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Thirsty Thursday: New Year Stars
Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Newman's Limeade
Thirsty Thursday here again. Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. After a fantastic dinner at our favorite place, I decided to go try to shoot some stars to bring in the New Year. Terry has a sore foot, so I set out on my own at Ft Ord...just me, my camera, my headlamp, and a warm down jacket!
We get very few crispy clear nights around here, due to our close proximity to the ocean. We also live between Monterey and Salinas, both of which produce plenty of light pollution. But, because it was so clear (and cold), I figured it was a good night to try to shoot some stars. There was also a bright moon, which would help illuminate the the foreground.
My first thought was star trails, but I didn't feel like staying out there that long by myself. So I just did a few long exposures near a couple of my favorite Ft Ord trees. I haven't had much luck with star photography in the past, so my expectations were low. So, if you weren't looking at the stars at midnight last night, here's what they looked like.
The brightest star in the above image isn't a star at all...its Jupiter! The moon really illuminated this scene. Local mountain bikers should recognize that trail!
I was really happy to get Orion and this tree in the same frame.
Looking forward to more night sky experimentation...and hopefully something to share on future Thirsty Thursdays.
Thirsty Thursday: Ft Ord Stroll
Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Newman's Limeade
Yep, its Friday, not Thursday. Ooops! We didn't get a Thirsty Thursday posted last night. In fact, it seems its been a few weeks since we've posted our regular Thursday evening babbles and pixels. We've been a bit busy, but hopefully things will settle down soon!
Back in October, when we still had the luxury of getting home from work before dark (darn daylight savings time change), we hopped over to Ft Ord with our new cameras to play around a bit. Our old cameras were stolen earlier this fall, and we both dearly missed our camera time while we waited through the replacement process. While the location was a spot we hit up a couple times a week (the dog has to run!), we enjoyed having cameras in hand, daylight, cool clouds, and watching a dog that loves her open space just as much as her owners.
Hopefully we'll have a few less clouds than we've had the last few days to get out and enjoy this weekend.
Massey Monday: In her element
Tall grass, brambles, nice light. She's a happy dog.
Massey Monday: Evening Patrol
Nothing like patrolling Fort Ord at sunset!
Thirsty Thursday: Ft Ord Trail Time
Rambler: Beth
Drink in Hand: 2012 Silvestri Pinot Noir
Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Last weekend I decided to test my camera carrying set-up with a little mountain bike ride. I loaded up the LowePro and out I went to Ft Ord.
The day before had been beautiful, but of course when I headed out it was a flat, grey, June gloom day...typical of Monterey this time of year. But I made the most of it. I really wanted to capture these two trees tucked away on a ridgeline.
I have a bike-related photo project or two coming later this summer, so this was a good first test to see what I could carry and still ride at a decent speed. Hopefully more fun rides with camera in tow coming this weekend!
Two Word Tuesday: Two Trees
Massey Monday: Just Another Day
Just another day at Fort Ord for Massey!
Thirsty Thursday: Warm Afternoon
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2008 Santa Margherita Riserva Chianti Classico
It's late in the afternoon and this is my second trip to Ft Ord in the same day. The first one was for a long run in the morning. The second was just me, Massey, and a camera with a 180mm late in the day. It's been such a long time since I've used that lens. I struggled for a bit and most of my images were blurry but I did get a few shots (look for some of the really good ones in upcoming Massey Monday's). Anyways, I was happy with the few shots I was able to get looking into the sun. I think I like the warmth of these shots. . . the lazy summer feeling in January if that makes any sense. With such nice weather here, get out and enjoy it!
Massey Monday: Downhiller
Massey's not afraid of a steep slope. When she's hot on the trail of a quail, I don't think she even notices the gradient, positive or negative.
Thirsty Thursday: Do you ever just look at the hills?
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: Ventana Monterey Red Table Wine
What makes you look at the hills? Is it the grasses or the trees? Is it the details that most people pass by or the views that most people never see? Most of us, myself included, just pass these things by day in and day out with little to no thought; but, upon looking back at old pictures, we should all take more time to appreciate them. Our busy days shouldn't really be that busy. We're only here in passing anyways. Sometimes, we should just stop and take in the beauty that's around us. Take it all it. Because if we don't, it (or we) might be gone tomorrow.
Massey Monday: Running through Lupines
My favorite shots of Massey are probably when she's running at full speed. But sometimes it helps if the scene she's running through is full of lupines. She just looks like she's having so much fun!
Massey Monday: Her Backyard
I don't have any pictures of Massey from this weekend. We ran almost 20 miles in her backyard (Ft. Ord). So here's a few from another run just so you can get the idea of what her weekend was like!
Thirsty Thursday: Stuck on Lupines
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2008 Twomey Merlot
Not much to say this week. Work has been keeping us both pretty busy but we've been lucky enough to get the Mas out for some short runs. As far as shooting outings, they've been few and far between again. I think this may be my last post of lupines for the season, but they were sure awesome this year. Hopefully, we (and you) can get out there this weekend for a mini-adventure!
Massey Monday: Running Through the Lupines
We liked the lupines...we thought they were gorgeous. But, Massey, she may have enjoyed them more. Or maybe she just enjoyed running around at full speed for 2 straight hours. Tough to tell.
Thirsty Thursday: More Lupines!
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: Ventana Red Table Wine (again)
The lupines at Ft Ord are fading fast. The long grass has pretty much overtaken them. They are still visible, but not as grand a couple weeks ago. In last Thursday's post, Beth posted a few of her lupine photos. I always find it surprising the different compositions we find at the same location. If I remember right, she was shooting with her trusty 24-70mm and for my shots, I started with a 40mm and then switched to 180mm. Prime lenses are just awesome. I still think she may have taken the shot of the day (first picture from last week's post). I'm not sure if we'll be able to get out this weekend to shoot, but I know the Mas and us with have some sort of adventure (always do). Happy almost Friday!
Thirsty Thursday: My Take on the Lupines
Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Tolosa Rose of Grenache
Hey Welliver Photography fans...Thirsty Thursday here again. Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Terry has been carrying the blogging workload around the home office due to my MBA homework. But tonight I couldn't ignore the pretty lupine photos from last weekend sitting in my Aperture library any longer, so I decided to ignore my homework and take care of Thirsty Thursday night.
We didn't have to travel anywhere fancy for these photos. We probably park at this trailhead two or three times a week to take the dog for her favorite run. All that means we are ridiculously spoiled to have easy access to such beauty a mere five or six minutes from home, depending on the one spotlight along the way.
While I'll be doing my homework, please get out there and find a field of flowers this weekend for me!
Thirsty Thursday: Instagram Lupines
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2010 Montoya Merlot
We've made a mistake recently. It's actually tragic. There is a field full of lupines very near here that we have yet to photograph with proper cameras. Although the old saying goes that the best camera is the one you have on you, it would be nice to get a few photographs with something other than an iPhone. I mean, they are okay, but we could do better...we should do better. Perhaps this weekend we can sneak away (about a mile from here) and capture some of the magic. For now, enjoy the Instas!
Thirsty Thursday: Ft Ord Stroll
Rambler: BethDrink at Hand: 2005 Mission Trail Vineyards Friar's Reserve Garnacha (local Monterey County wine at its best!)
Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy (we certainly did) and make those weekend plans. This week I recap a backyard adventure.
A few weeks back I ran the Salinas Valley half-marathon. After turning in a personal worst 1/2 marathon time, I decided that Sunday needed to be a recovery day. Unfortunately, Massey doesn't understand recovery days, so she still needed to go out for an activity. We are pretty spoiled to have the seemingly endless trails of Ft Ord Public Lands less than 5 minutes away, so its not too much effort to get the dog out for some quality exercise. Since I wasn't running, I grabbed the camera, slapped on the 180mm macro lens, and off we went!
Terry and I shoot most often with zoom lenses as they give us the most versatility when we are out and about. The only prime lens we own is the 180mm macro, but I wish we had a few more...I love the crispy sharp images and distinctive depth of field that you can only get with a prime. One of these days...
Get out and find your own adventure in your backyard this weekend!
Thirsty Thursday: Running Instagrams
Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2010 Fog Head Pinot Noir
So, typically Massey doesn't make the Thirsty Thursday post, but Beth liked my instagrams so much today that she talked me into posting them. Most days (when I can make it home in time), Massey and I head over to Ft Ord for a 2-3 mile run. Today, it just happened to be a fantastic sunset. Which also means the light at the top of the hill we run up was fantastic. Massey is a joy to watch...and I get some exercise too.
