Tag: outdoors

Rin goes out… again

On By Asian EdIn Dollfie, Photography5 Comments

Now that I’ve gotten some more equipment in to assist in Dollfie photography, I decided it was time to put it all to good use. Since Rin’s last outing, she got a new outfit, a tripod mountable stand from Dollfie World, and a new mode of transportation. I’ve since acquired a new lens for my camera which has already proven itself to be great for close ups and portraits. Rin’s last outing to Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden happened to be on Mother’s Day, so pedestrian traffic was higher than normal. This time, I picked a “normal” beautiful Sunday morning, when everyone else in the area was attending church. There was barely anyone else on the grounds, which allowed me to shoot in peace.

I also chose to start near the back of the garden and move forward to further reduce running into someone early on. Enough text, time for some cute!

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Somehow I’m reminded of a line from a certain Monty Python movie… something about huge tracts of land?

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Dabbling in close-up photography

On By Asian EdIn Life in general, Photography7 Comments

A couple weeks ago, I picked up a brand new Nikkor 50mm f/1.8 lens from Amazon to shoot with. Being used to various zooms, it was a bit of a change in shooting style going to a non-stabilized prime lens. Once I got used to it, I found that it produced far sharper images, wonderful background blur, and beautiful portraits. The somewhat short focal distance got me to thinking… how good would it be for doing close ups?

To find out, I signed up for a macro photography workshop at Daniel Stowe. The instructor walked us through some tips and showed us some (expensive) equipment that would help, then it was off to the field!

DSC_6451 DSC_6453

My first attempts showed how sharp the lens is. These were taken at f/5.0 (and cropped a bit). I’m sure if I worked at it, I could get my reflection in those water droplets… Just as a quick note, all of the photos in this post will display the full sized counterparts when clicked. 🙂

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Figures in the snow

On By Asian EdIn Figures1 Comment

Charlotte saw one of its first major snowfalls of the year last night. The storm went on through most of the evening and left behind several inches of snow. Most of the city was shut down during the day, but since I’m originally from Upstate New York, this really felt more like an early spring day. Which means I didn’t mind going out, driving to work, etc. It also meant I had a golden opportunity to do some awesome figure photography. I present to you several series of snowy photos.

IMG_1644T: What’s all this stuff?

IMG_1647T: It’s kinda cold out here…

IMG_1649T: Aren’t you cold Shana? Neither of us are really dressed for this…

IMG_1650S: Nah, my leggings are pretty warm. Plus my hair is on fire.
 

The next day, Tsuruya-san came with me to the office. I spotted the following scene and decided it would make a great picture.

IMG_1664There’s irony in here somewhere, I just don’t know where it is

Once I got home, a couple of the girls decided to go out for a little beach party. Kokoro went out to scout the area first, then everyone else followed.

IMG_1691Shana, are you making a snow-mellonpan?

While the bikini girls were having a chillingly good time, Tsuruyu-san and Shana were at it again. This time it looks like Tsuruyu-san is having a bit too much fun…

IMG_1693 S: Tsuruya-san, what are you doing? You’re going to catch cold! IMG_1697 T: This is great! You really should try it, Shana!
 

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S: That’s probably not such a great idea… It might put out my hair.

It was a short windows of opportunity, but I’m glad I took advantage. If only I’d gotten the Gift Saber in today… That would have made for an awesome photo shoot!