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.

Shenandoah National Park: A favorite place

We recently took a long weekend trip to the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. It has been one of our favorite places for years.  I was amused at the weather report.  If the prediction was rain, it was sunny.  If sun was predicted, it rained! The mountains seem to create their own unpredictable weather pattern.   We had lots of fog and mist too, which created some moody photography.  If you take proper care of your camera, rain doesn’t mean you can’t take good photos!

Big Meadows is one of the best locations on the Skyline Drive to see deer, especially at dusk.  Some of them are very accustomed to people and largely ignore you.  It is wise to use a tripod and stand fairly still to avoid scaring them away.  The wildflowers blooming along the drive and in the meadow in August added a nice touch to the landscapes.  I photographed delicate Queen Anne’s Lace from underneath the flower to produce an unusual viewpoint.

Other highlights of our trip included a van trip to Camp Rapidan, where Herbert Hoover spent his time away from the White House in a rustic camp, viewing a black bear while I was driving along the main road (sorry no photo) and a visit to see Charlie Maddox play music from Appalachia and the British Isles on hammered dulcimer, banjo and guitar in the tap room at Big Meadows Lodge.

Last St. Mary's College River Concert of the 2011 Season Delights the Audience

The final River Concert in 2011 was delayed until 7:30PM on July 29th to reduce the effects of another hot summer evening at St. Mary’s College of Maryland on the green overlooking the St. Mary’s River. Cooling stations with water and air conditioning were once more in place, to avoid health issues from the temperatures in the high nineties.


The concert began with Maurice Ravel’s “Daphnis and Chloe Suites”. The piece was based on a Viennese Waltz. Jeffrey Silberschlag described the work as “a conflicted orchestra with a conflicted waltz and a maestro in crisis.” He told us that the piece was written about the troubles of the collapse of the Royal Austrian family, the Hapsburgs. The music had a strange beginning that was both dark and light at the same time and generally quite dissonant.


A “Trumpet Concerto” by Corrado Saglietti followed, with Jeffry Silberschlag playing solo trumpet. Silberschlag joked that his “mouthpiece has been slipping” so he “borrowed rosin from Jose”, the first violinist. I was glad to see that Larry Vote conducted the piece, since his July 8th performance was sadly rained out earlier. The music had an Italian and pop feel and was mellow, smooth and pleasant.

After presenting plaques to the many sponsors of the concert series during intermission, the star of the series, Broadway’s Melissa Errico took the stage. She sang a powerful performance including a number of popular songs like “Windmills of Your Mind”, “I Could Have Danced All Night” from “My Fair Lady” and “How are Things in Glocca Morra?” from “Finian’s Rainbow”. She amazed the audience with her incredible speed while singing “Getting Married Today” from the musical production “Company” while wearing a wedding veil. Ms. Errico also presented her own peaceful song, “Gentle Child” written about a memorable moment with her daughter, Victoria. Melissa Errico has performed many classic musicals including “Finian’s Rainbow”, “My Fair Lady” which I personally saw in the early 1990’s, “Camelot” and “The Sound of Music”. Like Kate Baldwin, last year’s award winning performer, Ms. Errico also sings often at Birdland Jazz Club.
The last concert of the season wasn’t complete until the Chesapeake Orchestra played its’ signature piece “Sleigh Ride”. We will be earnestly awaiting next year’s performances!

River Concert 6: The Eternal Flame Goes On Despite the Heat

A number of die hard music lovers and the Chesapeake Orchestra attended the River Concert on Friday July 22nd at 730PM,at St. Mary’s College of Maryland in the sweltering heat of high summer. The concert was purposely delayed a half hour, hoping the temperature would drop a little. The college kindly provided four cooling centers with air conditioning and cold water to help avoid health issues in the dangerous heat. Survival required lots of liquid refreshment and a visit to Kona Water Ice or Brewster Ice Cream. The little monkey statues at the Sunshines Catering Vendor described the evening well (pictured).

The evenings fare started with Leonard Bernstein’s “Three Dance Variations” from the ballet “Fancy Free”. This modern work was well played. I enjoyed the 3rd movement Danzon with lots of timpani and other percussion and a similarity to “West Side Story”. The first movement, Galop, was disjointed, abrupt and repetitive, while the Waltz was quieter and jerkier with lots of trumpets.

Judah Adashi’s ”Grace”, a 10 minute work, was presented next and was introduced by the composer. Mr. Adashi explained that the piece was in memory of rock star Jeff Buckley. José Cueto (pictured) expertly played this brief musical work with its soaring falsetto violin part with high notes difficult to even think, and Middle Eastern scales inspired by Adashi’s Israeli parentage.

Adashi’s music was followed by another short work by Jeffrey’s “favorite undead composer, David Froom”. “Amichai Songs” featured an excellent baritone soloist, William Sharp (pictured). While Froom insisted that his third movement, “The House of Lovers” was gentle and romantic, with the words “If we are lucky the house will collapse and the light will be set free for the whole world”, I wasn’t quite sure I agreed.

The highlight of the evening was definitely Gustav Mahler’s “Symphony No. 1 “The Titan”. The early part of the work was about nature and included repeated 2 notes on flute, sort of like raindrops on leaves. Later in the piece, some of the music was written in waltz time (1,2,3!) and the influence of the Hasidic could plainly be heard, along with snatches of “Frére Jacques” in a minor key in the third movement. The last section was definitely the best. How the orchestra survived the last energetic movement without at least one person being escorted away by the Ridge Rescue Squad was unknown, but their determination was much admired.

Fifth River Concert, Rainfree on Friday July 15th at 7 pm

After last week’s rained out concert, Maestro Jeffrey Silberschlag first mentioned that there was a 0 % chance of rain for this concert. He continued, "We went to Spain for a soloist who would be Spanish enough and passionate enough" to play the 2 Spanish works included in the program. The theme was European Vacation, and combined Spain and the Alps.  The Chesapeake Orchestra featured pianist Antonio Soria, a professor from the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Castellón in Spain.


The first musical work, "Night in Madrid" by Mikhail Glinka was a beautiful piece with lots of soaring strings and arpeggios on piano.

It was followed by “Manuel DeFalla's "In the Garden of Spain".  Jeffrey informed us that we would hear the matador and the bull. The 3 movement piece was softer at the beginning with a 2 note ending. The second movement was dance-like with a repeated theme with theme variations and was much faster. There was even a scary section with lots of tension in the strings.

Antonio Soria was obviously much enthralled. Even when he was not playing, he was moving his whole body along with the music. His playing was of course brilliant.

After the brief intermission, the Chesapeake Orchestra continued with "An Alpine Symphony" by Richard Strauss. Maestro Jeffrey Silberschlag described the composition as a kind of trek through the Alps "like a travel writer” or a "Superman 3 soundtrack flyover the Alps". The piece included a wind machine and drum rolled thunder to describe night and a storm in Alps. The beginning was very dark and the whole piece had many moods. I heard ominous horns, flute raindrops along with long notes from the strings, and stormy timpani. The 22 sections of musical storytelling ranged from sunrise to fog to dangerous moments near the summit to blooming meadows. It was an altogether fascinating piece of music.

Plans for the River Concert on Friday July 22 at 730pm include local violinist José Cueto, “Amichai Songs” by David Froom, chair of the Colleges music department and works by Leonard Bernstein and Gustav Mahler.