Day12: Stalin Shot

1/400 f10 ISO400

Glad to see this glider flying around. Some PS work to tune the over exposed sky.

Day12: Neophyte Shot

Well, there wasn't anything to shoot in the air. I tested out the new filter purchased friday ($3) and not sure about the results. Might be just about my moneys worth. To contrast, a non filter shot of the subject:

Day12: Shooting Air 2

Armed with new filters purchased at a "garage sale" at fort worth cameras on Friday - we returned to the airstrip. No luck. Plenty of heat.

Day11: Guest Shot

This contribution from a West Virginia lunch hour.
West Virginia: One Big Happy Family ... Really!

Day11: Neophyte Shot

The chopped beef sandwhich with everything, fries, and diet coke. Xtra grease.

Day11: Shooting Plates

Our subject is food - BBQ to be specific. This required a trip to the best BBQ joint in town. It just happens to be close to work as well. "The Railhead" is a fantastic dive that used to be a weekly outing with some of the folks in the office. Stalin and I went along with some colleagues that didn't mind us taking snaps at the table. I'm not sure how the pictures turned out but the BBQ is never a miss at this place.

Day10: Stalin Shot

1/200 F9.0 ISO100

Hey here is our Neophyte waiting to capture some action. Unfortunately there are no planes around and I end up taking some abstract pictures. I bet Neophyte was very disappointed missing gigantic B52 bomber but at the end I’m happy to capture the mood on his face. Here is one more pic, of lamp post, which I have taken while waiting for the plane. I like the clouds around the lamps and the sun position just behind the lamp. I really appreciate your comments and suggestions.

1/250 f10 ISO100

Day10: Shooting Air

We returned to the lockheed airstrip in hunt of a plane actually landing/taking off. First tho, we had to run by the post office. Upon exit of the PO, the roar of a jet and it's mammoth structure filled the sky. We missed a take-off. Went to our spot and waited 40 minutes. Didn't see much other than each other sweat.

Day9: Neophyte Shot

I am finally playing with more of the manual options of the camera. Upped the shutter speed on this shot allowing the propeller blades to be more than a blur. The sky got a little too white after that adjustment. Did a "smart" quickfix in photoshop elements that sorta brought the color back.

exif data:
Resolution : 2592 x 1944
Flash used : No
Focal length : 63.0mm (35mm equivalent: 389mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.0031 s (1/320)
Aperture : f/8.0
ISO equiv. : 200
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : shutter priority (semi-auto)

Day9: Stalin Shot

1/500 f10 ISO200

I think I was more excited to take pictures of planes, but I have done very less home work. I learned some lessons today about the composure while taking the pictures of planes. Though the shoot was not filled with any action shots we are lucky to get some planes taxing around.

Day9: Shooting Cargo

The office is located close to the Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth. It is not an uncommon occurrence to have fighter jets overhead shaking surrounding buildings. We went out to scout the location and took a few shots of some cargo planes taxi'ing around. We hope to catch some jets landing/takeoff in the near future.

Day8: Neophyte Shot

Stalin is just off screen to the left getting his straight on shot of the bull. The bull didn't look too happy to be accomodating the group of children that dispersed shortly before the shot. I don't think that saddle is something bulls normally wear either. Given the weather - I'm sure the bull is happy about being in the shade.

Day8 : Stalin Shot

1/400 f7.1 ISO100

I like this town for its old fashioned style and for its true mexican nature. I like the roads and buildings there. I wanted to give some old look to my picture. Here is the original image of the same.

Day8: Shooting Bull

We headed out to the Stockyards National Historic District in hopes of catching the daily cattle run. We missed this by about 8 minutes. It's a short run thru the district that attracts some tourists. We will return another day to try to snap the cattle in action.

Day7: Neophyte Shot

This picture captures some ground we have covered. The statue in the foreground is a monument to Charles Tandy who purchased Radio Shack in the 60's. The two skyscrapers in the background are the office buildings of the Bass brothers who are responsible for the renaissance of the downtown area (and the namesake of the Performance Hall). I also like the clock atop the courthouse which is reflecting lunch hour. Thanks to Stalin for providing an improvised polarizer using my sunglasses.

exif data:
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:21 00:24:46
Resolution : 2592 x 1944
Flash used : No
Focal length : 6.3mm (35mm equivalent: 39mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.017 s (1/60)
Aperture : f/8.0
ISO equiv. : 64
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : LandscapeMode

I added the next picture because I figure there are probably some plaque readers out there. After all, they are pretty informative. This was located on the frontside of the courthouse next to the entrance. I took this snap as we went inside to see if there was any public access allowed for tourists that might want to take some indoor pictures. Access was denied.
exif data:
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:21 00:32:12
Resolution : 1944 x 2592
Flash used : No
Focal length : 6.3mm (35mm equivalent: 39mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.0071 s (1/140)
Aperture : f/3.2
ISO equiv. : 100
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : program (auto)

Day7: Stalin Shot

18mm 1/200 f9 ISO100

RAW format really helped me to get the correct colors to this picture. I have done some correction to this picture using CS2. As we have started this as a lunch hour shoot we are unable to get much variation to our pictures. All these shots are of buildings and in the bright sunlight. We are working on new ideas to capture Fort Worth life, not just buildings.

I would like to thank every one for their valuble comments. Stay tuned we'll bring you more.

Day7: Shooting Justice

Just down the road from yesterday's shoot is our subject today: the historic Tarrant County Courthouse. The red Texas granite building is a definite eye catcher. Modeled after the state capitol building.
There is no wikipedia page for this historic building. It looks like such a location does follow the guidelines to warrant an article. After the shots are in - we will decide which one to use for the wikipedia entry we create.

Day6: Neophyte Shot

Hey Radio Shack - I got a question: What the hell is this? Ok, in the 60's and 70's they ran an ad campaign where they gave away a card that you presented at the store for free flashlight batteries (thx wikipedia). Still - these are 9 volts! First time I saw these - I thought they were providing a seating area or something....but no, it's just a tribute to the 9 volt. The local paper reports last year over a dozen school children were hospitalized after sticking their tongues on the terminals.

exif data:
File date : 2006:07:19 23:18:10
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:20 00:39:25
Resolution : 2592 x 1944
Flash used : No
Focal length : 28.6mm (35mm equivalent: 176mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.0056 s (1/180)
Aperture : f/6.4
ISO equiv. : 64
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : LandscapeMode

Day6: Stalin Shot

27mm 1/250 F29 ISO100

Today is our 6th Day and I decided to go for RAW pictures. Our lunch hour photography is really testing our photography skills with the bright afternoon sunlight. These two shots are taken at Radio Shack office. One office with two faces.

33mm 1/300 F29 ISO100

Day6: Shooting Corporate America

Keeping with this weeks theme of safe to shoot subjects in downtown Fort Worth - we set out for the headquarters of Radio Shack. Their new offices sit on the banks of the Trinity River next to the Pier1 campus. This is North downtown. I thought the site was also noteworthy as Neophyte worked for Radio Shack in the early 90's (across the street in the old Tandy Towers) and Radio Shack's introduction of the TRS-80 in the late 70's (Stalin and I work in the computer field).
Video now being shot with the S5200 still camera.

Day5: Neophyte Shot

I chose this one because I like what the setting of the surrounding buildings lends to it. Puts a little perspective to the size of the angels. Also, the other photos were just bad (er, even worse). I don't really care for the majority of shots I've done involving the larger buildings. I need to read something on those types of subjects before we go to our next one.
Oh well, even with the heat it was a decent outing. live and learn!

Day5: Stalin Shot

1/250 f11 ISO100

I think we need water more than storage cards, to carry on this lunch hour shooting. Just kidding. Just getting adjusted to the Texas heat. Trying to improvise our shots. Trying to add new accessories to our Camera kits. But nothing is going well with our new purchases. Well... we've to carry on, giving our best to get good pictures.

I cant leave this pic aside though its the remix version of the original.

Day5: Shooting Bass

After two outings going awry, we returned downtown to a site that wouldn't be chained off or behind three layers of fencing: Bass Performance Hall. Stalin got a taste of southern hospitality as one passerbyer engaged us in a little chat about what we were up to. A second observer, in his car at a stoplight, asked us if our subject was bass hall and advised us of a great vantage point from the parking garage we were standing next to. We took most of our shots from the 5th and 7th floors. It was also a particularly hot day with the high of 106 surely at it's peak during our shoot.

Day4: Neophyte Shot

This is a shot along the Trinity River as it feeds into the Stock Yards district. The camera to some degree mercifully omits the detail of the green algea stagnant water and the stone work help conceals the drought like situation in the area. The motivation for pulling over at this area was my memory during marathon training in '04 of the "river walk" like aspect of a tunnel just out of view in this shot. My fatigued mind clearly recollected gorgeous western murals painted in the cavernous tunnels that provided much needed shade for that training run....this day shattered that recollection: the shade provided by the tunnel was minimal and the "gorgeous murals" could have been painted by blind monkeys as this reality check did not measure up.
The bright side of the day was the realization that Stalin's trip is not a short one.
exif data:
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:15 02:05:53
Resolution : 2592 x 1944
Flash used : No
Focal length : 10.8mm (35mm equivalent: 67mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.012 s (1/85)
Aperture : f/7.1
ISO equiv. : 200
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : LandscapeMode

Day4: Stalin Shot

Impressed by the colors of the briks, I want to post this image.



I found this flower Near White Elephant saloon.

Exif data
Camera make : Canon
Camera model : Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT
Date/Time : 2006:07:15 13:10:17
Resolution : 2304 x 3456
Flash used : No
Focal length : 300.0mm (35mm equivalent: 487mm)
CCD width : 22.17mm
Exposure time: 0.0040 s (1/250)
Aperture : f/5.6
ISO equiv. : 100
Whitebalance : Manual
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : aperture priority (semi-auto)

Day4: Shooting Blanks

Intended subject: United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing. You can read the intended wikipedia text here. The location is one of two that print federal reserve notes. Unfortunately, it's also surrounded by 3 layers of very high fencing. We asked what access we might have for still photos. The response confined us to the visitors parking lot. We did not get a shot of the obstruction. A mistake that will not make on future doomed outings. We made a chaotic stop in the historic Stock Yard district on our return. A location we will definitely revisit.

Day3: Neophyte Shot

I concur with Stalin's observation that it was a hot day. Very hot.

I selected my first shot in honor of Mrs. Neophyte. The Flat Iron is one of her favorite New York City buildings. Little did we know we have our own version right here in Fort Worth. I'm not sure she believes me still. Oh, and also in honor of the filename (see exif data). She hoped to deliver our first born on June 6 this year.



exif:
File name : DSCF0666.jpg
File size : 153137 bytes
File date : 2006:07:13 19:23:32
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:13 00:38:34
Resolution : 2592 x 1944
Flash used : No
Focal length : 63.0mm (35mm equivalent: 389mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.0063 s (1/160)
Aperture : f/4.5
ISO equiv. : 100
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : LandscapeMode

One reason I chose the second shot is that I like the fact it reflects lunch time.



exif:
E:\lunchblog\images>jhead DSCF0669.jpg
File name : DSCF0669.jpg
File size : 178088 bytes
File date : 2006:07:13 19:25:42
Camera make : FUJIFILM
Camera model : FinePix S5200
Date/Time : 2006:07:13 00:40:37
Resolution : 1944 x 2592
Flash used : No
Focal length : 28.6mm (35mm equivalent: 176mm)
CCD width : 5.84mm
Exposure time: 0.0059 s (1/170)
Aperture : f/5.0
ISO equiv. : 64
Whitebalance : Auto
Metering Mode: matrix
Exposure : LandscapeMode

Day3: Stalin Shot

Fort Worth downtown on a hot summer afternoon. Its hot and its Texas.


Big hats, big buckle belts and horses. They are not cowboys they are Fort Worth downtown cops. I would like to appreciate Neophyte for his high spirits after disappointing start with his digicam.

Day3: Shooting Meltdown

Best laid plans. Well, plans anyways. Today's subject was not cooperative. Neither was the battery supply for the videocam. As always with the video clips - you can view the intended text on wikipedia.
With the intended subject really unavailable...we wandered around the south side of downtown taking random photos.

Day2: Neophyte Shot

So, what do you do when the structure is too big to take into one shot? I'm not sure. I tried to capture a small section, tried getting distance to capture more, and even tried just capturing a sculpture that wasn't part of the building. I settled with this:



Adjusting slightly to the left I could have caught the corner of the building and still got the water in completely.

exif data:


When we decided to add the Modern to the shoot the same "this structure is large" predicament...and not any different answers really. The large sculpture did have to be in the shot tho because it feels like part of the building.



Looks like I could have adjusted vertically a little and went with less parking lot and more sky. Or come in a little closer for some more detail.
exif data:

Day2 : Stalin Shot

We reached to this place driving on a brick laid road. And I was very excited to see this fascinating sculpture. My imagination started working on different angles but finally I fixed to this. Surrounded by lush green grass and thick woods, this place is a very nice hangout place for all.

Day2: Shooting Louis Khan

The office is about a 5 minute drive to the heart of the Fort Worth cultural district. Our subject for this shoot was the Kimbell Art Museum. The architect of this structure is Louis Khan and his work is the inspiration for the recently constructed Museum of Modern Art directly across the street from the Kimbell. The work of Louis Khan, as well as his life story, are fascinating and well detailed in the oscar nominated documentary of his son: My Architect, A Sons Journey .
We added a second subject, the Museum of Modern Art, to the days shoot.

Day1: Neophyte Shot

After arriving at the site, shooting the video clip, I walked around and took a few shots on the left side, center, and right side. All pretty much at the same max zoom. This is the only landscape shot. I was hoping to catch a jack daniels bottle up there but to no avail.

Some exif data:

Day1: Shooting Jackalope

The first subject is that wonder of nature the jackalope. Located on top of R.L.B. Sales and Leasing, corner of Camp Bowie and Bryant Irvin Road. This clip is a reading of the legend of the jackalope.
The wikipedia entry

This Blog: The Premise

A few weeks ago a co-worker from India arrived for the purpose of learning the job of a co-worker here in Fort Worth. Appreciating the fact that this might not make him the most popular individual in the office I tried my best to make him feel welcome. During those initial conversations we hit it off quite well. It also turned out we both had an interest in photography.

His interest was that of a serious enthusiast, some formal photography training, and a rather nice dslr camera - a Cannon Rebel...but I'll let him fill in details he feels relevant in his posts. My interest was that of a new father wanting to chronicle a new life with some skill using my new auto digicam Fuji S5200.

Our company hasn't provided him with a rental car and his hotel was along my commuting route. During our discussions(largely about photography) to and from work an idea was born.

The idea was to use our lunch hour at work to take some photos at various sites in fort worth. He would get the lay of the land and a local tour guide. I would get to learn more about various aspects of photography.

As the idea matured, it was determined we would do the following:
1. Chronicle our outings by each posting on this blog our best shot of that days subject.
2. Restrict our time to get the shot using the amount of time that is left over in the hour after factoring in a roundtrip commute to the site.
3. I would pick the site and video a short clip with my new friend reading some "related" text in front of the subject.
4. Never stop to eat lunch during the outing. That's what office microwaves and teleconferences are for.

Stalin

Neophyte