When a thunderstorm or tornado warning is issued it might be important to have an eye on the radar screen to see where it moves. My other eye goes to the sky between the tall trees around the house, especially if the storm approaches close to sunset time. It doesn't get much better...
Dubuque has always some music events going on during the summer. Good ones and not so good ones. This was definitely one of the best I have seen lately. Iowa born artist Pieta Brown and Bo Ramsey, a well known guitar player from Iowa, had a wonderful performance.
I have to admit, my skills for snapping pictures of people are not very well developed but public concerts like this one are a good chance to work on improvement. The concert took place downtown Dubuque in bright afternoon sun, with a cloud here and there, and I knew already on site that I wanted the image in B&W.
I shot relative wide open (1/500s, f4.5) because I wanted the artists being separated from the background as much as possible. There was even more clutter in the background of the original picture but I used the clone stamp in Photoshop to get rid of it. I focussed on Pieta's face but of course, with the low DOF the arm and guitar of Bo Ramsey are partly out of focus. I still like the picture. I believe it reflects somehow how good these two artists played together. Let me know what you think.
Bad luck, but only for Daddy-long-legs. He crossed the way of the female Wolf Spider during a photo session. It took the Wolf Spider only a few minutes to take care of business. Since it was already pitch-dark I used a LED head lamp as focusing aid. The Nikon SB600 flash light and the head lamp in one hand, the D200 in the other one. The camera was set to commander mode and the SB600 was triggered by the internal flash of the D200.
After being away for a few weeks I was really excited to see what is new with the Trumpeter Swans (see my earlier posts here). I found the couple resting near a patch of reeds in the center of the lake. The other single swan was not there anymore. Maybe it tried to find a mate somewhere else. I was waiting patiently for a long time before one of the swans finally started to beat its wings. What a wonderful moment and definitely worth to wait for.
I like to look at old cars but to make it clear, I'm not the guy who wants to chat about the number of pistons, horsepower, or other technical details. I simply enjoy the beauty of an old vehicle, especially if it is still in its original state or had undergone a nice restoration. Some of the old design elements are just nice and make for a good photo opportunity.
The pictures were captured at the local airport in Cherokee, Iowa during a public event. Don't take me wrong, I like airplanes too, but these cars had my attention immediately.
I really have enjoyed the backpacking tour with my friends in the homeland of the Upper Lusatia. I have to admit that photography was not as important as usual during that time. There was too much to talk about after I had not been back in Germany for two years. Well, with a sky and landscape like this I still could not resist to make some clicks. It doesn't get much better than having a good time with friends and being in a great landscape at the same time. Thank you my dear friend Ecki (the last man standing without computer! ;-) ) for organizing this tour!
I have been back in my home country Germany for a few days in early May. When you fly over the country you may see many yellow patches at this time of the year. Planting canola, or as the Germans say:"Raps", must be good business. However, it is a great opportunity to get some colors after the winter in your pictures.
I shot this image during a backpacking tour with friends in the hills of the Upper Lusatia, a beautiful landscape in the state of Saxony. The background marks the Tri-state area between Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland.
I didn't really plan to be on Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake in Utah last Thursday. It was just a spontaneous decision to drive up there from Salt Lake City in the late afternoon, after I was done with my work chores in town. I wanted to get an impression of the lake, with nothing particular in mind. The map made me believing this would be the right place for my intend. Since I hadn't read anything about the island before I was surprised to see Pronghorns, Bison, Meadowlarks, and many other birds.
I didn't know the name of this bird until I came back home to Iowa and looked it up in the field guide. It is a Chukar, a bird we don't find in the Midwest. What I saw immediately was, that it was a perfect setting with the bird sitting on the rock and the snow covered mountains in the background. The sun was already very low, minutes away from disappearing behind the crest, but just right for this picture.
Don't take me wrong. I like to be prepared when I go out shooting. I believe in good preparation. That includes having the right gear on site and learning something about the location ahead of time, especially if it is a new one. Sometimes it just doesn't work out this way. And that's when things hit you by surprise. Good ones and bad ones. I guess this time things were in my favor. The weather was perfect and I had the right lens already mounted to the camera. Too short for some of the wildlife I saw, but just right for this image and the brief moment the Chukar was posing for me.
Since I have lived in the US, my job has taken me several times to Salt Lake City in Utah, but I never found the time to see the Mormon temple or the famous Tabernacle. Last week I went to SLC again and was able to shear off some time after work was done. I learned a lot and met some very nice people there.
I was walking around, searching for interesting perspectives, when a freshly married couple got in position for their three (3!) wedding photographers. They did their thing, with the happy couple in front of the temple. I took a different position, more to the side. I liked the vertical lines from the buildings and the couple, which continued onto the water. The spectacular clouds gave the scene a dramatic look on hopefully the best day of their life together. I came to take pictures of the architecture or street life and ended up with wedding pictures. Wasn't a bad thing… ;-)
What a surprise and joy! I went back again to see how the Trumpeter Swan is doing, which I was writing about in my previous posts. I found a new situation. There were three swans on the lake today. Two were obviously in love with each other and didn't separate the whole afternoon. From time to time their resonated honking notes sounded very loud across the water. Suddenly they were flying to a remote part of the lake and started chasing another swan back into a bay. Afterwards they came back where I had my camera in position, and they continued feeding.
I hiked to the other side of the lake, where the light was anyway better for photography. The single swan was swimming in a bay, out of sight from the couple. He didn't feed during the whole time, but to my delight did spread his wings. More to come!
