Street Scene Downtown Phoenix

Phoenix, Arizona

March 28, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 18 mm: ISO 100: 13 sec.: f/16

After watching the spring training game, we headed downtown to watch an amazing Kentucky-Notre Dame tourney game.  After the game, we walked around downtown a little so I could try and get some good shots.  Unfortunately, Phoenix was very boring and most of the buildings weren't even lit up.  I had given up and we were walking back to the car when I found this really cool lamp by the tram stop.  I had to wait a while until a tram came and left, but I was really happy with the result.  The original shot had a lot of light bleeding into the sky and the buildings from the blue lamp.  I cleaned up as much as I could in the final product.

Is It Gone?

Peoria, Arizona

March 28, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 270 mm: ISO 100: 1/200 sec.: f/6.30

A shot of Nelson Cruz and Buster Posey.

Hisashi Iwakuma

March 28, 2015

Peoria, Arizona

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 270 mm: ISO 100: 1/400 sec.: f/6.30

I posted a few landscapes from my trip to Arizona earlier, but the real reason for the trip was baseball.  This is Hisashi Iwakuma pitching a Saturday afternoon game against the Giants.

Hawk in Las Vegas Desert #3

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 16, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 130 mm: ISO 100: 1/320 sec.: f/6.0

This is my final photo of the Hawk we found by our house.

Hawk in Las Vegas Desert 2

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 16, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 185 mm: ISO 100: 1/320 sec.: f/6.0

Here's another shot of the hawk that my daughter and I found in the desert by my house.  I have actually seen him hanging around a couple more times since then, but have not had my camera.

Windmill at Wagon Wheel Park

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 25, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 27 mm: ISO 100: 1/6 sec.: f/25

There is a little park by our house where I often take my daughter to play.  This windmill is a prominent feature and I decided I wanted to play around with capturing its motion in the wind.  I didn't have a tripod so I set my camera on a park bench  and shut down the aperture to capture movement.

Heidenreich Dairy Barn

Colfax, Washington

October 29, 2014

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 18 mm: ISO 400: 1/60 sec.: f/8

This is another photo from my trip to the Palouse.  If you saw my other photos of this awesome barn, you will recognize a big difference.  The sky was so drab that day, I decided to experiment with swapping out the sky.  I felt this sky matched the overall lighting of the photo and added quite a bit to the overall feel.  The sky comes from a beach shot I did years ago in Oceanside, California.  This photo is currently my highest rated photo on pixoto so I guess the results were good.

Seeing Paris through the Fountains

Las Vegas, Nevada

February 5, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 18 mm: ISO 100: .80 sec.: f/10

Here is another shot I took when my mom and I went down to see the Bellagio fountains.  This is taken from in front of the Bellagio looking at the Paris.

Red Rock Cactus

Las Vegas, Nevada

February 7, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18 270 at 155 mm: ISO 200: 1/60 sec.: f/6.0

I found this nice little cactus on the First Canyon Creek Trail in Red Rock Conservation Area.

Custom-Built Rifle

Lovell Canyon, Nevada

February 28, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 78 mm: ISO 200: 1/1600 sec.: f/5.30

Here is another photo from when I went shooting guns down in Lovell Canyon.  One of the guys I was shooting with built this rifle.  The thing was amazing-best gun I have ever shot by far.

Hawk in the Las Vegas Desert

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 16, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 140 mm: ISO 100: 1/160 sec.: f/6.0

After work, I like to take my older daughter out for a walk to give my wife a break and spend some one-on-one time with my daughter.  We often just walk around our neighborhood, which has some empty desert land on two sides of it.  This day, we were walking along when I saw this hawk perched out on an old wooden sign post a hundred yards away or so.  I took some photos then decided to move closer.  With my 22-month old clambering next to me, I was shocked that the hawk let us get right up underneath it.  It kept a steady eye on us, but did not fly away.  I probably took 50 photos before I grew bored and continued the walk.

Bar at the High Roller

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 3, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 270 mm: ISO 200: 1/15 sec.: f/6.30

I had to wait for a few minutes in the High Roller lobby and this set up caught my eye.  I liked the illumination and colors.  I added a bit of brightness to help the bottles pop.

Bellagio Fountains from the High Roller

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 4, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 55 mm: ISO 1600: 1/50 sec.: f/5.0

We finished date night with a ride on the High Roller. I have to say, I was impressed.  I did not think it would compare to the London Eye, but I actually liked it better.  Rather than wide-open vistas, you rise up in the middle of the strip and it is fun to watch the ever changing view as you rise above the buildings.  I didn't have a tripod and the glass somewhat dirty so I had to bump the ISO way up to get any light at all. Therefore, the results were quite grainy, but we made it to the top just in time to watch the fountain show.

Sprinkles at the Linq

Las Vegas, Nevada

March 4, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 65 mm: ISO 200: 1/60 sec.:f/5.0

Mallory and I finally got out for a date night at the Linq.  We had dinner at Guy Fieri's Kitchen, dessert at Sprinkles and then a trip on the High Roller.  I loved the Sprinkles sign and tried to really emphasize it in this photo by underexposing the buildings.

Ocatillo in the Sunset

Burro Creek area, Arizaon

March 29, 2015

5 image hdr: Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 18 mm: ISO 100: 1/10 sec.: f/16

I saw these plants around the desert all weekend and thought they were really cool.  Luckily, there was this big one right next to the cactus I stopped to shoot.  I also loved that the sun was setting right behind it.  This shot screamed for hdr as the plant was nothing but a silhouette if I wanted to get any of the sky.  I took 5 images and hoped they would work.  I was very happy with the result.

Saguaro Cactus Burro Creek

Burro Creek area, Arizona

March 29, 2015

3 image HDR: Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 18 mm: ISO 100: 1/30 sec.: f/16

Thanks to my new tripod and ball head, I can finally give HDR a try.  I tied with my old cheaper tripod, but the camera was never held tight enough to avoid a small amount of difference in the shots.  This was taken while driving back from Spring Training in Phoenix.  On the way there, I had picked the perfect spot on the side of the highway to stop.  Unfortunately, I got distracted and feared that I missed it and because the cacti were thinning out, I stopped at the first one I saw, even though it required a decent hike from the roadside.  The sun was just beginning to set and cast a nice glow.  After making it back to the car, I passed the landmark I had memorized just a few miles down the road.

Red Cactus

Las Vegas, Nevada

February 7, 2014

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 270: ISO 200: 1/30 sec.: f/6.30

I found this cactus on the First Creek Canyon Trail in Red Rock.  I loved how red the needles were.

Potosi Mountain

Lovell Canyon, Nevada

February 28, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 70 mm: ISO 200: 1/500 sec.: f/11

Driving back from Lovell Canyon, I saw these awesome clouds over Mt. Potosi with some snow left clinging to the mountains.

Storm Clouds over Lovell Canyon

Lovell Canyon, Nevada

February 28, 2015

Nikon D3100: Tamron 18-270 at 55 mm:ISO 200: 1/100 sec.:f/16

I took this photo from the same place as the juniper tree I just posted, only facing the other way.  Its amazing how simply turning around revealed a much darker scene.