LENS CAPTURE

Vol. 1 No. 40


The summer is in its waning days. Why not venture out to record a few scenes typically associated with the warmer season? The days are growing shorter and the recent hurricanes traveling north-east off the coast, while keeping beach goers out of the water, definitely makes the cloud formations a heck more interesting.



Here's a great self-assignment, try and make a couple of photographs that represent summer. It is strictly your interpretation. What image evokes the feeling of summer, to you? I made these three images within a span of one hour. Could have done it quicker but, had to stop for a couple of corn dogs and some cheese fries.

Vol. 1 No. 38

And, I haven't posted in almost 3 weeks. In that time I worked the day job, shoot a couple of assignments, lead a photo walk to the High Line (more on that later), and bought a new workstation. There in lies my problem, I purchased a new computer. For two weeks I struggled through MS Vista, software and driver installs and re-installs, configurations and customizations - all fraught with an intermittent stream of blue screens. After running the manufacturer's diagnostic application, which scanned for more than a day, I finally surrender and returned the system to the store.

Spec-wise, the workstation was a powerhouse but a lemon. The replacement system, I can happily say, rockets through image uploads and photo editing. A Dell Studio XPS with an Intel Core i7 processor (translation - dual quad core) with a nice cache, plenty of RAM (8GB DDR3), and tons of storage (1.5TB). After several hours of re-installing applications and devices, and a few days to burn-in, I am back to posting.

So, the outing to the High Line was a successful adventure. On this very hot and humid day, I was joined by a dozen fellow photo enthusiasts. Some were alumni from the Worldwide Photo Walk, as well as a few new faces. The skill levels were as varied as the different points of view each participant brought along. I love these walks because they inspire me to constantly look at my environment from many different angles. As a native New Yorker, regardless of the scale and diversity this city offers, you fall into a routine. By that, I mean you start to look at things from the same aspect. Your approach gets stale, and your photographic prospects quickly diminish. There are several wonderful images made my fellow photo walkers that day, and you can see them by visiting the Flickr Lenscapture Group.

Here are a few photographs I made that day.

Vol. 1 No. 37

Searching for subjects to photograph? I bet this weekend alone, there are a ton of events happening in your surrounding area. Some places to check are your supermarket's bulletin board, your local community center, library, or place of worship, just to name a few, to find out about what's happening in the neighborhood.


I received an email from my local shopping mall announcing a classic car show they were sponsoring. A mid-week event to benefit charity. So, camera in hand, I headed out to capture myself a few classics and support a worthy cause.




There were more than 30 beautiful classics and muscle cars, plus a nice turnout of motorcycles to round out the field. And, for a Tuesday night event, there was a pretty good crowd. So, getting a clean, full on shot of a classic without too many distractions (people), was turning out to be difficult. But, as with most things worth savoring, the beauty is in the details. So I focused my efforts on capturing the elements that attracted me to these vehicles. A grill, a tail light, a gauge. Whatever struck my fancy.

We I arrive at an event, I do take in the big picture. But, then I let my eyes explore the various ingredients that make the scene. Give it a try. Find elements that interest you, then focus on those smaller details. I bet you'll find plenty of subjects waiting to be captured.

Visit my flickr Atlas Park Auto Show set to view some of the other shots I captured at the event.


Don't forget, we have photo walk coming up this Sunday, August 16th to the High Line and Hudson River Park. Visit the post for details and sign-up.


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