While I'm celebrating a great weekend with my family and a new toy (that Fujifilm X-E1) I am struck by a statement made by some wise man...

"Every story that can be told has already been told" or in other words all our art is just a rehash of something that's been done before.

The difference between the art from before, and the art now, is more of relevancy to your personal experience than anything else.  Having been a musician at one point in my life, I can also say with conviction that nothing beats experiencing a live performance of your favorite artwork.  That is, unless you suddenly find your favorite star is really a recording studio digital creation!

I now have a new tool to use with capabilities beyond what I once had..it does not make me a better photographer.  In fact it raises the bar to what a good photographer is!  It says there is more of the world I can explore and shape in my lens than ever before...and more people can do what I formerly did with a point and shoot!

It is no different than when you first feel the light of Christ illuminate your heart, mind and soul.  What you once did good out of recognition of a natural need to create peace rather than discord became a duty since you now understand the word of Christ.   Now you are called to do good and share his word out of duty to further illuminate the world to Christ's call through timeless Wisdom.

Even though the Bible holds the story of salvation, it is still not complete until you add your chorus to the song of the universe.  When we all sing in key with with his divine will, it is the greatest show on earth.

-ehw

PS just a shot from the new Fujifilm X-E1 to show what a large dynamic range it can recover in a jpeg...yep a jpeg...

New guy rolling into town

The Big Wheel Is Rolling

Today a newbie rolled into town.  A Fujifilm X-E1 with a cadre of lenses...It  a borrowed a little old to mix with the new for its form factor. So far I must say I'm liking what I'm seeing.  Both the sensor and the lenses appear to be a major improvement from my old camera.  Until later I'll keep rolling on and getting to know the new kid on the block.

-ehw

Picnic Time

Walking down the street in Roswell in any season you will see the picnic place ready to host you for a bit on the lawn.  At night it is quite a busy place, and finding a seat on the lawn is harder than it looks!

One of the hard things in composing this photo is that there are so many elements.  Everywhere I looked multiple items poked themselves out to say, "Focus on me!"  I tackled this in my viewfinder by getting the sign to grab your attention...and framed it with trees, sidewalk and the house.   In the end, I hope the composition corralled the picnic scene and made you think about taking one there!

I attended mass tonight, and had to say I could not miss the parallels to prayer life.  I wanted a few minutes of peace...and the dang work phone beeped.  In my job I cannot ignore it, or I could get reprimanded.  So I had to look.  As a result my prayer life..not just then...but always...gets diverted from thinking of God to a distraction  I had to laugh when I thought about how this is the perfect Devil's tool for my weaknesses...and pulled me away from the solitude required to listen for God's directions.

So somehow in the next week, I will try to push those distractions away.  I need to carve out the quiet needed to calm my mind and stay on the course the Lord intends for us all.

-ehw

Morning in Roswell

A nice patriotic morning in Roswell, Georgia.  The downtown of our little city is full of cafes, restaurants, and artsy boutiques.  Wish some of my "stuff" could make it in there someday.

I do enjoy the downtown..the mix of colors, architecture and lovely flowers really are fun to work with.  They are also like my back yard garden.  Changing gloriously week to week.

Oh well...off to church to pray my family returns home safe this week from Virginia...and to thank the Lord for all he's thrown my way.  One of these days I'll be starting a tour of the churches down here, they are pretty amazing.

-ehw

Into the Woods

Went for a walk in the historic district this morning in Roswell.  The summer light is harsh pretty early, but I got a few keepers using HDR techniques.

More of the fun downtown over the next few days!

Roswell Fire Department #1

The right mix

When one reads about "how to photograph waterfalls" one can come up with a dozen different ideas.  Some people enjoy the smoothed out water that looks like cotton.  Some people like the water drops frozen like ice.  Each conveys the power of the waterfall in different variations and can be beautiful.

Me?  Well I had no tripod on this trip, was forced to shoot in mid-day light, carried a 22 pound toddler on my back, and had my small Fujifilm x20 to work with.  So I went right to the middle and tried to come up with something to take home.

I was slightly envious of two twenty somethings as I unloaded my big vans.  The two young men had two cameras each, carbon fiber tripods and were intent on catching some great locations on the trail and falls.  Meanwhile I loaded up my kids, put the toddler on my back and marched off with my lightest camera.  I knew the science said their big sensors would capture images with far more dynamic range than my little combo would...and the tripods would lock in sharpness I could only dream of.

I did get some keepers by working with what I had, and the conditions in which I was shooting.  I also had the immeasurable joy of watching my children look at a waterfall up close for the first time.  It was a reminder that God gave me what I needed, when I needed it....and it resulted in much more than I would have otherwise thought I could obtain.  I knew I picked up some "cranium chromes" those incredible cameras never could.

-ehw

PS Fijifilm X20 F3.2 1/140 and ISO 100.  Post in Perfect Effects with a little natural HDR, and contrast adjustment.

Polarizing Adventure

We took the family an hour north today to enjoy lovely Northern Georgia.  Amicalola Falls lies just a few miles from the southern base of the Appalachian Trail...

Back in 1998 I was wondering through these mountains a few miles away at the Ranger Mountain Base Camp...and slid down one of these little hills through three feet of snow.  It was not what I recall as a great time.  The little slide down the mountain helped my legs get infected, and an all expense paid trip to the hospital for five days of treatment.  As I recovered, we often walked by a nearby waterfall on some short hikes between sessions.  As crazy as the day was, the sound and beauty of the waterfall always brought me back to a level of calm.  I cannot explain why, it just happened.  So this trip was a nice one, just because of those same lovely sights and sounds being shared with my wife and children.

What made the adventure polarizing was that I put a polarized filter on my camera to help me with water reflections.  I had not done this in a great while...and it was the first time on the X20 (Mr K5 forgot to tell me he wanted a freshened up battery before we left...).  Some results were stunning, some said try a little harder.  I hope you like this one.

-ehw

Happy Times

Here is a simple little shot from a four years ago...whoa you mean old photos still hold relevance?  Photos taken with old technology like a Pentax K200D 10mp CCD can still "work?"

Well...yes they can...I know people who could shoot with a pinhole camera and put my efforts to shame.  A good photograph is less about technical excellence than it is about soul...in my humble opinion.

So many iconic photographs come from a spit second decision, snapped on instinct guided settings not perfectly applied logic.

Not much different than life..always comes back to that life thing...

People we trust the most are those that we know who will do right when under duress and short timelines.  We know that their soul contains excellent guide rails, and we can trust their instinct more than our indecision.

So I'm going to get back to the good book tonight and try to strengthen my guide rails...so maybe you will trust me to do right when my next time of trials begin.

-ehw

PS This is a Pentax K200D shot with a Tamron 18-250 ultrazoom.  Good kit if I say so myself.  K200D is still my back up, although now I don't know how I ever got by with only one whiz wheel (control wheel) and not two!

Looking Forward

Planes, trains and automobiles...all can take us places.  To these boys the power and majesty of a train is awe inspiring.  I can almost hear their questions and dreams over the clickty clack of the track.  "Where is the train going?  How strong is it?  How many cars is it pulling?  Could I drive that thing?  I'd love to travel the rails and be the engineer!"

Yesterday I talked about reflecting back in time, and coming into the present in prayer.  Those reflections provide us the necessary torque to pull the burdens of our lives forward on the track God intended.  Within those boundaries, we actually get freed to obtain the greatest rewards life can offer.

To us life is one linear motion, but to the maker of all things time has no linear boundaries.  It is limitless, without boundaries, and makes sense all at once.

Just like the boys, that mystery makes me say, "Where is God's train going?  How strong is it?  How many cars is he pulling?  Would he let me drive that thing?  I'd love to travel the rails and be his engineer on the way to the kingdom!"

-ehw

PS Mr K5 working his magic...F5, 1/5000 @ ISO 1600 -3ev

Looking Back

Looking back over our lives I think we sometimes realize we went too quickly past the best moments.  Thankfully my little passion of photography lets me remember them in ways I could not appreciate in the heat of the moment.  Sometimes I think it even lets me experience the moments more deeply.

A friend recently wrote about needing to remember to take time and pray.  I could not agree more.  For some of you effective prayer might come from reciting a rosary, others pure meditation on a devotional, or for some it could be a spontaneous outpouring of music.  It is in any of the forms of prayer that we can appreciate God's works, experience his calming power, or petition him to give us strength to overcome our weaknesses.  Use that prayer to focus your efforts at coming into communion with his will, so that your works can then match his guiding hand.

I'm trying myself to follow the sage advice of my friend...just like the struggle to capture a wonderful frame...it is never easy...each time is never the same...but each frame's unique moment can open a window of reflection as you look back that can change your future positively forever.

-ehw

PS Techies...this is Mr K-5 screaming at F4, 1/8000 and ISO6400.  He's not FF, but he's one good dude...edited in Aperture with a Dusted Warm preset and minor tweeks...

All Aboard!

Three boys and a train museum...with buses!  What do you get?  Fun and energy all wound up and let loose at the Southeastern Train Museum in Duluth, Georgia!

The boys (my son and his two best friends) were really good, considering how much energy they had they were angels!  I loved every minute of their discovery, but had a hard time keeping the lens on them in focus.

I wish I could see the world as they do...in awe and wonder...and with the vivaciousness of their souls leaping out at all times.  Instead I'll do as God intended us to do.  I'll look on then with wonder, accept the challenge in being their guardian for the day, and see what lessons I can bank for another day.

-ehw

PS Yet another shot showing the versatility of the Fujifilm X20 when equipped with a simple external flash unit (EF-20).

Liberty is not free!

On this Memorial Day remember the fallen who gave so much to let us be free, and pray for them to be enjoying the sweet embrace of Christ in heaven.

As we pray for them, grab a the Federalist Papers and read what the founders understood liberty to be.  Learn what histories they read, and why the rejected so many notions we see advanced today...as if they are new and improved ideas!

Meditate on why they said on more than one occasion that our nation cannot survive without God's natural law as its moral guide.

When you do these things you will honor those who sacrificed all..and understand why cannot forget liberty is not free..it comes with the acceptance of consequence and the grows with charitas (selfless gift).That is the wonder of liberty.  When abused and made selfish; liberty becomes destructive to family, self and country.  When liberty becomes a cherished gift and our actions towards one another are selfless giving; liberty grows healthy families, communities and country.

-ehw

Life Changing Day

Life can change in a moment.  One of those moments is when you become a father. Twelve years ago I first laid my eyes on my lovely daughter Julia Rose, and my whole life changed.  The first night she was born, I told her everything she needed to know for all of her years as we walked the floor of the ward.  She put her little hand into my shirt collar and rubbed my neck gently. Four weeks later at her baptism I became overwhelmed at the feeling of responsibility as I professed before God and family that this child was in my care.

She has had me wrapped around her pinky since then, but never abused that privilege!  Last night she had a small party with family and three close friends.  It was wonderful to see them play in the yard, make up stories filled with honor, and then hear the cards written by her friends with words of fellowship based in Christ's example.

God blessed us then, and continues to bless us now.  But watching the candles burn I could not help but think back to that first hospital cuddle, the first night of walking her to sleep, the first smiles and connecting touch...what a memory..what a wonderful life...

-ehw

PS Here is one of our first digital photos of my girl two weeks old!  Taken with an HP610..lit by Pentax glass!

Kevin at the Bat!

Kevin takes a practice swing as he steps up to the plate...looks bigger than six huh?  One of two photos I took at his last game of instructional T-Ball.  I'm glad I made them count, while I enjoyed the whole game without a large camera tied to me.  Sometimes it is very helpful to enjoy life through your own lenses.

I took this photo through the fence with my Fujifilm X20.  It is quite sharp, and provides a lot of dynamic range to pull out and play with.

I took some liberty with it in PerfectEffects, and I am pleased with the results.  I did vignette the photo as well to focus the eyes on the batter.

-ehw

Breakfast with Grandma

Moments of a lifetime...that is why you need to have your camera ready at all times.

It is not everyday you get to catch your child stealing bites from Grandma's breakfast plate.  It was just too cute to pass up.

The little Fujifilm X-20 is continuing to impress.  It is still a small sensor, but it is very capable.

-ehw

Dance Art

Last photo from this year's dance recital...I think...

As the girls get older they tend to increase their synchronization greatly, and it makes capturing artistic moments like this a lot easier.  I also enjoy how good lighting by the stage crew can make this red/green one moment and red/white the next. So you might get a chance to have two or three versions of a frame provided for you mere seconds apart.  One will usually work better for your mission of making than another.

If you can shoot your photos at the rehearsal I highly encourage you take advantage of the opportunity.  It lets you just take in the moment as designed on the big night and does not bother other guests enjoying the show.

-ehw

Photog Delight

Took a walk through Scenic Roswell, Georgia today with my wife and stopped by a very interesting store called Bilthouse.  It was very well designed, well from a photographers frame of mind.  The light was fantastic in there as well...

One of the displays held watches and trinkets galore.  So while my wife bought a gift for her parents (babysitting at home and giving us some date time), I just had to start photographing these little trinkets until I got one I liked!

Downtown Roswell is like this, lots of fancy little boutique stores.  So over time don't be surprised if you see some more captures downtown!

-ehw

Emotion in the Motion

Putting dance into a still photo almost sounds sinful.  Dance is the art of moving one's body, and that of others to create visually pleasing sights though motion.  So it definitely sounds nuts to capture the soul of dance in a single frame.

This capture is one of the better ones from the night.  Beautiful motion frozen with just a tinge of motion in the dresses, hands and feet.  Then I caught some excellent emotion in the dancers faces conveying joy in the act of dancing.  It was that emotion that really set this photo apart from a similar one take a few seconds later.

To achieve this I had to be careful with the shutter speed and experiment...the variable of course is also that the speed of dancer motion which of course varies greatly in any one routine.  Since this shoot occurred only with available light, and no flash, the experimentation was critical to know my gear's capability and the type of scene I could reasonably expect to capture with some quality.

So experiment...be thoughtful and look for the emotion in the motion to sculpt a wonderful photo.

-ehw

Dance!

It is that time of year to enjoy the wonders of dance in my house!

My daughter's dance company just put on their annual production, and it was quite nice.  Since our family moved last year before her recital in Virginia, its been two years since I was able to see her really perform.  One trick she learned this year from her teachers was to have confidence and smile while dancing.  It really made her start to glow up on stage, and display the fun she has performing.

I learned a lot this year while shooting dance.  After shooting several years at my daughter's old studio I discovered the different challenges that come from choreography styles.  In the old studio I could easily predict when a worthy frame was coming because I knew the style.  They also used a smaller stage, so formations were tighter.  Here the stage is larger, and the staff uses it.  So it looks just as nice, but as a photographer I needed more zoom than I had to get the proper elements for a good frame.  If you are going to shoot dance I will always recommend you attend a rehearsal or multiple shows before you have to get the captures you want to keep.  This way you can know your subject, lighting and the choreographers style before the big dance.  It just makes your subject and you look so much better in the end product.

That brings me to another point, lens choices for a concert or dance.  I recently sold my 50-135 f2.8 zoom.  On a crop it is a 75-203 zoom with a depth of field around 4-5.6.  For this show it would be perfect.    Since I had not replaced it yet, I was stuck with my excellent 60-250 F4, a 16-50 F2.8 and a set of primes.  The F4 would not give me enough light to capture at the proper speed to blend motion and frozen faces I like.  The 16-50 would not get me close enough this year.  Some of my best photos in previous years came from my 50-135 and my 43...one was not there and the other would not get me close enough this year because of my location choice.  So I shot with....a 100mm F2.8 macro!  Great lens, but I was really out of my mind shooting dance with it.

A few more lessons to post this week...

-ehw