Sounds of a DJ

Today's project (2/28): Make a photograph illustrating a sound that catches your ear today.

For some reason, I had a really hard time trying to figure out what I wanted to use for today. I really haven't been feeling well all day, but I did find this.

Glowing

Today's project (Sunday 2/27): Make a photograph of something that is glowing today. Use any meaning of the word you like.

I must admit. I was feeling a little lazy today. I didn't put much thought into today's entry, so I went with something simple.



This photo was taken during one camping trip in Ventura. We lit up a camp fire the first night.

Connection

Today's project (Saturday 2/26): Make a photograph that illustrates the idea of connection.



Friends... family... jobs... vacation... There are a number of reasons why people take the train. It's an easy alternate to driving, and cheaper then flying. It has great views of the coast, as well as farmlands.

Horizontal

Today's project (Friday 2/25): Make a photograph featuring strong horizontal lines today.

Not so hard, is it?



Went out to Santa Anita Race Track. A great place to be for good ole horse racing. I love it. In this particular day, the sky was cloudy, it was wet, raining off and on throughout the day.

I also decided to turn the photo into grey scale to give it the old feel to the great race track.

Peace and Quiet

Today's project (Thursday 2/24): Illustrate your idea of peace and harmony--or maybe just peace and quiet--today with a photograph.

The first idea that came to my head was to use a picture of someone or something sleeping. That's typically when someone would find peace and quiet.

I then thought of something else I can use.



This photo I used was during my last camping trip to Sequoia National Park with my very good and dear friends. You have never heard silence until you go camping six thousand feet up in the mountains.

In this particular photo, I found deer strolling right in the middle of the campground. I was able to get surprisingly close to take pictures.

Peace and quiet...

Natural Beauty

Today's project (Wednesday 2/23): Beauty is all around us. Make a photo of some naturally occurring beauty in your area today.

Naturally occurring beauty could have been anything. I had quite a few photos I've taken of nature that I wanted to use. There were four in particular, but I really couldn't decide which to use. I went with this one...



This picture was taken on my last trip to Salem, Or. We took a small day trip to one of Oregon's State Park's, Silver Falls. It's beautiful up there. There are 5 (I believe) waterfalls all together in this park, this one being the biggest one.

Thanks to my friend Nancy for helping me decide to use this one.

Waiting on deck...

Today's project (Tuesday 2/22): Make a photograph today that illustrates of the act of waiting.

Do I even have to mention that I had to go into my collection once again? No? Well, it seems I just did anyway, didn't I?

People could illustrate the act of waiting in many ways. I had several photos to choose from, actually, so it took me a while to think about which one I wanted to use.

I'm again choosing a picture that is baseball related, since the baseball season is upon us. I do believe I've mentioned that I will try to use that as a theme for what I use in my assignments. So... I went with this one.



This is my little brother when he played little league here in So Cal. He's on deck... waiting. He was awesome. I'm not just saying that because he's my brother, but because he really was. He was small, sure, but he had speed, and he had defensive skills. He even had a nickname. The Vacuum, or sometimes Hoover. I think it's quite obvious why the nickname, no? He played Short Stop, and nothing would get by him. Any ground ball hit at either side, he'd just... suck it up.

He was also a contact hitter. No power, but he's always get on base. On this particular at-bat, he connected for a double. How do I know? No, I don't "remember", but the next consecutive pictures I took has him making contact, rounding first, and sliding into 2nd.

He needs to start playing again.

Mud Face

Today's project (Monday 2/21): Who are you? Make a self portrait today and show the rest of us what you look like.

A self portrait... nice. No, not so much. I didn't know what I could have used for a self portrait. Initially I wanted to use a picture I took of myself with a black muscle shirt and a Hello Kitty beanie. Some of you may have seen it. I went to look for it, but I apparently deleted, so I couldn't use that.

Then I thought why I don't just take a new photo, but that wouldn't be anything interesting at all. I wanted to use something different, something that wasn't a standard self photo.



So I went back and found this picture I took of myself. As you can see, I was covered in mud. I bet you'd like to know why I had mud all over me.

In a previous entry entitled "Unusual Point of View", I used the photo below.



Good times.

Minas Tirith

Today's project (Sunday 2/20): Work with scale today and make a photograph that features a subject either larger or smaller than expected.

Initially, when I read the assignment, I thought it said "work with "A" scale. I was a little worried because I don't own a scale. After a while I checked back, when I was pleased to read that it wasn't "A" scale, but just the type of photograph to take. I still thought it was a bit tricky, but now I knew I didn't actually need a scale.

So obviously, to create a photograph with the directions, I thought I needed something small that can look big. I looked around and something caught my eye.



This is Minas Tirith. A grand capital city of Gondor that that held the throne to the kings and their stewards.

For those of you who still don't know... It's from Lord of the Rings.

Happy place in Los Angeles.

Today's project (Saturday 2/19): Make a photograph of something that captures a small bit the flavor of where you live or your culture.

Sometimes it takes some real thinking and creativity into taking your photos. Other times, it's just a matter of taking a photo of something that pleases your eye instead of others.

In this case, it's going to place in the city I live in that always makes me happy and forget about all the troubles that are happening.


I absolutely love going to Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, a great city with a great baseball history.

I have also decided that in the next couple of weeks, in honor of the baseball season returning for another year, I will try to use photographs that are baseball related as well.

Classic yellow.

Today's project (Friday 2/18): Make a photograph that features the color yellow in some way or another.


Flames on a classic 1966 Chevrolet Chevelle SS Custom. 'Nuff said.

Happy hunger.

Today's project (Thursday 2/17): Happy, sad, frazzled, or joyus? Make an abstract or literal photo that expresses how you feel today.

This was a no brainer. I was already hungry after work, and what would make me and my tummy happy?



Exactly. The best burger EVER! And to top it off... look at the sky above... a glorious day with a slight chill in the air.

Bright tones.

Today's project (Wednesday 2/16): Make a high key photograph today dominated by bright tones.

I was a little confused about what to use for today's project. Bright tones? I knew it had something to do with bright colors and such, but I didn't know if it should be a mostly white image, or a few colors that are... bright.


I decided to use this photo of our Cocker Spaniel. Her name was Christy. Unfortunately, she has passed since this photo was taken. She was a lovely dog. She was very quiet, friendly, and minded her own business. She slowly approached people, as oppose to how most dogs run up and jump at the person.

As for editing, the image itself was already a great shot. The only adjustment I did was tinkered with the brightness and contrast just a tad.

Old, yet historic.

Today's project (Monday 2/15): Make a photograph of something old. Be sure to show us the character that age can give a subject.

I wanted to use something around the house, but nothing I have really is that old. I then remembered I was in the area not too long ago when I took this particular picture.

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, just south west of Downtown L.A.


St. Vincent's was built in the 1920's, and was dedicated in 1925.I used to go to that church when I was just a wee boy, every week, with my grandmother. I can't say I enjoyed going, since I was just a child, but I remember it well. I've also attended a couple of weddings in this same church.

I'm not a catholic, anymore, but this is a beautiful church.

Vertical lines.

Today's assignment (Monday 2/14): Make a photograph featuring strong vertical lines today.

I had so many photographs in my collection with vertical lines in them, but I wanted to use something that has a little meaning. It's not a personal thing, but it's something that I, and so many other people, love.


Today being the first day that most Major League Baseball teams have their pitchers and catchers reporting for Spring Training, I decided to use this photo I took one beautiful summer evening at Dodger Stadium. I was very fortunate to sit across from where the sun would set behind the third base side. I was amazed at the beauty of the sun behind the clouds and the colors that came down upon the beautiful stadium.

The only editing I did one this photo was cropping the picture to showcase the vertical lines that are the posts holding up the stadium lights. I also decided to crop it in case I wanted to showcase the stadium in a future project. The colors were untouched.

My sky.

Today's project (Sunday 2/13): Look up today and make a photograph of the sky. Cloudy, clear, or somewhere in between? Tell the story of your sky today.

I decided to use another picture from collection of photos I have in my hard drive. I knew right away what I wanted to use.


My best friend invited me camping in Sequoia with his family. I must say it was an awesome event. It was my first time ever going camping.

I was happy inside because I've always been a little into nature, woods, forests, and such. Being there made me feel... real nice. I always feel I'm at ease, and relaxed.

I loved it.

Story of a subject.

Today's project (Saturday 2/12): Tell the story of a subject today in a photograph by photographing one specific detail of it.


The Ford Model T was the first automobile used by UPS for package deliveries in 1913 and remains one of the single most popular models ever produced

Out of focus.

Today's project (Friday 2/11): Sometimes what’s out of focus can make the shot. Create a photograph today where some/all of your subject isn't in focus.

Today was almost an easy one. I knew what I wanted to take a picture of. It's the idea that my sister thought of a few days back. I I forget which particular assignment it was for, but I know it wasn't that long ago. Anyway, I actually did take a picture today.

As I was uploading and working on the picture I took, something else popped into my head. It was a photo that I had taken a long time, so yes, I once again had to go into my collection.



The picture I decided to use was from a Seether concert. The lighting was very random. You'd know that if you have been to any type of concert. As I was taking pictures, it then got dark, and my camera couldn't really focus on the band. I actually loved the way it came out because the only lights you see are the Christmas lights the band used for their set.

I freaking love this band and I can't wait to see them again. :D

Unusual point of view.

Today's project (Thursday 2/10): Change your point of view. Make a photograph from an unusual point of view today.

I knew immediately what photo I wanted to use for today's assignment. I kind of feel bad cheating. I haven't really gone out and really taken any photos the day of. I'm always having to go into my collection, or borrow a photo in some cases. Regardless, I think I've taken some pretty good shots before, so yeah, it does count, to me.



In this photograph, my best friend and I went quad riding last year in Barstow's desert. I can't remember exactly when it rained, but it rained enough to leave mud puddles behind... nice sized ones. Of course, us being boys, we decided to to ride right through them. Both him and I went through, but I got close enough to take this awesome picture of him going through it.

As a bonus, this is what I looked like after.



Good times.

Leading lines.

Today's project (Wednesday 2/9): Make a photograph that features a leading line through it today. Draw the viewers eye through the image.



When I first read what today's project was, I had absolutely no idea what it could mean. I then came up with one idea, but I'm sure people would have had a bad thought about it, and I didn't want to lead it in that direction. Once again, I decided to look in my collection of photos.

This picture was taken at Seal Beach. As you can see, there are kite surfers.

Preparedness

Today's project (Tuesday 2/9): We all prepare for things every day. Illustrate preparedness in a photograph today.

I had a couple of other ideas on how to illustrated preparedness, but nothing was coming out exactly how I wanted it.



In this picture, I was looking around to think of how else I can display preparedness, when I just happen to see my phone on the floor, charging.

It's simple, but it works. Everyone charges there phone as they prepare for their long day ahead, right?

Door frame

Today's project: Use a window or a door as a frame for your subject today in a photograph.



My sister actually had a good idea for an image for this project. Unfortunately, it was too late for what the idea was. I couldn't think of anything else, so I decided to take a self shot while looking over the 2nd floor railing off our balcony. I tweeked the contrast and brightness a bit to show more darkness in the inside of the room.

Plugs

Today's project: Power plugs are ubiquitous. Can you make a creative photo of such a common thing?



I thought the assignment was just plugs in general, so I was only going to have the HDMI cable in the shot. Good thing I also decided to include the power cable to the PS3 along with the HDMI cable.

Abstract

Today's project: Go abstract today and make a photograph that focuses on form and color rather than detail.

To be honest, I'm not entirely comfortable or happy using this one, but here it is anyway.



This was taken at Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament a couple of years ago. As soon as they dimmed he lights, I took a picture of this candle. You can see all the other candles on the opposite side of the area in the background.

Depth

Today's project: Create a photo today that gives a sense of depth or dimension.

Good thing I've taken a lot of photos. I have a huge inventory of stuff that I can go back to and choose which I can use. It's not easy to just go out and find something after I find out what the assignment is.



Looking back and what I had, I found this one. This particular photo was taken at the Aquarium of the Pacific. I love the wide range of colors that appear in this photo, along with the light beaming through the water and bounces off the reef.

Looking upward.

Today's project: Look upward today. Make a photograph with a low horizon and that emphasizes the sky.

This task wasn't too difficult today. I already knew what I wanted to use and I just had to go back in my collection of photographs. The thing is, I was very torn between two particular photos I narrowed it down to. With the help of my sister, I went with this one.



This was taken on a beautiful summer day at Seal Beach. It was my first time at that particular beach, so I took tons of pictures. I also have a black and white version of this picture, but I wanted to show off the bright blue sky that was upon us on that day.

Don't you just love Souther California?

Newsworthy

Today's project: Pretend you're a stringer for your local newspaper today. Make a photo that captures something newsworthy to you.

This one was also a little on the easy side. News can be all sorts of stuff, so I decided to go on a happier side of news.



I decided to use this picture of a local youth Little League Championship game between the Dodgers and the Braves. My little brother was in the Dodgers, though he's not the player in the frame.

It was a very close game, with the end result being 2-1. I won't say who won, and I won't say if this slide into home was either safe or out. I'll let you to determine that. Leave a comment of weather you thought he was safe or out. :)

Single Subject

Today's project: Fill the frame of a photograph with a single subject today.

When I found what today's project was, I felt it was an easy one. I immediately knew what I was going to make my subject.



I hate this cat. It's my sister's cat. It's an annoying cat. It's also a very cute cat.