I Am Become Death

The photography class that I am taking was supposed to take a field trip to Cades Cove today but it was called on account of rain. Lot's of rain. Rain, rain, rain. Alexis had already planned a shopping day in Pigeon Forge with the two boys since I was going to be gone, so I made a field trip of my own to the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge, TN.

Shots of a plasma ball. I did them with a slow shutter speed (1.6" with an f-stop of 11) to get a bit of glow. These turned out good but the overhead lights really kept me from getting the whole shot without having reflections on the glass. I'm going to have to see if I can get in first thing one Saturday and convince them to turn off the lights in this room before anyone else gets there. Those would be amazing.

Similar to a plasma ball, this is a disk where the electrical charges will react to wherever you touch on the disk. I liked the lightning look.
Old cold miners hat with acetylene lamp (I think it was acetylene). Can you imagine working in deep dark mines wearing only this for light? Sorry about the reflections, it was stored in a glass enclosure. I even used a polarizing filter to minimize reflections.
These ornamental looking things are actually modern day drill tips used for drilling for oil.
They have a very cool model of a offshore drilling rig that is amazing. Here I took two shots of the same picture, only shifting focus from background (left) to the foreground (right).
Cut away view of an internal combustion engine. This was one of the few displays that actually got any natural light so I wanted to take advantage of that.
Self portrait in a parabolic solar dish that is used to collect solar light (not a solar energy panel, it actually funnels light into tubes that light up inside). Yes I am wearing my mp3 player ear buds. I have to have music playing when shooting.Spinning model of an atom.Why so glum, Mr. Nuclear Energy Worker?Oh, your right hand fell off? That sucks pretty bad. I guess radiation poisoning will do that to ya! (Funny thing is, the same glove has been off for over a year now...don't think the curator has noticed yet.)
Pretty pattern don't you think? Can you guess what it is?
How about this one?
Now? Still can't figure out what this has to do with "energy"?Still nothing? Ok, think "sudden release of energy". You're staring down the wrong end of a 1,900 lb short range attack missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads.Exact replica of the bomb that was detonated over Hiroshima. The uranium-235 used in it was produced here and the United States nuclear weapons fuel is stockpiled at the Y-12 plant.
Mark 28 bomb, our first thermonuclear device, "kicking it up a notch" as Emeril would say.
Visiting this museum always astounds me with our creative ability to take thisrevise it into the worlds largest building (at the time) full of rudimentary controls like this
and create something like this

I am NOT going to go into the politics and morality of it. I think we did what had to be done. But it is an odd mix of pride in our (humankind's...not just the US) ability to create something like it and shame in our having created the necessity for it.

The post title? It's from a Hindu scripture of which Robert Oppenheimer later said he was reminded of after overseeing the development of the atomic bomb. "I am become death, the destroyer of worlds."

Self Portrait

I made this self portrait a few weeks back. I didn't actually realize it at the time, it showed up in the mail today.

What kind of camera? Oh, its not my normal Nikon. I used a RedFlex Red Fixed System (i.e. red light camera) at the intersection of Kingston Pike and Papermill ! ! !
The technique was simple. I rolled through a right turn on red .95 seconds after the light turned. Go ahead and admit it....you wish your photography was as avante garde as my performance work here, don't you?

Do you suppose I should send it back and ask them to Photoshop out the shadow from their camera? I mean, if they are going to be in the bidness of professional photography, shouldn't they strive for quality shots? (I'm having fun here, in case you couldn't tell!)

I have to admit, it's not one of my better photographs. But if I'm going to pay $50 for it, I figured that I might as well post it to get some use out of it :)_

Saturday Shoot -The One That Got Away

I think I need help. Some kind of professional help. I left the comfort and warmth of bed to go take pictures in 20 degree weather at 5:52 this morning. I put Linkin Park on the mp3 player and swigged down a Red Bull energy drink to get me awake by the time I got to my first destination.

I didn't like how the set up there was looking so I headed on to my next spot, when I saw a great clearing overlooking Lake Loudon. I parked and jogged about 200 yards where I set up my tripod just on the inside of the guard rail, which left me standing on the shoulder of the road about 2 feet from traffic. I've got to get me one of those reflective construction vests! (somewhat kidding). Now it was just time to wait for Mr. Sun.
Unfortunately, as the sun came closer and closer, two things happened. First, it wasn't coming up exactly where I hoped. Second, the more light that came up, the more haze washed out the Smoky Mountain foothills in the background.

Seeing I wasn't going to get the shot I wanted here, I headed to another place to actually catch the sun rising. I had The Cove all to myself. Birds filled the sky and steam wafted off of the water. The sound of ducks, geese, herons, and gulls echoed in the frigid morning air. When the sun finally peaked over the tree tops, I couldn't help but smile. I live for these brief vacations of solitude.

If anyone has found a missing diver, please return him/her to the office at The Cove.

So I am on a rocky outcrop shooting towards the sun, trying to capture good exposures without being blown out. I've got my aperture closed down and relatively fast shutter speeds so not a lot of light is coming in the camera. Movement to my right catches my attention and I turn just in time to see a bald eagle gliding across the waterline right towards me! I have never seen one in the wild and here is one just 30 feet away. I turned my camera around and frantically thumbed the wheel trying to open up the aperture, snapping two shots in the 1 second that I had as he/she flew by. (Did I mention I was wearing gloves?) I was so disappointed when I saw two black screens.

With an extreme amount of tweaking in Photoshop Elements, I was able to alter the two black pictures enough where you can see that it was a bald eagle, but they're not presentable.

I guess I'm dorky, but that was a very special moment for me, just getting to see this magnificent bird in the wild. I'm going to stake out that area the next couple of weekend mornings and try to get a good shot of it. I guess fishermen aren't the only ones to talk about "the one that got away".

Speaking of fishermen, here's one castnetting for bait later in the morning.

So I didn't really get any great shots this morning, at least nothing I'd have printed. But I did have fun and I'm still learning what works and what doesn't. Plus, I got that great experience of being so close to a wild bald eagle.

I hope your weekend is starting out excellent as mine has!

Rocks, Docks, and Trees

No doubt that the weekend's photography field trip left a bad taste in my mouth. To put it into a sexual context (because any artistic pursuit has a sensual element to it), after that session, I felt like I was left saying, "I'm sorry. I swear.....it's never happened to me before." So I grabbed my gear bag and headed to one of my favorite spots for a late afternoon photo session. I had a blast and it reignited my passion.

I'm a very active photographer. I like to be climbing over things, getting dirty, and/or doing something that might get me in trouble. Tonight didn't disappoint as I jumped down off of boulders, ran up and down the rocky banks of Lake Loudon, and jogged uphill trying to get one or two last sunset shots from a higher elevation. I have GOT to get a more rugged tripod so let me know if you have any recommendations.

ROCKS
These rocks are all submerged during the summer. The TVA drains the lakes during the fall/winter to generate electricity & manage the spring rains/floods. The color, geometry and reflections were impossible to ignore.

“On matters of style, swim with the current, on matters of principle, stand like a rock.” Thomas Jefferson
“Slander cannot destroy an honest man - when the flood recedes the rock is there” Chinese Proverb
“A pile of rocks ceases to be a rock when somebody contemplates it with the idea of a cathedral in mind.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupery

DOCKS
There were no clouds to make an interesting sunset, so I found my own contrasts and shadows.

I loved the starburst effect of the sun as it started to dip in the trees (click on the picture to enlarge so you can see it).
“If Columbus had had an advisory committee he would probably still be at the dock.” Arthur Goldberg

TREES
“The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.” Proverb
“Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter. Who would think that those branches would turn green again and blossom, but we hope it, we know it.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
"Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.” Abraham Lincoln

And my favorite shot of the day. Blow it up to see, but the detail of the trees, the darkness of the landscape, and the faint water in the lake were great contrast to the orange sky.
Not only did my muse find me tonight after leaving me for the weekend. She threw me on the bank of the lake, whispered dirty words in my ear and had her way with me.

"F" is for Field Trip...

...and "frustrated" and another f-word that I will refrain from using.

The past several weekends, I have had a great time taking what I considered very good photographs and under flawless conditions. I have been very happy with the progress I have made from the time I got my camera last June and started classes 4 weeks ago.

But today was our first class field trip and buddy boy, let me tell you, I blew it. I took 310 shots of absolute crapola. I will chalk it up to several factors, but it all comes back to me, I have to become a better photographer so I can anticipate and get around it when these things come up.

• Conditions - It was rainy early, then misty, nasty, wet, gray with a 100% chance of "blah".
• Pressure - I was shooting with I guess 30 or 40 classmates, so I put pressure on myself. I'm used to shooting by myself, at my leisure, with no expectations from anyone but me.
• Herd Mentality - It's hard to be unique and let the pictures form in your mind before you shoot them, when you have 40 other people around you clicking away. What are they seeing that I'm not? Ooo...is that a good angle that she's got? I should check that out? etc
  
• Exposure - After feeling comfortable with this for a week or two, I lost it today. I was struggling with getting a large enough aperture in the weak lighting and that caused slow shutter speeds, making it hard to get crisp shots.

Waaaaaah! Waaaaaah! Want some cheese with that whine? Nah, I'm good. I'm just recognizing it for what it is. A temporary set back. I have to look at the big picture. I've made a lot of progress in just 4 weeks, so having to take a step back is okay.

Just the same, I started this blog to document how things go and not just the good shots. So for what it's worth, here are some of the shots I took today. No Photoshop work either, although I am tempted to straighten up several of these!

Yep, this morning's photo shoot was a "bust" (yeah, that was bad but I couldn't resist).

There Is No Substitute.

Some windows and bricks....exciting, huh? I was hoping for a more geometrical pattern but the windows weren't evenly spaced apart width wise.

I loved the color of these doors and the extra deep red of the brick.

I was setting up for a shot when a fellow student stepped into the frame. I guess when you have 40 people shooting one subject, that'll happen. So I shot him instead.

I loved the geometry and color of this building. I will have to come back on a brighter day.

While everyone was shooting the obvious and obligatory Sunsphere, I wandered off and took this picture of another student and his reflection.

All in all it's just another brick in the wall.

This was probably one of my favorites that I took. I just need to straighten it up. You can see the marble church front, the reflection of the steeple, and the copper lamp post.

Typical downtown glass and metal.

I liked these three colors together. It kind of reminded me of an Italian flag.

If I'm going to have to turn anything in from this field trip, I might just go back tomorrow morning and re-shoot the same route by myself.