121/366 - "Flower Train"

(F/6.3, 100mm, 1/100 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Our neighbor has a flowering bush that has these long branches that have white flowers with this yellow pollen.  The bees love it and right now the bush is in full bloom.  I went out after dinner and took several photographs.  This is one of my favorites as it looks like a train of flowers coming down the tracks.

If you know the name of the bush / flower let me know.

120/366 - "Ready for Anything"

(F/4, 105mm, 1/1250 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Today we spent the majority of the day outside.  I set up the garden and cut the grass.  Jonah played extra hard and to prove it I snapped this after I was done.  He tends to just leave gear on after he is done with a particular activity.  He normally starts by riding his bike, then goes and digs in the dirt without removing his helmet.  Then comes soccer, so he gets geared up for that, and then back on the bike.  He is truly ready for anything, even the occasional swing of the tennis racket or baseball bat.

119/366 - "The Sparge"

(F/4, 22mm, 1/25 sec, ISO 1000, Canon 5D Mk II)

Yesterday was a crazy busy day.  We had soccer in the morning, brewing beer in the afternoon, and then a birthday party in the evening for Grizz.  I took a few photos during a process called sparging.  This is the beginning of the process and once Shawn feels the liquid is ready "The Sparge" will begin. 

118/366 - "White Flowers"

(F/2.5, 50mm, 1/250 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I got home from work / happy hour and knew that I had to take some photos.  The sun was setting and wanted to use natural light if at all possible.  So I grabbed the camera went outside and saw that my neighbor's flowers were looking very photogenic.

117/366 - "Muffin Time"

(F/4, 50mm, 1/50 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

It was getting late and I was running out of ideas and inspiration, so I took some photos of the corn bread muffins that Sue made.

116/366 - "Azalea"

(F/9, 100mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 200, Canon 5D Mk II)

It is commonly known that I can not grow anything to save my life.  We bought and planted some azaleas a couple years ago and all but two of them died.  These were then transplanted to a "better" location and then one more died leaving one remaining.  Last night during our walk Sue noticed that it finally started to bloom.  It will probably die this year.

115/366 - "Election Day"

(F/10, 24mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 200, Canon 5D Mk II)

Today is election day in Pennsylvania.  After dinner we walked over to Oakmont Methodist Church so Sue could vote.  I had already voted, so I stayed outside and took a few snaps.  Believe it or I haven't photographed this church yet.  On day 73 I posted about St. Thomas and this particular church is only one block from that location.  Maybe by the end of the year I will have posted all of the Oakmont churches.   

114/366 - "Out of the Mist"

(F/2.8, 100mm, 1/10 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

At times I think I over utilize bokeh in some of my photographs.  In this case I think it is warranted, and I love the effect of the fork emerging from a mist of fog.

113/366 - "Circles of Light"

(F/1.4, 50mm, 1/400 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I was messing around today with different concepts.  We have lights that dangle from the ceiling over the countertops in the kitchen that have a bell shape (See Day 3).  These lights are on a dimmer and I played with that and all the camera setting to get an effect that I liked.

112/366 - "Neighborhood Watch"

(F/5.6, 300mm, 1/25 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

On crappy days like today I am a little more tentative to photographic opportunities.  While I was cleaning  up from breakfast I spotted a squirrel on top of the telephone pole behind our house.  This is a first as the birds have staked their claim to this prime real estate.

111/366 - "Growing Wild"

(F/2.8, 100mm, 1/250 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I am hoping tomorrow is a half decent day because these dandelions are getting out of control and I need to cut the grass.

110/366 - "Splash"

(F/16, 100mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I had so much fun the other day playing with the water drops that I wanted to try a splash capture.  After a few tries I was able to get one that I liked enough to quit.  I think I will try this again but with a different glass.  I think something with a rounded bottom like a wine glass will give me a splash with a curling effect.

109/366 - "Springdale Lighthouse"

(F/4, 70mm, 1/2000 sec, ISO 200, Canon 5D Mk II)

After dinner tonight we went to Glen's Custard in Springdale.  There is a power plant of some sort that sits along the river and the stacks are visible from behind Glen's.  This is the stack I prefer mainly because of the red and white stripes.  Jonah told us it reminds him of the beach because it looks like a lighthouse.  I would have to say that I agree.

108/366 - "Happy Tax Day"

(F/14, 100mm, 2 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I was trying to figure out what to photograph today when I realized it was tax day.  So I took photos of a 2 dollar bill, 100 dollar bill, and a 1 dollar bill.  Thanks to dad for always carrying 2's and 100's.  Jonah donated a 1 for the cause.  Hopefully you are getting money back from the government.

Happy Tax Day 2012!

107/366 - "Dandelion"

(F/22, 100mm, 15 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Like most kids, Jonah pulls dandelions out of the ground makes a wish and blows to watch the seeds float through the air.  I picked this one this morning to save it from the wind that was in the forecast.  I am glad I did because the weather forecast was correct.  The wind has surely blown them all away.

106/366 - "Good Dog"

(F/4, 105mm, 1/100 sec, ISO 400, Canon 5D Mk II)

Tonight we went to have birthday dessert at our neighbor's house.  They have the most well behaved dog that I know.  His name is Bender and not only did he sit here for photographs, he did so until I was done.  He does tricks and is great with the kids.  If we ever get a dog, he will be going to the Nancy Kline dog training academy.

105/366 - "In The Clouds"

(F/11, 17mm, 1/160 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

On the trip to and from Arizona I took several photos out of the airplane.  This is from our return trip to Pittsburgh and I believe it is somewhere over New Mexico.

104/366 - "I'm In Trouble"

(F/4, 105mm, 1/50 sec, ISO 800, Canon 5D Mk II)

Being at a wedding with your daughter conjures up thoughts of one day walking her down the aisle.  After the wedding ceremony and pictures I was required to be a part of, I grabbed my camera.  I decided to go hang out with all the kids that were running around the property having a blast.

I was able to single out Harper and take a few shots.  These are probably my favorite photographs of the time we spent in Arizona, and brought home the realization that I am in T-R-O-U-B-L-E.

103/366 - "Cactus Flowers"

(F/4, 105mm, 1/80 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

While we were in Arizona we spent the majority of our time at the Cottonwood Resort.  The property had beautiful landscaping with all sorts of plants and flowers that we normally don't see unless you go to Phipps.

102/366 - "Deep Thoughts with Kandi"

(F/4, 105mm, 1/125 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

The wedding was at the Stonebridge Manor which is located in Mesa, AZ.  Anyway the rehearsal was on Wednesday and while we were all hanging out by the pool, I noticed Gia (daughter of the groom) and my cousin Kandi (sister of the groom) sitting on a wall.  If you know my cousin Kandi, then you will find the title of this post funny.

On a side note the Stonebridge Manor is a gorgeous property, with a fabulous staff and we had a great time. 

101/366 - "Airplanes"

(F/4, 24mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 400, Canon 5D Mk II)

We went on a trip these past few days to Scottsdale, Arizona.  The last time Harper was on a plane was when she was almost one.  When we got to our room at the airport hotel in Pittsburgh she was glued to the window watching all the airplanes take off.

100/366 - "The Horse and The Goose"

(F/16, 100mm, 1/200 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I have wanted to do a water drop photograph for a while now and today was the day.  It took me about 15 minutes to get the setup the way I wanted it.  Then I took about 90 photographs or so to get the timing and colors I wanted.

As I went through all the photographs rating them to weed out the duds, this one caught my eye.  I saw the shadow behind the column of water immediately and to me it looks like a horse.  As I kept looking at this photograph I noticed that the column of water actually looks like a goose coming up out of the water with its mouth open.  I have other examples that have a better splash or column of water but this one with the unintentional animal shapes is my favorite.  There will be more of this to come now that I know how to do it.

On another note, I will be without internet for a few days so I will not be posting photographs for a few days.  I will be taking photos each day and will get caught up later this week.

Jim loves water drops and sent in a guest post seen below.  I am sure when I do this theme again he will send another guest post.  I love the colors.

99/366 - "Egg Hunt"

(F/4, 70mm, 1/250 sec, ISO 400, Canon 5D Mk II)

We get to host Easter each year.  Part of that is me taking a basket of eggs and hiding them for all the kids to go find.  This is Hunter and Addison searching for eggs in the backyard.

Happy Easter!

98/366 - "Dye Master"

(F/1.4, 50mm, 1/60 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Today we colored eggs.  I probably should have had Jonah wash his hands after coming inside, but you don't eat the shell so it's all good.  I was taking photographs of this event and I noticed the dirt on his hands.  I felt this angle and the dirt gives the effect of an old world craftsman working on some elaborate artistic egg. 

97/366 - "Ring-O-Round The Tree"

(F/4, 80mm, 1/125 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Today Jonah and I went for a hike in Dark Hollow Woods.  While we were hiking we stumbled upon this tree that had this cool ring around it.  Jonah and I talked about what could have possibly happened to this tree to cause this in the bark. 

96/366 - "Night Sky"

(F/4, 24mm, 1/1000 sec, ISO 200, Canon 5D Mk II)

Tonight we had some really cool looking cloud formations in the sky.  So while everyone was outside playing I was taking photographs of the sky.  When I imported them to Lightroom I started playing around with all the settings to see if I could create a unique look that doesn't really look like the sky.  I think I got it.

95/366 - "Up Up Away"

(F/4, 35mm, 1/320 sec, ISO 200, Canon 5D Mk II)

After dinner Jonah and Sue went for a bike ride around the block a few times.  Harper and I decided to play with the sidewalk chalk and while she was drawing shapes I was drawing some balloons.  I had her get next to them and told her to "hold" on to the strings.  She was very confused as there was not any real string to hold.  Even though she was thoroughly confused she was kicking her legs up in the air like she was floating.  Lots of fun with some chalk and imagination.

94/366 - "Berry Fun"

(F/16, 100mm, 8 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

Tonight I decided to do a macro shot.  Sue and the kids keep raving about how great the strawberries are right now.  So I grabbed a strawberry, set up my shot, and here you have it.

93/366 - "Take Me to Your Leader"

(F/4, 60mm, 1/100 sec, ISO 400, Canon 5D Mk II)

Harper recently figured out that the bin that her legos came in will fit on her head.  So she has been walking around lately with it on her head.  Tonight I managed to get a shot with her walking around and every time I see her I imagine she is saying "Take Me to Your Leader", in her best alien voice.

92/366 - "Stay Off My Lawn"

(F/1.4, 50mm, 1/4000 sec, ISO 100, Canon 5D Mk II)

I remember as a kid there were neighbors that did not want the neighborhood kids playing on their lawns. Today, I cut the grass for the first time this year and I was playing around with low angle photographs.  I put an example of on the Other Stuff Blog.  Anyway, Jonah was bugging me as I was laying on the ground and I told him that if he wanted to see the photographs he needed to be in them.  So he hopped on his bike and came right for me and then insisted on viewing everything I had taken.  For the record, I don't care if the kids play in our grass.  I actually hope it dies and I never have to cut it again.