Independence day - July 4th

Independence day -  a day we celebrate our independence from England. A day full of hot dogs, hamburgers, bbqs, family time, thankfulness, and of course our number way of showing a great celebration- fireworks! Yes, I captured some firework images again this year. Of which I will share some below and the rest will be on A Kids Photo website soon. If you have some firework photos I will be glad to get them posted, just drop me a line or leave a comment.

Palm Trees on a Moonlit Night

Blue Burst

Orb

Rose Show

For the past few days we have been at the Rose Show in Thomasville, Georgia and it was a great show. The show kicked off on Thursday and went through Saturday. It couldn't have been in a better place. Thomasville is  great little town with friendly folks always willing to give a helping hand.

This year we did not take part in very many of the parades but we did see the spectacular flowers. On Thursday we paid a visit to the Rose Garden. The roses were starting to bloom very well; give them a month and they will look very nice.

Butterfly Orchid

On to the show. The orchid show was disappointing. What I mean is there were some wonderful orchids but they were tucked away in a small building. I believe the orchids could have had a better location.
I think my best like among the orchids was the butterfly orchid. It really looks like a butterfly floating among the flowers.

Green Rose

On to the roses. As in the past, the roses were great. Red, yellow, pink you name it and they had the color of roses you like. Have you ever seen a green rose? Well they had one there. (on the left). I have seen everything!

Be sure to check A Kids Photo  for the new rose and orchid photos!

Photographing Christmas Light Displays

Christmas light displays can be a bit tricky at times to photograph. Applying a few basic rules or tips as you might say is all that is needed to create a wonderful photo.  I have a few tips that might make it a touch easier to capture the moment in a wonderful image that you can share for years to come.

 

1. Plan or schedule you shooting time. The time of day is very critical to a well exposed photo full of colors. The best time is when the sky and the lights are as equal as possible, in other words the light from lights does not overpower the sky. My preferred time is shortly after the sun goes down, perhaps 15 minutes or so. I will usually take some test shots at two to three minute intervals starting at about 15 minutes after the sun goes down. When you have found the best time you will only have about ten minutes of shooting time, be ready!

On the other hand, some folks like the pitch black background so you see virtually nothing but lights with some structure peaking through the lights. If this is what you are after then I would wait until dark sets in and then take the shot at a faster shutter speed.

2. Use a supporting device. A tripod or beanbags, in case you are shooting from a car window, is very helpful. Actually, they are a must have in most cases because your exposure time will be slow. If you are after the black background look, I still recommend a bracing device.

3. Christmas lights are for the most part tungsten; be sure to set your white balance to tungsten before shooting. This will ensure the colors you see are what you will get.

4. Snow makes an interesting foreground, so don’t try to crop it out when framing your picture. Reflective items make for interesting foregrounds as well. If you are using the roof of the car as a base, try to get some of the reflections in the image.

5. Turn off all flash accessories. Flash is not a good thing for Christmas light photos.

Christmas lights can be a little tricky but, with a little practice you will be creating wonderful images for years to come.

Just Posted: Canon EOS 60D in-depth review

Just Posted: Canon EOS 60D in-depth review: "Just Posted: our Canon EOS 60D full review. It's been a busy period here at dpreview but behind the scenes we've been shooting with and testing many of the big Photokina 2010 releases. The 60D is not the direct replacement for the 50D that many Canon users expected but there's still an awful lot of 7D fitting into a smaller, lighter body with an articulated screen that is likely to appeal to video shooters. It has the same 18MP sensor as the 7D and 550D and the large, bright viewfinder from its predecessor. It becomes the first X0D camera to have a plastic, rather than metal, body but it also becomes the first to have an articulated screen - a variant of the excellent 1.04 million dot 3:2 screen from the 550D. So how well do all these elements come together and do they create a 'super Rebel' for entry-level users to aspire to?"