16:9

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Alert readers may have noticed that I am lately fond of the 16:9 ratio in processing photos.  You can read all about it here. Lightroom offers it as a standard crop along with 5×7 and 8×10.  Anyone who has bought a new TV in the last 7 years watch this format.  My cell phone uses close to a 16:9 format as well.  I think this format has more visual impact than a full frame DSLR format for some subjects.  It’s great for landscapes but it can be very effective for detail work, too.

Of course, using this ratio means you will likely have to crop your photo and that’s where a hi res, low noise file comes in handy.  There are purists who would never crop and try to get the perfect crop in camera.  I admire those folks that can achieve that perfect crop in camera.  It’s how I was taught to use a camera a few years ago.  My own instinct is to crop in camera.  But I’m not a purist and I think many photos can be made better with the right cropping.  Sometimes you may discover photos within your photos.

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Coming soon: 1:1!

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mistakes ! have made

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Though it’s generally believed I don’t make mistakes, I admit to making more than my share in my lifetime.  There are those who would argue that but I would like to take this opportunity to set the record straight. When you get to a certain age you reflect on your life and, hopefully, have only a few regrets.  Not that I’m at that age mind you,  but I had an extra hour with nothing to do so I did a little reflecting anyway.  I’ll probably regret this but here goes:

I’m told when I was born I was late.  I’ve tried to be reasonably punctual ever since.

When I was in the military I misidentified a UFO on radar as being Martian when clearly it was from another solar system altogether.  However, because of this mistake, I was given a promotion and a substantial increase in pay.  Go figure.

I once bought a Chevrolet Vega.  To compound that mistake, I bought another Chevrolet (a Malibu) 25 years later.  Now, I don’t mean to offend GM or Chevrolet fans who may be reading this, but these two particular cars were the worse cars anybody has ever owned.  I believe the Vegas have all disappeared from the planet since I never see them on the road or at any car shows. They had a habit of turning to rust while still in the showroom.  Malibus are still being manufactured but I haven’t a clue why that is.

I didn’t buy Apple stock in 1980 (@ $22 (US) a share) because I was allergic to the fruit.

I’ll never be over Macho Grande!

 

 

 

seeing red pt 8

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Click on any image below to enter the gallery.

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packard/bug

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From Wikipedia: Packard was an American luxury automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, and later by the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899, and the last in 1958. I think this is an early to mid 1930’s model. The bug below is a recent model.

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ninebark

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A few years ago I planted a Ninebark shrub to help break up an uninteresting back wall of our house.  It was only about 14 inches tall when I planted it but it’s well over 6 feet tall now.  In the spring, clusters of tiny flowers appear all over it for a short time.  I had an opportunity to get some shots with the macro lens the other day.  The entire flower cluster is no bigger than an inch to and inch and a quarter.  By the time you read this they will probably be all gone.

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partly cloudy

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I was only at the lake a few minutes before the thunder, lightning and rain drove me inside.  I was able to get off a few shots, all taken within a few minutes of each other.

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seeing red pt 7

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After two weeks of rain-outs, the Damascus Cruz-in had a great opening night.  It was a beautiful evening for most folks with lots of sunshine and no clouds.  Terrible conditions for photos, especially since most of these cars are polished like mirrors.  So I concentrated on detail shots which is no hardship for me because I enjoy doing it and the challenge is exciting.

 

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mush rooms

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Found these guys growing among the irises in the backyard.  They’re almost as pretty as the irises.  Almost.

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i like LIKE, but…

 

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If we can be serious for a minute: I like the LIKE button in WordPress and I’m not ashamed to admit it.  It’s a modest way of approval a blogger can give a photographers work and it’s especially handy when you can’t comment for one reason or another.  Who wouldn’t like a LIKE?  Well, I for one when I found a problem with it.  When another blogger clicks the LIKE button on your blog it can’t be removed except by the person who clicked the LIKE button in the first place.  Why is that a problem?  I’m glad you asked!  It’s a problem when the Gravatar link to the “LIKEers” site is inappropriate.  I found one such link when I clicked a Gravatar last week.  I usually go to all the sites that click the LIKE button, just to see what they’re up to.  Apparently, WordPress does not have a way for a blogger to remove that Gravatar from your LIKEs list.  I know they are aware of this because other bloggers have made the same complaint about the inappropriateness of some bloggers who probably troll other sites to try to lure folks to their site.

I have maintained that the LIKE button gives a more accurate representation of who is reading your blog than a blogroll.  But the blogger at least has control over a blogroll but apparently not the LIKE gravatars that appear once the button is pushed.  So please accept this as an apology if you clicked on a LIKE Gravatar and were transported to an inappropriate site. If it continues, I may be forced to remove the LIKE button until this control issue can be resolved.