Neighbors’ Barns

Posted by Mike on

What a weekend! Left the house Friday morning to bring my daughter back to school. She is going to SUNY Binghamton for Biology. Just a little over 2 hours to get her there, haul everything to her room, take her to lunch and then head out to my Dad’s house. Three hours later I reached Bemus Point and although I had nothing but blue skies for 95% of the trip it is overcast and grey. So much for any exploring with the camera.

Saturday was nothing but snow and wind. The family event I was attending was interesting to say the least but only on account of the weather. Finally made it back to my Dad’s house and settled in to wait for the storm to pass. My only concern then was which path home on Sunday and that would depend on the weather. Mother Nature was nice to me. Clear skies and no snow for the whole trip back home.

But enough about my scenic tour of NY State. This week’s theme was all about barns. I knew I would have some great chances around my Dad’s house but those plans went out the window. I managed to get out around my house Sunday afternoon and tried to be a little more creative. I only took the 55-200mm lens with me. Two reasons really… one was to get some detail images of my next door neighbors barn and secondly, the other barn in view from my house is over a half mile away.

Here is was I came up with…

Front Door Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/200s, 120mm, f/8, ISO 200

Front Door
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/200s, 120mm, f/8, ISO 200

Barn Door Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/250s, 165mm, f/8, ISO 200

Barn Door
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/250s, 165mm, f/8, ISO 200

In The Distance Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/320s, 200mm, f/8, ISO 200

In The Distance
Nikon D5100, Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6, 1/320s, 200mm, f/8, ISO 200

Projects

Posted by Mike on

notebook-list

I mentioned creating a list of photography projects a week or so ago. I thought maybe any of the other photographers who have stuck around here this long would appreciate some ideas to keep them practicing during this winter season. Not a lot of these are original ideas by me but more a result of images I have seen on the web. Not intentionally trying to steal anybody’s ideas, just looking for some inspiration to keep me playing with the camera when I can not get outside for some landscapes…

Indoor Projects

  • Game Pieces
  • Tools
  • Objects on a Mirror
  • Household Items
  • Abstracts
  • Patterns/Repetition
  • Flash Experiments

Other Projects/Ideas

  • 24 Views of an Object (select subject and capture 24 different/unique images)
  • 1 Month of Sunsets and/or Sunrises (possibly from one vantage point)
  • Fences
  • Remember the Blue Hour

Projects to Continue

  • Squared
  • Monochrome Winter

So far these are lists I am working from. I am sure items will be added or dropped as I progress but it was good to get this written down and next to the computer. It definitely has me inspired to get creative. Maybe you will find something here to spark a new creative turn in your photography…

Notebook List Photo Credit: paloetic

Animals

Posted by Mike on

This week’s theme is barns and/or animals. I kinda failed at both! There are a few barns around the neighborhood (which for me is a short driving distance) and there are animals associated with the barns but nothing interesting poked its head out while I was exploring. I even tried to be cute and did some indoor portrait images of Pokemon plushies but was not happy with the results (I need a better backdrop, lol).

So I am going to use some images I captured last weekend at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, NY. I mentioned earlier in the week that the trip was not as fulfilling as I had hoped due to the weather but I did manage a few nice images of the animals in the indoor enclosures. These images are always challenging as I have to really increase the ISO to get my shutter speed up to what I need to capture a non-blurry image. Luckily for me Topaz Labs DeNoise does a really nice job cleaning up the results.

Heat Lamp Bathin' Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/50s, 62mm, f/4, ISO 6400

Heat Lamp Bathin’
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/50s, 62mm, f/4, ISO 6400

Bored? Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/200s, 70mm, f/5.6, ISO 800

Bored?
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/200s, 70mm, f/5.6, ISO 800

Let me eat in peace! Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/160s, 55mm, f/5.6, ISO 3200

Let me eat in peace!
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 1/160s, 55mm, f/5.6, ISO 3200

Dominos

Posted by Mike on

I sat at my desk during lunch the other day creating a list of photography projects for this winter. I was focusing on indoor projects since the weather and lack of light after work has hindered my exploring with the camera. Surprisingly I was able to create a fairly long list which I hope will keep me occupied as we head into the snowy, cold part of winter.

This is what I am going to call my Game Pieces project. I have seen numerous variations on Google+ and the strongest influence would be Steve Johnson’s Black and White Games gallery. I read Steve’s book The Minimalist Photographer last year and have been following his blog ever since. My goal is to explore monochrome images with the effect of light and shadows. I will also be playing with depth of field so I can more quickly select the right aperture when I am out with the camera.

Game Pieces – GP1

Dominos Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 8s, 70mm, f/8, ISO 200

Dominos
Nikon D5100, Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4, 8s, 70mm, f/8, ISO 200