Posted on by Anne Sandler

Out and about Sacramento with my camera

I’m beginning to take my camera with me whenever I go where I think there may be something to shoot. Now, a trip to the grocery store, well there may be stuff to shoot there too. But, recently I was a trainer for Toastmaster officers down in downtown Sacramento during the lunch hour. So, I brought my camera. I should have brought lunch too.

My Toastmaster and photo buddy Bob and I took the light rail downtown where parking is difficult. While waiting for the training to begin, I practiced on manual, promising my fellow Toastmasters that I would delete the shots–I did. After the training, which was held in a cafeteria without food or vending machine, Bob and I walked to a nearby light rail station hoping to find something to shoot and something to eat. I did have an opportunity to shoot a memorial to slain police officers and a sculpture of a wife and daughter who had lost a husband and father. I also found some Mickey Mouse statues in a museum. We stopped in there to see if the gift shop had any food. We were desperate.

A couple of days later, I was chasing a sunset at Gibson Ranch with a couple of other photographers. The day before the sky was on fire, but I didn’t know it until it was dark out and photographers were posting their spectacular images on the web. Although we didn’t have the cloud cover of the night before, I did get a decent one-cloud shot.

So here are my images of being out and about with my camera.

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

Oh that “M” word again: Shooting manual at Treasure Island, San Franscisco

I am determined to learn how to shoot photos on manual. Why? Because I think it will give me greater control over my camera. Once I have it mastered, I’m not sure I will use it all the time. It really comes down to how much time you have to make that shot. Aperture or shutter priority allows you to shoot more quickly. But for my visit to Treasure Island, I shot on manual. And it did take time, patience and a lot of bad images to get the good ones.

The big factor we were all struggling with was wind. The water was choppy and things just weren’t at a stand still. The second disappointment was that the Bliss Dance sculpture did not light up that evening. Some of the photographers light painted the statute, but by then, I was too tired. We all did our best and got some great images.

And, looking at the other photographers images is a learning experience. Since we are all shooting the same thing, it’s interesting to see the composition you missed or didn’t even see. You can also give yourself kudos for your own unique composition of the same thing.

There’s a lot of things I’m determined to learn in addition to shooting manual, and it will all come in time!

 

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

The meeting of astronomy and photography: the Milky Way at Blue Canyon

If it were coffee, it would have been a perfect blend–astronomers and photographers sharing the same airport tarmac.  Richard invited my “Shoot or go home” photography group to shoot the milky way up at the Blue Canyon airport near Truckee, California. It ended up being an outreach activity for the Sacramento Valley Astronomical  Society and a great time for the photographers. And, it was my first time shooting the Milky Way. We went up on Friday afternoon and the gathering was on Saturday. I was tired and didn’t shoot Friday night, but Saturday morning we went into the small town of Blue Canyon. It was a small neighborhood of cabins, and was very eclectic. The fun started that night.

We started the evening with a potluck, and the astronomers lent us chairs and a table. Dinner was followed by a short teach on how to shoot the Milky Way, and then we went out to set up. Meanwhile, the astronomers were getting ready to show off. After they had enough of shooting the Milky Way, the photographers visited with the astronomers, including Richard. Everyone enjoyed it. With some help, I became more comfortable shooting on manual. My camera is still on manual. It gets a little frustrating at times, but that’s the learning curve.

Our photographers learned more about astronomy too. And it wasn’t a long way home; just a little over an hour to Sacramento. Since Richard and I were staying over in our trailer, it was a very short time to home for me!

The next time I go up there, I want to try star trails in addition to shooting the Milky Way. At least for Richard and I, it will be a perfect blend.

 

 

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

Out and about with Goose: Dry Creek Falls and Gibson Ranch

Photographers are willing to go out and about whenever they can and they are willing to help.  “Goose” Simmons has been a big help to me. I recently went out during an evening with him and shot on manual until I realized my GPS was stolen. Then I went back to aperture priority.  I was too upset to think. I think I was so excited to be shooting with Goose that I forgot to lock my car. I won’t forget again!

Tonight, I’ll be learning how to shoot the Milky Way, and I hope I’ll be posting some great images for you soon. Meanwhile here are some (because I ended up with more than 20 shots I liked) shots from my outing with Goose.

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

A fun time with the peeps: Sacramento’s Tower Bridge at night

Yes, I’m trying to learn the new lingo. That’s one of the reasons I retired. I couldn’t keep up with the “20 and 30 somethings” colloquialisms, and it was time at 69 years! Hanging around with the peeps from Sacramento Photographers, a group on Facebook open to people who like photography, was fun.

I went out to the Tower Bridge with the intent to put my camera on manual, shoot with it on manual and get some light trail shots. I accomplished my task and also did some HDR. I don’t know why I didn’t shoot the HDR shots on manual rather than staying in my comfort zone at aperture priority. There’s always a next time.

Hopefully that next time will be with the Sacramento Photographers. They have one event a month, and the members are eager to share and help. They will also go out and invite the group at the spur of the moment like last nights activity. I’m looking forward to going out with the peeps again.

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

If you knew Peggy Sue: Peggy Sue’s 50’s diner

How about a “Frankie Avalon Philly Steak Sandwich,” a “Patti Page Patty Melt,” or a Tina Turner Tuna Sandwich? Are you hungry yet?

We don’t travel Highway 58 over the Tehachapi Mountains very often, but we’ve been that way twice since May. About 30 minutes from Baker, California you start seeing signs announcing Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner; and I mean large signs! But the timing wasn’t right for us to stop and experience the cuisine and decor.

This time we did, and it was amazing. The food was good and there was a lot of it. However, roaming the diner was the real treat. Originally built in 1954, the diner was reopened, after being closed after an unknown amount of years, by Peggy Sue and Champ (last names unknown) in 1987. With a history of Peggy Sue working in the movie industry and Champ for Knox Berry Farm, the diner became a place to display their extensive collection of movie and TV memorabilia. Peggy Sue used her grandmother’s family recipes and made food the old fashioned way. The diner soon became a popular with locals and truck drivers. In 1995 they added on a 1950’s style dime store, then a soda fountain, ice cream parlor and a pizza parlor. You just roam from room to room taking in the photos and other mementos from the era, and dining is available in all rooms.

Outside they have a pond, ducks, dinosaurs and other things to delight young and old. I thought it could have been better planned, but just like the diner it rambled on. I’m sure they didn’t import the huge red ant colony that prevented me from taking a picture of the weirdest duck I’ve ever seen! Those ants didn’t look friendly.

So if you want to eat a “Frankie Avalon Philly Steak Sandwich,” listen to 50’s music and enjoy some 50’s memories, stop by Peggy Sue’s Diner, 1-15 Ghost Town Road, Yermo, California. You won’t regret it.

 

 

Posted on by Anne Sandler

A change of attitude: The Optainium Cup Race at Mare Island, part 3

When you need to change attitude, it’s best to get away. That’s what we did. We took our new/used trailer to Las Vegas, Nevada for its “shakedown run.” I know it’s hot in Las Vegas this time of the year, but it was our cousin Jim’s 70th birthday–so why not! The good news is that we were able to outfit and situate the trailer to our liking, but the bad news is that I didn’t take any pictures except for Peggy Sue’s Diner on the way home. I’ll show you those in my next post.

Today, I want to wrap up the Otainium Cup Race and show you some images that are a mixture of what is happening on Mare Island. I did not do any HDR on these, and, yes, there are some buildings again. But, don’t click off, there are some new sights too. Hopefully, if I can get into a carpool, I’ll be going back there for a full moon shoot on Saturday. Fair warning–more Mare Island. Hopefully I can do better with my images. After all, a change in attitude is mostly accepting that what you’re doing is good and you can also improve.

Posted on by Anne Sandler

A change of attitude: The Optainium Cup Race at Mare Island, part 2

When you wake up at 5:30 in the morning to find a busted pipe, a flooded back yard and a broken water heater, it’s difficult to concentrate on a change of attitude! All is well now. Wow! We were lucky to find a plumber who came out right away and worked on both projects. But, I’m still working on changing that attitude. You know the one where you say, “I’m not good enough.”

So today I bought a new software editing tool from On One. The only problem is that it won’t work on my computer which is a 32 bit. For now, I’ll install it on my laptop and upgrade my desktop which really needs it. I did go through the thought process of I have a new camera that I haven’t learned all about yet, Lightroom that I haven’t mastered all the way, Photomatix that, again, I haven’t mastered, am I good enough to get more software. YES! Eventually I will be master of all my software.

Now for the continued story about the Optainium Cup. At each challenge station, the racers had to complete some tasks. Jayne and I were at the Mad Hatter station. You really had to choose one because you couldn’t walk from one to the other without missing some of the action. One photographer rode her bike around from station to station, but didn’t stay long.

At the Mad Hatter they had to talk to the bunny who gave them a special egg, great the Queen and wake the sleeping mouse. It was set up to be fun and it was.

Posted on by Anne Sandler

A change of attitude: The Optainium Cup Race at Mare Island

Yes, there needs to be a change of attitude on my part. When I was looking at other photographers’ photos of the Optainium Cup Race at Mare Island, I thought how could mine compare. That’s what you get for posting to the Meetup a few days late! But, that’s been my feeling, everyone is better than me. I need to change that. I may not be great, but I’m better than some. And, I’m learning. Each time I go out, I learn. Each time I look at other photographers’ images, I learn.

My recent outing to the Optainium Cup race was fun and another learning experience. The race was exactly that except it was in homemade peddled vehicles that were decorated with a theme. You’ll understand when you look at the pictures. My photo buddy Jayne and I had never been to this fun activity before and it was a learning curve for us.

In this post, I’ll show you the line up and the start. Tomorrow, I’ll show you the challenge stop that we were at. I’ll explain it also. Oh, the people staffing the race were also in costume. Visitors were too; however, it was hot. I don’t know how they managed in costumes.

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 4 Comments

Beyond the comfort zone: sunset, full moon and light painting – Mare Island

Everyone has a different comfort zone. When it comes to photography, mine is on aperture priority and hand held. I’m just making peace with the tripod–I no longer feel like throwing it when I try to set it up! I’ve just started doing HDR, and have only mastered part of Lightroom. It’s safe to say that I’ve not gotten fully knowledgeable with my D7100. So with all this learning to be done, I headed back to Mare Island in Vallejo California with Mary Gromer and the “Shoot or Go Home” photo Meetup group.

We were going to shoot some buildings during the golden hours before sunset, catch the sunset, do full moon photography and end with light painting. I have never done full moon photography or light painting so I was really excited and knew I would be out of my comfort zone.

For today’s post, I’m going to show you some of the buildings. I know I’ve done the Mare Island buildings before, but not in the golden hours. My next post will go into the full moon and light painting photography.