Last photo for a while

I will be pretty busy for the next few weeks taking photos so I probably won't be updating as regularly. Please check back around January 9th and hopefully I'll be back to my once a day posting schedule.
As always thanks for the comments and feedback.

Have a Happy Holidays.

Blue on blue

This is a photo of a cable car in Santa Cruz, California along the boardwalk. I went for a minimalist look to the photo by placing the single car at the top of a large expanse of sky. The composition creates a sense that the car is floating in the sky.
I liked how the color of the car and the color of the sky were very close to each other as well. The overall is result is one of calm and balance.
With all the cold winter weather on the east coast, I figured a nice warm summer shot would be nice for today.

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Canon 20D, 24-85mm 3.5-4.5, AV f 11

Oranges by moonlight

I took this shot a few nights ago when the moon was just about full. With about a foot of snow on the ground there was a great glow coming into the house.
I used a very long exposure to make sure the oranges and chair were properly exposed with the soft lighting. An interesting thing is that the oranges actually ended up being more colorful in the end shot than they were in real life. Long exposures normally give you great color saturation.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, Tamron 28-75 2.8, AV f5.6

Splash on a saw

I got a chance to take some more high speed water drop photography today. I think it is a dramatic improvement over my first attempt a while back.
In order to make the drop look different than other more simple shots i've seen, I used an old rusty saw as the backdrop. The worn wood and the rusty screws contrast dramatically with the bright and clean looking water droplets. The shallow depth of field also helps focus the attention on the splash.
I was very impressed with the texture and color in the photo given the extremely high shutter speed.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, Tamron 28-75mm 2.8, Manual 1/6400, f3.5

Clouds over Santa Clara

I figured I would post a shot of campus since I'll be away from Santa Clara spending a few weeks in Philadelphia. I took this shot near sunset when these clouds were light up very slightly. The general peace of the clouds is balanced by the reflection in the windows of the building.
I included the plants in the bottom left in order to tie the different elements together. Also by leaving the top of the frame open I tried to enhance the openess of the rest of the sky.

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Nikon Coolpix 5400, AV f5.6

Drawn 'reflection'

A completely different type of shot for me. I placed the watch on a plain sheet of paper and then quickly (and crudely) sketched it on the paper. Somehow the blend of the actual watch, the shadow and the sketch seemed interesting to me. I made sure to include the reflection of the drawing in the watch face to enhance this effect.
I think the shapes in the drawing make you consider the detail in the actual watch more. Basically you see the perfection of the watch by comparing it to the imperfection of the drawing.

[click photo to enlarge]
Nikon Coolpix 5400, AV 8.0

Sea of Clouds

I took this shot on the way to the tea fields of Munnar, India. On the side of the road that climbed over the mountain to get there, there was this amazing view of the valley below. I included the hill to the right as a reference for the scale of the shot.
The contrasting colors of the hills and the clouds makes this almost look like the ocean and waves rolling in. Overall the low light from the setting sun and the muted colors makes this a very calming image.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 50mm 1.4, AV f 8.0

Jellyfish 2

This is a shot of a jellyfish from the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California which I took the same day as this other shot. I'm not sure which one I like better but I think this one stands out because of the dramatic lighting and the odd golden glow. It almost looks like there's a spotlight on this specific jellyfish. Also the fact that the jellyfish is not in sharp focus makes it look like ink that's dispersing in the water.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 24-85mm 3.5-4.5, AV f 4.0

Lampost and shadow

This is a shot I took on campus (Santa Clara University) a few weeks ago. The sun was about 30 minutes from setting on a partly cloudy day so everything had a light pinkish tint.
I think the lines of the building and the lampost and shadow contrast well with the irregular shapes of the leaves.

On another note Robyn's started a blog about our #1 rabbit, Hops. There's also a link in the sidebar.

[click photo to enlarge]
Nikon Coolpix 5400, AV mode f 8.0

Phone glow

I'm sure you can figure out that this is a closeup of my cell phone's keypad. The design of the Razr is really interesting as it has a thin piece of metal with the numbers and symbols cut out of it. If you notice the B it's cut like a stencil so that the light shines through.
For this shot I turned off most of the lights and just used the glow from the keys and some soft side lighting. This technique let the weird blue light contrast with the darknened keys (normally they are silver).

[click photo to enlarge]
Nikon Coolpix 5400, Macro Mode, AV f4.0

Rocks by the ocean

I took this photo near San Diego, California at the beach close to Point Loma lighthouse. This is the same place I took this photo. Near that spot was a small rocky beach where there were a few small tide pools with shallow water and some really interesting rocks. If you expand the photo you might also notice the small crab in the top left. I think it's a hermit crab but I'm not positive.
I like the brightness in this photo and how the ripples of the water of water seem frozen, especially at the bottom. Also the composition seems to give a sense of balance and calm.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 50mm 1.4, AV f. 8.0

Hills of tea

This photo is from a tea plantation in Munnar, India. The lines you see in the background are where farm workers walk through the tea plants picking tender leaves by hand. Located in a hilly region with a lot of rainfall, everything is green and there are lot of small streams and waterfalls.
I included the rusty barbed wire fence and post in the foreground to give some scale to contrast with the clean and natural background. Also I think the fog rolling in gives an overall peaceful look to the image.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 50mm 1.4, AV f5.6

Abstract 2: Guess what

It seemed like people like this idea last time. Here's the last one if you're interested.
Another abstract photo, try and guess what this is. A little bit of info...the photo is in black and white and has not been photoshopped or altered in any way. Feel free to guess in the comments section and I'll post the answer tomorrow.

Paint peeling in Chinatown

I took this photo of an old building with peeling paint in San Francisco's Chinatown. I used the sign (Clay Street I think) to break up the frame into sections so that the paper lantern is isolated from the old sign at the top.
I do wish the light was more dynamic but given the overcast sky, this was the best I could get. My favorite aspect of this photo is the detail and texture of the peeling paint. I tried figuring out what was originally written but I can't make it out.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 24-85mm 3.5-4.5, AV 4.0

MGM lion

The MGM lion is one of the most memorable landmarks in Las Vegas. As you can see, when the sun is near setting the bright light really makes the gold paint glow.
I felt that a non-level shot worked here as the lion's stare seems to be level with the top of the frame. Also I wanted to have the sky behind the lions head. I was happy with the brightness and color in this shot and how the sky is just interesting enough to balance the image.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon Elph S230

Tree and shadows

Interesting shot I took a few weeks ago on campus. The sun was close to setting so the shadows were really long and distinct. I like how the shadows of the trees look on the stairs and the look of the leaf shadows in and around the arches.
I tried taking this in black and white but the glow from the off white stairs wasn't as strong then. Also I think the green in the leaves helps seperate them from the shadows better.

[click photo to enlarge]
Nikon Coolpix 5400, AV f 8.0

View from Joshua Tree

As the caption says I took this photo from Joshua Tree National Park which is located a few hours east of Los Angeles. Here's a link to the park's website. This is one of those shots that makes you realize how small we are on earth. The visibility is excellent because of the dry air from the dessert.
It's refreshing to see untouched natural areas like this every once in a while so I thought I'd post this shot. If you look really closely you can see a slight pink glow from what's left of the sunset right above the mountains.

[click to photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 50mm 1.4, AV f 11.0

Picking coconuts

Those of you who read my blog regularly may recognize the guy in the photo as Selvum. Here is a link that photo.
This was taken the same day at my cousin's coconut farm. Selvum basically climbed up the tree and cut off a few tender coconuts (don't worry he's only about 10 feet off the ground).
I like this shot because the bright sunlight brings out the subtle colors of the tree and coconuts and also casts some interesting shadows. It really was a perfect day as you can see by the clear blue sky.
There seems to be a sense of balance and movement within that to makes this more than a photo of a guy in a tree.

[click photo to enlarge]
Canon 20D, 50mm 1.4, AV f 4.0

Light and dark

I took this shot on campus a few weeks ago about 15 minutes before sunset. The way the buildings were set up a distinct shadow appeared on this wall covered with vines. I liked the way the linear shadow seperates the two sides while the vines randomly grow all over.
This photo is also a reminder of the importance of light in making a simple looking scene look interesting. The difference in lighting also brings out more details on the right side and makes it appear 'deeper' than the left.

[click photo to enlarge]
Nikon Coolpix 5400, AV mode, f 5.6