12-26-12 Taking Flight

I should know what kind of bird this is. But I don't. I'm not really equipped for bird photography but this guy was pretty close to me when he/she took flight.Added 2-2-12: Jim Klinger tells me this bird is a Great Blue Heron. Since he took the time to identify my bird, you should take some time and check out Jim's excellent photo blog.Canon 5DIII 1/640s f/10.0 ISO200 102mm

06-24-12 A New Friend

So I guess it's about time I post something new. And why not something prosaic like a cat?This cat was one of several who had free reign at a B&B named the Hummingbird House in Road Town, Tortola, BVIs. We stayed there before our chartered sailing trip.He was sleeping when I saw him and I put the 70-200mm lens on my camera because I figured he wouldn't let me get too close and still look so relaxed. I suspect he had a name but I never learned it.

05-30-12 Look What the Cat Dragged In!

I was walking down our hallway to the kitchen on Sunday when I noticed Mac chasing some dark thing towards me. I though it was a toy at first but then I noticed that it was furry and running like hell. I think I might have screamed as Mac and the harry thing ran past me.I thought it was a mole at first but when I found the animal cowering behind a hard drive in my den, I saw that it was a baby rabbit. Deb came to the rabbit's rescue and he was released to the wild. In our back yard.Will Mac find him again? Maybe. Will the rabbit find our deck door wide open, as he did on Sunday? No way!

Vigilance

Morning Light

Mac would never pose for me, of course. So any interesting photo of him is a bit of an accident. I was actually trying to photograph the shadows of the shuttered light on the far wall of the living room when Mac jumped onto the back of the sofa and blocked the very light I was playing with.At first, I was peeved but then saw the photo opportunity. I took 8 photos but this is the only one where his eyes aren't shaded. I experimented with turning this into a black and white photo because I think there is a little too much color to distract us from the focal point - which is Mac. In the end, I liked the mix of warm and cool colors, including Mac's orangish fur. To lessen the bright color of the sofa, I used Photoshop to create a vignette.And now I like the color. I especially, like the bluish tint on the wooden shades contrasting with Mac's color. And everybody knows that orangish and bluish are complementary colors.For a little insight in to the creative and artistic side of photography, watch my screencast about how I edited this photo: http://www.screencast.com/t/YAJHszOtN

On A Mission

This is a Greek kitten, discovered on a back street on the island of Mykonos. He/she is oblivious to my camera and refused to stand still for the photo.

Order and Chaos?

There is so much that seems random in nature. And then there are birds flying in formation. . . In this picture, grabbed on the fly, notice how the angles of the birds' wings fit into each other.But then notice the clouds: are they the antithesis of these birds in flight?

Mac On the iPhone

I continue to be impressed with the photographic capabilities of my iPhone 4. It shoots pretty clean photos in marginal light. It also lets me do macro photography. AND I can selectively focus, which means I can do things with this camera that most point and shoot cameras can't do.This photo of Mac isn't exactly the best way to showcase the camera's capabilities, but I'm using it to start a shorts series of iPhone photos. Frankly, I was looking for something to do a macro photo with and I searched for some living thing that didn't move much. So it was either the plants or Mac. And I chose Mac.

Lucy

Getting a portrait of a of a subject that keeps moving and refuses to listen to instructions isn't easy - especially in low light.This is Lucy, Brian and Katie's cat. Lucy lived with us for a few months but doesn't really act like she knows me. But, being a cat, she didn't generally act like she knew me then, either.Canon 5DII 1/40s f/1.2 ISO1000 50mm

The Cuddly Brown Bear

Frankly, I don't think you'd want to cuddle a brown bear. With front claws that are 4" long and with an ability to run at speeds approaching 40mph, the Alaska brown bear is best kept at a distance, as this bear was in a habitat near Sitka that had been created for bear cubs that had been separated from their mothers. As the story goes, if you and a friend are caught in the wild being chased by a bear, you don't need to outrun the bear. You just need to outrun your friend.

The Snowy Dog

People are crazy about their pets and I was certainly guilty of being crazy about our Springer Spaniel, Polly. She seemed to love life and everyone she met. Polly is long-gone now but I come across photos of her every once and a while - I had forgotten I had this one.

The Bird Man And the Child

I was with a group of students in the Montmartre district in Paris and as we were walking down the steps of the Sacre Couer Basilica, I looked down and saw this man and this apparently mesmerized child. This isn't the only photo of a child marveling over birds. What is it about birds that is so fascinating to children?