Looking Back – Feeling Blue

I am a big fan of photography classes. Even if you know how to work your camera, and you are happy with your skills, there is always something new to learn from others. The classes I take tend to have photographers of varying skill levels, and backgrounds. Usually there is an assignment each week, and the following class will get to review and discuss everyone’s work. By looking at so many different photographic styles, you can gain ideas and inspiration for your own work. Here are a few shots from a class I took in 2004 at the New York Open Center for an assignment called “Mood” :

Trumpet Player at the South Street Seaport, NYC

Neon Sign, Downtown NYC

Another thing that you can gain by taking a class is a project to focus on. Even a vague assignment such as “mood” will force you to go out and shoot with a goal in mind. If you are lacking motivation, or ideas… take a class!

Looking Back – Skateboarders getting high

These photos were taken back in March of 2004. I was taking a class at the New York Open Center, and I had an assignment called “Movement”. I decided to go to the South Street Seaport to take some shots, and I came across these guys skateboarding behind the shops and restaurants. Their skills seemed a step above those of the average skateboarder I’ve seen… they were catching some incredible air.

Looking Back – It’s almost spring!

The weather has been keeping me inside, so I have decided to start posting some of my favorite older pictures. I’ve added a new category to the site called “Looking Back” that these posts will get filed under.

The first picture is from the New York Botanical Garden from 2003 or so :

Bee on a Flower

I was shooting with a Nikon D100, and the 28-105mm. I’m pretty sure I had my 6T close up filter on when I took the shot. The combination of the 28-105 in macro mode, and the 6t and get very close as I mentioned in a previous post.

The next photo was from 2005, also with the D100 and a 300mm f/4 prime lens taken in my backyard:

Butterfly on Flowers

In my rush to get the butterfly before it took off, I slightly overexposed the flowers, and got the white balance wrong. Thanks to the magic of Raw image processing, I managed to salvage the shot to some extent. The 300mm f/4 is another one of my favorite lenses. If it wasn’t so heavy I would carry it with me everywhere.