I enjoy going. Learning CSS code is like learning another language! He is willing to help me with my website and the one I started in Flash class last semester for Frank Monise Motors. I still have a few photos to take for my Saturday morning class. Maybe this afternoon we can go to the park. Until tomorrow…!

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I Feel Like I am In a Rut

Have I ever shown you a photograph from my backyard before? Duh! They probably have the most tags on this weblog. I do like to go out there to explore because Willie is always re-potting plants and I see different ones out there. I noticed this plant this morning and I think he put it in this pot from another plant that maybe the dogs had messed with and he was saving this piece. He does not throw anything away! I thought it was very pretty and symmetrical.

Some new growth appearing…

I believe a tall flower will come out of the middle of this plant.  I was trying to take a picture of Donnan this morning but he would not let me. He kept running off and jumping on Kyla. I haven’t taken any photos of them this month. I need to get out and do some traveling, even if just to the old downtown part of Huntington Beach. I will make a point of doing that this week! In the meantime, please enjoy looking at my photos. I have to go get ready for my “Oscar Party” tonight – Willie and I are the only ones who show up!

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