“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God’s handwriting.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Peak
Anybody have an issue saying the word “foliage?” I worked with someone once who did. Anybody have a guess as to who it was? I wonder if she’s reading now. Anyway, the fo·li·age [ˈfōl(ē)ij] is about to peak here in Winchester. Hope the weather holds for some great images.
The foliage on SU campus in Winchester around Wilkins Lake.
Rise and Shine
This is how I started my day – actually about an hour and a half prior to this. Long day for me.
HLSB (Shenandoah University’s Health and Life Sciences Building). | Order a print of this image.
Cut Short
There was going to be a great sunset at the school this evening, but I had my first complaint about the aerial camera that cut me short. A lady was going to go walk somewhere else this evening (as opposed to her usual walk at the school) because she was “uncomfortable” with the drone. I was just hovering taking a shot every couple of minutes – just waiting for the money shot. This is the last shot I was able to get. I never did get a clear answer as to what made her uncomfortable. Oh well.
Another great sunset over Handley High School. | Order a print of this image.
Branding
Who would’ve thought that, amongst all the high-tech engineering and impressive architecture, the rockers on the “front porch” would be good old Cracker Barrel brand.
Get that down-home “front porch” feel at the newest SU Building in Winchester.
Always Learning
I’m a big fan of learning through workshops and tutorials and the like. I’m always on the lookout for new learning opportunities because you never know what you may learn even in a workshop or on a tutorial where you may think you know everything there is to know. Even if you do know most of the material, chances are there’s going to be some tip or shortcut mentioned that really has nothing to do with the overall content but you never knew about. I learn so much this way.
It’s been around for a long time, but I’ve just started really diving in to any and every new class being offered through CreativeLive. If you’re a creative type, are looking and haven’t found it yet you should check it out. For real. I just actually watched parts of a workshop on aerial photography. There’s a whole ton of stuff on there for all sorts of creative type endeavors.
I’ve been doing aerial panoramas for a while now, but picked up a few tips recently on further reducing noise in my low-light images. | Order a print of this image.
Read the Signs
Leeches! Are you reading this, Mom?
Along with all the other posted notifications that appear on the pretty obvious board as you drive into the Todd Lake recreation area in the George Washington National Forest there’s a notification that leeches have been, for a long time, part of the Todd Lake ecosystem. It makes sense I know. I realize this now, but kids don’t care. I never read the signs when I was a kid. I realize that they’re pretty much harmless, but still, gross. I didn’t spend a lot of time in the lake, but I know I must have spent some amount of time in it.
Gross.
Always read the notifications on the posted signs.
Look Up
Take a walk through the forest and look up. That’s it.
If all lines run across the frame toward the center of a fisheye lens the lines end up straight. | Order a print of this image.
Elkhorn
This was the first stop on my GW Forest visit with my dad the other day. I mainly wanted to check on the foliage to see how far along it was. I’d love to get some images of the fall colors at their peak. This was pretty close.
The foliage is just about to peak at Elkhorn Lake. | Order a print of this image.
Do Something With It
When I started shooting (both video and stills) I would just shoot anything and everything. I had no vision and real purpose for what I was shooting. I shot because, well, I could. I see so many people these days shooting video and stills and I always wonder what they do with it. My philosophy these days is “why shoot if you’re not going to do anything with it.” It doesn’t have to be posted on a social media site. It doesn’t have to be on broadcast TV. It could simply be shared with friends around the kitchen counter, but do something with it, otherwise it was pointless to shoot it in the first place. IMHO.
I choose to share mine online. My original intent for purchasing an aerial camera was to shoot cyclocross racing. So here’s a first look at a couple of cross races I’ve shot this season. I actually plan on putting together a piece for the Psycho Cross race – a sort of promo of sorts. Order a print of the featured image here.
TBT
The photo isn’t really a throwback, but the place is. Todd Lake (the lake is directly below the camera) in the George Washington National Forest – it’s where I spent a lot of my childhood. I picked wild blueberries and ate them off the plant. I’d walk through the forest and get drinking water from the creek. My brothers and I would sit on top of my grandmother’s bronco and pick/eat persimmons from the tree. And I learned to drive said bronco in the field. I remember going up there every couple weeks to mow the huge field – I also learned to use a riding mower there, too. I spent the day up there shooting yesterday with my dad and my dog Waldo. Good times.
The cabin, where I spent a lot of my youth, sits at the bottom of the clearing in the middle of the image.
Lunar Eclipse
I clearly didn’t know what I was looking for this morning during the lunar eclipse. Instead I got to see a pretty awesome sunrise with some low-lying fog. It made for some great scenery. I’ll take it.
Looking for the moon in the west during this morning’s sunrise. | Order a print of this image.
Logo
I’m no graphic designer and I’ve never claimed to be one. I can re-create something I see, but I’m just not that creative when it comes to generating something brand new.
The senior class at Handley High School for at least the last 5 years has had some fun with the high school initials (JHHS) and created a logo for the class. I’m not sure how it started or who started it, but it’s been creative every year. We wait in anticipation over the Summer to see how the new year has been incorporated into the initials each Fall. So kudos to whoever generates the Handley senior class “logo.”
One of the many senior portraits I’ve taken of my daughter.
Maps
I’ve got a series of images that I’ll eventually combine to create a “mapping” image of the Psycho Cross course in Sykesville. There’s so much that’s cool about this venue, but what’s really awesome is that if I look up the address on my iPhone/Mac maps I can actually see the worn areas that mark the race course. Check it out.
Setting
I was near downtown today when the sun began setting. It pays sometimes to keep the gear in the car.
The new Discovery Museum in Old Town Winchester
12/24
If you asked me a year ago with which lens I preferred to use to shoot races I would have answered, without hesitation, “my 70-200.” These days, not so much. Almost 50% of my images from the last two weekends of shooting cyclocross were shot on my 12-24 lens. This also plays into my purposeful shooting method for sports. Today’s image has nothing to do with cycling other than it was shot at one of the coolest race venues around.
Every year I discover that the Warfield Complex is more boarded up in certain places and more dilapidated in others. It certainly makes for some fun images .
Psycho
I’ve shot here for several years now at the annual Psycho Cross cyclocross race and I look froward to it every year. I enjoy shooting cycling, no doubt, but I really enjoy shooting this property. And this year I have a new angle of view! Just a little preview of what I’ll be shooting tomorrow.
One of the open windows at the Warfield Complex in Sykesville, MD. | Order a print of this image.
Water
There’s something about flying over water that unnerves me, but holy crap the results are worth it!
I’m on the shore directly opposite the boat.
Holiday
Had an architectural shoot out at Lake Holiday today. What an awesome place to shoot. Gonna have to get back there some day to really explore.
The pristine Lake Holiday in Frederick County, VA. | Order a print of this image.
Wetlands
I was out doing some mapping photography today and got a preview of the coming Fall colors. I think I’m heading to the national forest next week to shoot some photographs with my UAV. I might even fly at 401 feet. I’m such a rebel!
Order a print of this image.
Cedarmeade Studios 