Shooting my Universe

Forgotten Photo Friday, I don’t enter photo contests.

2012-02-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

Look, I don’t enter enter photo contests. I did once, long ago in Boulder, Colorado. It was a wildlife photo contest. I put together my entry of a juvenile Western Tanager. It was splendid shot with great colors, it was razor sharp and it showed the habitat that the bird likes in Colorado.

It took second place to a snapshot of three bunnies in a scrape on someone’s manicured front lawn. Yah, the bunnies were cute, but it was not in the same league as the other entries.

Later I was reading another photographer’s article who said, “The problem with photo contests is that the judges don’t know a thing about photography. So the photos that win are of kittens with hats tumbling out of baskets.”

Yes, that was the last time I entered a photo contest. Can’t be bothered. That all changed last fall when the Cape Ann Brewing Company announced that they were looking for local photos capturing the heart and spirit of Cape Ann to use on the packaging of the Fisherman’s Brew.

It just sounded too much like fun. We love the “Brew Pub” as we call it. It is just a great place to go and have a beer and a burger while sitting on the deck overlooking the harbor. So I entered a few pictures.

Why? I’ve always liked their graphics and artwork. And if my offering did not get chosen, no harm, no foul. One could imagine that there are lots of factors. The photo has to fit what they need it for, it has work with the product and it has to be the right combination of subject and have room for graphics. Who knows what photo will fulfill all of the requirements? For me, it was more of an assignment than a contest. Therefore I could have fun and not worry about any kittens or bunnies taking the show.

In all seriousness, I’m very pleased that one of my photos did satisfy the requirements and will be on six-packs in stores from Virginia to Maine. Furthermore, the staff seems very excited about the photo and it is quite satisfying to have my photo enjoyed.

The photo is typical of the sunsets that we get this time of year. It was taken on a 25 January. I titled it “Coming Home in the Winter”. I do remember the evening I took it. These peachy sunsets are the colors that were captured by Fitz Henry Lane, and I imagined that he might have painted a picture like this if he were still around.

Folks are all asking, “Which boat is that?” It is the Janya and Joseph shown below.

Red Jungle Fowl

2012-02-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

Becky had been jonesing for a fresh, young coconut. We stopped by a little farm stand and had the man whack one open for us.

Yes, I checked, he has all of his fingers!

We spied a Red Jungle Fowl by the road following a hen.

This was the first introduced bird to the Hawaiin Island, brought over by the Polynesians.

In Hawaii, looking east across the Pacific…

2012-02-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

…and thinking of home.

NOT!

The nicest Brant I’ve ever met

2012-01-31T07:00:00.000-05:00

No kidding. This was the nicest Brant that you’ll ever meet. I was walking along the lava flow in a protected bay area and I found this loan Brant grazing. A woman walked up to me and said, “He’s really friendly and you can walk right up to him.” I thanked her and took a safety shot. After all, I’ve been in this business long enough to know that birds have wings and they use them when they see a camera coming up to someone’s face. And the Brant we have here in Cape Ann will take off if you get within 100 yards of them. Yup, take a safety shot and work with the bird.

If you’ve never seen a Brant, they are a little bit bigger than a Herring gull, but not much.

But sure enough, this was the friendliest Brant that you’ll ever meet. Brant are rare visitors to Hawaii.

This one was just too cool. More interested in munching that in me.

More green stuff to graze on.

Tasty-delish.

A few Gloucester draggers

2012-01-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

Just a few of the draggers found here in Gloucester. Enjoy.

Princess Laura

2012-01-29T06:55:00.000-05:00

We had winter on a Saturday this year. Last Saturday to be precise. It has been unseasonably mild all through December and January. So when this snow came, I though I better take advantage of it, force myself out and get some shots.

I went over to State Fish Pier here in Gloucester and bumped into the crew of the Princess Laura tending to the nets. They encouraged me to take some shots. It was quite a lot of fun and a challenge. If you caught last Sunday’s Shooting Scenes in a Snow Storm post, I really wanted to test my skills at outsmarting my camera.

Now here in Gloucester the boats need to take advantage of the season when the season is open. And if it means that there is work to be done, snow storm or not, it gets done.

I have to chuckle though. This snow was very much like the snow we got in Colorado. It was very fine and slippery. Just before I took this photo, I was walking around the nets and I hit some ice that was hidden under the snow. I had gear in my bag on my back and a camera in my left hand. It all happened in slow motion as I rolled my elbows inward and down protecting my exposed camera with my feet in the air somewhere out in front of me and down I went. Fortunately, Bumbles bounce and nothing was broken…including me.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature: Low Key Crab

2012-01-28T16:15:00.000-05:00

Back in Kona, Hawaii there are small, blackish crabs that inhabit the splash zones. These are Thin-shelled Rock Crabs, also known as 'a’ama.

This gives me another example to encourage you to outthink your camera. When I spied this crab, I decided to grab the shot because they are skittish and dash for cover.

As you can see, this is pretty neutral and gray. But since I shoot in RAW, I new that I could fix this in the darkroom when I got home. However when it came to taking a second shot, I decided to decrease the exposure by 2/3rds of a EV. EV means Exposure Value, for us old timer’s, it’s a fancy name for stop.

If you caught my Shooting Scenes in a Snow Storm post last Sunday, you know what I’m up to. I’m giving you an example from the Dark Side. In last Sunday’s post, I increased the exposure to get whiter snow in my photos. In today’s photos, decreased the exposure to get darker darks. You see, the camera looks at this black lava rock and is going to try to make it gray lava rock. In order to get a correct exposure, I’m going to decrease the time the shutter is open.

Back to the first photo, I pulled the camera out of the bag, focused on the subject and squeezed the shutter release. The result was 1/125th of a second at f5.6, ISO 200. Now I knew what the result would be (gray), however I’m shooting RAW and if I’m off by a EV or three I will probably be able to fix it in the darkroom. If you’re shooting JPG for output, then you really need to understand what I’m up to here because you will not be able to correct over such a large latitude. Thus, you better get it close!

Since I’m was going to get a second shot and I’m sensed that I’ve had time to get closer to an ideal exposure, I set my exposure compensation to –2/3 EV. The result was 1/200th of a second, f5.6, ISO 200. See the difference? Much closer to where I need to be. It still needs tweaking, but you get the idea, right?

Now for the money shots. Again, I’m shooting at –2/3 EV.

Sometimes the black lava is on the gray side, but this crab is dead on.

Now I’m sorry to tell you this, and I don’t mean to throw stones at your gear, but chances are pretty slim that you’re going to get a shot like this without outfoxing your camera.

Not the best shot of the series, but I’m driving home a point today. This was the first crab shot from two days earlier. I shot this one at -1.0EV. In the darkroom I still took another 1/3EV off during post processing. Just saying, it’s not the first time I’ve done this.

That’s the tip, when shooting black cats in coal mines, decrease the shutter speed! Got out and try it. Now. Close the browser and grab your gear.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Death of a Goddess

2012-01-27T06:59:00.000-05:00

The news came out a week ago Thursday that Kodak is filing for bankruptcy. My dad shot Ektachrome in his German made camera that was built during the Korean Conflict. It did not have a built-in light meter. He used to eyeball his exposures, which when I think about it was quite a trick since the lens stopped down when he set the aperture meaning that the light level through the pentaprism dimmed in proportion to the aperture.

But in every box of film came a little sheet of paper giving guidelines of how to expose the film in bright, cloudy and shady conditions. It was not the stone age but the beginning of the space age. Okay, we’re talking Sputnik here.

Kodak, what happened? You were the darling of Wall Street. Now you’re an OTC penny stock. Surely you were not a one trick pony but the mighty Kodachrome. (Anyone notice that I slipped two Paul Simon references in one sentence?)

Here in Massachusetts, we had Polaroid. Talk about an instant hit, you could see your pictures instantly. Well, almost instantly. You had to wait two or three minutes. Polaroid was pretty cool. The teenagers loved them. Professional and technical people used Polaroid because of their faithfulness to color and rapid results. High-end large format photographers had Polaroid backs for their cameras because you could take a shot, see the results, tweak it and then put the film back onto the camera. A great help and time saver.

Polaroid had kick ass, high end processes that the normal consumer new not what of. They developed a instant movie system that arrived on the market when video cameras and players became mainstream and never recovered. They were involved in the digital market, but couldn’t capture market share.

Sad. We get Julia Child re-runs from the ‘60s and ‘70s on our local PBS station. It proudly proclaims that the French Chef was sponsored by the Polaroid Corporation. I guess that will keep the brand name alive for new generation.

My first photography course was when I was a junior in high school. It was at a community college. My instructor referred to Kodak as the “Great Yellow Goddess”. Back then I was mucking around in a dark room that I built in the corner of the garage. It was just too cool to expose the photographic paper, dip it into the developer tray and see the image pop out. Magical.

I experimented with Agfa 64 and Kodachrome. I didn’t like the colors of Ectachrome, to blue. In my late 20’s I hopped over to Fujichrome 64 as I got into bird photography. I loved the colors and the tight grain as did a great deal of other wildlife shooters of the day.

Then along came children and I was carrying kids on my back instead of my gear. I took a 15 year hiatus.

In 2001, my mother remarried. At her wedding I was sitting at a table with a family friend who was a professional printer and my brother. They were talking about the new digital cameras. He had one in his hand. I was thinking exactly what our friend was about to say. “Digital would never replace film”, he said as he passed the camera over. Well, in that day consumer grade digital was pretty sad and I didn’t want to fool with it.

In 2004, Becky (bless her heart) gave me a digital point and shoot. A Cannon 3.2 Mpx PowerShot A70. It was pretty cool and I was surprised with the results. If you think I’m kidding, I took this wine bottle photo for our old wine blog and this graveyard picture. Both were shot with that old camera. Click on them to see a larger version. I’m telling you for its day, it did okay.

But the problem was that it just didn’t perform like an SLR. The time lag after you pushed the shutter release drove me nuts. It scratched its nether regions while it figured out the exposure and then finally tripped the shutter. I was missing too may “moments” and I went DSLR and my love affair with photography was rekindled.

Do I miss the magic moments in the clean room when the image come onto the paper? It’s a tiny price to pay. What I don’t miss is pushing the button on the camera, finishing a roll, sending it off to the lab, getting the slides back only to find that I was off by a stop or three and there was nothing I could do about it. Face it, digital photography is really inexpensive. Not only instant gratification, but instant correction. Besides, my “darkroom” is a lot more comfortable and doesn’t smell up the garage.

But I am sorry that the Big Yellow Goddess has one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel. George Eastman made photography accessible to the masses. Kodak made the digital innovation but was not able to execute. In my estimation, Kodak Board of Directors must have been asleep at the switch. How could you pioneer digital photography and let it slip through your fingers? And what now? Now they are suing Samsung and Apple for patent infringement. (Can you do that if you’re out of business?) I don’t understand this anymore that IBM screwing up the kazillion dollar PC innovation. It don’t make no sense.

Polaroid is dead. IBM is still blue chip. Kodak? We will have to see. You never know. I understand that you can still buy buggy whips.

Becky’s Plover

2012-01-26T07:00:00.000-05:00

No, the American Ornithological Union didn’t get together and rename this bird. It is a Pacific Golden Plover. I owe this one to Becky, who is not a birder. She said, “Hey, there’s a plover!” And what a cool plover it is.

I’ve always been a bit jealous of blogging buddy Chris for his spectacular Golden Plover shots. Now I’ve got some of my own. The Pacific Golden Plover is a winter migrant to the Hawaiian Islands, so I’m going to rack this one up as a life bird, since it is supposed to be here.

What a thrill. This was on our second day in Kona. It turns out that they are fairly common, but never-the-less, it is a really cool bird!

Along the walk to ‘Akaka Falls

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

Along the short walk to the viewing platform of 'Akaka Falls one finds some wonderful gems.

A side trip to ‘Akaka Falls

2012-01-24T07:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Akaka Falls State Park on the Big Island. If you find yourself on the east side, take a side trip up to 'Akaka Falls. It is a wonderful sight. This is the view as you reach the park.

A shot walk and the falls opens up for a grand view. That’s 442 feet for top to bottom.

A detail of the top.

Spilling down below.

It is just a wonderful place.

Japanese White-eye

2012-01-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Continuing with photos taken on our Hawaii trip, today I have photos of another alien species, the Japanese White-eye. In Japan, this bird is know as Mejiro. It was introduced to Hawaii somewhere around 1927 as part of an insect control plan. This bird has done very well as they utilize a wide variety of food sources, including insects, larvae, fruits and nectar. This has helped make it the most common bird on the Hawaiian Islands.

Our condo had a balcony on the second floor where I had my breakfast. This made it a great spot to get photos if the White-eyes as they came through in the morning.

Yes, you’re a cutie.

Shooting Scenes in a Snow Storm

2012-01-22T06:52:00.000-05:00

It’s rather nasty out today, so I’ve got some time to share some tips.

Through-the-lens metering is a wonderful thing. Camera meters have the difficult job of taking what we see and trying to figure out how we would like to see it…which is fool-hardy. We all have different senses of aesthetics so in order to help us get what we want, our cameras have the ability to override and modify what the camera is going to do with the with the light to produce an image.

But first, you have to understand that the camera is going to try to figure out what the white balance and the proper exposure should be based on shutter speed, aperture, sensitivity (ISO) setting and the amount of light available.

The camera is going to try to average out the light values based on the meter mode and spit back an image that is a compromise between the highlight and shadow values that the meter registered. With a little luck, the highlights will not be blown out, the shadows will have detail and the mid tones will be in the middle somewhere.

If you want to be precise, camera exposures should be set by taking a Gray Card exposure in the light conditions of your subject. A Gray Card is a card that reflects 18% of the light evenly across the visible spectrum. You point your camera at the Gray Card and adjust the exposure accordingly. After you lock down the ISO, aperture, shutter speed and white balance, you can shoot anything in that lighting condition and get a technically correct exposure.

What this all means is that if you point your camera at a snow bank, it spits back an image of a gray snow bank because your meter, as sophisticated as it is, is calibrated to spit back an image based on an exposure set to an 18% Gray Card. So it sees the snow bank and does its job. It gives you an 18% gray snow bank.

Okeydokey, now that we got that concept, your camera's meter is going to tell your camera how set the exposure based as if it were looking at an 18% gray card. What are ya going to do?

You’re going to out-think your camera. You are going to lengthen your exposure. “Steve, you want us to increase the exposure time when shooting white on rice in sunlight?” Yes. Take a look at this example.

Shot with center weighted metering, this photo is under exposed. Look at how gray it is. Snow is not gray, it is white. And I’m telling you, if you think that lengthening an exposure for snow is wack, then you need to take a leap of faith and give it a go.

Here I have ISO at 320, the aperture is set at f5.6, the camera sets the exposure to 1/1000th of a second. My exposure compensation was set to 0.0EV.

Not too bad, the dark boats in the center help balance out the photo, but we can do better.

In the next photo, I’ve increased the exposure by 1 EV and the camera fired the shot at 1/500th of a second. (Did you notice that it halved the shutter speed? It let twice as much light hit the sensor.)

So that’s not too bad, just for safety, I increased the exposure value to 1-2/3 EV. This increased the shutter speed to 1/320 second. And now we see that the white snow is white.

Now somewhere between 1 and 2 EVs should be something that you will like. And it is going to depend on the final mood you want to set. For example, in the first photo, I could write a piece about how dark and stormy it was out and it would pass. The final is pretty darn close to what I saw, how my eyes adjusted to the scene.

Now just for giggles, back in the dark room, I took the first photo and increased the exposure by 1.6 stops. How did I get away with that? I shoot in RAW format which gives me more latitude to make corrections in the dark room.

So tip #1, when shooting snow, increase your exposure by 1 to 3 stops.

Tip #2, shooting in RAW gives you more latitude for exposure adjustment in the dark room. There is a bit more tweaking that this photo needs, but today I just wanted to pass off a tip to help you get whiter whites and darker darks. (Kinda’ sounds like a soap add.)

Darker darks? Yes, if you are shooting something black with a black background, your meter is going to try to make it gray. So what are you going to do? You are going to decrease your exposure. Give it a go!

Saturday Even Creature Feature, Small Indian Mongoose

2012-01-21T16:00:00.000-05:00

The Small Indian Mongoose is a common sight on Hawaii. This is an alien species introduced to the Hawaiian Islands in 1883 to cope with the explosion in the rat population in the sugar cane fields. It was believed that the Small Indian Mongoose was successful in controlling rats in the cane fields of Jamaica in the 1870s, so it was thought it would be a good idea on the Hawaiian Islands.

This may have looked good on paper (or at least on the paper that was published W.B. Espeut who brought the mongoose from Calcutta to Jamaica) however there was an important point that was missed. Mongooses are diurnal, rats are nocturnal. Thus, the two ships never pass in the night…or day, so to speak.

Hence the rat population remained unchecked, and so did the mongoose population. Mongooses are predators and they have a taste for ground nesting bird eggs and chicks. Therefore the native wildlife is suffering. The Hawaiian Goose had been extirpated from most of the islands. Efforts are underway to get the population established again.

These little guys were everywhere. They are fast, sleek, skittish and are hard to photograph. They also have a bit of a curious streak, and this one was interested in my camera’s beep for about five seconds.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Mending Nets on the Voyager

2012-01-20T07:00:00.000-05:00

I took these photos a last January. Mending nets in the winter is always done without gloves. It is cold work.

New Years Eve On the top of Mauna Kea

2012-01-19T06:59:00.000-05:00

This is a continuation of yesterday’s post.

Once you leave “The VIS” or visitors center at 9000 feet, you take the six mile dirt road up to the top. It is best to take a tour group if you want to go up. The road up is a narrow, steep, dirt, wash-board and has intimidating drop offs. I didn’t think it was too bad, but then, I’ve lived in the Colorado mountains before.

We poked up above the clouds, here I am representing Gloucester sporting a Cape Ann Brewing Company polo. I’ve got a pretty cool connection with them that I’ll have to tell you about one of these days. That is other big mountain, Mauna Loa just peeking above the clouds to in the right. The temperature is dropping down to about 40F, down from the mid 50s at the VIS, and low 80s at sea level.

Mauna Loa is 13,677 feet above sea level to the south of Mauna Kea. Between them is a saddle point that is 6000 feet. The foreground looks a bit like a moon scape. Funny you you should mention that. Just around the corner from this lookout point is what they call the Valley of the Moon. NASA uses it to test planetary space vehicles.

Below is a snap of a cinder cone and Mauna Loa.

This was my first glimpse of some of the observatories on the summit. As a physics student, I had heard about Mauna Kea and the observatories and never thought I’d ever get to go up. So this is pretty cool. Looking from left to right, the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope, the spherical object under the mirror is the Caltech Submilimeter Observatory and to the right on the hill is the Japanese Subaru Telescope.

Subaru is the name used in Japan for the Pleiades constellation. And yes, the next time you see a Subaru automobile, look at the emblem.

Ski Mauna Kea. (Better bring your rock skis.)

Our next stop was in front of the Caltech Submillimeter instrument. Yup the air is getting thin and the temperature, I’m guesstimating by the crunch of the snow was about 26F.

No problem, our tour company provides some roasty-toasty parkas. After all, it would suck to go all the way to Hawaii and freeze your tuches off in a snow bank. The tour guides gave explanations of each of the instruments on Mauna Kea. Of course, the light was doing its thing, so I had to do mine!

We got to our final spot for the tour at 13,750 feet above sea level. A totally, freaking awesome spot. Oh look, an emergency van is ready just in case this mountain starts spinning and my face goes into the dirt!

One of my favorite shots of the Gemini North Observatory.

The UKIRT (United Kingdom Infrared Telescope) with the sun setting through the vog.

Always look around, you never know when you’ll get a cool photo op. I’d recommend this tour group. It was small and they took good care of us.

Another shot of the Gemini North Observatory with the University of Hawaii 2.2M Telescope behind it. The doors are open and the lights will soon go dark in preparation for some good viewing.

And the sun goes into the cloud layer. The light levels are dropping low.

If you missed my Vog post, go check it out. For those of you that want to learn more about Mauna Kea’s instruments, here is a pretty cool video.

After the sun goes down, the tours must leave the mountain so that the instruments can do their job. We dropped down to 9000 feet for some star gazing through 11” scopes. It was great fun.

Mauna Kea at 9000 feet

2012-01-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

We stopped at the Mauna Kea Visitors Center on our tour up to the top of Mauna Kea. We had a quick box dinner and a chance to acclimate to 9000 feet. It wasn’t too bad at 9000, the temperature was in the mid 50s. It kind of felt like home.

It wasn’t an overly photogenic location. I wish I had a bit more time to go poking around. I did find a bit of color.

Tomorrow, I’ll take you to the up further.

This is where I’m taking you tomorrow.

2012-01-17T07:00:00.000-05:00

Not here…

…but up there.

We are going to Mauna Kea. Bring a jacket. It’s cold.

A little sunshine for your Monday

2012-01-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

The Saffron Finch was introduced to Hawaii in the 1960s. A pleasant little bird, not shy or bothersome, but a pleasant little South American finch that can be found along the manicured grassy areas in Kona. You had to be careful because they have little to fear of humans and you may accidently trod one! When my father-in-law pointed one out, I was looking a bit further away, but no, I was standing right beside one!

I had a pair come and join me on the balcony when I was having my breakfast on our first morning. They patiently waited for met to offer something with being obnoxious. As I mentioned, they make pleasant company, which is why the are kept as cage birds in many areas. Hence they are now feral on Hawaii.

Eine Kleine Nachtpost, Gloucester, I haven’t forgotten about you.

2012-01-15T16:08:00.001-05:00

Okay, I know I’ve been posting great deal from Hawaii. It’s the first time I’ve been there so naturally, I have lots of fresh pictures of places and critters that I’ve never shot before. And here in New England, it is winter. Now mind you, it is a pretty easy winter, but today, it is butt cold.

So here is a quick post of Gloucester and for Gloucester. This was the view of Ten Pound Island this morning.

When we see ice forming on the channel markers and sea smoke, we don’t bother to check the weather. Well, I do just to see if the weatherman is paying attention. Yes folks, it was 4 F out there, it was butt cold.

So I grabbed my gear and headed out the door. I wanted to make sure my car would start. I picked up a new-to-me car last summer and don’t know the history of the battery. So if it had a tough time starting, today would be a good day to deal with it rather than a work day. Fortunately, it started. I’d hate to have to work on the car today. It’s butt cold.

Since it is fired up, I took a drive around town to see what was happening. Not much. It was butt cold.

The Common Eiders don’t seem to mind. After all, they have eider down to keep them warm. Check out the boys here, they have fresh plumage and are looking fairly cock-of-the-rockish. No wonder the ladies are hanging about.

Here is a shot with some sea smoke. Did I mention that it was butt cold?

This Common Loon was taking it all in stride. The sun is up and there are all kinds of tasty tidbits under there. Gloucester is a great place to winter over, if you’re a duck.

Day and Night

2012-01-15T07:15:00.000-05:00

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, The Common Myna

2012-01-14T15:57:00.000-05:00

The Common Myna is very common throughout Hawaii. We saw these throughout our stay on the Big Island. These birds are very social and travel in pairs and small groups.

The Common Myna was introduced to Hawaii in 1865 to control armyworms and cutworms in sugarcane crops. Unfortunately, today’s “solution” becomes tomorrow’s “problem”. The Common Myna has been attributed to spreading the invasive Lantana camara across the Hawaiian Islands’ grasslands. It also has been recorded as the fourth-ranking avian pest in the fruit industry by a 2004 survey of the Hawaiian Farm Bureau.

It is unfortunate when a species becomes a man made problem. They are only doing what every species on this planet is trying to do…survive.

Putting all of the factoids aside, I rather enjoyed having them around. I never saw one bird alone, they always traveled in twos and threes. They do have a pleasant nature.

The Common Myna can be rather inquisitive. This one seemed to be wondering what the beeping was all about from that black thingy. After the photo shoot, I took my morning dishes into the kitchen. I left my gear on the table. The pair hopped down onto the rail for a closer look.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Ruddy Turnstones

2012-01-13T07:09:00.000-05:00

Today I have a little different Forgotten Photo Friday. Certainly, there are some lost pictures found on an archive dive such as this Ruddy Turnstone shot on Dogbar Breakwater here in Gloucester, December 12, 2009. What the heck? You have wings…

…why don’t you fly down to Sint Maarten in the Caribbean like this Ruddy Turnstone.

The Ruddy Turnstone below was shot on Eastern Point after a storm washed a lot of sea vegetables onto the shoreline. He was searching for invertebrates and brine flies.

This is where we diverge from our normal Forgotten Photo Friday post. I hadn’t yet forgotten about this photo. These Ruddy Turnstones were shot in Hawaii on December 29, 2011. This is much better than freezing on Dogbar Breakwater.

We’re in Kona, wake up and smell the coffee.

2012-01-12T07:46:00.000-05:00

We visited Greenwell Farms, one of the largest Kona coffee producer in Hawaii. I don’t drink coffee. I’ve never liked it. It makes my heart race and my hands shake. But I know a lot of people do and I wouldn’t pass up a good photo opportunity.

If you know about coffee, then you may know that Kona coffee is coveted. It grows in a narrow band on the island of Hawaii from 800 feet above sea level up to about 2300 feet, just in this Kona region. Above that is too cold, below that is too hot and dry.

Coffee trees are very persnickety. They don’t like to get burned by the sun, they like it damp and don’t like to get chilled. The area of Kona in this belt gets blessed with morning sun and afternoon clouds and rain. Thus the coffee does real well. Kona uses the same coffee trees and the same farming techniques as other producers in the coffee world. I’m told that he volcanic soil is the magic ingredient.

Coffee berries in this ripened state are called cherries. They have a lot of processing to go through. I would have loved to show you this, but we took our tour on the day after Christmas and the coffee workers were having a day off. But that didn’t stop us from getting a tour and some Mac (macadamia) Nuts, which I do eat as they don’t make my heart race and my hands shake. Thus I was happy while everyone else enjoyed a coffee tasting.

Gold Dust Day Gecko photo study

2012-01-11T07:00:00.000-05:00

Today, I’m going to present three different Gecko portraits done in three different styles. The first is a youngster, the second and third are the same Gecko but with vastly different lighting treatments.

Did you see my Gold Dust Gecko post last Saturday night?

Bath time!

2012-01-10T07:00:00.000-05:00

Following up with yesterday’s Yellow-billed Cardinal post, here is a sequence of photos of two bathing.

He looks like he is really enjoying the cooling water.

Anyone who has ever watched birds quickly realizes that when one bird starts bathing, they all join in.

So compulsive is this for birds, I’ve seen rival male Bobolinks stop their feuding and take turns at a bathing spot. Two or three would bath while one watched out for intruders. They took turns keeping guard while the others were busy splashing around.

Nothing beats a cool dip on a hot day.

Yellow-billed Cardinal

2012-01-09T06:54:00.000-05:00

It’s time to start introducing you to some of the birds found on the Island of Hawaii. This is the Yellow-billed Cardinal. These are rather social birds and only found on Hawaii, also know as the Big Island.

The Yellow-billed Cardinal was introduced to Hawaii around 1930. It is a native of South America, namely Brazil, Paraguay and Northern Argentina.

They have done well in captivity, thus native populations have been put under pressure. We found them to be rather laid-back and pleasant.

You’ll be seeing more of these on SMU shortly.

Kona Sunset

2012-01-08T07:15:00.000-05:00

The sun is setting…

The torches are lit…

It’s time to kick back and relax.

Ah, here we go. The mojito is mine.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Gold Dust Day Gecko

2012-01-07T16:36:00.000-05:00

Here is a little photo study of Gold Dust Day Geckos. These little guys generally sleep at night and feed during the day on insects, small lizards, invertebrates and also feed on pollen, nectar and soft fruits.

This animal is native to Madagascar and were introduced to the Hawaiian islands. I shot these in Kona on the Island of Hawaii where we were vacationing over the Holidays.

Hawaii vs. Gloucester

2012-01-07T11:42:00.001-05:00

Paddling in Hawaii

Rowing in Gloucester

Paddling in Hawaii

Rowing in Gloucester

Paddling in Hawaii

Rowing in Gloucester

Forgotten Photo Friday, Ten Pound Island in the Snow

2012-01-06T16:00:00.000-05:00

We have had a very mild winter so far. After last year, I’m not kvetching. These photos were taken on January 13th, 2011. Becky and I returned from a trip to single digit temperatures and what started out to be a winter with over 90 inches of snow.

Vog

2012-01-05T20:07:00.000-05:00

High atop Mauna Kea on December 31st, the sun sets through the volcanic ash of Kilauea. As we arrived a the summit of Mauna Kea, this was the view.

I couldn’t resist snapping a self portrait against the side of a white building.

Looking east is the shadow of Mauna Kea over two cinder cones. The red color is due to the vog which is a word coined for volcanic ash and fog.

Check back later this week and I’ll show you more from the top of Hawaii, the Big Island.

Back on the Grid!

2012-01-05T06:00:00.000-05:00

Hello folks,

I’ve been off of the grid for the past few days but I’m happy to report that I’m back in full photo production. I’ve been off of vacation with Becky. We just got back to Gloucester last night at 5:00 pm. Where were we? Well if I told you where and showed you these pictures, you wouldn’t believe me. So I’ll just keep the mystery alive while I get settled back to my abnormal life.

I’ve got a lot of photos to process and a few stories to tell. I may look cold in these pictures. Yes, it was butt cold but I’ll tell you about that later. Thanks for checking in.

Best regards,

Steve

The Horizon returns home

2012-01-03T06:51:00.000-05:00

The sun sets as the Horizon returns on a cold winter's day.

Herring this ‘n’ that

2012-01-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

It’s been tough getting out to get fresh materials, I’ve been down with the flu during critical shooting hours, family commitments (always important) and uncooperative weather.

So, pardon me as I go into the past to find some hidden gems for the next few days as I get my photographic life in order.

This is kind of a herring this ‘n’ that photo. Herring, herring pump, herring boat, herring gulls…you get the idea. This is from the State Fish Pier hear in Gloucester. The weather was foggy. I love how the yellows just popped through.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Turkeys

2011-12-31T16:16:00.000-05:00

The last photos of the year. I’ve always wanted some good Turkey photos. I still do. I found this flock of Turkeys the other day in someone’s front yard on a busy road. I was fighting with low light, moderate distance. Dodging traffic and trying not be intrusive on the animals or the neighbors, this was the result.

I’m hoping that you have a Happy and Prosperous New Year! May all your dreams come true starting tomorrow.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Night shot of the Grand Isle

2011-12-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

Caught at the right moments, the sky turns a wonderful blue after the sun sets. Cool nights and calm winds can produce some great images when you get out after dark.

The Voyager comes home

2011-12-29T06:55:00.000-05:00

The fish don’t care what the weather is, but the Gloucestermen have to go out when the government lets them. Here is the Voyager coming home in a snow storm in February 2011.

Gloucester Harbor Nightscape

2011-12-28T07:00:00.000-05:00

A Touch of Grey

2011-12-27T06:55:00.000-05:00

Last August, I caught the Touch of Grey tending lobster pots off of Dogbar Breakwater.

The keepers are banded and sorted.

The pots are loaded with fresh bait and set for another day.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T07:01:00.000-05:00

I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas. This has been a wonderful year with many new blogging friends from all around the world.

I just want to take a moment to thank you all for stopping by, many of you check in every day. I know this because I’ve been stopped on the streets of Gloucester many times by strangers many times telling me that they look forward to my photos every morning. Throughout the year there have been many comments to the same effect.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Golden-crowned Sparrow

2011-12-23T07:34:00.001-05:00

Friday is archive dive day. Here is a one of my west coast buddies I photographed exactly two years ago in the hills out side of San Jose, California.

Purple Sandpipers

2011-12-22T06:07:00.000-05:00

Gloucester is a great place to winter over if you are a Purple Sandpiper. They are quite common on Dogbar Breakwater, and can be spotted along the rocks along the coast on Cape Ann.

Hunters Moon, 2009

2011-12-21T19:00:00.000-05:00

I’ve always like this shot of the full moon in October 2009.

North Channel, Gloucester, Massachusetts

2011-12-21T08:06:00.001-05:00

Just a couple of snaps of the North Channel this morning.

Marilyn Louise

2011-12-20T07:05:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a choppy day on the harbor. Yet, the Gloucestermen still go out and make a living.

But it could be worse. Here is the Midnight Sun returning from fishing on December 31, 2009. I’ll bet they got the coffee pot brewing.

Heermann’s Gull, Monterey, California

2011-12-19T08:29:00.001-05:00

If you are ever on the west coast, you may encounter some rather unique looking gulls. This is the Heermann’s Gull. They are unlike any other. Easy-peasy.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Razorbills

2011-12-17T16:15:00.000-05:00

There has been a couple of Razorbills off of Fort Point here in Gloucester. This one was spied on Friday afternoon hunting in his winter plumage.

Here is a lobster float with a Razorbill to give you a size comparison.

This inspired me to dust off some of the photos I took in last May in Canada. These Razorbills are in their breeding plumage.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Summer Wind

2011-12-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

I’m digging into the archive, going deep to September 2010. It was Schooner Festival Weekend, Hurricane Earl stirred up the harbor a bit, but it wasn’t much to fuss about. We had some waves coming into the harbor making shooting from a small boat challenging. Here are three shots that never made it to the blog.

Eastern Point Sunset, Final Pictures

2011-12-15T07:00:00.001-05:00

If you are just coming into this series, for the last few days I have been posting the progress of the sunset as seen from Eastern Point in East Gloucester, Massachusetts. This is the final post.

If you haven’t seen the other photos, they started on Sunday’s post and ran through to today. This is the final photo from the shoot. I hope you enjoyed the series as much as I have bringing it to you.

Last Saturday’s Eastern Point Sunset

2011-12-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

If you are just coming into this series, for the last few days I have been posting the progress of the sunset as seen from Eastern Point in East Gloucester, Massachusetts. This is the final post.

Eastern Point Sunset (Continued.)

2011-12-14T06:54:00.000-05:00

As I said yesterday, I needed to get off Dogbar Breakwater and around the light to get the stunning cloud formation in the same frame as the light.

But this isn’t where I need to be. I got to stop shooting and get around to where the action is!

Eastern Point Sunset (Continued)

2011-12-13T07:00:00.000-05:00

Continuing with the Saturday photo shoot at Eastern Point, the sun is completely down. That is Boston on the horizon.

There are some nice colors developing opposite the sun.

But I’ve got to get off of this breakwater, because I need to get those colors in the first photo in the same frame as the lighthouse. I’ve got to move it or loose it!

Eastern Point Sunset

2011-12-12T07:00:00.000-05:00

Continuing with yesterday’s Eastern Point photo shoot, let’s move ahead a little further in time. The sun is dropping over the horizon. That’s Boston to the left and a day boat coming home with it’s catch.

Looking away from the sun, the yellows that we saw yesterday have faded from the white lighthouse. The colors are starting to load up in the background sky.

At this point, the wind is biting, the fingers are stiff and the ears are stinging. Are we done yet? No! Check in tomorrow!

Eastern Point

2011-12-11T07:02:00.000-05:00

The light was uninspiring all day yesterday. But at this time of year, the sun comes up when I’m in the shower and goes down just before I head home from work. By the time I get home, I might as well be shooting black cats in a coal mine.

So I have to get in a lot of production during the weekends so that I have enough blog fodder to keep it fresh. Yes, I post every damned day. Why I decided to do that, I do not know. I could change the rules and post once in a while, but where is the challenge in that?

At 3:30 I decided to head over to Eastern Point. I grabbed my gear and headed out the door. It’s always a crap shoot when the sun goes down. It helps to be able to read the weather. Something told me to get out there and Eastern Point would be the place to be.

As I got out to Easter Gloucester, I saw a sundog to the east of the sun. It would be an excellent shot if I could get the sundog in with the lighthouse. Yes, I visualize a lot of photos on the way to a shoot. I think about the posts and how to present them. It would be cool, I could call it Eastern Point Sundog from Dogbar Breakwater.

When I arrived on the scene, this was the view of Boston from Dogbar Breakwater. The sundog had faded but I knew where I needed to be…

…I needed to be out on the breakwater. As you can see, I always go out on the seaward side of the breakwater onto the rocks. That way, your shot doesn’t look like everyone else’s. And if you’re willing to go out on the breakwater in the beginning of winter with the wind blowing and your finger frozen to your tripod, you can get a shot like this.

Keep checking in this week. You will see other photos from this shoot.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Bufflehead

2011-12-10T16:29:00.000-05:00

I was able to get some shots off of a pair of Bufflehead over by Eastern Point Light. The lighting was prefect for picking up the colors off of the male. Bufflehead are our smallest duck, measuring in at a whopping 13 inches. They are so small that they get lost in the waves.

One must ask, “From where did the name Bufflehead originate?” I have three independent resources that state in one way or another that it is from “buffalo” + “head” because of the comparison of the “remarkable shape of the head to that of the bull bison or buffalo.”

The usage started around 1731. It just goes to show that drug use was rampant in the 18th century.

But nevertheless Bufflehead are wonderful little ducks and very shy. Their comfy zone is about 10 feet further than my lens can reach.

This is the first time that I’ve been able to get good shots of the drake with his iridescent head.

Another factoid that I picked up on. The Bufflehead Bucephala albeola are in the same genus as the Common Goldeneye and Barrow’s Goldeneye. My big-boy waterfowl book warns against confusing this with other Common Goldeneye. (Okay, I’ll be sure to keep my binoculars clean.)

Now I know you are all wondering why Bucephala albeola. Well, I’m going to tell you.

Bucephala is from Gr. bous, “ox or bull,” plus Gr. kephale, “head”; for the shape of the head and not for the famous horse of Alexander. B. albeola; L. albus, “white”; L. –olus, diminutive suffix; “little white head,” which is appropriate as the predominant color is white.

Now if you’re interested, I’ve got some pretty good shots of a female that posted a while ago. Check them out.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Padre Pio

2011-12-09T07:49:00.001-05:00

Ah, summer. You’re only six months away. This is the Padre Pio, one of the Gloucester fishing fleet that hasn’t been squeezed to death yet by the NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Bush Tit

2011-12-09T06:55:00.000-05:00

For Forgotten Photo Friday, I’m going to dredge up some photos of an old friend. Out west you will find the tiny Bush Tit. They are just a puff ball of feathers with a beak. Enjoy.

Winter Condos for Sparrows

2011-12-08T06:58:00.000-05:00

Most people would call these lobster pots. Not me. I call them Sparrow Condos. In the winter when the lobsters migrate to deeper, warmer waters, the lobster pots come out for the winter and get some maintenance.

The House Sparrows love these. They have little bits of sea vegetables, barnacles and other tid-bits. But most of all, they know that a Sharp-shinned Hawk is not going to be chasing them into the pots.

Low Tide at Lanes Cove

2011-12-07T06:47:00.000-05:00

The tide’s out at Lanes Cove. You just can’t ask for a better blue sky. Well, you can ask for one, but you won’t get it.

Winter Ruddy Ducks

2011-12-06T07:00:00.000-05:00

We are on the very northern edge of the Ruddy Duck’s eastern winter range. I’m more familiar with these ducks from out west. Out there in the breading season, the males will be, well, ruddy red and have a cerulean blue bill.

Ruddy ducks are small, about 15 inches and love to stay well out of camera range.

Annisquam Light, Gloucester, Massichusetts

2011-12-05T06:44:00.000-05:00

It’s been a while since I’ve made it over to Annisquam. There’s been a couple of changes, namely, there is a no parking sign at the keeper’s house. Alas, the street is lined with no parking signs. But you can still walk into the beach.

These pictures were taken late in the morning, nigh onto 11:00 am. It just goes to show that it is possible to take photos in the midday sun, as winter approaches anyway.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Carolina Wren

2011-12-03T17:07:00.000-05:00

The Carolina Wren has been pushing north in the last twenty years. It has push a full seventy-five to one hundred miles further north. I shot this one in Dogtown last Sunday.

Coming home in the fog.

2011-12-03T06:55:00.000-05:00

Forgotten Photo Friday, The Black Bug

2011-12-02T06:55:00.000-05:00

Last May when we vacationed in Newport Beach, California, I came across this beetle that had the goofiest defense posture. I’m not sure what his game is, but I guess he thinks it is intimidating. It’s probably worked for millions of years, what ever it is.

Western Bluebird

2011-12-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

Out in the San Francisco region we stopped at a wildlife preserve and had a little photo shoot with a pair of Western Bluebirds.

Herring Gull in the Fog Study

2011-11-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

Sunday afternoon in the Fog. This is the third fog photo study. This is a Herring Gull on a post that has some rubber membrane material. What better subject can you ask for?

First we have the first photo. It’s not to bad. The camera likes the grey back of the gull to meter off of. So it will try to make that reference.

But if you expose 2/3rd of a stop longer, you get another look. Less gray and more of a high key shot.

Lost in the Fog

2011-11-29T07:09:00.000-05:00

I’m going to continue with yesterday’s fog photo study. Then I used the proximity of objects with color to give a punch to the photo and allow the fog to wash the background giving photos depth.

Today the pendulum swings the other way. I’m using the fog to wash everything out to create a different type of image.

Friend Tom’s dory.

Shooting a white boat in the fog? Why not?

Coming back to home port with the catch.

The Siren Song heads out for a row.

Photo Study, Boats in a Fog

2011-11-28T07:05:00.000-05:00

One of the more difficult tasks is photographing in a fog. This weekend we have had very warm temperatures for the end of November. We should be hunkered down in down, but I was frolicking about in just flannel.

But I think it is coming to a close. We had a fog bank roll in yesterday and although it may indicate the end of wonderful weather, it does bring in even light. Not constant light or easy light to work with, but even light. Well, sort of.

Here is the big big picture. As you can see, looking from right to left, as you get further away from the camera, the fog objects get lost in the fog. (Okay, I know, that’s what you expect.) I point that out because that is the effect I’m going to take advantage of. Some popping color in the foreground and a washed out background.

So working up close, I can have a natural de-cluttering of the background. Check out this cool shot. Two boats, one with a white hull, one with a black hull. In the background is the fog.

Gloucester has a texture all its own. I’ve been in art galleries outside this area and have see pictures with these textures and though, “This was done in Gloucester” and have had my thoughts confirmed by reading the description of the piece.

Look at how even this lighting is.

Notice I said that he light was even, not constant. In the fog, the sun may have varying depths of fog to penetrate. Such is the case below as the fog thickened. This tends to make the photo a bit flat.

And then later the sun broke through for a brief interlude.

It keeps the photographer on his toes. But catch it a the right time and the colors will pop.

Nice even light with a lot of the stuff removed from the background.

This shot was taken as the sun was getting low in the sky. Note the reflection of the sunlight in the window of the Razzo. This lasted about five minutes as the sun set over the building behind me.

Vineyard Photo Study II

2011-11-27T09:28:00.000-05:00

If I could, I would be a professional vineyard photographer. There are so many textures, colors, rhythms and sights that lend aesthetics to the visual arts. Not to mention that I’d get to travel to wine country all the time. Nevertheless, I do need to keep in mind that part of what is fun is the newness of the subject.

I’m going to take you back to the Kunde Family Estate Vineyards this morning as a follow up to my recent Vineyard Photo Study. They have a wonderful resource in addition to the wine caves that I showed you last week. They have a demonstration vineyard that they allow visitors to walk in and see the vines up close and personal. Located at the foot of the hill between the two cave entrences, it gives a vantage point for views of the surroundings. In the growing season, it must be a great spot to photograph grapes.

The photo above and below were shot at different times of the day. Above is the mid-day sun and below is the late event as the sun was going down a behind a hill to the far left.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Turkey Vulture

2011-11-26T17:00:00.000-05:00

The Back Story
There is a bit of a back story that I haven’t share with you about our trip to California. When we left Boston, it was raining cats and dogs. I tossed my gear in the back seat and put the luggage in the trunk At the airport parking lot that we used, I parked the car and popped open the trunk. The shuttle driver took my wife and grabbed the bags from the trunk and gibbered at me that I wasn’t parked in the right place and pointed over across two rows and made me move. (I’ve had this driver once before and he pulled the same crap on me the last time. Other than that we always have had friendly drivers.)

All that threw a wrench into my cogs. Pouring rain came down as I contemplated how much better it would make this guy’s life if I parked beside a car two rows over rather than parked beside the car I was originally parked by.

I got out of the car into the rain, shut the door, pushed the lock button and hopped into the shuttle. “Jet Blue”, was all I said to him, and that was all he was going to get from me.

A mile down the road, I must have turned white as a sheet. Becky asked me what was wrong. I said, “I left my gear on the back seat of the car.” Yes, it is true. I might has well been in one of those dreams where you find yourself back in high school as a full adult and realizing that you haven’t been in math class all year because you’ve been working for the last 30 years and it is time for final exams. Worse yet, you look down and you are in your underwear.

Yes, that’s what it was like for me. For me being without a camera is as surreal as being in my underwear in math class in a bad dream.

Buy the time I got to the airport I was already having the shakes. There are little BestBuy kiosks at Logan Airport. I began to look at the little point-and-shoot and salivating, but my head was pounding and my hands were trembling so badly, I couldn’t think. “Is it a good camera, enough megapixels, megapixels don’t matter, it’s sensor size. Megapixels? Megapixels…oh crap, I just need something to point. Anyone photographer worth a shit can take a great picture with a Kodak Brownie and a BIC lighter. Megapixels? Megapixels? If I could only wake up from this bad dream!!!”

“I must be cool. I’m in a public place and if I go psychotic, the won’t let me on the plane. Do have enough time to grab shuttle back to the parking lot?”

“Okay, when we get to San Jose, we can go straight to Fryes. They got gear, lets see, do I have $1500…Oh when will this nightmare end? I’d sell my sole for a 3.2 MP point-and-shoot. I don’t care! I’ll even pay sales tax!”

The next day, as the tarantulas were crawling up my legs and all over the floor, my father-in-law graciously loaned me his DSLR and two lenses. Oh sweet angle of mercy!

Yeah, it was that bad.

But you didn’t come here for that. You came for Turkey Vulture pictures.

Turkey Vultures
We were driving just north of Kenwood on Rt 12 and came across a road kill and there were some Turkey Vultures feeding on the carcass. “Hold tight, Batturn!”

I shot these with a my father-in-law’s Nikon D40, 55-200mm Niccor lens. Becky was driving and she was a trouper, inching up the car as I tried to find out what the tolerance distance was for the birds and tried to get a half decent background.

Forgotten Photo Friday, High Key, Low Key

2011-11-25T08:15:00.000-05:00

Okay, this is classic Forgotten Photo Friday. I was stumbling through the archives the other day and came across this low key shot of hawthorn berries I took on a foggy, drizzly day. When I saw this photograph, I was shocked that I took the photo because I actually think it’s unlike all other images that I have ever taken.

I love low key shots. When I see some of the classic portraits from the 20s through the 50s and the are done in a low key style, I’m always awestruck by the mastery of light.

In the group, I found this high key shot taken at the same time.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T07:05:00.000-05:00

Yes, it is that time of year, Thanksgiving. It’s time to go over the river and through the woods. Fortunately this year the weather is cooperating. For my readers in that are not tuned into this holiday, it is a time of gathering with friends and family to celebrate the harvest. Traditionally, we serve domestic turkey with all the fixin’s. After, the men watch American Football and the women get stuck cleaning up the dishes.

Sorry for the banal post. I see this guys frequently in the parking lots where I work, but I don’t pack my gear when I’m working. For me having a camera at work would be like keeping a bottle of Scotch in my desk. Not a good idea. “Excuse me Steve, when you are through shooting that meadowhawk, can you get back to this meeting?” Yes I get distracted by everything when I’m tooled up for photography. (I do have a camera in my desk. It is an old Cannon 3MPx point-and-shot that I use when I have to take pictures of machinery on the job. It is safe for me to walk about campus with it bulging in my pocket because it is extremely out-dated and I would be mortified if anyone caught me using it on an animal.)

So this is the best shot of a turkey that I’ve ever gotten. Not a real cock-of-the-rock shot, but you can see the field marks. To make matters worse, I’ve only seen the toms puffed up in mating season when I’m at work, never when I’m off duty. (Yes, those renditions of puffed up tom turkeys you see in November are about six months out of phase. It’s a springtime mating thing meant to impress the babes, not a “look at how fat and tasty I am for Thanksgiving” look.)

I’m truly fascinated by the variety of feathers that turkeys sport. I have a wild turkey primary flight feather on my desk at work. But what is with that head? Sometimes I think that the turkeys are named after turkey vultures, and not the other way around.

So this all got me wondering. Why is this bird called turkey? According to The Dictionary of American Bird Names, by Ernest Choate, “Our wild turkey derives its name from the domestic turkey which is a descendent of turkeys brought alive from Mexico to Spain in 1630. The Oxford Dictionary says the name was first applied to the African bird (Guinea fowl) because it was brought from Guinea through Africa by the Portuguese, and latter applied to the American bird. However it is agreed that the name turkey became attached to the bird from a widespread misconception of the country of its origin, Turkey. Ignorance as to the bird’s place of origin is not confined to its reflection in English, as we find G[reek] calecutischer hahn, literally ‘a cock of Calicut’; F[rench] coc d’Inde, literally ‘a cock of India’; and the I[talian] gallo d’India , “cock of India.” One wonders whether or not some of the early settlers in America were a bit puzzled when they found the bird ahead of them.”

I hope you have a good Thanksgiving.

Acorn Woodpecker

2011-11-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

We came across an Acorn Woodpecker on our recent trip. If you haven’t seen my article, Will the real Woody Woodpecker, please stand up, you are in for a treat. Enjoy.

Golden Gate

2011-11-22T07:00:00.000-05:00

We managed to hit the Golden Gate Bridge right at high noon. But there were great views of Angle Island and Sausalito.

You can get above the bridge.

And look down. Pretty cool, huh? Someday, I’m going to have to get there when the light is better!

Old Vine Zin

2011-11-21T07:30:00.000-05:00

Yes, this is where the good stuff comes from, old zinfandel vines.

I found this driving along Hy 12 going north out of Glen Ellen, California. We stopped and took a shot. Not too bad.
But the next morning I got out early and took this shot. Much better! I’ve got the sun to my back which makes that blue sky pop.

A Vineyard Photo Study

2011-11-20T06:55:00.000-05:00

We stopped by Kunde Family Estate in Kenwood, California. What I have for you is a photo study of how the light plays on the vineyard at different times of the day. These photos were shot over two days in with the same weather conditions.

The light of the early morning rises an breaks over the hill.

During midday, the light is strong and vibrant. This is the entrance to the wine cave. Inside the cave is 32,000 square feet of 58F wine aging at 78% humidity. This is ideal for aging the wine. (Yes, I want one.)

The same shot, latter in the day as the sun begins to set.

Finally, it is time to go.

I would have stayed a bit longer, however I was without a tripod and the exposures were getting to be too long for handheld photography.

Oh, in case you are wondering, the bird box is for owls.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, Lesser Goldfinch in Brown Grass

2011-11-19T17:58:00.000-05:00

I caught these Lesser Goldfinch on Monday near San Francisco, California. Enjoy.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Inside the Cactus Flower

2011-11-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

For this installment of Forgotten Photo Friday, here are some photos from last May I took during a trip to Los Angeles.

Morning and Evening in Glen Ellen, California

2011-11-17T07:09:00.000-05:00

Becky and I took a mini-vacation to Glen Ellen, California. We stayed at this B&B.

This was the view in the morning…

And this was the view in the evening.

A different kind of fall color.

2011-11-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

Yes, it’s November. The sun is setting further south. This time of year, we get a different kind of fall color.

The Nubble

2011-11-14T15:29:00.000-05:00

Looking east at the Cape Neddick Lighthouse as the sun sets.

Longfellow’s Wayside Inn, Sudbury

2011-11-13T07:00:00.000-05:00

There is nothing like a drive down the rural New England roads in the fall.

Check it out!

This is New England at its best.

My last dragons for the year.

2011-11-12T17:49:00.000-05:00

Alas, with fall upon us is seems appropriate to end out the dragonfly pictures of the year with Autumn Meadowhawks.

I’ll see you next spring.

Forgotten Photo Friday, the Lancet Clubtail

2011-11-11T06:59:00.000-05:00

I’ve been sitting on these photos of the Lancet Clubtail since early July. Every time I though about posting them, something else would divert my attention. They seemed to like to stay on the ground where they can soak up the sun.

Happy Friday!

Catching the waves

2011-11-10T07:03:00.000-05:00

There is nothing more fun than catching a dramatic wave crashing on the rocks. Here are some more photos from the October 30th storm that raised so much hell here in New England.

But aside from the “ooooOOooo-aaaaahness of these shots, a stern word of warning. Last year we lost a recreational fisherman to waves similar to these. They are not worth messing with. I have seen folks walking the Boulevard in foul weather gear for the thrill of getting sprayed. On the day after the storm you will see softball sized rocks on the sidewalk.

So how do I get these shots? I use my long lenses, stay away from the action and take advantage of the angles. When I arrive at the scene, I survey what’s going on from a distance and look for a dry spot. I watch what the waves are doing and wait for several sets to come through to see what happens when the big rollers come in. I look at the direction the direction that waves are traveling and keep in mind that there are rouge waves out there. Knowing if the tide is coming in or going out is important.

When I start shooting, I keep an eye on the sets to make sure there isn’t a big rogue headed my way, which shouldn’t be a problem because I’ve got myself in a safe place, out of the action that is dry some distance away from the action.

Stetsons

2011-11-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

Broadway boasts many western ware stores and I did a little “window shopping”. This was shot from the sidewalk through glass. I walked in but alas there were signs saying that “We do not allow photographs” which is a shame. It reminds me of when I went to Shanghai and went into a restaurant in that was full of interesting photo subjects. It had a sign on the wall not only prohibiting photographs, but stating that the décor was “Copyrighted”. Hmmm…now why would anyone in China be worried about copyright infringement?

But rules is rules and I kept my point-and-shot in my pocket as I checked out the Stetsons. Well, I don’t know, what do you think? Should I have picked one up?

They say the neon lights are bright, on Broadway.

2011-11-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

I didn’t have a lot of free time in Nashville, Tennessee however I did take a little time to stroll down Broadway. Broadway is lined with honkytonks and as you walk down the sidewalks you will hear the live music tumbling out into the street.

I should mention that there were a couple of folks I overheard lamenting about the decline of Kodak, film and how the art of photography isn’t the same. The conversation went sort of like this.

“I miss the smell of the film when you opened the film can. Now anybody can take a picture and since it doesn’t cost anything, they just shoot and shoot and shoot. There isn’t any art to it anymore.”

“Yah, now anyone with an expensive DSLR thinks they are a photographer”, said the second person.

“Now no one takes good photos and they don’t have to since it doesn’t cost anything.”

I just decided not to get involved with that conversation. I have to disagree. Many professional photographers take a great deal of photos. If you look into any of the Nat Geo photographers, they may shoot thousands and thousands of frames on assignment. Additionally, Ansel Adams said, “You don’t take a good photograph, you make it.” He was known for getting it done in dark room. “Dodging and burning are steps to take care of mistakes God made in establishing tonal relationships”, according to Adams.

I shot the all of the above with my point-and-shoot camera. It’s what I take on business trips because I can slip it into a pocket or computer bag and go to meetings. After my class that day, mulling over the conversation I heard during course break, I had to go out with my cheapest camera and see what it could do. These are all handheld shots. I took about 35 frames, 23 for this post. (Hey, I’m shooting at night without a tripod! Sooorrrrry!)

And as for “anyone can do it”, I say, “hooray!” There are a lot of folks out there making art that they enjoy and want to share. That’s a lot of communication! And the more we communicate with each other, the more we will understand each other. This will build more affinity for our fellow man. That’s art.

Favicon, Blogger, why it doesn’t work and how to get it to work.

2011-11-07T21:16:00.000-05:00

Many of you may have noticed that I have a new icon on the ShootingMyUniverse tab and URL bar. This is not difficult to do in blogger but my research has shown that there is a lot of frustration out there because a lot of people have tried it and thought they failed.

Blogger makes it easy to crate your own Favicon if you do not want to use the orange stylized “B” for your blog. Here’s what you do. And more importantly, here is what you do when you think it doesn’t work!

I have an older template for my blog. Since it is a photoblog, I do not want to glitz it up with a lot of distracting wiz-ban backgrounds, add and other bricka brack. But a icon it pretty cool. These icons are stored in .ico files which have bitmaps of varying sizes. But dealing with .ico files is beyond most hobbyist. At first I though that using an old template was the problem. Fortunately, this is not the case.

Create your Favicon
First, you will need to crate an image that is square. I created a .jpg that is 4kB, 50X50px. But that’s not important. It just needs to be square and less than 100KB, in .JPG, PNG, GIF or ICO format.

Go into your blog layout and you will see a Favicon widget. Click Edit.

You will see the Configure Favicon tool come up.

Browse to your photo and click the OPEN button. (You can see a 16X16px SMU.GIF image I created just to see what it would look like when I was done.)

Click Save and your done!

Your blog will now have your Favicon. If you close your browser and launch it again, you will see your new Favicon in the URL bar and on the tabs. Or so the story goes! If you were like me, you probably still saw the big B icon and became disappointed.

I spent hours hacking my template, trying to find the code that sets the Favicon. Hours. Finally, in frustration, I packed it up and watched a movie with my wife. The next morning, I launched ShootingMyUniverse from my laptop and saw my Favicon. But when I tried my desktop, there was no joy. This opened the door to a solution.

Here’s how to get your Favicon to appear if you think that the process did not work.
If your Favicon does not appear when you launch your blog, it may be that your browser has stored the icon image in your internet temp files and is using that rather than pulling it fresh from the server.

In Internet Explorer, simply go to the Tools menu, select Internet Options.

See that Delete button? Click it. Another widow will pop up.

I like to delete everything, but the important ones are Temporary Internet files, Cookies and History. I unchecked the Preserve Favorites Website Data because I have SMU in my favorites. (And you should have SMU in your favorites too because it is free, it isn’t illegal, it isn’t fattening but it is habit forming.)

Click the Delete button. And if you are studying this like you’ve never done this before, then it may take several minutes to clean out the cobwebs. (There is a lot of junk that gets stored in these locations, so cleaning them out every once in a while is white magic.)

After the deletion process is done, close all browser windows and launch your blog freshly. You should now see your favicon. I did this on my two work computers (during lunch, of course!) and on my two computers at home with success.

I hope this has been of value to you.

Morning walk in Downtown Nashville

2011-11-07T07:01:00.000-05:00

Are y’all doing okay?*
I just returned from a convention in Nashville, Tennessee. My hotel was right in the heart of downtown. I could have hit the Country Music Hall of Fame with a baseball. There is a lot of construction going on downtown and this part of my view from the hotel window. Not that I really minded because they were good about not starting up too early in the morning and I was up getting caught up with work emails anyway.

Along my walk to the convention center, I spied this bill of one of my guitar heroes, Chet Atkins.

This is Broadway. I’m going to take you down here on a night walk, real soon.

Continuing on my walk to the convention center, I saw something that seemed familiar…

It’s the Ryman Auditorium. This is the original home of the Grand Ole Opry, Birthplace of Bluegrass and is still an important venue for C&W.

That ends the morning walk, the convention center is right across the street. Y’all come back now, I going to take you on that nigh time walk down Broadway.

*A friendly Southern greeting.

Glen Mill

2011-11-06T05:43:00.000-05:00

The Glen Mill, also known as the Jewell Mill in Rowley, Massachusetts is captured with a bit of fall color. Enjoy.

Compare these to the shots taken in April 2010.

Saturday Evening Creature Feature, The Blob

2011-11-05T18:00:00.000-04:00

Late in September, I was walking through Dogtown and I came across this little creature on the forest floor. I have no idea what it is, but it looks like it could star in a B movie.

Forgotten Photo Friday, Kayla Maria motors by Eastern Point

2011-11-04T06:58:00.000-04:00

Forgotten Photo Friday is when I do an archive dive to find little nuggets lost and forgotten. Here is just a fun shot of the Kayla Maria, Dogbar Light and Eastern Point Light on a late summer day.

Sudbury Grist Mill Photo Study

2011-11-03T07:05:00.000-04:00

A follow-up from yesterday’s post, here is a little photo study of the Sudbury Grist Mill.

Great Minds think Alike, The Sudbury Grist Mill

2011-11-02T07:01:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday, I decided to take a chance and take the trip to Sudbury and see if there was some color around the Grist Mill. It was an awesome day for it because the sky was overcast, giving a gentle, even light. Yes folks, if you are not shooting on overcast days, you are missing out on a lot.

My theory was that the best part of the mill faces north, meaning that it is backlit by the sun. So with an overcast day, the light would be more even. The tradeoff? No sexy blue sky, but so what?

Well, great minds think alike. When I arrived at the site, this was the scene. Hokey smoke, Bullwinkle! Everywhere you looked there were people and cameras!

Okay, this is a bit much, pink and blue fleeces in a fall color shot? Nah! Let’s go up topside and see if the crowd is a bit thinner. These folks will disperse soon, I’m sure.

There are more photographers up above! Check this out. It turns out that these folks were doing a fashion shoot. And the model’s colors work well.

This is the top of the mill and the water feed that come over to the top of the water wheel.

And the foot bridge that goes over the stream with the pond in the background. This photographer has nerves of steel. Not for standing precariously on the outside of the bridge over the water but because he has a dark complexioned model in dark cloths and she’s going to be backlit. Dude, if you can pull off that shot, you’re my hero!

This is one shot that I whish I could have spent more time with. I only had one frame that I took of the girl as I was talking with her dad.

Well, did I get the shot I was after? Check in tomorrow, you be the judge.

El Dia de los Muertos

2011-11-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

Taken last year in a store window in Newburyport, MA.

I’d like to give the store credit, so if you know what the store is, can you let me know?

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T07:00:00.000-04:00

Today, I will conclude this year’s exploration of the headstones in our oldest New England burying grounds. Should you come to Boston, there are three burying grounds you must see. They are all within walking distance and found along the Freedom Trail. This burying ground overlooks the Old North Church.

This wonderful stone has the cartoon on the top arch. The boarder has wonderful carvings of hourglasses, corn cobs, grapes and cherries. Take a look.

Please pardon the mud on this stone. We had heavy rains the day before we went to Boston. But look a the wonderful carvings on this headstone.

Another wonderful cartoon with the grim reaper (see the scythe?) and points out that time flies.

Here is the full stone for you to read.

I hope you have enjoyed the headstones I’ve posted. Have a happy Halloween. Momento Mori.

Eine kleine Nactpost, What’s new?

2011-10-30T19:30:00.001-04:00

With all of the annual headstone postings, I got a little backed up on current events. I’ve just published my second calendar, 2012 Lighthouse Calendar. The preview object has not been created yet but you can see it at my publishing profile page.

My 2012 Gloucester Schooners Calendar was a fun project and will be on my office wall next year. This features many of the schooners that call Gloucester their home port and many schooners that visit us. You will see our Ardelle, Thomas E. Lannon and Bald Eagle plus one of the old Essex build schooners such as the Roseway. In addion there is the Liberty Clipper, Dove II, Virginia, American Eagle, Alabama, Fame, Estrala, Harvey Gammage and Bluenose II out of Nova Scotia.

In recent events, today I saw some of our winter birds are starting to come in. American Black Ducks, Redneck Grebe, Brant, Red-throated Loon and Common Loon to name a few.

I love Brant, they are not much bigger than a Herring Gull.

In other news, I bumped into buddy David Cox out shooting the rollers pounding the back shore. Yah, great minds think alike, the blue sky and surf were just too tasty to pass up.

We had a Nor’easter over the weekend. Much of New England got dumped on by snow. We were lucky, just wind and water. Since it has the apparency of being a bit somber here, with all those graveyard shift posts, perhaps I better lighten it up a little with some lighter fare.

I couldn’t believe this guy! I’m glad he climbed up there with a red hoodie. Makes for a good shot to give you scale. Those of us, like David and me, who love life prefer to use long lenses to get an up close view.

Pretty cool roller! The wind is blowing the crest of the wave back out to see.

Tomorrow I will have the last of the graveyard posts for the year. Until then, stay dry and sleep well.

North Cemetery, Portsmouth, NH

2011-10-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

Continuing with my Halloween tradition of bringing you the headstones from some of New England’s oldest burying grounds, today I will show you some of the unique headstones from the North Cemetery in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Portsmouth is a historical city on the seacoast of New Hampshire. This cemetery has headstones that span a wide history, from the early Puritan style carved in slate and red sandstone up through the Victorian period with the rich symbolism into the late 19th century when cemeteries began to be more like parks. As you can see from the photo above of just one section there are a wide variety of styles of headstones. Unfortunately, the white marble stones are taking a beating and will probably be disintegrated in the years to come. Today, I want to show you some of the more unique headstones in the cemetery

The headstones below are a two good examples of the transition from the 18th century style where graves were marked with headstones that warn of death to the early 19th style with its layers of symbolism. The skull is a symbol of death ascending into heaven. On the right, the weeping willow and urn are both symbols of morning and sorrow.

Detail of an angle on a 1765 headstone. Note that this woman lived to the age of 84 attesting to the fact that it was possible to live a long life.

These purple markers hold up to the elements very well.

This wonderful carved marble memorial is for a child that passed away at the age of five months and ten days.

I’ve seen this sun motif on other stones, but this is the only one I’ve seen in this cemetery.

Another stylized angle. (Note, this is John Langdon, Jr., not Gov. John Langdon referred to in the historical marker. He is in a tomb is this same cemetery.)

This wonderful headstone is from 1803, a period when we see a transition in headstone motifs.

This is a very unique headstone. I wonder if this was erected at a later time. I have seen this in some occasions where a grave marker was upgraded at a later date. I’ll never know.

Another example of an angle.

Finally, I present this wonderful carving.

I hope you enjoyed visiting this cemetery. If you are interested in New England headstones, you may want to check out my previous headstone posts.

Old Burying Point, Salem, Massachusetts

2011-10-29T07:03:00.000-04:00

This is the time of year that I bring you to some of the unique burying grounds and cemeteries in the area. Today it is Burying Point in Salem, Massachusetts. This is a wonderful place, not because of the witches, but because it has a wealth of different angle style carvings on the headstones. This first headstone is rather unique in that during the time that it was carved it was more usual to see long bones crossed than what appears to be oars.

Another winged skull symbolizes death ascending into heaven. This stone is from 1710. I have seen this many time where a wife will not only be identified by her husband but her parents as well. The carving on the sides of the marker are a common motif, but I’m not sure what they represent.

Note that this marker has an angle with little wings, almost child like.

What follows next is a woman’ headstone has a majestic angel with brilliant scroll carvings.

This winged skull belongs to a woman who died at 25 years. Notice that she is referred to as a consort.

This is a detail of an angle on a child’s headstone and is beautifully executed and in wonder condition.

Another child’s marker from the late 18th century proclaims “Time Passes away”. Carved roughly at the same time but with a different stylized angle.

I really didn’t look at this stone during the photo shoot, I just liked the angle. But looking at the stone, it tells a sad story. Beyond that it is unusual in that it has the angle plus the two sun motifs.

This stone memorializes a man who passed away in 1796 and has a striking ouroborus motif proclaiming that death follows life.

Another angel motif beautifully executed.

This is a wonderful 17th century tablet with a unique angel and a wonderful boarder. If anyone knows what theses side boarders represent, please let me know.

Woops!

This is the other side of the stone above! You’ll have to click to enlarge to read the epitaph.

Here is a highly stylized angel motive, very unique and I’ve never seen any other like it.

Another unique headstone executed very simply, yet is laid out with absolutely flawless inscribing.

Do you recognize this angel from above? Look at how this carver scribes the digit one!It is the same as above.

This headstone is one of the most primitive carvings I’ve seen. Note that he hourglasses remind us that time passes.

Finally another unique headstone with an angel and a scull and crossbones beautifully carved.

Well, that’s quite a few headstones with different carvings. I hope you found the high resolution photos interesting and you got a sense of the different carvers work. I encourage you to visit my other headstone posts as there many more carvings to view.