Twilight Time

Twilight Time, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

We were rapidly running out of daylight when these great looking cars rumbled into Bob's Big Boy Broiler and parked all the way in the back of the parking lot next to the fence. Kathy and I looked at one another as they went by and we walked over to try and get some shots before the sun vanished beneath the horizon.

Just to the right of this view was a killer red and black truck that Kathy shot. Her image was amazing. So good in fact when she decided to submit seven photos to be considered for entry in the photography exhibit at the 2012 Orange County Fair, the truck was one of the images she chose to enter. Four of her images were selected for display and the truck won honorable mention. We were really stoked when we went to the fair and saw them on display. Kathy as always kept her cool, showing very little emotion but Manny, Dot and I were really happy and excited. I even made her pose for pictures with her images. Now they are all hanging in our living room and they look great!

Fenway Park Sunset

Fenway Park Sunset, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

I was in Boston for the How Conference and had the opportunity to go a Red Sox game at Fenway park. I really like going to baseball games because I like the vibe, the excitement and the stadiums. I actually like all that much more than the actual game being played which I rarely pay attention to.

In this case, I was just amazed at Fenway Park itself. As my coworkers and I approached the stadium I was thinking if not for the lighting and banners, it would have been tough to identify it as a ballpark. From the outside, Fenway looks just like another brick factory in a neighborhood full of them.

Once we were inside the park, there was quite a bit of confusion regarding where we were sitting. I didn't care. I had decided I was going to spend every minute I could exploring the place and seeing if I could sneak into a few places not necessarily open to the public.

I found I could walk into an area that required another type of ticket, quickly fire off a few HDR sequences before a staff member came by and asked to see my ticket. I usually just apoligized for my confusion and stalled for time if my camera was still exposing frames.

This image was taken from a nice viewpoint over looking center field. The sunset and clouds that day were spectacular. It was a hot and humid day so the departure of the sun was a welcome event.

I took over 600 photos at Fenway that day so I'll be posting more sooner or later.

Jesus Has My Back - El Patron

Jesus Has My Back - El Patron, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

Kathy, Manny and I decided to go to the San Fernando High School car show on a hot Sunday afternoon. It was a big show and wow, was it worth the drive. We saw some of the most amazing cars. I don't think Kathy had ever seen any of them before, even though she goes to lots of car shows. The only problem that day was the heat. It was over 100 degrees for most of the time we were there so we didn't end up staying as long as we might have wanted to.

Anyway, before entering, we all had to pass through a mandatory security screening. We had to endure a bag search, pat down and wanding but no body cavity search thank goodness. I think they were looking for items such as weapons, drugs and alcohol and not camera equipment and tripods because we had no problems passing through.

Once inside the show, Kathy of course went her own way while Manny and I stuck together, alternating between making images and taking video clips. After wandering around for a while, we decided to walk to the far off corner of the show where in addition to some shade, we found this stunning 1959 Chevrolet Impala.

We stood in front of it and just stared. The body work and paint job was just perfect. It was so glossy and deep looking. If that wasn't enough, when we walked around the back of the car, I found Jesus. I mean when we saw the continental kit and spare tire cover mural on the back of the car, Jesus appeared to me. I mean Jesus appeared to me on the spare tire cover, or rather appeared to be on the spare tire cover. I wasn't the only person who saw Jesus. Manny saw him too. I remember distinctly saying unto Manny "Jesus, Manny, there's Jesus". Once we beheld that, I personally felt blessed and I knew in my heart I was going to make several images from the rear drivers side of the car. I would have taken some shots from the front side, but the hood was open which in my opinion ruins the lines of the car, so I decided to stay on the Jesus side, back side. Not the back side of Jesus, I mean the back side of the car where Jesus first appeared to us.

Oh and check out the engraved detail on the chrome wheel cover. Just spectacular!

I Dream of Fake Bokeh

I Dream of Fake Bokeh, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

My Sigma 50mm f1.4 is a good lens but it doesn't hold a candle to Kathy's Minolta/Sony 100mm f2.8 Macro lens in the sharpness and bokeh departments.

After seeing some of her great photos of these amber colored Pontiac hood ornaments, I've been on the lookout for them at every car show I go to. She usually finds them first and lets me know where I can locate them.

In this case, Kathy and I had been at the 2012 Uptown Whittier car show for a while with each of us going our own way to seek out whatever treasures the day might bring. Later when we met up again, she told me about this Pontiac hood ornament she had come across. We walked down the street so I could make a few images of it too.

I've noticed that the older the hood ornament, the more cracks it is likely to have. Here it was possible to orient the camera in such a way to capture the sunlight illuminating it's internal structure which had a lot of character.

Later when I went home and was reviewing my images in Lightroom, I could see that the bokeh in my shots left a lot to be desired. Luckily I own Nik Software's Bokeh 2 plug-in. It works great as long as you have a good selection isolating what you want to be in sharp focus from that which you want to be blurred. In this case I think it improved the existing bokeh nicely.