Light in Action

Humans have a fascination with light; a fascination that I, of course, chase every time I pick up a lens to look through. The complex intersection in this image, located at the bottom of Queen Anne Hill in Seattle, stands in the shadow of the Space Needle and is busy all day and all night. In 2009, a set of ever-changing lights were added to the existing Counterbalance Park on the northeast corner of the intersection. These bright neon lights add a whole new element to the challenge of capturing colors and action at night.















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Location: Lower Queen Anne Hill, Seattle, Washington
Season: Spring
f-stop: 20
Shutter speed: 30 seconds
Focal length: 38mm
ISO: 400

Socked-In Soul Spa

Tucked away in Hood Canal, Washington lies a quaint family estate now known commercially as The Soul Spa. My then girlfriend and I spent a few weekends relaxing at the canal; strolling down the seemingly infinite dock, playing on the beach, and sitting by the fire. On one chilly weekend morning we woke to find the entire canal socked-in with dense, heavy fog. It was so heavy that, at first, we thought we had been snowed in. As the fog began to rise we set out to adventure in its mysteriousness, camera in-hand. I think these images depict well the calm, cold, and humid environment that we experienced that morning.
















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Location: The Soul Spa, Hood Canal, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.3
Shutter speed: 1/2000
Focal length: 6mm
ISO: 80





















Zoom.It!
Location: The Soul Spa, Hood Canal, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.3
Shutter speed: 1/2000
Focal length: 6mm
ISO: 80





















Zoom.It!
Location: The Soul Spa, Hood Canal, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.3
Shutter speed: 1/2000
Focal length: 6mm
ISO: 80





















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Location: The Soul Spa, Hood Canal, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.3
Shutter speed: 1/1250
Focal length: 6mm
ISO: 80





















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Location: The Soul Spa, Hood Canal, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.6
Shutter speed: 1/2000
Focal length: 7mm
ISO: 80

Crystal Mountain Mountaineering

Welcome back! I'm sorry it's been so long:( I've been in a photo slump. With the infection of digital photography, everyone thinks they take great photos, which has led to an over-abundance of images out 'there' and I haven't been motivated to compete. Here are a few new ones, though. Thanks for checking back in!

This summer I ventured out into the Mt. Rainier National Forrest for a little exploring. I began at Crystal Mountain Resort, where I took the gondola to the top of the mountain. Mt. Rainier is a mere 12 miles from the summit and the view is quite incredible. Hiking around, I saw many insects, animals, tracks, and interesting natural occurances. What I did not see were people, and it was great.
















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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 2.6
Shutter speed: 1/1468
Focal length: 4mm
ISO: 64




















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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 22
Shutter speed: 1/20
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 100
Exposure Comp: -.03 step

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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/160
Focal length: 58mm
ISO: 100
















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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 6.3
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100















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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/3200
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 400




















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Location: Crystal Mountain, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4
Shutter speed: 1/1600
Focal length: 63mm
ISO: 100

Speedy The Turtle

Hello, everyone...let me introduce you to Speedy the Turtle!

This is a fun story: When I was a small lad I found a turtle in Lake Washington. A shy turtle, as most are; I adopted him (or stole him from his natural habitat, whichever you prefer) with the hope that we would become friends. One day I was playing with my turtle on the lawn (keep in mind this lawn stretched about 70 yards to the lake). I became distracted for what seemed like a split-second and when I turned around, he was about five feet from the shore. I chased after my turtle but it was too late- he got away! I was sad, but knew he would be happier in the wild. Still, I hadn't even given him a name yet. Since this turtle was so darn quick, I named him Speedy.

Years later I was at the same property, heading to the boat for some solid time out on the water. As I came up to the dock, I noticed a bump on the landing. It was a big turtle! Immediately I knew...it must be Speedy! Speedy was fast asleep on the warm wood planks of the dock and didn't even see me as I got my equipment out (I was lucky to actually have it with me, considering I was going swimming).

I had snapped just a few shots when Speedy woke up and gave me a big yawn! Speedy was very cooperative and allowed me to take him to a few locations for a nice hour-long photo shoot. Still, I like the image of him yawning the best. And, yes, I put him back in the lake after I was finished:)






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Location: Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/640
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100

Marie's Mill

If you've never been to The Palace of Versailles - Pack a bag and go now. The Palace is a truly amazing place. I spent a solid 8 hours there, and would have spent more had I not become exhausted from all the walking (The Palace and surrounding grounds cover about 37,000 acres!). In all, I probably shot about 1,500 - 2k photos in those 8 hours.

In 1783 The Queen's Hamlet was added to the Tranion for Marie Antoinette, wife of Louis XVI. Marie used the Hamlet as a place for her to relax and pretend she wasn't the Queen. The Hamlet begins with a small pond, home to swans, frogs, fish, snakes, birds and other wildlife. Surrounding the pond are a series of small cottages,in particular, the Mill.

The Queen's Mill, with its thickly thatched roof, winding staircase and moving water wheel, is text book fairy tale material. And I'll be honest, there is something about a mill that screams, "Take my picture!" While I'm in an honest mood, I'll also say that I don't actually like this image all that much. I actually prefer another shot I took of the Mill because it has better composition, but it's B+W and not as dramatic.

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Location: The Queen's Hamlet, Palace at Versailles, Versailles, France
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/500
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 100

A Glimpse of Spring

Over time, I have found that when I seek out subjects to photograph, I tend to shoot marginal images. What tends to work well for me is to ignore the fact that I love to shoot photos. Sounds stupid, I know. But in reality, I seem to notice interesting subjects when I least expect it. Theses images are a good example.

I was cutting the grass when I noticed a few small flowers. The conditions were perfect for a good shot, but I was covered in grass and didn't have access to my equipment. I had to wait an hour, and by the time I came back the dew had evaporated and the sun was very strong. I didn't want to take the time to fix both issues, so I chose the one I could fix the easiest: the dew. I misted the flowers with water and began to shoot. Of the two images below, I like the first shot the best because the flowers really appear to be rising out of the lawn.







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Location: Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Winter
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/800
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Strong afternoon sun cast strong shadows. Flowers misted with water.











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Location: Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Winter
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/500
Focal length: 88mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Strong afternoon sun cast strong shadows. Flowers misted with sugar water.

Nighttime Illuminations

When the sun goes down and the sky turns black, there is no other city quite like Salzburg. At night, the City illuminates many of it's gorgeous features. When I first discovered the various illuminated objects could be combined in a single frame, I became ecstatic. I had a lot of fun playing with different angles and overcoming obstacles. For this shot I had to lie on my side in the gravel and, using a small pocket tri-pod, stabilize the shot long enough to barely blur the action of the water in the fountain. Because the lights were so strong, the objects overpowered the background and allowed the objects to pop out of the darkness.

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Location: Residenzplatz, Salzburg, Austria
Season: Summer
f-stop: 2.8
Shutter speed: 1.3 seconds
Focal length: 7mm
ISO: 200
Flash details: No flash
Other comments: Used pocket tripod to help stabilize shot

A Sign of Good Times

It's always nice to be walking down a Bavarian street and see a sign that says, "We have cold beer in here." On this day, in Rothenburg, Germany, it was fairly warm. I stopped in a few pubs, but of them all, I liked this sign the best. It reminds me of Lowenbrau.




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Location: Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4
Shutter speed: 1/2500
Focal length: 53mm
ISO: 100

A Golden Glow

Sometimes the simplest composure of a shot can speak the loudest, which is exactly what I tried to accomplish with this shot. As with the shot before, A Nice Day, the bright colors of the changing autumn leaves really caught my attention. Along with the golden color of the foliage, I was blessed to have clear, blue sky for the accompanying background. The combination is very simple, uncluttered shot filled with brilliant color. I think that without the use of a wide aperture, this shot would not nearly have the same effect. The seven-leafed branch, in focus in the shot, really tells the story of the plant life. It is stretching as high as it possibly can and spreading out its leaves to catch as many of the sun's rays as possible.

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Location: Second Lid Park, Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/800
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Strong sunlight, very clear skies

A Nice Day

When I first arrived in Nice, France, the weather was dim and grey. It was the week following Cannes Film Festival and the town seemed nearly deserted - most were probably on holiday after a long week of hosting guests and visitors of Cannes. As my group and I set out to explore this revered destination of relaxation, I nearly opted to leave my camera in the Hotel due to the poor weather. As I walked throughout Nice I examined many historical buildings and statues until, all of the sudden, an narrow street opened into the Cours Saleya Flower Market. At the same time, the sky cleared and the sun shown down its warm rays on the market. There is really something different about the Mediterranean sun; it has a very crisp touch which makes the colors it reflects off of shine brilliantly. As the light grew in intensity, I became enamored with the variety of color before me. I really enjoy this shot because of the diversity of bright color and the weird unsettling feeling I get when I look at the scene. I simply can't stop looking at this shot and it is one of my favorites from the entire trip.

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Location: Cours Saleya Flower Market, Nice, France
Season: Spring
f-stop: 14
Shutter speed: 1/40
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 100

Gondola Gang

The conditions for shooting this photo were identical to the photo Before the Bustle seen earlier on this page. This shot was taken just south of the Rialto Bridge, on the West side of the river. The early morning Venetian sun cast a deep shadow over the sides of the buildings facing me. But when I framed the shot with the Gondolas in the foreground, the shadows created a cloak over the buildings which allowed the eye to easily attract to the gondolas. I also enjoy the cloud pattern and jet stream in the sky.



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Location: Riva del Vin (Grand Canal), Venice, Italy
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 28 mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Strong morning light cast tough shadows.

Quiet Commotion

Again, while in the Nederlands , I shot this hanging flower in a backyard garden. I really like the shallow depth of field combined with the violet flower and spotted-black background.





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Location: Hoogeveen, Nederlands
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/25
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 200

A Tangled Angle

As I strolled through the puddley cobblestone streets of Brugge, Belgium my anticipation of great shot opportunities was replaced with the ever-present dreary clouds and light rain drops. Still, I was so impressed with Brugge, I couldn't stop shooting. As the sixth hour of shooting approached, the weight of my camera impacted my neck so that I was continually looking down. Then I saw it: the reflection of The Belfry clock tower in Grote Markt. The puddle through which I saw the reflection encased a number of cobblestones, thus adding an additional level to the image's depth. To accomplish the preferred framing, I had to shoot backward and bending at an odd angle. The result was a simple, yet busy tangle of depths and distortions. This shot was well worth the day of mediocre weather and turned out to the inspiration for the name of this blog.

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Location: Crote Markt, Brugge, Belgium
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4
Shutter speed: 1/200
Focal length: 40mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Low, gray daylight

Doomed

After an awesome afternoon of exploring Brugge, Belgium, we stopped at the De Halve Maan Brewery. To get to the brewery you have to duck through an old wooden door and into a stone-paved courtyard/beer garden. The first thing you see when you enter the courtyard is a metal sculpture of the brewerys mascot, the Man in the Moon. The expression of the Man in the Moon gave me a creepy feeling of doom. Since it was a gray, cloudy day and the sculpture was essientially B+W already, I decided to shoot this face of doom in B+W. Through this shot, I wanted to convey the sense of doom I felt when I first saw this sculpture. I think the low angle really brings out this feeling.

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Location: De Halve Maan Brewery, Brugge, Belgium
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 80mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: Statue is located outside. It was a cloudy, dreary day. The shot was taken just minutes before it began to rain.

Before the Bustle

If you've ever been to Venice, Italy you've probably been to the Rialto Bridge. And you probably know how crowded both the Grand Canal and bridge get during business hours. Hoping to avoid the crowds of the day, I shot this image in the early morning, when mostly delivery boats occupy the river. Unfortunately, by shooting in the morning only one side of the rivers' tenants were illuminated. Although I would have preferred to have both sides illuminated, the contrast between sides gives nice depth to the shot.

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Location: View from Rialto Bridge, Riva del Vin (Grand Canal), Venice, Italy
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100

Rialto Market Arch

I frequently go back and forth between liking and disliking this photo. I can't stand it because, really, what am I looking at? I’m looking at the back of some buildings. That's not really interesting or exciting to see. On the other hand, I love this image because of the diversity of bright colors and the solid black border created by the Rialto Market archway.

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Location: Rialto Market, Venice, Italy
Season: Summer
f-stop: 6.3
Shutter speed: 1/320
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 100

Over the Barrel

When I arrived at the Army Museum of Paris, I was so surprised at how ornate everything was. From the designs on the cannons to the stone suits of armor around the highest windows, the leaders of France sure knew how to live. With this shot I wanted to portray the ornate details of both the cannon and the windows on the museum. The problem with this was that they were so far apart. I knew I couldn't have all that I wanted in this shot so I chose to focus on the miniature statues on the cannon.


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Location: Army Museum, Paris, France
Season: Summer
f-stop: 5.6
Shutter speed: 1/500
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 100

From the Flowerbox

It's funny. When you walk around a small foreign town (such as Reutte, Austria) at night, wearing a hoodie over your head and are climbing up people's front steps and sitting in planter boxes to get shots, you get a lot of uneasy looks and stares. After a while I really felt like I was doing something bad. Then I looked at this shot and all my worries and cares left me. I couldn't believe how busy I made this frame when, in actuality, the town I was in was so quite and uneventful. For this shot I set my camera in a planter box on the side of the street and over-exposed to accentuate the color of the flowers and lights. I also timed the shot for when a car was driving by- thus the band of white streaking behind the flowers at the bottom of the frame.

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Location: Reutte, Austria
Season: Summer
f-stop: 2.6
Shutter speed: 4 sec
Focal length: 6mm
ISO: 200
Compensation: +2 step
Other comments: I used the pocket tripod for this shot as well as a 3-second timer.

Pondering Pug

I get an awesome feeling whenever I get a good candid shot of a human. But when I got this shot of a lonely pug, I was ecstatic! This little guy has so much personality in this image. He's thinking so hard about, well, whatever dogs think about. I was able to get this one as I strolled through the streets of Brugge. I'm glad I switched to B+W for this shot. It wouldn't have the same effect if it were in color.



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Location: Brugge, Belgium
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: I zoomed in close to focus and set me exposure, then zoomed out to frame. The outdoor light cast great shadows on this subject.

Uneasy Eyes

There is so much to photograph when you are in the Tuileries Gardens! This statue stood out from all the rest because of the uneasiness in this woman's eyes. It's as if she sees the enemy coming and knows she can't do anything about it. I also love the degree of detail in the stone that the camera captured.



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Location: Jardin des Tuileries, Paris, France
Season: Summer
f-stop: 5.6
Shutter speed: 1/1600
Focal length: 300mm
ISO: 200
Other comments: Most of the statues in the Jardin des Tuileries begin at least five feet above ground, leaving only low angles for which to shoot them.

Fortress on a Fountain

One of the things I really like about Salzburg is that, at night, they illuminate many of their grandest statues, fountains, towers, fortresses, and buildings. I spent two nights finding the angles that would allow me to capture many different illuminations in one frame. In this image I was able to capture an old horse-bathing fixture in the foreground and the grand Hohensalzburg Fortress high atop the hill behind.



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Location: Domplatz, Salzburg, Austria
Season: Summer
f-stop: 2.8
Shutter speed: 0.8 seconds
Focal length: 7mm
ISO: 200
Flash details: No Flash
Other comments: I used a pocket tripod to stabilize the camera- still, it wasn't enough to completely remove the shake. The shot is coming from about 8" off the ground.

Hanging Delight

While with my family in Europe, we made a stop at my father's host-family's house from when he brought baseball to the Nederlands in the '70s. The lady of the house had a beautiful garden out back so I began snapping away. I'm not sure what the name of this flower is, but it sure hung nicely amongst the grape vines. The short depth of field really makes the relatively small flower stand out.

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Location: Hoogeveen, Nederlands
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/250
Focal length: 93mm
ISO: 200
Other comments: Windy conditions made this close-up shot a challenge

Leaf of Light

This image is a little odd, considering the actual conditions surrounding it. It's a B+W shot of a green leaf that has just turned golden-yellow. Behind the leaf is direct sunlight and a blue sky. The idea here was to try to create an x-ray type image, much like those by Bert Myers, but use a DSLR and have a black background. To get this shot I zoomed in on the back side of the leaf and set my exposure. Then I zoomed out to frame the shot, holding the original exposure settings. I stopped down the shot by -1/3 and finally achieved what I was looking for.

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Location: Second Lid Park, Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/1000
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100
Compensation: -.3 step
Other comments:

Beyond the Fog

My buddy and I decided to take his one-wheel-drive truck up to Breckenridge one weekend. Problem was, there was two feet of fresh snow on the highway. Lots of snow and a one-wheel-drive truck don't work well together. We had to stop at a rest station and that's when I noticed the creek. My favorite part of the photos isn't the fog, it 's actually the two birds that are flying out of the creek as I took the shot.


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Location: I-76 near Denver, Colorado
Season: Winter
f-stop: 3.6
Shutter speed: 1/774
Focal length: 17mm
ISO: 100
Other comments: I was surprised this shot came out well without a tripod

Brugge Bräu

For my first-ever meal in Belgium I had...Beer! Brewed by De Halve Maan Brewery, Straffe Hendrik was some of the best brew I have ever had. The soft lighting at our outdoor table made the heady glass pictureworthy, hence what you see now.




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Location: Brugge, Belgium
Season: Summer
f-stop: 4.5
Shutter speed: 1/100
Focal length: 105mm
ISO: 100
Flash details: None
Comments: Outdoor table allowed for nice, soft light

Bellevue Sandwich

I was shooting the 2007 Northwest Lacrosse Invitational at MIHS for Walax.com when Cole Nordstrom drove from GLE and took a shot. As soon as he jumped he was crushed from both sides by two Lakeland/Panas HS players. The shot was on cage, but deflected wide. I sent the image to U.S. Lacrosse and they published it in the June 2007 edition of their magazine, giving it the title "Bellevue Sandwich."




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Location: Mercer Island High School, Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Spring
People pictured: Cole Nordstrom (middle), Dan Dacosta (right), Matt Semenza (left)
f-stop: 2.8
Shutter speed: 1/8000
Focal length: 115mm
ISO: 800
Other comments: Image taken for Walax.com . Image published in U.S. Lacrosse Magazine, June 2007. Image not very good quality because I had to use snagit to make a jpeg for publishing onilne.

Curious Kitten

Out of the corner of my eye I catch some sneaky movement in the woods. I go to investigate and it's a couple of kittens. The mother runs away and I run to grab my camrera. I manage to snap off a few shots before it gets to terribly dark, but none of them are really very good.

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Location: Upper Luther Burbank Park, Mercer Island, Washington
Season: Autumn
f-stop: 5.6
Shutter speed: 1/50
Focal length: 300mm
ISO: 1600
Flash details: Directional flash
Other comments: Very low light setting

Colored Confusion

Everyone has seen a ferrris wheel before. But few have seen what time-lapse photography reveals about a ferris wheel. With this image I wanted to capture the patterns that the flashing lights on the wheel created as it went 'round and 'round. I love the fact that there are actually two mirrored images in one. Can you see it?
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Location: Greeley, Colorado
Season: Autum
f-stop: Unknown
Shutter speed: Unknown (probably 2-3 seconds)
Focal length: Unknown
ISO: 800
Flash details: No additional lighting

White Glory

Through this photos I really wanted to convey the erie sense of stillness I got while I was wondering around at 2am. Nobody around, not a single noise; yet the air was alive with newborn snowflakes.

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Location: UNC, Greeley, Colorado
Season: Autumn
f-stop: Unknown
Shutter speed: Unknown
Focal length: 28mm
ISO: 50
Medium: Slide film, 35mm Velvia
Other comments: Tripod and gloves!