dark and moody

Dark and stormy...sums up the day here for both weather and personalities. Conditions are rough for natural light, but I decided to simply use it as an occasion to learn. In the end, I rather like the grainy, moody feel of these. They feel real and capture the every day beauty of living with a little one.





Tech: 1600 ISO, f 5.0, 1/60

orcas, vancouver island

Digging into the archive this morning....

Last August, Nora and I traveled to Vancouver Island to experience and photograph Orcas. It was a breathtaking journey. We flew into Seattle and drove north, taking ferries and camping. The bulk of our time was spent in the north of the island in a sweet village called Telegraph Cove. We had a marvelous outing with Jim Borrowman, one of the first naturalist work to protect the Pacific northwest Orcas by educating the public about them. His company, Stubbs Island Whale Watching, helped worked with the film crew for Free Willy.

Nora and I took so many photos and have never fully processed and printed them. It's time to do that. I must confess that Nora's photos are among my very favorite from the trip, so I must show one of those too.



And just a few more from a whale watching tour we took on the southern end of the island.

back to basics

I took a walk in the neighbor- hood this morning thinking about the reading I've been doing on compos- ition. Lots of sun again...I was really taken by the color and light. In particular, I was thinking about the rule of thirds and looking for interesting triangles and circles.





Tech: top, 100 ISO, f 5.6, 1/80; middle, 100 ISO, f 5.6, 1/320; bottom, 100 ISO, f 5.6, 1/125

Constructive criticism and suggestions always welcome!!!

bob, the cat

Meet Bob. This is an oldie, with some new PS action. Found a freebie soft-focus action online and love it! (I used the same one on the pig below....)

A word about Bob. This the sweetest, gentlest creature, truly one of those animals that is a true friend and comfort. He's always a willing model when others shun me.

I spent half the day behind the camera, shooting a swim meet, but I do not yet have releases on the kids to share them here. I got a few of Will that are okay, but nothing notable.

A special thanks to folks visiting, and especially to those who took time to comment. This is my first real venture out into the world of blogs, and it's interesting. Thanks for looking and reading.

Tech: 1600 ISO, f 5.0, ss1/200.

good morning sunshine...

At last, some sun!!! Nora and I experimented a bit today with light and focus. I'm shooting in manual but switched to single point autofocus and saw a huge leap in clarity.



I'm also shooting in raw and amazed at the detail I am capturing! Check out this tight crop of her eye...you can see her contact.



Tech: ISO 400, f 5.6, ss1/60-1/125

the radiance of pigs

Another day at the office in the world of words and data. It forces me to look back at older work, to look for the light....

The pigs are from another era, taken 6 or 7 years ago at least. Must have been film with the Elan IIe. These were taken at the Farm Sanctuary, in Watkins Glen, NY, after our lives intersected in an interesting way with a wayward goose.

I googled for a poem about pigs without success, but discovered that the late poet Stan Rice published a volume entitled "The Radiance of Pigs" in 1999. It seemed a fitting title.

raining leaves

Long day at the office yesterday, so forgive me as I share a favorite from November. I was still largely shooting in normal program mode then, so forgive me that.

Tech: Shot in auto normal, 400 ISO, f10.0, ss1/160

my favorite fish

One minute 3 seconds is the goal right now in the breast stroke. He's at about 1 minute 7 seconds with a taper ahead. If I'm lucky, he pops his head up in my direction maybe a handful of times in a race. No flash, evening, overhead lights. Thankfully the water acts as a merciful reflector. I'm still experimenting, but getting better. I shot a bit tonight, with nothing of any note of Will, so here are a couple from last month that I rather liked.



More of my swimming photos than anyone would care to see are available at http://caswim.shutterfly.com. There is some work there of which I am very proud, but also some for other purposes (requested event coverage, and an attempt to make sure I cover all the kids).

Tech: top 1600 ISO, 1/320, f5.0; bottom 800 ISO, 1/125, f5.0, both shot using apeture priority.

tutus and hair ties...

Thanks to great directions on ILP, I made Rachel a big tutu last night and we were testing it out. Grabbed the camera for a quick snap-shot...in manual, but with the pop-up flash. The bad hair and mismatched hair ties were driving me crazy as I processed the photo, but it's the real deal...the average dishelvement at the end of the day in our household. So be it.

it's all about attitude...

Poor Will...my victim of the day. Terrible light on a blustery Sunday morning in upstate New York. ISO 1600. Shooting in manual. Love these shots as they really capture his personality, but I'm still struggling for light and to use the technology correctly.


And then a smile, courtesy of Rachel, who gave him some chee-chee-cha-cha wiggle action. Even he couldn't keep a straight face....


As you can see, also playing with conversions a bit, bringing in some browns by playing with the color balance.

One little monkey jumping on the bed...

Inspired by others' pictures of little ones jumping on the bed, I gave it a try yesterday, with very limited success... While not a technically solid photo, it did capture a lovely moment.

The Bribe

I'm not proud. This poor child is subjected to constant test shoots and photographs. A couple of friends who've seen this shot have asked what she is holding. It is her prize, a bribe if you will...for 10 more shots. As I clicked away, the candy got closer and closer to her mouth...