Winter Walk Off

- I accepted a challenge from Les and his A Tidewater Gardner blog to walk around the neighborhood and photograph the signs that winter is almost over. Besides the fact that today's high temperature was 78ºF (26ºC), I didn't have to go far to find a beautiful sign of the season. These violet crocuses are in my next door neighbor's yard. She has dozens of them and every year they are one of the first signs that spring will soon be here. Check out Les's blog and accept the challenge. He has prizes! Canon 40D, 1/200 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 100mm macro lens, handheld LED light for illumination.

The Red Carpet

- Walked the "red carpet" tonight at an Oscar party as my cousin's house in Norfolk. It was great to see everyone dressed up like a star. Canon G11, 1/6 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 800.

Slinky Colors

- A rainbow plastic Slinky illuminated from behind. Canon 40D, 1250 sec @ f/40.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro.

Lego Time

- My grandson Robert was spending the night with us so he and I built a skyscraper from Lego Duplo blocks that was taller than him. He was pretty happy with the creation. Maybe there's budding young architect in there. Only time will tell. Canon 40D, 1/100 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro.

PCBA

The PCBA or printed circuit board assembly is in every product made today that has some sort of electronics. Cheap and reliable these mass produced boards have evolved to contain entire computers. This one is embedded in acrylic in a pen that my brother Mark made for me recently. It's the perfect fashion accessory for the geek turned manager. Canon 40D, 1/30 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 400, 100mm macro with Canon Lifesize Adapter. The lighting comes from two LED light panels.

Wireless

- Wireless infrastructure is critical to making all of our treasured mobile devices work. Some say it's not very pretty to look at and while I agree it doesn't contribute much to most landscapes, most of us couldn't live without it. I see beauty in the technology. This tower is laden with 24 cellar antennas, 4 microwave relays dishes, a few plain old radio antennas and most importantly one osprey nest. A cable runs to each antenna from the ground, some inside the monopole other strapped along the outside. Each of these cables are about one inch in diameter and heavy as lead. Pay close attention the next time you're near one of these towers in our area and I bet you will see that a bird of prey has made it a home. This one was on I64 near Mason Creek in Norfolk, Virginia. I was stopped for almost two hours today on I64 while the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel was shutdown which afforded me and my camera some quality time together. Canon G11, 1/2000 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 200.

A Ray of Sunshine

- Caught this ray of sunshine cutting through a fountain spay. Water and sunlight are always a great combination in a photo. Canon 7D, 1/250 sec @ f/2.5, ISO 800, 50mm prime lens.