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Just above the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha, Nebraska, is a display of two Union Pacific freight train engines. This photo is one small detail of the older Engine #4023, which was a massive steam engine. As I walked around the engine, I was struck by all of the moving parts that comprise a steam engine, especially the mechanisms that transferred steam to power that turned the massive wheels.
Canon 5DIII 1/125s f/2.8 ISO100 100mm
This photo of a Hawaiian gecko is the third in a row in this blog that come from my 2006 collection. Like so many other photos of mine, it had been abandoned and exists only because I'm not good at throwing things away.
The colors in this photo are unlike almost any that occur naturally in South Dakota, though I am struck by how similar the color palettes are in this photo and in my recent post from Salt Lake City called "A Little Color." Check it out.
Canon 5D 1/2500s f/3.2 ISO100 135mm
I'll bet you didn't know that a common characteristic of the four species of venemous snakes* in the US is that they all have "elliptical eye slits, aka "cat's eyes." The important thing, then, is that if you encounter a snake, you need to look it in the eyes to determine if it is deadly or not. If you stare in to a snake's eyes and see that they look more like a human's eyes, then he/she** is your friend.
Mac is no snake, of course. And he's not venomous. He has been known to kill mice and small birds from time to time but he does that primarily because that's what cats do in their spare time. Mac has been part of our family for 13 years now, though he is a sprightly 7 in this photo, taken in 2006.
Canon 5D 1/400s f/3.5 ISO400 135mm
*rattlesnake, cottonmouth, coral snake, copperhead **Only trained herpetologists can determine a snake's gender.
Each year I donate a photo to the Lake Area Technical Institute Foundation to be auctioned at their annual Festival of Trees, which is quickly approaching. The photo usually has a winter theme and this year's picture is called "Spring Melt" and was photographed along Iron Creek last April.
Being a perfectionist, I rarely like my photos in print form but I have to say that this one, printed on metal, is pretty special. Of course it helps to have such great scenery. :-)
The phrase "changing of the guard" can be metaphorical but at the Prague Castle in the Czech Republic it is literal. But the event is also a tourist attraction. Deb and I just happened to be arriving at the Castle when the three men seen here were marching to their post. Their baby blue uniforms are traditional but not particularly "normal" when it comes to military garb. Maybe the intent is to make the opponent feel happy and non-violent.
Have I just returned from the Czech Republic? No. We were there in 2006 and I found this photo in the process of organizing my vast collection of forgotten photos. I call it "dumpster diving" and the fact that I got caught up in processing this photo when I should have really been culling it is a reason I get so little organizing done. Some day I'll start on my closet, but I'll have the same problem with old college papers that I have with photos . . . .
Canon 5D 1/320s f/7.1 ISO400 105mm
My blog has been dominated by monotones lately so I decided it was time to brighten things up a bit. These leaves were found in a small park below the state capitol building in Salt Lake City Utah.
Canon 5DIII 1/80s f/3.5 ISO400 100mm
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So here's the triptych I said I might make from the previous three photos.
I haven't quite exhausted my small collection of exterior details of the Codington County Court House. But I think I'll hold at three for now. Maybe I'll make a triptych. . .
Did you know that you can get each day's "A Photo A Day" post conveniently delivered to your email inbox every day at 8:30 am? It's like getting your newspaper delivered to your door except that there is no news and no paper. Just go here.
Why 8:30 am? That time is based on personal and exhaustive study of workplace behavior: you are sitting at your computer at work and and you are already looking for a convenient distraction. Or a vicarious experience. Or a photo to jazz up that Powerpoint you are doing. . .
I spent 10 minutes looking for worthy details surrounding the door of the Codington County Court House. They weren't hard to find.
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This is a photo of some of the excellent architectural detail work surrounding the south door of the Codington County Court House in Watertown, South Dakota. While our LATI photo students were photographing interior details, I stepped out to get these details, knowing that the strong, angular morning light would help dramatize them.
Canon 5DIII 1/4000s f/2.8 ISO200 140mm
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The "golden hour" is generally defined as the hour of sunlight just before sunset. It is particularly conducive to natural light portraiture, though other things, including landscapes and cityscapes, look better in this light, too.
I also think that there is a golden hour in the morning. But to catch it on a summer morning in South Dakota means being out sometime around 4:30 am, which is not exactly "golden" for most portrait subjects. But I will say that Lonesome Lake, where I took this photo, is flattered by this light. Even my 59 year old face might have been improved by the soft cloud and fog filtered light present on this morning. :-)
Canon 5DIII f/16.0 ISO100 85mm
I can't help it. Here's a photo of Glenyce Jane Shephard striking a pose with her grandma Deb. Great faces. And wonderful catchlights in Glenyce's eyes.
Canon 5DIII 1/100s f/3.2 ISO400 100mm