Friendship falls

Playing with aperture and shutter speed.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f22
ISO 100
1/3 sec.

It is so small...

"Nobody sees a flower - really - it is so small it takes time - we haven't time - and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time. " - Georgia O'Keefe

Pentax K200D
Chinon 50mm lens
f1.4
ISO 100
1/250 sec.
No Flash

Lake Reflection

I'm frustrated because I've taken no time, lately, to get out and take new pictures. I have to look through shots from the last month to post.

This shot, btw, is about as tourist-y as it gets. In fact, I would bet that few people from Abbotsford have ever taken this shot, but every tourist who visits on a sunny day (all 10 of them in the year) has taken this shot.

I really need two hours outside with Tank (my camera).

That was a weird sentence.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@38mm)
f4.5
ISO 100
1/125 sec.

Compensating...?

I'm always happy to infer things and I think there might be some underlying insecurity in the fact that there are so many tall columns and obelisks around Rome and the Vatican.

Come on...I've read Freud...I know what the real issue is...

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f8
ISO 100
1/500 sec.

Toque Girl stalking birds...

At the lake, Hannah became this stalker of all things, animate and inanimate alike. I love that she's getting an eye for photography.

The Force is strong in this one...

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@32mm)
f11
ISO200
1/50 sec.

BTW, check out Hannah's photography at her own blog: totallymonkeyinaround.blogspot.com

Stick Boy and Toque Girl

This is indicative of every trip to the lake that I have taken with my children. Everywhere we go Ben's picking up sticks, like the one above, and aping for the camera, and Hannah is taking in the scenery, falling behind, and generally unconcerned about where anyone is. But on the dock, Hannah sticks with me because she's afraid she's somehow going to spontaneously fall in, and Ben, well, Ben tries to be as far away as he can from me.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f11
ISO 800
1/200

Lake shadows

I love shots that turn out wrong and right at the same time. This is not a good portrait, but it turned into a pretty good silhouette shot.

I mean...uh...I meant to shoot this just this way. Including the lens flare and the backlight and everything.

Yeah.

That's the story I'm sticking with.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@23mm)
f4
ISO 100
1/350 sec.

Holy Floor

The marble that was once seating and walls in the Colosseum was taken and used elsewhere in Rome. Carla, our guide in Rome, told us that when we visited the Vatican we would no longer feel sad that the Colosseum was destroyed in this way.

The next morning we entered the Vatican and immediately our eyes were drawn to all of the statues, the frescoes, the paintings. Antonella, our guide in the Vatican reminded us that the most underappreciated but incredibly valuable part of the Vatican was under our feet.

Carla was right.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@20mm)
f4
ISO 800
1/10 sec.
No Flash

Reflection too

Same subject, different orientation. You know, the more I look at these shots, the more I like them. Time to find more puddles, ponds, lakes, oceans...

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 200
1/400 sec.

Reflection

We went to Mill Lake a few weeks ago, and though the sun was out it was cold as it had rained recently. I played with some reflections, photographically speaking, and this was largely an experiment to see what would come of it.

What do you think?

Hit your F11 key and you'll see all of it at once.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 200
1/400 sec.

The Watchers

I took this exact photograph three years ago, but it looked entirely different. Not because I was shooting with film three years ago, but because the artist who painted this scene, the Watchers of the Wall painted over the previous scene I photographed three years ago.

I wonder if the artist is content in knowing that his or her art is impermanent.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@55mm)
f8
ISO 1000
1/15 sec.

The Colosseum

This is the Flavian Amphitheater in Rome, so named for . It is commonly referred to as the Colosseum because there was once a "colossal" statue of Nero nearby. It is an amphitheater and as such was a place where Romans used to go for entertainment. They would watch Gladiators fight and see animals dragged to Rome from all parts of the Roman empire. If you go back to my post on March 28 you'll see a smaller version built around the same time as this one. Think about the difference in scale between the amphitheater in Nimes compared to this in Rome and this isn't the tall wall. The tallest existing wall of the Colosseum is the one off to the left of this photo.

To think that what passes for "reality entertainment" for us is Survivor. The Romans invented that game.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f6.7
ISO 200
1/125 sec.

Ditch

I saw a cloud, trying to hide the sun, in a ditch. Silly cloud. Doesn't sun always beat cloud?

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 100
1/1000 sec.

Spring blossoms

Hannah and I went to the library last night and the first thing she notices when she gets out of the car is that all the trees around the library are in bloom. I told her that we could come back and take photos, so I packed both Ben and Hannah's cameras into the car this morning with the intent of going back to the library this afternoon. So we went.

I was reminded how temporary Spring is, as the trees that looked so full last night had already lost some of their blossoms. As Ben and Hannah ran around the park I could not help but make some correlations. I want to hold them so close to me and yet know that it cannot last forever.

Man, sometimes I'm depressing. Sheesh...

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@35mm)
f4.5
ISO 100
1/400 sec.

Birra Moretti

This photo was taken while I was waiting for everyone to wake up on our first morning in Rome. This beer tap, with the brewery name Birra Moretti, was the tap in the Pisana Palace's entrance and breakfast area. I didn't see many people drinking beer with their cheerios, but I thought the tap was an interesting subject.

The background blur was caused by my 50mm lens at an aperture of 1.4. That's the reason I love that lens.

Pentax K200D
Chinon 50mm lens
f1.4
ISO 400
1/90 sec.
No Flash

Cloudy morning

This morning I coerced the kids and Hilary into going to Willband Creek for a walk. We dressed warmly and wandered the North Loop. When we left the house the sun was out, but by the time we arrived at Willband the sun was playing hide-and-seek with some foreboding, portentous clouds.

This shot is entirely un-photoshopped. I usually try for a minimum of manipulation, often adjusting the contrast only (in curves), but this was taken from the camera to IrfanView (a photo editing program) to re-size and posted it here.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 100
1/1250 sec.

Luigi!

No matter where you go in Italy you will see these little guys rolling down the street. I love the Fiat 500. I even asked Fabrizio about the price of one of these and it was way too much, but if there was a way to buy one I would drive it to school every day. I love them.

Jenn and Carlton Haak (fellow teachers and chaperones on the trip) and I must have quoted, "Punch me Guido. Punch me in the face!" from the movie Cars a thousand times - pretty much every time we saw one of these cars. It was like an Italian version of "Punchbuggy!"

"Punch me in the face!" Ha!

Pentax K200D
Chinon 50mm lens
f1.4
ISO 100
1/60 sec.
No Flash

BTW, do you like the white background? I don't know yet. Also, I'm trying to figure out the html to center the picture, despite the monitor size. I'm learning so much...

Fountain of the Four Rivers

This is the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi, or the Fountain of the Four Rivers, and is found in the Piazza Navona. The four rivers referred to by the statue, made by Bernini, are the Nile, the Ganges, the Danube, and the Rio de la Plata (Africa, Asia, Europe and America, respectively).

I shot this with my Chinon 50mm lens because it has a bottom-end aperture of 1.4, and that let me shoot without my camera screaming at me for a flash that would have been totally ineffective anyway. I was so overwhelmed by the Piazza Navona that I have a number of totally useless pictures from there and the surrounding area. I had had about three hours of sleep in previous thirty-six, we had lost luggage, had checked into our hotel and then we were right back on the bus to go for dinner, which was where we went after this shot was taken. I'm surprised it turned out at all.

Pentax K200D
Chinon 50mm lens
f1.4
ISO 800
1/6 sec.
No Flash

p.s. try to ignore the wicked lens flare (they're not UFO's)

Outing with Hannah

Two weeks ago, on a rainy Saturday, Hannah and I went out to take pictures. I hadn't visited this spot (under the highway overpass near Walmart) for almost three years, so I thought it might spawn a good talk between Hannah and me about the poverty in Abbotsford, and people who choose to live under overpasses.

She got a Panasonic Lumix LZ-7 for her birthday from Hilary and me and I wanted a good, gritty subject for her to shoot. I hate to admit that some of her pictures were better than mine, but the little monkey's got a great eye for this kind of stuff (if only I could get to her to shoot straight).

BTW, this is my shot, not hers. She can start her own photo blog if she wants.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm (@55mm)
f11
ISO 400
1/13 sec.
No Flash

Sagrada Familia Sanctuary

Antoni Gaudi planned this church, and at one point knocked on doors in Barcelona to raise the funds needed to complete it. After his death the church sat unfinished for quite some time and although it was begun in the 1880's it still may not be complete for another 20 to 40 years. I don't know if Gaudi thought it would be done in his lifetime, but he really believed in this project. I don't know that I'm the type of guy who could design something and believe that I may not be the person to finish it.

The pillars shown above are meant to replicate tree trunks, and the large knots were meant to replicate, well, knots in tree trunks where branches once hung. It was Gaudi's intent that while you sat in church you should feel that the canopy above was one God created, not made by man. Gaudi believed that you couldn't improve on nature, so why not copy it?

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 400
1/60 sec.
No Flash

Sagrada Familia

Luke 22:60 - "Peter replied, 'Man, I don't know what you're talking about!' Just as he was speaking the rooster crowed."

La Sagrada Familia is a church in Barcelona that has been under construction since the 1880's. It has faced all kinds of criticism and lack of funding and work stoppages. Christ's life is depicted around the East, North and West facades of the church. The East and North facades were planned and mostly completed by Gaudi, the architect, but he died (in rather tragic circumstances) and his plans were put on hold. The church is currently under heavy construction, but tourists are allowed to visit the sanctuary and the upper parts of the East and West facades.

This photo was taken on the West facade, the Passion facade, and scenes, like the one above, depict the events surrounding Christ's death. The one above shows Peter's denial and subsequent guilt over his denial. Each of the scenes is accompanied by the Biblical reference.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@23mm)
f8
ISO 100
1/500 sec.

St. Peter's Statuary

I haven't got a clue who all those guys are around the top of St. Peter's, but I'm sure they're all saints. One thing I never got over in the Vatican was that if there was space to put something, there was something placed or painted or fresco'd or somethinged. It was weird to go to Florence after this and visit the Duomo there, because it seemed so plain.

The Vatican was my first real experience of sensory overload. There are so many people, so many things to see, so much emotion and history and, well, stuff. I could have spent a week in there and still felt unfinished. And to think we had three hours.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@21mm)
f8
ISO 100
1/350 sec.

St. Peter's and the Sistine Chapel

So what one sees here is St. Peter's Basilica, and to the right and slightly above is the Sistine Chapel. St. Peter's is supposed to remind one of the grandeur and power of God. I can only imagine being a 17th century peasant making a pilgrimage to this place and passing out in the front entrance from the overwhelming size and ornate decoration.

I came to a new understanding of the term "cognitive dissonance" after visiting St. Peter's. As a 21st century visitor I couldn't help but feel, in the same moment, total awe and revulsion. Awe at what is the most amazing display of architectural and design genius that I've ever seen. Revulsion at what all of this display actually meant in financial and political power. I'm still not quite sure what to make of the whole experience.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f8
ISO 100
1/750 sec.

Sunny with cloudy periods

This is one of those shots where you pass the scene, decide that you have to go to church and shouldn't be late, then think better of it, find a driveway to turn around in, drive back at breakneck speed, pull off the road and jump out of the car and scare passersby and all the while your children in the backseat recite parts of the movie "Cars" to you.

What?

That hasn't happened to you? Huh.

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@43mm)
f8
ISO 100
1/160 sec.

btw, I haven't begun to exhaust the Europe pictures, but even I'm getting sick of my stories of Europe. I think if I mention Fabrizio again Hilary will pummel me with a rock of sizable proportions. I might post another Euro photo tomorrow. We'll see.

Terminal 5

When we arrived in London we discovered that one of our students' luggage was missing (thanks, Air Canada). We're pretty sure that it never made it out of Vancouver, but she did eventually get it when we were in Florence.

This shot was my first impression of Heathrow's Terminal 5. It is a monster. Everything in this building seems designed to make you feel small. Most of our group spent twenty minutes at the spot where I took this photo waiting for the luggage situation to get sorted, and we were just too happy to get out of this building. There was so much more exploration to do, but no time to do it. Oh well, I guess I'll have to go back.

Pentax K200D
50mm Chinon lens
f1.4
ISO 400
1/90 sec.
No Flash

Whoa...

Pont du Gard (an aqueduct) has survived from the time of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus, or Augustus.

Standing next to it, under it, and on it made me feel so small. I laugh now at how many times I said "wow" and "whoa" and "oh" and...

Pentax K200D
DA 18-55mm lens (@18mm)
f3.5
ISO 200
1/350 sec.