Picture of the Day – Pearls

This is a photo I took at a wedding last summer. It is a very simple composition, obviously of the bride’ pearls. However, simple can often be the quite pleasing.

The color version was OK, but nothing spectacular. I decided it needed some special touches. I cleaned up any minor skin imperfections and converted the image digitally to monochrome by using a selenium tone…then turned down the contrast as low as I dare.

As it was a close-up, many of the pearls are slightly out of focus. To make that more acceptable, I used a white masked vignette and played with the opacity till I got what I wanted. That is what gives the outer edges of the photo a sort of misty look.

I think it turned out very nicely and far better than the original image.

Postcard from the Grand Canyon - Sunrise

While this picture is of sunrise in the Grand Canyon, it is not your usual shot. This was taken back in November of 2007…when the sun was just breaking over the horizon. Enough rays from the sun hit the smoke just right to give it this very special effect. It only last for a couple of minutes, but renders a somewhat breathtaking image.

Perhaps breathtaking is the operative word here. The smoke you see is not from campfires, or forest fires, or any kind of normal fires. In fact, it is not smoke at all. It is industrial haze, otherwise know as smog.

Sorry to ruin a good image with the truth.

The smog has three major sources: Las Vegas and Los Angeles to the west and a coal-fired power plant to the east, near Page. Pollution from Mexico also plays a role as do vehicle emissions from tourists.

The good news, at least for me, was that on my last visit there in late March, I saw no smog at all. But, fear not, it will be back with a vengeance. Just make sure you go there before sunrise to catch the best light hitting the industrial haze.

Postcard from Tucson – Browsing Through Bookmans

The era of my Tucson blogs began here. In this very back room, I wrote my first blogs about Tucson (and other places), browsed the Internet, worked on email, processed photos, and even watched a few TV shows. This is Bookmans Used Book Store out on Speedway Drive, the largest of their three stores in Tucson. They also have 2 stores in the Phoenix area and one in Flagstaff.

I first noticed Bookmans while scouting out Tucson as a possible new home back in January 2008…but never got inside. When I came back to Tucson to put down roots in December, I meandered in to this very store…and instantly fell in love. For various reasons, I couldn’t move into my apartment for 2 weeks after I signed on the dotted line. So I camped in the mountains not too far from here, then came down here to write and use the Internet.

For starters, this is the largest used book store I have ever seen! And as you may have figured out by now, I am an avid reader. This store can supply me reading materials at bargain prices for the rest of my life.

But, Bookmans goes beyond just books. There are books on Tape and CD’s movies, music CD’s and even dishes and other sundries. I addition, it is the most wonderful loosey-goosy operation I ever been privileged to be in. The only employee dress code appears to be “dress for fun.” There is no proper etiquette rules for announcements over the PA system…it is say what you want and again have fun.

And when you get to the checkout, you might just get an extra discount for no good reason at all. I once got one because I waited an extra minute for them to find a book. There are no scanning machines at the front door to see if you stole something. for Presently, I am in the Community Room, just off the main store. It has tables and chairs and is free for groups to use for their meetings, or like me, just to browse the net. I have even seen people playing cards back here. This is a community-based business that is something to relish and enjoy.

But its the inventory that will knock you sox off! There are thousands and thousands of books of all types here, and the inventory is always changing. I usually have a list of books I am looking for that I carry on my Blackberry. Sometimes I can’t find any of them. A few weeks ago, I came in with a list of 8 books and found 7 of them….three of them had been impossible to find. Now, that was a good day.

Sadly for me, this store is the farthest one from my home, but it it still worth the journey. Next to Bookmans is a wonderful bakery/sandwich store called “Beyond Bread.” Across the street is a Starbucks and one of my favorite grocery stores, Trader Joe’s. So when I come this way, I make the “Grand Tour” and hit them all.

Now, that wraps up this blog and I am now going to wander out with my list and look for more gems to add to my reading agenda. See ya.

Picture of the Day – Desert Flood

Subtitle this picture: “Playing Around on a Hot Day.” I shot this photo out at Saguaro National Park (West) about a week ago. It was a terrible day for photography, light-wise, but I was fascinated by the density of the cactus at this place.

As it is so hot here right now, I decided to play with this image…first enhancing the colors a bit…then adding some flood waters, similar to the “rocks” photos I showed a few weeks ago here. It all just made the desert seem a bit cooler, which is what the doctor ordered for this day.

Picture of the Day – Tide Pool

Another one of my “lost” photos that I mentioned the other day. I took this one on the Oregon Coast, somewhere near Newport. That day, the light was just about perfect, and directly behind me, thus giving the scene a harmonious balance of color.

Sometimes one gets lucky, being in the right place at the right time, as mentioned here before. The perfect light helps, but I still like the picture very much. It brings a kind of serenity that is difficult to find on a regular basis…especially since it may be some time before I can walk on a lonely beach again.

Postcard from the U of A – The Moveable Pen

I was recently reminded that a good writer should work occasionally from different locations besides his own desk. I knew that, of course, and have often done it, but not much lately. Today, I changed that.

This blog is being written on site in the photography library at the Center for Creative Photography, located on the campus of the University of Arizona. What better place for a photographer to write? This unique institution houses the archives of many famous photographers, including Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Garry Winogrand, Harry Callahan, and other great 20th century photographers. It is also a learning center for today’s budding photographers. The library, located directly across the hall from the main photo exhibition area, houses thousands of books, all related to photography. If you are in Tucson and are interested in photography, this center for the photographic arts deserves a visit.

From my desk here, I look out the large window and see other areas that make up the college of fine arts. I believe I have mentioned here before that the University wisely put related colleges and schools in the same location. To my left, I can see the school of music and the main concert hall, which I have visited on numerous occasions. Directly in front of me is the drama school and the large theater that houses many excellent plays (currently showing The Music Man). To the right are the art museums and school of fine art. Earlier today, I visited the main art museum and saw a newly hung painting by Renoir. Lovely.

This is a good place to feel creative and write a blog.

Another project I have worked on recently is the reorganization of all my photos into specific folders on the computer and cataloging them for post processing using Adobe’s Lightroom. It was amazing to find how many photos that I have taken over recent months had not imported into Lightroom…and how many forgotten gems now are available to me once again. Call it my lost photos, suddenly rediscovered.

Today’s photo was one of those lost ones…it comes from my October visit to Lassen National Park. This is the very lower end of Hat Lake, with Mt. Lassen in he background. The lake was created by beavers and makes for a nice end-of-autumn photo. Over the next few weeks, you will see more of my “lost photos” as I work my way through the archives. Stay tuned. Who knows where I will write the next blog?

Postcard from Tucson – Air Force One(s)

Recently I had occasion to re-watch the excellent film, “Thirteen Days,” which, if you have not seen it, is about the Kennedys and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Early in the film, President Kennedy flies to Connecticut for some event. You see him emerging from Air Force One waving to the assembled crowds.

I remembered that President Kennedy and Johnson’s Air Force One is here in Tucson at the Pima Air and Space Museum. I wondered if it was the same aircraft used in the film. After a little research, I discovered it was indeed the same plane. I also found out that although the film used this aircraft, it actually did not go into service until shortly after the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Never-the-less, it is an interesting airplane to tour…so very different than the luxurious Air Force One now in service. Cramped quarters, a small desk for the President, and some seats for his aids and the press. In the first photograph, you can see it right behind the smaller jet plane used to fly high ranking generals.

Also at Pima is another Air Force One, seen in the second photo. It is a Boeing 707, which, if memory serves, was used by President Nixon. This one was not available for touring at the time of my last visit.

If you ever head this way, be sure and visit this incredible museum, located right next to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. It is just filled with boy-toys.

Picture of the Day – The Painted Hills

My first significant destination after leaving Grant County back in October was the Painted Hills in Eastern Oregon. I wrote a blog about it and shared a couple of photos…but nothing since. I had occasion today to look at some of those pictures again and there are several spectacular photos that have not been seen by anyone.

So I went through the unpublished list and picked this one to share with you today. On my first day there, I had spectacular afternoon light along with fluffy clouds on a deep blue sky. What more could a photographer ask?

I hope you like this image and I will try to sneak in a few more here and there. For those of you who live in the Pacific Northwest, you should try and visit these amazing hills. Late afternoon is the best time to photograph.

PS: I was amazed on visiting the Painted Deserts of Arizona how similar they were to their Oregon cousins.

Postcard from Tucson – Photographing the U

I went to an awesome jazz concert Thursday night at the University of Arizona, and while walking back to the car, realized I had not shown you many images from here. I will begin to slowly rectify that.

The U is a very large campus with many very impressive architectural elements that have the makings for some compelling photos . This image is actually of a parking garage that I often use when I go to concerts, plays, art exhibits, and for the Center for Creative Photography. It isn’t very colorful so I went with black and white.

One of the nice things about the U is the way they center their various schools and colleges. The artistic schools, including galleries, theater, and concert halls are all in one place for easy access. Same with their sporting complexes and other similar academic programs.

This distinguished university plays a considerable part in my life. I am over there several times a week for concerts, lectures, art exhibitions, sporting events, and even just to walk around for daily exercise. It is only a few miles from home and their public events are numerous. It is special to learn more about things of interest and not have to worry about midterms, finals, or even doing homework! Can't beat that!

Picture of the Day – Bonus Photo

Ok, I already gave you one photo today, so consider this one a bonus. Actually, there is nothing very spectacular about this photo, so I didn’t want to waste a whole blog on it.

Actually, the only reason I am showing you this one is to ask you a simple question:

WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?

OK, go figure it out.

Picture of the Day – From Navajo Country

I found this interesting rock formation deep in the heart of the Navajo Nation in Northeastern Arizona. I was on my way to New Mexico, going over the Buffalo Pass Road, when I passed many interesting rock formations, all of the them just begging to be photographed.

I used a polarizing filter to darken the sky and give the rocks a little deeper red…handy tool that filter. Would not have minded a few white clouds, but it was not to be on this day.

I just loved the curvature of the rocks…one of nature’s incredible sculptures.

Postcard from Tucson – The End of Spring Training

Major League Spring training in Arizona is over. The teams have all headed to their respective cities to begin the regular season. For us folks down here in Tucson, it may be the last Spring Training games we ever see.

You see, there are only two teams now playing their games here…the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies. According to them, they need 3 or 4 teams to make Tucson a viable training facility. Last year, the Chicago White Sox left here for the Phoenix area. And according to the teams’ contracts, unless there are three teams here, they can break their lease and go elsewhere with no penalty. There are efforts to build a new stadium to attract more teams, but we shall see where that leads in this time of deep recession.

Be that as it may, I took advantage of their last week in Tucson to take in two games, one of which was the L.A. Dodgers. For that game I took my Nikon and, as it turned out, I got a great seat four rows behind the Dodger dugout….perfect for watching and photographing the game.

This was also my first visit to Tucson’s Electric Park. All my other Spring Training games where at nearby Hi Corbett Field. Frankly, I prefer Electric Park as their is no netting between me and the field, save for the usual behind home plate. It made watching and photographing the game much more enjoyable.

The Dodger game was the best of the entire Spring Training schedule, as it was tied going into the 9th inning. The Dodgers won it the old fashioned way with one run in the 9th…a walk, stolen base, errant throw and a sacrifice fly. Now that is baseball! It doesn’t mean anything in the standings and no one will remember it perhaps except me…but it was a baseball game that both teams tried to win.

And it may have been one of the last games ever played here in Tucson. That would be sad. As I said in a previous blog about baseball, I don’t follow Major League Baseball anymore…they lost me as a fan after the last labor strike. But, Spring Training games are just plain fun…tickets are very inexpensive, the weather is great, and the players are more relaxed here than the regular season.

The pictures here show Dodger manager and former Yankee great Joe Torre signing autographs before the game, the Diamondbacks mascot having fun with a Dodger fan, and my favorite, a home run swing by a D’Back player that I was just lucky enough to capture before the ball left the park.

I sincerely hope the teams come back here…but if not, thanks for the memories.

Picture of the Day – Cactus Flower

The good news is that some of the cactus here in the Tucson area are now beginning to flower. The bad news is that the wildflowers that normally pop up in the desert about this time are in short supply. Not enough rain this year for a good explosion of color.

I visited the Saguaro National Park (east) yesterday to see what might be going on, wildflower-wise and was advised by park rangers of the bad news. But, I managed to get this close-up photo of a Hedgehog cactus flower. The flower itself is no more than 2” across and the cactus only comes out of the ground about 6”.

Took this with a new Canon point-and-shoot camera that I recently purchased so I could easily carry a small camera with me everywhere. My Nikon is just way to heavy and bulky to lug around everywhere.

I will have more photos of cactus flowers soon.

Picture of the Day – Reflections of Las Vegas

I photographed this image a few days ago, just before I left for home. It shows the brand new Fontainebleau Hotel and Resort Casino, now under construction on the northern part of the strip…next to the Riviera and across from Circus Circus.

The hotel portion of the of the new complex is the blue building that is nearing completion. The casino and other parts of it are in the lower part of the image and are a long way from being done. It is scheduled to open in late 2009.

The hotel reflected in the Fontainebleau is the Hilton, directly across Las Vegas Blvd.