Springtime approaches

I’m getting tired of taking pictures of what would be great sunsets and sunrises except for the fact that all the trees are still dead. Decaying leaves have cluttered the ground for what seems like an eternity in my mind. Maybe that’s because I’m still fresh in the photography world, but the lesson of “There must be beautiful things in front of the lens to make beautiful pictures” has been recited again and again in my mind. So here’s a little pick-me-up from last March in the hope of what’s to come.

Nikon D5100 18-55mm kit lens @ 18mm f/3.5 ISO 100 5 image HDR

#TravelTuesday El Morro

The Castillo San Felipe del Morro has defended the San Juan Bay since its completion in 1589. The part that was erected then is but a small fraction of what stands today. It was named in honor of King Philip II of Spain. The last time it saw active battle was in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. In the Treaty of Paris it was ceded to the United States along with all of Puerto Rico. After the Americans took over, El Morro became part of Fort Brooke and in 1961 it became part of the National Parks Service.

This view is from across the bay. The structure on the right is El Morro. The structure on the left is at the tip of the peninsula on the opposing shore. If you’re ever in Puerto Rico, don’t miss a trip to see El Morro at the edge of Old San Juan.

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 68mm f/16 ISO 100 5 image HDR

A Remote Camera

Often times spectacular pictures can only be achieved by the photographer not being at the specific location necessary to push the shutter button on a camera. Maybe the sport that makes the best use of remote cameras is basketball. My usual physical position is kneeling just out of bounds where the three point line intersects with the base line. Since the referees are free roaming in basketball sometimes I take shots of a random leg, half a butt, or what looks like a zebra that walked in front of my camera. This past weekend I had the opportunity to try using a remote camera. This doesn’t eliminate obstructions, but improves the odds of getting a picture referee free. Through the use of devices made by PocketWizards, when I push the shutter button on the camera in my hand, the shutter also fires on the remote camera. Obviously this creates some pictures on the remote camera that are of nothing much, but digital pictures are free to take (pretty much) and easy to erase. Quite a few times I was rewarded with a pair of pictures like the ones below.

The particulars: I was kneeling from across the court holding a 300mm f/2.8 lens to shoot the dunk from behind. In this first picture you can see the remote camera on the floor straight down the blue line from the basket. The remote camera has a 24mm lens mounted to it too get the complete floor to basket view. I was pleased with the results and hope to have more fun with remote cameras soon.

Great Valley vs Wilson Varsity Basketball 2013

The Patriots crawled their way past the Bulldogs yesterday at Plymouth/Whitemarsh High School. The first half of the game was plagued with snail’s pace action but Great Valley lit a fire at the beginning of the third quarter. They overcame a halftime deficit to escape the Bulldog’s teeth and advance on to the next round. Click the link below the picture to see all the pictures from the game.

Nate's save.jpg