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Sea and Sky

The Sunshine Skyway is almost ten miles long and as you drive across you have great views of the sea and sky. When you are in your car it looks like you are driving into the sky. Maybe that’s where it got its name, (that’s just a guess on my part).

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Skyway Clouds
Sea and Sky from the Sunshine Skyway Bridge

On this morning I came to a little island on the northern stretch to take pictures. 
 
In the summer the clouds form large columns that tower miles into the sky. When the sun is low on the horizon the light hits these columns at different angles depending on the elevation. What I notice is that the lower section of the cloud columns have warmer colors whereas those higher up tend to appear white. My guess is there are more particles in the lower atmosphere.

In Florida, when you see thunderclouds in the afternoon the variation in colors is hard to miss. In this image the clouds are about fifteen miles in the distance but you can still see the variation in colors.

cloudscapes in the gallery

This is another long exposure panorama. It’s a thirty-second exposure that I took one morning just after dawn. I stitched two images to create the panorama. This vantage point is about ten minutes from home so it’s an easy spot to get to. I had to cross the bridge to get here and then again to get back. I suppose that means I had my head in the clouds at least twice before breakfast. Not an unusual thing for me I suppose.

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Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay

Lights reflecting in Sarasota Bay on a recent evening. I’ve taken similar images but of course each one is a little different. This is a long exposure panorama of three separate images; the exposure is about ten-seconds and it makes the water look smooth. Panoramas over the water work well only if the water is smooth. Otherwise there are noticeable lines where the wave patterns are stitched together. That’s because the waves from each picture are in different positions and don’t match when combined. A little tip for the day.

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Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay
Lights Reflecting in Sarasota Bay

I’m addicted to long exposure photography, I love how it transforms a scene, making it seem almost serene. I’m also addicted to night or low light photography, I like how the mood shifts when the bright light of day fades. When I get to combine the two I’m in my happy place. It’s a lot of fun and I never quite know what I’ll end up with. The main thing is to keep experimenting and, of course, having fun.

panoramas from the gallery

Anyway, now that the weather here in Florida is finally cooling a bit from the long hot summer, an evening outdoors can be refreshing. A cool dry breeze is something I haven’t felt around here in about six months, so now that thats starting I think its time to get out and enjoy the weather. Not that I need an excuse but for me that means doing more long exposure panoramas. Stay tuned, more images to come.

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The Old Pier

This is the old pier in St. Petersburg Florida. I took this a couple of years ago before they began tearing it down. In fact, they just removed the last piece of it couple of days ago. A new pier will be built in two years, but in the meantime pictures are all we have. It’s a little sad.

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The Old Pier
The old pier in St Petersburg Florida

I liked the old one, it had a certain charm to it. But St Petersburg is a thriving city and they want something new that reflects a more modern aesthetic. Two years is a long time to wait for the new pier.

From a photographic perspective I’m a pier fanatic. When you stand next to one it creates a leading line out into the water. When you stand on top of one it’s more symmetrical. This pier is (or was) the largest in central Florida. It’s the only one I know of that you could drive on. I suppose that’s why the new one will take so long to build, it’s a large project.

sunrises photos from the gallery

I just happen to notice this image at about the same time as I read about the completion of the demolition. A coincidence I suppose, or maybe it’s the ghost of the old pier reaching out for one last hoorah. Whatever the case, may she rest in pieces.

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A Walk in the Park

I got this one afternoon when I decided to take a walk in the park. This is Stanley Park in Vancouver and is one of the best urban parks in North America. It rivals Central Park and Golden Gate Park. I took this at a little pond known as Lost Lagoon where there are some resident swans. You can usually line up a good shot if you just wait for the right moment.

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A Walk in the Park
A Walk in the Park at Lost Lagoon, part of Vancouver’s Stanley Park

Waiting for the right moment is good advice for landscape photographers. If you stay in a single spot long enough, something is bound to happen. It’s all a question of how long you want to wait. Usually I’ll walk up on a scene and not see anything in particular. The scene can be like a puzzle, however it almost as though a sixth sense tells me there’s something there. I just have to recognize it, compose it, and take the photo. So it could be a matter of focusing in on a small area, or it could be just slowing down and waiting for something to unfold. It’s an inexact science but the longer I wait, the more likely I am to walk away with something worth my time.

Another little technique to add to this is pick a time of day when you think something might happen and then get there a little earlier. For instance, in Florida, right at the crack of dawn the pelicans will fly from their nighttime resting spots to their daytime fishing locations. So if you want to get a sunrise with some pelicans flying by, you get there a little early and wait, but be ready because you might only get one chance, believe me I’ve missed more than I care to admit.

landscapes from the gallery

With this image I planned to come in the afternoon because I knew the sun set across the water from a section of the path. So I got there, waited, noticed the swan swim by, then click and I had my image.

Oh, and one other thing, if you’re going to be out in nature, bring mosquito repellant. I got swarmed as I stood here and waited. Next time I’ll take my own advice and bring some.

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Bridge Street Pier

This is another shot taken next to the Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach, Florida. In the morning everything is quiet as the pier casts long reflections on the calm waters of the Inter-coastal. This is my favorite time of day to get photos of places that are normally much busier during the day. Next to me sat a couple on a bench drinking coffee and watching the sun rise. Not a bad way to start the day.

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Bridge Street Pier
Bridge Street Pier in Bradenton Beach Florida

I’ve taken a lot of pictures from here but when I take the time I can usually find a different perspective. So even if I’ve been here, the photo is unique in some way. I don’t mind repeating myself if I’m taking pictures of something pretty and I’m having fun. Whomever said you can’t repeat yourself forgot to send me the memo.

gallery images with reflections

For me, photography is a state of mind more than anything. I have an idea what I want to convey, something peaceful, calm and serene. So no matter where I am I just figure out how to do that. If my inclination was to show some form of action or interaction, I’d take a completely different approach. Photography is a state of mind and if you constantly practice your images reflect that state of mind. That’s not to say I have a peaceful, serene and calm mind, but that yearning is what I focus on.

Anyway, now that I have you in a peaceful state of mind, maybe its time to get a cup of coffee. Or glass of wine depending on the time of day.

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Sarasota Bay Last Sunday

This is a long exposure of Sarasota Bay last Sunday afternoon. The exposure is a little over two minutes so you can see the movement of the clouds and the water appears still. In a normal exposure you would see boats in the water. Because the boats are moving they are not exposed and it appears deserted and serene. In reality the scene was serene but not deserted. On a Sunday afternoon everyone is out on the water, and I do mean everyone.

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Sarasota Bay Last Sunday
Sarasota Bay last Sunday and the Ringling Bridge – a long exposure

This is another one in a series of photographs I’ve taken of the Ringling Bridge. Close to home it’s one of my favorite subjects. I’m always looking for new perspectives and different angles of it. In this case I was a couple miles away at a little park called Nora Patterson Bay Island Park which is at the entrance to Siesta Key. Use of a telephoto lens allows me to frame end to end like this. I think the next time I come here it’ll be in the evening so I can get this scene after dark; I’m curious to see how that will look.

This is the best time of year to be here in Florida. Its low season before the population expands with visitors and snowbirds. It’s also the time of year that we get a break from the heat, the weather is perfect, not too hot or too cold.

sarasota gallery

So it was this perfect day with the perfect weather that I had this little park to myself. Imagine that, having this view to yourself, alone with your thoughts. I suppose its a common thing because its such a small park, but still, it’s quite the thing, don’t you think?

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Walking into Robson Square

Walking into Robson Square on a Saturday night I took this image in the rain. I know the folks in Vancouver get tired of the rain but I don’t live there and so I kind of like it. Mainly because of how it makes the streets shine and everyone is walking around with umbrellas. I don’t get to see a lot of that back in Florida. First of all, people don’t carry umbrellas. If it’s raining you just wait in your car for a few minutes and it’ll pass. Secondly, we only get rain in the summer, its pretty dry in the winter. So when I come to Vancouver in the winter, I’m okay with the rain while everyone else is more or less resigned to it. Maybe it would be different if I lived there.

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Walking into Robson Square
Walking into Robson Square in Vancouver at night in the rain

Another difference is that Vancouver has a vibrant downtown scene. Most of the city centers in Florida are deserted after dark, everyone lives in the burbs, or by the beach along the water. In Vancouver you can go out walking at night and there is a lot going on; food vendors, restaurants, sights to see, and everything is within walking distance.

Differences are what makes traveling fun; seeing and experiencing different things. I live in a place where people travel to for their vacation, so I’m just like the people in Vancouver, I take it for granted. The tourist down here can’t get over how pretty everything is. That’s just how we’re made, we get used to things and then we might just need a change of scenery.

Vancouver gallery

I took this photo hand held at ISO 10000. Hand holding camera to take a street scene is only possible with the latest technology in my Sony camera. The camera sensors are getting to the point where they’ll be better than our eyes in a very short time. In the meantime, I’ll take my eyes and go out looking at new things when I travel.

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When we are Happy

When we are happy we’ll do all kinds of things. I am reminded of my little dog who, when he gets happy, puts on all kinds of antics. Like my little doggy I am prone to a little silliness as well. And if no-one else is feeling the same, I can always count on him to join in the fun. We are very similar in that respect, when we feel a flow of energy things are good.

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When we are Happy
When we are happy we can let lose a little

For me this image is a metaphor for breaking through and getting a shot of good energy. Just a few minutes before I took this it was raining, then the clouds began to break up and the sun created this display in the sky. Life is full of these kinds of moments and weather has a way of demonstrating this with natural displays of the elements. Lucky for me I was here to capture this display with a camera.

This is in Venice Florida on Florida’s gulf coast. It’s one of my favorite places. It’s an area a little removed from the hustle and bustle and a good place for me to walk the beach and take pictures. Actually there are a lot of places like this in Florida, but I have a few favorites.

sunset gallery

Anyway, it’s the beginning of another week and I was thinking I needed a little good energy to start the week. Looking at this reminds me of the feeling I had when I took this image. This is a metaphorical Monday morning cartwheel to get us through the week.

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Light Reflecting off the Bridge

I stood below and captured the light reflecting off the bridge one evening. This is a long exposure image of about two minutes. The bridge is a draw bridge and the light of the signal casts the green glow onto the water. For me this is just another in a series of long exposure studies I’m doing.

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Light Reflecting Off the Bridge

There was some type of plants in the foreground water that I was trying to keep out of the image. But later I liked how it adds texture to the reflection of light, a little foreground interest in an abstract kind of way.

To take these long exposures I set the camera up on a tripod, set the time on my Apple Watch, and then click the shutter. Then it’s just a matter of waiting two or three minutes. In fact its pretty boring, I might check my e-mail, look at the news or just stand there walking in circles. Finally when its time I close the shutter, take a look, decide if I need to make any adjustments and then do it all over again. It can go on like this for twenty or thirty minutes in a single location. It really does take a bit of patience.

night photography gallery

I’m lucky to be here, outside experiencing sites and sounds that most people don’t notice. That’s true about landscape photography in general. If you do it often you will be fortunate to experience natural beauty first hand. So, whether or not I end up with any photos I like, the experience is a good one and I come home with something gained. I think that’s pretty good.

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Barcelona Walking at Night

About a year ago I was in Barcelona walking at night. The streets were full of people in restaurants, bistros and bars. The biggest impression was that it seemed so relaxed, like you could stay out all night without a care in the world. Folks would be sitting at outdoor tables laughing and enjoying conversation. The sense of joy was palpable. From what I understand, people love living in Barcelona. Having spent only a few days there I got a small glimpse of why that is so.

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Barcelona Walking at Night
Barcelona Walking at Night

Anyway, I snapped this image to try and capture some of feeling. Like all photos it’s an instant in time, but for me it brings back some of that Barcelona atmosphere. Normally with a photo I try to have a subject, a main actor if you will. In this case the image is simply atmosphere, a setting, a feeling that I got walking at night. I know that sounds vague as I fumble for words. The image is about a feeling more than a thing.

europe gallery

Funny enough we ended up getting lost in and amongst the narrow streets. It was a good kind of lost, not worried at all. The streets are archaic but that’s the allure of them, there is character and discovery at every turn.

Shortly after taking this shot we stopped at a wine bar for a nightcap. Then we hailed a taxi to take us to the hotel, wherever that might be. We thought it was far away but as it turned out the hotel was only a couple blocks away. So much for getting lost.