Harpers Ferry, West Virginia

Posted on May 6, 2012 by robert

I read about the Super Moon coming this weekend and got an invite from a friend to head out to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia to photograph it.  We got there around 5pm, met up with a few other friends, and had a nice dinner, keeping an eye on the sky.  As dinner wrapped up, we noted how the sky seemed clear and headed out to Jefferson Rock.  We setup our tripods and pointed them and waited.

At one point I made a comment that this was like waiting for The Great Pumpkin as the thick clouds rolled in and damped our spirits.  We started working on other photo opportunities when the clouds gave way and the super moon finally showed up.  I struggled to get any decent shots of the moon itself, but did manage to get one.

We spent time using the bright illumination from the super moon to get some other shots … it provided a good big of light, and these are some of my favorites from the rest of the evening.  The entire set, including some iPhone shots I took, can be found on my Flickr set.

St Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Harpers Ferry, WV

Plant at Jeffersons Rock, Harpers Ferry, WV

Harpers Cemetery, Harpers Ferry, WV

Super Moon behind the ruins of Saint John's Episcopal Church, Harpers Ferry, WV

Super Moon behind St Peter's Roman Catholic Church, Harpers Ferry, WV

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Clearwater, Florida

Posted on February 25, 2012 by robert

We recently went to Clearwater, Florida for our anniversary.  We took our new Olympus PEN camera and two kit lenses (we have the E-PL2 with 14-42mm and 40-150mm). I got it for my wife mainly because she has been using a Canon point and shoot but it’s not quick enough to catch some of the shots she wants to, and my D300s is too large and heavy to carry comfortably on a fun trip, so the Olympus did the trick.  You can see them all in my Flickr gallery.

Overall, it’s not quite D300s quality, but it’s pretty darn close, and the camera with 2 lenses probably weighs about the same as the D300s body alone!

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Carmello’s, Manassas, VA

Posted on January 13, 2012 by robert

We enjoy going to Carmello’s in Manassas for a nice “date night” dinner out. When we were there last, I took a picture of the place setting with my iPhone 4. We got a glass of champagne and the menu was there too so it seemed perfect.

The image was edited in Snapseed right on my phone to give it a whole different feel. Even though I can’t or don’t take my camera everywhere I at least always have my phone!

Enjoy the photo – and if you are ever in Manassas be sure to check out Carmello’s!

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Charlottesville, Virginia

Posted on October 1, 2011 by robert

We took a long weekend trip recently to the Charlottesville, Virginia area and had a lot of fun visiting some local wineries, Carter Mountain Orchard, Monticello, and a few other places. Below are some of my favorite shots, the rest can be found on my Flickr. All images were shot with a Nikon D300s and 17-55/2.8, post-processing in Adobe Lightroom 3.

Stone Mountain Vineyards, Dyke, Virginia

Stone Mountain Vineyards

Wine at Stone Mountain Vineyards

Thomas Jefferson - Monticello

Thomas Jefferson's home - Monticello

South Pavilion and fish pond - Monticello

South Pavilion and fish pond - Monticello

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Prince William County Fair

Posted on August 20, 2011 by robert

We went to the Prince William County Fair today and these are a few of my shots.  Mostly shots of my son, but these were some that were ‘fun’ enough to share :-) All were done with the Nikon D300s and 17-55/2.8, post-processing by Adobe Lightroom 3.

Enjoy!

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A bit of repair work on my Nikon 17-55

Posted on August 13, 2011 by robert

I got my Nikon 17-55mm a couple years back from someone on Craigslist.  It is a great lens, but was one of the earlier models out.  Took some time to clean the focus and zoom rings (the rubber was a bit dirty) and sent it off to APS in Illinois to have it cleaned and checked.  Fast forward to a month or so ago, and I noticed the zoom ring was starting to slide off the body of the lens.  Found a seller on eBay who sells the rings separately and ordered one.  The fix was quick and painless, and the zoom rings is now brand new. Should probably have gotten the focus ring too, but that one doesn’t get as much use (the AF on the Nikon D300s is so fast and precise I pretty much use the AF all the time).

Here are a few shots of the surgery.

nikon 17-55

The old zoom ring, slipping a bit.

Nikon 17-55mm

With the zoom ring removed

nikon 17-55

Like new again!

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Civil War 150th Anniversary – Manassas, Virginia

Posted on July 23, 2011 by robert

Yesterday we spent some time touring the different Civil War sites here in Manassas for the 150th Anniversary of the first battle at Bull Run. Had a lot of fun though it was crazy hot (at least 100 degrees, even in the shade!).  Here are a few of my favorite shots – all of these were with the Nikon D300s and 17-55/2.8 combo.  The rest are on my Flickr site, and the tags will indicate which lens was used in those. Also, if you’d like to see more from the events, be sure to check out Jeff’s shots.

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US National Arboretum

Posted on April 3, 2011 by robert

Had the chance to get out today and take some real shots, without my primary camera being the iPhone! My sister and I headed to the US National Arboretum in Northeast DC. The Arboretum has been on my list since I learned that the original columns from the US Capitol are there – such history!  There’s some real fun stuff to see there – will definitely have to take another trip back. Enjoy :-)

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more iPhone shots

Posted on March 26, 2011 by robert

The D300s is bulky compared to the iPhone 4 and I always have my iPhone with me, so more often than not it tends to be my go-to camera anymore. With a little one at home, the opportunities to get out and ‘shoot’ are slim at this point but with spring here I’m hoping to get out more. Here are some of the recent shots from my iPhone, taken with the instagram app. A few of them have some Pic Grunger applied as well.  The rest of my instagram photos are on my flickr.

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Sam Adams

Posted on January 30, 2011 by robert

I’m a big fan of Sam Adams beer and last week I picked these glasses up from Total Wine while I was there making my own 6 pack for the NFL championship weekend.  Not sure about the whole science behind the shape, and I used them for a variety of beers, but they look cool.  I have them in the freezer, ready for next weekend’s Super Bowl where my Packers will beat the Steelers.  Sorry, Kim!

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