Perspective

1/1250" at f5.6. ISO 400
June 30th, 2007

There is an old story about six blind men who were asked to touch an elephant and guess what it was. Each placed his hands upon a different part of the elephant and described what they were touching.

The blind man who felt a leg said the elephant is like a pillar; the one who felt the trunk said the elephant is like a tree branch; the one who felt the ear said the elephant is like a hand fan; the one who felt the belly said the elephant is like a wall; the one who felt the tusk said the elephant is like a solid pipe; and the one who felt the tail said the elephant is like a rope;

If you don't like your photograph, then change your perspective, you might get an entirely new view of the scene.

Merry Christmas

1/125" at f5.6. ISO 100
November 27th, 2007

This is a shot I took for photography class with the intent of using it for extra credit. One of our options was to use a studio or product photography shot, so I thought I'd try and create an ad for Baileys Minis. My idea was to include a tagline along the lines of "What's better than leaving milk and cookies for Santa?"

I brought in a bunch of Christmas decorations and picked out a couple of them to put in the shot. The cookies themselves were baked by my wife a day or two before, delicious! I'm pretty happy with how the shoot turned out in the end.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Photorealistic

1/125" at f8. ISO 100
October 25th, 2007

Usually I like to keep my photos as I shot them. When I work with them, I'll adjust them for better color and sharpness, but generally I like to keep them realistic without all the artistic filters available in photoshop. Still, sometimes while playing I come across an effect that, in the words of my photo teacher, really blows my skirt up. Yes, he really does say that all the time.

The combination of settings I used while working with the details of this water tower created the look of a painting for me. The separation between each leaf and all the grain in the wood look real and unreal at the same time. The picture is actually of a little gold panning thing for kids out in Calvares County. You can buy a bag of sand and minerals and pan for gold. Each bag is guaranteed to have something interesting in it, just $5.00!

The Teacups

1/25' at f4.5. ISO 100
December 3rd, 2007

Cristina and I took a vacation to Disneyland this past weekend. Disneyland at Christmas time is always a lot of fun. There's less people, they've got the whole park decorated, they have a huge tree, and all the fun of a normal disney trip.

One of my favorite rides growing up was the teacups. Now I have to admit, these days I'm a little too big for them (not in maturity, in leg room), but its still fun to go on them. So it was only fitting that I used them to capture the spirit of disneyland. Its a whirlwind of sights and colors with a big grin thrown in for good measure. Most of all its about fun and just letting yourself be a kid again!

The Bay Bridge

1/400' at f4. ISO 100
November 18th, 2006

I was out of town last week, so this week its double posting. The above picture was taken from Coit Tower in San Francisco. The golden gate bridge is one of the most iconic views of the city, most people see it and instantly know its San Francisco. Growing up, I always liked the Bay Bridge better. I drove over it every week or two with my family going into the city, so its always been the first thing I think of when I picture San Francisco.

When you live in a famous place, you probably take the touristy famous things for granted. I didn't go to fisherman's wharf or ride a cable car till years after I'd moved away. Instead I identify with all the little details in this photograph. The sailboats on the water, the style of the buildings, even the type of tree in the foreground. All the small things that make up a city.