119/365 - Running to Stand Still

Unfortunately you can't walk into a store and buy hypodermic needles. So I had to make do with what I had. And I got off my purist soapbox long enough to substitute glycerin for liquid heroin. Acceptable in this instance, I think.

118/365 - I Walk the Line

It is easy, sometimes, to get stuck photographing the same sorts of things. It's spring. There's lots of flowers. They are pretty. Sometimes you can get a different perspective on them, a fresh look at the familiar. But at the same time, it is easy to keep shooting the same thing, different flower. Then the photos get stale. And the inspiration dries up.

But the thing about this project is I can't say: Screw this, in a few days maybe I will feel creative. No, I have to shoot something.

For the first time yesterday, I actually found that inspiration in music. Maybe it's just me, but there are certain songs, certain lyrics that when I hear them, create snapshot in my head. Or at the very least make me think there's an image in there somewhere. One sense helps feed another sense, stimulating an emotional reaction. And if it's done well, it taps into universal archetypes.

I think music videos, good ones, tap into that. Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" comes to mind.

This particular image did not come out as I hoped. But at least there was some inspiration involved - sometimes I simply lack the skill to recreate what is in my head. The important thing is to keep on trying.

118/365 - Closing Time

I am in Panera's parking lot at 10:23 at night, using their wi-fi connection because the internet's been down at the house all day. But I had to get my picture posted - I figure this dedication makes up for the few nights I've gotten home from work late and haven't posted until the morning.

117/365 - Catch light

I had an interesting (to me at least) philosophical discussion with myself today. It all started with my quest for glycerin to make better soap bubble planets. I finally found a bottle of the elusive stuff. Once I got home, I was looking at photos that utilized glycerin. And it suddenly hit me - a good deal, if not most, of the really amazing drop pictures I've seen may have been staged. People actually take glycerin and put it on flowers and leaves, etc., in lieu of water drops. It holds up much better, see. And being a little thicker, is easier to photograph. And if there's been no rain lately but you want to take drop shots, presto.

This bothered me. Immensely. Because I go out every single time it is wet out in search of water drops. And most of what I shoot I trash because I think it is crap. And here I could just fake it. But it would not hold the same satisfaction for me.

And although I had bought the glycerin to mix into my soap solution to make the bubbles more colorful, I had thought about trying some drop shots with it. But after having realized how often it's probably done, I wanted nothing to do with it. And in protest I went out and got the shot. The real shot.

116/365 - Smoke art

I've wanted to give smoke photography another try, especially now that I have a flash. So, I used stick incense and locked myself in the bathroom to minimize drafts as much as I could. The results were pretty cool - and I has happy because I actually figured out the lighting - I think. I'd like to try it again with some color gels on the flash and multiple exposures.

This was my favorite of the shots I took - I love the subtle curves, especially up at the top. Like a bell jar.

115/365 - Fade away

I was trying something new with my camera today. It was supposed to be a picture of a flower, but the technique is cumbersome, tricky and unfamiliar. So I will revisit the flower. But I liked the effect on the clock tower, looking through the skylight.

I used my 35-105 and shot at 1/4 sec. When the shutter released, I zoomed the lens in while turning the camera at the same time. It will take some practice.

114/365 - Route 202

What to do on my way home from work tonight? I wanted to get a long exposure, so I set my aperature to f22, my iso to 200 and set the camera on bulb. I put the camera on the dashboard above the steering wheel and used the remote to take long exposures. This was my favorite, driving up Route 202 in Torrington toward New Hartford. It was a 77 second exposure.