With Dog as My Co-Pilot

Lisa and I spotted this weird bimopecycle at Art in the Park on Sunday. Hard to say how it worked, but the pooch was having a good time people watching. 9/11

Kingfisher

7/31: Kingfisher near the old Kent dam. Panned the camera and really love the effect.

Hot Air Balloon

Ravenna, Ohio attracts hot air ballon enthusiasts. And, lucky me, they occasionally float over my house. This one is from a brilliant day in September, 2010.

It's Not Over Yet...

Last Thursday's snow, thickly coating trees along the railroad tracks. Added a vignette and grain in Lightroom. So cold and so beautiful. March 31, 2011.

The Kent Block: Destruction Underway

October 1, 2010:  Lots of construction in Kent this year. The Crain Avenue bridge is being replace (long overdue!), and the Kent block project has started. Almost all of the old buildings have been taken down, and most of the debris removed. Davey Tree, more retail, and some Kent State offices will occupy the building when done.Very cool that Kent is being revitalized - the city and University are also building an intermodal center (that would be a transportation hub to the rest of us), and the University is planning a new approach to the campus through downtown.

I shot these out the car window - Chuck was too sick (bronchitis) to take a walk around town.

Panos from July 20 - 24, 2010

Stormy month - another one coming:

Happier clouds, from my deck:

Franklin Mills Park, looking upriver toward the old freight station, actually shot on the 23rd.:

Kent Art and Wine Festival, Home Savings Plaza. Almost made it to the end before getting rained out this time.

 

Mixed Bag of Panoramas, July 12 - 14

Lost the light on this one. Ten  minutes before, the clouds were lit up with the sunset. Just had to pull a few more weeds... Seven shots across.

Grandma Wilk's Spode Tower on the buffet. Looks like Alice in Wonderland. No amount of re-shoooting or adjustment made this one look normal. Subject too close to camera? Five shots.

I like this one best. The perspective is still kind of funky, but not bad for my little point-n-shoot. Four shots, full auto.

July 6, New Fairchild Ave. Bridge; July 7, Kurt and Cindy's Garden

This is the new bridge, shot from the rickety Crain Avenue bridge - I felt every vehicle rumbling over it, including bicycles. Three trains blasted by while I was shooting, very cool.

Got the tripod all set up, camera adjusted, when it kindly reminded me it had no memory card. Which, of course, it didn't, since the card was still stuck in my laptop from the previous night's download. So my half hour shoot was more like an hour and fifteen including a couple of round trips to the house.

7 shot panorama, and will be part of my Kent project.

Chuck and I went over to a friend's house tonight. He put new tubes in my bike, which was very nice of him. He and Cindy have a lovely garden. This is the wooded part, which Kurt's filled up with an amazing variety of carefully tended hostas. This is a 4-shot pano with a Virtual Photographer filter, "Radiant", applied. Kind of old-timey post card.

July 4 Pano - Graffiti; July 5 - Brandywine Falls

July 4, Graffiti: Started with seven shots - way too long and skinny. So I cropped it shorter, to include the McCartney quote. This is the retaining wall between Pufferbelly and the RR tracks, shot from the viewing platform on the old dam.

July 5, Brandywine Falls: Chuck's been a peach above the pano project - it was sizzling hot, and he cheerfully tramped down and up the 80 steps to the falls deck. This is 3 shots, bottom to top.

No panos from the 3rd, because it was the street festival and Kent fireworks. We were right under the fireworks - great view! Unfortunately, the camera caught the power lines in every single shot. Fun night anyway. Regina came down, we ate pitas at The Pita Pit, and some kettle corn, did some people-watching, and just generally had a good time.

Summer Clouds

Messing around with the circular polarizer and textures in Photoshop Elements.This was shot at 17MM from the upper deck. Gorgeous day. The polarizer really brings out the color of the sky and adds contrast to the clouds. Click on the photo to see a larger version.

January 2, 2009: Pufferbelly

November 23, 2009: Kent Project

Late rose. It's been an amazing Indian Summer. This rose still has buds.

Front door at Pufferbelly, with a Virtual Photographer filter called "photocopy".

To replace P365 for 2010, I am going to do a photography project on my adopted hometown, Kent, Ohio.

I have three objectives:

1. To document Kent as it is in the first decade of the 21st century.

2. To improve my photography skills.

3. To write a bit about the history and sense place.

The last goal is probably the hardest, since I typically stick to date and place. Kent is quirky and colorful enough to merit a little more.