My Favorite Photographer

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Last April, Kathy and I spent the weekend in San Diego to attend the annual Chicano Park car show. We got there early and found 50+ cars had already arrived with what seemed like 100 more vying for parking places. After the show we walked past a small market with an interesting and very colorful wall mural. I convinced Kathy to pose for just a few shots. She hates being in front of a camera but as usual, she looked lovely. If you'd like to see Kathy's photography head over to www.tweakedpixels.com

Goddess of Speed

Kathy, her brother Kevin, his son David, and I all met very early on a recent Saturday to attend the 2013 Uptown Whittier Car Show. It was really fun and I'm glad we were out early because by 2:00 PM the show was very crowded and the temperature had exceeded 95 degrees. The scene was quite different at just after 6:00 AM that morning. The show wouldn’t officially open until 9:00 AM so there were only a handful of spectators and the organizers kept all of the cars waiting in three long lines at the far end of Greenleaf Avenue. We were able to take some great pictures of the cars there. This Packard hood ornament was taken later that afternoon with my 100mm macro lens.

Bokehlicious

Southgate California car show. I love my 100mm Minolta macro lens. Nuff said.

The Gathering Light

Kathy and I went to the Ruby's car show tonight which has recently resumed after a long winter and spring hiatus. Summer is around the corner and the evening light was beautiful. I spotted this fantastic looking Pontiac and shot a bunch of photos of its iconic hood ornament since the light was hitting it just right, illuminating the inside of the amber colored Indian head very nicely.

I Dream of Bokeh

I Dream of Bokeh, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

Here's another image taken at the 2011 Uptown Whitier Car Show. I have posted images of these iconic Pontiac hood ornaments before. They always captivate me, especially if I can get a shot that is back lit by the sun which always shows off the internal structure of these amber colored jewels. I once again borrowed my wife Kathy's incredibly sharp and contrasty 100mm macro lens for this. In addition to being sharp it has the ability to create amazingly smooth bokeh (a Japanese term meaning "beautifully rendered out-of-focus areas") which contrasts so beautifully with the in-focus areas in a shot. To see more of what this lens can do check out Kathy's blog at www.tweakedpixels.com.

Purely Ornamental

Purely Ornamental, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

Lensbaby macro shot of this cool hood ornament I found in the back lot at the Bob's Big Boy Broiler car show. Very often the show is so busy that a lot of cool cars end up parking out back.

Nature found a way

Nature found a way, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

As Kathy and I were walking through Muir Woods, we saw that at some point a large tree had fallen completely across the trail. Park rangers must have used a chain saw to cut away just that part that was blocking the path, leaving the rest of the tree to lie where it fell. A close look at one of the sections revealed that a tiny plant that was actually growing from the bark of the tree. I took this shot with my Lensbaby Composer with a macro ring attached. The plant itself was no larger that an inch across. It’s amazing how life can hang on given a little moisture and some soil.

Lensbaby Macro

Lensbaby Macro, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

Lensbaby macro ring as seen by the Lensbaby Composer

Lagerfeld

Lagerfeld, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

There are just a few colognes that I like to wear. Lagerfeld is a favorite. I was looking at how the light on my headboard was reflecting inside the bottle and I decided to try a Lensbaby macro shot.

Prick

Prick, originally uploaded by big_pixel_pusher.

Don't tread on me