Saturday ~ March 08, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 8, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

Combine in a corn field

Happy Saturday!

The image above is nothing special.  It is one of two I took the other night on the way home from work.  I thought it ironic that a combine was sitting in an unharvested field with snow all around.  I don’t know about you but that just strikes me as something you don’t see every day.  🙂

Speaking of my commute home…  I celebrated 14 years with my company this week.  That may not sound like much to you but for me that’s a long time.  Other than being a live for xx years and being married to the Queen for 37 years I’ve never done anything for 14 years.  I have a short attention span. 🙂

So I’ve had this idea for awhile about doing a time-lapse video of my 45 minute commute.  I tried it on the way to work yesterday but as usual I didn’t do the calculations and my 45 minutes turned into a 9 second video.  I set the timer on the GoPro Hero3+ Black edition to a shot every 10 seconds.  Well that produced only 270 images and when processed at 29.8 frames a second you can do the math = 9 seconds.  What a dweeb.

So on the way home I set it to the shortest frame rate of .05 seconds and that gave me a cool video of 90 seconds, which is posted below.  It’s kind of fun to watch a 45 minute commute reduced to 90 seconds.  I apologize for the windshield wipers as it started to rain on the way home.  I’ll do another one some time when the weather is nicer.  But I’m pretty happy with this one.

Once you view this video I’m sure the thought comes to mind, “I’ll never ride with this maniac!”  I’m not as reckless as it looks in the video.  🙂

That’s it for today.  Enjoy your Saturday, they are very precious unless of course you’re retired.  Thanks for stopping by.  Be careful

Friday ~ March 07, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 7, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

Napkin

Yippee, skippee, it’s Friday!

It’s been a long week and I’m not sorry to see it end.  I had a meeting yesterday at one of our banks and then we (a group of us) went to lunch at a nearby sports bar.  One of the women sitting across from me was passing out napkins and when she got to her napkin this is what she saw.  It made her day and the rest of us smile.  Amazing how something so simple, free, and thoughtful can be done for a total stranger and have such wonderful, uplifting results.  The image was taken with my iPhone but it’s the message that counts.

My Favorite Tree

I was determined to find something to photograph last evening on the way home because my photography cupboard was bare.  Finally after finding nothing that appealed to me I decided to photograph my favorite tree.  As you can see it was getting on toward the end of the daylight but there were some wonderful clouds in the sky and the sun was setting.  I had to walk a half mile (19 degree temperature) for this image but you’re worth it.  🙂

I’m trying to add another dimension to my flying camera.  Electronics requires a logical and linear thought process and my brain doesn’t work that way.  Anyone who knows me will quickly tell you I am anything but logical.  Anyway it’s hard for me to work with the electronics so I’m doing a lot of reading and watching video tutorials in the hopes that a little bit of knowledge will seep into my brain.  More to come.

That’s it for today.  Hope you enjoy your Friday.  It’s a Friday after all.  Thanks for stopping by.  Be careful.

Wednesday ~ March 05, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 5, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , .

Gabby

Happy Wednesday!

Yea, more snow this morning.  I can hear the snow plow going by as I write this post.

Grandma Jeanne babysat with Josh and Gabby over the weekend as the kids were on vacation.  I went over Sunday for lunch and to play with the Grand kids.  Poor Gabby has such a bad cold.  This image doesn’t really tell the true story.  I spent a lot of time taking away most of the signs of her cold.  I’m sure she felt miserable but she had a great attitude the entire time I was there and we played a lot until it was her nap time.

Master Chef Joshua

Master chef Joshua is at the age where he insists that he “do it all by himself.”  So Grandma  put the mayonnaise on the bread for him but then gave him the knife.   95% of the mayonnaise went into his mouth, around his mouth and on his shirt.  🙂

Then he arranged the turkey and cheese on the bread and never touched it the rest of the meal.

It reminded me of a lesson my Grandpa Linch taught me at a very early age.  I have no idea how old I was (couldn’t have been too old because he passed before I started school.)  We were staying at their house (on the farm) over night and Grandpa loved to have bread (in little pieces) covered with molasses.  He made it look so good I asked if I could have some.  I took a whole piece of bread and broke it up on my plate and then he said, “Take a little to see if you like it.”  Well of course I smothered the bread with the molasses and took my first big bite.  Yuck!!!!  I don’t like this.

Grandpa was a man of few words.  His few words were, “You took it all, you will eat it all.”  I had it again for supper, breakfast, and lunch the next day.  By that time I was so hungry I finally ate it all.  Lesson learned.  🙂

That’s it for today.  Enjoy your snowy hump day.  Thanks for stopping by and be careful.

Tuesday ~ March 04, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 4, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

Just a lone windmill

Happy Tuesday!

Not much in the way of an image today.  No spectacular winter scene, nor a great eagle on wing with a fish in its talon.  Nothing like that, just a lowly windmill catching the fading sunlight of another cold winter’s evening.  It’s all I have for you today.

Thanks for all the well wishes about my crash on Sunday.  The Phantom is in good condition and I  have already installed new propellers on the copter so if the weather ever warms up it will fly again.  There are other trees out there to smash into and they are just waiting for me.   🙂

It is amazing how this weather is having such an impact on most people’s moods.  Every conversation I had with people yesterday there was at least one negative comment about this  @$^&^ winter.  Like it or not the weather does play an important role in the attitude we have.  The good news is that at least yesterday the sun was shinning and that is a source of energy that we can tap into.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got for today.  Hope you enjoy your day.  New snow from last night so the drive in should at least be pretty this morning.  🙂

Thanks for stopping by and be careful.

Monday ~ March 03, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 3, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

Broken Props Happy Monday!

The Phantom fleet is grounded pending a complete investigation.  Although unproven at this time, leading indicators point to severe pilot error.

Although bitterly cold the sun was shinning and there was very little wind.  The makers of the Phantom recommend that you not fly in temperatures below 24 degrees F.  Well, what’s a few degrees or 20 for that matter.  I hadn’t flown in a couple of weeks and still have less than a full hour of flying experience.  Mark was home yesterday and I wanted to show him the flight as well as take some aerial shots of the new snow cover.

As is often the case, things went pretty well through most of the flight.  I still have some trouble with orientation looking at the monitor, a problem that will vastly improve with more flight time. Anyway, things were just fine until I came in for final approach.

I don’t know if it was wind shear, pilot fatigue, or a complete lack of talent but things started going very bad all at once. I was able to advert a crash into the bush and I even got a, “Nice save” from Mark but my overreaction from the first mistake caused a more profound and catastrophic mishap with the neighbor’s tree. There is a five-minute video of the flight (highly edited) and the final moments of the Phantom.

I’ve been asked about the music I use on some of my videos.  The group is from Ireland and they are called Gaelic Storm.  I heard them a couple of years ago at the Irish Hooley, held in Dubuque every year.  They have a wonderful performance and their music really appeals to me so I’ve purchased a couple of their albums.  If you ever get a chance to see them perform don’t miss the opportunity. That’s it for today.

The Phantom itself is fine, just needed a couple of new props and some drying out.  I will wait for warmer weather but it’s hard.  🙂

Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your day and be careful.  The video is below.

 

Saturday ~ March 01, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 1, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , .

Horses

Happy Saturday!

I was in Cedar Rapids yesterday doing my HR thing.  I always take a camera with me just in case.  I don’t know if it was because I was looking for things or if there was another reason but I saw more hawks yesterday than I can ever remember seeing on a normal day.

There were a couple of shoulder rumbles, honking of horns, and I think someone wanted me to see one of their fingers as I would see a hawk and try to find a place to get off the road.  I did end up firing off several shots but I didn’t have a telephoto lens with me so none were very good.  😦

On the way back to the office I saw these two guys.  Okay so I was desperate for something.  Still I like to capture horses, especially in a wintry background.

Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your day, watch the snow and be careful.

Friday ~ February 28, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on February 28, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , .

Beautiful Sunset

Happy Friday!!!! 

Another day closer to warmer weather.   I talked with my dear Friend Dave, who is wintering in Florida, yesterday.  He was sitting on his deck enjoying a beverage and soaking up the sun.  He said it was a bit nippy and only around 78 degrees.  As I looked at my computer monitor and the little weather app said -6 I told him I hated him.  🙂

I have to travel today so I’ll take my camera and hopefully find something interesting to take a picture of.  Sounds like the weekend (weather wise) is going to be a real challenge.  The Phantom fleet will be grounded yet another weekend.  My list of things to video and photograph with them is growing.  Hope I get to do them all.

This is one of the last images I took of the sunset last Tuesday.  The sky with some nice clouds was just so pretty combined with the orange and red colors of the sunset. A nice image to end the week with.  I have a few things to work on this weekend so it’s doubtful if I’ll get much photography in.  But then again you just never know.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.  I appreciate you and your helpful comments.  Enjoy your day and be careful.

 

Thursday ~ February 27, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on February 27, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

Just another barn

I don’t know what it is about my barns that fascinates me.  When I’m out looking for images to capture I do not go looking for barns.  Perhaps it is that during my formative years I worked on farms and spent a great deal of time in these barns.  Who knows.  I just know I enjoy photographing them and they always seem to draw my attention as I’m driving down the road.  There’s been more than few times that I’ve done a u-turn and headed back the way we came.  Jeanne will usually say, “You saw a barn didn’t you?”  🙂

These images are from Tuesday evening when I took an alternative way home.  It was the golden hour and most of the time it doesn’t really matter what you put in front of your lens if the light is right.

Old shed

I’ve photographed this old shed before.  I think a couple of years ago in the summer time.  It sits in a valley and I just like the way it looks when sitting on the hill overlooking the valley.  I was looking though some of my archives but stopped after a couple of years not finding this structure.  I know I photographed it, perhaps in 2010.
desolate road

Toward the end of my photo session Tuesday I was heading west on this county road.  Talk about a feeling of desolation.  The temperature was 3 above and the wind was blowing 20 – 30 mph.  I’ll be honest, I didn’t get out of the car to shoot this.  I stopped the car and stuck my hand / camera out and took a number of shots hoping to get one good enough to share.  My fingers were numb.  🙂

That’s enough rambling for one day.  Thanks for stopping by.  Hope you enjoy your cold day.  Be careful.

Wednesday ~ February 26, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on February 26, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

Small Deer

Happy Wednesday! 

Yesterday afternoon I had some meetings at one of our smaller banks.  By the time I finished it was late enough that if I drove straight back to Maquoketa it would be closing time so I decided to take an alternate road home and see what images I could capture.

The light was getting soft and it was a perfect time of the day.  Although it was only 3 above with a 15 – 20 mph wind so the shooting conditions were not ideal.  None the less undeterred and with no personal concern for my comfort, I went in search of things to shoot with my camera.

As I have noted on this blog before, the deer population is abundant.  This has been a difficult winter for them and they are struggling to find food.  This little guy was right next to the road trying to find some prairie grass to eat.

Herd of Deer

A few miles down the road and I saw a large herd of deer feeding on the remains of a corn field.  I turned around and followed a gravel road to a vantage point that I could make this image.  These deer, while watching me all the time, made no effort to get away from me.  They had found some food and were not about to run away from it.    This scene was repeated several times on my journey home.  I hate to see animals struggle.  When you think about how long, cold, and miserable this winter has been it’s hard to imagine what the animals have to go though when they can’t come in to a nice warm house and get a hot meal.

I see the same animals (horses and cows) on the way to work every day standing out in the open.  Watching the steam come from their breathing and imagining how uncomfortable they must be.

Sunset

I found a surprising number of things to photograph on this little journey.  There were a couple of times I had no idea where I was but knew eventually I find a road where I had been before.  This is what I saw before finally deciding I better head for a warm home and a hot meal.  🙂

All images were shot with a Nikon D600 | Nikon 80 – 400 mm VR 5.6 lens | ISO 800 1/1250 sec @ f8.0

Thanks for stopping by.  Next few days well into next week, it sounds like there will be more of the same.  Bitterly cold temperatures and lots of snow in the forecast.  Enjoy your day and be thankful your are not animal.  Be careful.

Monday ~ February 24, 2014

Posted by Dave Updegraff on February 24, 2014
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , .

February-23-2014

Happy Monday!

Fun weekend even though it was pretty cold.  The sun was out most of the time and that does a world of good both physically and mentally for humans.  We need the sunlight to rejuvenate us.

As is our custom, yesterday Jeanne and I took a “photo drive” to see what we could find.  Where to go is always a challenge.  Kind of like fishing on a lake.  If you go here you are concerned that they are biting over there.  We decided to go out by the Mines of Spain yesterday.  Since we weren’t really dressed for hiking and that is not our inclination anyway we didn’t stop and take any of the trails.

We did come across this little guy who seemed confused or sick.  He was moving very slow and didn’t seem to know which way to go.  He didn’t try to run away from me when I got out to take this image, which surprised me.  I hate to see any creature suffer.  I hope he was just confused because when we came by this area a few minutes later he was gone, so I’ll hope for the best.

February-23-20141A

Angie brought the kids over Saturday for a visit as Ben was working.  We had a nice visit and lunch together and then she and Josh wanted to see the Phantom fly.  So even though the conditions were borderline I decided to throw caution to the wind and do a short flight.  I did a 10 minute flight up and over the school and then coming back for a landing.   Angie wanted to make sure she got in the image.  🙂

February-23-20141B

The whole time we were out there Joshua had his arm around my leg.  I guess he felt safer that way.  It was fun to watch him react to something he had never encountered before.  After it landed and the motors had shut off he went over and touched one of the propellers.  He thought it was pretty cool.

That’s it for today.  Hope you enjoy your Monday.  Thanks for stopping by and be careful.