Living Picture

- My first Lytro "Living Picture" for the blog. I took a picture of these spring flowers at the McDonald Garden Center in downtown Norfolk. Check out the variable focus by clicking on different areas of the picture to move the focus point around. Lytro, 1/125 sec @ f/2.0, ISO 200, 45mm focal length, in creative mode.

Lady Bug Style

- The Lady Bug is always in style. Canon G11, 1/60 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

The Big Ones

- Robert went for the big eggs at the Eater egg hunt at Kempsville Baptist Church in Virginia Beach today. They told him he could only get 12 eggs, so he figured the bigger the better. Thant's Grandpa's boy! Canon 5D Mark II, 1/2500 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 70-200 zoom at 180mm focal length.

Atrium

- Looking up in the atrium in the brand new Lyman Beecher Brooks Library at Norfolk State University. The new libray opened this past January and is an amazing addition to the NSU campus. The architecture, technology and collection are all very impressive. I toured the facility with members of the City of Norfolk's Slover Memorial Library project just now getting underway. When it opens in late 2014, the Slover will bring state of the art library services back to downtown Norfolk. It's an exciting project to be a part of. iPhone 4, Olliclip fisheye lens withe Camera+ app.

Don't Eff It Up

- The sign say's it all. The bar at Hell's Kitchen in Norfolk Virginia. Canon G1X, 1/10sec @ f/5.8, ISO 800.

Lion Facade

- This lion's head is part of the facade of one of the Victorian era buildings in the 100 block of Norfolk Virginia's Granby Street. These buildings are collectively referred to as "heritage row" and represent some of the oldest of Norfolk's remaining commercial buildings from the late 1800's. Similar neighboring buildings fronting Main Street were torn down in 2007 to make way for a hotel/convention center that never came about leaving a vacant fenced in lot on the site. The lot now referred to as "The Plot" is being converted into a pop-up park using shipping containers. That's progress, I guess. Canon G1X, 1/125 sec @ f/9.0, ISO 200, 60mm focal length.

Abstract

- This photo of the Battleship Wisconsin as reflected in the Suntrust building in downtown Norfolk has an almost abstract look after applying a little HDR effect. Still not sure if I like it but thought it was a different view of an often photographed Hampton Roads landmark. Canon G11, 1/320 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

DE in B&W

A rainy morning turned into a beautiful sunny day. I looked up while walking down Plume Street in Norfolk Virginia at the Dominion Enterprises tower lit by the bright sun. The light stone against the dark blue sky dotted with clouds screamed "take this picture." So I did using my iPhone 4. Taken with Camera+ with the Clarity and "Ansel" B&W effects applied in the app.

First Sunday

- This is my first "First Sunday" project. A soon to open Iris bud stands among the tall green foliage. Snapchick issued a challenge on the first Sunday of each month to focus on composition and creativity rather than high tech camera gear. The challenge was to use your oldest digital camera, set it on a high ISO and a low resolution. The idea is to show what the photographer can do rather than what the camera can do. This photo was taken with my first DSLR a vintage 2003 Canon Digital Rebel aka 300D, 1/2000 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 1600 (the camera's highest setting) using a 50mm prime lens.

Rotating Force

- The "brushes" of a large elevator motor make contact against the "commutator" which rotates on the shaft. The commutator is essentially a switch which reverses the electrical current direction of the motor's armature creating a steady rotating force. This motor was very large, about waist high from the floor. Canon G1X, 1/13 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 1600.

Ripples

- Ripples by Athena Tacha. This 1979 public art located at the corner of Granby Street and City Hall Avenue in Norfolk Virginia is the only redeeming element of the Norfolk Federal Building. In my humble opinion the building itself is totally out of place and has no architectural significance whatsoever. It replaced the magnificent old Monticello Hotel in the late 1970's. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/6400 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 400, 100mm.

Wall Fly

- This little dragon fly sought refuge from the windy street by resting on the wall at the entrance foyer of my building. Thanks to Anita who mentioned him to me as I was headed out for a lunch time walk with my camera. I doubt I would have noticed him and thus missed this picture opportunity. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/50 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Chrome Shroom

- A mushroom lamp illuminating a crop of fake flowers. I often walk by this standard shopping mall decor when short cutting to get to my next meeting. Canon G11, 1/40sec @ f/4.5, ISO 400.

My First Lytro

- This is the first picture I've shared from my new Lytro camera. The Lytro changes almost everything for digital photography as its new and innovative design allows you to refocus the picture after you take it. This birthday bouquet does not have a lot of depth of field so the effect isn't that noticeable. Look for new pics in the future after I develop some skill in actually using this camera. You can play with a "living" version of the photo on my Facebook timeline page. Just click on the image to refocus on that spot. Lytro, 1/80 sec @ f/2.0, two LED Litepanels for illumination.

Tacky Night Lights

- Today's bright sunlight charged up the garden solar lights. So the oh so real blue sunflower is backed up by the orange globe. The sunflower is a real tacky LED marvel of modern science as it changes in color from red to purple to blue to green before repeating the sequence. Odd as it is, there is no yellow. Canon 7D, 1/60 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 1600, 70mm focal length.

CFL

- A helical integrated compact fluorescent lamp or CFL for short. The three-dimensional spiral CFL was invented in 1976 by Edward Hammer, an engineer with General Electric, in response to the 1973 oil crisis. It was expensive to produce and the invention was shelved. This design eventually was copied by others and in 1995, helical lamps, manufactured in China, became commercially available. Source - Wikipedia. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/400 sec @ f/22.0, ISO 200, 100mm macro.

f-stop Watch

- "You're a little fuzzy around 2, start feeling fine around 8, but at 11 you're sharp, focused, and ready to party. The f-stop watch gets you." You know you're a geek photographer when you have an f-stop watch. It was a cool Christmas gift from my son and daughter-in-law who had a great time shopping for me at Photojojo - the most awesomeness place on the net. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/500 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 1600, 100mm macro.

A Yellow Baby

- "Yellow daisy, a dandelion or a pussy willow,
It's a different thing.
Oh-oh, Forsythia. Forsythia. Forsythia"
from Forsythia by Veruca Salt
Canon 5D Mark II, 1/80 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro.

Morning Dew

- This morning's heavy dew left little droplets of water on each of the points of these brand new Knockout Rose leaves. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/15 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Gumby and Pokey Ride Again

- These rare vintage Gumby and Pokey Happy Trails game piece figures from 1968 were a free gift from a Foursquare check-in at GC5 Vintage & Gifts. I figured they would have to be part of the blog so look for them to show up in my photos occasionally. Canon G1X, 1/1600 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

Perpendicular Gothic

- The Freemason Street Baptist Church is one of three buildings in Norfolk Virginia designed by Thomas U. Walter who was famous for his design of the dome for the U.S. Capital Building. The church was completed in May 1850 in a revival of the style known as "Perpendicular Gothic." This Victorian period revival style was characterized by its reliance on decoration and ornamentation rather than structure. I made my first visit to the interior of the church today and was struck by its beauty. This photo shows the side aisle under the overhead gallery with the east facing stained glass windows. The large Gothic windows with the simple single colors is really unusual for a church of this period. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/500 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 50mm prime lens.

Streamline Moderne

- This beautiful piece of history is a Revere 16mm Model 48 silent movie projector from the early 1950's. I saw it in an antique and vintage store. 16mm films were ones we used to watch in school back in the old days, pre-VCR. One of the things I love about old film gear is the way it was made, heavy and solid but also sleek and cool. Much of this look comes from the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne industrial design movement from the 1930's resulting from era of speed in transportation. Today we call it retro but you can see its roots clearly in the "technofuturistic curvedness" of Apple industrial design. Canon G1X, 1/160 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400, converted to B&W using Silver Efex Pro 2 in Lightroom 3.

Wake Forest

- The historic downtown of Wake Forest North Carolina. This is the 200 block of South White Street. Cindy and I paid a quick visit on our way home from a weekend in Raleigh. Canon G1X, 1/500 sec @ f/13.0, ISO 400.

Fat Tire

- The Fat Tire neon sign at Mellow Mushroom Pizza in downtown Raleigh North Carolina. Canon G1X, 1/160 sec @ f/5.8, ISO 400.

Big Fish

- This fish was in a large aquarium at the Virginia Wesleyan student center and the front glass reflection makes it look like the fish swallowed a whole line of people. The people were lined up at the 14th Annual Empty Bowls Charity Dinner. iPhone 4, 1/15 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 1000.

Bradford Pear

- In the mid 1970's Virginia Beach, like many American cities, planted the Bradford Pear trees along main roads. At the time the tree was considered to be the perfect street tree, with beautiful early white blooms, a nice cone shape, and good fall color. Thirty years later many of trees weaknesses are now apparent including a relatively short life and the tendency to easily break in high winds and under the load of winter ice. These trees are located along Princess Anne Road just southeast of Newtown Road and while some show the effect of age and breakage, the early spring debut of white flowers is still a wonderful sight. Canon G1X, 1/160 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Little Earth Stars

- To some the dandelion is a weed; but not to me, unless it takes more than its share of space, for I always miss these little earth stars when they are absent. They intensify the sunshine shimmering on the lawn, making one smile involuntarily when seeing them. Moreover, they awaken pleasant memories, for a childhood in which dandelions had no part is a defective experience.
Source: "The Home Acre," by E. P. Roe

Canon 7D, 1/30 sec @ f/10.0, ISO 400, 100mm macro, converted to black and white in Lightroom 3 using Silver Efex Pro 2.

Cypher Lock

- Your basic push button cypher lock, non-ADA compliant. Canon G1X 1/30 sec @ f/5.8, ISO 400 converted to Black & White in Picasa 3 using a Holga Style effect. This is the first blog post with a picture from the new Canon G1X.

Llamella® Plate Settlers

- Got to take a tour of the Moores Bridges Water Treatment plant in Norfolk Virginia after visiting with Scott Howerin the rest of IT staff. These Llamella® plate settlers help with the sedimentation part of the water treatment process. The Moores Bridges water treatment plant was constructed in 1873 with a 1 million gallon a day capacity. Some of the original buildings are still located on the site which now has a capacity of 108 million gallons per day and supplies water to Norfolk, Virginia Beach, part of Chesapeake and most of the area's military bases. Canon G11, 1/125 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 100.

Spring Walk

- Took a spring walk around the neighborhood this afternoon and took this pictire of these delicate very pale violet flowers. I'm not sure what they are but I liked the texture and decided it would make a good black & white photograph. Canon 7D, 1/400 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 400, 100mm macro, converted to B&W in Lightroom 3 using Silver Efex Pro 2.

Votive

This deep red votive candle holder displays and interesting pattern of light caused by the many tiny bubbles trapped in the glass. Canon G11, 1/15 sec @ f/3.2, ISO 400, in macro mode.

9:52

- When doing a 365 project one has days where the picture doesn't come easy. So it's 9:50pm, no picture and no ideas. I decided to ready the coffee maker for the morning and the orange LED clock struck my eye. Looking around I see digital clocks everywhere in the kitchen and realize tomorrow night I'll be jumping them all ahead one hour. I break out the camera and grab a quick macro photo of each clock showing the exact same time of 9:52 and then make a quick collage in Google Picasa. There you have a picture for day number 1165 in my 365x4 project. Canon 7D, 125 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400, 100mm macro.

Can You Smell This?

- Can a photograph trigger the memory of scent? Some research says it can. These hyacinths located near my front porch provide an amazing and welcoming aroma to visitors. They've been blooming for over a week now and the scent has been imprinted in my brain. Can you smell them? Canon 7D, 1/30 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 400, 100mm macro, two LED litepanels.

Newtown Blackbirds

- Thousands of black birds come to roast each night near the intersection of Newtown Road and I-264 on the Norfolk/Virginia Beach border. They line all of the power lines and utility poles including this street light at Newtown and Princess Anne Roads in Virginia Beach, Virginia. They have become such a regular feature that they are even the subject the public art at the Networn Road station of The Tide light rail. iPhone 4, 1/15 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 160.

Oreo Turns 100

- Today marks the 100 anniversary of the Oreo cookie and Nabisco which was founded on March 6, 1912 in the Chelsea section of New York City. Today the old Nabisco factory is part of the Chelsea Market complex and a stop on the popular Highline Park. According to Wikipedia over 491 billion Oreo cookies have been sold since they were first introduced making the Oreo America's most popular cookie. The best part of making today's picture - why eating the cookies and drinking the milk of course! Canon 7D 1/200 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 400, two LED light panels.  Check the Black & White version of this photo at The World in Black & White blog.

Dominion Fisheye

- Got to take a trip up to the 20th floor of Dominion Enterprises in Downtown Norfolk Virginia today. It was cold and windy out on the deck. The 20th floor says a lot about the company who reserved the best space in its office tower for employee training and education. While you are up there learning you can enjoy some of the best views of the Elizabeth River waterfront. iPhone 4, 1.469 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 80, Olloclip fisheye lens adapter.

Thread Rainbow

- This rack of sewing thread at Joann's Fabric's in Virginia Beach, Virginia reminded me of a rainbow. Canon G11, 1/100 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 800, in macro mode.

Death of a Salesman

- The very cool set of the Virginia Stage Company's production of Arthur Miller's 1949 Pulitzer Prize winning play Death of a Salesmen. iPhone 4, 1/15 sec @ f/2.8,ISO 1000.

Mike and Ike

Mike and Ike candies in one of the 50 cent globe dispensers at the mall. Mike and Ike is a brand of fruit-flavored candies first introduced in 1940 by Just Born, Inc. These fruit-flavored, chewy candies come in several colors and varieties including: cherry, orange, lime, lemon and strawberry. Each candy has 7 calories, 0 grams of fat and approximately 1 gram of sugar. The candy is kosher and gluten-free. According to Wikipedia, celebrity fans include Will Smith, Paul Rudd, and Steven Spielberg. Just Born, Inc. also makes Hot Tamales candies. Canon G11, 1/40 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 800.

The Humble Moth

Moths are closely related to the butterflies, both being of the order Lepidoptera. There are over 160,000 species of moths, more than ten times the number of butterfly species. Butterflies get all of the glory with their bright colors and beautiful wings. Moths on the other hand tend to be more brown and unpretentious. They are not perceived in the same manner as their well loved cousins. But like much of mother nature, you just need to look close enough to see the beauty and glory. This humble little moth is hanging in close to our front porch light. The macro lens captures some of the fine detail of nature. This photo is also a good example of how shallow the depth of field can be on a macro lens when focused on a very close subject. As you can see the depth of field is less than 1/4 inch. Canon 7D, 1/160 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 800, 100mm macro.

Dimples

- Dimples have been a part of golf ball design for over a 100 years. The dimples help a golf ball fly longer and with more back spin. Most golf balls have a symmetrical dimple pattern consisting of 200 to 300 dimples. Golf balls with asymmetrical dimple patterns and varied dimple depths were designed in the 1970's significantly improving the straight flight of a golf ball but were quickly banned by the USGA. Canon 7D, 1/250 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 800, 100mm macro, 3 - LED litepanels.

Reflected Sunset

- The mirrored glass on the Gateway Credit Union building in Virginia Beach catches the setting sun. I seem to always catch this stop light red on the exit ramp from I264 East on my commute home each evening but at least it gave me a chance to capture this interesting reflection. Canon G11, 1/250 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 400.

Wicked Green

- It's Wicked-mania in Norfolk Virginia in preparation for the Broadway hit's 3 week run beginning next week. There's lots of "Wicked Green" everywhere downtown including these water fountains at MacArthur Mall.
On another note, my blog just topped 40,000 page views for the past 12 months. Thanks everyone for coming back time after time. iPhone 4, 1/15 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 160,

Maximum Flare

- Lens flare often results when shooting into the sun or another bright light source. The goal is to eliminate or reduce the amount of lens flare as it represents refracted light that isn't true to the image being captured. This iPhone photo captured the most lens flare I'd ever experienced in one of my photographs and I liked the effect. When I showed the picture to Cindy her comment was "that's interesting." And yes it was with "that" tone so I wondered if I should use it as today's blog photo. As you can tell I decided to share the picture and for those that like it, great and for those that don't, think of it as an example of what no to do. iPhone 4, 1/400 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 80, Camera+ app.

Ma Bell

- Although the Bell System has been gone for almost 30 years the name and logo can still be found. This is one of several manhole covers bearing the logo located along Monticello Avenue in Norfolk Virginia. Owned by AT&T, the Bell System had held a monopoly on telephone service across much of the U.S for almost 100 years until it was broken up in 1984 following a suit by the Justice Department. In Virginia, Bell System service was provided by the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company, a.k.a C&P. Following divestiture C&P became part of Bell Atlantic which today is part of Verizon. Canon G11 1/230 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Vintage Word Processor

- A vintage word processor, a.k.a the typewriter. This L.C. Smith 8 10, vintage 1920's, was the first typewriter with a tab system. The Smith Corona company built high quality typewriters for many decades. This one is in Jerry Burkhalter's collection. iPhone 4, 1/17 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 100, converted to B&W in the Camera+ app.

Station Art

- Station art located at The Tide's Ft. Norfolk/EVMC station in Norfolk Virginia. This station is the west end of the line. My two favorite art stations are this one and Newtown Road at the east end of the line. iPhone 4, 1/172 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 80, Camera+ app.

Panties in a Twist???

- The NORVA in Norfolk Virginia presents Hampton Roads fist ever all women's sketch comedy review, Panties in a Twist. I must admit, the marquee caught my eye today. Canon G11, 1/80 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Double Trouble

- Double the trouble, double the fun; two Tonkinese are better than one. Princess Sasha on the left and Lord Sherlock on the right. Canon 7D, 1/25 sec @ f/3.5, ISO 800, 85mm focal length.

Power On

- The power symbol is a symbol indicating that a control activates or deactivates a particular device. It incorporates line and circle figures, with the arrangement informed by the function of the control. It is a popular icon among technology enthusiasts. Canon 7D, 1/30 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 400, 100mm macro.