A Peaceful Place

We all have one. A peaceful place where the troubles of the world don't seem to matter...

We've Been Down this Road Before

It looks like we're going to repeat a lesson we should have learned. And yet....

Deviseth - He whose practice it is to contrive wickedness. Swift - Such as greedily execute their wicked designs.

And every one that heareth these sayings... shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand... And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

The Storm of our own making...

Will we learn this time?

Nojoqui Tree

This tree still has something to say, and says it well.

Red Grill

Simple abstracts. Let them say what they will.

Take Down Notice

So much for Public Domain.

I got a take down notice for this video because I used the song "Swing that Music" by Louis Armstrong. Now, I did this after getting the song from a Pubic Domain Music site and was under the impression that I was ok to use. For all I know that is still probably the case. In any event, I've replaced the song with something of my own that I mixed up.

Moral of the story: Trust no one and nothing! And always try to use ALL your own content.

Over the Water

Sometimes, for no other reason we just play.

As in a dream

The Hobbit stood at the water's edge and looked on through in wonder and amazement.

Don't Tread on Me

Kinda describes how a lot of folks are feeling about the state of the world these days...

The Ancients

These two had no problem posing for the camera. Smiling was a different story...

Ramones

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Put on some Ramones and forget about your troubles!

Oh, and don't forget today is the day of the Adobe CS4 announcement.

Let's Go Surfing

Surfing and California, two things that go hand in hand.. So how do you take a novel approach to the subject? A little digital art of course.

On the Shores of Our Dreams

And yet another beach image. It's the lemonade of proximity and a rather simple subject matter to work with. If these images can garner 3 seconds of someone's attention - they've done their job.

Out on a Limb

Critters.... They are a real test when it comes to photography. They test your patience and skill.

They like to move around and the environments that they live in are full of contrast, lots of sun, lots of shade.

You need to be prepared and really work with the animals. And take lots and lots of shots.

Time and practice will bring you better results.

Idle Time

Every picture tells a story.

Beach Bums

Nature provides such a great canvas that you need so few elements to make a compelling image. The trick is to practice and always take your camera with you.

Troubles to the wind

Sailing season is nearly over and this year I took very few sailing images. I really wanted to concentrate on something a little out of the ordinary in terms of nautical pictures, but it looks like that may have to wait until next season.

Guys and Garages

A friend of mine gave a talk on a wonderful book she put together. Thought I'd share. Check it out if you're so inclined.

A Little Light Please

These days it's hard to see through the confusion in the world around us. It's almost like walking around in the dark.

Stormy Weather

Watching the news last night, and you could see that the perfect storm continues to rage on in the financial and political world.

Thank God I can find some solace in the beauty of Nature.

It's just hard to top a peaceful and serene sunrise.

The fruit is calling from the vine

A day out at the vineyards proved to be fruitful (pun intended). It was nice to get out and just spend some time shooting and working in different lighting conditions. In this case overcast, which justified carrying around a heavy tripod.

After the Harvest

Getting a head start of Fall Color. It's there, just look around.

Low Tide and Sunset

Water and reflective surfaces are a great way to expand your canvas of light. If you've got them, use them.

Keep Off

Speaking of seasonal images, don't forget that Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Autumn are upon us.

Time to review image keywords and start taking additional photographs of the season for next year.

Sacrafice

Sacrafice, originally uploaded by Damian Gadal.

I don't think I need to say much about this image. It just reinforces the fact that a singular event can change the world, and most often not for the better.

Gone and Lost

I know that no one really cares what I had for lunch. When I don't have much to say, I tend to keep it short and post an image. Such is the case today (and yesterday for that matter).

Off the Coast

Nature provides the best light around.

Black Hole

Would it really be all that bad if the Super Collider caused a black hole that swallowed the Earth? No, just think about it. All our problems would be solved!

Still Moments

Well the Sun's shifted a little and that changes the coast dramatically for sunset (and sunrise) shots. A little shift in position makes a big difference and where you need to stand and what you can use for backgrounds and foregrounds.

The World Was Mine

Well, I hit a microstock lull the last couple of days with NO sales. The funny thing is, I more than made up for it with a sale on Alamy (breaking the two month lull there).

This is why, if your interested in Stock Photography, you need to have several sites selling your work.

It's time consuming and a lot of work, but like anything else, the more you put into it the more you get out of it.

Planning helps too! Most likely any seasonal shots you take now won't sell for close to a year from now, so try to work six months or more in advance. Yes you can take Christmas themed photos in June.

With more and more publishing being done on the internet the lead time won't be so crucial in the future, but the print media isn't going away anytime soon. So, shoot accordingly.

September Orange

Fall is just around the corner and I was out taking photos when I realized that though I may notice the difference, most people wouldn't. A beach is a beach.

Time to work on season specific images.

Along the Bluffs

Minimal is minimal. Let your subject matter speak for itself.

The Train Wreck Continues

Arnold get's it, or at least he did. California has had it's head in the sand for years. Pass no more bonds. Get spending under control, prioritise our needs and budget accordingly. It's going to be tough. It's going to take leadship, and it has to be done.

Surf Time

For some strange reason, there was a band across the top of this image. It's like the pixels weren't written to the CF card correctly. This forced me to crop this image. I'm not sure the crop works as I had something different in mind what I took this.

Missing the top portion of the surf boards bothers me. I'm not sure the picture is as strong without more of the surfboards.

That's why it's always good to take several pictures of your subject. Digital insurance. I'm glad I've got other images of this shot.

Sun and Sea

The beach is a great place for photography. The landscape along the coast is perfect for playing with the light. Just by changing your position, in combination with shutter speed and aperture settings. gives you a lot of control over the light/exposure. You can get all kinds of different results. I just happen to like silhouettes.

Summer Afternoons

Summer maybe gone, but the memories of a perfect summer can can last a lifetime.

They're treasures we can keep with us and reflect upon from time to time.

Make happy memories that last.

Fire Tower

As fun as it is to do some creative things in Photohop with my images, there's not much use for them.

I have some fun, and either delete them or burn them to disk when I'm finished. These types of images have no stock value that I know of, nor is there anywhere to submit them.

Their value is in the fun playing with them.

City Hall

Architecture in retro, or no I haven't lost my mind (I never knew where it was to begin with).

Besides cleaning off the hard drive of old images, fall is just around the corner. Time of some change of seasons photography.

Around here those changes are so subtle, you have to seek them out.

Google Chrome

Like a lot of people I'm waiting for the Google Chrome download to be available. Curiosity and better web tools have me sitting here in anticipation.

I hope it's not just all hype.

12:37 p.m.

Update: I've installed Google Chrome and played with it a bit. My first impression? eh, I like Firefox better. That's not to say it's bad or that it won't become my browser of choice, it just doesn't seem to fit well with the way I work.

I'll play around with it some more and post a follow up.

Metropolis

The environments we make for ourselves hardly seemed connected to the world around us. Often cold and sterile. In other words, urban.

Far East Chop Suey

Cleaning off my hard drive is taking a little longer than I expected. Probably because I'm having fun playing around with the images that I'm getting rid of.