Nashville - Gaylord Delta Orchids

Just like in Vegas, everywhere your head turns there is a great picture to take.  Orchids such as this were everywhere in the Delta atrium and the other two...

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Street Scene

This is a view of the "street" that passes through the buildings in the Delta atrium, taken hand-held without support.

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #7

This is the last of the night fountain pictures I'll be posting from our walk...

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #6

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #5

Did a bit of cloning on this one to hide some light fixtures in the background.

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #4

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #3

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #2

Nashville - Gaylord Delta Fountain at Night #1

I took lots of photos while we were walking around that night.  Every once in a while the fountain featured two postings ago (the daytime panorama) does a show of sorts.  When I saw what was going on we hurried to an upper walkway - seen in front of the yellow building in the panorama - where I took this and the following six shots, all while using a railing to steady the camera.

Nashville - Delta Nightime Panorama

One night the wife and I went for a long walk around the complex, pretty much just to take my new lens through its paces - a fixed f2/8 14-55mm Nikkor. This and the following night pics were taken hand-held, as I didn't want to bore her with carrying the tripod around and setting it up.

So what is the result? Upon using the lens I immediately missed having better zoom, and also the vibration reduction. Doesn't a faster lens without VR pretty much equal a slower one with VR? My conclusion is yes, and considering the amount of dough that went into the purchase there was some regret. However, after looking into these photos in post-capture I'm observing that even with slightly longer exposures there is much less noise than with the slower 18-200 mm lens used on the Big Cahoona. The quality of the photographs is simply better. So maybe it was worth it after all.

Nashville - Delta Daytime Panorama

By far the largest of the three atria at the Gaylord was Delta, which has a walkway that serves as a street that goes in between and among a variety of buildings, what you see on the right. In the left foreground is a fountain (you can see the water from both shots in this two-shot panorama), and the place is large enough to include a river ride on a raft! All indoors.

Nashville - Cascades Lobby Closeup

A closeup in the fountain area...

Nashville - Cascades Lobby

...a glass sculpture in the lobby against a stained glass background with a country music theme.

Nashville - Falls in Gaylord Cascades

Taken with a tripod at f/22, this is on an elevated walkway leading into the tunnel behind the falls.

Nashville - Behind Falls in Gaylord Cascades (at night)

Swinging the camera in another direction, and at night, this is a view from behind the Cascade falls. As can be seen, the first is focused on the metal grate, rendering a blurred background. Focusing on the lighting at the reception desk, the falls and grate in the second photo are blurred.

Nashville - Behind Falls in Gaylord Cascades

...from behind that grate.

Nashville - Falls in Gaylord Cascades

One of the falls from the double cascade to the left in the previous postings. Notice that behind the upper falls there is a metal grate; the next couple of postings will be taken from there on a walkway that goes behind.

Nashville - Gaylord Cascades Panorama (night)

This is another, three-shot panorama in almost the same spot, taken at night with my new f2.8 fixed lens. No tripod, but the lens is fast enough to bring the shutter speeds up to a tolerable limit.

Nashville - Gaylord Cascades Panorama

Our family went on vacation last month to - of all places - Nashville, Tennessee. The wife had a business conference there, and we stayed at the Gaylord Resort, probably the best hotel in the country. Really there is no way to describe it, and pictures only partially do it justice, but here I'll try.

The hotel is divided into three huge sections, the atria of each covered by a glass and steel ceiling. Thus, even though it looks outdoors, it's really indoors complete with natural light and climate control. A bonanza for any photographer.

The first of the Gaylord series will be in the Cascades atrium. Walkways at all levels abound, and today's posting is a five-shot panorama from an angle that captures its namesake. (You can click the photo to make it bigger on your screen.) A couple of these, then we'll go closer for some different angles.