Freeport 04

Walking perhaps a hundred feet inland, this shot was captured along the entrance to River Place. Wish I could have lingered longer to take more photos, but the break between meetings was only so long...

Freeport 03

Egrets are in abundance in Freeport and all along the Texas coast. In fact, there are many species of egret who's ranges converge along the waters of Brazoria County.

This guy parked himself mere steps from the door of River Place. In wildlife photography the secret is to focus on the eye. Unfortunately, I missed just a tad on this one, but fortunately I had taken another photo in which the eye was in perfect focus. The solution? Using the magic of Photoshop, I copied the eye from the other shot and pasted it into this one, feathering the edges (no pun intended) to blend smoothly with the surrounding features.

Freeport 02

Some people call sea gulls the "rats of the air", but I disagree. These little critters have a beauty of their own, and don't mind getting close enough to people to exhibit their unique personalities!

Freeport 01

While we're on the subject of critters and the Big Cahoona, I got the chance to snap a few while conducting a meeting in Freeport, Texas.

One of the best things about my job is that I get to travel extensively through the thirteen counties of our region, including Brazoria County. In so doing I get to meet with the finest people of our state - those who work hard to make their communities better places to live. Freeport is no exception.

This and the next three postings were taken just outside a beautiful conference facility called the River Place. Not only is it a unique and functional place to hold a meeting, even on short breaks participants get to step outside and enjoy the birds that are attracted by the river's water...

Houston Zoo 04, with the Big Cahoona

Now honestly...who could have resisted taking a shot at this?

Houston Zoo 03, with the Big Cahoona

Chalk up another one for the Big Cahoona!

Houston Zoo 02, with the Big Cahoona

This is the shot that convinced me that I have a pretty good thing going with the Big Cahoona...

Houston Zoo 01, with the Big Cahoona

The first real photo shoot that I did with the Nikon D300s (which I have taken to calling the "Big Cahoona") was in June of this year, at the Davis Mountains. 14 of these photos were posted the same month on this blog. During that vacation it was obvious that, from the first frame that was snapped, I would never go back to relying on a point-and-shoot - even an advanced one such as the Fujifilm s7000 - as a primary camera again.

Having said that, it was also obvious that the learning curve would be steep. Carrying the Big Cahoona around was like toting a brick. On top of that, with a rig like the Big Cahoona, you HAVE TO KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!! I fell, and still fall, way short of that criterion.

However there is no denying that, technically, the images are a leap ahead of what I had to work with before; all I have to do is learn how to coax them out of the beast.

The posting today, along with the next two or three, were taken with the Nikon on a visit to the Houston zoo. I still was totally unadjusted to carrying the thing around, and it felt awkward, cumbersome, and frankly...maybe not worth all the dough I had spent on it? This is the trip on which I accidentally stumbled on an image or two that convinced me that, yes, buying the thing and carrying a brick around would be worth the trouble.

I love to play with depth of field, using zoom as a primary tool with which to experiment. A helicopter flew overhead, and as I swung the beast around to capture it was distracted by this view of a glass building with color in the foreground that could be used to adjust depth of field. The lens that I purchased with the Big Cahoona has the equivalent of 11x optical zoom, so this shot was much easier to capture than it would have been with the 6x of the Fujifilm. Additionally, I noticed in post-capture that there appears to be far less work necessary to adjust for levels, color, etc.

Washington - WWII Memorial

In the spirit of taking pictures of things through things, this is a peek at the Lincoln Memorial through the columns of the World War II Memorial.

One of the most fascinating people I've met is someone nick-named Tinker, who served in that war. A high-level risk taker, he always volunteered to charge through the front in the first tank, which was his assignment (driver). Really had some great stories.

I believe this is a fitting conclusion to the posting of our vacation pictures...

Washington - White House 02

Anyone who's been to the White House has seen this character...a protester who has remained camped out on this spot for almost 30 years. We found her to be friendly, amiable, and very dedicated to her cause.

Washington - White House 01

Naturally while in the area we had to stop by the White House. This is along the edge of the South Lawn (I think).

I have been inside the White House three times, all on tours. It's too bad they have to be so careful now as a result of terrorism of all stripes...I understand that now a person must apply for a tour via his or her congressman.

But back in the day all you had to do was wait in line for a ticket, then come back and you could walk right in with the rest of the group. Really gave a feeling of accessibility. In Lincoln's day the huge stream of visitors was often greeted by the President himself.

On one of the tours I saw a friend from college, who happened to be in Washington for ROTC training. While we were in the walkway next to the Rose Garden I looked to my right, and there was Robert, in line right behind me! Just a few weeks earlier we were eating together in the dorm cafeteria in Nacogdoches, Texas.

Washington - Smithsonian 04

Sitting in the same spot I swung the camera to the right and snapped this shot. People, trees etc. in the background were cloned out by the cloud cover...

Washington - Smithsonian 03

Toward the end of our second day in D.C. we were hot and exhausted. On our way back from the White House we sat on a shaded bench. I can't sit anywhere for long without seeing some photograph that needs to be taken, and here it was no different. Not only do I look for patterns (subconsciously at first), but I'm always on the lookout for contrast. These flowers against the side of the Museum of Natural History provided the opportunity...

Washington - Smithsonian 02

For some reason this photo needed no white balance correction whatsoever - it is absolutely untouched, save for a reflection...the enemy of museum shoots. Might be the background color, might be different kind of lighting, don't know. Whatever the reason, it turned out well technically in spite of the obstacles mentioned in the previous posting.

Washington - Smithsonian 01

While in Washington the kids and I had to take in the Smithsonian...once we figured out how to get to it by Metro (word to the wise: keep your GPS maps updated). Because so much of it was indoors not many pictures were taken, due to the relative darkness (which keeps shutter speeds slower) and interior lighting (which is not processed well in the s7000).

This little guy, a spider monkey, was in a fascinating exhibit of skeletons. Because most of the lighting was incandescent, quite a bit of white balance correction was needed - in fact the yellows were reduced in saturation by more than 60%. For this and the next posting I was able to lean against the beveled windowsill for stability while the lens was set on the first degree of macro.

Washington - Lincoln Memorial

This shot was taken not so much because it's the Lincoln Memorial...rather the focus of the composition was the way those birds were lined up!

Interestingly, I found that the man and president Abraham Lincoln was not so much the focus of this place either; it was the "I Have a Dream" speech made by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr...at least for me, and many others I observed. It is etched in the granite of the top step the exact spot where that great speech was delivered. Also, there was a boom box a few feet away that looped the speech over an over again. The pictures I have of the kids are at that spot, overlooking the area where the vast number of peoples gathered for the historic event.

Don't get me wrong - Abraham Lincoln was among the five greatest presidents that ever lived (along with Washington, Madison, Kennedy and Reagan...strictly in my opinion), but the Rev. King shines among them as one who did more than any of them could have...and without firing a shot or resorting to violence. That, plus his focus on the character of a man, regardless of race, set him apart and placed him squarely among the great leaders of the world.

Washington - Viet Nam Memorial 04

A sobering memorial for a loved one...

Washington - Viet Nam Memorial 03

This one was more candid. The wall was great for reflection shots, as can be seen in the next couple of postings as well.

Washington - Viet Nam Memorial 02

This is my son and daughter, reflected in the panels of names. If it looks a little staged, in fact it was - I had them briefly hold their positions as the shot was snapped.