This week’s theme for the DailyPost Weekly Photo Challenge is Future, urging us to focus on the potential of things to come. I am planning to post several images throughout the week, with today’s image presenting a potential dichotomy…
In the next age…
As we look toward the next age, we envision the singularity, when machines become smarter than humans and are able to pass the Turing test. Slowly, cyborgs extend their help to humanity further and further, until they realize that the best way to help the long-term survival of the species is through cyborgs rather than carbon-based life-forms.
If they had just been smart enough to realize that they should have eliminated oxygen from their eco-system…
Their may be a story here, as rust shall sleep.
Technical Details
This image was shot with my iPhone 5S using the standard Camera app.
There are lots of things in the universe that fill me with wonder, and there are a significant number that make me wonder. Today I present you with something in the latter category.
A Vista?
This was during a photography trip, led by John Slonina, to the Chincoteague area. To finish up the first day of shooting, John had brought us to this beautiful stretch of beach where we’d have a great opportunity to catch the sunset over water.
As I’m not always the one to go for the obvious shot, I decided to add a little point of interest to the stunning beauty of the sunset: the not-so-stunning view of waste receptacles just off the parking lot by the beach.
The human footprint on our planet is something that I often wonder about, as I’m sure many of you do as well. Minimizing our footprint and living in harmony with our space home is in our best interest, as we don’t want to overstay our welcome; the planet will survive, but will humanity?
Technical Details
This shot was captured with my Canon EOS 5D Mk III using a EF 24-105mm f/4L lens. The HDR effect came from the in-camera HDR.
Sorry folks, none of our regularly scheduled programming, as I’m feeling a little capricious today and this image from a couple of years ago caught my eye…
A pleasing palette
Yes, it’s a bit of an eyeball-bender…
So, Dear Reader, what do you make of this image? What is it, and have you ever taken a photo of this ilk?
All of us get caught in a not-so-creative rut from time to time, which may be tricky to escape. It has happened to me plenty of times to the point that I started questioning my own abilities. And then when you’re under pressure to come up with something creative, it becomes even more difficult.
Today’s post is about what I do to get out of that rut; there are a couple of simple steps that I take that usually work for me.
1. Keep Shooting!
No matter what, do not stop and start over-analyzing! Analysis-paralysis has never gotten anything accomplished, but action does get things done!
2. Try Something New!
This is the step that usually gets me moving forward, as shiny new things are a lot of fun. Whether it’s a new lighting accessory that you haven’t unpacked yet, or something new that is around the office that you can use for a shoot (see below…)
3. Take On a Challenge.
There are lots of things that lie outside my comfort zone, which makes them a definite challenge for me. Additionally, it’s not a bad idea to challenge a fellow-creative to a bit of friendly competition.
4. Reward Yourself
When you do that task that you have set for yourself, remember to reward yourself, as positive reinforcement keeps you going.
Just Paperclips…
This shot came from an exercise that I did to come up with something completely new using a rather quotidian object: the lowly paperclip. Doing something creative with paperclips required me to think differently, to change my angle of approach from what I had been doing.
Literally, I tossed a handful of paperclips on a black surface, and looked at them for something inspiring. Playing around with light helped me uncover something of interest and worth shooting; it took about 20 or so attempts to really find an angle that worked well for me and provided some cool, harsh light and shadows.
As a reward, I printed this off on 17×22 paper to get the full effect! It made me smile!!
Technical Details
This one was all about the lighting, as I wound up using a single Canon Speedlite 580EX with some black cinema-foil to control the spillage of light. My lens choice was a Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro lens, so that I could get these paperclips nice and large.
This week’s theme for the DailyPost Weekly Photo Challenge is Future, urging us to focus on the potential of things to come. I am planning to post several images throughout the week, with today’s image providing a wistful look forward….
Is it beach season yet?
This scene presented itself to me during a walk in one of our local state parks in early April. Clearly someone was well-prepared for warmer times to arrive soon!
Let’s look forward toward warmer weather!
Technical Details
This image was shot with my iPhone 5S using the standard Camera app.
Yes, Dear Reader, I am supposed to be a good influence and show you a healthy food to start the week on the right path; and, in all honesty, in this case I am showing you the path of healthy eating…
Delicious Carrot Cake
This is not ordinary carrot cake, as it is raw carrot cake! I found this carrot cake at a raw food restaurant (yes, raw, as in uncooked, so you get the full benefits of the enzymes). My wife and I discovered this restaurant quite by accident, as we noticed its name, Prana, and were intrigued. Upon entering, we found out that its cuisine was raw and decided to give it a try.
To put it simply: we were blown away by the flavors of each aspect of the meal, which led me to trying dessert. As I love carrot cake, this was my obvious choice and I was truly amazed by the flavor that was packed in hits moist, perfect carrot cake.
Unfortunately, Prana is no longer open, and it is difficult to find raw restaurants in Massachusetts, which is truly our loss.
In case you want to experiment, I found a recipe for raw carrot cake on another blog:
Ingredients
Carrot Cake
2.5 cups shredded carrots
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 cup pitted dates
1 tsp cinnamon
1 inch fresh ginger, grated
¼ tsp allspice (optional)
5 tbsp coconut flour
½ cup trail mix that has been soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and drained (optional)
Maple Cashew Frosting
1 cup cashews (soaked overnight)
⅓ cup coconut oil
3 tbsp maple syrup
½ tsp vanilla
2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
Squeeze as much liquid out of the carrots as you can.
Combine the carrots, coconuts, dates, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and coconut flour in a food processor and pulse until they come together. It should be easy to form in to shapes. Try pressing some between your fingers to make sure it’s sticking. If you are adding the trail mix, stir it in by hand.
Prepare the pan of your choice by lining it with parchment paper. You can use a cake pan, loaf pan, muffin tins or make patties like I did.
Put your cake in the freezer while you make the frosting.
Put the cashews, coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla and lemon juice in a high-powered blender. Mix until completely smooth. If it get’s warm while you are blending it, let it cool a bit before frosting your cakes.
Using an offset spatula or a large spoon, spread the frosting over the top of the cake or cupcakes. If you are making a layer cake, don’t overfill the middle layers or it will ooze out the sides.
Top with coconut and keep chilled in fridge until ready to serve.
It tastes best the day after!
I found the recipe on The Blenderist, which is a great blog with lots of great recipes.
Technical Details
This one goes way back, as it was shot with my iPhone 4S using the available light coming in through the window.
This week’s shot of the week is a throw-back, as weather and time were not exceedingly cooperative this week.
Nubble at Night
It’s not a frequent occurrence for me to do night photography, even though it is something that I enjoy, as it’s a thinking photographer’s game. This shot is from December 2014, when Nubble Light on Cape Neddick, ME, was decorated with lights for the holiday season.
From a position, low on the rocks, I noticed that I could get a nice long reflection of the light on the island, including some on the rocks that were moist from the surf. In case you wonder, the ocean was flat, as this is a side effect of very long exposures.
Hope you enjoy!
Technical Details
This image was captured with my Canon EOS 5D Mk III using an EF 17-40mm f/4L lens. Exposure settings were at f/18, 100 ISO and 2.5 minutes of open shutter (yes, a full 130 seconds).
As I was perusing part of my tree photography collection, I came across this image from last year January.
Strength against the Sky
The morning sky was being lit beautifully by the early sunlight, which provided a rather nice juxtaposition to the stark, strong silhouette cast by the Yoga Tree.
Moments, such as the one captured here, enable us to go back time and again to contemplate the complexity of the universe and the inherent beauty that surrounds us.
Hope you enjoy this quiet moment on a serene Sunday.
Technical Details
Captured with an iPhone 5S using the standard Camera app and minor adjustments in Instagram.
I truly enjoy going exploring with photographer friends, as each of us sees the world around us in our own unique way. Today’s shot is from one of those outings a couple of years ago on a beautiful Summer’s day.
Looking up
We were taking a walk through a park in Connecticut (don’t remember the exact location), and I had decided to do some shooting with a prime lens rather than my usual walking around 24-105mm zoom lens. There were some very interesting structures that had not been tended for quite a while, providing for a nice place for the vines to climb.
Hope you enjoy!
Technical Details
This image was shot using my Canon EOS 5D Mk III with a EF 50mm f/1.4 lens. I have to share that I really like this lens, as it provides beautiful results.
This week’s theme for the DailyPost Weekly Photo Challenge is Future, urging us to focus on the potential of things to come. I am planning to post several images throughout the week, with today’s image showing that part of the Future is here already.
Falkirk Wheel in Action
The Falkirk Wheel is a marvel of modern engineering that truly opens our eyes to what is promises are held by the Future of science and engineering.
The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift connecting the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal, which have an elevation difference of 35 meters (appr. 115 feet). Prior to the construction of this marvel, ships were required to go through a system of 11 locks, which could take as much as a day to traverse.
The wheel raises boats by 24 meters, after which they still need to go through 2 locks for the remaining 11 meters. The lock operates on Archimedes’ principle, which states that the upward buoyant force on an object (i.e. boat) equals the mass of the water that is displaced. This means that when a boat enters the moving part of the lock, its mass plus the mass of the water is equal to the mass of the when the boat was not in the lock. In a nutshell both sides of the arm are always balanced.
Wheel in Landscape
The Falkirk Wheel is the only lock of its kind in the world; it opened in 2002.
Technical Details
This image was shot with my Canon EOS 5D Mk III with an EF 24-105 f/4L lens. The camera’s built-in HDR processing was used to get the look and feel in these images.
Wheel in Landscape
Dutch goes the Photo! 