SPRING!!!!!! At Last

This seems to have been one of the longest winters that I can remember. It was cold right after Halloween and snowed before Thanksgiving and then seemed to snow every two to three days. Not much but it snowed. It didn't blow but maybe twice and that wasn't much. Just 20 or so miles north of here it was even worse. Most school districts have makeup days to deal with this year.

Today, it was 73° and very humid. Life outside is starting to sprout.....yea!

I Was a Day Late, Forget the Dollar

Wasn't able to get the moon the other night so I got it last night. Almost forgot so it is up in the sky a bit. Pushed the camera and found I had a contrail in the images to.

Changing of the Guard

My first film camera was a Petri 7 that my brother let me use while he was in college. I mainly took slides of races back then. Then in 1979 he brought me a Canon AE-1. I really enjoyed it but I don't think I ever mastered it. I didn't spend enough time with it for one and there wasn't the a Google or Photoshop program that you could use. Plus, one must not forget the fact that a bad shot cost money unless you went to someone that said you didn't pay for bad shots.

Years go by and my daughter goes off to college to study graphic design. She is required to take a photography class so I give her the AE-1. Low and behold my wonderful wife buys me a new Canon Rebel. Boy was there a weight difference. I bought a second lense and became know in the family as the "oh no, he has his camera" guy.

Again, the years go by and I still don't think I have mastered the film industries ways. It isn't that I didn't try. There was a lot of money spent on film that didn't make it into the shoebox.

Finally I decide that I will get one of those small digital Sony 3MP's. There isn't much to it and I actually get pretty good with it. So, after retiring a short time later I decide to move up to something a little more challenging with more opportunities where I can spend more money on gadgets. I get a DSLR Canon Rebel XTi. I wound up selling my film lenses that fit both cameras and buy a Tamron 18-270mm DIii VCD lense that I truely enjoy. What a simple combo. Now retired I have the time to study photography,which for the most part is self taught so you know I am still a full blown amature. I buy the books and the programs after trying them out for 30 days or so. Gimp was my first hardcore program for a couple of years. It's free.

So, the pics below are of where it all started. The original sign is still there were my wife bought my Rebel film camera. My digital Rebel came from another Click Camera store because we had moved and it was closer. Now I have another one that is yet closer. Dodd Camera bought all the Click's and other stores out in our area and even added some.

Moon Shot

I couldn't get a clear, clean shot of the moon last night. The sky was hazy and the moon had a huge white ring around it causec by the haze. I took these shots last summer on a very clear night. I even did it hand held fashion. As you can tell, I played around with the second and third pictures.

Boy, as big as the moon looked it would have been interesting to have been able to get it.

Bringing the New Plane Home

It's not mine but I do have pictures of a CJ1 jet being brought home by its new owner from England. Weather wasn't cooperative in the Iceland area but the rest of the flight went well. In a nutshell it went from England to Iceland with a lay-over. Then it went to Narsaruaq, Greenland, Bangor, ME, Manassas, VA, Ocala, FL. I was able to track in on my computer as it traveled in speed and elevation. One of these days we'll be able to watch the flight in flight like we can watch a race from in the car. Hello technology.

  Securing his plane in Reykjavik Iceland at the end of the first leg of flight home from England. Earlier this day the plane had left Robin Hood Airport, UK.

  On the ground in Iceland with 50KT winds. Looking at towards the terminal out of the cockpit. People were having a hard time standing in the wind.

  Next day, 3/16/11 looking out the nose towards Narsaruaq, Greenland's airport. It is to the far left, hard to see. Iceberg floating on the right side.

Time change

Well, the good old time change got me as well as the clouds. I was hoping that on the first and 15th of every month I would get a nice clear day to take the same old shot and see how time and the months of the year go by light wise. Only in the beginning did I get sunshine and then maybe once in February. As spring approaches the cloudy rainy days are still ahead of us. It's normal to be cloudy in the winter but I was still hoping to see the suns transition across the sky.

From the direction that the camera is setup in we should have seen light from the right moving to the left. Using the same time every time it is taken only shows the up or down of the horizon and light. Normally one would see the light behind the tree line on the right in the deepest or darkest months and through the trees on the left in June/July. It seems to rise quicker but I'm sure it doesn't.

A Dreary Day But, To The Meat Market We Go

On Friday we made the trip.

This is about thirteen miles north of us now. Use to be only three and a half miles south east of us when we lived in Phillipsburg, OH. There are quite a few people I know that go there but it is during hunting season for the processing of there bounties.

I can only name three establishments that are around now, there were more. Today you go to Cubs, Kogers or Meijer.

It was dreary, hence some more effects added in. Also, as you can see they are back a long lane. Use to be a single car gravel drive. Now it is a double wide drive that is some where in the neighborhood of a thrid of a mile in length.

I have a friend that just loves their smoked pork chops. I like the bakery myself along with the steaks and everything else. You can keep the beef tongue and hearts. If you like egg noodles then you will surely like the Amish noodles they make on site as is everything else.

Feeding at Night

Caught this Blue Heron feeding at last night just before mid-night.

Shot with the Rebel EOS XTi using a Tamron 18-270mm DiII 72mm VCD lens. ISO of 1600, f 4.0 set at +1 f-stop with focal plane of 42mm and the white balance set at auto. Smudges are rain drops on the window. Sump pump has ran for 24 hrs. straight with no breaks.

Rain Makes Images Shine

A few days ago I posted a partial picture of a mural on the side of a building while driving through an intersection. Birdman, a blogger from Maine, asked to see a closer shot. Well, as you can see I did get the whole thing but it was raining and I didn't want to set my gear up for any period of time so I took this quickie. I have three more where I zoomed in and will post them soon. In the meantime, enjoy.

March. It's Finally Here

What has seemed like a very long winter, at least here in the mid-west, is finally starting to come to and end.

Normally around here we will have some cold days before Thanksgiving, maybe even as early as Halloween (I've seen snow) but it tends to go up and down all the way to the first of the year. We've had temps in the 70's in December but not many.

This year it got cold before Thanksgiving and snowed right after in the next week. Then it seemed to snow, not much maybe and inch or so, every day or two. It got cold and stayed cold. It even got bitterly cold for a couple of weeks in a row. We have a pond and the rule of thumb in these parts is if it isn't frozen by the second week of December then more than likely it won't be safe enough to get on all winter. No problem this year. It just thawed out a week ago and was six inches or more in thickness.

Now the weather is changing and the rains are the issue. North of here, above the I-70 line it has been even more miserable. Not twenty-five miles to the north they still have large snow banks. Not many, they got the rains too and everything is flooded. Three feet of whater in downtown Findley, OH. Schools are closed due to flooded roadways.

This is a color picture but in someways it more resembles a b/w. Not much color yet. There was a pretty good frost this morning and some haze/fog in the air. This is what this series is suppose to be though, show the changes in the same scene a minimum of twelve times if not twenty four. I would imagine some color should be showing up next month.

There is a fine time line to be picked when taking these images. I choose 8 AM. Much earlier I the lighting would have to be played with and any later the morning lighting affect would be gone. I am trying to get the pictures as natural as possible, no playing around, keeping the ISO etc the same. The sun will start to move right to left before long eventually being more to the left side of the tower in the distance.