west hill photography

Rituals of Spring

2009-04-14T10:21:00.001-04:00

Rituals of Spring, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A pair of Tree Swallows carry out some springtime courtship rituals. Taken at West Hill Dam in Uxbridge, MA.

Nikon D300 w/ Nikkor 80-400mm VR

Morning on the Bay

2008-11-25T14:23:00.001-05:00

Morning on the Bay, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Taken in Provicetown, MA on Cape Cod one stormy morning.

Used a Mamiya 645 Super. Kodak Porta 400VC film.

Insanely Red

2008-11-12T11:31:00.002-05:00

Insanely Red, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

I don't usually like selective color, or messing around with too much PP in general. But this one kinda called out for it so I decided to try out one of the new smart brushes in PSE7. Taken at the Ft Worth Botanical Gardens.

Nikon D80 w/18-135mm

Garden Painter

2008-11-03T16:16:00.002-05:00

Garden Painter, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Taken at the Ft Worth Botanical Gardens on their "Artists in the Garden" day. Most where painting the flowers and gardens but I happen to run into this gentleman painting the little girl on one of the side paths to the Rose Garden.

Taken with a Nikon D80 w/18-135mm lens.

Quabbin Autumn

2008-10-21T15:02:00.002-04:00

Quabbin Autumn, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Took a ride out to the Quabbin last weekend to shoot some foliage. This was taken from the Enfield Lookout. I used a Mamiya 645 Super loaded with Fuji Velvia 100.

Fallen Ancient

2008-08-12T14:37:00.002-04:00

Fallen Ancient, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A once majestic white pine lies on the dimly lit forest floor. From the Dark Woods project.

Nikon N90s with Arista EDU Ultra 400 developed in Zonal Pro Gamma Plus.

Purchase this print at http://westhillphoto.imagekind.com/

Getting Ready

2008-07-29T11:06:00.002-04:00

Get em Up, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Taken early on a foggy Saturday mornng at the Green River Festival in Greenfield, MA. The balloons were about two hours late going up because of the visibility.

Taken with a Mamiya 645 Super with Fujo Pro 800 film. This film has great vibrant colors. I may have to start using more of it.

Fern Wood

2008-07-16T11:25:00.005-04:00

Fern Wood, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A massive patch of very large ferns I found out at the Waseeka sanctuary in Hopkinton, MA. The light coming through the trees was just strange enough to make for a good contrasty exposure.

From the Dark Woods project.

Shot with a Mamiya M645j and Fomapan 400 film. Developed in Ilfosol 3.

Purchase this print at http://westhillphoto.imagekind.com/

Sisters

2008-07-14T15:34:00.006-04:00

Sisters, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

One of those rare B&W flower photos that works. Taken with a Nikon N90s 35mm, Kodak PlusX, and developed in Ilford Ilfosol 3. I'm not thrilled with this developer as it develops alot of grain even in a film like PlusX which normally has little grain. I will probably go for Rodinol next.

Purchase this print at http://westhillphoto.imagekind.com/

After the Rain

2008-07-07T13:13:00.004-04:00

After the Rain, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Taken in my garden after a Saturday morning rain. Nikon D80 with the 60mm 2.8 Micro lens. Post processed with DXO Pro.

You can purchase at print at http://westhillphoto.imagekind.com/

We Have Joined Imagekind.com

2008-07-03T13:34:00.005-04:00

We are please to announce that we have joined Imagekind.com. This enables you to purchase our photographs as prints over the internet. Imagekind offers many sizes and paper types as well as framing if wanted, and their quality is excellent. Just click the logo in the sidebar.

Here Lies Abijah Howard

2008-06-30T12:19:00.002-04:00

Here Lies Abijah Howard, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Taken in one of the old Hopedale cemetaries. Attempting to get that slightly eriee look. Used a Holga with Fomapan 400 film developed in Ilford ID11.

Ghosts on the Beach

2008-06-25T11:20:00.002-04:00

Ghosts on the Beach, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

I kind of liked the idea of making the people on the beach ghostly by focusing on the closer rocks rather than the beach. It works best when viewed at larger sizes.

Taken with the Mamiya M645 loaded with Ilford Delta 400.

Hosta

2008-06-18T11:55:00.003-04:00

Hosta, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A backyard Hosta shot on film. Arista EDU Ultra 400 in a Nikon N90s.

You can purchase this print at http://westhillphoto.imagekind.com

Feed Me

2008-06-18T11:54:00.002-04:00

Feed Me, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Hiking out at Broadmoor and found this little guy hanging around.

Look Within the Rose

2008-06-11T10:56:00.002-04:00

Look Within, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A macro of one of the roses on my old world rose bush. Taken with the Nikon D80, 60mm 2.8.

Japanese Iris

2008-06-03T11:31:00.003-04:00

Japanese Iris, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

In my own garden. Taken with a Minolta HTsi with Fuji Superia 400 film.

Sarah 1982

2008-05-06T15:26:00.003-04:00

Sarah 1982, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

This shot is 25 years old. I just recovered the negatives. It was taken at Hopedale Pond, probably in 1982. Taken with a Minolta XG9 and Tri-X film. The negative was scanned using a HP scanner.

You just can't beat the look of film. In my opinion, converted digital does not have the same tone charateristics.

In My Garden

2008-04-22T14:51:00.002-04:00

In My Garden, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Well it looks like spring has finally arrived. These are currently blooming in my bulb garden.

Nikon D80 w/Nikkor 60mm 2.8 Micro.

Agave

2008-04-21T10:58:00.001-04:00

McKittrick Canyon-15, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

A Photo from my trip to the Guadalupe Mountains in West Texas.

Mad Bull

2008-04-17T11:51:00.001-04:00

Rodeo-41, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Had a chance to attend a rodeo while in texas last week. It was indoors and the lighting was very tough to shoot in but I managed to get some good shots. And yes, there is another clown inside the barrel.

See all photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/streetfire/sets/72157604587680113/

The Landing

2008-03-03T10:23:00.002-05:00

The Landing, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Another one from Magic Wings

Follow Me

2008-03-03T10:22:00.001-05:00

Follow Me, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

This was taken at the Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory in Deerfield, MA. Taken with a Nikon D80 and the 18-135mm lens. SB600 was used for fill flash.

Titmouse

2008-02-28T16:37:00.001-05:00

Titmouse, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

This little guy was patiently waiting for his turn at the feeder. Taken with the Nikon D80 and 80-400mm VR lens.

Hybiscus Macro 1

2008-02-25T15:09:00.003-05:00

Hybiscus Macro 1, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

We have been lucky this winter that our Hybiscus tree has been blooming inside. Taken with the Nikkor 60mm 2.8 micro using the on-board flash.

Bamboo in Winter

2008-02-25T13:56:00.001-05:00

Bamboo in Winter, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

It was another snowy day in New England on Friday 2/22. I think this Bamboo is as tired of it as I am.

Just Hangin Out

2008-02-20T09:54:00.001-05:00

Just Hangin Out, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

I went to a reptile exhibit at the Boston Museum of Science and shot this little Gecko taking a nap. Shot with a D80 w/Sigma 24-60mm 2.8 lens at ISO 1250.

It was shot through glass so may be a little less sharp than it should be.

Cybidium Blooms

2008-02-04T15:07:00.001-05:00

Cybidium Blooms, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

I haven't added anything here for some time so here is a recent shot of an orchid I have blooming.

One Cool Harley

2007-11-07T13:06:00.001-05:00

Bristol 2007_075, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

I had almost forgotten I took this photo. It was at the Bristol, RI 4th of July parade and this guy was riding with the Vietnam vets. It's probably the coolest Harley I have ever seen.

Taken with the Pansonic FZ50.

Flowers in October?

2007-10-29T15:51:00.001-04:00

Last of Octobers Flowers, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

Yesterday we took a hike through Boarderland State Park in Easton, MA. I was suprised to find these small violet flowers still blooming.

Nikon D80, 55-200mm VR

Ft Worth Zoo

2007-10-23T09:10:00.000-04:00

Just got back from a trip to Texas visiting my daughter. We had a great time and I got some great shots at the Ft Worth Zoo.

Nikon D80, 55-200mm VR

Last Signs of Summer

2007-10-03T11:40:00.001-04:00

DSC_1269, originally uploaded by Streetfire2007.

One of the last signs of summer taken on my rear deck.

Nikon D80 w/55-200mm VR

Flower Macros in a Makeshift Studio

2007-02-21T11:44:00.000-05:00

It's a wonder what you can do with very little in terms of high priced photo equipment. This macro of a daisy mum was taken on my kitchen table using the available light from a nearby window. For the black backdrop I used a black coat draped over the chair. To get the macro shot I used a cheap +4 diopter screw-on close up lens.

The Nikon D80 was mounted on a Sunpak 7575 tripod.

Panasonic, Nikon and the New Camera Saga

2007-02-06T13:47:00.000-05:00

I have been taking photos since the early 70's, starting out with an old Ricoh rangefinder that I purchased used. I still have it. Eventually, I got to purchase a Minolta XG7 SLR and a later on some more lenses. When the cameras with program mode came out I bought a Minolta X700. It later died with the deadly shutter lock. However, I used these cameras for many years taking hundreds of slides and prints of everything you can think of. My first digital camera was a Kodak DC200. I think it was 1.2 megapixels with a fixed lens. It really was not very good and certainly not for creative shooting, but I saw the potential and that led to loosing interest in the SLRs. Of course with the Kodak being so limited, I never really used it much either. Around 2004 my wife got me a Kodak DX7630 for christmas. Wow, 6 megapixels, 3x zoom, and manual modes. I used the 7630 for the next two years mainly taking family snapshots and an occasional flower or macro shot. I noticed you could get some very good pictures out of this camera. The turning point was this summer when we went to Monomy Island for day with my daughter and grandsons. I ended up with several very good shots. But began to notice limitations, especially the lack of a long zoom and better manual control.

So here it begins. I decide on a new camera for christmas 2006 and as usual spend hours upon hours doing research on the internet. Because the major limitation of the DX7630 was the lack of zoom, I began looking at the ultra-zooms or bridge cameras as they are know. The contenders were the Sony H5, Fuji 9100, Panasonic FZ50, and Samsung Pro815. Now as with everything in life, nothings is perfect, all of these had some shortcomings. I ended up going with the FZ50 because of the features and image stabilization. There was some discussion in the reviews and on the internet about excessive digital noise and image quality issues, but hey, I figured how bad could it be. Certainly not worse than a two year old, 6 mp Kodak.

Boy was I ever wrong. I was excited to get the FZ50, it handled great, had all the right features, aperature priority, shutter priority, manual mode, long zoom and the Function button that made the camera a joy to use. It had it all. Except for image quality. Now I have gotten some good pictures out of the FZ50, but only in good light at ISO100 and ISO200. The pictures from Washington DC referenced in this blog were taken with the FZ50. Even ISO200 has too much noise for my taste. I have also found that the autofocus does not work well at the long end of the zoom, it's slow and about 25% of the shots are out of focus. The Panasonic fans will say the noise issue is overstated and can easily be corrected with noise reduction software. I believe the noise issue is understated, and why should you ever have to use noise reduction software on an ISO200 image in the first place.

So it starts all over. I now realize the only way I will be satisfied with the image quality I could get was to buy a DSLR. This is what happens when you try to cheap out. I took a look at the big four and seeing as though I still have Minolta lenses around could have gotten away with a smaller additional investment by buying the Sony A100. But the reviews on that have also complained about noise at high ISOs, 800 and 1600. No compromises this time, I wanted a camera I could live with for many years and had the backing of a solid company. To make a long story short, I bought the Nikon D80. This is a great camera. Someone on an internet forum stated I would not see a big improvement in my photos going from the FZ50 to the D80, bull, the very first set of photos I took with the D80 were at least 300% better than anything that came out of the FZ50.

So what happens to the FZ50? It's a good camera for what it is, bright sun and indoor flash. It will end up being what I stick in my fanny pack when I go cycling. Those are usually sunny days, it'll be great.

Anyway, who would want to chance falling with their D80 in their fanny pack, not me.

Waiting on President Ford

2007-01-09T10:22:00.000-05:00

We happened to be in Washington DC the weekend former President Ford was lying in state in the capital rotunda. We had gotten there early enough so that it was still a little cold out and the line was fairly short, so we decided to join it. After a little over an hour we were in the rotunda. It was a moment in history that probably only comes once a lifetime.

While in line I took a bunch of photos of the other people in line just to see if I could catch some good expressions. Here they are.

Waiting to See President Ford

The National Zoo

2007-01-03T11:48:00.000-05:00

I recently returned from a trip to Washington DC over the New Years weekend. One of the things we did was to visit the National Zoo on Saturday. It was a really nice, warm afternoon so most of the animals were outdoors. Here is the photo album.

National Zoo

We also got to view President Ford in the Capital Rotunda. I'll be posting some of the faces in the crowd soon, as well as a few pics of the war memorials.

Old Barns

2006-12-22T10:14:00.001-05:00

For some strange reason, I am fascinated by old barns and farms. These pics are pretty poor as they were taken from a car moving at 70mph along the NY Thruway. All were taken in the area between Little Falls and Albany.
Someday I would like to have the time to do a proper photo essay of the old farms around New England. Before they all disappear.

Old Barns

NYC Century Tour Bike Ride

2006-12-16T10:12:00.000-05:00

On Sept. 10, 2006 my wife and I along with about 6000 other cyclist rode about 40 miles through Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens in the 2006 Transportation Alternatives NYC Bike Tour. What a blast. Seeing the cities neigborhoods and sights from the seat of a bicycle is a great experience. Riding over the bridges is especially cool.

NYC Bike Ride

In the Beginning...

2006-12-12T10:09:00.000-05:00

there existed a void in the web, and the developer said “I shall build a new site”, and he did. But the site was meaningless, so the developer said “I shall create a web gallery and attach it to the site, and he did, and all was good. But the developer looked and noticed “I have no place to speak”, so he created a blog, then he leaned back and said “It is good”. OK, let’s get real. This is just a place for me to post some photos and talk about digital (and film) photography. I may even throw in some cycling from time to time, my other hobby.

Cheers,
Tim