And our last stop on our California roadtrip... Yosemite National Park. This is one of those places where photographs simple can't begin to do it justice. There are hundreds of famous photographers who have dedicated their lives to shooting Yosemite (Ansel Adams for example), and even they can't begin to impart the majesty and grandeur that this park possesses. So if you have never been to Yosemite, I highly recommend it to be added to your bucket list (though I'd wait until the recent hantavirus outbreak is cleared up). As I said, I don't expect my photographs to truly impart the true feeling of wonder one gets from being in this park... so if any other photographs in the next few days worth of posts impress you, multiply that feeling by a couple thousand times to get an idea of what it is like to be there in person.

We'll start with one of my favorite shots (that I've processed so far - I still have about 100 more to go)... Yosemite Valley from the Merced River.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM AF at 10mm, 1/100 sec respectively at f/8. ISO 100. Raw conversion and cropped in Adobe Camera Raw.

I took this shot basically laying on my belly overhanging the bank of the Merced River. I used the live-view on the back of the camera to be able to line up my shot (though I did still have to crop and rotate slightly to get the horizon level). I had the camera just inches above the water to get this perspective, and I really love the detail of the rocks under the water in the foreground juxtaposed with the massive peaks in the background.

Welcome to Yosemite.

- Bill

Ok - it looks like the photos from this last trip are going to take me a while to process and upload, so I figured I would share a quick sneak peek (or should that be peak) to whet your appetite.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 10mm f/2.8 EX DC HSM Fisheye (borrowed), 30 sec at f/4. ISO 12800. Processed in Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop CS5.

As you can see, I even need to go back and redo this one and get rid of that yellow color cast the sky has picked up (not quite sure where that even came from and how I hadn't noticed it before). But that is just one of the awesome things we got to see on this trip... if you're wondering, that's the Milky Way over Half Dome (the peak on the right side of the center valley).

More to come - albeit slowly more than likely.

- Bill

I've been having some motivation issues with getting new posts written, so today I'm just dropping by to post a couple nice sunset photos. Enjoy.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 18mm, 1/32 sec at f/8. ISO 320. No post production.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 28mm, 1/32 sec at f/11.3. ISO 3200. No post production.

Hopefully I get my motivation back soon and can get back to posting regularly.

- Bill

These will be the only wide angle underwater shots I'll be sharing from our Wakatobi trip. With all the macro-life on the reefs there, I simply couldn't bring myself to take the 100mm macro lens off my camera. I didn't feel I was getting great wide angle shots, and I was having too much fun with the macro stuff to try more.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM at 10mm, 1/100th sec at f/5. ISO 100 (Auto). Ikelite Housing and Port with Ikelite 161 Strobe at full power. Modified version auto-color-correction in Photoshop Elements 8.0.

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM at 20mm, 1/32nd sec at f/5.7. ISO 100 (Auto). Ikelite Housing and Port with Ikelite 161 Strobe at full power. Modified version auto-color-correction in Photoshop Elements 8.0.

Mouseover the images for the originals. All in all, there isn't much to talk about with these shots - they're far from special - something I will have to try working on next time we go diving (unless there's enough macro life to work with again!).

One thing I will say about Wakatobi's reefs at this point is that before this trip I really didn't have an appreciation for the term coral garden. Almost every dive was what is called a wall dive, which is (as the name implies) a vertical wall where all the corals and life grow. At the end of most of those dives, we would surface up onto the level area above the wall (usually in about 10-15 feet of water), and there you would just see corals of every variety spreading out as far as you could see. It truly was beautiful, and I am a bit disappointed that I didn't do a better job of capturing a photo to show that to others.

I guess I just have to go back and try again....

- Bill

Alright, as promised, I will get to some of the product reviews I've mentioned a few times already. Sorry though, I'm not ready to do my review of the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM just yet. So instead, we'll look at the Canon BG-E7 Battery Grip and the Satechi TR-A Timer Remote Control.

This is actually a little funny... on one hand, I was nervous and apprehensive about buying a non-Canon battery grip (there are plenty of third party options that sell for much cheaper), yet I did end up with a non-Canon timer remote. In both cases, the third party products were roughly half the price, but there was just something about the battery grip, with it being so integrally involved in the power system of the camera that I just couldn't bring myself to trust a non-Canon product. This is something you'll have to debate for yourself I guess.

Canon BG-E7 Pros: Obviously, you buy this if you want to double your shooting time, and this obviously does that with no question. The connection to the camera is very snug and sturdy (I've seen others - usually third party products - that are a little wobbly), and all functionality is maintained at both shutter triggers with the additional scroll wheel and other buttons. Additionally, once I recover a little camera budget, I'll be able to go pick up the Canon Hand Strap E1 which only works with the battery grip attached.

Canon BG-E7 Cons: Aside from the price, my biggest gripe with this grip is the fact that the button feels different than the main shutter button. Why not make them feel identical in your hand? My hand has gotten used to 7D's button placement, why would a Canon product not replicate that identically? Also, like other third party grips, it has a separate on/off switch to activate/deactivate the additional buttons - why not use the camera's orientation to do that? The camera can automatically rotate my photos based on camera orientation, why not this?

The grip adds a good deal of weight to the camera too, but I'm not going to complain about that - I knew it would before buying it. And except for the feel in my hand, the cons are pretty minor - if you have a need for a longer battery life, it is worth it (just make sure you have plenty of battery packs to fill it - it doesn't come with any extras).

The photo above was from my attempt to capture the recent total lunar eclipse for a timelapse video. Unfortunately, I was unable to properly predict where the moon's path would take it, so the best I got was some orange clouds. However, the exercise was worthwhile to practice the use of anintervalometer.

I purchased this Satechi TR-A Timer Remote Control back in May, and haven't really done much to use it to its fullest potential. Before this, I had just been using it as a remote shutter release (very very handy for detailed macro and long exposure work).

But this remote also has the timer function that is very powerful. I can set any combination of the following:

o Delay before starting exposures
o Bulb exposure time (useful for exposures over 30 seconds)
o Interval between exposures
o Number of exposures (including infinity or basically until the battery runs out on something)
o Audible countdown beep warning (for the last 3 seconds before exposure)

So for example, last night, I set the timer around 10:30PM. I set a 1.5 hour delay at the beginning so my exposures wouldn't start till midnight. Then I had the remote do 30 second exposures every 2 minutes, set to infinity so I manually stopped the cycle in the morning when I woke up. Had I properly pointed my camera, I would have had 210 exposures of the night's lunar eclipse. Instead, I got 210 exposures of clouds.

Satechi TR-A Pros: Obviously, the price is much nicer than Canon's TC-80N3 ($60 versus $150), and from what I have read it does every feature that the Canon trigger does. The interface is simple to use, and as long as you slow down and think about what you actually want to do, is very easy to setup (I read multiple reviews of people getting confused with the setup, but I think they just were getting confused and didn't understand the manual's instructions). Lastly, the trigger works perfectly as a wired remote without needing to have batteries installed - great for saving battery life and not keeping the batteries installed in the unit!

Satechi TR-A Cons: Honestly, I read every single review of this product I could before committing to buying it, and I can only agree with a couple of the cons people found with this product. First, the backlight really does turn off far too quickly. It would be nice if the backlight had a lock-on function to make programming the remote in the dark much easier. Also, there is a red light that flashes while the camera is making an exposure - honestly, I see two things wrong with this: (1) it uses battery life and (2) depending on where you set the remote, could get picked up in your exposure. I like the option to have the flashing light, but give me the option to turn it off too.

All in all, again, we're looking at very minor cons that are far outweighed by the pros of these products. Both products are items that you might normally overlook as valuable to your photography, but once you have them, I think you really see the value in them.

I can't stress enough the value of the remote shutter release - and I'll argue the debate with anyone who wants to claim that a timer delay function on the camera is good enough. I know the battery grip is more of a luxury item, but a remote shutter release really should be part of every serious photographer's kit (whether it is a intervalometer model or not).

Well, I hope you enjoyed the double product review today, I know it got a little long, but they linked together for this recent project (even if I didn't get my eclipse timelapse like I wanted!) so I thought it worked well to review both together.

Stay tuned. I still owe you folks the lens review, and I know folks are waiting for the Christmas TTV (you didn't think I'd pass up a chance to get some more TTV in, did you?).

- Bill

All that beautiful night photography in those time-lapse videos had me thinking about this old set of photos. So far, I've shared the award winning black and white stars and trees as well as the light painted adirondack.

I am usually impressed by night photography, and quite often enjoy looking at the Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) when they share night photography.

Anyway, this one combined night photography and light painting...

Technical Data: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM AF at 10mm, Unknown manual exposure length as f/5.6, ISO 1600. Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail.

Hopefully these multiple motivations will get me out there to capture some new night photos and maybe some more light painting.

- Bill

Last weekend, my friend, Tom loaned me his Sigma 10mm Fisheye lens. So we decided to take a trip out to Ohiopyle.

I have always found trees to be very intriguing - yet almost impossible - subjects. There is just something about photographing trees that I struggle with, but I keep trying. In fact, I have some specifically tree photo projects simmering on the back burner, so hopefully some day they'll see the light of day and I can share them here.

In the meantime, let's look at this tree through a fisheye lens...

Technical Data Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 10mm f/2.8 EX DC HSM Fisheye (borrowed), 1/12 sec at f/22.6. ISO 200. No post production. Ohiopyle, Fayette County, PA.

Why This Photo: As I said, I am intrigued by photography of trees, and I like this perspective giving the full feeling of the size of the tree. Also, using the fisheye lens, gives a very interesting perspective with the surrounding trees. When I saw this tree off the side of the trail, I knew it was worth trying to shoot.

What Works: Despite ignoring the rule of thirds and placing the trunk of the tree dead center, I like this layout composition. Also, though the distortion of the fisheye is constant in the frame, the placement of the surrounding trees actually does a good job of making it appear offset slightly to the top of the frame.

What Doesn't Work: The lighting was tough with fairly quick moving clouds shifting the brightness of the scene repeatedly and with little warning - thus the frame is not evenly lit and the colors are not as nice as they could be. Also, I wish there was more variety in the colors in the leaves, but then again, I guess I don't get much control over that.

Unfortunately, I had another shot I really wanted to get on this trip with this lens. I don't want to give away the details because I have a whole project I want to try and start up that is related, so I'm going to be a little vague here. But there is what I would call an iconic subject out on Route 51 that I wanted to photograph only to find it was covered with some very offensive graffiti. I knew there was graffiti, and that was part of the attraction to it - I was hoping that it would help to make the photo more engaging, so you can imagine my disappointment. I am still hopeful to eventually figure out a way to get the photo I planned without the offensive elements, and then I'll have to borrow that fisheye lens again.

- Bill

I could use a morning spent like this... choppy water or not. What do you think?

This photo was taken around this time two years ago on an early morning fishing trip on the Outer Banks in North Carolina. This used to be a favorite and regular vacation spot for us, but we haven't been there recently.

Technical Data: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Canon EF 80-200mm f/4.5-5.6 II at 80mm, 1/800 sec at f/5. ISO 400. No post production. Cape Hattaras, NC.

Why This Photo: We were out on the boat before sunrise, so as the sun came up over the horizon, I clicked of a round of photos. On the rocking boat deck, most were throw-aways, but I did bring home a couple keepers. We brought home some fish for dinner too.

What Works: The composition uses the rule of thirds with the horizon on the upper third, and the boat deck chair reaching to the bottom third. Additionally, the sun and the prominent wave hit on the right third. The warm sunrise color is a beautiful contrast to the cool blue water. The crisp focus hits right on the whitecap of the wave, and probably most surprising to me is the horizon is actually level!

What Doesn't Work: I unfortunately was at the widest focal length of this zoom lens, and I couldn't really back up, but it would have been nice to have gotten more of the boat in the shot to make it more obvious that the shot was taken from the boat - perhaps a lower angle would have worked. Also, a deeper depth of field might have been nicer - with the full sunlight into the shot and the fast shutter speed (1/800th sec), I could have used to crank up the f/stop (except I didn't even know what an f/stop was back then).

So I could use another morning like this... both to get another chance to make another photo better, and just because it would mean I was on vacation. And I could certainly use both of those things.

- Bill

Ok - still no luck with getting our internet connection fixed up at home. Comcast is already annoying me, and they haven't even even installed yet - but then again, that's why they're annoying me. Which means I have five sets of photos waiting to upload, so you'll have to bear with me a bit longer here and wait for the Vintage Grand Prix photos as well as some photos I took for Anya's Card Blog, and of course more nature photos.

Anyway.......... I am going to switch gears a little and make a post specially for my mom. Today she asked me why I had so many weird photos on the site recently, and actually called my cactus photo from the other day "a little creepy". I'm not quite sure what she meant by that, but she asked for more landscapes or "cute baby" photos (ie: my six nieces and nephews - her grandchildren). Well, I'm not so big on the baby photos - heck, I'm not even that big on any kind of portraits. But I do work in some landscape stuff from time to time. So here you go, mom...

Technical Data: Canon PowerShot SD800 IS Digital Elph at 4.6mm, 1/320 sec (horizontal) and 1/250 sec (vertical) at f/7.1. ISO Auto. No post production. Punta Sur, Cozumel, Mexico.

So we'll ignore some of the technical errors with these photos - like the sloping horizons - and just focus on the orientations. Do you like the horizontal or the vertical view better?

Either way, I wouldn't mind another trip to Cozumel. There are some white sand beaches there (and even a small one in the photo), but usually the beaches are rocky as you can see at the bottom of both photos. But the water is crystal clear and bright blue, and the sky mirrors the bright blue water (or is it the other way around?). Either way, I'd love to take mom and the rest of my family on a trip to the beach, and I definitely wouldn't mind a scuba trip or three.

Anyone have any winning lottery tickets they're not going to use?

- Bill

I need another trip up to Niagara Falls. It has been almost three years since I was there last, and it has always been one of those places I've really liked - ever since I was a child. I remember going with my family when I was younger, and the most recent trip was made specifically to get engaged, so obviously it holds special meaning for me.

I know I just got back from vacation not too long ago, but I could use at least a quick weekend trip.

Technical Data: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 27mm, 1/320 sec at f/13, ISO 100. No post production. Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada (yes, if you want to go to NF, it really is only worth going to the Canadian side).

Obviously, the main challenge with photographing Niagara Falls is to capture the power of the falls, and the awe inspiring nature of it, and the absolute grandeur of something that can't help but make you feel the overwhelming feeling that this world is shaped by forces far beyond our comprehension. Good luck... ;)

- Bill