YourPhotoTips features Amazing Photographers

I’d like to extend a hearty thanks to the YourPhotoTips blog for including me in their 20 Amazing Photographers Around the Internet post yesterday. Damien’s blog is a great source for finding the best photography and photographers around the blogosphere.

The other photographers featured in the article definitely are artists you want to check out.  I feel honored to be featured next to them.

If you are wondering about the photo they used for my blog, it is View 30: Foggy Bottom Metro Station and has an interesting story behind it.

Secret to Sharp Photos II

United States Capitol Building at Dusk in Washington, DC.

As a follow up to my first article on Secret to Sharp Photos, I found Scott Bourne’s How to Get the Absolutely Sharpest Photo Possible something I’d like to pass along to you. 

The photo of the US Capitol building was taken with a tripod and remote shutter release at an aperture of f/16 for a half second.

View 30: Foggy Bottom Metro Station

Foggy Bottom Metro Station, Washington, DC

In these times of high gas prices, this young woman found a way to beat those costs by using Washington, DC’s Metro System. By using her bike to get back and forth to the Metro, she gets some exercise and doesn’t add pollutants to the atmosphere. This station is located in the Foggy Bottom District.

If you have read the book by Joe McNally called The Moment It Clicks (if you haven’t, you should), you’ll appreciate the story behind this photograph. I wanted to get a speed shot of one of the Metro trains entering a station using a slow shutter speed to show movement. I found a pole to lean against, took some test shots to make sure I had a good exposure and proper white balance set and put my trust in the Nikon 18-200mm VR Zoom lens as I didn’t have a tripod with me. A minute before a train arrives, the round red lights on the platform’s edge begin to blink slowly (you can see them reflecting off the train’s hull in the photo). Just as they began to blink, this woman with her bike walked into my camera’s field of view and stood still. I had to revise my time to shoot slightly to get the front of the train emerging to her left. I couldn’t believe my luck as I think she made a good photo into an excellent one.

View 29: National Mall, Washington, DC

The National Mall at Dusk

I took a traditional driving vacation a couple of weeks ago. The first stop was Washington, DC where I was fortunate enough to witness a beautiful sunset over the National Mall. This photo was taken about 30 minutes after sunset.

Editor’s Note: I know I’m a bit behind. I had a LOT of photos to process after returning from vacation and some projects which needed my attention. I’ll make up for it over the next week so I’ll get back on my weekly schedule.