Today I have a few more pics that I want to share with you from Longwood last week. I spend a lot of my time there shooting flowers but I do also snap some pictures of scenery. And two of those from last week stood out to me. I have included color photos of both but I have also included one black and white. I'm not sure which I like better but am leaning toward the black and white. Please let me know what you think if you're so inclined.
Happy October Friends! You probably know that I am not a big fan of cold weather. But I really don't mind Autumn too much. Except that it leads to Winter. What I do like is Halloween and all of the spookiness that goes with it. I always have. On this note, I was going through some older photos I shot but did not share. I do this now and again when I have not had time to shoot new stuff. There seems to be a lot of that happening lately. But that's another story for another day. Anyhow, I found something that kind of fit the bill for spookiness. After some enhancing at least.
Not the kind of photo I usually share but it's good to be different once in a while. And now...
Happy Easter everyone! Over the past few years I have come to start an Easter tradition of visiting Valley Forge to photograph the sunrise and then whatever else I am in the mood to work with. Well though I continued this tradition today I was unable to get the sunrise because it was way too cloudy. But that's okay because I was able to concentrate on other areas. Of course I shot a lot of frames of "my favorite tree". I can never seem to get enough of it. I would dare say I have photographed that tree on several dozen occasions and probably well over a thousand frames. Probably a lot more than a thousand. After I was done with the tree I did one of the things I often preach about in photography. I turned around. I always say that turning around can often lead to an even better scene than that I just finished with. I guess it boils down to observing everything around and really take in the environment. Even if it is somewhere I have been many times before I might just see it in a different way or from a different angle. This keeps it fresh if you know what I mean. At least that's how it is for me. So today I am sharing what I saw when I turned around.
The moment I started to process the RAW image I knew this had to be black and white. When I got home from the park the Garden Cafe was filled to the gills with diners. Big birds and little birds alike. And our squirrels too of course. The fountain bird bath got lot's of visitors too. Here's a video showing many birds coming and going.
This is best viewed full screen in 1080P HD. It's kind of long but there is a lot of action from start to finish. Feel free to scan through it. And now...
Before I go I would like to give you a quick history as to how my tradition of visiting Valley Forge on Easter morning started.
Several years ago both of my parents passed. My dad in 2004 and my Mom in 2005. They are both buried at the cemetery at Washington Memorial Chapel located at Valley Forge. I try to visit when I can and a few years ago I went on Easter morning and just sort of did so every year since. It sort of makes this very special day even more special. And though the day can be somewhat solemn it is also very inspiring too.
Thanks for stopping by to read my blog my friends! I really appreciate it. Please be sure to come back real soon because I have a lot of good stuff coming your way.
As you may know Kim and I spent the better part of Sunday at Longwood Gardens and as usual I shot lots and lots of flowers. I did manage to do some scenic shots too though. But from a different perspective. I came across this view that I have seen many times and I pictured it in my mind from the point of view of laying on the ground. Well it was a little wet and muddy for that so I did the next best thing and placed my camera down and then made the shot. And I kind of like the results.
Hi and welcome to another "retro" Friday. And being Friday I'm sure most of us have had a long week so why don't we get right to it. Sound good? Let us go back 21 years to the Winter of 1993 and to one of my favorite places, Valley Forge. Today's photo was shot in 35mm. I am not sure what camera I used but it was probably my Canon T50.
(Stock Photo)
The T50 was a fairly basic camera and was also my first 35mm. It didn't give me a lot of freedom to change settings manually but I did learn a lot about composition using it. And even with a basic set of lenses the quality was superior to the average "point and shoot" of the day. And for the record I still have my T50. I may even take it out one day soon.
And here is today's photo.
I think this is just a bit too grainy. It could be the film I used but I think a more likely cause is the scan I made from the original print. I was able to smooth it out a little in Photoshop. Also coming from me this photo is a little unique. I don't shoot many sunsets at Valley Forge. The parking lots are usually closed at dusk so that of course makes it a little tough to park. I don't remember for sure but I think I may have just pulled the car over and shot this from the side of the road.
And speaking of side of the road photos here is a "stopped on the road" photo from my drive to work this morning. It was early and there was no traffic so I figured I'd give it a "shot" (pun intended).
Just a little snow dusting from a quick overnight snow shower. The roads were actually dry.
And I'm going to call it a day folks. I thank you for reading and ask that you come back soon. Until next time...
Today I would like to take you back to old Valley Forge. Well, not really old Valley Forge. Just Valley Forge in black and white. As much as I love black and white (or monochrome) photography I usually save it for buildings or people. I don't use it a lot for landscape. Today I did though and I think it turned out pretty good.
This was shot with my camera phone in HDR at 21 megapixels and converted to black and white in Photoshop. As usual I tweaked the tones and highlights and did some other minor fixes.
As always thanks for visiting and please come back soon.
Welcome to day 8 of my "Photo Of The Day" blog posts. I have been having a lot of fun and I hope you are enjoying my little project. Please be sure to check in every day because there is a lot more to come. Today I would like to share another photo from Valley Forge. This time it is a black and white panorama composed of three of the shots I made while photographing my favorite tree. Please have a look.
You can click on the image to see a larger version.
Most of my landscape work is of course in color. I must say though that I quite enjoy working in black and white too. To me there is something less intrusive about it. I can enjoy the subject without the "reality" of color. Does that make sense?
On a completely different note I would like you let you know that I am slowly tweaking the layout of my blog. One thing I have added in the sidebar is a list of websites that I enjoy and I think you may too. They are mostly photography related. If you enjoy any of them be sure to check back because I will be adding a lot more. Also if you have any ideas that you think I may like feel free to let me know. You can share them in the comments section or in the soon to come "contact me" section. Well that's about all for today. I know I say it a lot but I really do appreciate you taking a few minutes out of your day to visit me. Until next time...
