ghosty moon

A happy accident...totally goofed up the exposure on this shot but it turned out pretty cool.

down by the river

Gave myself a photography assignment for today: moving water. I drove up highway 50 with the plan to hunker down by the river with my filters & tripod. To go slowly and "work" the shot. But, I didn't. Never used the filters or set up the tripod. Just walked about and took a couple hand held shots. Later, I stopped at Apple Hill to take some photos of apples and before I got out of the car, I put both filters (GND & polarizer) on the lens. And then to my surprise, I had an opportunity to take a close up of a praying mantis.

When I got home and looked at the photos, the close ups were bad. I had forgotten about the filters and they wrecked the shots. Here's the best of the apples:

Tomorrow I want to continue to make some moving water photos but I also want to go for a bike ride. I hope there's time to do both!

making the most of it

Fresh from the photography workshop, I felt inspired to get out and use the tripod and to play around with the white balance settings. It wasn't much of a sunset and we were naturally bumbling around finding a location to set up and missed the actual sunset of course. But, since it wasn't going to be anything special anyway, it was a good chance to just take my time and try some new things.

odd couple

Found on a rock wall near the creek that runs along Main Street. The colors are nice.

neighbor's tree

Another day when my photos were rushed. Was on my way home to watch the big game (Giants fan here) and passed my neighbor's tree. Took about nine quick shots but none stood out, although two had possibilities with cropping and minor touch ups for small flaws.

Today, I need to work on my photography workshop assignment: photos of trash. That's right -- garbage!

sunset on the fly

Through the windshield on Highway 50 sunset.

red & blue

Virginia Creeper

pink heart cloud

Almost missed getting a sunset photo on Day of Sunsets because I could barely tear myself away from the aspen in Carson Pass. It was chilly & windy at Tahoe. I had to run with my camera in hand to quick snap a pic. But, maybe the timing was all right after all as I was able to capture this sweet little pink cloud heart.

late harvest

Regular edits

Tinkering with histograph

Finally went to the doctor's office because I just wasn't getting better. It's been nine days. It was a good call (and one I should have made two days ago) because I have a bad sinus infection along with bronchitis. On the way to the pharmacy, I noticed some pretty boston ivy in a tucked away parking lot. I wanted to try photographing fall colors in overcast light again. While I was looking more closely at the plantings, I caught sight of a grape vine growing in a tangle of long neglected shrubbery near the trash dumpster. I wonder what the story is behind this renegade parking lot grape vine.

I tinkered with some post editing. Have never checked out the histogram before. I think it does make a difference. Will definitely be learning more about this feature.

a photo a day

Here's a good article which explains how and why a 365 project will improve one's photography skills.

"Simply put, the more time (quality time) you spend with your camera, the better you will understand how to use it to your advantage and the better your skills will become. One of the methods to accomplish these goals is to shoot every day, even if only for a few minutes."

I don't photography people but maybe I should give that some consideration.

leaf crazy

f/5.6  1/60  ISO 900 

f/8  1/60 ISO 400

Yesterday, I read a nature photography book. Thought I'd focus today on a couple of tips that caught my interest: 1. overcast light is good for capturing the glow of autumn leaves. 2. Simplify composition i.e., one or two elements.

I love the low light. Not sure which of these I like best.

showy end of day

Happy birthday, Grandma.

leaf

a test of sorts

Received a surprise today, my new graduated neutral density filter arrived a day early. I'm still sick with this darn cold/flu thing so I just walked a little down the street to where I noticed there were still some sun rays to check out. Now I wish I would have taken two shots, one with the filter and one without. So here's one with the filter in place. I suspect the nice reddish gold tones of the hillside are visible in the low light because of the filter. Looking forward to trying it with waterfalls and sunsets and other bright skies.

pink geranium

It was time to try the Nikon out with some close up shots and since I'm laying low with a cold, I stuck with what looked interesting in the yard.

Here's one of the squirrel drinking from the bird bath.

Big Tree

Yep, another shot of Big Tree. Was waiting to see if all those clouds would turn pink at sundown. I took this pic and then went on to do some other things while waiting for sunset. The clouds didn't turn color, they vanished.

rock, water, sky

Tahoe near Sand Harbor

We've lived near Lake Tahoe for the past 25 years both in Nevada and California. If we move away someday, I'll really miss it.

sunset park

Puget Sound from Sunset Park in Seattle.

take me to the river

Another photo of the sunset we stumbled onto at Skagit River in La Conner, Washington.

boat, water, sky

The boat on the right was named "Nauti Girl"

On our way back to Seattle from Vancouver, we made a last second decision to follow a road sign pointing out La Conner Historic Waterfront. It was nearing sundown and it could be a good spot for some sunset photography. It turned out to be a real nail biter experience to get there in time for sunset but worth the drama. Very pretty place I'd like to revisit someday.

suspension

This was taken from the Lynn Canyon suspension bridge -- a fantastic place from which to test the stabilization aspects of a lens. Bouncy, bouncy.

Peak 2 Peak

Whistler - Blackcomb Ski Area

Taken while on the Peak 2 Peak gondola.

waterfall lovin'

Brandywine Falls British Colombia

I wish my new graduated neutral density filter had arrived before we left for our trip to Vancouver/Seattle so I could see if it really does help to improve the look of waterfall shots. Oh well. This was a gorgeous place and it was a joy to see this waterfall. One thing I'm liking about the Nikon D5100 is how hiker friendly it is. Nice and light.

nightscape

View from hotel balcony in Vancouver, BC.

English Bay

silhouette

night time

Nothing creative here but wanted to try a scene setting on the new camera. We were out and about tonight and had the camera along so I thought why not try out the "night landscape" setting. This is the California Capitol building in downtown Sacramento.

Still feeling incredibly sad at the loss of my cat Riley. Trying to keep busy...

Twain Harte Sunset

Riley Cat

water, earth, sky

autumn equinox