Japanese Gardens

One of my favorite places in Fort Worth is the Japanese Garden. We go there a few times a year to admire the Japanese Maples when they turn red.

Water Drops

I remember the first time I saw pictures like these. I thought they were so incredibly beautiful. The amount of form and structure in each little drop overwhelmed me. The ability to freeze that split second of shape seemed unachievable to an amateur like me. I really wanted to learn how to shoot water drops. To make these pictures I used a tripod, ziplock sack, duct tape, long stick, and a few different colored backgrounds. I also used my Nikon SB-600 (external flash) in wireless mode. Basically, I can put the flash anywhere in the room (not attached to the camera body) and it will fire when I press the shutter release. It's called commander mode and it's a feature that my D40 body didn't have. I am excited to find new uses for wireless flash control.

What not to do...

Below is a perfect example of an opportunity being wasted. This is a picture of my sister and as you can see, the composition has ruined the picture, mainly because I cut part of her face off. I really love the lighting and the lines in the background are great, naturally leading the viewer's eye to her face. The worst part of this situation is that I didn't take advantage and snap a few more pictures until I had one I could use.

Borders

When I was in college none of my photography classes were for digital photography. All of the time I spent perfecting my dark room skills seems like a waste now. I remember the first time I saw a print from someone who had superior darkroom capabilities. It was my wife's friend who lives in Brenham, TX. Some of her prints had really neat borders that gave them an antique quality. [You can find her blog here:Shady Acre Blog] I still don't know how she put those borders on in the dark room, but I have been looking for a way to recreate them digitally. I used TTV frames to create a cool border on the pictures below. The bridge is on the way to Round Top, TX just outside of Brenham.

Paige

This is a candid shot while Paige was getting ready to go eat. It isn't sharp or anywhere close to perfect but I like the odd lighting.

Oak Tree

I have always loved trees. This is not the best picture, but one day I hope we can own property with some old, impressive oak trees.