reflection Archives - Page 5 of 8

September 28, 2016September 28, 2016

Sunrise on the Manatee

This is a one minute exposure of Sunrise on the Manatee River in Bradenton. People that show up here for a morning walk see a version of this every day. I’m not a regular so for me it’s an extra special treat. One thing for sure, the sunrise walkers are super friendly. I must have had half a dozen people come up and say good morning while I was taking pictures. It was like they had organized a welcome committee. It was awesome.

Daily Image

Most mornings the river is smooth like glass and the long exposure has a tendency to make it look even more so. The clouds were moving towards me and you can see a little of that action at the top. All in all I like how this turned out and there was very little I did to adjust the final image. I love editing photos but in some cases the original speaks for itself and needs very little help.

manatee county gallery

I came here looking for a totally different shot. I thought the clouds would be fuller and all lit up with the warm glow of the sun. For whatever reason that never happened. Being flexible is key to photography, especially if you shoot landscapes outside. You just never know for sure what you’ll get. In this case I got an unexpected scene and about a half dozen good mornings.

August 30, 2016

Riverhouse Reef and Grill

That building on the left is the Riverhouse Reef and Grill. I live near a crossroads of sorts, it’s a main thoroughfare between the two towns of Palmetto and Bradenton. As it happens the thoroughfare is really a couple of bridges over a river, and on each side of the river are marinas, parks and restaurants. All in all it’s a pretty nice place to explore and you don’t have to go too far to find a good waterfront restaurant.

Sometimes we’ll come to this place in Palmetto, other times we’ll go directly across the river to Pier 22 in Bradenton. We sit outside, why sit indoors when the weather is so good? Its rare that we go to an indoor restaurant with so many options. I’m not fanatical about eating outside but it’s rare we go out and eat indoors.

florida gallery

I took this shot at dusk from a concrete pier that used to be the main bridge between the two towns. Someone recently told me that the main bridge was destroyed in a hurricane back in the sixties and so now it’s just a fishing pier. It’s a nice place to walk at dusk and sunset, especially after eating too much at the Riverhouse Reef and Grill.

August 25, 2016

Candy Clouds

These cotton candy clouds appear almost everyday at this time of year here in Florida. The skies are clear in the morning, cotton candy at noon, thunderstorms in the afternoon and sunsets at night. It’s a pattern that repeats itself each day with minor variations. So I headed down the street one day to catch the cotton candy part of the day.

This is an example of how I can go to the same place time and time again and get different results. Some of it has to do with the clouds or time of day, but just as much is my state of mind. I see the same old thing in a new way. Sometimes what I see is more in my mind than what’s really in front of me. I take the picture and idea and work on it until I have a new picture of a familiar scene. It’s a challenge, but there are infinite ways of portraying any one thing. So I have a lot of options ahead of me.

more cloud shots

Lets face it, we live in a complicated world. We do many things to counter that. We dream about things constantly throughout the day, at least I do. I like taking a scene and turning it into a dream. It’s the same thing as a dream, only I make a picture of it. And from that I temporarily escape from the real world, if just for bit.

August 15, 2016

Summer Evenings by the River

This water is normally choppy but just after sunset the breeze dies down and the water becomes like glass. That’s when I see all kinds of opportunities for compositions like this. It’s amazing how much difference an hour makes in the look and feel of a place like this. I love summer evenings by the river.

The spot where I’m standing is popular for Pokemon Go. Quite a few people show up here at night, more so than just a couple months ago. They create a festive atmosphere even if they are concentrating on their mobile screens. I haven’t tried the game myself but I have a feeling its just the beginning of a whole new wave in gaming. I should open up a hot dog stand here. I’ll have an app that they can use to buy the hot dogs even though they are standing right in front of me. It’ll be a big hit.

An hour or so earlier there were afternoon thunderstorms. After the storms move away they left small cloud remnants that collected the colors of dusk. You can see a little of that action going on here in shades of pink as the sun recedes well beyond the horizon.

night photography

I love how long the evenings are in summer. Pretty soon it will be autumn and it starts getting dark early again. But now its fun to be outside until well after dark; taking pictures, playing Pokemon or selling hot dogs with my new killer app.

August 10, 2016August 10, 2016

Moose Pass in Alaska from the Train

This is a shot of Moose Pass from the train between Seward and Anchorage Alaska. I love the pristine reflection of the mountains on the water. The sun was behind the train and you can see how it casts shadows of the trees onto the water. It’s a nice effect that I didn’t really notice until I looked at this later.

I was fortunate to be on this train. I know nothing about Alaska and I just assumed that the ship I was on would dock in Anchorage. Little did I know that wasn’t the case. Fortunately I received a pamphlet on the first day of the voyage offering transfers to the airport. I figured it would be a thirty minute cab ride at most. Little did I realize it was a four hour drive. I opted for the slightly longer train in hopes that I would have a better view of the scenery along the way. I definitely did and the train ended up right at the airport terminal so it was completely hassle free.

landscapes from the gallery

Travel shenanigans aside, I will always take a train if it’s an option. There is so much more to see and it’s nice to stand up and walk around, more practical in many respects. In this case the scenery was great and I was super happy it turned out this way. If not for reading a brochure I almost certainly would have missed my flight home in Anchorage and, this never-ending scenery that is the great state of Alaska.

July 27, 2016July 27, 2016

Morning Ritual

First thing in the morning the water here is like glass. This is Benderson Park, an international rowing venue and I came here on Saturday hoping to find some athletes on the water. Save for the early morning joggers the place was deserted. That presented different opportunities on account of the clouds in the sky so I went with plan B.

Early mornings are not easy for me. I do get up and go out sometimes, but I can be a little grumpy; it’s a good thing I’m usually alone. It reminds me a little of my morning workouts. I, and about 20 others, show up at the gym several times a week for a bootcamp-style workout. Several of us are less than chatty at 6AM. However by the end of the workout we’re all smiles and high-fives.

That’s how I am with sunrise photography. I leave the house in my car fighting the urge to turn back. I’ll get a coffee at Duncan Donuts and proceed to a location. Once there I’ll look around and take a few shots. Maybe they’re not so great and again I begin to doubt the effort.

Sarasota County Images

But, if I stick with it and put one foot in front of the other, something might catch my eye, perhaps the light changes. Before you know it I am fully engaged in composition and capturing the light. Thirty minutes later I’m in the zone ready for more.

And that, in a nutshell, is my morning ritual.

July 26, 2016

Drifting Off

This was taken off the coast of British Columbia a couple hours out of Vancouver. I was on an Alaskan cruise and spending time on the balcony watching the scenery and drifting off. Its like soothing scenery overload. It puts you in a relaxed state of mind and before you know it, La-La land.

Actually it was probably more a reaction to the massage. As we boarded in Vancouver the spa personnel were out offering first day discounts on massages. Having a sore back I jumped at it. After that I headed back to the room and sat on the balcony alternately snapping pictures of the coast and falling asleep. A good way to start the week.

full gallery

Many of us lead hectic lives and when we slow down our bodies use the opportunity to recharge. I wish I could do that more often, but then maybe I can on weekends or a little every day. In any case it was good to get away, watch the scenery go by and not think about a thing.

July 12, 2016July 13, 2016

Reflection Study

I drive by this pond quite a lot and this morning I happen to have my camera. As I passed I thought to turn around and get a picture. I’ve taken this before but no two days are alike and indeed it came out quite different.

This is a continuation of a study of reflections I’ve been doing. The study is to capture or produce reflections to add interest to an image.

I never get tired of reflections. In some cases they can be more compelling from than their source, at the very least they enhance it. Reflections resonate with us for reasons we can only guess. Perhaps it is a hint to how we perceive world.

more reflections

I used another photo of clouds and combined it for the sky. This is an example of using textures to enhance the flat section of an image.

I’ll continue posting these them in the days and weeks ahead as I continue to explore both real and artificial reflections in my images.

June 21, 2016June 21, 2016

Half by Chance

As is normally the case, I had no idea where I was going. All I knew was that it was before dawn on a Saturday and I was driving somewhere to take a picture of something yet to be determined. It’s not a very exact plan but sometimes that’s just how I roll. Often I have no idea where I’m going when I go out to take pictures. Instead of turning left I turn right and just go with the flow of random-ness in the universe.

I ended up outside the gates at Desoto Point looking at rain clouds and trying to remember why this was better than bed. I put on a poncho and walked to the shore. I told myself that once I got there I could turn around and head home knowing that I tried. Standing there in the rain I was grateful for the solitude, and the poncho. About the same time I noticed the clouds starting to break up. Sure enough the clouds parted, the sun rose and I captured the moment with what seemed to me like a bit of luck.

visit the gallery

I could have left for home before the scene unfolded, or not even walked the trail to the shore. The fact that I did and stayed seemed to me at the moment to be more chance than purpose. That attitude comes from many occasions where it doesn’t work out. So I suppose the odds were in my favor this time and I managed to get the shot, even if it was half by chance.

June 15, 2016June 15, 2016

Morning Reflection

The fishing pier at Bradenton Riverwalk is another favorite composition of mine because of how the light plays on the still waters. I’ve taken this shot several times before and I’ll probably continue to take more when I end up here in the morning. I suppose I can start a fishing pier gallery before too long.

As soon as the sun rises the breeze starts which then disturbs the glass-like surface of the water. But during those few minutes at dawn this is what it looks like.

As you probably already know I love reflections in the water, there’s something surreal about it that transforms an ordinary scene in a way that’s hard to explain. I look for reflections whenever I’m out shooting and the more I find the better. Sometimes even a puddle of rain water will do. Reflections are like portals into another world, one that insinuates something more ethereal.

More images of the Riverwalk in Bradenton

So yes, I’m a big fan of reflections, and since this place is close to home you’re likely to see more of them in the weeks and months to come.