Expect the Unexpected

On Oct 14th,I was wandering around St. Mary's College of Maryland looking for pictures of leaves for a St. Mary's County Camera Club competition.   Often I don't find the photo I plan to get, but find something else even better.  I was amazed to see waterlilies in October in the small pond. 

The lily pads were interesting too.  If you are familiar with old video games, the leaves reminded me of an old game.  Feel free to guess. 

Then, I saw an unexpected treat near sunset.    With photography you always need to be prepared for the unexpected.  It is worth having several lenses with you just in case.  That's life I guess! 

By the way,  I didn't find any good leaf pictures that day, but  I hope to get some soon.

(See also Jan 6, 2011 for a similar theme blog post)

Kelby Worldwide Photowallk 2011

I participated in the Kelby Worldwide Photowalk on Oct 1st at Historic St. Mary's City.  It was a gray day, but the temperature was pleasant.  (last year's walk was in July when it hit 100 degrees!)  We got together for one big group shot at the beginning of the walk and then separated to wander around the grounds.  Costumed employees were a popular photo topic since the Dove (ship) wasn't in port.

Each photographer could choose one favorite photo to add into a contest to compete against other photographers in the rest of the world.  There was a local Photowalk Flickr page for uploading some of our favorite pictures from the day.  A number of the really interesting photos used a technique called HDR, high dynamic range.  By merging several or many files with different exposures, the photo appears to have extra depth and vibrancy, even on a gray day.  Enjoy!

St. Mary's County Fair Photography winners 2011

The County Fair highest honor was a photo of a ship at sunset with silhouetted birds flying around it.  Very Nice.  We all agreed on it, which made it very easy.

Life in St. Mary's County was a photo of an old car in Leonardtown Square.

Sorry, I don't know the names of the photographers.

St. Mary's County Fair will be held Sep 22-25, 2011

Visit the St. Mary's County Fair Sep 22-25, 2011, or better yet, enter one of the competitions.  If you have a beautiful flower in your yard, a photograph, art or craft item that you think is exceptional, enter it in the County Fair Wednesday afternoon or evening.

The full program is available at the St. Mary's County Libraries.  There are lots of things to see and do from visiting the animals, watching a competition, sampling the food and riding a Ferris Wheel.  Some of my past favorites included watching the Mitchell Showboat Marionettes (the kids are so cute) and viewing the chain saw wood carver.  There are lots of things to photograph at the fair too.  The official St. Mary's County Fair website is easily found.  And you can't beat the price, $5 for adults!


I am also excited and honored to be one of the photography judges this year, so I won't be posting any winning photos this year, but I plan to take photos of this year's Fair for fun.

Blue Angels visited Patuxent River

We recently went to the Patuxent River Air Expo in St. Mary’s County on a warm sunny day. The crowds were out in full force and the Blue Angels were spectacular (as always!). They love catching you off guard and appearing unexpectedly when the crowd’s attention is concentrating on a diverting maneuver. There were so many different planes it was really tough to pick out which ones to share. I decided to also share the Ely-Curtiss Pusher biplane, representing the centennial of Naval Aviation.


To photograph at an airshow, I recommend a zoom telephoto lens with at least 300-400mm for distance shots, the brightest lens you can afford. A polarizing filter or circular polarizer (for digital cameras) is also nice to emphasize blue skies.  It is also handy to have a more standard lens to photograph the stationary exhibits and the spectators.  I often get cute shots of kids on Dad's shoulder watching the sky or looking at the exhibit planes.

To see some official photos and get more information

Photographing butterflies

I recently went to Brookside Gardens with Camera Club friends to visit the “Wings of Fancy” butterfly display in Wheaton, MD, a conservatory in the gardens. The butterflies were very active at 10 am, making it difficult to focus on a moving target. I just loved the blue morphos, which have spotted brown wings when closed and reflected blue wings when open. The butterflies often land on people, making it great fun, but you do have to be careful not to injure them. It is also a good idea to use a macro lens with flash or a telephoto lens to blur the background.

The free gardens are open at sunrise and there is a fee for the butterfly exhibit and special programs. The gardens are well worth a visit.

Mid-Atlantic Nature Visions Expo in November features Art Wolfe

I thought some of you might be interested in learning about the Mid-Atlantic Nature Visions Expo that is coming up Nov 11-13 in Manassas VA. The Expo is put on by the Mid-Atlantic Photography Association, including quite a few Virginia Photography Organizations at the Hylton Performing Arts Center. There are inexpensive accommodations at a nearby Best Western.

A few of us have signed up to hear Art Wolfe speak on the Art of Composition at an all day workshop on Friday Nov 11. Art is also the keynote speaker on Saturday. He is most well known for his TV show, "Travels to the Edge", a wonderful series of programs visiting beaufiful and exotic places.

There are lectures on Saturday and Sunday, workshops, an exhibit, vendors and also a chance to photograph hawks, owls and/or falcons with the Raptor Conservancy of Virginia for an additional $25 . To learn more about the Photo Expo visit  http://naturevisions.org/ We participated last year and enjoyed the lectures, exhibits and photo opportunities very much.

I'm including my photo of a North American Kestral to help inspire you.