Day 334

Gotcha, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

There is no excuse for the quality of my 365 photos lately. It is plain and simple laziness. I am so ready to get to day 365 and be done. Picking of the camera every day is getting to be a chore and I think in order to rediscover my creativity I'm going to need a break. It is almost as if I'm going in reverse quality-wise.

Day 317

Black Canyon Dam, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

Took a quick road trip today and happened to time our stop at Black Canyon Dam with a patch of sunlight in between rain showers. Yes, the water flowing from the dam really did look that green.

Day 304

Bubbles, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

I don't know even what to call this photo as it morphed into something entirely different. This is a macro shot of the new wasp trap in the backyard. The sun had been beating down on the water/attractant mixture and created a bunch on condensation bubbles. It is super gusty outside this evening so hand holding a macro shot didn't make for the sharpest image.

Day 286

In a Fairytale Land, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

Our first day in Disneyland. The weather was really nice, not too hot but sunny. The haze burned off quickly each morning too.

This is the mote around the famous castle. I found myself trying to take a ton of shots that did not include random people. I just am kind of strange that way.

One of the first rides we went on was the Matterhorn. Not a great choice for my daughter as the dark tunnels and scary monsters popping out at her made her think twice about any other rides that had a tunnel for the rest of the visit.

Day 248

Make a Splash!, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

I spent a good amount of time today playing around with water drops to catch the perfect ripple effect. Just when I was about to quit my background paper slumped over to reveal the yellow back side and I noticed how it was reflecting. I'm very happy with how this turned out color wise. I wish I could have gotten it a bit sharper.

I set up this shot under my kitchen sink with the faucet at a very slow drip into a glass pan. A SB600 was placed to the left at a 90 degree angle and I hand held the SB900 behind the faucet.

Day 246

Lake Lowell, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

My very first attempt at HDR.

We took a road trip around the valley and stopped at two places today. The second stop was Lake Lowell. I had never been there and was a little disappointed because I forgot the time of year and that the trees had not bloomed yet but then I found this set of stairs and was happy again.

Today was also a big day for our daughter. She has been having trouble going outside due to a very traumatic phobia of wind so we have been taking baby steps. I wasn't even sure we would get her out of the car but the water proved to be too much of a draw for her and after one crying session and a retreat to the car we made it out. Soon she was distracted by throwing rocks and finding sticks. A great success and huge relief for everyone.

Day 221

Nothing Fancy Just Ice, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

You will have to bear with me as I work on trying to find numerous interesting subjects to shoot up close. I need 3 for this weeks class assignment. This is simply a melting ice cube on a blue plate.

Day 219

Rub a Dub Dub!, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

I am working on my first assignment for Bryan Peteron's new online class at Picture Perfect Photography called Understanding Closeup Photography. I was wandering around the house trying to find something to shoot up close and went to the overhead shower head. No that is not a texture, it is a combination of water spots and crap on my sensor. Ugh!

Day 171

Dream, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

I am still trying to get sharp water drop photos but I think I am getting closer. I set up a decorative gift bag (which is now soaked) behind the facet and let the water drip in a clear glass dish over the sink. This was the best out of the 100 or so shots taken. I also used my new SB900 as a master and had my SB600 off to the side at a right angle. I used manual focus on a spoon laid across the dish where I thought the drops would hit.

Day 155

Drip...drip, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

Playing with the macro telephoto. My first time trying water droplets so be nice! I put a layer of tinfoil behind and shut off the lights using only the speedlight and my cellphone to reflect off the background.

Day 51

Picnic time, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

What a day! Went to a company picnic with my husband and made the silly decision to leave my SLR at home. I was mad at myself as soon as we got there. So I tried to make due with my point and shoot UNTIL my memory card freaked out and wiped all my pictures. After that I wasn't able to take anything. Never had that happen before. When we got home I walked down to the neighborhood park to take pictures of all the rain we got. Kind of a dreary day.

Day 40

Rain, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

Drove from Idaho to Las Vegas today. It rained off an on for the trip which didn't make for great photo ops. Just the laptop with me so no Photoshop. I almost didn't upload a picture today because I'm so ready for bed. Tomorrow is my grandfather's funeral so I may be offline for a few days.

Day 30

Little stream, originally uploaded by Shutterbug Cel.

Home again and just looking through all the pictures I shot this weekend. This is a little stream up in Fish Lake, Oregon. This was my best attempt at a slow shutter speed. The light was too bright to go any slower.