1st Communion: Photo of the Day

Most would say that to bring up religion in a photography blog probably wouldn’t be the best idea. Like many controversial topics it is usually best to steer clear. Since this has never been a photography blog per se, but a blog about what interests I have and more importantly what passions fuel my life, I am hoping that I get a pass. For those not interested in religion hang with me, the narrow topic may be religion, but there is a broader topic.

I am not a cradle Catholic, in fact on most things I and the Catholic Church will find some divergence of opinion. I am however Catholic. A decision I made some time long before I had children and through a very long and meticulous process. I began as just a parishioner, and later joined the choir and even sang solos.

This journey from my first foot inside of the Catholic Church to my conversion on an Easter morning 4 years later was also different. I went through RCIA fully intending to not change anything about my situation, to just continue my faith journey and hopefully to continue to develop my commitment towards God.

I give my reader this background so they can understand each of the choices that I made in the past. I am not however a liturgical person my sense of faith veers off when it comes to Biblical law. I can however speak quite well about what faith means to me. What is contained going forward is about that and has nothing to with any Church by definition that I am aware of

My children however have been baptized and raised Catholic from the beginning. By the time they came into this world, I was a well-established member of the Catholic faith. They do not go to Catholic School however, just church and CCD. Their faith journey has been different than mine in many ways and will always be. Faith is an individual process between you and God. What side trails your journey takes are wholly dependent on where your spiritual journey leads.

My children’s journey today after years of Sunday classes is leading them towards their first reconciliation and onward to their first communion. As most of my readers know Buddy has Down Syndrome. My Co-Parent and I opted to hold Buddy back one year of his CCD in hopes that his ability to learn might catch-up with the class he was attending. When Punkin started, she was with Buddy in the same class learning side-by-side with him.

There are 7 Sacraments in the Catholic Church, Reconciliation being one of them. Very shortly both of my children will accept this Sacrament at the same time. Buddy and Punkin have gone through this process hopefully learning fully what it means to confess your sin to the Father or Christ and receive forgiveness.

I have been very troubled by my Co-Parents insistence of Buddy going through the same process as Punkin. This has caused much strife in my life. My views of this Sacrament have remained unchanged. From even before we were married, my view has been this is too early in a spiritual journey to make this type of commitment to god. In my life as a Catholic most do agree that a 7-8 year olds idea of sin is very rudimentary. Their “faith” is based on not doing mean things to their parents or as my daughter confirmed. “If I bit my brother, I have committed a sin”

I went through a diligent process in accepting my first reconciliation and then my first communion. My journey took 5 years of attendance in church and would not have happened had I not had numerous conversations with the Deacon on faith and more importantly how my faith fits into the Catholic Church. My desire to commune in the church I attended won out though.

I longed to have communion. For me that was the most important part that I was missing in my life. I wanted to receive the bread and the cup and to confirm that faith I had in Christ. I hadn’t communed in the Catholic Church where I went week in and week out because I knew that this was not allowed. Being Lutheran I shouldn’t commune inside of a Catholic Church so I withheld myself from this part of the service.

In all of these discussions with the Deacon it was apparent to me that the rules of man were what caused me anxiety. The “rules of god” probably didn’t mind. I converted to Catholicism and I accepted the cup and have communed ever since, except for a number of months after my divorce become final.

I find myself a diligent practitioner of my faith. The “faith” I practice in the church that I attend do vary wildly from it. I have ironed out “my faith” and my relationship with God with may conversations with him. We have worked on it together and it is forever evolving and will continue to.

Buddy, has only a rudimentary knowledge of good and bad. When I have discussed sin with him he repeated the word to me like we were practicing a speech lesson. When asked about what would be good or bad behavior I know that he is aware and learns, he doesn’t bite people anymore, but onetime did. He helps the girl down the block get her coat on. He says he is sorry when either asked or for bumping into someone on the street. He in addition knows how to get his emotions under control when asked if a toy is taken away from him. He understands things in the moment.

I doubt he will ever be able to have those conversations with God that I have on a regular basis, it won’t be a matter a choice he can make, but a matter of ability. His understanding will limit him. I who have crafted what it is that I have learned and painstakingly apply it to my faith. I then continue to seek out and study to modify what I believe on a regular basis. This will be lost on Buddy. I realize though that this is my own selfish loss for my son

Buddy will walk through this reconciliation process despite what I want for him however. My Co-Parent has deemed him ready for this. She has also had conversations with Buddy and she reports that he does grasp and can speak upon sin and equate it with “good” and “bad”

As I was trying to find some meaning for me in this milestone that Buddy will undertake shortly, I have discussed with many people in my surrounding “think tank” I have received much advice. I even consulted my daughter to see what her feelings were on the topic.

Punkin spent time talking about sin and the process of reconciliation. Though not totally grasping sin she did at least understand the benefit of talking to someone or to communing with God and asking for forgiveness. I felt comfortable about where she was on her spiritual journey that I hope will continue to evolve even after I stop mandating it.

I also asked her about Buddy and if he felt he understood Reconciliation. She spoke about how attentive Buddy is in class. How he spends time watching different movies or coloring. She reported how mom has been in class on occasion playing with him. In one case he was taking pictures of his whole class with his camera. Punkin said she didn’t think he understood. I thanked her for her honesty.

I consulted with the same Deacon who I had conversations with years earlier. I eagerly anticipated his thoughts on the topic. He had reservations, but also felt that Buddy may never understand what is needed, but if he is not harmed then why not let it happen? I to had had this conversation with myself as well. Was I just holding onto how I lived and what I wanted, when in reality, it would never happen? Is this not what we expect or want for each of our children and may be the most precious gift we can give? Neither question has right or wrong answers.

For each of my children we want to have a better life than we had. We guide them in the direction and let them glean from our years of experience what worked and what didn’t. Letting them go finally to lead their own lives. Buddy though doesn’t have that luxury and may never have it. In the same deep recesses of mind where I talk to God, I also talk to me and question as a father what is right for one child and not for the other. On this topic I don’t have any answers. Faith is the answer not only in religion, but in parenting as well.

ScanCafe Update

You see above another follow-up from my ScanCafe project. The emails have been pretty consistent recently. As you can see from above the give you a very nice visual update on what part of the process your images are at. Also the key to this page is to then track your order.

After I logged myself into their website I found exactly where my images were located at in their processing facility. Very nice touch! More updates as the product moves through their system.

Walking with Punkin: Photo of the Day

This is one of those photos that I just don’t know why it works for me. The pixel peepers would have some fun with it for certain. Nothing is in focus, there is motion blur from the photographer moving and there are a number of other items that just don’t work. For me it does.

The photographer in this case was of course Buddy. I have this ideal that says I shouldn’t touch his photos in any way before I post them. I can’t alter them or even add some Plug-in effects to make them better. I need to consult with before I change them in any artistic fashion. That of course is silly.

At some point I may be able to involve Buddy in the creative process. Until then I think I can change as I do my own images, subtly. Hopefully it adds to the affect that is already present.

Panasonic Lumix LZ8. Slight crop some Glamour Glow plug-in added from Nik Color Efex 3.0.

A Night Out at Charlie Trotter's: Photo of the Day

For those that know me pre-children, they know that I love to cook.  I have always had a passion for making dishes and the more elaborate the better.  I can honestly say that I have spent over a day making a potato recipe, searching out the best ingredients, carefully putting them together, nurturing it for as long as it’s needed and then serving it.  In that case the taste wasn’t worth that type of effort, but at other times it has been more than so.  Because of this I have always admired Charlie Trotter.

Charlie Trotter is a Chicago icon.  His restaurant in Lincoln Park that bears his name has been a mainstay on top places to eat not only in Chicago and the US, but also the world.  Mr. Trotter has done this without ever attending a culinary institute, and in fact has a Political Science degree from the University of Wisconsin.  His cooking was self-taught from books and experiance.  During college he not only studied his coursework, but also read many culinary books and toured the best restaurants in the world during breaks.

Because of this I have always wanted to eat at his self-named restaurant and experience what culinary excellence tastes like.  I was looking forward to eating good food, but also taking in the presentation skills that the best chefs offer their patrons.  With that in mind I made the reservation to Charlie Trotter’s a few months back for my wife and I’s first wedding anniversary. 

We arrived at Charlie Trotter’s before our 5:30pm reservation and were the first guests to arrive.  The restaurant from the outside looks like a smallish house in the upper class Lincoln Park neighborhood in suburban Chicago.  There was some construction-taking place on the outside of the building and they were cleaning the steps up to the restaurant.  We were quite early and I suspect these were some last minute details being attended to before they expected their clientele to arrive.

Despite our early arrival the staff met us at the door and opened it for my wife and I.  As we first entered we saw a beautiful display of wine’s reaching up to the vaulted ceiling full of different varieties as one might expect from all over the world.  The bartender was there and met with us and of course offered us some champagne or other drink.  We accepted the Champagne from the list that they had available by the glass.  After a period of time we were then ushered to our seats and awaited the menu and the start of our experience. 

The restaurant is available in two levels of seating with our seats being on the first level.  There is also available some seating in the kitchen, from my understanding those are just randomly selected from the evenings guests.  This must be an incredible experience to witness not only how the meal is put together, but also to see how the staff operates and the food arrives. 

The menu arrives on a specially prepared sheet of paper and the wine list is a well-stocked book.  There are two selections, the vegetable menu and the Grand Menu.  The vegetable is just that all vegetables and the Grand contains many different styles of meats and seafood.  Our waiter though was quick to point out that if we had any specially prepared items they would substitute or if there were any allergies they would also change out menu items as well. 

Along with the menu for the evening there is a beverage menu for the different wines that will be matched and served with each dish.  Along with the drinks is a non-alcoholic fruit juice menu.  Given the opportunity to enjoy 5 or more different glasses of wine with many different varietals both my wife and I chose the alcoholic portion of the drink menu.  There is available either regular bottled water as well as tap water and a well stocked bar. 

Mr. Trotter only serves ingredients at the peak of their maturity so there are different menu choices on most any evening you might arrive.  I have enclosed the choices we had and since neither Kate nor I have any allergies, changes were not needed. 

The dining experience will take at least 2- 2½ hours from start to finish.  I will not describe each dish, but only hit the highlights of both menus.  With each different glass of wine, port or sherry there is a different piece of stemware from Reidel included.  By about the 3rd course you forget what meals are scheduled and in what order so it is always exciting when they place each glass in front of you.  We spent a little time guessing what wine and what meal course is arriving shortly.

For those carnivores thinking the vegetable menu might not be to their liking, I can relieve them from that caution.  There were two exceptional dishes in my meal, both the duck and the veal, but until those arrived I was craving most of the dishes that arrived in front of Kate, each was very aromatic with exceptional tastes as well.

Each course and wine arrived with a short presentation from each attendant.  During that they described the wine or meal with a short explanation.  In the case of the wines, you heard about the grape varietal and the region the wine was from.  For the meals you heard about each particular part of the entrée and the ingredients that make up each dish. 

As one might expect the amenities and the presentation for an upper-tier restaurant is what will also attract some guests as well.  None of the tables in our lower level dining room is intimate though.  This leads to some benefit since most of the guests are eating from the same menu.   Given that we were one of the first guests we were able to relive each course as the tables next to us received their portions.  This always reminded me how exceptional each portion was.

Because of this lack of intimacy your dining becomes much more of a social event than you might anticipate.  The table next to us asked us if we knew the score of the Cubs game, when I didn’t they checked it on their phone and reported the outcome to me. 

Next door to the main level dining room is another small kitchen and a table for small parties.  Many might remember this kitchen from Mr. Trotter’s PBS show, which aired a few years back.  This room can easily hold another 20 or so guests and was in use later in the evening.  This would also be where I bumped into Mr. Trotter who kindly pointed the direction back to the main hall for me when I was slightly distracted while watching the chef’s cook on multiple TV monitors placed in the rear of this second kitchen.

The service as you might expect was spectacular.  All of the waiters and waitresses were very knowledgeable on each dish.  We used this knowledge often and they were more than happy to go over each dish and flavor.  Kate and I explored the many different flavors that are apart of the different courses.  The plates and the presentation also changed with the wine glasses for each course, we also went through a number of different forks, knives and spoons as they also changed.  With that much changing of place settings happening you might think the staff might get under-foot.  Amazingly enough they were always there when you needed them, but somehow were never in your way nor interrupted any of our conversation.

During our meal there never was any pressure to finish each course, in fact quite the opposite.  We were encouraged to enjoy each at our out pace, savor the wine and experience each dish with all of our senses.  The vegetable menu lent itself often to this exploration, as those dishes were especially fragrant.

Almost all of the dishes were prepared with multiple flavors.  However none of the different preparations was larger than a few mouthfuls.  We found it best to enjoy these by taking small bites from each side of the plate.  In order to share any, small bites will be a necessity.  Because of the smaller portions we explored each part of the dish to experience each and every flavor.  There were many times we asked the wait-staff back to tell us again what a certain flavor was. This was by far for me the best part of the meal because in many cases I would have never thought to combine certain ingredients together in one dish. 

True to their word when we made the reservation the meal from start to finish was close to 2 ½ hours.  As we neared the end of the meal a delightful elderly lady came by and asked if we might want to tour the kitchen after our meal was complete.  I of course readily answered a yes and she said to have the wait-staff get her when we were ready. 

After dessert the elderly woman was identified to us as Mrs. Trotter, we soon found out that this was Charlie’s mom and we set off to take advantage of the tour of the kitchen.  As we entered the kitchen we spotted the lone table and then the multiple different areas for each course that was being prepared for the evening.  We also found out the reason for the expert pacing through the meal was due to two people who were in charge of pacing each table so that within 30 seconds of preparation the course would be on our plate and ready to be eaten! 

I discussed with Mrs. Trotter my love of cooking and how much both Kate and I enjoyed our meal, she then took us on a side tour to the extra banquet room to show us a special oven that Charlie cooks with called a TurboChef.  She explained in hushed tones that it was $7,000, but that like all new technologies it would come down in price she was certain.

We also discussed with her some of the ingredients that were used in the evening such as ramps and Morel mushrooms.  Morels are a favorite of mine from when I used to live in Michigan.  It was then that we found out that Mrs. Trotter took her honeymoon and the car ferry that leaves from my hometown of Ludington. We shared some small talk about Ludington and many of the geographical places that she might remember.  Our waiter thanking us for eating there interrupted our tour, but his comment to Mrs. Trotter about how much it was obvious we enjoyed the meal was a fond reminder of the meal we had just completed.  She then walked us back to the front of the restaurant and on the way Charlie grabbed what he called his first kiss of the evening and then we exited Charlie Trotter’s onto the street.

As most can tell by this time I was very much impressed with every part of the meal, it was far and away the finest meal from beginning to end that I have enjoyed.  The service was over and above and the whole dining experience was quite overwhelming, the tour just completed the end of a wonderful evening. 

There are only a few criticisms I can arrive at for the diner who would want to experience this type of meal.  I did not venture up to the upper floor so the seating there might be different.  Dining at Charlie Trotter’s can be a social event.  I’m sure for many of the patrons there this may be their only visit.  There were many pictures being taken and conversation was quite prevalent for a festive occasion.  It is not loud, but is present.  For Kate and I it fit our festive mood.  If you are looking for a very intimate dining experience this probably isn’t it. 

The other item to prepare yourself for Charlie Trotter’s as you might expect does come at some cost.  It is not to be ventured into lightly and without some room on the credit card.  It is however an event that needs to be enjoyed from start to finish and for Kate and I celebrating our first anniversary it will be remembered and treasured. 








The above picture was taken with my Panasonic LX3.  It was actually done after some prodding from the wait-staff.  Today I'm grateful of that prodding. 

Photograph what is around you: Photo of the Day

I was on on a recent trip to Ohio and the birding hotspot Magee Marsh to photograph migrating warblers. For those that aren't aware when you arrive at the wildlife refuge you follow the road all the way back to just along the Lake Erie shoreline. You will see a large parking lot and then signs for the boardwalk trail. During migratory seasons you will also see 100s of birders and photographers. During my recent trip there I fell in more with the photographers as you might expect.

Since this was my first experience photographing small birds and a warbler is very small compared to my winter bald eagle activity. Because of this I fussed quite a bit over which equipment to use. I settled on The Nikon 300 AFD with a Better Beamer and the D3 and D300 bodies. I did have mounted on a tripod the Nikon 600 AFS. Since the birds moved quite a bit and never seemed to stay in one place for any amount of time, the 600 was difficult to manuever. The boardwalk isn't very wide once you open the legs of the tripod so there is the chance of a tripping hazard or worse the camera tipping over hazard. With a D3 and a Nikon 600mm that is not something that I cared to watch or have happen.

Most of the good shots I got was with my older AF version of the Nikon 300 f/4. I might next year want to bring the 200-400 AFS with a TC. I may also want to move my equipment to a monopod because that will allow me to be mobile which I found to be very important as the birds jump in and out of the trees and move around quite readily.

I once again found the best photos to be taken with the D3 over the D300. This was not just the full fram photos, but even when cropped. I can only say that this is my experiance and yours may vary. I was also not pleased with the focusing speed of the older Nikon AF 300 f/4. AFS has really spoiled me and there isn't much room for error with birds that are able to move and twitch while on the branch that fast.

The above photo is taken of an amish family that came to do some bird watching at Magee Marsh. I found their outfits very photogenic and since there was some free time between birds I snapped a number of pictures of them. I also got some candids of people around me whose expressions I found interesting. Though I have never been a "street photographer" I did find this foray into street photography somewhat interesting, especially since I had birds as a backup.

ScanCafe Photo Scanning Update: Photo of the Day

As an update to my previous post on using ScanCafe from previous blog post.  A few days after my negatives arrived I received the following update from them.  Since all of these pictures were family memories it was a welcomed update to let me know that they had receive them and that they weren't lost in transit.  Of course I had been checking the UPS site for their arrival and already was aware.

I also received another email recently that said they were going to be upping their prices on July 15.  They were giving a 10% discount code to beat the price increase.  Business must be good if they are increasing prices.  I almost accepted this deal because as loyal readers might recall I have 2-3 more batches of negatives that need to be turned into digital images and getting 10% off and avoiding a price increase is usually pretty high on my list. 


In the end I held off because I want to see the quality of the scans before I send more negatives to this type of service.  I also am still a little uncomfortable with having more than one batch of negatives out of my possession and in someone elses. 


I'll keep every posted as I get more updates.

Chicago Skyline from Navy Pier: Photo of the Day

On a recent trip to downtown Chicago to celebrate my 1st wedding anniversary as most suspect I did take a little time out to photograph.  Though on these occasions I try to keep it to a minimum since this time is intended to celebrate family, I always fight the urge within myself to watch the light.  These types of outings were exactly the reason why I purchased my P&S camera the Panasonic LX3.  If you have followed this blog on a regular basis this camera more and more has become my daily camera.  It will never replace my DSLR’s for the more serious work, but in many cases since I am limited by time and in some cases space I have found it invaluable. 

My wife on our first anniversary was not going to wait for me to set-up too many shots or to carry around a tripod; the LX3 fit nicely in my jacket pocket or in some cases her purse.  I was able to bring it out quickly, snap the picture and often she never knew that I had taken a photo.  Sneaky guy I am. 

Above is the Chicago Skyline while taken from the Navy Pier Ferris wheel.  This Ferris Wheel is modeled after the 1893 World Columbian Exposition that was held in Chicago and was the first Ferris Wheel.  Though imposing when you first arrive at Navy Pier at 150ft of diameter.  It would be dwarfed by the original which soared to a height of 250ft!

Kate and I decided to rake a ride up and this quick snap of a beautiful spring day in Chicago was the results.

Panasonic LX3 converted in Aperture, some Nik Color Efex Viveza was used on the sky and the Local Contrast Filter from Nik Color Efex 3.0 finished it off.

On another note I could continue to post photos each day for quite sometime I find that my ability to write articles up to the level that I would like is limiting me.  I find there are too many easily spotted errors making their way into these pieces.  Because I am a one-person operation as writer and chief editor I will push my schedule back to a more realistic 3 days a week schedule.  This should help me start having some quality control of the articles and still keep my day job which currently pays all of the bills.

Now if someone wants to make a large donation I could farm out the articles hire an editor, quit the day job and just take photos.  Send this donation via Paypal to bcmielke (at)gmail (dot) com

Lady Slipper in the Smoky Mountains: Photo of the Day

Lady Slipper in the Smoky Mountains, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

Just being friendly can help you with pictures. I a recent trip to the Smoky Mountains I was hiking up a trail that just a couple of years early had netted me more pictures than I could possibly take in only the first mile. This time however I and my pack trekked all the way up the mountain a good 4 miles with not much to show for it other than sore muscles.

On the way back down I chatted with some other photographers on the way up exchanging what we might have seen and where to find it along the trail. In this case one shared with me this Lady Slipper that was back in the woods and not known to me. I quickly got directions from him and went off to find it. Had I not been friendly or shared my knowledge this picture would have never happened.

Panasonic LX3 Local Contrast filter from Nik Color Efex 3.0

Catherine Stout: Photo of the Day

Catherine Stout: Photo of the Day, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

I had the opportunity to photograph a good friends newborn baby. This is always an exciting time for a couple. Jeff , Carrie and now Catherine Frances Stout were kind enough to give me a couple of hours of their time to get the pictures that I needed. Newborns can always be a problem at times, but Cati was a joy to work with never fussing until of course she was hungry and not bothering at all with the multiple flash pops that were going off. I enjoyed my time and hopefully got a few pictures that the couple will have lasting memories with.

There was a point when Carrie let me hold Cati. Most who read this know that my children are a little bit older than a baby. I asked her if Kate had put her up to this? She said, "Not at all" Now I don't know if I believe this little exchange didn't happen and my wife was mum about any contact between the two. What I do know was that it was pretty nice having a baby in my arms again and wondering what the future might hold for her.

Morning Sunrise through the Trees:Photo of the Day

Morning Sunrise through the Trees, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

If you give anything morning light it tends to look good. This is just a simple photograph of a tree with the clouds changing behind it. The best part of this for those that know and care is if I'm outside at dawn it means I am running again. The Achilles has somewhat healed and my morning ritual is hopefully back and pain free.

Nikon D700 Nikkor 24-120 VR Converted in Aperture

Lensbaby Martini: Photo of the Day

Every since I purchased this little lens I have found times to use it. I love my Lensbaby. I hate to coin a phrase or marketing logo, but it does indeed make the ordinary extraordinary. Above we have a consolation for a long week of work for me. A nice martini.

I will say that a lensbaby is not for everyone. My wife doesn't happen to like looking at the pictures at all and noticeably groans when I remove it from the bag. For food photography though there is nothing better that jazzes up a photo than a quick shot with a lensbaby. Like it or hate it, I would like your feedback on the lensbaby.

Captured with the D700 Lensbaby 3G with the portrait optic. Converted in Aperture

Does this look illegal?: Photo of the Day

Does this look illegal?, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

You wouldn't think this looks illegal. I guess it is at Bloomingdales. As my wife was trying on dresses to go to a show and dinner for our anniversary. I took this time to sharpen some photography skills and to look for more dresses. I liked how the colors were so dramatic in my viewfinder. I was able to take about 6-7 pictures before a person asked me to stop saying that they did not allow shooting in Bloomingdales.

As regular readers might recall I had the same problem in a spice store awhile back and they emailed me when a reader pointed out what I had written. One would think they woudln't like the negative press. Now instead of a picture with a comment about how nice of a place Bloomingdales is to purchase dresses at, they are stuck with this.

Getting Focus right: Photo of the Day

Getting Focus right: Photo of the Day, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

Technically I could complain alot about this photo. I'll keep it to focus. Well I changed my mind. I wish I had seperated the two flowers on the lower right a little as well.

When I took this photo I was trying to isolate the front tulip from the other two to give me sharp focus on the front and have the others fade into the background bokeh. That didn't happen though. It started to rain, the wind picked up and guess what the photo doesn't really work like I wanted to. Despite 7 pictures I never really paid attention to the one detail that would have made it work a steady tripod and a stationary subject. I could have re-did this photo many times over the next week and this was one I never got back to. Get it right the first time and you don't have to.

Nikon D700 Nikkor 200 F/2 Converted in Aperture

Some are thrust in our view: Photo of the Day

Some are thrust in our view: Photo of the Day, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

I sometimes find myself looking for pictures and other times they are thrust in my way. The above picture was just such a case. We recently went on a camping trip into Wisconsin. We had rented a group campground, which gave us plenty of space to invite friends and even other family members. One of those nights my sister arrived with my brother-in-law.

It just so happens that if there were an award for professional fire-maker my “Bil” would win the award. He can build a fire with the proverbial two sticks of wood if he has to. The smoldering old damp wood around our campsite was no match for him, however it was a match for my wife and myself the next night.

For those that know such things when you check into a campground purchasing wood is a necessity. The little packet of wood is usually so dry that it will have burnt edges by the sunlight if left out on a bright day. Inevitably the last night for your fire you either have too much or too little wood. Since “Bil” was there the night before we were left with too little. Keep in mind I’m not complaining, I would rather have a great fire then none at all. My “Bil” builds great fires. In the case for this night we should have picked up some more wood because our meager skills just weren’t enough for the damp large tree branches left over on the ground.

The group was clamoring for a fire though and so I jumped in my car to make that happen. I had noticed through the weekend a couple of places that had wood, what I hoped for was they were open late. Yes I know stores open late at night selling wood probably isn’t going to happen, but man of action that I am, I have to look.

Driving around the lake to get to the second store I was greeted with this site of the sun setting and me, well being me I had to stop and snap this picture. Well so I snapped a few more than just one and even a couple of different angles. The scene was thrust upon me so I had to work it didn’t I?

Thankfully this did not cause my mad dash to the store to wind up differently than if I hadn’t taken the time to take pictures. Both of the stores were long closed. Regardless I couldn’t have asked for a better sunset.

Always have a camera handy and if something catches your eye then really try to work the scene from all different angles and compositions.

Panasonic Lumix LX3 and converted in Aperture with the Local Contrast filter in Nik Color Efex Pro 3.0.

Choral Performance at Elementary East:Photo of the Day

Choral Performance at Elementary East:Photo of the Day, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

My son is such a ham. He loves being in the spotlight and enjoys making you laugh. He has always been this way from shortly after birth. His laughs radiate though his whole face and are infectious to those around him.

There was a choral performance at his school the other day. He and many other second grade students performed the vocal parts of a play that the Warren Township Elementary East 2nd grade was apart of. The part consisted of some singing and hand movements. He can usually hum a few bars and get most of the hand movements correctly.

We found out from his teacher this week that has not been an active participant in music class learning the choral part of the play. He usually was fidgeting, playing and distracting other students or just sitting down while the other students were doing the performance. This also can be Tyler as well. With any child there is good and there is bad.

For whatever reason he decided it was time to participate the practice before their one and only performance. He didn’t sit down, didn’t distract other students and decided to do not just a few, but all of the hand motions that accompany each song. Most didn’t even know he knew them and he did almost everyone to what I call Tyler perfection. He not only hummed, but also sang a few of the words to the songs.

As I watched this performance I was unaware of his previous poor behavior and lack of participation. What I received from his music teacher and his schoolteacher was amazement because they had not seen this type of behavior the previous weeks. Where it came from they didn’t know. They were just happy and excited that he participated and performed very well.

The key to taking good pictures at any school facility is to know where your child will be and try to be as near to them as possible. The other key is to set as close to them as possible and try to move around to get open views without distracting other parents. This is far easier said than done. Best idea is to talk to the teacher or in this case the musical director. Had I not done this I might have very well been on the other side of the gym and not gotten any pictures of Tyler hamming it up for the crowd.

For the record he was letting mom know that he was doing well…hence the thumbs up.

Capture with my Nikon D700 and Sigma 100-300 f/4 lens.

Chicago Construction Sunset: Photo of the Day

Chicago Construction Sunset, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

Timing is everything for a sunset picture. Especially if the sun itself is in the photo. When I first started making photographs seriously many years ago I was surprised how fast the yellow orbital fell below the horizon. You don't have much time in which to capture the sun, especially if you want to place it someplace.

There are many tools you can use to show where the sun will set, sunrise/sunset charts, iPhone programs and most have something on their GPS. I prefer in most cases to just leave that to happenstance. That is what I did for this photo.

Nikon D700 Nikon 24-120 Lens, converted in Aperture.

ScanCafe Clutter

ScanCafe Clutter, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

I am in the process of sending out many of my old negatives to a scanning service. After some amount of research I chose ScanCafe, mainly because they allow you to bulk send them in and choose the ones that you want sent back to you digitally. Since most of what you see in this picture is cherished family memories, my plan is to use ScanCafe in 3 bulk shipments. It also helps spread the cost out as well.

I do have a very nice Nikon scanner that I have in the past used to scan in my slide film pictures, but my plan is to only use that equipment for those scans that might need more resolution. Though ScanCafe can provide that they also increase the price accordingly. The standard scan is 6mp and that should be adequate for the family pictures, for some of the landscape shots I may at some time want more.

I will let my readers follow me through this process with regular updates and also give my impressions of the work at the end of the process.

If at first you don't succeed, go back: Photo of the Day

I am a curmudgeon. I don't know as I personally like this personality trait, but I have lived with it for so long that I now just accept it. It takes me awhile to warm up to ideas outside of my own. So I am a selfish curmudgeon. I do finally after complaining either in my head or outside of my own head. With my children I try to make it on the inside.

I did not want to go to the Rainforest Cafe, but I had said if she gets all of her spelling words right that she can pick the place to have dinner. What I didn't realize was that I would have such fun with Photography with all of the various lights and animals that this restaurant has all around the seating area.

For this outing I had chosens just a Nikon 50mm lens and the D700. I wished that I had packed my own light, but I was reduced to using the pop-up flash located on the D700. The array of lights all around the resteraunt lent itself for the exploration of my creative pictures. This picture would have been perfect with just a touch more flash on my subject. If I can just prompt her to get all her spelling words correct again, we might have that shot.

A picture of a very happy Punkin celebrating a great effort.

African Statue: Photo of the Day

African Statue: Photo of the Day, originally uploaded by BCMielke.

I always walk through the Atlanta Airport. For some there is an easy train ride, but as many times as I have flown into the ATL, I always walk past the trains and onto the long walkway to Baggage Claim. It's only a mile and you are blessed with artwork from Africa and other places while you stroll.

These statues have been in place for quite some time and they are well lit and professional maintained. I always pause at one of the pieces as I make my way through the gallery. This was sculpted by Edronce Rukodzi from Zimbabwe. You can find his gallery here.

What almost didn't happen: Photo of the day

Here is a picture that almost didn't happen. I know most photographer's have a story like that and I will share mine. On a cross-country trip with my sister and ex-wife we stopped at the Grand Canyon. I was just getting into photography and had my trust N90 and Fuji Velvia. I was going to capture the quintessential picture of every national park we went to during that 1 week trip back driving across the country.

I was tired having driven all day, and really didn't have any clue what happens in canyons at sunset when the light is at such a severe angle. Having lived my whole life in the midwest we just didn't have photos taken that way. They just don't exist. Canyons and Mountains however are different. Standing on the edge as the sunset I stopped and looked and wanted to go home just shortly after I saw the sun disappear. My sister however kept wanting to look at the cloud and stopped me. having concentrated on some detail pictures of the canyon itself I never even looked to sky to see what the clouds are doing. Those are things you learn with experiance. Something I didn't have.

Now quickly unpacking my gear, I loaded the camera with Fuji Velvia 50 film. Quickly I set up and just before this picture was taken the rocks erupted with the splashes of light that you see here. Had my sister not stopped me to look at the cloud, I would have never had the chance to take this picture. Lesson learned I now wait until far after dark to capture the twighlight and when in the mountains you wait until the light is gone.

Nikon N90 Fuji Velvia film scanned with a Nikon LS-4000 scanner