Created another little book with the Nowvel app.
I’ve created my second book with photos that I took in the Chattanooga area of Tennessee. I love these little books it creates.
If you want to check out the iOS app I used called Nowvel, they’re giving 50% off the first printed book – you’ll see the offer when click on the image below
Also, be sure to read “My Review of the Nowvel App“
#Nowvel #photobook #Chattanooga #Rubyfalls #iOS #App
As always, I’m grateful for a purchase of any of my work.
This photo is of the 2 smokestacks from the original chocolate factory in Hershey PA. These smokestacks along with the cocoa bean elevators are some of the remaining pieces of the original chocolate factory that was in the middle of Hershey on Chocolate Ave. The factory has since moved to new modern facility across town. The picture is from the hill that overlooks the town and Hersheypark.
This is an example of one of the many ways you can buy one of photographs. You can buy any of my photographs in a variety of media formats from just the print, Metal prints, Canvas prints, framed and unframed. Click on the image to see what other options they could have chosen for this image.
#Hershey #Smokestacks #ChocolateFactory #Hersheypark, #icons
I will start this by saying I will try to not mention products by name as I don’t want to single out any particular company as they are not the only ones doing this.
I recently had to decide wither or not to license some software I use for my photo editing by subscription license or try to get the standalone application license. I had been given access to the subscription license for one year but that year is about up. Now it is time to pay the full price of the subscription or get the standalone application or I lose my ability to use the software.
So I started to compare pricing. At first glance the subscription service didn’t look that bad. But then I started to think about things a bit. Ok so for the monthly subscription I can get the software I’m using plus several other features/software included in the “packaged” deal. Sounds pretty good right. Then I looked at the “packaged” deal and realized I’ll never use any of the other apps/services except the one program. So started looking to buy a license for just that application. The fun began as for this vendor it is not so easy to find the pricing for the standalone application. The site keep on redirecting me to the subscription service page anytime I clicked on links for pricing information. I eventually found the application pricing only to find out the discount that I qualified for in the past years is no longer an option and can now only get it at full retail pricing. I think this is the result of their push for the subscription model pricing. I fell they are trying to make the standalone app look less appealing and they were intentionally trying to steer me towards the subscription licensing versus getting the standalone app.
OK monthly fee versus one time purchase, which do I choose. Next I though how long do I think I’m going to use this app. Well I’ve used it for a year now and have become dependent upon it so switching to something else would be a pain, so I will stick with this application and thus will be using it for sometime. Since I’m one of those folks that doesn’t always upgrade to the latest version of software as I don’t think I need the new features or it doesn’t work on my computer given that I have an older model computer, I am happy to just stick with and older version most of the time.
So decision time. With the monthly plan I would pay just as much as the standalone app price after about 14 months, then after that it would be costing me more. Given that I don’t know if a new version of this app will come out within the next year and that I may not upgrade to anyway, I didn’t see any benefit of the subscription service. I determined it would cost me more over time and that if I cancelled the subscription service I would not longer have access to the application. That is one of the Big drawbacks to subscription based software I think. One reason I like the standalone application purchase better. For my example if I cancelled after 14 months, even though I would have paid the same as the standalone purchase, I would no longer be able to use the application if I had not purchased the standalone version
If it was just one application vendor I used software for that did this subscription service model I might be ok with it, but it seems more and more software vendors are going to this model. Individually the prices are low, but when you have to buy a subscription each for application you use, that low monthly fee becomes a large monthly for all the applications.
I”m just hoping that these companies will not go to solely subscription based licensing as I think it will make the software be out of a lot of folks price range if they think about the total cost over time or it is going go get folks into more debt as it is so easy to just put that on a credit card and forget about it. I have a feeling that this particular vendor will be going that way as with every new upgrade of their suite of applications more and more of their applications have become available by subscription license only.
For business I think the subscription licensing makes sense as most will have up to date computers and would need to stay up to date on the applications. The subscription method would keep them up to date and would save them money over time versus the individual upgrades each time. But for the people who occasionally purchases a product it will end up costing them a lot over time. So I’m just not a fan of subscription based licensing.
The view straight up of the ceiling in Union Station in Washington DC. I ended up putting my camera on a planter edge and thus the plant in the picture as tripods are not allowed in Union Station and there was not enough light to get a good picture if I hand-held my camera.
So consider that my tip of the day. Don’t be afraid to creative to get the picture. This planter was in the right spot for me to lay my camera down on to get the shot. Since my camera doesn’t have a flip screen nor built-in wifi it was sheer guesswork on getting things lined up so it took a few shots until I got it right. With newer cameras especially the one’s with wifi that will let you see the image on your phone this would have been much easier.
#Software #Subsciption #WashingtonDC #UnionStation #Train #Station #Amtrak
The weekend storm is now the largest single snowfall event on record for the Baltimore area. The only time we have had it worse was the back to back snow storms in 2010. What made it worse was that it was one right after the other, but still not the amount of snow we received this time.. Like many around us, I spent yesterday digging out for 6+ hours just to get my 100 feet of driveway clear and unbury the cars. We got lucky in that a neighbor’s son who had a plow on his truck cleared our spur of the road and another neighbor had already cleared the main private road out to the county road.
Thank goodness I bought a snow blower a few years back or I think I would still be out there and very sore instead of just a little sore and stiff. I’m still recovering from all the exercise today though with sore muscle that haven’t seen that much use in a while. Despite all the work it takes to clear it, it was a beautiful sight to see everything covered in snow there for a while.
The scene outside out house before we got to clearing the road. Yes our road is buried in there between the stake and the pine trees. Now that things are cleared and all the snow is piled up it doesn’t look so pretty.
I was hoping to get another series of photos with the snow on the trees, but by the time we got things cleared out enough the snow had fallen off the trees. It was just way to deep for me to walk in before so I wasn’t able to get the entire tree line as I’ve done in the past like I had hoped to. Also, the snow was only on the south side of the trees this time. During the storm the high winds from the north kept the snow from sticking to the north side of the trees.
I learned over time from various web sources that when you are photographing snow you should slightly overexpose your photo. The thinking behind it make sense to me in that all the snow glare is making your sensor think it is much brighter than it actually is and thus it is setting your f-stop higher that you want it to be, an Aperture of f11 instead of f8 for example. Since the f-stop is higher it is letting is less light and as a result you will get dull looking snow instead of the crisp white snow that you see. For the above picture I over exposed my photo by 1 f-stop. It is straight out of the camera untouched.
Here is a photo I took back during the 2010 storm before I figured out this tip. And you can see how dull it looks. Granted it was cloudy in this picture but it was still very bright outside at the time.
#Storm #Snow #Snowmagedon #WinterStormJonas
Trying out a new posting format that will include a photo header and a recent photo that I’ve taken. Figured this would be a perfect time to break out an old photo of Pine Trees in the Snow with the pending snow dump that is going to hit the Mid-Atlantic area I”m in this weekend.
I’ll admit I”m not a fan of winter, but if it is going to be cold I do like to see snow falling just as long as it doesn’t trap me at home for too long. Since I live on a private drive, the neighbors and I have to dig ourselves out and sometimes that can take all day.
I am looking forward a little to the first real snow of the season for our area. But when it is over and gone, I’ll be just fine until next winter. For now, enjoy a photo from a much warmer time this fall.
This is is the Johns Hopkins Hospital Dome and is the icon for the Johns Hopkins Hospital taken between some trees in the fall.
#JohnsHopkinsHospital, #JHH, #Baltimore, #Snow #Storm #Snowmagedon #WinterStoreJonas
Just found out today that I got published again in the Johns Hopkins Federal Credit Union 2016 Calendar.
This year I have the honor of having not one but two of my pictures featured in the 2016 Calendar, one of which made the cover.
The cover photo of the 2016 JHFCU Calendar is a cropped version of one of my Baltimore Inner Harbor Panoramas. Here is the cover of the 2016 Calendar showing my photo
The other is one of my photos that I took during the Sailabration event in Baltimore and is of one of the reenactments at Fort McHenry. It is the photo used for the month of September and shown below.
As always I’m humbled to have my images selected.
At first I didn’t even notice that I made the front cover as I just assumed my images would be on one of the interior pages. I did see the photo, but didn’t look at the caption right away and thought, looks like one of my photos but I didn’t send one in this format so it could not have been mine. I had sent the Panorama version in for possible use on their website, but I have no problem with the crop they choose as it looks great. Pays to pay attention to the details and read the caption. Anyway, very happy I’m on the cover as well.
This past weekend I went on my first photowalk(s) ever and had a blast.
I’ve always heard about photowalks and seen many scheduled via www.meetup.com, but never got around to actually going to one. But this past weekend, one of my favorite photographers (Trey Ratcliff) came to 2 cities near me, so I said to myself, you have always wanted to meet him and now is your chance. So no more excuses, it was time to go on a photowalk. And it was Free. Can’t bet that. (note: some of the other photowalks I’ve seen on MeetUp charge a fee to attended)
Let me tell you, it was an amazing experience. No only did I finally go to Philadelphia for the first time, but got to meet a great bunch of photographers in all skill levels, all of whom were very willing to talk about what they know with you. Got to learn a little along the way as Trey would make stops along the walk and discuss why he choose to stop to take a picture along with tips on taking a picture of the subject and general photo tips and tricks.
The first walk of the weekend was in Philadelphia. A city I’ve driven through and around, but never actually been to. Since I’ve never been I decided the photowalk was a good excuse to go.
After my three and a half hour drive to Philly, I arrived a bit before the pre-party so decided to visit the Liberty Bell. I’d say it was kinda cool seeing it for the first time. Located at the end of the visitors center in which you get to read and see all the history associated with it.
After visiting the Liberty Bell it was time to go to the pre-party before the real walk started. Got to mingle a little with the other photo walkers along with meeting Angela B Pan for the first time, who is photographer from the Washington DC area and a Master in the Arcanum
Just as the walk was about to start, Trey got up on the roof of his tour bus to introduce himself and talk about the walk that we were about to go on.
Shortly there after we headed out on the walk and the many stops we had along the way. Here are a few of the photos I took along the walk.
Headed home after the walk and after quick two hour drive home to arrive at midnight I stayed up till 3am to process and upload my photos to enter into the online contest for Philadelphia photowalk.
After getting some sleep it was time to get going for round two in Washington DC
Just like in Philly, arrived early for the pre-party to gather with the other walkers and await Trey to introduce the walkers to the DC leg of the trip. And then head out to the various stops. Again, at each stop, Trey would describe what he was seeing, why he decided to stop there to take a picture, and then some tips and techniques for taking a better photo of the scene.
The DC walk was a bit longer than the Philadelphia walk, so I was a little exhausted by the end of it, but still had a great time.
Here are just a few of the photos I got on the DC photowalk
This was Trey on one of the stops at the reflecting pool where he described that getting down low is needed to get the reflection on the water since the water was a little choppy that day. You can sorta see the choppy water in the picture above as I didn’t get down as low as he did in his shot.
After taking this photo I realized I had lost where the group had gone to. Never did catch up to them at the last stop, but just headed to the after party. I will say if you do get detached from the group, the page for each city usually has a map or at least a path that they plan to follow. You can use this to find out where the next planned stop is and just head that way and I”m sure you will catch up with them.
At the end of the photowalk there is an after party. This is the only part of the experience on Trey’s photowalk that you pay for if you wish. If you can afford it and there is space available still, I would recommend it as you get more personal time with Trey and the other photographers from the walk including any Masters of the Arcanum from the area. You can pretty much ask Trey anything or just talk in this more casual smaller setting. I attended the after party on the Washington DC leg of the trip and was able to get my photo with two of my favorite photographers (Trey and Angela) as shown below.
It turned out being 2 very long days, a lot of walking, and staying up late to process photos for the contests, but all very well worth it.
So if Trey is coming to a city near you, I would recommend getting your self out there. You won’t be disappointed.
For information on Trey’s USA photowalks go to tour.treyratcliff.com and see if a city near you is still on his list. As of this writing he is about halfway through his USA tour. And remember, the photowalk part is Free. So no excuse not to go.
Check out his website www.stuckincustoms.com to see his amazing work and check out his tutorials and other photography information. Many of his tutorials and presets are free, but he does have more in-depth tutorials and other photography items there as well for a fee.
Also, check out a local DC photographer who I’m sure will inspire you to take better pictures of the Washington DC area, Angela B Pan at www.abpan.com
I had the pleasure of meeting both at the DC after party.
Back in April I decided to take a day trip to Washington DC, only an hour or so down the road from me. It is one of those places that is awesome to go to, but since it is so close I often neglect it.
Of course it was right in the middle of the Cherry Tree festival of which I’ve meant to take pictures of forever and finally decided it was time to do it. Although it was a hot day and there were a ton of people there also admiring the trees the trip was well worth it. Worth it just to see the trees in bloom and I think I ended up with a few really good shots.
Oddly enough, one was nothing to do with the Cherry Tree festival, but the Washington Monument at Sunset. I had just taken the obligatory picture of the White House as was on my way back to the Metro stop and had to walk past the monument and the sky was just lighting up colors from the sunset so I had to stop and take a picture.
I’m finally getting around to start processing the rest of the photos that I think might be good, the White House not being one of them. 🙁 Couldn’t get across the street to take a picture through the fence as they had it closed off. Guess it was due the recent fence jumpers.
Here is a link to one of the Washington Monument Photos I’ve posted to my site as the feature image above doesn’t do it justice.
Washington Monument at Sunset posted on AmericanKiwiPhoto.com
Planning on another trip in August as one of my favorite photographers will be in town so if you are a fan of Trey Ratcliff check out his Photo Walk Tour page at tour.treyratcliff.com
I’m always grateful to anyone who thinks one of my photos are worth purchasing and got surprised by a sale that occurred back in April.
Why I say surprised is that I had no idea as I seem to have missed the email letting me know. Got the email today of the payment transfer and was like, what? So naturally I checked to see I sold a 10.00″ x 8.00″ print of Naval Academy Chapel side Dome to a buyer from Virginia Beach, VA.
So a very belated thank you to that buyer.
Sold one of my favorite photos of my Alma Mater, Milton Hershey School, today
Thank you to the buyer from Wake Forest, NC for your purchase.
I have several other angles of Founders Hall and during daylight hours, but I have come to like this one the best as you can see Founders Hall light up at night like this from all over Hershey.
If I remember right, you could see the top of the Dome from the student homes I use to live in while there and it is one of the buildings that has not changed since I attended school there.
