Right Outside My Window

I really went far for this photo. Ok. I just clicked the sarcasm off. This was taken at one of the entrances to my apartment complex.

There were obvious things that attracted me to this photo. One of them is the circular shape when you walk through the gate, as you look up. I then use the shape of the shadow, as well as the path that leads back into the complex, to create a lead-in line. Kind of almost looks like a keyhole shape. The other things that obviously stands out is the orange stucco against the blue sky.

Anyways, sometimes it is very easy to walk out in our immediate neighborhood and forget that it can be photogenic, as well. That great photo can literally be right outside your window.

Aaaargh!

Some days, we all feel like this swamp monkey. Aaaargh!

The monkey was actually yawning. But I liked where he was perched and seems the monkey picked that high spot on the branch to let out a loud screech for all to hear.

This was taken at the world famous San Diego Zoo.

Fierce

Well, during the months of February thru April, every weekend I shoot what is called winterguard. Winterguard is basically indoor colorguard. These shows are held indoors, mostly in high school gymnasiums. Each colorguard program last anywhere from 5-7 minutes long. I thoroughly enjoy shooting pageantry arts. It doesn't get old, especially when you get great performances and the performers are really into the show they are performing.

In  this photo, I decided to shoot in landscape orientation, rather than the usual portrait orientation I usually do for rifle shots. I did this because I saw a nice line trailing into the back. The added bonus was her fierce look and how the rifles were all basically aligned.  This was caught in a sequence of action shots I fired off. Therefore, they were not posing and just standing there like that.

During the early portion of the winterguard season, it is the most challenging for me to photograph. I have not seen the shows and a lot of the shows, the performers are still learning and are not quite finished. So I have to rely solely on anticipation. As the season progresses, I will have seen the shows a few times and hopefully remember the next time I shoot, what shots I can get. That is a challenge itself, as there are over 300 guards I photograph, by the end of the season. So my memory is the biggest challenge of all.

For the technical side, high school gyms are notorious for terrible lighting. I am usually shooting at 3200 or 6400 ISO, at f2.8. I try to maintain a shutter speed of 1/500sec. We are not allowed to use strobes, because of the restrictions to ensure safety to the performers, when they toss rifles or sabers. I have to say that this is one of the most challenging subjects I have shot in photography. Hands down! I can't think of too many sports which are as unpredictable, fast, and just all over the place like this is. I would even challenge the best sports photographers on the NFL or NBA sidelines to try and shoot this and under these conditions.

With all that said, I really love when I get great shots. This was one of my favorites from the day and not bad for the first competition of the winterguard season.

Watchful Wanderer

I was out at the San Diego Zoo earlier in the day and then strolled over to Balboa Park, since it is adjacent to the zoo. Well, I strolled over that way, the evergreen pear trees were in full, white blooms. This is especially evident near the east end by Park Blvd (by the water fountain). It makes Balboa park that much more photogenic than it already is.

As I was taking pics, I noticed this interesting guy in the distance, leaning casually up against one of the evergreen pear trees. His attire was even more interesting. As it turns out, him and two of his friends were messing around doing some video. Not sure for what purpose. Anyways, I thought he was a very interesting character.