Fog and Frost

Last weekend I arose early to get to a location I pass on the way to the office perfect for photographing the sunrise. I packed all my camera gear and was ready to go. As I stepped out of the house I immediately realized I wasn't going to be getting any sunrise pictures with thick fog in the air.

I was already up and itching to take some pictures, so I headed to the spot anyway. Instead of turning east to catch the fog blocking the mountains and the sun and the sky, I turned northwest and snapped this picture:

While walking through the snow out in the middle of no where, I decided to take some pictures of plants using my macro lens to capture the morning frost.

Patience

I can't tell you how patient my wife is with my photography habits. Especially when I'm constantly asking her to let me take pictures of her to try new things, places, lenses, tricks, etc. She often hears me asking her to hop in the car with me to check out something with my camera.

Just before the snow hit, we were doing just this. I had a few places in mind I wanted to try some pictures with to see how they turned out. I threw my camera gear in the car and off we went.

Jeremy and Erin

Jeremy and Erin wanted some fall family portraits so we hurried out before the snow came and here's a sample of what we got.

Painting with Light

Wanting to try something new and finding a few helpful tips online, I tried light painting for the first time. I colored two LED bulbs, one red and one blue, with a marker and tied them together and this is the result:

Wall Project

While browsing another photography blog some time ago I came across a picture of photos hanging in someone's nursery. I liked the idea and showed it to my wife (who had been asking me to build something to hang photos in our house for a while now), who also liked it. After a few trips to stores for supplies and a while later, we completed our project over the weekend. The first photos below are from our oldest child's room (my half of the project) and the second set is from our second child's room (my wife made these ones).
I wanted bright colors for our older girl's room, while my wife did muted colors for our second girl.

Heidi's Brideys

Here are some shots of Heidi's bridal portraits.
And here are some "Before and After" pictures. Let me know what you think because I'm not sure which ones I prefer (I know it's up to the bride, I just want your comments for my preferences).

Before

After

Before

After

Mountain Man at Heart

When people ask where I'm from the typical reply comes I was born in a log cabin in the mountains. To those who aren't believers yet I've revisited my birthplace, this time with a camera. It still looks just like I left it as a young child raised in the wild.

I'm a mountain man at heart, and if my job would allow it I'd have a mountain-man-beard to match. Until then I'll have to be content following dress and grooming code. I'd be a happy soul if I could move back and rough it, but my way of life might not be supported by the occupation of mountain man.

I'd live high on the hill, far away from any visitors . . . Wait, maybe I'm confusing myself for a mountain man instead of a hermit.

I could be both.

Dan & Heidi

Once upon a time, in a land far away lived a boy named Dan and a girl named Heidi. Well, Dan and Heidi have decided they're getting married. Last night we were able to get a few engagement pictures taken before it was dark, and here they are:
And they lived happily ever after.
The End

New Lenses: Tests

I recently acquired two new lenses. It takes some time to become familiar with a new lens. I'm not yet fully comfortable with these, as more testing is required to find sweet spots, etc. However, when a new lens arrives, I can hardly wait to open the box and try it out. Below are a few test shots.

DA 40mm f/2.8 Limited
DA 17-70mm f/4 SDM

Moose on the Loose

During last weekend camping was the plan. Well, I guess three moose had camping on their agenda too. While in the canyon a momma moose with her twin calves decided they liked our camping spot too, and I wasn't going to say no to a momma moose.
While following them for quite a few hours momma moose was getting used to me being around. The calves weren't too sure about me being so close, but only about 20 feet away I was able to get one of the babies to pose and smile:
After some time of running and playing together, the babies started to get tired:
After a short nap the babies woke up and were ready for a snack. Forgetting I was there, the two calves walked toward me and started eating leaves on nearby trees. I could have reached out and touched them as they walked by, but didn't want to push my luck.