Henri Cartier-Bresson
If your first 10,000 photos are your worst, you want to get them out of the way as soon as possible so you can get to the good ones, right?! So take a lot of photographs!
Take a Lot of Photographs
Category Archives: General
Great Blue Heron: iPhone vs DSLR at 130 Yards
Great Blue Heron at Lake LaShane
I was driving along a country road at one of my favorite local lakes and spotted a Great Blue Heron straight north of me near the shoreline. I got the crazy idea to do comparison photos between my DSLR and my iPhone. The heron was too far away to get a high quality image with either camera, but I decided to do it anyway. I also wanted to check on the quality of the iPhone’s built in digital zoom versus cropping the original image and resizing it later in the computer.
20 Years Ago This Evening
Dancer, Graceland University, Lamoni Iowa
20 years ago this evening I was photographing this dancer at an evening worship service at a church camp. I tried to capture just the right moments in her dance. I was particularly pleased with this image. I sent it to the media office of the church that sponsored the camp.
“Where exactly was I when I took those photos?”
Ludington Dunes in the moonlight. Click the image for a larger version.
My primary camera, a DSLR, does not record the GPS location of my photos. Why does it matter? Some photo editors will not publish a photo unless you provide accurate GPS coordinates of the image location. Of course I knew I was approximately a couple of hundred yards up the beach from the parking lot, but not precisely where I was. Plus I am curious. Some of my photos are taken in less obvious locations and I like to know where I was when I clicked the shutter.
Burgess Corners Michigan: Grocery Store and Filling Station
Burgess Corners Grocery Store and Filling Station
When I do photography workshops in Northern Michigan, this quaint, early 1920s grocery store and filling station is one of the stops on our field trips.
OSU’s Stone Lab Photo Workshop, July 22, 2011
Sunrise at OSU’s Gibraltar Island, Lake Erie, Ohio. July 22,2011, 6:26 am.
July 22, 2011 was a very special day. Jeremy Bruskotter and I were leading our very first weekend photography workshop for OSU’s Stone Laboratory. Home base for our workshop was Gibraltar Island, OSU’s island in Lake Erie. We did this weekend workshop once every summer for several years.
4th of July Parade, Lamoni Iowa
The color guard with the U.S. flag leading the 4th of July parade.
Each year for fun I photograph the 4th of July parade in Lamoni Iowa, and I send photos to the local newspaper. Here are some photos from this year’s parade, along with a few parade photography tips.
The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776
Thomas Jefferson by Rembrandt Peale, 1800
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
From the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4, 1776. Written by Thomas Jefferson (1762-1826). 3rd US President (1801-09).
More images (including Thomas Jefferson’s original draft) and the complete text of the declaration are after the break.
National Camera Day!
Kodak 126 Instamatic Camera and Kodachrome 64 film cartridge.
I just learned today is National Camera Day. Who knew?
This Kodak 126 Instamatic cartridge camera was my first camera. It was a gift from my parents when I was in high school. I used print film cartridges for about 3 years. It was not until I was in college that I made the switch to slide film cartridges.
Do NOT Get Taken in by the “Stealth Bird Drone” Scam!
We’ve been down this road before. A low quality product made in China is falsely advertised as a top of the line American made product. The Stealth Bird Drone sells for $99, but you can buy the same exact drone on Amazon for $23. Even at that, honest reviews say the flying is a bit erratic and the video quality of the camera is poor.
Video of Ronald Reagan’s Speech On the 40th Anniversary of D-Day
President Reagan’s 13 minute speech at the U.S. Ranger Monument at Pointe du Hoc is considered to be one of the great speeches in American History. In addition to President Reagan, these world leaders were present: Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands, King Olav V of Norway, King Baudouin I of Belgium, Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, and Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau of Canada.
Links
The Text of Ronald Reagan’s Speech On the 40th Anniversary of D-Day
President Reagan’s 13 minute speech at the U.S. Ranger Monument at Pointe du Hoc is considered to be one of the great speeches in American History. In addition to President Reagan, these world leaders were present: Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands, King Olav V of Norway, King Baudouin I of Belgium, Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, and Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau of Canada.
The text of Reagan’s speech follows.
Video: The Story Behind Robert Capa’s D-Day Photos
John Morris, Capa’s London photo editor, tells the story behind Robert Capa’s D-Day photos, including the terrible darkroom mistake that ruined most of the photos. The high resolution video is best viewed full screen. You can see a contact sheet of the nine surviving negatives (ripped sprocket holes and all), Capa’s photo notes, and hear the story of the rush to get the prints back to the U.S. for publication in Life more. Fascinating imagery.
Link
Seven Spectacular Southern Utah “Parks” in 46 Hours
Early Morning Snow at Bryce Canyon, April 25, 2001.
When I left home in the Midwest and headed for Northern California I had no intentions of being in Southern Utah. By the time I reached Denver, snow in the forecast for N. Utah, Nevada, and the mountain passes in N. California made a detour much more appealing than fighting snow on I-80, especially since I have never been to the spectacular parks and monuments in southern Utah.
Q&A: How To Restore Old, Faded, Original Prints
Old fading wedding photo and digitally corrected version.
I received this question via email from a person worrying about old, fading prints in her scrapbooks:
“I have noticed some of my older photos look like they may be degrading; if I only have the photo itself, what is the best way to restore the print? Do I just take another photo and send it in to reprint? And one other thing, your opinion of Walgreens photo quality?”
MEMORIAL DAY, IN REMEMBRANCE . . .
Cemetery, The Presidio, San Francisco, California. Photo © Jim Doty, Jr.
Memorial Day began unofficially in a variety of places as people felt the need to recognize those who gave their lives in the Civil War. Memorial Day was officially declared on May 5, 1868, when General John Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic ordered a day of observance when all Union and Confederate Graves at Arlington National Cemetery would be decorated with flowers on May 30, 1868. One state after another adopted May 30 as a Memorial Day observance until all of the Northern states had adopted May 30 by 1890. Many Southern states had picked different days to honor the Confederate dead.
In Remembrance: Memorial Day
U.S. Flags at Sunset, Rose Hill Cemetery, Lamoni, Iowa
From Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, March 4, 1865.
Memorial Day, Rose Hill Cemetery
In Remembrance: A Brief History of Memorial Day
Richard Duane Klug (the name just above the rose) was born January 26, 1946. He died in Darlac Province, Vietnam, November 14, 1967 at the age of 21. He is one of over 58,000 American soldiers that died in Vietnam, and one of over 1.1 million American soldiers that have died in all American wars (almost half of them in the Civil War).
Sometimes You Have to Get Your Tripod Legs Wet
The Maroon Bells and Maroon Lake, Colorado
I wanted to capture the classic view of the Maroon Bells with no photographers in the image. But the shoreline was packed with photographers. No matter where I stood there were at least a few photographers in my image. The only place to get the image I wanted was to stand on a rock out in the lake. But a photographer was already on that rock.
Water Portraits
Soleece, Slip Bluff Lake.
I love water portraits and Soleece does too, so we went out to two of our local lakes. Solace was in the shade for the first two photos so I adjusted the camera’s white balance for the shade. I used Adobe Camera Raw to tone down the highlights a bit.
Living Arts Studios Dance Recital Photos – Spring 2024
“La Pavillon D’Armide Variation”, Soloist: Ava, Dance Recital, Living Art Studios, Lamoni Iowa.
Living Art Studios in Lamoni Iowa had its annual spring dance recital May 3 at the Shaw Auditorium, Graceland University. More photos follow. Click on any of the photos to see a larger version.
Before The First Photo Shoot
Adobe Bridge: Portrait ideas.
It started with a text message from a mutual friend. She told me Soleece, a college student, wanted to work with me to create some portraits. Soleece saw some of my event photography in the local newspaper but she was not acquainted with my portrait photography.
Solar Eclipse Totality – August 21, 2017
The Corona.
I did not travel to the path of totality, so here are some of my favorite photos of totality from the August 21, 2017 eclipse.
American Astronomical Society Warns of Counterfeit & Fake Eclipse Glasses
Read this AAS article at the first link below. You could go blind wearing fake solar eclipse glasses and viewers. Just like in 2017, Chinese factories are selling fake eclipse glasses/viewers made to look like legit glasses/viewers.
Where is the Path of the Total Eclipse?
Where can you see the total eclipse?
(Also posted February 22, 2024.)
Go to this NASA site and to this Eclipse Map site and to this NSO eclipse site with a detailed, zoom-able map.
Solar Retinopathy: Why an Eclipse is So Dangerous, Especially for Children, and What To Do About It
I posted this article before (February 21), but a solar eclipse is so dangerous to the unprotected eyes that I am posting it again. A solar eclipse is dangerous for everyone and children are especially at risk. Even when the sun is 99% eclipsed it can do serious eye damage. This is what you need to know and do.
Beth
Beth
One year ago today I had a fun photo shoot with Beth. These are some of our favorite images from that shoot.
Artist’s Statement
Artist’s Statement. Photo: Northern Lights, Camp Denali, Alaska. Click for a larger version.
One Photographer and Nine Outdoor/Travel Writers Pick the Best National Parks for Spring
Moon Over Balanced Rock, Arches National Park, Utah.
Are you planning a spring photography trip to one or more U.S. national parks? Where should you go? Which parks will provide the best photographic opportunities? Which parks are at their best in the spring?