Discarded

1/3' at f5.6. ISO 100
November 10th, 2007

Last week I promised something from the inside of Railtown's workshop. This workshop is a building that contains all the original tools and machinery used in 1897. The folks who maintain this park have allowed it to fall into a controlled disrepair. So they make sure its not falling down, but otherwise its allowed to age naturally.

I chose this shot to showcase the sense of decay present in the building. The metal is rusted and covered in cobwebs. The dust has built up over time, covering everything in layers of greasy grit. Rather then show the whole workshop, I thought this close up gave the impression of a place fallen into disuse.

Railtown 1897

1/8" at f16. ISO 100
November 10th, 2007

Todays shot is a little unusual. Its not some of my best work from a composition or lighting standpoint, but its something I really wanted to share. If you scroll, you'll see its an almost 360 panorama taken of a train yard.

This past week, we took a field trip to a place called Jamestown. Jamestown has a railroad museum that features quite a few old steam engines and a workshop that has been allowed to sit mostly untouched for the past hundred years. As you can see, they have all kinds of trains. One of them has been used in quite a few movies including Back to the Future 2.

Railtown is also home to one of America's last operating authentic roundhouses. This shot was taken in the center on the rotating center track. I love that it has these trains from different eras all the way around to a rotting railcar in the back.

Check back next week for something from the inside of workshop where tourists normally don't get to go!

Freckles

1/60" at f8. ISO 100
July 29th, 2007

Meet my neighbor's daughter on a trip to the park feeding the ducks. I'm not a huge fan of freckles. I'm a red head, so I was doubly glad to escape having them. But in Katy's case I make an exception. They give her face a lot of character. With that in mind I wanted to really emphasize her freckles, so I toned down the color and increased the contrast in this photo. I think the end result is quite striking.

This past week I endured (alright, I asked for) a critique of my portfolio from my photography instructor. I respect his opinion, though I was prepared for the worst because he can get pretty intense about photography. He gave very good feedback, and he didn't hold back on the criticism. So as a result, I'm trying to apply some of his suggestions and be more critical of my work.

That being said, if you have any thoughts about any photos posted, feel free to share! Criticism is welcome just as much as adoring praise. Of course, I only give cookies to the people with adoring praise.

Plugh

1/30" at f4. ISO 1600
October 25th, 2007

You are in a twisty maze of passageways, all different. Actually this cave, the California Caverns, was pretty straightforward in the parts we went through. The atmosphere of this cave feels like something out of disneyland. Parts of it are so beautiful that you expect to round a corner and come across some wee diamond miners.

Its very hard to take pictures in a cave, you generally aren't allowed to bring in a tripod, and the low light makes shooting hand held almost impossible. If I was a professional on a job, then I'd have assistants with a lighting setup. But as a tourist, I get to make due with the bare minimum. The guides were kind enough to allow me to take a collapsible monopod (its like a tripod but with only one leg) to give a little bit more stability. Most of the pictures were still blurred, but I came out with a couple real gems.

Next spring I want to go on a 5 hours cave crawl tour through this cave. The trip includes slogging through waste deep mud and ends with a raft trip across an underground lake.