Of course, this shot came from the Missouri Botanical Gardens. As I was walking through the giant domed greenhouse (climatron) to get to the corpse flower, I happened upon this beautiful yellow bloom. Luckily for me, I had my trusty 35mm prime on camera and shot away. I've been so happy with the focusing and bokeh that this little lens produces. I would suggest to any Nikon shooting that if you are considering the cheap little 50mm f/1.8, get this 35mm f/1.8 instead, I think it's significantly sharper and is a better focal length for a crop sensor camera. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Friday, June 29, 2012
POTD - 66 Drive In
Here's another shot from the St. Louis Museum of Transportation. This was in their Auto Museum, and it really got me thinking about the recent Carsland opening and the rest of the DCA improvements. I've been starting to make mental plans for our pending first DLR trip at the end of next summer. I was very happy to find this shot as it put me in an even better mood. Neon is still a hard subject of me to process, and I had the reflections to deal with too. I would really like to hear what you all think about this one, any suggestions or comments are very much appreciated. Enjoy!
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
POTD - Transportation Giant
A couple of weeks ago, I went and did a little shooting at our Transportation museum, which has a large focus on trains. Walking around this place and marveling at the mass of some of these trains was a lot of fun. I'm just getting around to processing them, but if this first shot is any indication, this should be an ok set of shots. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Friday, June 22, 2012
POTD - Floral Fireworks Friday
Not much I can really say about this one, but I couldn't pass up these beautiful colors. I've been really loving my new 35mm prime. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Thursday, June 21, 2012
POTD - Titan Arum (Corpse flower)
The unique Amorphophallus titanum, commonly known as Titan Arum or the “corpse flower,” is a large, fast-growing plant in the Aroid family. Few of these plants exist in cultivation, and they bloom only rarely and under just the right conditions. On the extremely infrequent occasion that a Titan Arum comes into flower, the intense, foul odor, emitted from a tall spike of small, crowded flowers, lasts just a few days.
This is the second corpse flower that we've had bloom at MOBOT this year. I missed the first one, so I was pretty determined to catch this one. I did find out though that these flowers only open all the way after dark. I got to the gardens as early as they would allow me and caught it as it was closing for the day, but I think I like it better this way. There is a wider range of color, and it didn't stink quite as much. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
POTD - Can You Stand On Your Head?
Not the best shot in the world, mainly because that cloudy water bugs me, but I really liked the looks I got shooting it. This is in the central pool at MOBOT. The cloudy day didn't lend well to shooting it straight on, but the reflections in the dark water was kind of interesting to me. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Best viewed large whilst standing on your head!
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
POTD - Framing Cherry Blossoms
All around the Chinese garden portion of the Missouri Botanical Gardens for the Lantern Festival, there are several of these Cherry Blossom Tree lanterns. They really do a great job of brightening up an area and drawing attention to it. I happened to see this composition while leaving the Chinese garden. The gate framed in the Cherry Blossom perfectly and I went a little tighter to try and get a bit more detail out of the foreground. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Monday, June 11, 2012
POTD - Jiang Tai Gong Fishing
The Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis will host an international exhibition of larger-than-life, lighted works of art from China from May 26 through August 19, 2012.
"Lantern Festival: Art by Day, Magic by Night" will attract visitors from throughout the country to experience one of China’s most treasured events and ancient traditions – the annual lantern festival.
Elaborate outdoor sets crafted of silk and steel will celebrate Chinese culture through bold color, dazzling light and striking design. The exhibition offers visitors a unique opportunity to witness a spectacle rarely staged outside of Asia.
View the "art by day" or experience the illuminated "magic by night" on Thursday through Sunday evenings.
This lantern set tells the popular legend of Jiang Tai Gong, first known as Lü Shang, the great historical Chinese military advisor and the father of strategic studies. Lü Shang detested the tyrannical and corrupted Shang ruler, so he abandoned his post and left the palace with his wife. He suffered many years in poverty, but hoped that someday someone would overthrow the tyrant king. Lü Shang patiently waited until he was 72 years old for the opportunity to come along, when he met the future Zhou ruler Wen Wang. King Wen had gone to the river, where he saw Jiang sitting on the grass, fishing with a bamboo pole with no hook on the line; his fishing line was positioned a few feet above the surface of the water. Jiang’s fishing style was based on his theory that fish would come to him of their own volition when they were ready, if he was just patient – “if one waits long enough, things will come their way.” Enlisting Jiang’s help, King Wen and his son eventually overthrew the Shang dynasty.
I love the way that this piece sits in the trees and there are so many angles to shoot it from. I have a feelilng by the end of this exhibit, I will have a lot of photos of this piece. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
POTD - Not The Best At Hide And Seek
I really wish I would've had a telephoto lens for this shot, but I wanted to post it because Cardinals are beautiful. It was also fun getting this shot as this little guy was trying to hide from me. I'd line up a shot and he'd move to the other side of the path, or to another tree, but never out of range for a nice shot. It was like he was playing hide and seek with me, but being red in a sea of green, it didn't work out too well. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
Monday, June 4, 2012
POTD - Something Familiar Here
This is one of the pieces at the Lantern Festival at Missouri Botanical Gardens (MOBOT). It was really nice to get something that reminded me of Epcot, since I'm missing it quite a bit these days. Despite the cloudy sky that day, I was fairly happy with how this one came out. Please let me know what you all think as any suggestions are welcomed and appreciated. Enjoy!
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