Thursday, December 31, 2009

D92: 1500

Second image in my series title "Numbers"  Could not decide which version I like so I posted both. 




 



Manual: Read page 82 "Selecting the drive mode".

Images:  Viewed images by Tasha Prescott .   Very nice portraits.

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

D91: 727

This image is part of a new theme title "Numbers"



Manual:  Read page 81 "Selecting the metering mode"

Images:  Viewed images in David Duchemin images on his flickr page.  Beautiful images.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

D90: Here's Mickey

I decide to practice  some portrait shots.  Mickey is always eager to have his picture taken, so I chose him as my model for today. 






Manual: Read page 80 "When auto focus fails (Manual focusing)"

Images: Viewed more images on Tom Solley's site.

Monday, December 28, 2009

D89: Busy Bee

My nephew's favorite toy.  Busy  is also my favorite model when I want to practice portraits.  He's always happy and sits there quietly. :-)



Manual: Read page 79 "Focusing an off center subject"

Images: Viewed images by Wedding and Portrait photographer  Tim Solley .   Tim also wrote an excellent tutorial on Portrait lighting for beginners that's posted on the sublime light website. Check it out. Lots of good info.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

D88: A Glass of Pomegrante

This idea  was inspire by my friend Cheryl.  She posted a picture of pomegranates in a glass.  I love pomegranates, but I 've never had the patience to peel one. I usually cut it in half and dig in.  Thanks Cheryl, it is so worth the wait.



Manual: Read page 77 and 78 "Selecting the AF point"


Images: Viewed images by food photographer Sara Remington.  Awesome images, very inspiring.  I could learn a lot from her. 

Saturday, December 26, 2009

D87: Dancing Penguins

The holiday display at Mountain View cemetery is one of my favorite Christmas displays. The only display I've seen that has dancing penguins.    Click on the image to get a better view.



Manual:  Read page 73 - 76 "Selecting the AF mode"

Image:   Viewing images in David duChemin book "Within the Frame"
.

Friday, December 25, 2009

D86: Happy Holidays




Manual: Read page 72 "INFO Checking camera settings"

Images:  Viewed images in David DuChemin book "Within the Frame"

Thursday, December 24, 2009

D85: Nutcracker

  Saw this cute little guy on display in a store window.

 

Manual:  Read page 70 and 71 "File numbering methods"

Images: Viewed images in the December edition of Lenswork Magazine.  One of the best (imho) magazine around on black and white photography.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

D84: Holiday Cupcakes

Food photography is truly an art.  I played around with these for at least two hours trying to come up with nice composition.  I decided to settle on this one. Not my best but it will do for now.



Manual: Read page 68 and 69 "Creating and selecting a folder".

Images:

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

D83: Happy as an Elf in a Tree


Manual:  Read page 67  "Setting the color space"

Images:  View  portrait images by NYC photographer Hannah Khymch.  Impressive portraits and she's only 18 years old.

Monday, December 21, 2009

D82: Frosty the Snowman

Found him hanging out in front of the Jelly Belly factory



Manual:  Read page 65 and 66  "White balance auto bracketing"

Images:  View images in flickr Christmas group

Sunday, December 20, 2009

D81: MandM Gingerbread Man

Found this little guy at the dollar store and decided to dress him up.



Manual:  Read page 64 "White balance correction"

Images: Viewed images by Trey Ratcliff.  This guy does some amazing HDR images.  He also has a cool blog called "Stuck in customs"  Check him out. 

Saturday, December 19, 2009

D80: Let it snow

For some reason this snowman remind me of a hobo with missing teeth.



Manual:  Read page 63 "Setting the color temperature'"


Images:  Viewed images in this month Rangefinder magazine.  I like the image of  Obama on the cover. Also feature in the magazine  is the winners of the APA National Photo Composition.  Very impressive images.  

Friday, December 18, 2009

D79: Two Rudy's and a Chocolate tree

My nephew's Christmas school project. That chocolate tree started melting so I had to stop a few times and put it in the freezer for a few minutes.



Manual:  Read page 62 "Custom White Balance"

Images:  Viewed images on a site called Pictory.  This person took several images of the SF bay area.   Each image has a short story about the image or location.  Check it out.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

D78: Banjo Playing Angel

Spotted this ornament sitting on top a display case. Tried shooting it several different angles. This was my best shot.



Manual:  Read page 61 "Setting the White Balance"


Images:  Viewed images on different photographers on oneexposure site.  The images are amazing.  Take a look at this image, then go to the site to see more amazing images.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

D77: Non Traditional Candy Canes

Crayola candy canes? They didn't have these flavors when I was a kid.



Manual: Read page 60 "ISO Setting the ISO speed"

Images: Viewed images by local photographer Michael Soo.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

D76: Ornaments

Went to my friend Cheryl's house for dinner. She had some beautiful ornaments on her Christmas tree. These were my two favorites. Thanks for dinner Cheryl. That pasta was delicious!!



Manual:  Read pages 58 and 59 registering the picture styles


Images:  Viewed images of my contacts in flickr.



Monday, December 14, 2009

D75: Nativity Scene



Manual:  Read page 55 - 57 "Customizing the picture style"

Images:  Viewed images in flickr interestingness group .  Is "interestingness" a word?

Sunday, December 13, 2009

D74: Holiday Treats

Left over holiday treats from Christmas party



Manual: Read page 53 and 54 "Selecting a picture style. I've use several of theses settings when I use to shoot jpeg.  I now shoot raw exclusively and was told by another photographer that these settings do apply when shooting raw.

Images: Viewed images on flickr

Saturday, December 12, 2009

D73: Frosty in Bubble

First time I've seen frosty in a bubble



 Manual:  Read page 52 "Max Burst during continuous shooting"

Images:   Viewed images by Gianni Galassi 

Friday, December 11, 2009

D72: Holiday Cookies

Went to a holiday party tonight for my local photography  meetup group.  Had a great time.  Good food and good company.  Atfer dinner we had critique session of images taken by the group members.  Some of the work displayed was awesome.  Really talented group.


Manual:  Read page 49, 50 and 51 'Setting the image recording quality"

Images: Viewed more images in Flickr explore.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

D71: A Disney Christmas Theme



Manual:  Read page 48 "Self-timer Operation"

Image:  Viewed images in Flickr explore.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

D70: The Star

Holiday decoration in Jack London Square



Manual:  Read page 45, 46 and 47 "Fully automatic shooting" and "Using full auto".

Images:  Viewed images by Vilhjalmur Ingi Vilhjalmsson Found his site via another flickr contact.  Amazing work.

 

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

D69: The Church at Christmas time

Saw this lovely decoration in the window on Lakeshore Ave. 



Manual: Page 44 "Dioptric Adjustment"

Images:  Viewed images of  Steven Walenta  after reading an article about him in photo techniques magazine. Nice collection of work.  

Monday, December 7, 2009

D68: The number 5

Found this while strolling around the The Nut Tree in Vacaville. 



Manual:  Read page 42 and 43 "Cleaning the Cmos sensor"

Images:  Just started reading Joe Mcnally's book "Hot shoes Diaries" so I viewed images on his website. I had the pleasure of attending his workshop this year.  He's a super nice guy and a great sense of humor.  The workshop was awesome.  He shared a lot of info on shooting with one light, using reflectors and strobes.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

D67: All I need is chestnuts

Found this outdoor fireplace in downtown Suisun.  It was sooo cold out tonight.  My fingers were grateful for the heat.



Manual: Read page 40 and 41 "Setting the time and date" and "Replacing the date/time battery"

Images:  Viewed images by food photographer Bill Brady

Saturday, December 5, 2009

D66: Peppermint Patty and Frosty

Went on a photo shoot with my friend Cheryl and the Solano meetup group to Bodega  Bay.  I thought it was going to be cold and foggy when we got there but it was a beautiful sunny day.  Took lots of photos and hung out with some pretty cool people.  On the way back we stop and took pictures of her Cheryl's neighbor Christmas decorations.   There were so many different items;  peppermints, stars, nativity scene and a horse and carriage to name a few.  This was one of my favorites.



Manual:  Read page 39 "Set the power-off/Auto power off

Images:  Finish reading and viewing images in Galen Rowell's book "Mountain Light".

Friday, December 4, 2009

D65: Gingerbread man for Cheryl

Went photo shopping with my friend Cheryl.  Saw this cute little guy in a store window.



Manual:  Read page 38 "Setting the language"

Images:  Continued reading and viewing images from Galen Rowell's book  "Mountain light".

Thursday, December 3, 2009

D64: Blue Light

Blue Christmas tree light.



Manual:  Read page 37 "Reset camera default settings"

Images:  Continued reading and viewing images from Galen Rowell's book  "Mountain light".

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

D63: Letter to Santa

Saw this in a store window in downtown Vacaville



Manual:  Page 33 - 36 menu operations

Images: Found Galen Rowell's book "Mountain light" at the library so I started reading it and viewing the images. 

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

D62: Frosty's Brother

I've decided to join my friend Cheryl and do a christmas theme this  month.  This is the first in the series.



Manual:  Read page 30 thru 32 "Basic Operation".

Images:  Tonight I went to Barnes and Noble and browse the photography section.  Looked at images in Galen Rowell's book "Mountain Light in search of dynamic landscape" and Read technical info in Bryan Peterson book "Learning to see creatively"  .

Monday, November 30, 2009

D61: Mom's favorite

My mom's favorite candy, Rocky Road from See's candy.



Manual:  Read pages  28 and 29 installing and removing the CF card.

Images:  Viewed images by food photographer Matt Armendariz

Sunday, November 29, 2009

D60: Xmas Tree upclose

Went to the Jelly Belly factory to check out  the Christmas tree decorations.  Tried the zoom effect on the tree.





Manual: Read page 27 "Mounting and detaching a lens"

Images:  Viewed Xmas images on flickr.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

D59: Snowmen Social

Went to Sonoma with my friend Cheryl. Never seen this many snowman in one place. It was like a party for snowmen, bring your own snow. :-)



Manual:   Read page 26 "Using a household power outlet"

Images:  Studied images in Michael Grecco's book "Lighting and Dramatic the Portrait"

Friday, November 27, 2009

D58: Apple a Day Vs. One a Day

 So does a vitamin a day keep the doctor away?



Manual:  Read page 24 and 25 "Installing and removing the battery"


Images:  Viewed images by Canadian photographer Alyce Taylor

Thursday, November 26, 2009

D57: I am Blessed

  I decided to spend the day in silence (as much as possible) just reflecting on my life and all the blessings I have received.  I took a walk along the Emeryville waterfront watching the sunset.  I thought of all the things I'm truly thankful for:

My Health
My Family
Good Friends
My Freedom
This sunset 
This Life

I am truly blessed. 



Manual:  Read page 21, 22 and 23 "Getting Started and Recharging the Battery'

Images:  Viewed the Thanksgiving images on  Flickr using keyword "Thanksgiving"

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

D56: Melts in your mouth

Spent most of the evening taking images of Thanksgiving Day dinner preparations .  Too many to choose from so I went with something easy for my picture of the day.



Manual:   Read page 48 "Self timer operation"

Images:  Viewed images by New York  photographer Markus Hartel.   Interesting images.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

D55: Ready for my closeup

Went for a stroll in the park today and came upon a bed of recently planted flowers.   I had my macro lens in my bag so I decided to take some close ups. Can't recall the name of the flower.



Manual:  Read page 40 "Setting the date and time"

Images:  Viewed images by New York photographer Dave Beckerman   Nice images of  New York.   I really like his "Still Life" and "Central Park" series. 

Monday, November 23, 2009

D54: View from across the Pond

Driving along highway 29 in Vallejo I notice this pool of water and the reflection from the apartment building.  I thought it would make a nice picture of the day.



Manual:  Read page 175 "One shot AF for still pictures"


Images:  View images by Richard Avedon online.  His prints are on exhibit at SFMOMA.  I want to go see it before it leaves.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

D53: Day 53

Tried my hand at light painting.



Manual:  Read page 42 "Cleaning the CMOS sensor".

Images:  I'm in the process of designing  my website so I've been looking out several different websites for inspiration and ideas.  Today I check out Bruce Deboer site.  I like his lifestyle images.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

D52: Dancing with Fire

Went to a photography meetup tonight over at Dolores park.  Great turnout of photographers.  I got some great shots of the city, and a man with a bubble making contraption.  The main attraction was of course the fire dancers from The Temple of Poi.  Had an awesome time.





Manual: Read page 27 "Mounting and Detaching a Lens".

Images: Very long day.  viewed images on flickr explore.

Friday, November 20, 2009

D51: Seashells

Went by my friend Karen's house this morning to practice product and macro shots.  We a shot a few different items.  This was my favorite. 



Manual:  Read page 44 "Dioptric Adjustments".


Images:  Viewed images  by John Reiter .  Read about him on Scott Kelby's blog.  Amazing landscape and nature photography.  He has the incredible honor of having two his images hanging in the Smithsonian Museum.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

D50: Fire in the Sky

The sky showed her colors tonight.  Just as the sun dipped below the hills, the sky lit up and turned a fiery red.  I like the cloud curl just at the point where the sun disappear.   Sweet!







Manual: Read page 43 and 44 "Cleaning CMOS sensor. 

Images: Watch the documentary  "Thin" by photographer Lauren Greenfield.   The documentary is about 4 young girls struggling with anorexia. Very moving.  Check out her website if you want to read more about it. 

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

D49: Tower Bridge

I went up to Sacramento for a night shoot.  very cold.  Below is a picture of the Tower Bridge near Old Sac.




Manual:  Read page 77 and 78 "selecting the AF point".


Images:  Viewed images by Senior Portrait Photographer James Schmelzer.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

D48: Shadow Art

I was laying across the bed thinking about what I wanted to shoot for my picture of the day. I look across the room and notice my tripod shadow on the wall.  I thought Mmmmm  shadow puppets, then I thought of something even better.




Manual:  Read pages 70 and 71 "File numbering methods'.


Images:  Viewed images of my contacts on flickr.

Monday, November 16, 2009

D47: Light Dinner

Went to a Smugmug meetup tonight to hear a talk by local photographer Sam Harnack on  photographing seniors.  Busy day, so I didn't have time to go out and shoot my picture of the day.  Met up with my friend Karen and we grab a quick bite to eat before the meetup.  My picture of the day is my dinner which consists of a half Mediterranean veggie sandwich on tomato bread, bowl of vegetable soup and kettle chips.




Manual: Read page 67 "Setting the color space". 


Images: Went to hear a talk by photographer Sam Harnack on how to photography Seniors.  I viewed more of his images at his website.  Pretty impressive.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

D46: Shrimp and Chips

A quick dinner tonight.  Shrimp and Chips with a glass of cranberry juice. 



Manual:  Read pages 63 and 64 "Setting the color temperature and white balance correction".

Images:  Viewed images by Mike Jones . I first saw this guy images on flickr.  Interesting collection of portraits and landscape images. He travels around the country in his mobile home taking photographing different places.




Saturday, November 14, 2009

D45: Bay Bridge from The Embarcadero

My friend Jean was in town for the weekend and I met up with and another friend, Jennifer for coffee. I later walk along the Embarcadero and took some images of the bay bridge. I never really photographed it from this angle.  Had great time. 



Manual:  Read the page 71 "Setting White Balance".  play around with different white balance settings.  Shot the image above in Tungsten mode.


Images: View more images by Photographer Jim Patterson.