A Brighter World

As most of you know a storm has moved across the U.S. the last couple of days dumping all kinds of precipitation, mostly snow, as it passed. Many of you can probably look out the window right now and understand my title.

When snow hits the Carolinas like it has the last couple days, things come to a crawl, and the cancelations begin to roll across the bottom of our television screens. It is then that my family and I like to venture out of the comfort of our warm home and see the completely transformed world outside.

Here some of the images that I have captured over the past few days, beginning on my way home from work on Friday, Jan. 29, 2010 through present. Check it out!

12:09 AM Jan. 30, 2010

8:00 AM Jan. 30, 2010

Elements Studio

Things have started to slow at the studio, as it has for most photo studios, but as it does the spare time gives me a chance to try some things of my own.

I have tried time-lapes’s before with success, but it has been a while so I wanted to do another at the studio before things slowed down. Elements studio is a small studio in High Point, NC. We have four photographers including the head photographer. In the time-lapes we were working on a couple large orders from Lowes shooting Kobalt Tools. I am in the foreground working on post production for the Kobalt packaging order, while my coworkers shoot, and retouch the images in the background. Its just another day of Kobalting, as it has come to be called.

In my spare time around the studio I shoot some pictures to play with my equipment to continue to get to know it better as well as continuing to look at light and composition. Here are a few that I took during breaks and down time.

Being work has slowed, we have the time to get to some much needed cleaning and painting to get the studio back into shape. Here are a few that I found interesting.

A Little Christmas

So I did a good job of keeping Amanda, my girlfriend, in the dark about what she was getting for Christmas. I asked her what she wanted, and she gave me a few good things, but I knew of one she would like just as much, an iPod Touch. Here are a few pics of how it went.

First off I had my parents give Amanda the iTunes card they had gotten her for some confusion. Played it off like it was an accident and that they would give her cash in the place of the card because they didn’t know she didn’t have a iPod.

Then, a few minuets later I presented her with the iPod. She was obviously still a bit confused, but it didn’t take her long to figure it out.

Here she comes to give me some sugar. Or to beat me, one or the other.

After all it was a wonderful Christmas for everyone, and one of the best Christmases thus far in my life.

If only the cat were so lucky.

First Snowfall ‘09

I enjoyed watching the snow fall more than ever this year. I look forward to many more of these little storms. Check out a few of the images I captured just around the house with the exception of the first accident I came across on my way home from work. I just thought it was a bit funny being the small amount of slush on the road. Some people just don’t have it, common sense that is.

Check it out.

Halloween

I went out on the night of Halloween to a house in Winston-Salem that decorates like crazy (it is located at the corner of Watson Ave. and Gaston St.).  I had not been by in a few years, and decided to check it out as well as play around with my D300s a little and push its limits in the dark to see how it performed.  I must say I was happy with the results, but you can be the judge.

All of these were shot at 6400 ISO which is as high as she goes.

This last one was in front of another house down the street. Looks strait out of a horror film.

Guns

This is something I wanted to try while at school, but #1 I was too young to be in possession of a hand gun, and #2 guns and schools do not seem to mix too well. I believe I was allowed to have a gun with special permission, but without live ammunition, but that what part of my vision.

Anyways, I finally got a chance to try my hand at it the other day at the studio.
Here are a couple of my favorite.

Midnight Photography

Went camping with the family this past weekend at Stone Mountain State Park, NC, and while I was there I took the opportunity to try my hand at capturing the amazing blanket of stars visible. Here is what I was able to get.

And here is one I did back in April.

Distractions

So I am now working at a Commercial Studio in High Point, NC. I was working a little late when as I was packing up to leave I heard multiple sirens outside. The PJ in me came alive, and my heart began to race as I heard the sirens one after another cut off just down the street. I flipped on the scanner to try to catch a heads up of what was going on. Car off the roadway, only being held by two trees. As if I was not excited enough.

When I got there (business 85, north bound lane, just north of Prospect Dr.), the scene was somewhat of a let down (fortunately for the driver). My assumption of the single car down an embankment is that the driver was focused a bit too hard on something else besides driving as tire tracks gradually moved into the grass with a hard turn to the left just as the tracks go strait over the Hwy marker signs in the foreground of pic 2. The oversteer must have occurred as the car ended up back down the same way as when it first went off course.

While I was there I took about 10 pics, here are a couple.

Another thought I had. I wonder how many people watched this happen (being the road and time of day: 5:30 p.m.). As far as I could tell, no one had stopped besides the emergency services. Hmmm.

Bowman Gray Stadium

I have been interning at the stadium on the weekends to get a few extra hours while also interning with Elements Studio, a commercial studio in High Point, NC.  I took advantage of this internship to grow my skills and try out a couple new things that I have not “professionally” ever photographed before.

I am going to start getting some of my photos up on here for those of you who would like to see them.  Enjoy!

HDRs at The Beach

I went on vacation to Holden Beach, and have done several HDRs along with other photos. Here is the ocean just in front of the house we stayed in.