Foggy Morning, Infrared Style

What happens when you photograph foggy landscapes with an infrared-converted camera? 

There's only one way to find out!

 And the results are in. I ended up with a set of milky, silvery, somewhat pearlescent-looking images.

 

  The leaves on the trees are green, but they show up as a whitish gray in the infrared photos. This one stands near a road, sidewalk, and several buildings. But in the fog, you'd never know it.

 

 I love how the fog transforms the world.

 

And of course: my favorite magnolia. 

Digital Infrared

I have been dreaming of infrared photography for a while now and am slowly working my way through my tiny infrared film stash. But I was recently lucky and blessed to have the chance to try my hand at digital infrared photography. Having the digital camera's instant feedback was very helpful... it made it much easier to get the exposure right. Needless to say, I had a blast!

A camera with a standard infrared conversion offers lots of possibilities for creating dreamy, surreal images. Green leaves and grass will turn a silvery white, while blue skies take on a beautiful sepia tone. I love it. Of course, the traditional pure black and white, high-contrast infrared look can also be achieved in post processing, making the standard conversion a versatile option.

 Familiar scenes take on a different appearance. The resulting look doesn't appeal to everyone, but I can't get enough of it.

Interesting cloud formations are always helpful...

...and a wide-angle lens is a must!

I think I've found a whole new way to fall in love with photography all over again!

Square No. 1

Happy 2012!

Along with the New Year, I've started a new project. Introducing... Project 52! Fifty-two weeks in the year and fifty-two square black and white photos, to (hopefully) be compiled in a book at the end of the year. Check back each week to track my progress and see what's new. ☺

Week 1: La Chanteuse

Williamsburg

On a recent photo walk in Williamsburg, Virginia, I was looking for some digital photography fun. I had my Nikon ready and was looking to capture anything and everything that suited my photographic whims.

But of course my photographic whims also had to include some off-the-wall methodology. I've been wanting to try selectively coating my lens (don't worry: the clear UV filter, not the lens glass itself) with Vaseline, but all I had on hand was a plain chapstick.

I applied it to part of the filter and started snapping away to see what types of effects it would create. This peacefully grazing horse was my first unwitting subject.

The chapstick had a stripey effect on some photos...

 

...but lent a soft glow to others.

Bruton Parish Church

To my surprise, the chapstick also added a starburst effect to the lights coming on at dusk.

Colonial Williamsburg is a beautiful place to watch daylight  fade away into night. 

And apparently it's also well-suited to chapstick-enhanced digital photography. 

Next time: Vaseline!

Streets of Rome

I've been looking back nostalgically at photos I took of the streets of the Eternal City...

San Giovanni in Laterano

Via dei Fori Imperiali

Piazza del Colosseo

Via del Corso

Piazza Venezia

Napa Valley

The day had finally come. Katie and I packed our bags, hopped on different planes from different origins and landed in San Francisco within minutes of each other. Our Napa Valley adventure was on.

After a fun whirlwind afternoon spent in San Francisco and a relaxing evening with Katie's relatives, we headed north to Napa Valley. The drive up through the wine country was a treat in itself.

We found this fountain at Clos Pegase winery, which boasts art displays, fountains, and imposing temple architecture in addition to its wine.

We found beautiful views of rolling landscapes in Napa and Sonoma Valleys, as well as in the neighboring Wooden Valley.

While Katie attended a conference for work, I continued to explore and photograph to my heart's content. Queen Anne's Lace, which was in bloom everywhere, turned out to be one of my favorite photographic subjects.

And grapes, of course!

On an overcast morning, I found more flowers to photograph in a local nature reserve.

Nearby, more vineyards caught our eye. Just driving through the area was relaxing... we were in the midst of postcard-perfect scenery.

We enjoyed visiting Beringer Winery. Their large estate, historic house, beautiful gardens, and fountains made for the perfect afternoon rest stop.

But the best part was the trip itself: enjoying a travel adventure with a treasured long-time friend (and world's best roomie). Thank you, Katie!

Wintry Botanical Garden

I enjoyed visiting the Norfolk Botanical Garden last summer. And this winter, I've been having a great time photographing the trees in all their leafless glory. I've been curious about what the gardens are like at this time of year, so armed with several cameras, I headed over there on a beautifully gray and cloudy morning.

Just like I had hoped, the mostly leafless trees stretched high above me in contorted shapes.

(Photo assembled with AutoStitch.)

I was also hoping to photograph statues in front of a sparser background than the full summer foliage would offer.

Different season, different look... no blooming flowers, no butterflies or dragonflies, and the fountain is turned off. But it's beautiful nonetheless. I think I almost prefer it like this.

And then there are the statues in the Renaissance Garden. Although these figures representing the seasons had caught my eye last summer, I found them more photogenic now. The statue above may symbolize autumn, with what looks like grape leaves on her shoulders.

Twigs, berries, downcast gaze.... winter, perhaps?

I think the grains on this girl's dress represent summer.

And then there were these tiny little blossoms.

I couldn't get enough of them...

...and happily photographed them, looking straight up, until my arms were tired from holding the camera above my head.

More...

...and more!

The dead of winter may be an unusual time to visit a botanical garden... but I was happy with my trip!

Snow!

Snow!

I knew that Virginia has distinct seasons, but I didn't dare to hope for real snowfall.
But voila! Last week we were blessed with a flaky, flurry gift from the sky that accumulated on the ground as a pleasingly crunchy layer of snow.

New Cape Henry Light

When the flakes began to fall, I happened to be out running errands. I rearranged my plans and made my way to the lighthouse at Fort Story as quickly as I could, practically tripping over my own feet as I scrambled out of the car, camera in hand.

After photographing the lighthouse, I started to walk back to the car — then changed my mind. I wasn't dressed to be outdoors for long, but I couldn't resist a quick detour. I had never seen the beach in the snow before, and this was my chance!

Sandbags and sand dunes peek out from the accumulating snow.

I made my way over the sand dune...

...and found the beach looking like this: covered in a white blanket that blurred the distinctions between sand, surf, and sky.

Surf and snow resembled each other in the predominantly white landscape. I was mesmerized by the matching curvy contours of the border between sea and land.

It was beautiful!

And just in case you're curious, the photos for this entry were taken with a Nikon D5000, using various in-camera monochrome settings, then processed with ShakeItPhoto for iPhone.
Fun, fun, fun.

Rosewell Ruins

Of all the things I've been looking forward to exploring in Virginia, the Rosewell Ruins have occupied the top spot on my list. So when the local photography club organized a trip to visit the ruins, I was thrilled to go along and share the experience with other photography buffs.

After stopping at the Visitor Center to orient ourselves, watch an informational film about Rosewell, pick up maps, and chat with the knowledgeable museum curator, we headed through a few fields toward the ruins themselves.

The ruined mansion is surrounded by fields and woods near the York River... a peaceful and secluded setting that makes it easy to transport one's mind back to centuries past.

It didn't take us long to walk over to the mansion itself. Its construction dates back to 1725, making it one of the Colonial Era's architectural gems. It first belonged to the Page family, one of the First Families of Virginia: an illustrious and exclusive circle of high-society colonists who settled in Virginia in the 17th century. The Page family included a governor of Virginia (John Page, 13th Governor of Virginia) and associated closely with the Jeffersons. Legend even has it that Thomas Jefferson, on one of his visits to the mansion, worked on a draft of the Declaration of Independence in this very house.

Rosewell Mansion was built primarily of brick, and the grandeur of its three stories can still be intuited from the lofty heights of the ruins today. A catastrophic fire in 1916 left little more than a shell of the structure's former glory, and time and the elements have contributed to further decay.

Today, efforts are being made to prevent the ruins from collapsing further. Horizontal support beams and new mortar in certain spots are two of the readily visible elements designed to preserve the historic structure for generations to come. And the efforts are worth it. Even in its run-down state, Rosewell is a beautiful and spectacular place to visit.

It's exciting—and also a little eerie—to scramble into the ruin, explore the cellars, look up at the towers, see where the floor levels once were, and imagine what life may once have been like in that very spot.

Inside the mansion.

One of the cameras I had with me was a Polaroid Sun 600 camera I found at a thrift store. It was loaded with the Impossible Project's PX 600 Silver Shade film. This particular film is surprisingly sensitive to temperature and light, so there's always an element of uncertainty and surprise. But in this case, the mild weather and shady woods turned out to be agreeable conditions for this feisty and unpredictable film... and the photo turned out!

Rosewell Ruins

Picture in picture: the fresh instant photo on a bed of dry leaves.

Rosewell Ruins is worth a visit... both for the beautiful natural surroundings...

...and the picturesque remnants of a colonial mansion. I had a great time on this first visit, and I can't wait to go back.