April 5, 2015 - Photo Of The Day (Happy Easter!)

So I wake up early this morning. About 5:30 am actually. Yesterday I thought about heading to Valley Forge this morning to shoot the sunrise but I figured that if I woke in time it was meant go be. If not then that was fine too. Well I guess it was meant to be so off to Valley Forge I went. After bathing and getting dressed of course. On my drive over there I was hoping that the gates would be open in time. There have been a few times where they cut it real close but today they were open when I got there. And there was an unusually large number of vehicles entering the park. And on top of that the parking lot that I use was half full. And I found out why. One of the local churches was holding a sunrise service. What a wonderful idea! And I don't think they could have asked for a better day. The sun was shining (well, after sunrise), the sky was clear and it was already in the high 40's. It was a quick service though. They finished up about ten minutes after the sun rose. And as for the sunrise? Well take a look.

And that's not all! I also managed to shoot a time lapse. You can see it at the link below.


Easter 2015 Sunrise Over Valley Forge <<< Click Here


And here is a photo of me shooting the time lapse. I used Lapse It Pro for Android on my Motorola Droid Turbo. As you can see the phone was mounted on my tripod.

And that's all for now. But I did shoot a lot this morning and have much more to share with you. Please be sure to come back soon and check it out. Thanks for stopping by and may I wish you a very Happy Easter.

Until next time...

March 19, 2015 - Photo Of The Day

Hi everyone! This is going to be brief but at the same time I have lot's to share with you. How's that sound? Good! Let's get right into it. First I would like to show you the morning sky that I was greeted with today.

And then comes the sunrise.

And here is a time lapse of the sunrise. Click the link below.


March 19, 2015 Sunrise <<< Click here


And of course let's not forget about today's "Amaryllis Watch" photo.

It's getting there. Will it open tomorrow? That would be cool for the first day of Spring.

And that does it for today folks. I thank you for stopping in and hope you come back real soon.

Until next time...

March 10, 2015 - Photo Of The Day

Yesterday I showed you my attempt at nighttime photography. I think it was okay but there was certainly room for improvement. Actually there is always room for improvement but sometimes there is more room than at other times. So I was going to go outside tonight and practice some more but the rainy forecast told me that wasn't a good idea. So I did the next best thing and tried some early morning shots. I am more suited to morning photography anyway. And here is what I have for you today. This first one has two of my favorite subjects. The sky and the Moon.

And this is one of my old favorites. Today's sunrise. I put a little spin on it though and shot it a little closer.

I really love how this came out. The sky and atmosphere were just right and the Sun didn't saturate the image.

And speaking of the Sun I also shot a time lapse of the sunrise. Click the link below and have a look.


March 10, 2015 Sunrise <<< Click Here


And lastly here is today's "Amaryllis Watch" photo. It still hasn't opened but it is getting taller every day.

And that's all for today folks. Thank you so much for stopping by. Please be sure to come back soon.

Until next time...

March 3, 2015 - Photo of The Day

Well once again Old man Winter just won't give up. We are getting rain, freezing rain, ice and then more rain. And to top that off we may get some snow in a couple of days. Some reports say six to eight inches and some say up to a foot. Just crazy. I guess I might get a few more snow photos but to tell the truth I'd rather be shooting some nice Springtime scenes. Today however I am sharing one more photo from Sunday morning. This is another shot of the Schuylkill River and shows the trolley bridge. Nothing special. I just like the composition.

I would also like to share a time lapse video of an absolutely spectacular early morning sky and sunrise. I'm not kidding. This is incredible. Check it out at the link below.


March 3, 2015 Morning Sky <<< Click Here



And that's all for now. Thank you so much for stopping by and please be sure to come back soon.

Until next time...

February 23, 2015 - Photo Of The Day

Continuing with yesterday's theme I would like to share another photo from Valley Forge. This was shot with my camera phone while it was mounted on the dashboard of our car. I was recording a video at the time and I will be sharing it soon but for now here is one of the still frames.

And though this video is not ready yet I do have another one to share with you right now. A time lapse video. But wait! There's more! I am sharing it at four different speeds. Yep, go ahead and choose one. or choose them all. It's up to you. Just click on the links below.


Sunday Drive At Valley Forge

Sunday Drive At Valley Forge (Faster)

Sunday Drive At Valley Forge (Much Faster)

Sunday Drive At Valley Forge (Way Too fast)


And I'm going for now. But I'll be back real soon. I hope you will be too.

Until next time...

February 19, 2015 - Photo Of The Day

Have you ever noticed that the clearest Winter days also seem to be the coldest? Well today was one of those days and when I got up and looked out the window I knew that there would be a beautiful sunrise. And though it was only 10° out there I managed to grab a few shots so I could share it with you. And here is what I got.

And in addition to this I also shot a time lapse video. You can check it out at the following link.

February 19, 2015 Sunrise

And that's it for now folks. Thanks for reading and please stay safe and stay warm.

Until next time...

January 10, 2015 - Photo Of The Day

Happy Saturday everyone! It seems that it is another cold one for most of us. It's not snowing here but it is coming down in unusual places. Despite the cold I had to take our car in for it's 15,000 mile service this morning at 8 am. I like early appointments. I am usually in and out and have the rest of the day free.

While taking the car in I passed by a little spot from where I have been wanting to shoot some photos. It's right along the local freight train tracks. I didn't have my DSLR with me but I did get a few good shots with my phone. And today I share this one with you.

And after the car appointment Kim and I drove out to Lancaster County. It takes us about an hour to get there but I would like to share this time lapse video that gets us there in just three minutes!

Please be sure to view in full screen 1080P.

And that's it for today. Please stop by again real soon. I have some photos from today's trip I would like to show you.

Until next time... 

November 27, 2014 - Photo Of The Day

Happy Thanksgiving! This one is getting to you a little late in the day but I didn't get home until late. I spent the day with family and friends at my Sister's house and had a wonderful dinner with lot's of good conversation and good times. Thank You so much Elaine! 

For today's photo I would like to share this with you.

This is an orchid in Elaine's kitchen. I have always loved Orchids and this is a very pretty one.

And one more thing before I wrap this up for tonight. This is a time lapse video of our trip from home to north Jersey. A two hour trip condensed down to just over one minute.

And that's it for now. Thanks for stopping by and I hope everyone had a great holiday.

Until next time...

November 22, 2014 - Photo Of The Day

What could be better than a nice balmy 45° November day at the shore? Nothing you say? That's what I thought so it was off to Atlantic City for Kim and Me today. Okay we didn't spend any real time on beach but we did at least see it. We walked along the boardwalk for a bit and did a little shopping but to tell the truth we were really there for dinner at Harrah's. Yep I was there for the crab legs!

For today's photo I would like to share a picture I made on the boardwalk. It's just a random shot.

 

I would also like to share a time lapse video of our trip. The is from home to Atlantic City with a pit stop for hot chocolate at a Dunkin Donuts in Deptford, New Jersey. Boy what a mess that was. Unbelievable traffic. And you may also notice two parking garages. The first one was open but the casino has shut down so we drove to the next one up the road and parked there.

Oh, and the crab legs...

Boy were they good!

Thanks for checking in and please come back soon.

Until next time...

November 9, 2014 - Photo Of The Day (And Post Number 100)

Like the Headline says this is my 100th post. I can hardly believe it. When I started out I figured I would do a post or so a week and that is what I did. But I wanted more. I wanted to share more. So I started posting a photo of the day. I must admit that some days it is tough. I guess it's sort of like writer's block except with photographs. It's hard to keep things fresh sometimes. But I do my best and I think I do okay.

So for today's photo I thought there would be no place more fitting  to shoot than Valley Forge. One of my favorite photographic destinations. I was up nice and early so I had plenty of time to drive over there and set up my tripods and get the cameras ready. Everything was in place for a sunrise shot except for one thing. The sun. It was pretty cloudy out there. But the scenery and the colors were nice and I think I came away with some good stuff. So to start off here is today's photo.

This was created using three images shot at three different exposures.

And of course while at the park I indulged in one of my newest obsessions. A time lapse of the "sunrise". Like I said there wasn't much sun but the sky and clouds are nice.

And to wrap it up for the day I am also sharing a "regular" video that I shot. It is about six minutes long and is an example of  the peacefulness of Valley Forge and why I love early mornings there. It is best viewed in 1080P HD and full screen.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my 100th post. I hope to bring you many more. And on that subject I would like to ask that if you enjoy what you see here to please share it with your friends and family. And always feel free to contact me with any questions or comments. I would love to hear from you.

Until next time...

November 7, 2014 - Photo Of The Day

It's "Retro" Friday again and today I am sharing another photo from the wonderful San Diego Zoo in California. Like last Friday it is another Koala but this time a couple years earlier. Today we travel back to March 3, 2003. The weather here at home was cold. Very cold. But San Diego was sunny and in the 70's. A perfect zoo day. 

Here is today's photo.

This was shot with my Fuji S602Z digital camera and post processed in Photoshop.

I would also like to share yet another sunrise time lapse. I think this is the best one yet.

Thanks for visiting and please stop back soon.

Until next time...

November 3, 2014 - Photo of The Day

Hi and thanks for stopping by!

The weather here is seasonal and the wind has finally calmed down. And after some low lying clouds this morning the sky is very clear now. I went out on our deck after work this afternoon and saw the moon was nice and bright in the sky. It was just begging for me to photograph it. And so I did and now I am sharing it with you.

The conditions were very, very friendly for shooting the sky this afternoon. No haze and no clouds. I shot this with my Canon Rebel T3 at 300mm and cropped and touched it up in Photoshop. Can you see the "man in the moon"?

On another note I would also like to share a couple more photos that I shot today at work. Yesterday I posted a group of pictures that I shot to test out my new camera phone. The Motorola Droid Turbo. Those were all shot outside in bright sunlight at Valley Forge and I was very pleased with the results. Today I wanted to take a couple more "test" shots to see how the camera did with indoor lighting. Here is what I got. Keep in mind that I did no post processing and this is right out of the camera.

21 Megapixels. No flash.

This is a shot of some renovations in one of the offices. There were no lights on and one window to the left of the frame. basically normal indoor lighting.

21 Megapixels. Flash Fired.

21 Megapixels. Flash Fired.

These were shot in our parts warehouse in total darkness. The only light is from the flash and one fixture at the end of the aisle. Right in front of me was completely dark. The flash range is pretty good.

I will be testing the video in the next day or two and will post it here. And speaking of video I did do a time lapse video this morning using the camera phone and Lapse It Pro for Android. Check it out.

This is 41 minutes condensed down to 28 seconds. I shot 1 frame every 6 seconds and rendered it at 14 frames per second. I also set it for vivid color.

And that about does it for today folks. Thank you so much for taking a little time out of your day to read my little blog. Please check back soon.

Until next time...

October 29, 2014 - Photo Of The Day

Today to continue with the "Sun" theme I am sharing one more photo from Jenkin's Arboretum on Sunday. Being cloudy and a little rainy today I figured we could use a little sunshine. So here you go.

And here is a time lapse video of today's sunrise. There wasn't a whole lot of sun but the colors are very nice. This is a span of about 41 minutes presented in just over one minute. I shot it with my Galaxy S4 using an app called "Lapse It Pro". Lapse It is great and worth a lot more than the $1.99 I spent for it. Here is their website if you would like to check it out.

Until next time...

October 11, 2014 - Photo Of The Day

The rain is finally over...I think. It seems that the weather people can't get it straight this weekend. Especially down the shore where Kim and I are.

We planned this trip as one last chance to visit Ocean City before most of it closes up for the season. This is also the weekend that the annual block party is taking place here. The rain kind of put a damper (pun intended) on the block party but it did stop in time for a fireworks show over the beach to cap off the night. I will post some pictures of the fireworks in a bit but for now I would lie to share a photo of the boardwalk from this evening.

Still a little wet but I think that makes for a nice picture. And at least it isn't windy anymore.

Before I call it a night I would also like to share a video with you. This is a time lapse of our trip to Ocean City yesterday afternoon. The drive took about an hour and a half but I was able to condense it down to just under two minutes. Please take a look.

 

This was shot using my Samsung Galaxy S4 with an app called Lapse It. The basic version is free and very limited but the Pro version is just $1.99. A bargain in my opinion.

Thanks for visiting and be sure to come back soon.

Until next time...