Huntington Gardens

Yesterday I went out shooting with the Northridge Outdoor Photography Group to Huntington Gardens.
The Gardens cover over 207 acres with 14000 varieties of plants to photograph.
This is a place that you can lose yourself, get rid of your stress and even recharge for the coming new week.

I especially liked the themed gardens. The photo above was taken in the Chinese Garden in a far off corner.


Here is a photograph (right) taken in the Chinese Gardens looking out towards the Japanese Gardens.

This photograph was a combination of three images, an underexposed scene, an overexposed scene, and the scene read normally by the camera.

This particular technique is know as HDR or High Dynamic Range photography. It is useful when you are looking at showing more detail in your shadow and highlight area.

Huntington Gardens offers many photographic possibilities, plan to visit time and again.

I Entered a Contest

I heard that some people out there make their living entering and winning contests.
I don't believe it, but the law of averages suggests that if you enter enough contests you're bound to come away with something.

So, I'm not going to tell you where I entered it, but please comment.

Do you like the photo?
How does it make you feel?

Just give me your overall impression of what you see.

Whatever your comments are please share. And if I win anything I'll be sure to tell you.



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New York City - No Place to Diet!

This photo was taken in New York City near Times Square. We were heading over to the theatre to see Grease when all of a sudden we were attack by visions of candy.

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Textures and Patterns

Check out my new gallery, Textures and Patterns which can be found on the home page of bobsachs.com.


Most of these photos came about as I explored Malibu Creek one Sunday afternoon. We were doing some scouting for locations for the next photo shoot by the Northridge Outdoor Photography Meetup Group.


Malibu Creek offers lots of photo possibilities. Everything from birds to kite flying can be found at the creek.




So yo can see that some good images were photographed that day.


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and One Last Thing...

She has left the building, the pigs are flying, and it's freezing over.

Yes Virgina, There is a MacWorld and Apple will be there, but only this year. You see, Steve Jobs and Apple have opted out of that mega convention, known as MacWorld, and will forever ride off into the sunset to do their own thing.

What are we to do?

"Oh, the humanity...!"(Herbert Morrison)

I think I heard that line in a movie once, but it really does say a lot about what we can expect. No more getting together with other Mac users and sharing stories. No more meeting at the local coffee house and talking about the next MacWorld and what to expect. No more...you get my drift.

Wait a minute, I'm sure there are some positives.

Let me see... I'll make a list.

1. No more visits to San Francisco
2. No more nights at my favorite North Beach restaurant
3. No more watching late movies at the Sony's Metreon
4. No more taking off work for a week
5. No more being wined and dined by company reps
6. No more taking extra time and visiting friends in Santa Rosa
7. No more driving up the coast (101 freeway)
8. No more listening to David Pogue for the umpteenth time
9. No more walking the city streets
10.No more gotta go on the cable cars

Now that I think of it, MacWorld was so much more than Apple, it was a state of being.
For one magical week I was able to consume myself with all things San Francisco and a computer called Macintosh.

The San Francisco I know was transformed into a mecca of Mac fanatics and everywhere I went I knew they were just around the corner.
Coffee, shopping, dinner they were everywhere, exchanging glances of approval with this inexplicable, unspoken, unseen magical bond we all had.

We knew that that we were connected by something.

Yes, there will be other MacWorlds, but without Apple? Will it be the same? Only time will tell.

I can only hope that when Phil Schiller wraps up this final keynote he utters those magical words,

"and One Last Thing..."



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Pixel Peeping NOT!

Welcome to the New Year and with it comes the traditional New Year's Resolution.

I'm sure we've all made them, stop smoking, go on a diet, spend more time with...(you supply the answer), etc.

I'm going to share my one and only resolution with you...
Stop Pixel Peeping and go out and photograph!

I've come to the conclusion that I need to stop thinking about my gear and go out there and photograph. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the equipment that we use that we don't use it as intended. Who cares what the lens chart says, are the pixels sharp, what's the best f-stop to use?

How does the photo look?

That's the real question.

Okay, so now that we know the question and we've made our resolution, what do we do next?

To quote an old friend,"Indeed!" Take note StarGate viewers.

I actually anticipated this resolution and have been proactive about making it come to pass.

So should I let you in on my little secret? It really wasn't hard, just find other people who like to photograph and go out there and do it.

Now the question may come up as to how to find other people, join a group, that's what I did.

The internet is a fantastic social machine, matching people with their interests. And it was just those interests that I searched for when I went looking for fellow photographers.

I found a website called, meetup.com. This is one of those social sites that has you type in what you're looking for and how far you're willing to travel for it.

As luck would have it I found a nature photography group starting up and just a few miles from my house.

In future posts I'll talk more about this group, suffice to say it has accomplished its goal, no more pixel peeping for me.

It's all about the photograph.



P.S. Did I mention that I'm thinking of a new camera, more megapixels, larger photosites and...Never Mind!


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Doing the Photog Thing

Thanks to Diana for capturing the real Bob Sachs.


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Do You Believe in Ghosts?

Ghosts? Do they exist, or is this photo faked?
Did I accidently open the camera back and expose the film? Wait I'm into digital now. No film!

So what is it?

Two of the people in the picture died within a year of taking the photo. Did I stumble into something?

Whatever the reason, this photograph reaches the depths of my soul and makes me think what if...

You decide.





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It's a Bird, It's a Plane, No Them are Clouds!

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Resting Birds

Sometimes a little rest is all that you need to recharge and take on the problems of the day.







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American Flag

I watched the debate tonight hence the American Flag photograph.

Something about a debate, nominees going at it hoping to sway the public with their rhetoric.

From my vantage point I saw 2 people, like long lost cousins agreeing with each other at every turn. Where was the mudslinging? The dirty tricks? The negative campaign ads?

Those that support Hillary say she needs to win this debate and carry the momentum through to the final primaries (she needs those delegates!).
Obama supporters feel their candidate can do no wrong. He has the momentum, appears statesman like, and talks up a good health plan.

Super Tuesday (Texas and Ohio) should be interesting.

Hillary for President

Obama for President

McCain for President

Remember to vote, because you can.


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My Business Card

Okay, business cards, you've got to love them.
You hand them out to all sorts of people.

People who love your photography.
People who plead with you, just gotta have one...
People who think you're the next...

And all these people have one thing in common, they'll throw out your card without even thinking about it.

Why?

If you had to have the card, why do you treat it with such disrespect?

Consider if you will the thought and care that went into designing the card. I'm sure lots of design decisions were thought about and made. Advice was asked for, and many cards were rejected until that perfect one stood out from all the rest.

So the next time you are given a business card, look at it, really take the time to study it and appreciate it for all the trouble that went into creating it. And finally, toss it in the garbage.

Why?

Because it will probably end up there anyway.




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A Little Leather Anyone?

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Only 2 Hours To Go

Yes, even a photographer has to eat!


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To Some, 20 Minutes Can Be An Eternity

Sometimes waiting can be so hard...

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Photo Contests...Big Rewards or Something Else?

Why Do We Enter Photo Contests?
Do we enter contests for riches? What about fame? Or is there a more intangible reward?
Let me preface this by saying,"I don't enter photo contests." There I said it!
So how is it that I'm writing about this topic?
I did what I just said I wouldn't do, I entered the above photograph in a contest, and wait there is more, I won third place.

Now as a rule, standard operating procedure for me, is to go out and find interesting things to photograph. I'll work on the photo until I feel it's what I saw orginally, then print it. If I feel the photograph has merit then I'll make some more prints and really zero in on a final product. Finally when I feel that I've done all that I can to the photo I'll place it on my website for sale.
I use a special fine art paper for my photos, but I'm willing to experiment to find that perfect paper, a paper that will show off my prints in their best light.

So a few months ago as I was reading a photo magazine and read about a contest that Legion Paper was having. They were looking for your best photo printed on their paper.

What they were really looking for were photographers to try out Legion's various papers and then possibly switching to their brand, all in the guise of a contest.

And I took the bait.

Needless to say I bought a package of their paper and proceeded to print what I thought were some of my better images for their contest.

A few months after entering I received an email notifying me that I had won third place in their contest.

Going back to the opening sentence, what did I really get out of this contest?
It certainly wasn't riches. For my winnings I received two packages of the same paper I had used, an autographed copy of a rather large photography book, and a small reflector.

These prizes certainly weren't going to put me in a new tax bracket, but they were prizes, nevertheless.

So maybe my goal was fame, did I achieve that? My photo was published on the Legion's Paper website, abeit a little hard to find. I was published in Shutterbug magazine, a one pager showing all the winners with a tag line.

I guess fame may have escaped me.

So, what as a photographer did I get out of this contest (any contest for that matter) if it wasn't riches or fame?

I got validation from other professionals (the judges) in the field.
And that's important. Knowing that others who work in the same field as you like what they are seeing.

Oh sure, I sell photos to customers all the time, but it's not the same as your peer group telling you, "you did good."

So there you have it, the really reason I entered the contest, but it would have been really cool if I had won a car or a chunk of cash.



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Some Sunshine for a Rainy Southern California

I thought we could use some cheering up after the rain. Now I know Southern California is really a desert area and the rain is needed, but night and day?

Gimme me a break.

I probably wouldn't fare well up north or back east where we have real seasons.
Enjoy the sunflower!


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How Do They Get Those Clouds Up There?

During a recent visit to Firestone Vineyards I noticed a large hook hanging overhead.
It became very apparent to me on how the clouds got in the sky.


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Photo Workshops and Drinking Wine

Have you seen those advertisements about Tamron's Photo Workshops?
My wife and I recently had the opportunity to go on one and let me tell you, it was well worth the cost of admission.

This particuliar workshop was sponsored by Samy's Camera and of course Tamron. Other sponsors included, Bogen Imaging (tripods),and ExpoImaging(expodisc).

It started in Santa Barbara with a Friday evening get together. We met the photographer, Don Gale, that would be working with us and learned about how the tour would be structured. This first meeting took place inside Samy's Cameras and we were given ample opportunity to spend our money. In fact, as part of our goodie bag we found a twenty dollar gift card from Samys (which we could use anytime). Nice touch.

As our evening continued we learned that we could borrow Tamron Lenses (Canon/Nikon mounts), tripods, and even have the use of a Fuji FinePix S5 Pro digital camera for our shoot the next day.

Saturday was the actual photo part of our workshop. We met early Saturday morning at a public parking lot, got on a bus (not one of those yellow school type busses, but one designed for paying customers, bathroom included) and proceeded to Santa Ynez (about 45 minutes away) and home to Firestone Vineyards where we would be shooting for the day.

Once at the vineyard we gathered in the courtyard, given some last minute instructions, and proceeded to photograph just about anything we choose. For some that meant working with the photographer while others ventured off alone to discover what they could.


What makes for a successful workshop is access to the professional leading it, his/her enthusiasm, and their sincere desire to work with the attendees.

Don Gale is a successful photographer who takes the time to explain his reasons for how he shoots and demos proper photographic technique. All too often we let the digital camera do all the work for us, not understanding that there are certain photographic principal at work in every photo. Depth of field, light meter readings, composition and a host of others. Don successfully shows how these interact and how with a little thought you can get the photograph you saw in the viewfinder.
Don did a great job explaining things which made for a successful day.

After the shoot we boarded the bus back to Samys and met to discuss how the workshop went. We saw examples of Don's photos that he took during the workshop and he used the time to explain what he was trying to achieve.

No workshop would be complete without raffle prizes and Tamron didn't skimp on these.
Lenses, magazine subscriptions, and software. They were all up for grabs.

Would I recommend this workshop to others?
Of course, but first check to see if Don Gale is leading it.

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How Not to Photograph in Las Vegas

So my wife and I had these great plans of getting away from it all and going to Las Vegas.

Being the Photographer that I am I thought I would take some of the time and photograph the local surroundings (hotels, neon, Hover Dam, landscapes, etc.).

The stage was set, I bought some larger compact flash cards (I didn't plan to bring my computer to download files), check out the gear and make sure it was ready, and even reserved the hotel for an extra couple of days (4 nights 5 days).

Sounds good, right?
WRONG!

The weather was HOT! And when I say HOT I mean the kind of HOT that isn't good for you.
According to the local weather channel, we were in for a heat spell, the kind that gets into the 115's and up.


Now I may think of myself as a photographer, but not the kind that likes to see the glass in his lenses melt, compact flash cards turn to goo, and gasp for air as I venture less than a few feet from the hotel entrance.

You probably think I'm exaggerating, and I am. Canon lenses don't melt at 115 degrees fahrenheit, compact flash cards don't turn to goo, but I'm dead serious about the gasping for air. In fact, just after a few minutes outside I felt so parched and had to quickly find water ( bottled water goes anywhere from $2.00 to $4.00 depending on where you are) to survive.

Don't get the wrong idea of me. I live in the San Fernando Valley (Southern California) and it gets quite hot here. And I'm use to the heat. What I'm not use to is heat that sucks in the air so all you have left is, well...nothing.

I did take some photos, but not nearly the amount I was imagining. As you can see I did manage to get some interesting photographs.

Their is a lesson in all this, don't go to Las Vegas in the summer, wait until it gets cooler. And that is what my wife and I will do.

So there you have it, how not to photograph Las Vegas.

Any questions?

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