Rocky Fire in Lake County California #rockyfire

It's been awhile I know but a lot has been happening in my life lately that has kept me from my blogging.  So I am back at it again.
I have a couple of things to share with you all starting with the #RockyFire in Lake County California.  It started on July 29th and as of right now Aug 4th it has burned over 65,000 acres and is only 12% contained.

This is what it looked like on Friday July 31st.  My husband and I needed groceries so on our way home we decided to drive up to one of our favorite spots to view the lake and this is what we saw. Don't worry it was a paved road we were on.

I can't believe the way the smoke made the water look.  It really changed the colors that you see.  It was eerily beautiful.
I took several different shots, so here are some more from the same day.  This one is looking at Mt. Konocti.  The sun was bright over head but the haze and smoke layer were lingering over most of the lake and the surrounding areas.

 This was on Sunday evening in the Oaks before the Y where 53 and 20 meet.  I don't know how the Firefighters do it.  There are just Rig after Rig going to and from.  I have seen Burbank, Monrovia, Cloverdale, Grassvalley, Ukiah, and that was just at a stoplight in Lakeport.  They have come from all over.  Thank You! is never enough but Thank You to all the personnel that have made the call to put their life in harms way to save others.

This was at dusk but you could tell this was going to be a rough night for everyone with homes near and for the Firefighters trying to protect everything and everyone in its path.

On Monday we were at dinner with friend and this is what we could see.  The lake was calm so you could see the smoke in the reflection on the water.  We had several planes of all different kinds flying over and dropping the retardant on the fires that were all around.  This plume was just one of many that were flaring up here and there at different times.

I can't forget about the full moon that happened too!  July 31, 2015 I think actually was the day before the full moon but the color was amazing.

What Catches Your Eye

We were at dinner with friends and I walked out the front door with my dinner.  I had to set my dinner down and walk back to the spot where the arch framed this view perfectly.  The only thing I did was sit down on the steps and center the archway.  The sun was just going down so it did the highlighting for me.  How great was that!

I might have to turn this into a watercolor or an oil painting.  Who knows maybe Rolf Lygren will paint it.
I will have to use this as an inspiration for my crafting too.  I love the way the sun lit up the palm tree.  It was so beautiful in person and to capture it well Priceless!!!

Old Barns

I just love photographing old barns.  They have so much character.  When I see them I just have to stop and shoot them because the next time you go by they might not be there.
I love the way the old wood looks and the way parts can fall off the barns and they are still standing.  Sometimes you can just see right through them.  I bet they have some great stories to tell about their lives.  If only they could tell us the real story behind every fleck of paint.  It does make you wonder doesn't it?
What are your favorite things to photograph?

How Has Scrapbooking Improved Your Photography?

If you have scrapbook'd even a couple of times I bet that your photography has improved.  You'll find that when you look through the lens you will see your image in a whole different light.  (Pun intended!)
If you look at older photos you see that if you had just centered this part and left more room around the image you would have been able to better crop it.  Well with out even realizing it, that is what has happened to me.
I now find that I almost never fill my photo with an image and I do my cropping in my view finder while trying to visualize what my page will look like with this one on it.  Plus I find that I don't zoom all the way in I would rather crop my photo and get more of the details in.  The pixels seem to be better at less than full zoom at about 70%.
I do find that I take more shots, one vertical and one horizontal because it never fails I will need the one I don't have.  I don't do that with every shot but when I take the picture and it was a good one I will take another the other way just in case.  I know that is waste but that is what I have found works for me. I will go back later and delete what I don't need.  I am also more selective with what I take pictures of too.
Here is a cropped photo of the Full Moon last night Friday 13, 2014 at about 10 pm.   I didn't have my tripod so I had to hand hold it and that was why it is not a clear as it could be.

I love taking picture of the Moon.  It always amazes me that you can see all the craters and the dust patterns.  It reminds me of a cantaloupe with the way it looks.

Here is a photo of a Blue Jay at one of the water troughs out back.  I took it at about 8 am.

I was going to crop it down closer to the bird but I love the green Powder River Gate at the back and I wanted to leave some of it in, even if it was just a corner of it.  I love the way it contrasts with the rusty Iron brace to the fence.
I think he was watching me watching him.
I was standing on my deck about 500' away and was shooting through the edge of an Oak Tree.  I love taking photos early in the morning while I have my coffee.
I don't enhance my photos.  Well rarely do I do that.  When I do I am rarely happy with the changes that I have made and usually go back to my original.  Sometime is just looks fake and I don't like that.   Not sure why that is.  I know that most people do like to enhance their photos and that's okay.

What about you.
Do you scrapbook?
What do you do different now than you did before?

Cellphone Photos or Camera Photos That is the Question?

I don't know about you but I find myself taking pictures with my cellphone more than with my camera.  It is usually handy and I take it with me where ever I go.  That is an excuse more than a reason.
I have a Nikon D600 that I love.  It is 24m and a full frame camera.  I love it!  I have 2 lenses that I use all the time.  One regular one and a telephoto one.  I paid a lot of money for it and I do use it all the time too but it just seem more convenient to just whip out the cell phone and take the shot.  Then you can share it at will.
I do have a WiFi adapter for my D600 but that takes up a lot of space on my phone, because of the high data
file that it takes up.  But it is nice to know you will get a high quality photo that you can reprint at any size you want.  Although I don't find that I do many enlargement.

I recently saw my husbands cousin who is a professional photographer and has her own photography business for over 30 years.  She was kind enough to spend about 4 hours with me going over my camera and some of the settings.  One of her recommendations was to have a UV Protector filter and a hood for each lens.  So I ordered them on Amazon.com and now I am set.  Well at least better protected.
We walked around the neighborhood and talked about ISO, Shutter Speed and Depth of Field.  Luckily I have a Galaxy Note II with the S-pen so I was able to take notes without have to carry a note pad.  Boy did I take a lot of notes.   Patti showed me the ISO button on the back of my camera and boy did I feel dumb.  Yes it is the button that says ISO right on it.  Who would have guessed!  That is what I was trying to figure out how to do.  Oh well!  That is why she gets paid the big bucks.
Needless to say I had a great day with her and my camera.  I just hope I can remember it all.  Good thing I have my notes to fall back on.
I have used only a Nikon camera since 1972.  I started with a Nikon FM and so it was only manual no Auto at all.  I used to develop my own film for years.  So I should know how to use my new camera on the manual modes.  Well I don't.  Not sure why but now it is like Greek to me with all the buttons and knobs.  So this will be a long learning curve.  At least it will be a fun journey to take.
What do you use?
Your Camera?
or
Your Cellphone?
What kind to you have?
I would love to here from you.