JJP Designs | Photo Ninja

A lot of people use sports as a release. A pressure valve. Time with friends, giving your body a good healthy bit of physical exertion, clearing the mind... fun, healthy competition. As much as I was pushed to love some sport, any sport, I was not into sports growing up... I'm still not. I can watch a game with friends, but it is not something I'd choose to watch on my own. I guess the only exception is racing - I'll watch and enjoy almost any automotive racing... but that's about it. I did learn to shoot trap and was pretty decent at it... but I never got hooked on it. I also don't like fishing - no patience for it. Well, except for Fly Fishing... I do love fly fishing. I think I enjoy it because a fly fisherman is actually involved in the act - constantly. I obviously like kayaking - note one of my favorite photos I took of a dragonfly pair while I was in my kayak. https://jjpdesigns.blogspot.com/2022/01/post-september.html And hiking, biking... outdoor natur...

One of our Siberian Huskies... the first female we've had... and, UGH, that dog! She eats things... Blankets & Pillows - what is that about!?! Books - she eats BOOKS... takes them right off my library shelves! Literally! Like she is a little demon anti-librarian! Rare Collectible Books! Candles - yes, CANDLES! Climbed up on and around our whirlpool tub and ATE CANDLES! Shoes - seriously... what could she possibly resent about the things we put on every time we take her out for a walk!?! She randomly GOES in the house... House trained, but every once in a while she just decides she would rather not be... UGH! That dog! But here's the thing... She's thinking about something. I mean, look at all the photos of her... She's thinking... about SOMETHING... And I don't know what she is thinking about... yet. So she is a mystery to me... And I love a mystery... So she stays. But, UGH! That dog!

Since I first went digital I have had a policy of never deleting in camera. I wait until I get home, offload all the images, and review them on the computer. This policy has never served me better than it did this week. A friend asked me to walk him through the various camera settings and help him understand what each did and how each impacts the resulting photograph. We walked out to a spot on the campus where we work and took shots as we went along with varying settings so that I could explain what was happening in each shot. I took a set of shots and explained to him how, for instance, the change of aperture or focal length made the differences in the resulting images. I then had him take the camera, make similar setting changes, and then take shots to compare to the ones I'd taken. We then talked through what happened with each shot and how to accomplish various results by changing settings and/or physically changing your relationship to the subject. It was actuall...

Today was opening day at the local Heron Rookery. To provide some protection for the nesting ground the public is only allowed to view on certain days, at certain times, and only from designated areas. The site is actually utilized by herons, egrets, eagles, and many other species - and today pretty much all of them had young in the nests, all of them popping their heads up now and again looking for food. Having this rookery so close provides a wonderful opportunity to observe these majestic animals without disrupting their natural habits. Since it is so close I am able to visit a few times a year pretty easily... and that means that if I don't see a lot of great photo opportunities on a given day I can just enjoy the birds and some back another day to try again for photos. Today was kind of a mixed bag - there was a lot of time the birds were just too far away to really get great shots, but there were a few good really great photo opportunities as well. To m...