Surrounded

Photo hike around a local pond.

Sony A7Cii @ f8 | 1/400 | 28mm | ISO 100

Voigtlander VM 28mm F2 Ultron (adapted)

Photographed 8/10/24

Three Profiles

Photographs taken as part of a photowalk in downtown Chicago on Saturday, May 4, 2024.

Solitaire

Close enough to see the game on his phone.

Sony A7IV @ f8 | 1/250 | 28mm | ISO 12800

Voigtlander VM 28mm F2 Ultron (adapted)

Pondering The Menu

Sony A7IV @ f4 | 1/250 | 90mm | ISO 3200

Leitz Elmar-C 90mm F4 (adapted)

Flowers In Her Hair

Sony A7IV @ f8 | 1/250 | 28mm | ISO 3200

Voigtlander VM 28mm F2 Ultron (adapted)

Pop of Pink

52Frames - Week 37 - Backlit (Alternate)

EC: Rim Light

Shot some last minute alternates for this week's challenge.

Color and B/W; which do you prefer?

Sony A7 IV @ f3.5 1/125 85mm ISO 640

Rokinon AF 85mm F1.4

Photographed 9/17/23

Keukenhof Gardens

Lisse, Netherlands

Keukenhof Gardens is a 79 acre botanical flower garden that is only open 2 months of the year.  See Wikipedia for background information.  The day we visited, it was in the low 50's and rained the entire day.  For comfort, it was miserable...for photography, it was perfect!

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 20mm ISO 320

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 20mm  ISO 400

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f8 1/125 70mm  ISO 1000

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 49mm  ISO 500

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f4 1/125 49mm  ISO 100

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 20mm  ISO 320

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 70mm  ISO 500

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f6.3 1/125 26mm  ISO 1600

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f5 1/125 20mm  ISO 160

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

Sony A7 IV @ f8 1/125 20mm  ISO 2000

Sony FE 20-70mm F4 G

All Photographed 5/9/23

Veins

52Frames - Week 19 - Details

Keukenhof Gardens

The Netherlands

Was hard to choose from this 79 acre display of the most incredible flowers.

Ricoh GRIIIx @ f7.1 1/50 40mm equiv ISO 1250

Photographed 5/9/23

String Cheese Incident

2022_CLondon52w41:  ARTIST SPOTLIGHT:  Musician of Your Choice

From the C.London website:  "Music is so divisive, and trying to elicit inspiration from music that doesn’t jell with you would not necessarily be constructive. So, for this artist spotlight, I’m letting you choose any musician that you want to focus on. Be sure to share with us who it is!"

My older son introduced me to String Cheese Incident and we went to see them at Red Rocks Amphitheater on July 23, 2010.  These images are reminiscent of songs in the set list from both the 7/23/10 & 7/24/10 shows.  SCI has been a favorite band ever since.

"Restless Wind"

Spectre + Apple iPhone 12 Pro @ f2.0  3"  6mm (52mm equiv)  ISO 25

Photographed 10/8/22

"Blackberry Blossom" (Alternate)

Ricoh GRIIIx @ f6.3 1/200 40mm equiv ISO 125 Macro

Photographed 10/7/22

In Flight

2022_CLondon52w40: Music While Photographing

From the C.London website: "Ever have your headphones on, walking down the street when an uptempo beat comes on? Notice how that changes your stride as you go from a mundane walk to strutting your stuff up like a model on the catwalk? Music has a major affect on how we interact. If you don’t normally photograph with music in the background, this is the week to try it out. Take note of what songs play and which images they line up with - you might be surprised as the tone shifts."

I'm not generally a fan of country music, however, was introduced to Chris Stapleton when listening to a Pandora mix last week. I really liked the raspy quality of his voice and the guitar riffs he put out. So a slow mellow walk in the neighborhood with Chris in my ears made for an enjoyable photographing experience. And, I got to try out a new camera body coupled with an old kit lens.

Sony A7 IV @ f5.6 1/320 53mm ISO 100

Sony FE 28-60mm F4-5.6

Photographed 10/4/22

Spray

CLondon52w43: Stop Movement

From the C.London website: "Stop a bird, plane, or even Superman in their tracks with just this one easy step!  Using a fast shutter speed will freeze motion.  No need to worry about those shaky hands (of which I suffer), nor do you need a fancy tripod/stable surface.  Other steps may be necessary, i.e. readjusting other settings.

Find a moving subject and stop its motion with a fast shutter speed.  Can’t control your shutter speed? No problem! Take this opportunity to think creatively. How else can you freeze motion?"

This fountain in downtown Long Grove, IL offered an excellent opportunity for some freeze action.

Sony A7C f5.6 @ 1/1000 75mm ISO 320

Tamron E 28-75mm F2.8

Photographed 10/23/21

Sweet Corn Alley

Clondon52w28: Candid

From the C.London website: “People (and animals!) more often than not freeze up when aware that a lens is pointed at them.  Get those natural expressions by photographing a candid moment.”

My intent for this week was to shoot a candid using or incorporating a reflection.  Not being terribly successful, I returned to my car where I discovered this cool garden shop along an alleyway.  I used my sunroof to capture the alley reflection and was lucky to have a potential customer make eye contact with the proprietor.

Sony A7C @ f8 1/250 45mm ISO 500

Tamron E 28-75mm F2.8

Photographed 7/12/21

Ooze

CLondon52w19: Texture

From the C.London website: "The next three weeks are based on a little trick I often share with my students struggling with composition.  When looking at a scene, if you’re unsure of how to compose for that image, unfocus your eyes - instead of seeing a field with a tree, notice the textures of the scene. That isn’t grass, it’s soft individual elements coming together.  That isn’t a tree, but large pointy object made up of smaller pointy objects.

For this week, try this technique out, and find some texture in a scene.  Then compose the image to highlight that texture."

I did the squinty eye thing mentioned above and saw blobs of color in the flower bed fronting our condo.  To add some texture, I introduced intentional camera movement (ICM) and popped the colors.

Sony A7C @ f11 1/4 35mm ISO 100

Samyang AF 35mm F1.8

Photographed 5/10/21

First Attempt

I haven't photographed with a macro lens in many years.  I finally ordered one for my Sony mirrorless (50mm f2.8) and it came on Friday.

This image is my first attempt at a handheld macro...which was lucky because subsequent ones weren't nearly as sharp.  Next purchase...a small tripod. 

 Taken 12/4/20

Out of Control

52Frames - Week 44 - Abstract [Alternate]

Another alternate shot for the 52Frames challenge last week and another commentary on today's politics.

I experimented with rotational camera movement and long exposure to capture this image.

Taken 10/29/20

Switch

52Frames - Week 44 - Abstract [Alternate]

An alternate shot for the 52Frames challenge this week.

I called this "Switch" because when looking at it long enough, the foreground and background switch depending on what color I'm focusing on. I experimented with intentional camera movement and long exposure to capture this image.

Taken 10/29/20

On the Verge of Trouble

52Frames - Week 27 - Complementary Colors

I was on the lookout this week for complementary colors but had no idea what I'd focus on for subjects.  I was just randomly shooting photos of my grandson and some nearby flowers when the two subjects collided.  Given he's just weeks away from walking on his own, this image captures the essence of what's to come.

From a processing perspective, this photo had a horrible background, so I used my rudimentary PS skills to mask out the subjects and place them on a solid background.

Taken 7/1/20

Early Buds

Early signs of spring color along the DPR Trail.

Taken 4/1/20

Wispy

Via Flickr:
Bodega Bay, CA

I have no idea what kind of plant this is, but my Flickr friend Crow is sure to know.

Added to the 112 Pictures in 2012 group as #20 - Wild Plant or Flower

Thriving

Via Flickr:
The orchids in my South San Francisco office caught my eye this week with how well they were doing. Thought it would be a good opportunity to try out the macro mode on the X100.

Added to the 112 Pictures in 2012 group as #58 - Delicate

Also submitted to ClicheSaturday. Orchids are cliche, aren't they? HCS!

Pink & Green

Via Flickr:

Balboa Park
San Diego, CA

Taken on 4/30/12

Added to the 112 Pictures in 2012 group as #30 - Pink & Green

Purple

Via Flickr:
4/14/12

Maybe I'm color blind...after posting, this looks more pink than purple. Too late...I'm going with it!

Added to the 112 Pictures in 2012 group as #90 - Purple

Awaken

Via Flickr:
3/24/12
More signs of Spring which are highly unusual in Chicago during March.

Added to the 112 Pictures in 2012 group as #62 - Petal(s).
Submitted for SliderSunday - Selective Color. HSS!