St. George Island, Florida

We have shot pics most of the day. This is our second lighthouse of the day. St. George Island lighthouse. The brick building is the old keepers house, which is being remolded and will be the new museum. The weather is perfect today (74). We plan to do some sunsets tonight. Tomorrow we will continue to move west along the gulf coast. Hopefully, we will shoot two more lights and stop around Panama City. Thanks for following and Happy Shooting!

Crutch

Okefenokee Swamp NWR

Pete and I arrived here this afternoon. We spent about 4 hours in the swamp. We shot plenty of alligators and birds. This big guy tried to ignore us, but we were persistant. We are headed to Appalachee Bay on the gulf coast of Florida. We will get a good nights rest and start again tomorrow at the St. Marks Lighthouse, in St. Marks, Fl. Happy Shooting ! Crutch

Return to Florida

My good friend, Pete and I will be leaving Monday, to make an early trip to Florida. It's a little early for the nesting season at our favorite locations, so we will be checking out some new spots on this trip. We will stop by the Okefenokee NWR in south Georgia on the way down to see what we can find in this massive swamp. We intend to run the panhandle around to Mobile Bay, Alabama in search of sunrises and sunsets, shrimp boats, lighthouses, wading birds and anything else we can find. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know at this email. As usual, Pete and I will move very fast and will be very flexible. Pete is anxious to try out his new Nikon D90 and I have a new 70-200-F2.8 IS that I intend to wear out..hehehe. Happy Shooting! Crutch

Macro for a Change

Many current and recent digital camera lenses, both SLR zooms and fixed lens cameras, have what they refer to as a “macro” capability. You can shoot very close-up so your (small) subject fills the frame. Many photographers are happy with this and shoot close-ups of flowers and bees and insects and all sorts of interesting things. If you want “true macro” which enables you to shoot 1:1 or larger, then you need a macro lens. This is typically a fixed focus lens with a focal length of 50mm, 80mm or up to perhaps 110mm. Usually the 50mm macro is cheaper than the longer ones and the quality just as good, with the additional benefit of wider depth of field and often a wider maximum aperture than the longer macro lenses. The advantages of the longer macro lenses, (say 100mm, for example) is that you can be further away from your subject and still fill the frame (kinder on the knees and the back).

With point-and-shoot type cameras with fixed lenses, you can often get a close-up lens that screws into the front of the lens on the camera and enables you to get closer to your subject and get a larger photo of small or tiny subjects.

Macro is another style that keeps this hobby of ours so interesting and challenging. Give it a try, you just might like it. Happy Shooting !

Crutch

Day Trip to Tazewell, Tn

Pete and I took off to Tazewell, Tennesse to find and shoot this Old Gulf service station. As you can see it is exactly as it was back in 40's. You could get a fillup for $5.00 and they would pump the gas for you, check all your tires and wash your windshield and really mean it when they said ya'll come back :) They no longer pump gas here, but they do have tours of the station, two days a week. This was a fun trip and we were rewarded with a nice sunny afternoon. Check out more photos here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=sets If you get a chance to pass through Tazewell, contact me for directions to this "step back in time" As always, Happy Shooting ! Crutch

Daytrip to Maynardville, TN

Well, cabin fever has finally caught up with Pete and I. We had to do something, so we took off to Maynardville, Tn to photograph a 170 year old general store that is still standing in Maynardville, Tennessee, in Union County. It was built back in the 1840's by Alexander Lafayette Hamilton. It was contructed with popular and hickory, native to the area. It is now known as the Hamilton Crossroads Store. It has been nominated to be put on the National Register of Historic Places. We sure picked a cold day and almost froze trying to get a few pics. It took an hour for my fingers to finally get some feeling back. This was a great trip, as usual with Pete. Check out some more pics here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/53388637@N00/sets/72157625754782179/
As always, comments are welcome. I have been told that some are having trouble leaving comments on my blogsite. I have recently discovered that you must have a Google account (Free) to leave a comment:( But you can leave a comment on the above link. Happy shooting! Crutch

Photo Tip of the Week !

Since I am the proud Poppa of a new granddaughter, I though a tip or two about photographing a newborn might be in order.
First, the background matters. Sometimes a simple change of background (a colorful blanket under your newborn, long green grass, Mom’s beautiful skirt can turn a good photo into a great one.
Second, be candid. A great picture does not have to show your baby gazing at the camera. Sometimes a contemplative, peaceful moment says much more than a perfectly framed smile.
Third, keep yourself in the story. Often one family member takes most of the photos and never gets pictured. If that's you, hand off the camera whenever you can or just stretch out your arm to hold the camera at a distance, so that photos of you with the baby will be part of your archives. You’ll change, too, over the years, and that’s part of the story. This young lady here is Charlotte Clementine, my new pride and joy, that arrived just in time for Christmas. Always keep your camera handy during these precious years. They will be headed to school tomorrow :)

Happy Shooting, Crutch