Posted on

Along the Grand Canal

This is an image I took along the Grand Canal in front of Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute. I was taking pictures like a madman at the time but the conditions for photography were not good. Normally, to take pictures at night you need a tripod and a stationary subject.

Daily Image
Along the Grand Canal
This was taken with a wide open apeture and high ISO

In this case, I was in a moving gondola and my subject was moving also. To get this I used an aperture of f1.8 and an ISO of 8000. That’s extreme but with a few adjustments in post-production, it’s a winner. So much for the old rules.

more photos from Europe

Because I don’t know what all the rules are I do things that another photographer might not. I make a lot of mistakes, but I also get some good shots under difficult situations. The tech is so good now you may as well push it and see what happens. One day we’ll have sensors in our eyes and cameras will be obsolete. But until then, it’s fun to keep breaking the rules and trying new things.

Posted on

Fair Food

This is a section of the midway accompanying the Sarasota Balloon Festival last week. I went on the first day which was a weekday and it happened to be a little chilly by Florida standards. After watching the display of the balloons glowing at night I wandered over here to take a few pics. It was kind of eerie with music, lights, vendors and no one else around.

Daily Image
Fair Food
On the first night the midway was deserted, which was perfect for taking photos

Just looking at all the various food vendors made me hungry. It was the one time I could walk right up and not wait in line, but I passed on the opportunity and continued taking photos, eating when I got home.

night photography

I enjoyed the hot air balloons so much that I came back with my family the next night. That was Friday and by that time word of the event spread and there were tons of people. The midway filled up, the vendors were busy, and the lines were long – the world was right again. But I’m glad I had the opportunity to see it all lit up with nobody about. If nothing else it quenched my appetite for fair photos.

Posted on

Daylight Savings Time

Daylight savings is upon us and somehow this seemed appropriate. It’s a combination of images taken at different times of day. By carefully merging them I’ve created a surreal scene that combines a daylight image with another one at night. It’s a little like the confusion I experience on a Monday after we change the clocks, eh?

Daily Image
Daylight Savings Time
Images from day and night merged together

If you detected a slight Canadian accent it’s because I took this while in Toronto. I took one shot out the hotel window when I arrived in in the afternoon and another in the evening. In the past I’ve done similar images using a tripod, but in this case I handheld the camera each time. That creates slight variations which could have been difficult to align, but with a little effort it turned out okay.

more from Toronto

Even when I travel for reasons other than photography I bring my camera. This was a quick business trip with very little time for photos, yet I still managed to get a few shots from around the hotel. Hope springs eternal and I figure that if I bring the camera and I have an extra hour in the day (knock on wood), I’ll get a little time for doing what I like best: eh?

Posted on

Blowing in the Wind

Yesterday was the first day of the Sarasota Balloon Festival. I’ve never been to one of these, so I wandered over in the evening. The wind was prohibitive but at the last minute a few of the rigs inflated and put on a little glow show. They were tethered with ropes, but as they inflated the wind caused them to tilt like this. Just the spectacle of it was kind of cool, such massive devices with nothing but air, glowing and blowing in the wind.

Daily Image

Blowing in the Wind

That was just the first night so I’ll check the weather and head back over to see more. Balloons are a great subject for photography. When I showed up there where no less than two dozen tripods setup and everyone else was snapping pics on their phones. Here’s a quick video I took with my iPhone.

some of my favorite images

There is also a carnival, so I wandered over to take some pictures of the midway with all the food vendors and rides. It reminded me of when I traveled all over the state of California from fair to fair selling magazines. I worked for a company that set up a booth and for a while I became a carny of sorts. That’s how I spent my high school summers and the smell of the funnel cakes brought all that back.

Posted on

Dinner Along the Canal

Here is a little section of a restaurant along a canal in Venice. Our timing was fortunate because we were seated right away while others who came later had to wait; Italians are late eaters. We enjoyed an amazing meal seated along the canal on a warm summer evening. For the life of me I can’t remember what I ordered but I do remember it tasted very good.

Daily Image
Dinner Along the Canal
Italians love to eat late dinners and talk for hours into the night.

As chance would have it we were surrounded by tables of Americans, even though there were people from other countries as well. On one side was a group of college girls and on the other was a couple of producers with their wives. There was a film festival going on and I could hear everything the producers were saying. It was one of those situations where you can’t help but hear the conversation, the tables were very close. Somehow the producers started talking to the girls since one of them was trying to break into the business. And on and on and on….

European gallery

Being an American tourist myself I try to be a little circumspect, I know that a reputation proceeds us. There’s nothing wrong with American tourists, but every so often you can sure pick them out. I know I’m a little too quiet, but I prefer to soak up the ambience. That includes the gondolas, lights shining from windows on the canal, amazing Italian food, wine, and occasionally the conversations of my fellow Americans.

Posted on

Super Blue Blood Moon over Sarasota

Here is the super blue blood moon over Sarasota’s Ringling bridge. Boy, what a commotion this created. I was standing by myself along the water, nearly hidden by brush along the side of an empty section of road. Some passerby must have seen me and looked over to see what I was doing.

Daily Image
Super Blue Blood Moon over Sarasota
This spectacle create quite the stir, around the world and right behind me.

As I was absorbed in my camera settings and composing the shot, I was oblivious to everything around me. At one point I heard someone’s voice and looked up to see a crowd of people standing behind me. There was all manner of smart phones taking this same picture with the little LED flashes going off.

Continuing the task at hand, a few minutes later I heard the sound of screeching breaks and horns. It seems the stopped cars nearly caused a traffic pileup. We were standing along a causeway of sorts with no safe place to pull over and park. Nevertheless, it seemed I started a trend, and everybody piled on for an iPhone photo.

more night photography

In the end I got a shot I had in my mind. Just taking a quick look at twitter there are millions of people doing the same thing. Anyway, I’m adding this one to the pile, even if it did nearly cause a pileup.

Posted on

Summer Nights in Barcelona

Here is a street scene from a section of Barcelona that’s not too far from the beach. I took this from a moving pedicab that we hired late one night from La Ramblas to the Hotel Arts. Our driver was a German fellow who biked all over Europe and stayed summers in Barcelona to work the pedicabs.

Daily Image
Summer Nights in Barcelona
Summer Nights in Barcelona

Taking photos from any kind of moving vehicle at night is a challenge, but with a high enough ISO and a wide aperture it’s doable. And a pedicab is a lot easier to shoot from than a taxicab, although I’ve tried that as well.

more street photography

The days and nights we were in Barcelona were very warm. One of the things I like most about Barcelona is how people spend a lot of time socializing in front of little cafes and bistros. That goes for much of Europe but Barcelona in particular.

Posted on

Sarasota Skyline at Night

Here is another panorama of Sarasota from Bayfront Park. Last year I posted an almost identical image that was taken during the day but have been waiting to do it again at night. Back then that big building (third from the left) was still under construction and it wasn’t lit up. So, now that it’s complete I wanted to shoot it again since the scene seems more complete to me.

Daily Image
Sarasota Skyline at Night
Sarasota Skyline at night taken from Bayfront Park

To take this I mounted my camera vertically on a tripod and took ten shots from left to right. With the resolution of the Sony camera, it will be about seven feet across when printed!

Here are some links to other panoramas I’ve taken in and around Sarasota…

Same perspective from the day
From City Island Day
From City Island Night
A different perspective from Bayfront Park

And here are links to other panoramas from all over

Posted on

Gondola at Night

Daily Image
Gondola at Night
Gondola at Night in Venice

If you go to Venice take a gondola at night. It is an experience that reminds me of a ride at Disney World, only it’s the real thing. The sounds of the oars in the water and the lights streaming from the windows overhead combine in the most exquisite way.

more from europe

Posted on

Ladies in White

Daily Image
Ladies In White
I took this somewwere in Barcelona one night

I don’t recall exactly where I was when I shot this but it was probably close to the gothic quarter in Barcelona. I spent a lot of time shooting scenes at night there, just out having a good time. In the middle of summer, that’s what everyone does.

more daily images