Happy Birthday Maggie

originally uploaded by billaday.

Maggie is one year old today. She still runs like a crazy dog... mostly right out the front door.

This shot looks nice large on black. You can really see her face in focus and the grass blurred. Good stuff.

Year 3, Day 108

one shot wonder

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've been thinking about taking just one photo every day. It requires patience and foresight. Tonight, I simply hadn't taken a photo yet and was tired. So, I composed carefully, made sure the belt loop was in focus, and took just one single shot. I don't think I'll do this very often, but I might try being more selective and careful with shots I do take.

Year 3, Day 107

bleeding candle

originally uploaded by billaday.

Using Image Capture, I import the photos into a folder on my desktop named New Pictures. Image Capture allows you to run an Automator Workflow, so it also opens up HoudahGeo, Photoshop, and iPhoto. Finally the workflow asks for photos to view, then opens them up in Preview. I delete the rejects in Preview.

Next, I drag my new photos into HoudahGeo. It lets me easily and efficiently add geotagging info to my photos. I save those, and now my photos know where they were taken (in iPhoto, in Flickr, etc).

Typically, I revisit my photos, and delete ones that don't impress me again.

Next, I edit photos one at a time in Photoshop. Recently, I've been using LAB mode. It preserves the histogram, and therefore the integrity, of the photos. I typically bump up the contrast (using a variety of ways) too.

I use 1001 to upload my photos to Flickr. It's free, and easily lets me send new pics to my photo-a-day set and several groups.

The final step (on my local hard drive) is to drag the keeper photos into iPhoto. I like editing and geotagging the photos before iPhoto. If you edit in iPhoto, it creates an original file and a modified file. I think that's lame. Also, I like having the geocoding info written into the exif data of the photo itself. The new iPhoto doesn't do a great job of that.

Once online, I add every photo-a-day picture to its Flickr set, and then add it to my photo-a-day blog. To get it to blogger, I manually create a post. I use TextExpander to paste in all the info so you can see the picture, when I created it, leave a description, and the formatting is all set.


Year 3, Day 106

bounce the light

originally uploaded by billaday.

Lifetouch came to take photos at our school. This is not my setup, it's theirs. I really liked how the umbrella was (obviously) lit up. So I took a quick photo with my point-and-shoot, and multiplied in the blackground (Photoshop layer blending mode).


Year 3, Day 105

blue hanger

originally uploaded by billaday.

This photo shows:
A) a giant hanger that a giant uses to hang his giant jacket
B) a new flag for a sovereign, fascist nation
C) a tent thing that provides shade to our school lunch tables

Year 3, Day 104

tow

originally uploaded by billaday.

One of the dads from our kinder class brought his flat bed tow truck for us to see. We're studying transportation this week. I took a really cool photo of the hub cap reflection, but you can see the kids' faces, so I can't post it online. This shot is pretty good, too. I like the texture of the gloves.

Year 3, Day 103

up against

originally uploaded by billaday.

The light and shadows caught my eye. I like the gradient in the middle of the frame, and how it slowly reveals the brick wall in the background.

Year 3, Day 102

dance dance

originally uploaded by billaday.

Here's what you get with a 1/4 sec. exposure, and some massaging in Photoshop's lab mode.

Year 3, Day 101

zig zag

originally uploaded by billaday.

This week (in kindergarten), we studied the word family -ig. At the end of the day, I showed my class this picture on my G1 after they sounded out z-i-g. They acted like it was the coolest thing they've ever seen.

Year 3, Day 100

foggy storm before the calm

originally uploaded by billaday.

Fog is fascinating to me (probably because I only see fog 6 times each year). I love the depth it gives to photos. Sure, for most people fog is mundane. For me, though, it changes everything. The light is suddenly awesome--both reflective and muting at the same time. So, on foggy days, I'm one happy camper. And if I'm not camping, I'm one happy photographer.

Year 3, Day 99

need coffee

originally uploaded by billaday.

Somebody should make this a sticker. Or a song.
Year 3, Day 98

pot of green

originally uploaded by billaday.

Happy St. Patrick's Day. I like wearing green and talking with an Irish accent. When you're a kindergarten teacher, that is expected, not frowned upon.

Year 3, Day 97

chaser

originally uploaded by billaday.

I love the shadow, not the person, chasing the hula hoop. This shot probably would like nice as an 8x10, and probably terrible as a 40x40 pixel thumbnail.

Year 3, Day 96

rise of the machines

originally uploaded by billaday.

Some days I (almost) actually wonder if machines will end up taking over the world.

Year 3, Day 95

Family Portrait

originally uploaded by billaday.

After shooting and editing 350 pictures, I finally have some family portraits to share with Michelle and Danny. View On Black

Workflow wise, I used Lightroom for the first time. I like how I could take my Photoshop knowledge and apply it to Lightroom. Good times, good product. Easy smart filter. Now I just need to see how well it manages files and projects.

Year 3, Day 94

270

originally uploaded by billaday.

I've noticed that after 2 1/2 years of photo-a-day, not as many things "catch my eye." And yes, I'm using quotes on that. When I first started the photo-a-day project, I had my camera always with me, and I found many, many shots that I had to take. Things don't grab me like they used to. I guess I'm pickier regarding my subject matter.

So... this shot. This scene actually caught my eye. I thought to myself, "I need to stop and take this picture." So I did.

Year 3, Day 93

three walls

originally uploaded by billaday.

View On Black.

How many walls do you see?

Year 3, Day 92

pillar of salt

originally uploaded by billaday.

I like the angles, color, texture, and contrast. Not sure about the composition. Is it too busy?

Year 3, Day 91

modern pyramid

originally uploaded by billaday.

This sculpture caught my eye last week. I brought my f1.4 lens to work, and snapped some shots.

Dedicated to Zel. Not only is this photo Zel-ish, but he left a comment last year asking me why I took so long to photograph a building that caught my eye. Mostly because of that comment/encouragement, I photographed this shot without procrastinating.

Year 3, Day 90

greenhouse

originally uploaded by billaday.

I really enjoy teaching at APU. As though it's not the coolest thing ever to help people become better teachers, I get to back on a college campus. There's so much learning, interesting people, flyers, and architecture around. This photo falls under that last category.

Year 3, Day 89