photoLog 2009
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| Date: Thursday, July 16,
2009 Topic: Skies and the Photo Gods Photo: Early Morning Badlands (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 16-45mm  We've
had temperatures in triple digits for several days now and I spend the
early morning hours doing some of the outdoor things I really need to
do. Consequently, there's not much time left for
photography while the light is nice and it's still cool enough to enjoy
being outside. In addition, I've been plagued by bare skies. I hate bare skies for two reasons. One reason is that I like including a lot of sky in outdoor images and if they are bare then the resulting image is often bland. Or, at the very least, I have the option of showing the amount of sky that the composition needs. The other reason for liking clouds is that they can extend the soft light period on past sunrise if, of course, they obscure or partially obscure the sun. Otherwise, the nice light ends as soon as the sun appears. The image on the left would have been very difficult to make back in pre digital days, especially when we primarily used transparency film. I would have most likely had to accept dark shadows or a burned out and colorless sky. Probably I would have tied a graduated neutral density filter with the hope that it wouldn't result in something that looked too unnatural. This morning I had the luxury of bracketing 5 exposures (three would have probably be plenty) and combining them using Photomatix Pro software to create a HDR image. Actually, I could have coaxed an acceptable image out of a single RAW exposure, but I liked the tone mapped image better. This image is pretty close to what I recall seeing with my naked eye. |
| Date:
Thursday, April 23,2009 Topic: Almost Ghost Towns Photo: San Lorenzo Catholic Church, Placita, NM (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 16-45mm  I've always
wondered how people felt about their home town being referred to as a
ghost town. Placita (little
plaza) and Monticello, New Mexico are located a couple of miles apart
in a rather remote part of Sierra County and are called ghost towns by
some despite the fact that there are a number of people still living in
both places. Admittedly, neither are
close to what they were at their peak, but if that makes them a
ghost town then a majority of the rural towns in western Texas would be
considered ghost towns.Placita was founded in the 1840s and Monticello was founded in the 1850s. The main street through both of the towns is paved, but is probably not much wider than it was when wagons were used. San Lorenzo Catholic Church in Placita and San Ignacio Catholic Church in Monticello are just a few feet off of the street as are many other buildings, so widening the street probably wasn't really an option. If my map is correct, the pavement ends at Monticello so it is not likely that many, if any, pass through on their way to somewhere else. |
| Date: Saturday, February
7, 2009 Topic: Lemonade Photo: Hoo Doo at Sunrise (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 16-45mm  My
intention this morning was to take a leisurely stroll down the Salt
Fork of the Brazos around sunup and enjoy a little outdoor time before
trying to put a dent in the paperwork piled up on my desk.
Earlier this week the river was actually running a little, but I guess
the past few days have been warm enough to dry it up and there was
nothing left but a few shallow pools. (In West Texas vernacular,
when referring to rivers, "running" means that there is actually a
moving trickle). I guess I should have checked by the road
instead of hiking through the badlands expecting to have something to
photograph. There is a old saying that "when life hands you a lemon, then make lemonade". I'm not sure I really buy into this saying, but a walk across the badlands on a beautiful morning is never wasted time. I decided to try and make it over to the edge of the breaks in time to make the 2009 image of my favorite hoo doo before the sun rose. I didn't quite beat the sunrise, but I was able to hide the sun behind the stem and cap. I try to photograph this hoo doo at least once each year with the expectation that this could easily be its last image. However, I'm beginning to change my mind about this; the hoo doo doesn't seem to change from year to year. I think it's last image will the one made before the year that I don't show up. |
| Date: Monday,
January 26,
2009 Topic: Genuine Ghost Town? Photo: Sunshine on Lake Valley, NM (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 35mm  If you
were to drive from Deming, NM to Hillsboro, NM, you'd pass right
by the ghost town of Lake Valley. Since Hillsboro is also a
ghost town, albeit one with a few people, I can't imagine that many
people make this 62 mile trip on purpose. It'd be pretty safe to
say that most of us wouldn't wind up in Lake Valley by chance.Lake Valley is a little different kind of ghost town. It's maintained by the Bureau of Land Management and interested visitors can take a self-guided walking tour--provided, of course, that they don't show up on Tuesday or Wednesday. Also, you're out of luck if you show up before 9:00 a.m. or after 4:00 p.m. I managed, unknowingly, to break both these rules, hence the shot from a distance. (Obviously, the "open" hours are not exactly prime photography hours.) I did, however, get luckly with some dramatic (OK, semi-dramatic) light when the slightly overcast sky opened up enough to bathe the old buildings in sunlight. Lake Valley is worth the trip if you are in the area and are interested in ghost towns and/or mining history. I'd love to go back when I could have a closer look. |
| Date: Wednesday, January
21,
2009 Topic: Pull Over Places? Photo: Long Island Sound and Snow, Stamford, CT (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 16-45mm  Sometimes the most difficult part of
photography is getting where you need to be to make the image. I
can deal with natural barriers such as streams or mountains, but I
absolutely refuse to inconvenience other people or violate private
property.I just returned from a trip to NYC and Connecticut. It wasn't a photography trip, but I managed to slip a digital camera and an all-purpose zoom into my carry-on. There wasn't really much time for photography although I did see a lot of things I'd like to photograph; Connecticut is absolutely beautiful when snow-covered and I never get tired of NYC. However, even if I'd had more time I'd have to pass on some opportunities because there simply wasn't a place to stop or stand without being in the way. They could sure use some pull over places or maybe I just need to learn how to levitate. I remember setting up a large tripod in the middle of the highway to photograph an old rock gas station in Medicine Mound, Texas. I knew that it was unlikely that a vehicle would come along and, even if they did, they could just pull around. One pickup did come by and its occupants smiled and waved as they briefly changed lanes. Most likely they would have considered it rude to honk. It's not that the people in Medicine Mound are more friendly, it's that they don't have to coexist with a large number of people in a small space. |
| Date: Monday, January 5,
2009 Topic: What was I thinking? Photo: Road to Magdalena (click for larger version) --Pentax K10D, 16-45mm  Did you ever become intent on producing a particular image or photographing a specific subject that you ignore other possibilities or opportunities? You would think I'd eventually learn, but it still happens to me all the time. Last summer I was so intent on getting from Magdalena to the ghost town of Riley that I passed up some nice images on the way. At least I think I did. I stopped about half way and made a few quick, hand-held snapshots with a zoom lens. I really like some of the photographs and greatly regret not taking more time and making more images-- maybe some panaromas using a tripod and a prime lens. I didn't do a very good job of keeping the photoLog up to date in 2008. I think if I had just produced more good images it wouldn't have seemed like such a chore. I going to do my best to turn out more personal work in 2009. Hopefully, I'll also get around to giving the entire web site a much needed update. The last complete overhaul was in 2004 and was geared toward smaller monitors and slower connections than are the norm today. |
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