Spring and Summer Flowers 2013 w/ Textures

Spring always livens up our lives and no more so than if you are a photographer.  I always look forward to all my garden blooms popping out in the spring and watching as they develop.  It's always a fun time.  I just wish I had more time to spend with the camera and less time with the shovel and hoe, not to mention the Deer Scram and Liquid Fence.  It's said that hostas are analogous to "deer crack", and I can bear witness.

At any rate, I shot quite a few flowers this spring and seem to still be shooting them almost everywhere I go.  One thing that has changed this year is that I have started to blend my shots with some textures.  I originally started using other folks textural renderings to meld with my work, but have created, and continue to create, a collection of my own textures.  It's interesting how easy it is to do this once you have an idea of what works and what doesn't.  Anyway, I've got several hundred texture files to work with now and I really like some of the results.  Hope you do too.

This first one is a "Jack-in-the-Pulpit" with two different textures combined.  One of the textures is a shot of some burnt up grass with a vignette shot with a macro lens close up, overlayed by a shot of a Fiddleback Fern.  The grass shot was condensed to fit the frame and tighten the texture, and the fern was stretched to reduce it's dominance.  Of course the opacity has been reduced on both textures (15-25%).  I've created a mask of the flower so that is shows through with no textures overlayed on the flower and sharpening has been applied to the flower only.

"Jack-in-the-Pulpit"

This second one is a Dahlia with a mask and the texture is a photo of a piece of white cloth shot on a white background.  I have no clue what type of cloth it is, as it does not appear to be a woven fabric, but very random in nature.  I used the multiply blend mode in Photoshop on the texture layer and an opacity of 14%.  I think I stretched it a bit as well, but don't really remember.

This last one is called a Helleborus niger or CHRISTMAS ROSE.  It is a full frame shot with a very slight smokey background.  I cannot remember which texture I used on it, as the .psd file seems to have vanished at this point in time, however, I believe it was a yellowed piece of parchment, stretched and probably had a blending mode incorporated.  I do remember that the mask was only applied to the very center where the bud lives.  At any rate, it printed out magnificently and I actually sold a copy of it on Fine Art America.  Love it when that happens.

Helleborus niger or CHRISTMAS ROSE

Dayton Air Show

I haven't posted much on my blog recently.  Pretty much because of some changes in my life and a few disturbing things which have caused me to reflect on life, the things I do and see, and how I handle them.  One of the more dramatic things that has happened recently occurred during my visit to the Vectron Dayton Air Show.

It was a pretty hot day, over cast/cloudy, and I wasn't that excited to be going because of the lack of military air power at the show (no Blue Angles, etc.) due to govt. cuts and so forth.  However, I was offered press credentials in exchange for photos, and shared a ride with some other local photographers, so, it was going to be a fun day.  I started out touring the grounds and viewing the static displays.

B-29 "Fifi"

As I walked around, I was totally oblivious to the drama that was about to unfold.  I walked about and saw a few things I had not seen before, such as the American Airlines "Flagship Detroit" DC3, a pretty impressive display of history.  I also watched the U.S. Army giving helicopter rides.  That was kind of cool.

American Airlines "Flagship Detroit" DC3

U. S. Army "Huey" UH-1H MEDIVAC helicopter

U. S. Army AH1 Cobra Gunship

Some of the flying displays were really outstanding, such as the F-86 and the Wright Brothers replica, which flew very close by to our location in the press area.

Wright "B" Flyer replica

Korean War Era North American F-86 Sabre Jet

There were a lot of great displays, the company was good and the flying was great.  Everything seemed to be going along swimmingly and I was watching the wing walking and flying of wing walker Jane Wicker and pilot Charlie Schwenker as they maneuvered their vintage biplane close to the crowd.

It's not often in our lives that we personally witness true tragedy and death. Standing in the shadow of darkness and bearing witness to the ending of a vital and vibrant life is not easily digested. It's hard to watch and it's hard to relate what happens to those who are not witness, so sometimes, maybe, a picture truly is worth a thousand words. In that spirit, I offer these meager photos. They are of persons who loved what they did and who performed with zeal to fascinate those of us who live more mundane lives. They are of Jane Wicker, (wing walker),and her pilot, Charlie Schwenker, who tragically died in a crash, while performing at the Dayton Air Show. I stood close by as they made their final pass, raising my camera to catch them as they flew past, but paused in horror as I witnessed their end. I pray they are now flying with the angels. RIP Jane and Charlie.

 

Jane and Charlie seconds before their final pass.

 You can see the rest of my photos from my four hours at the Dayton Air Show here.

 

More of Jane and Charlie here.

 

Thanks for stopping by.

Lake Hope and Zeleski State Forest

I learned something new this trip, and discovered a new (to me) flower which totally surprised me when I came upon it.  I was in Zeleski State Forest with my friend Dan, where we were visiting an old abandoned railway tunnel in the middle of the forest.  It was the King Tunnel.  On the way in, I noted several wetland areas with some large flowers growing along their banks.  They were pretty far off the roadway, which made it all the more intriguing, as they were so obvious from a distance.  Not what I was expecting at all.  I made a note and determined to investigate on the way out.  That, however, was not going to be necessary, as there was another wetland on the far side of the tunnel we were visiting and I was able to walk right up to these flowers.  However, they all faced outward from the shoreline, so Dan was nice enough to pose one for me to photograph.

Hibiscus moscheutos, aka Crimson-eyed Rose Mallow, Breast Root, Mallow Rose, Muskplant, and Wild Cotton

The tunnel was interesting, in that it was constructed of 12"x12" in post and beam configuration.  What was most interesting about the tunnel was it's age in relation to it's integrity.  I did not see any rot in any of the wood.  There was some soil erosion at the base on one end, but other than that, it looked perfectly fit.  It measured approximately 20'W x 30'H x 300'L.  Here's an article from TrekOhio regarding this tunnel with some more in depth info and directions.

The entrance to King Hollow Tunnel

The far side.

I spent the better part of my first morning driving around on the forest roads, not knowing much about where I was going or what I would see.  I eventually ended up in Athens, Ohio, the home of Ohio University, where, as I found out after returning home, I had just missed one of the biggest street parties of the year.  Thank goodness for that, but driving around in the woods was pretty cool and there were many wildflowers and bugs to shoot.  It was extremely cloudless the entire time, so trying to find subjects in the shade was a priority and not always possible.  At any rate, it was interesting.

Water Lilly and bees at Lake Hope

One of my favorite shots from the trip.

We also visited Moonville Tunnel on this trip, though I have not processed any of these images yet.  It's interesting to find such places stranded in the middle of the forest.  I run across places like this, it seems, most places I go.  The history of our forests and wilderness areas is never very obvious at first glance and finding treasures like the King Tunnel, Moonville Tunnel,  all the wetlands and the various flora that exist in these areas is not only surprising but a great reward for the time spent.  I will definitely be visiting Zeleski again.  Being that it is in close proximity to Hocking Hills, it will not be a stretch to do so.

If you would like to see the rest of my images from the two day trip, please look here.