Old Florida Outdoor Festival in Apopka

We braved the cold and windy weather to go to the Old Florida Outdoor Festival in Apopka. At least the sun was shinning and not bad if you find shelter from the wind. I believe this is a fairly new event but lots of interesting venues. They had firearm demonstrations, archery, boating, kayaking, paddle boarding, chili cook-off, food trucks, The Highway Men art exhibit, Dock Dog competition, farmers market, fishing, birds of prey and miscellaneous other activities. This was another chance to photograph an event and people. There was even a falconry demonstration. The Avian Reconditioning Center was there with a bunch of their birds and owls. As you can see, some people have the strangest pets!

Great Weekend of Learning with Rick Sammon

This past weekend I spent learning and getting inspired from the fabulous photographer, Rick Sammon. The event was put on by a member of the camera club and is the fourth one that I have participated in. I always learn a bunch and am totally inspired to improve my photography. Rick did a two hour talk on Friday night about shooting in the city and HDR. All day Saturday were more tips on HDR, photographing people, travel photography, using flash, photohop, plug-ins and various other photography subjects. Sunday morning a smaller group of us met with Rick at Downtown Disney for a workshop and photowalk. We started by learning about fill-in flash, using flash with reflectors, and just using reflectors without flash to fill in the light. Afterthat we did some HDR shots both outside and inside the Wolfgang Pucks restaurant. It was a great day and I learned so much.


Interior HDR shot of Wolfgang Pucks




Downtown Disney HDR shot processed in Photomatix



Trotters Park Cyclocross

 

The Orlando Cyclocross took place at Trotters Park which was once Ben White Raceway. For a January day it was very warm (80 degrees) and mostly sunny. A few clouds would have been nice but we don't get to pick the weather. The cyclists race across the grass, down hills, up stairs, over obstacles and around tight curves. The varying terrain makes for some good action shots. I was using a 70-200, 2.8 lens and shooting wide open most of the time in order to limit the depth of field.

High Time at the Highland Games

Caber toss

This is my clan, the Keith clan since Dickson is a family name.

Battle of the Bands

The band Rathkeltair

The sport of Hurling. Looks a lot like Lacrosse.



The Orlando Camera Club held a field trip to the Orlando Highland Games held in Winter Springs. It started out quite chilly but warmed up as the day progressed. Not so much for the guys wearing kilts when the wind blew. Glad I was wearing long pants. This was my first time to the highland games and a chance to photograph an event with lots of colorful characters. The photography was challenging with so much going on and the backgrounds very distracting. I was also using a new, heavy lens for the first time but was happy with the results. I can now shoot fast enough to stop the action and blur out the backgrounds. My goal was to isolate the subject from the crowds. Great food there also. Had the fish and chips! I discovered that our family name on my mothers side is affiliated with the Keith clan. Can't wait to go back next year.

Spring Training 2012

The horses and trainers are back for the winter season at Spring Garden Ranch. The restaurant is open again with new management and a new and improved menu. After walking the full perimeter of the outside track and taking some photos of the horses, we had lunch in the restaurant. We had the Deep Creek Ranch burger, which is hormone free, grass-fed and as close to organic as beef as it can be. It was quite good. I plan to go back and take more photos soon and hopefully will be able to catch a matinee race when they start up in February.

Little Everglades Ranch Cyclocross

Cyclocross course went through the barn!

This was my first time taking photos of a cyclocross race and this was a gorgeous ranch near Dade City. It was a picture perfect day with clear blue skies and temps in the mid 70's. The most interesting part of the race was the barn that riders rode through. I found it challenging to try and shoot in a darkened area while getting a correct exposure in the bright area outside as the riders entered the barn. The barn only shot was an HDR shot with three exposures. The exposure range was wide so I should have used 6 or 7 exposures. Since I wasn't using a tripod I had to hold the camera steady and fire off the three bracketed shots on rapid fire. Next year I will be more prepared since I will know what to expect. But, it was great fun.

A New Year with New Photographic Opportunities

Winter afternoon in Longmeadow, Massachusetts a few days after Christmas. There was no snow and the temps were mild considering that it was December in New England. I like how the trees become a sculpture after all of the leaves fall. I am looking forward to continuing my photo journey and learning much more this year.