7/11/07

I started the week out with a picnic at Jordan Valley Park with my family. I attempted to get some shots of the fountain out there, but nothing really awe-inspiring came out at all. I got what would have been a really good shot of my niece, except it was about 4 stops underexposed. Note to self: when you’re done taking pictures of fireworks, be sure to turn off any manual settings requiring at least 30 second exposures. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, I got skunked again the next day.

7/12/07

I went to the nature center to take pictures of wildlife, and boy did I see wildlife! Around the first bend on the trail there were 3 deer standing right next to the trail just staring at me. But that’s normal. What happened next was really weird.

Down by the creek bed I saw a tree standing about 30 feet from a fallen log. On the tree was a squirrel, and on the log was a beautiful owl. And they were yelling at each other. The squirrel would let out a defiant shriek (I’m sure it was squirrel for “You dirty rat… you killed my brother!”) and the owl would shriek back. This process repeated for about 20 seconds before the initial shock of witnessing a conversation between a squirrel and an owl wore off enough for me to realize that I had a camera in my hands.

I moved slowly so as not to spook the owl, who was by then staring at me and wondering what the heck I was up to. I carefully set up my tripod, placed my camera on top, and focused on the owl. I double checked that the internal flash wouldn’t spring up and ruin everything. I placed my index finger on the shutter release. This whole process took about a minute, during which time the owl didn’t move a muscle.

But as soon as I reached for the shutter release the owl sensed that I was now prepared to take a picture of him, and flew off. He landed about a hundred yards up the trail, and on a branch that was about 40 feet high. If I had a telephoto lens, he still would have been mine. But, unfortunately, all of the pictures you will see here on iworkinpixels.com were taken with the stock 18-55mm lens that comes with the Canon XT. I took a few pictures, but the owl ended up being a tiny dot in a great big forest.

So, having been cheated twice by mother nature, I decided to try something a little bit different. I got out the light tent! I like taking household objects and looking at them in a new way, so I thought I’d start week 2 out with a portrait of a killer robot (or MiniDV tape, whichever you prefer).

I followed that up with some color, in the form of some decorative glasses that Amber has in our kitchen.

I took some other pictures with the light tent, but none as good as these two. I enjoyed shooting in the light tent, though, so I’ll probably revisit it later on in the project.

7/15/07

I spent most of the day today traveling around downtown looking for old things. I found lots of them, and in keeping with the old things theme, I’m presenting most of these in black and white. The one of paint peeling I left in color because the streaks on the wood and the yellowing of the paint around where it has cracked give it character.

This one, of a door handle on an abandoned business downtown, is my favorite of Week 2. I like the composition of this shot, and in the full size version the detail in the paint and on the screen is incredible.

It’s a well known fact that rusted out vehicles are among the most photogenic objects in existance. They’re just way too much fun to take pictures of! These are sitting at an abandoned service station on Commercial and National.

And, finally, what collection of old stuff would be complete without a brick building, covered in ivy, with broken out windows? Don’t worry, folks… this one’s got it all. It’s one of the old buildings on the corner of National and Chestnut, and that area is chock full of good stuff to take pictures of. You’ll be seeing more of it in future weeks!

Well, that’s it for this week. If you know of any good spots in Springfield, email me and I’ll check it out. This town’s full of great things to take pictures of! Keep those emails coming, and I’ll see you soon!