to my personal blog. Here I post examples of my photography and writing. I specialize in making unique and highly detailed photographs. Notice I said making and not taking. Yes I take photos but a lot of time and work is involved in pushing and punishing the pixels in my images to achieve the look I like.
Please feel free make comments about any of my words or photos. I enjoy constructive critiques, learning about locations to shoot or photography techniques. Click on the "Share Article" link to share any of my photos via Flickr, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
Want to use one of my posts in your own blog? No problem, but please make sure it links back to the original post here and do the right thing and give me credit. Don't copy my words, crop the images, remove the watermarks or claim my work as your own. This has happened more times than I can count so I've had to report copyright violations to ISP's and regrettably the violators blog is usually taken down.
Can't we all just get along?
Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 10:52PM | in California, Disney, HDR The renovation / expansion of Disney California Adventure is well underway. The old sun wheel has been renamed "Mickey's Fun Wheel" and features new lighting and music but otherwise the ride is essentially the same. It is really spectacular at night though.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 10:50PM | in Aviation, California, Chino Planes of Fame Museum, HDR, Museum This incredibly restored Korean War era F-86 Sabre fighter's skin is actually quite smooth. The HDR process brings out so much detail that in this case minor imperfections are enhanced. This aircraft is flown regularly and often travels to air shows. The F-86 is considered a "sweet ride" by pilots for it's nimble handling qualities.
Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 9:54AM | in California, Disney, HDR Disney California Adventure Paradise Pier area as it appeared in April of 2008.
Kathy and I went to Disney California Adventure specifically to take this shot. The Paradise Pier area is beautiful at night and can be incredible at sunset.
Once Disney CEO Micheal Eisner left the company, his successor Bob Iger committed significant resources and money into the park, announcing a $1.1 Billion renovation and expansion project in 2007. As a result the scene above has changed quite a bit.
This is what it looked like in January of 2009.
I was walking back to my hotel in Chicago when I passed this impressive buidling. I wasn't sure if it was open to the public but nobody stopped me from entering. The huge glass atrium was just immense. There was a food court downstairs and office space upstairs. It seems that the state of Illinois owns and occupies the entire facility.
I read that the building is very expensive to heat and cool since double pane windows were not installed as a "cost saving" measure.
Building security guards carefully watched me setup my tripod and take these shots but never said a word. Nor did any of the city workers that were constantly walking past me.
While in Chicago I found it interesting that unlike Californians, people there seem to totally ignore photographers indoors or out.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 11:34PM | in Aviation, California, Chino Planes of Fame Museum, HDR, Museum An experimental Yakovlev fighter witnesses another beautiful California sunset at the Chino Planes of Fame Museum.
I had been at the museum all day and had decided to wait around for sunset to see if it would be a nice one. Closing time had come and gone but I thought if I kept a low profile I might be able to stay inside until the sky got really pretty.
Right after I took this sequence the security guard came over and started closing the hanger doors. When he saw me with my camera and tripod he was ready to give me the boot but I pointed at the dramatic sky outside and asked if I could take a few more sequences. He took one look, said "wow that's amazing!" and agreed to give me a few more minutes.
It's funny how we often don't see the beauty around us until someone points it out to us.
