Big things are in my future
I haven’t had much time to blog this week. I’m neck deep in a million business related tasks. I have lots of photo ideas running around in my head and on scraps of paper on my desk. They are going to have to stay there for a little while I forge ahead with some of the not-so-fun items on the to-do list. Its all going to be worth it, and before I know it I will be back to being a shooting machine.
Destination Wedding Photographer Seeks Tropical Locations
Three weeks in Florida completely ruined me. Somehow I’ve regressed to some kind of cold weather wimp. It hasn’t been snowing in the mountains much and it’s been butt cold here in town. I miss the beach. Who is going to fly me to a tropical location to photograph their wedding or event?
The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservancy Photos and Slideshow
While I was down in Key West I checked out the Butterfly and Nature Conservancy. It was really amazing. There is a greenhouse and it is FILLED with butterflies. They are everywhere, and you can get right up on them with your 100mm 2.8 Macro :>) And no, the first image in the slideshow is clearly not a butterfly perched on my finger so that I could get a better closeup. You aren’t allowed to handle the butterflies or else you will get scolded like a schoolboy.
Key West Sunrise and Sunset Photos
Acorn Still Life
One of the great things about going on vacation is that you put yourself in an entirely new space. Different surroundings and activities are great ways to stimulate creativity. Sometimes I can get creatively stuck in the home office, going about my daily routines. When I’m at home I never sit around and do nothing. But while I was hanging out in the warm morning light on a deck in Key West, I found myself playing with acorns.
Road Trippin’: Photos from the front seat
Honeymoon Island State Park Photos: Osprey and Monster Waves
I headed out to Honeymoon Island State Park in Dunedin Florida to scope out a potential site for some future shoots that I have planned. I was struck by the power and fury of the monster waves that were crashing upon the shore.
I walked for a ways down the nature trail. There wasn’t much going on, except for some very large osprey nests. There are dozens of nests on the island. Interestingly, ospreys mate for life, using the same nest year after year.
Central Florida Nature Photography Slideshow: Morris Bridge, Flatwoods, Trout Creek, Lettuce Lake Photos
I’ve been shooting some nature photos interspersed within and between my mountain biking adventures. It has been nice to get away from the routine and to spend some time wandering around in the woods. The mountain bike trails are out in the Hillsborough County Park System of Morris Bridge, Flatwoods, and Trout Creek.
The trails border on the cypress swamps. The main obstacles are roots, spiders, roots, and the occasional alligator, as I mentioned yesterday.
Check out the sweet pentagonal lens flare from my fisheye lens!
Lettuce Lake park has a tower where you can check out the view from above.
I don’t have a big enough lens to take serious close up nature photos of birds and critters from a distance. Fortunately these white ibis were pretty tame. The funny part about these birds is that their neck muscles are a primary means of propulsion. When they want to walk faster they start bobbing their heads forward more furiously to speed up!
PERMALINK: Central Florida Nature Photography Slideshow on it’s own page click here
Backyard Foliage
A benefit of living in a place where it never freezes is that you can grow all kinds of cool tropical plants in the backyard. Here we have a hibiscus and a staghorn fern for your viewing pleasure.
Big Ass Tropical Bug
Photo of the Day
I like this photo. It’s kinda creepy. It reminds me of alien tentacles.
Bored over the holidays? Cruise by the blog!
I took this picture today. Quite a difference between the previous photo, eh? Yes, I left town for the holidays, and am hanging out in sunny Tampa, Florida. Yes, I’m wearing shorts right now. :>)
I’m really enjoying the change of pace, and the change of scenery. I’ve been taking a bunch of photos since I’ve been here, and I plan on posting regularly over the next couple weeks. I’ll be posting more regularly than I have been when I’ve been 100% immersed in the business end of my photography world, and look forward to creating more artsy fartsy images than I have recently. So check back often for a warmer perspective than what you might be experiencing back in the wintery parts of the country.
I sleep with the blinds open
Lots of people need their bedroom to be pitch black in order to sleep. For me, it doesn’t really matter. I’ve trained myself to sleep with the blinds open. I feel it aids my renowned napping skills to be able to sleep with the sunlight streaming in.
As a photographer, my senses have become attuned to ‘good light’. Sometimes I’ll be working at my computer and all of a sudden I will detect a change in light. The ambient light will shift slightly to a pink or yellow hue, and instantly I will know that a great sunset is happening, even if I’m inside and I can’t see the actual sunset. Last night’s sunset was really awesome, unfortunately I only saw it from the inside of my dirty windshield, as I was driving to an event.
My sensitivity to first and last light has grown to the point where sometimes I get woken up by the sunrise. Even with my eyes closed, I can see great light. This morning was one of those mornings. Someday I will live somewhere where I can photograph great scenic sunrise/sunsets from my bedroom. But in the meantime, this is what it looks like when I get woken up by the sunrise drifting in through my open blinds.
Nature Photography Slideshow - Sunset at the Boulder Reservior
I took some time to enjoy the sunset today. I missed all of the great ones we had last week because I was too busy working working working. But today I’m wrapping up a few days of mental relaxation.
I did manage to figure out how to embed slideshows into this new blog template, so that is pretty exciting. I’ve got a few cool pictures of broken ice.
The pointy hill on the right is Sugarloaf. I can almost see Paul’s house. Hi Paul!
The picture below is my self portrait today.
And here we have another non-standard Flatirons shot to add to my collection.
So check out the slideshow below for more pictures. It’s pretty short, only 1:40 long.
Just Horsing Around
I really want to get back into posting regularly on this blog. I haven’t been am going to post more random images more frequently. Preferably attached to corny titles. Maybe I should have alliterated and called this entry Halfa Horse Head.
