Old Water Tank 2 – Upper Las Virgines Open Space Preserve

Old Water Tank 2 – Upper Las Virgines Open Space Preserve, Calabasas, California, USA

I was up by 5:00 am and at the trail head at 6:30, still dark and just before sunrise. I ambled up the trail trying not to step on any newborn cottontail bunnies. They were all over hustling for food before the coyotes woke up. I thought to myself that one tenth of them will make it, and the rest will become coyote breakfast. Isn’t nature wonderful? Well, not for cottontail  bunnies I guess!

The last time I hiked at Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve, I made a capture I named  “Corner Post on Hill”  and also lined up some possible shots nearby for next time. All I had to do was find the first fork in the trail and go right. For some unknown reason, I decided to go left instead. I suppose the idea of seeing something new was too strong to ignore. After a while I came upon this old rusty water tank left over from the days when cattle grazed on these hills. When I noticed the nicely shaped live oak tree behind, I knew I had to have it.

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copyright 2012 O. Bisogno Scotti  All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D3 DSLR, AF NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8D, exposure: f/22.0, 1/20 sec., exposure index: -0.67, ISO 200, Exposure Program: Aperture Priority,  capture: 2/19/2012, 8:20 am,  Nikkor MC-20 remote cable, Manfrotto 3221 tripod with Manfrotto 3265 pistol grip ball head, Photoshop CS 5, HDR Pro

Famous Photographer Quote #82

If we limit our vision to the real world, we will forever be fighting on the minus side of things, working only to make our photographs equal to what we see out there, but no better.

Galen Rowell

Droid Madness in North Palm Springs

I am a professional photographer so I use professional cameras to achieve the best results, but what do you do when you pull off the I-10 Freeway in North Palm Springs looking for something to eat and are confronted with a fake saguaro cactus with a giant fake spider on it in a lot next-door to a Jack in the Box?  You use a fake camera, that’s what. A camera disguised as a phone like my trusty Droid which I used to capture the above image. It makes perfect sense if you think about it. What could be more surreal? Since I didn’t have my pro gear with me, the burning question remains whether or not I would have made the correlation between fake cactus and fake camera. Probably not. My choice most likely would have been to not take a shot of a fake cactus next-door to a Jack in the Box at all. I suppose this admission rules out any possibility of my being a photographic genius, but I can live with that. The image image may not be the apex of my career, but it does makes me smile.

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copyright 2012 O. Bisogno Scotti  All Rights Reserved.

surreal factor: PhotoKit Color 2 plugin for Photoshop was used for a split toning effect. First a layer with a yellow/blue split with custom opacity levels was added. On top of that, another layer with a red/sepia split with custom opacity levels was added.

Famous Photographer Quote #81

“Once you really commence to see things, then you really commence to feel things.”
Edward Steichen

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Year of the Dragon 4

Chinese New Year Celebration 2012 – Year of the Dragon, Chinatown, Los Angeles, California, USA

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copyright 2012 O. Bisogno Scotti  All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D3 DSLR, AF Zoom-Nikkor 80-200 mm f/2.8D ED, exposure: f/5.6, 1/500 sec., ISO: 400, exposure Program: Aperture Priority,  focal length: 80 mm, handheld.

Famous Photographer Quote #80

“I longed to arrest all beauty that came before me, and at length the longing has been satisfied.”

Julia Margaret Cameron

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Year of the Dragon 1

Year of the Dragon 1 – Old Chinatown Plaza, Downtown Los Angeles, California, USA

Of all the captures I made last Sunday, I thought these young ladies typified the heart and soul of the 2012 Year of the Dragon Chinese New Year Celebration.

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copyright 2012 O. Bisogno Scotti  All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D3 DSLR, AF Zoom-Nikkor 80-200 mm f/2.8D ED, Nikon SB-800 Speedlight, exposure: f/5.0, 1/200 sec., ISO: 800, exposure Program: Aperture Priority. flash: Manual, subject distance: 7.1 meters, focal length: 110 mm, handheld.

Famous Photographer Quote #79

“I think all art is about control – the encounter between control and the uncontrollable.”

Richard Avedon

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