Month: March 2014

03-31-14 Details

The impressive soaring dome at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, was no doubt inspired by the Roman Pantheon. . . .

By Scott Shephard

When I’m shooting a photo in a place like the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, I often wonder what I could possibly photograph that someone else hasn’t already done. The answer on my visit yesterday when I took this was, “Not much.”

But I still took this picture, in part because I wanted the place in my photo collection. I was also experimenting. The experiment? Can I do an HDR photo at ISO 1250, without a tripod and have two of the three exposures slower than 1/60 of a second? The answer is yes, I guess, Though a magnifying glass would no doubt show the imperfections.

On a side note, I am struck by the fact that under this spectacular dome, the statue is the Roman god Mercury. I wonder if designers could get away with blatant paganism in a public building these days?

Canon 5DIII 1/50s f/2.8 ISO1250 16mm

03-30-14 Curiosity (2004)

He peeks around the corner to get a better look at the American photographer. . . .

By Scott Shephard

Last Sunday I posted something from 2004 and I’m doing the same today, this time from another trip Deb and I took. Our son Brian was teaching English for a year in Japan in a program called JET and we spent a week there.

One of the schools he worked in was a pre-school and our visit is one of the more memorable travel experiences I have ever had. It was fun to watch the children as they went about their daily activities. But it was also fun to see how they interacted with Brian, whom they adored.

Their reaction to me and my camera was also interesting. In the US I think that our children are taught to to be suspicious of strangers. And strangers with cameras taking photos of children? Don’t even think about it!

But almost everyone I encountered in Japan, including children, we open and comfortable with my camera. In the US, a typical reaction to the candid photographer is a frown at best. But in Japan I was regularly greeted with smiles and peace signs.

In the case of this child, there is a cautious curiosity. It is one of my favorite photos from our wonderful week in Japan.

Canon 5DII 1/320s f/4.0 ISO400 145mm

(If you want to see another photo picturing fascination and curiosity, here’s an Instagram post from yesterday of a young boy looking out his window as our plane rose above Minneapolis/St. Paul.)

03-28-14 The Cathedral Spires – Black Hills

Join our Black Hills Photo Adventure this July and you, too, could take home a piece of the Hills . . .

This isn’t the first time I’ve posted this photo to “A Photo A Day,” though I decided to show the full color version. This was from July last year on one of the excellent outings of our “Black Hills Photo Adventure” weekend.

Right now, with snow settling on the brown grass in our back yard, I’m trying to dream in color.

Canon 5DIII 1/400s f/9.0 ISO160 33mm

03-27-14 Yellow

The fresh look of a brightly colored flower may help sooth the late winter blues . . .

Our part of South Dakota is in yet another “winter weather advisory,” with the possibility of “heavy snow” and 30mph wind. And with that forecast, I went looking for something bright and cheery in my collection. This daisy with dewy drops (real dew?) is the first thing I found.

I mentioned drugs as a method of altering one’s reality three days ago. Well, it occurs to me that a flower photo is also a drug. It’s much needed and it’s legal.

Canon 5DIII 1/200s f/9.0 ISO200 100mm (Alien Bees and a gridded soft box)

03-26-14 It Was Only 13 Years Ago . . . .

Remembering a wonderful travel experience to Italy in 2001. . .

By Scott Shephard

One of my concerns these days is that if I should leave this world unexpectedly, those who survive me will be overwhelmed with all of the stuff I have collected in boxes, drawers and closets. The physical stuff is one thing – throw most of it in the dumpster or give it to Goodwill. But what about the digital stuff? I have about 20 terabytes of it. Yes, I’m a digital packrat.

I think I’m going to be around for 20 or 30 more years, so don’t read too much into the first paragraph. Life is good and I’m healthy. But meanwhile, I try to clean things out once and a while. The problem is that when I start to sort through stuff, I find things I didn’t know I had and I get totally distracted.

Such is the case with this flashback video. In 2001 I led a group of students and adults on a 14 day trip to Italy.I took many photos, mostly on film, but some with Canon Powershot G1.  I also took video. My tradition back then was to make a trip video and this is it.

The video is hosted on YouTube and there’s a good chance that by the time you see this, it has been banned due to its use of copyrighted music. So if it’s become a silent film or if it has disappeared, go here. (But don’t tell YouTube.) You should be able to find a “Download” link there as well.

It would be fun to connect with some of the folks in the video. If you’re reading this, and you don’t say something, there will be a great disturbance in the universe. And if I should leave this world, and you don’t say something, how would you feel then? Oh, this is about a European trip, not a guilt trip. Sorry.

Some of the people pictured here are:

  • Maureen Annett
  • Christen Bartelt
  • Cassie Drake
  • Jocelyn Driessen
  • Jesyna Egge
  • Nyla Egge
  • Joanne Egge
  • Eric Fix
  • Brian Gough
  • Chris Hill
  • Laura Miller
  • Jill Moes
  • Brian Shephard
  • Jon Shephard
  • Joelle Smykowski
  • Laura Swanson
  • Becky Walker
  • Scott Peterson and his people, whose names I don’t remember
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03-25-14 Weathered (HDR)

Another weathered and somewhat broken down oak tree waits for the resurrection that comes every spring. . . . 

by Scott Shephard

I’m on a “trees in snow” theme. As I’ve said, as tired as I am of cold and snow in my home state, it’s hard not to be enthralled with the beauty of trees in snow. In fact, when I went out driving in the snow storm on this particular morning, I was explicitly looking for bare trees with snow sticking to them. And I found a few . . . . 

Canon 5DIII 1/5000s f/2.8 ISO400 175mm

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03-24-14 Waiting for the Sun

Two bare oak trees at Lakota Lake in the Black Hills of South Dakota endure a March snow storm and wait patiently for spring.

by Scott Shephard

Children of the 70s may recognize my title’s allusion to the Doors’ song “Waiting for the Sun.” In the first stanza, Jim Morrison sings

“At first flash of Eden, we race down to the sea.
Standing there on Freedom’s Shore.
Waiting for the Sun Waiting for the Sun Waiting for the Sun
Can you feel it now that spring has come.
And it’s time to live in the scattered sun.”

— “Waiting for the Sun” The Doors

I’ve never really understood this song. In fact, there are a lot of Doors songs I don’t get. “Esoteric” might be a good word to describe them. Perhaps I need some kind of reality altering substance to truly appreciate the Doors? (I remember reading that the group’s name comes from a concept known as the “doors of perception,” which has something to do with LSD.)

Speaking of altering reality, no drugs are needed to understand this scene, though I have altered your reality a bit for you. I turned the scene to black and white (though it was pretty much gray as I originally photographed it). And I’ve cleaned up a few unnecessary distractions from the scene. So I hope you don’t mind that I cropped, flattened, adjusted and colored your view of reality today.

And, yes, I think these trees are “waiting for the sun.”

Canon 5DIII 1/3200s f/2.8 ISO400 170mm

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03-23-14 Walking the Dog (2004)

A man walks his dog on the dock in the bay (on the Greek island of Crete).

by Scott Shephard

I have decided that Sunday’s are going to be my “Flashback Day,” which means that I will post something from either my recent or ancient digital or film photography past. You’ll have to come back next Sunday to see if I remember saying this or if I am true to my word.

This photo was taken in 2004 from the observation deck of a cruise boat that had just docked on the island of Crete. Deb and I were on a Greek island cruise with a group of great Watertown High School students.

This is really more of a snap shot than anything, though I like the look and feel of the photo. I also like the composition, though I will admit that I knew nothing of the “rule of thirds” or of leading lines or of texture or of light and shadow, etc., etc. I must have had some subliminal grasp of these things because they are all present. Or, I just got lucky.

Canon 1DII 1/800s f/10.0 ISO320 300mm

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03-22-14 She Looks Up To Us

Granddaughter Glenyce has much to say long before she is able to speak.

by Scott Shephard

She looks up to us.

She is fascinated by us.

She trusts us.

She is amused by us.

She needs us.

Of course, I can’t really speak for our granddaughter Glenyce Jane. At 9 months she can’t yet speak for herself. But her eyes and her expressions have much to say . . . . 

Canon 5DIII 1/60s f/4.0 ISO400 70mm

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