Friday ~ October 14, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on October 14, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

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Happy Friday!

Almost every morning when I come into town headed for work I come by the “Duck Pond” and for the last few days there has been a variety of wildlife there.  I assume they spent the night at the pond as a respite before continuing their journey South.  So I have three images for you today.

Even though I was running just a little later than normal when I saw these two Trumpeter Swans and their 4 signets I had to pull over and capture an image of them.  The light was still fairly soft and the pond was calm so I ripped off 165 images trying to capture one that had all six of them in the same frame.  They were not very cooperative.

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It’s been a challenging week at work and I have not had the opportunity to do much photography.  It may sound silly but when I stopped for that brief moment and photographed the Swans I felt a peace and enjoyment that I had not experienced all week.

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As it is in life the Mother stayed pretty close to the four young ones while the Father led the group and many times got ahead of them, but always looking back to make sure there was no danger or anyone getting left behind.  🙂

I was really happy to see this bunch.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen this large of a swan family before.

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

Sunday ~ October 09, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on October 9, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

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Happy Sunday!

Today is all about our Grand Kids and I have four images for you.

Yesterday morning with the sun shinning and the temperature barely 41 degrees Jeanne and I went to the Dubuque Soccer Complex to watch Gabby’s game.  The image above shows her reluctance to participate.  I asked her if Grandpa could walk her out on the field and she agreed. 🙂

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Ten minutes later this was her running around the field with her teammates and having fun.  It just takes Gabby a little bit to warm up to things and once she does then she’s all in.

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Austin wanted no part of the soccer game and found this metal bench much more interesting and enjoyable.  An older child walked by us and he took his Binky out, waved and said “bye-bye.”  I think he even blew him a kiss.  🙂

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Not to leave Josh out he was playing with some other kids and I captured this image at one of the rare moments when he was standing alone.  I always wonder what is going on in his mind when I see him with this look.

That’s it for today.  I hope you enjoy your day and as always be careful.

Thursday ~ October 06, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on October 6, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

october-05-2016

Happy Thursday!

Wow, it’s been a whole week since I last posted.  Unusual for me but I have had a full schedule and not much photography of late.  Okay well none.

I went past the “Duck Pond” on my way home last evening and even though it meant shooting directly into the setting sun I couldn’t pass up a chance to photograph a Great White Egret.

That’s it for today.

Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your day and be careful.

Thursday ~ September 29, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 29, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

september-28-2016

Happy Thursday!

A busy day yesterday as I had another photo shoot in the afternoon and still had all my other responsibilities to take care of.  I didn’t get out of the office until late last night but this was my reward for working a little later than normal.  My favorite tree set against a setting sun with lots of dynamic clouds.  🙂

The photo shoot went well until my attempt to collapse my pop up background.  It developed a mind and will of its own and I struggled with it for an hour or more.  I even went on YouTube to see how others had handled getting it back in its small case.  I finally did and even thought I was exasperated I still am basically very happy with this new tool.

Today I’m doing training all day at Camp Courageous.   It is a rewarding experience and I enjoy the opportunity to interact with so many of our staff.  Great people to work with and be around.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Wednesday ~ September 28, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 28, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , .

september-27-2016

Happy Wednesday!

I got to do more portrait work yesterday as I photographed the board of directors for one of our banks.  I have two images from that session to show you today.

My new tool that I talked about last week is a “pop up muslin” photo back ground.  With this tool I no longer have to go through the painstakingly difficult process of extracting the subject from a plain background and inserting them on a photographic digital background.

Yesterday was the first time I had used the new pop up and it was a breeze.  Took a couple of tries to get it all folded up ready for the next use but what a treat to work with.

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The really cool thing is it only cost $54.00.  I got two colors the one you see in this session and then a brownish gold one.

Interestingly enough I have another portrait session today for another bank.  I sure enjoy making portraits.  🙂

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Monday ~ September 26, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 26, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

september-25-2016

Happy Monday!

I have four images for you today from yesterday, which turned out to be an interesting day.

Angie and Ben were running in the Quad Cities half Marathon.  They have both been running most of the Summer and lately Angie has been in the 11 mile range.  The half marathon is 13.1 miles and includes running over and then back across the Mississippi River.  The race started at 7:30 a.m. so Angie and Ben went down in the afternoon on Saturday and that left the grand parents to baby sit.  🙂

I got up at zero dark thirty hours and made the trip down.  I was a little later getting started than I wanted to and then ran into some detours but I made it to Moline with about five minutes to spare.  By the time I found a place to park and walked to the starting line, however the last of the runners / walkers were just down the street.  I saw the start but I was still a block and half away.  😦

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So I amused myself with people watching.  There were a couple of guys flying drones over the race area, which I thought was a little risky but they had the newer drones and they preformed flawlessly.  There are actually 4 races that make up the Marathon.  There is a 5K run, a relay run, the half marathon and then the full marathon.  So I just got settled in when the 5K winners came through.  For the next hour and a half I watched them and the early half marathon runners finish.

I had no idea how long it would take to run a half marathon so I googled it and found that the average time for people in their mid 30 was about 2 hours 20 minutes.  Angie and Ben’s official time was 2 hours and 12 seconds.  A pretty good pace.

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This little dog was just a few feet from me.  I loved his eyes and had to capture an image of him.  He was pretty well-behaved but would occasionally bark at some of the runners.  It was funny because he wouldn’t bark at most of the runners but once in a while a particular runner would go by and he would bark.  Didn’t matter what gender or color he would just selectively bark.  I wonder what he knew?

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During my time at the marathon I saw some pretty inspirational things.  People who were physically disabled in a variety of ways, push through their obstacles and complete the run.  None was more inspirational than this lady.  She ran the 5K with only the assistance of this machine.  I would have taken a picture of her face but I was busy clapping for her until she was well by me.  Impressive what some people do with the challenges they have.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

 

Friday ~ September 23, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 23, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , .

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Happy Friday!

I mentioned on the blog earlier in the week that I had done a corporate “head shot” session.  I have three images from that session.  While I have made progress in my portrait photography I’m still not happy with where I am.

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What I have discovered is that people are the most difficult subject that I photograph.  There are a variety of reasons for that, none of which I am prepared to discuss here today.

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The only way to get better is to keep practicing.  Thankfully I will have another opportunity next week and a new tool to my tool box that I will discuss next week.

Thanks for stopping by the blog.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Thursday ~ September 22, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 22, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

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Happy Thursday!

I have four more images for you today and before you say “Not more flowers”, the answer is yes, but this is the last of them.  I made almost a thousand images at the Arboretum last Monday so showing you 12 isn’t too bad.  🙂

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I had a corporate photo shoot yesterday afternoon.  One of our banks is making some changes to its website and needed some fresh “head shots” of some of our staff.  I enjoy doing portrait work a lot and it’s nice for the staff because they have a business appropriate image for their social media and Linked-In accounts if they want to use them.

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My portrait photography keeps evolving as I’ve added equipment, gained experience, and changed my lighting set up.  I’ve followed the lighting technique of Joel Grimes, a well-known photographer, whose work I admire and so I’ve adapted my style to utilize some of the lighting set up he has been so successful with.

I still have a lot to learn but with each session comes more comfort and confidence.  🙂

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I have another big photo session next week as I make some more formal portraits for the board of directors for one of our banks.  It will be fun to compare this session to the one I did for them 4 years ago.  Hopefully there will be a nice improvement.

Okay that’s it for today.  No more flowers or butterflies for a long time.  Thanks for your patience.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Wednesday ~ September 21, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 21, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

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Happy Wednesday!

The light was harsh and not a cloud in the sky on the way home last evening so I have more shots from the Dubuque Arboretum taken on Monday.  I thought I only got one image worth while of a Monarch Butterfly.  Turns out after looking through the photo shoot last night, I got lucky several times.

So I have four images to share with you today.  I have mentioned before my love of photographing flowers.  Hopefully after viewing today’s offering you can understand why I feel that way.

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On another note, I have spent a significant amount of my life studying and trying to understand human nature.  Since I make my living working in Human Resources that would seem to be a worthwhile and useful endeavor.    I can tell you however that it is a practice in futility.  For example,  I understand that if you want to make a good image from an exposure stand point there are three things that you must do proportionally.  You must use the proper shutter speed, the proper aperture, and the proper ISO.  Get all those correct and you have a well exposed image.  Perhaps not interesting but well exposed.

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Not so absolute with human beings.  There is no routine formula that seems to work with humans.  And just when I think I have things figured out I am proven wrong.  I guess that’s what keeps me coming back each day.  🙂

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So what’s the point?  I’m not sure.  Nothing is routine and seldom predictable when it comes to human nature.  But just like photography you take the principles you’ve learned over the years and apply them whenever possible and hopefully come up with a good exposure from time to time. 🙂

That’s it for today.

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day.  Stay dry and be careful.

Tuesday ~ September 20, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on September 20, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

september-19-2016

Happy Tuesday!

I have four images for you today.  I had one goal in mind yesterday as I set out on a photography run.  I wanted to capture an image of a Monarch Butterfly.  Question was where do I go.  I thought about the butterfly garden at Bellevue State Park. I also thought about the Dubuque Arboretum and reasoned I might find some butterflies there.  Finally I decided on the Arboretum thinking that if I didn’t find any butterflies I would at least have some pretty flowers to photograph and I wouldn’t spend two hours in the car driving.

As you can see from the first image I did find some Monarchs.  They were not very cooperative however.  I have about 400 images of them with their wings closed tight.  This was one of the few I captured with an open wing.

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I saw this little guy when I first arrived at the Arboretum.  There are lots of them around and they are constantly scurrying from one flower group to another.  I tried unsuccessfully several times to make some more images of them but they are quicker than quick and I was never ready to press the shutter at the right time.

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Lots of bees and other insects working on the flowers.  Although the sun was behind some clouds it was very humid and uncomfortable at the Arboretum as there wasn’t any breeze.  Still it was enjoyable and I had the whole place almost to myself.  Only a few people were walking through the gardens.

I never get tired of photographing flowers.  Even though at this time of year they are looking a little worn.  I watched one lady with her small camera and a note-book photographing flowers and then writing details about her capture.  I’m just not into that.  I love to take images of flowers but honestly I really don’t care what kind of a flower it is.  🙂

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That’s it for today.  Back to work today so you may see more flowers tomorrow. 🙂

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day and be careful.