December 31, 2012 - Minnesota Tundra

This picture was taken while on a country road in Dellwood, Minnesota.  I decided it was time to do another HDR image, so attempted to find a bit of color on the Minnesota tundra.  I'm not sure why the snow looks blue - I even adjusted the temperature in PSE!

HDR:                    Yes (3 images)
Exposure:           1/60 sec  (0, -2, +2 exposure compensation)
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod

December 30, 2012 - Farewell

We had a reception for our parish nurse at church this morning and I took pictures to record the event.  I snapped this picture as the honoree and her daughter were posing for someone else to take a picture.  Most of the pictures from the event turned out OK, but I still prefer outside photography to inside work!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/60 sec
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  Yes  On-camera
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 29, 2012 - Horsing Around

Admittedly, this is not a good photograph.  I worked around the house today while the sun was shining bright and when I got ready to go out shooting the clouds came in.  Besides not being real sharp, this picture is a bit dark.  Gotta keep practicing!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/250 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 28, 2012 - Winter Walk

We had a fresh snow fall last night, so I went to Gervais Mill Park in Little Canada to shoot this picture for today.  The scene was beautiful, with the light snow on the trees, walking path and everything else!

Lesson learned:  This picture would have been even sharper had I remembered to turn off the vibration compensation feature of the lens, since I had it mounted on a tripod.  I did remember to set the exposure compensation to +0.3 for the bright snow, but still had to brighten the result in Photoshop.  Maybe try +0.7 next time!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/160 sec  +0.3 Exposure compensation for the white snow
Aperture:             f/10
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod

December 27, 2012 - Cold Storage

Driving around this afternoon, I found this construction equipment lined up in a field near Columbus, Minnesota.  This photo was taken holding the camera over a fence near the road (I did NOT trespass onto personal property).  As I was processing the image, I wondered what it would look like would I have been able to create an HDR photo of the scene (I know you can do it from a single shot, but multiple would be better).  I may go back to the location and try it...on a sunny day at sunset!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/100
Aperture:             f/13
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 26, 2012 - Remembering Santa

Another cold day outside so I grabbed this Christmas decoration for today's photo.  I experimented with locating the flash in different places and this one turned out the best.  Not much else to say about it!  :-)

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/60
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  Yes; off-camera
Stabilization:      Tripod; Lens vibration compensation (VC) turned off

December 25, 2012 - The Frozen @

You need to be very dedicated and a bit insane to go outside for a photo when it's only 12 degrees out there!  Fortunately I'm a bit of both, so I walked to the channel between Sucker and Vadnais Lakes this afternoon a took a few shots.

Ok, this may not look exactly like the @ sign, but close enough.  This is a design in the ice just south of County Road F by our home.  It was in the shade, so the shot could have been better, but I wasn't about to walk around to get the perfect shot today!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/100
Aperture:             f/6.3
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 24, 2012 - Kids and Christmas

Can there be anything more fun than kids at Christmas?  We hosted our kids and grand kids for Christmas Eve and every snap of the camera resulted in a unique "keeper" photo.

Here is one of my favorite.  What can be better than getting a doll for Christmas?  Getting two dolls of course.  This is our granddaughter Brianna who won the prize for the most photogenic expressions for the evening.

Of course, not every present resulted in a look of excitement!  This was her "what is this?" look when she opened a box full of doll clothes.

Merry Christmas!

December 23, 2012 - Towering Pines

I went for a walk today after the Vikings game (Go Vikes!) to get my photo for the day.  I had something in mind to shoot and got some good shots of it, but on my way back I noticed how the sun was shining on these tall pine trees.  After cropping and enhancing the shot a bit, I decided this had to be the one that I posted!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/250
Aperture:             f/18
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 22, 2012 - Winter Barn

I was driving in the White Bear Beach area this morning and found this barn.  When I was taking the photo, I was thinking the brickwork on the topless silos would be the object that would catch the viewer's eye, but when I looked at it online, it's the vertical lines in the roof that caught my eye (the silos are too shaded).  If I had moved more to my left and caught the barn at an angle, maybe the focus would have changed to the silos.  Nonetheless, I am pleased with this shot!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/160 sec  +0.3 Compensation for the white snow
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 21, 2012 - Elves? Anywhere?

To help me with ideas on what to shoot for this project, I signed up at a website to get an email each day with a suggestion.  Today's suggestion was elves.  ELVES?  So it was off to the mall to take a picture of an elf.

This is the Santa booth at Maplewood Mall.  As you can see, there is not one elf to be found, let alone one that would let me take his picture!  Even Santa got upset with me shooting his picture!  He pulled his assistant over and pointed up at me.  Needless to say, I left...and without an elf picture!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/125 sec
Aperture:             f/5.6
ISO:                     1000
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 20, 2012 - Christmas Decorations

One benefit of this project is that, prior to the project, I was hesitant about night photography and now I seek opportunities to do it!  Tonight was cold with a strong wind, so I drove around until I found some interesting Christmas decorations, set up my tripod and shot just two different compositions.  The one above turned out the best!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod, Lens vibration compensation (VC) turned off

December 19, 2012 - Lake Peltier

This is Lake Peltier near Centerville, Minnesota.  I just jumped in the car and drove until I found something to shoot.  I like the shadows of the trees behind me and the little bit of color on the horizon.

I positioned myself on a fishing dock (yes, there was still a dock in the water, er ice).  As I was getting my camera gear ready to go out onto the dock, a guy came off of the dock and said that he had measured the ice at 5 inches thick.  He said he was checking because he had a relative coming from Australia for Christmas and the activity at the top of their list was to go ice fishing!  I got cold taking this picture - ice fishing wouldn't even make my list!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/250 sec
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod, Lens vibration compensation (VC) turned off

December 18, 2012 - The First Christmas

When I was very young, a friend of my parents took a ceramics class and started making the pieces of this nativity scene for her friends.  Mom and Dad received two or three pieces of the scene each Christmas for many years.  It was my Mother's pride and joy, and she beamed each Christmas season when she could unpack it and display it.  When we moved her from her apartment to the nursing home, Joan and I became its proud new owners.

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           5 sec
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  Yes, off camera
Stabilization:      Tripod, Lens vibration compensation (VC) turned off

December 17, 2012 - The Hangout

Within walking distance of our house are two lakes that serve as reservoirs for the St. Paul water system.  There is a man-made channel between these lakes where different kinds of birds hangout during the winter months because it does not freeze over.

It was a dark, cloudy day again (how many days in a row now?) and I was tired of trying to find objects in the house to photograph for this project, so I stopped by the channel on the way to my afternoon activity.  I was not disappointed - the birds had gathered there again this year.  After I had taken a few pictures and started to think about leaving, the swans - or are they geese? - started to "dance".  I took a few more shots, including this one, which I see now I made a bit too dark in post processing.

I expect that I'll be returning to this location numerous times this winter!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/200 sec
Aperture:             f/9
ISO:                     250
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod

December 16, 2012 - Organ Pipes

Today's photo comes from Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Circle Pines, Minnesota, where we attended our granddaughter's Sunday School Christmas program this morning.  This picture was taken while sitting in our pew and without much preparation.  I simply set the ISO way up to 6400 to get a faster shutter speed and snapped away!  Given the circumstances, it didn't turn out bad.

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/30 sec
Aperture:             f/5.3
ISO:                     6400 (noise reduced in PS Elements)
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 15, 2012 - Shadows

It's another cool, rainy day outside, so my challenge was to find something inside to shoot.  This is a decorative wall hanging in our living room and I have always thought that the shadows it gives off were cool. In some places it's hard to tell what is part of the sculpture and what is a shadow!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/5 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod, Lens vibration compensation (VC) turned off

December 14, 2012 - Why??

Everything else is unimportant today.

December 13, 2012 - A Good Sign

Today a new sign was installed at our church, St. Philip's Lutheran in Fridley.  Normally a sign going up is not a big thing, but we have been working over 10 years to get this sign!  Members of our congregation sat through long city council meetings and lobbied to get a city zoning ordinance changed so we could get the proper permits.  Finally we ordered the sign last spring, but the factories got backlogged and the delivery kept getting delayed (we thought it would be operational before our garage sale the first week of August).  Today we received the message portion, but the rest of it won't be delivered until next month.

I waited around most of the morning to get the series of pictures of the sign being lifted into place.  The entire series can be seen at:  Click Here

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/100 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 12, 2012 - Honoring First Responders

Today was a VERY busy day, so I didn't have much time for this project.  However as I was driving through Columbia Heights, I stopped by the new facility for the city's fire and police departments and found this tribute to their first responders.  I didn't have much time, so I didn't even set up my tripod and I forgot that I had changed my camera from shooting RAW to JPG, but despite all of my excuses, the shot didn't turn out too bad!

THANK YOU FIRST RESPONDERS!!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/125 sec
Aperture:             f/10
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 11, 2012 - Brandy, Again

When in doubt, dogs make for great pictures!  This again is our 10-year-old dog, Brandy.  I shined a light her direction and focused on her eyes.  Unfortunately it appears that her nose appears a bit out of focus - leading me to think I needed more depth of field - but the hairs below it seem fine.

Can you tell that I'm holding a treat over the camera?  This shoot cost me a lot of treats!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/50 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     4000
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod

December 10, 2012 - Christmas Card Images

We had a heavy snowfall yesterday and, because there was very little wind, the snow piled up on the tree branches and stayed there, making for beautiful Christmas card-like photos.  I thought that this one turned out exceptionally well, showing the path that I hiked along the east side of Vadnais Lake.  The snow was fairly deep and I didn't have snowshoes, so I didn't venture too far.

To see more photos from this hike, click here.

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/200 sec
Aperture:             f/11
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 9, 2012 - Locket

My sister-in-law asked for a photo of this locket to use in a post on her blog.  Seemed simple enough!  However I found that each shot that I took seemed to be out of focus.  I was using a tripod and a release cable, so I could not figure out why this was happening.  So I increased the shutter speed, added light and locked the mirror in the up position, but the shots still seemed out of focus.  So I gave up for a while and watched the football game (Vikes beat the Bears!).

Then it hit me:  When using a tripod, you should turn off stabilization!  I knew this, but have never experienced a problem before when leaving it on.  So I set up the shot again, turned off both stabilization on the lens and auto-focus.  I manually focused and took several more shots, the best of which is the one displayed above.

Anyone have any additional suggestions as to how I could have made this clearer?  I could have increased the ISO to get a faster shutter speed, but when I tried this it didn't seem to improve the focus, plus I got noise.

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/60 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     100
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  Yes - Off-camera
Stabilization:      Tripod (Lens stabilization off; Manual focus)

December 8, 2012 - The Downside of Off-Camera Flash...

The downside of using a flash off-camera when taking pictures of children is that they go after it in a flash!  This is a photo of our grandson Jerry, who was amazed by my flash unit!  Fortunately I was lucky enough to get a good photo of him before he ambushed the flash.

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/60 sec
Aperture:             f/4.5
ISO:                     2000
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  Yes - Off-camera
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 7, 2012 - Standing Guard

This is part of our outdoor Christmas decorations - obviously I was again desperate for something to shoot!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           1/200 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     800
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Hand-held

December 6, 2012 - O' Christmas Tree...

Today we traveled home from Fargo, ND, and there wasn't much of a chance to shoot my photo for the day.  In desperation, I took this picture of our Christmas tree.  It turned out OK, but I should have turned off the light that is reflected in the window!

HDR:                    No
Exposure:           .8 sec
Aperture:             f/8
ISO:                     200
White Balance:   Auto
Metering:            Matrix
Flash:                  No
Stabilization:      Tripod