I love having a smartphone with a high quality camera and nice camera apps because, no matter where I am, I’m always able to take quick, candid and artistic photos like these of Ohio Stadium on the Ohio State University campus during an OSU football game. 🙂 With the quality of modern mobile phone cameras there is no need to lug your DSLR around when you’re going to a sporting event like an OSU football game. Just grab your phone, make sure you have a great camera app (or two…or three…), stick it in your pocket and you’re ready to go!   Want to play a game of cornhole at the tailgate party? No problem! Your...

I’ve been fortunate enough to visit Maine on a couple of occasions and one things I always remember is how many seagulls there are along the coastal areas…and how big they are! I’m sure they can get so big because of the quantity and quality of fresh fish around but I’m amazed at just how big they can get, especially compared to the seagulls we see here in landlocked central Ohio.   The seagulls that you’ll find along Coastal Maine are easily 2x as big as their little cousins near me, who only get to feed from the smaller lakes, rivers, reservoirs and on the discarded food scraps from us humans.   By...

Wind chimes are lovely to have during ANY season of the year simply for the melodic tones that they create when blown in the wind.   But, I think it’s especially nice when the musical notes of wind chimes are carried on the cool, crisp air of an autumn or winter breeze (how’s that for a whimsical description?!).   Then, from a photographer’s point of view, throw in a nice yellow – orange sunset, some icicles for refraction of the warm glow of the morning sun and you’ve got the makings of a great set of wind chimes photos!   These two photos of one of my wind chimes were taken from the 3rd level...

First, I’ve gotta say, its been a looong time since I’ve been out to a bar or club to see a band and play darts or pool so know that these photos are a few years old. 🙂 A friend and former co-worker of mine is a drummer and one of the bands he plays with is The Signal. When we still worked together I would go to their shows with other friends and co-workers, enjoy the music, enjoy the drinks and take some photos. It was fun and I grew to like taking photos in the dark bar setting because I got to use my fast prime lenses with no flash. It was a good exercise in finding the best exposure and keeping a still, steady hand.  ...

Few things get the same kind of universal response as photos of baby animals so today I’m going to try for a good response with these photos of a baby elephant and its mother at the Columbus Zoo in Columbus, Ohio. The baby elephant in the picture is Beco (pronounced BEE-co) and he was born at the Columbus Zoo on March 27, 2009. Because baby animals at the Columbus Zoo (or any zoo) are such a big deal, when Beco was born the zoo held a contest and let people submit their favorite names for the baby elephant. Over 11,000 entries were received and the zoo celebrated in a big way by announcing the baby elephant’s name on...

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is consistently rated as one of the best zoos in the U.S. and is a point of pride for Central Ohio. Much of the zoo’s success is due to the work of former Director, and current Director Emeritus, “Jungle” Jack Hanna. The zoo is home to over 700 different species of animals and houses over 9,000 animals in total! Ready to meet some of them?   The Columbus Zoo sits on land adjacent to the Scioto River.  So, while not official zoo residents, seagulls like those in the photo to the right, are everywhere. That photo was actually taken several years ago, prior to a lot of the zoo’s recent...

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is easily one of my favorite travel destinations. It’s only about a six hour drive from home and has some of the best hiking and best scenery I’ve experienced in a landlocked National Park. There’s something green everywhere you look, lots of streams and waterfalls, colorful flowers and a lot of wildlife to see throughout the park (bears included!). A sunset view from Morton Overlook along Newfound Gap Road. Pentax *istDS. One of many flowing streams in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Pentax *istDS. Some beautiful scenery and photo opportunities can easily be found driving...

Today is July 4th, Independence Day in the USA. The Fourth of July is usually a day to gather with friends and family, enjoy food, go to parades and, of course, watch fireworks. I’m sure there will be thousands of photos of fireworks posted online today and tomorrow so, for my Photos of the Week, I decided to do something a little different. Instead of fireworks, here are some photos of our nation’s capitol, Washington DC. First up is the statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial. When visiting Washington DC and the National Mall, the Lincoln Memorial is one of the most inspiring monuments you’ll see for multiple...

It was a slow photographic week for me so, to make up for the lack of new photos, I have a few shots from the past that were all taken at my Alma Mater – the home of Buckeye Country, The Ohio State University. 🙂 I’ve got to say, I didn’t get very far into my photo archive when I realized I have tons more OSU photos that I want to share so, after today’s Photos of the Week, expect some more Photos of the Day featuring Ohio State University subjects.  Now, on to this week’s photos…   People say you should save the best for last but I’m not going to do that today. This first photograph is one of...

Welcome to my first ever Photos of the Week post! The focus for this week is one of the favorite subjects for many photographers (myself included), flowers. All of these photos were taken within the past week to ten days with my trusty old Pentax *ist DS.  Yes, its the same Pentax *ist DS that got soaked during the trip to Orlando a couple years ago.  It may have lost its ability to auto-focus but it still takes great photos, works with all my lenses and just keeps going. So, on to the photos…   The first one, the yellow rose, was taken a couple weekends ago at the Whetstone Park of Roses annual Rose Festival.  That was actually...