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2013-03-16 19:38:49 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 19 +1s)

Not More Winter!

Just when you thought it was over in NW NJ, the flurries turned into quite a snowfall. No texture added to this shot- that is heavy snow. I cannot believe it is sticking! I am so ready for mud season.

2013-03-12 00:52:24 (8 comments, 0 reshares, 25 +1s)

Empire State Building and New York City in the Blue Hour

Saturday was a work day for me. Had to head into NYC to run a photo shoot with the fashion photographer that I work with on the magazine. His studio is located on the 12th floor. During the golden hour, I climbed the scary 12 stairs on the outside of the building to the roof to check out the view (lots of water towers). To the north was the Empire State Building. To the south I could see the Freedom Towers under construction. Bald blue sky. Was hoping for a fabulous sunset. 

+Ken Brown (assistant to the fashion photographer) had his Canon G10 and stayed to lock up after me. We decided to return to the studio and try to shoot out the plate glass windows that faced north. This shot with the D800 was hand held, ISO 2500, f4, 1/6 sec. Lens was the 28-300 Nikkor at 35mm. A little Topaz Adjust 5 Spicify preset, blended witht... more »

2013-01-24 17:20:41 (16 comments, 1 reshares, 20 +1s)

Lower Manhattan, New York

Shortly before this shot, the park police chased the group from +Unique Photo, Inc. from our spot in Brooklyn Bridge Park (DUMBO district). Apparently the flooding overway the walkway from Hurricane Sandy corroded all the electric lines running to the spotlights. They did not feel the area was safe without the extra lights. So the group moved to another pier... too bad the East River Ferry pier is in the shot.

This is the last light of the sunset. D800, 28-300mm Nikkor; 30 sec exposure. SOOC except for slight crop in PS.

2013-01-24 14:58:06 (15 comments, 0 reshares, 23 +1s)

Lower Manhattan, New York

Saturday was a rare day in January in my part of the world. Temperatures were almost 50 degrees -- balmy by January standards. Met up with a group from +Unique Photo, Inc. that was being led by Michael Downey in Brooklyn Bridge Park, directly across from the South Street Seaport. That is the Freedom Tower in progress at 1 WTC. More t/k from this shoot...

D800, 14-24mm Nikkor; cropped in PS; NIK's HDR Efex 2 (Tonemapping)

2013-01-19 01:59:35 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 28 +1s)

This week brought all kinds of weather... snow, ice, and lots of fog. The fog was a perfect excuse to photograph a few bare trees in the back field before the sun broke through to the only blue sky we saw all week. D800 with 14-24 Nikkor lens. NIK's Silver Efex Pro 2.

2012-11-29 01:03:22 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 23 +1s)

The Dunes

On the other side is Herring Cove (Cape Cod, MA)... An iPhone4 pano the old fashioned way with Autostitch....

2012-11-29 00:59:32 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 19 +1s)

P'town Sunrise

On a dock in the Provincetown Harbor with the sunrise to my back... an iPhone shot processed in Snapseed... Love that red dingy. To quote +John Barclay , "When you see red, shoot it."

2012-11-29 00:57:04 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 13 +1s)

Birds on a Wire...

I've always loved images on instaGram or G+ with the silos of birds on telephone wires. Was heading out to the dunes on Cape Cod in very overcast weather... an iPhone grab and just dialed up the grain in Snapseed. It was one of those kind of days...

2012-11-29 00:51:55 (5 comments, 0 reshares, 21 +1s)

On the Way to Race Point...

I know I haven't been around this parts much as of late, but I do check my stream from time to time. Just finished up a Blurb.com book of iPhone photos that I took as part of a 4-day photo workshop run by +John Barclay and Jeff Lovinger a couple weeks ago. Who knew that LR4 gives an additional "first time" discount with Blurb! Lots more t/k ...

2012-10-07 01:01:52 (5 comments, 0 reshares, 28 +1s)

Sawmill Lake, High Point State Park, New Jersey
Spent the morning with a former state park ranger who also happens to be a commercial photographer that I've worked with for over 6 years in my job. Wes knows this park well, as he was stationed here for over 10 years. He was a super tour guide. We found the coolest spiders, a bald eagle flying over this lake, and farther on we watched a black bear and her cub... And the foliage is only about 25% in glorious color. The cloud cover came in quickly and by 11am, it was pretty socked in. Best part is now I have a long list of places to revisit and the park in less than 30 minutes from my house. Sweet!

2012-10-03 01:05:36 (7 comments, 0 reshares, 38 +1s)

Ocean City, New Jersey; 59th Street Pier

I've been busy with my D800 ... last weekend I headed to the NJ shore for a couple days. My intention was to practice long exposures. I captured both JPG and RAW files, but set the JPGs to Black & White with a red filter. So I never saw color until the day was over when I looked at the RAW files. It was a great exercise to study the B&W image on the back monitor and read the histogram. This is the last shot of the day looking east, close to sunset... More t/k

Nikon D800; 28-300 lens
ISO 100
f14
13 seconds

2012-09-17 01:14:11 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 25 +1s)

End of Summer

Was out practicing long exposures last weekend and realized the color has started here in northwest NJ ... 

Looking forward to the cool weather and crisp mornings.

2012-09-17 00:44:51 (10 comments, 3 reshares, 31 +1s)

Yes, It's Really New Jersey

My favorite place to take "out of towners" to shake their perspective that New Jersey is more than interstates, tank farms, and Jersey Shore is atop Sunrise Mountain, which is in Stokes State Forest.

The elevation is a touch over 1600 ft above sea level... here, the sun is setting over Pennsylvania. 

I am amazed at the tonal range of the D800... brought this into NIK's Viveza for brightness, contrast, and a touch of structure then back to PS for crop. 

2012-08-12 00:41:17 (12 comments, 4 reshares, 29 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

End of Highway 391

This Week's Theme :: Where in the World

The Google Street View car/camera stopped in the middle of Highway 391 as it transverses Manitoba, Canada. It's the northernmost road in the province. Makes you wonder if this is where they ran out of gas...

Inspired by +Dana Payton 's travels on the Dempster Hwy in the Northwest Territories...

This is not my image... It's a screen capture from GSV and processed in NIK's Viveza 2, Color Efex Pro 3, and Topaz Labs Adjust 5.

2012-08-05 20:10:34 (4 comments, 2 reshares, 25 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson  and me

This Week's Theme: Tuscany or Provence?

The Streets of Lucca
Now in Tuscany... the shadows on the building interested me especially the one cast by the street light...

This is not my image. It is a screen capture from Google Street View and processed with several Topaz Labs products and Nik's Viveza 2 and a texture from Flypaper...

2012-08-05 20:06:03 (4 comments, 0 reshares, 19 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and me

This Week's Theme: Tuscany or Provence?

Ligne du Ferry Boat
The Magic Bus dropped the Artistic Google artists in the harbor of Marseille. Lots to see especially if you love boats...

This is not my image. It is a screen capture from Google Street View and processed with several Topaz Labs products and Nik's Viveza 2...

2012-07-29 23:38:41 (14 comments, 1 reshares, 27 +1s)

+Jan McCartney asked me how the testing was going with my new D800. Well, it's a learning curve! Not very forgiving. As Jim Brandenburg said, it's a camera that will expose all your flaws as a photographer. 

Hoshi is a willing subject (most times). Made with the Nikkor 105mm macro; available light (window on right). Even though the histogram looked fine on the back of the camera, had to drop the exposure by 1.5 stops in ACR. Nothing else done except convert the RAW to a JPG and resize for G+.

2012-08-03 16:02:13 (14 comments, 0 reshares, 18 +1s)

+At the World's Markets Friday curated by +Lauri Novak  and +Ken Ilio 

Pike Place Fish Market, Seattle WA

This particular stall at the Pike Place Farmer's Market is the one everyone sees on TV especially when the guys start throwing whole fish around. I remember a fun Monday Night Football segment when they were in Seattle and they took the wide receivers down to see how good they were at catching fish. Not very good but it was fun to watch. I didn't spot any fish being tossed about that day...

Shout out to +Armand Salmon, who is very good at street photography. Check him out.

2012-07-18 02:02:58 (10 comments, 2 reshares, 25 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Rob Robinson +Jan McCartney and myself

This Week's Theme :: Thailand

Phuket Market

Found a number of these roadside markets selling produce and freshly caught fish... Love the colors of the umbrellas and the food...

http://goo.gl/maps/Y3Oj

This is not my image. It's a screen capture from Google Street Views and processed in PS using NIK's Viveza 2, HDR Efex 2, and Topaz Simplify.

2012-07-06 15:28:26 (12 comments, 2 reshares, 41 +1s)

For a new G+ Theme curated by +Ken Ilio 
#worldmarketsfriday  +At the World's Markets Friday 

Pike Place Market, Seattle WA

A farmer's market with produce and flower stalls as well as fresh fish ... more t/k. 

2012-07-05 18:21:16 (3 comments, 1 reshares, 16 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and me

This Week's Theme :: Hawaii

Wakiki Marina

Lots of sailboats fill this marina... a beautiful place to sail!

This is not my image. It's a screen capture from Google Maps Street View camera and processed in PS with NIK's Viveza and Color Efex filters.

2012-07-05 17:42:23 (4 comments, 1 reshares, 17 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and me

This Week's Theme :: Hawaii

Hidden House in Hilo

I was about to cross a low bridge over water when I turned to the side and saw this house tucked in the lush palms... It immediately reminded me of an original piece of artwork that has hung in my parents house for almost 60 years. They visited Bermuda in their first year of marriage and came home with two watercolors. One was a scene very similar to this one... 

This is not my image. It is a screen capture from Google Maps Street View and processed in PS with NIK's Viveza2 filters and Topaz Labs Adjust 5.

2012-07-04 15:37:44 (14 comments, 1 reshares, 20 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and me

This Week's Theme :: Hawaii

I was searching on the Big Island and came across palm trees planted along the highway. I believe it is some sort of a memorial for veterans as farther along I found the US flag flying on a pole. The palms were back lit and cast nice shadows... 

This is not my image. It's a screen capture from Google Maps Street View and processed in PS with Nik's Viveza2 and 2 filters from Topaz Labs (B&W Effects and Clean).

2012-07-03 17:07:40 (11 comments, 3 reshares, 26 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

This Week's Theme :: Hawaii

While touring around the big island of Hawaii (looking for lighthouses), I came into Lahaina. Google Maps noted this http://goo.gl/maps/mNPE was the "Old Lahaina Luau" and sure enough the Google Street Cam was on bicycle.

This capture represents my stereotypical touristy Hawaii: the family snap shot around the outrigger on the beach in front of the setting sun, palm trees, locals selling tikis and other indigenous art, and men wearing "Hawaiian" shirts. If I were running the photo shoot, the sun would have set before I started taking pictures.

This is not my image. It's a Google Maps Street View screen capture and processed with NIK Software's Viveza2, Topaz Labs Adjust 5 and Clean.

2012-06-25 13:15:42 (16 comments, 3 reshares, 24 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

This Week's Theme :: England

Not Anne Hathaway's Cottage

We are touring England this week... while I have been to Anne Hathaway's thatched-roof cottage on the outskirts of Stratford-Upon-Avon, the Google Street View car doesn't go there (yet). So this one on Cottage Lane had to play the role of "understudy."

Update to my original post With help from +Jamal Masood , I've further researched and Google Maps has misplaced Anne's cottage on the map. This apparently is her cottage. Or at least that is what the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust tells us...

This is not my image. It is a screen capture from Google Maps Street View. Processed in Photoshop with NIK Viveza2 and Topaz Labs Simplify and Adjust 5.

2012-06-24 14:11:34 (9 comments, 4 reshares, 26 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

Tree in the Countryside

I love finding single trees, be they by the side of the road or in the middle of a vast field. Here is one I found somewhere in Switzerland while on the Artistic Google tour this week... My last potato chip for the week.

This is not my image. It is a screen capture from Google Maps Street View and processed using NIK Software and Topaz Labs plug-in filters.

2012-06-22 14:20:08 (4 comments, 2 reshares, 15 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and me

Brown Swiss Moos
With help from an AG friend, +Chris Fithall 

This morning (Chris' evening as he lives on the other side of the world) I found a link from Chris in my inbox to this spot in the Swiss Alps. He knew I had spent time in Australia searching for a roo (or 2) to capture for the AG week in Oz. He found this image for me to consider processing in lieu of kangaroos. This is not exactly the camera position he sent me, so I sort of made it my own but he did all the heavy lifting. Very pleased to present this as "AG Pas de Deux" but I did get the best bits out of this collaboration. Thanks Chris!

Started with NIK's Viveza2, a touch of Topaz Adj 5 (Painting-Venice preset), back to NIK's Color Efex then a texture from Flypaper Textures to finish.

2012-06-21 20:57:40 (14 comments, 2 reshares, 19 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

The Road Less Travelled

In search of Swiss dairy cows (came up empty so far), I came to the end of a road and the Google Street View car had to turn left or right. I could not follow this paved goat path straight ahead through the fields... Where on earth does it end?

This is not my image. It's a screen capture of a GSV image from Google Maps and processed in PS with NIK's Viveza2 and Silver Efex ...

2012-06-20 19:51:36 (11 comments, 2 reshares, 21 +1s)

For +Artistic Google curated by +Jan McCartney +Rob Robinson and myself

Bike Ride to Montreaux

I screen captured this image on the shores of Lake Geneva near Montreaux... I'd love to bike along this lake in the summer... 

Processed with NIK Software, Topaz Labs and Alien Skinware SnapArt3.

2012-06-17 18:27:05 (1 comments, 1 reshares, 2 +1s)

E N J O Y the release of the updated High Quality Nature Photographer Circle v 4.0!
A huge THANK YOU to all the people (some have been exceptional generous) who did awesome nominations!!!
Now it is all up to you if this will become another great success.

Members are always very kind and supportive
Some notes about sharing for the new ones:
We all want to be in a circle to get some more attention and friends. Being in a circle which is not re-shared is pointless, we have no re-share police, but 
if YOU want to SUPPORT please ADD this circle to yours AND RE-SHARE publicly, so everyone benefits even the people that else never would see the circle and you give them a chance to add.
This is just the way it is. Thank you in advance!

What is in the circle:
Mainly ASTONISHING PHOTOGRAPHERS OFN... more »