More late night ramblings...

Well with the advent of the rain and the melting of the snow that for the past couple days had me holed up in my house gone it was a day to venture forth and once again see the world. I must say it was good to once again step out the door and smell the air though it still held a faint hint of the crispness the snow brought. The fields not encumbered by the mantle of snow was once again showing its rich soil in furrows and ridges. 

As I sit now back in my house, listening to the falling drops of water outside my window and contemplating my bed being as the hour is quite late... or early if you consider that this is the morn of the new day, my thought goes out what other aspects of this year came and went. To each of you out there this year has undoubtedly brought firsts, lasts and events in between. Having passed the winter solstice and the days getting longer as we hurtle on through time and space towards another long summer day what other new firsts, lasts and events in between will we encounter.

I once contemplated the usefulness of being able to see into the future. What fun, I could figure out what the daily jackpot numbers were going to be and be as rich as a pig with a field full of mud. I could know when danger was coming and save millions.... and I could also see into the far distance and read my own obituary and live every moment with the knowledge that I would die at a very set time and place and there would not be anything I could do to stop it. Because if the thought is that I could know the winning numbers to the lottery and that thought and knowledge did not change the course of events then why should I be able to change the time of such things as that which is bad and harmful. 

But I cannot see the future and in a way it is for the best I guess. Looking back though with the well known 20/20 vision that we all posses we can see the actions that we have taken over the course of the past year and I wonder how many I would have made had I known the outcome of them? How many such decisions are yet to come I cant say but what will I do with them in the future. But the drip, drip, dripping of the rain is slowing and so should I. Off to bed, rest relax and rejuvenate to face another day. And besides I got a few more days of 2008 to enjoy before it is but another memory to store in my collection of memories and I should make the most of it while I still can.

Finally something to post

Well I guess I have been somewhat lax in posting... and so here I am again. Yesterday with was sunday I had the opportunity to go out and do some shooting. Being as it is cold this was a bit of a stretch for me as I have mentioned in past posts I like it not so frigid. Anyway shoot I did and on my walk I noticed that in the black and white world of snow and everything else there still seemed to be subtle shades of color peaking though. I was captured by the shades of brown leaves which in contrast to the rest of the scene which was blanketed in white almost had a red or rust colored look to it. Well having worked with the images of the trees I decided that by them selves they did not adequately tell the entire story so I turned them into a triptych, Enjoy.

Finishing Finals and getting ready for more white stuff

After spending the last several weeks getting ready for finals and looking back over notes and handout it is finally over. To some extent it can be called anticlimactic just because once you hand it in and walk out well thats it. There is no real feeling of elation other than knowing that the quarter is officially over. 

On a unrelated but equally interesting note, because you know things are hopping in this end of the world... More Snow! I like snow... the white has a clean and fresh look and it makes the mountains look so pretty... but that does not mean it makes everything pretty. The sidewalks are festooned with patches of ice that make walking on it somewhat of an exercise in balance and agility... and humility if you have the great fortune of allowing your feet to get the best of you and tell your body to go one way while they go another... feet can be tricky like that... Specially when its so cold that the messages between your feet and your brain freeze up. Anyway the forecast is for more snow. Well I am sure children all over Walla Walla are looking forward to it as the snow we have to this point gave them a snow day today and I am sure if the weather gets bad they might be expecting another tomorrow... and then its vacation starting on the weekend so who thinks they are going to want to come in on friday anyway... I guess with it being a snow day today everyone is just going to hit the holiday mood early and kiss the next two days goodbye as far as getting any work done. 

This thought brings me to wonder about all the poor adults as it would seem who are wishing they were kids and got a snow day too. Isn't being an adult great? You get to do all the cool adult things like pay bills, worry about the economy, go to work in snow, hail, rain and all manner of crazy weather. And I am sure your boss is always looking over your shoulder just to make sure your not goofing off. 

Happy holidays.... No really... enjoy it... it could be worse... you could have an itch in the middle of your back from all the layers you are wearing because its so cold... Oops you have that too... Oh well I guess you are going to have to find a nice long ruler or stick or something and wont that be sooo good when you get that itch... see things are looking up already. 

More snow and more pictures

Being as the white stuff keeps falling it is an occasion for staying indoors and working on my pictures. And being that the last shoot gave me something to work with this seems like the perfect opportunity. 

First snow of the season

Well the white stuff keeps falling and falling. The first big storm of the season... well at least thats what the meteorologist are saying... is bringing a dumping of snow. Within the last several hours at least 2 or three inches have fallen and it doesn't seem to be stopping. I have not decided if this is something good or bad yet. On the one hand it makes for some very interesting photography and on the other its cold. 

I cant say I am not accustom to the cold having experienced at least 10 winters now, but on the whole I think I like the warmer weather as far as something to live in. It just might have something to do with my being born and raised on an island 7 degrees north of the equator. But winter is officially here and with it the snow. Well at least the option of building snowmen is there... and maybe an igloo as well....

More pictures and Joe

I have been working on processing a few more images from tuesdays impromptu photo-shoot. Today as I was working on these images I had one of those rare (for me;-) "ah Ha" moments that helped me to understand why the images look the way they do. I have been wanting to experiment with this look and have not quite understood why the images looked this way even though I knew the process of how to get them to look this way. But today for some strange reason things aligned and in my head there appeared a pictorial representation of the zone system and how the tones of these images stretched and squished that scale to look like what they do.... anyway it makes sense in my head even though it comes out as crazy babbling sounds when I try to explain it. 

But understanding is the first step... which reminds me of an old cartoon saying. 

If anyone remembers the cartoon G.I. Joe, soon to come out as a movie which is not to be confused with Joe the Plumber... but anyway, at the end of all the episodes one of the "Joe's" would advise a kid who was doing something "wrong" who would naturally see the light and the phrase "... and knowing is half the battle." would be uttered. Well what no one seems to get is that they just had a half an hour or 20 minuets of violent action with bullets flying and buildings exploding everywhere as the good guys battled the bad guys.... and the rest of the story is that knowing may be half the battle but the other half is bloody violence and mayham... Hmmm.... I am sure thats not it.... or is it? You tell me?

Beating the dead week blues by getting spontaneous

I have been wanting to do some shooting for some time using some lighting equipment. Being as the end of the quarter has been drawing near and all the other commitments piling on it has had to be on the back burner. Last night almost in a spur of the moment... well I actually thought about it two mights ago... but none the less I drug out the soft box, grabbed my camera and was off to do some shooting. 

Last night we had a very cool concert by Aaron Roche, setting up the soft box at first outside on the grass and later moving it into one of the side rooms of the village hall I literally snagged people as they walked by and had a mini photo-shoot. For those of you who stopped by a huge thank you and we should do it again because you are beautiful people!!!

I have also been intrigued with a very specific style of portraits and the images attached are my experimentation and exploration of this style. Out of the shoot I think these three images best suited the style. Enjoy, and next time you see a goofy looking dude with a crazy setup looking for volunteers... well come on by and say hello.

Parade

This evening Walla Walla celebrated its parade of lights. About 60 cars, truck, bicycles and other forms of colorfully lit floats paraded down main street and others in a loop that gave everyone present a eyeful of the brightly lit contraptions. The mood was one of merriment yet at the same time there was a sense of people doing their own thing. 

I am not sure if it is just the season that is bringing me to notice this but as I have mentioned in a previous post I am noticing the facade that society calls community. I recently re-watched the movie WALL•E and this may also have something to do with this tangent I seem to be on. But as in the movie everyone is so connected with everything that they don't even know each other or that they had a pool. 

Anyway back to the parade and the lights. Maybe we need more of these events so that people once again start coming out and mingling and maybe we will start to get back the sprit of the community back.

Playing with Pigs

Today was the last Biology lab of the quarter. While I am both happy and sad to see the quarter almost over the last lab being what it is was also a time for some fun. We have been studying the anatomy of a fetal pig for the last couple weeks and with the project coming to a close it was an opportune moment do do a little exploring and do some casual dissection. Liz, Chelsea and Brandon who I share a table with were quite voracious in the scalping and exploring of the remnants of our beloved specimens.

Fishing the Yak... again

Well on the way back from Seattle, determined to get in some time on the water I stopped along the Yakima river to wet a line. The evening was quite productive with the trout being quite willing to take a fly. Being as it is starting to get colder these fish seem eager to stock up on what little insects they may happen by before the icy grip of winter takes hold.

Thanksgiving in Seattle

Well its been a while since I have had the time to update this and much has transpired since. Going back and retrieving memories in a chronological fashion what comes to mind first is the trip to Seattle. Having the couple days of break from tests, homework and other misc. studies it was good to get out an visit with friends. During this visit I decided to play with the idea of creating some images with my point and shoot which I have got into the habit of carrying with me. I have been looking into the concept of the decisive moment that Henri Cartier-Bresson so eloquently often spoke and more correctly captures in photographs. Well only being a student of the subject and my no means a master of the technique and also because I have a perverted nature that forces me to create "homework" assignments for myself even when I am on holiday... Well I played with the idea. The technique of zooming through the exposure was something I had seen and tried in the past and when the off chance of that synapse crossed with another in my brain I spent most of that evening sitting in the passenger seat of my buddies car as we drove on errands snapping away and reveling in the interesting images that I got.

The trip was fun and I think that I will have to keep this style in mind and feel more free to experiment and capture other decisive moments of my own life as I go through them.

Hiking to the sun

The gloom of fog shrouding the valley with its cold and clammy fingers prodding and poking into bodies as they hurried down paths leading to errands and places. Being a sun loving tropical kind of person I was missing seeing the big shiny orb in the sky and to some extent was starting to go though withdrawal... I needed a fix... and as far as I knew, short of driving to Tollgate the other place I could access the sun would be up Blacksnake ridge. Convincing a buddy of mine to go on a hike I headed out for the sun. The fog was thick going up the steep and narrow road and often we could not see for more than 20 feet in front of the car. But we made it to where the car could not go any further without damage to the underside and hiked from there. 

As we climbed though the cold of the mist still hung around us we were greeted by the scent of pine and fir needles wafting through the air. This sweet smell drove us on with renewed energy to reach higher up the ridge.

And sun, the faint rays poking holes through the mist was our reward. Enjoying the sun for about 20 minuets when it started to drop below the tree line we sighed a satisfied sigh and began the trudge back to the depths of the gloom and back home. But sun we had if only for a moment and that small glimmer recharged us for a while.

Frost and fishing

Another weekend has come and gone, and with each passing day the air gets colder as the march of winter comes close. Determined to get a few more days of fishing in before I must hang up my waders for the winter I set out to once again ply the waters of the Walla Walla river and discover what bounties of aquatic delights awaited me. 

Arriving at the parking lot to the area I spent a few minuets chatting with some of the locals who had bagged themselves a couple birds. We chatted about our fortune of having such an ideal accessible area so close to where we lived and the fortune it provided through the seasons. 

A few minuets later donning my gear I sally forth into the thicket that encompasses the river. I have on previous occasions traveled down stream so today I decided to explore upstream. During the last couple weeks heavy rains, well heavy for this end of the state, caused a rise in the river level and with it caused the bed of the river to be scoured in some places and the substrate to be deposited in others. But as this was relatively new area to me while I could see the effect of the rushing water the holes and lies of the trout were yet to be explored. 

I did not find the monster that broke me off when I was last here but my day was not a complete bust. One thing that I enjoy about the trout in these small streams are that they fight like they have something to prove and that no lure is a match for them. It may also be the case that being a smaller stream they need to be more opportunistic in their diet and feed on whatever may come their way.

After catching and releasing a couple my eye was drawn to the frosty leaves along the high water mark. Though clumped together, cottonwood and aspen leaves formed a intricate pattern with the crystals of ice heralding the end of Fall and the near arrival of winter.

Sitting at home feeling mellow

The weekend is here and for the most part well looked forward to. Its been a busy week and while there are many things that got accomplished there are a number that didn't. I guess this is true of all weeks. But, now the weekend is here. Do I stay active all weekend working on projects, exploring interesting places, catching up on all the fun things that I had to put off during the week or is this the weekend for relaxing, sleeping and the general veg-out? 

At this point though I am leaning more to the side of the latter I feel the need to be doing the former. For the last hour I have been reading the general blogs and sites that I try to follow and there have been a couple things that have caught my eye.

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/wa/nwis/uv/?site_no=14018500&PARAmeter_cd=00060,00065

Looking at the most recent results the Walla Walla river might be in good shape tomorrow... Low and clear, however the wether report points it out to be a windy day with sunday being similar with less wind... I might have to put it off for a day or so. 

On the blog Canon Rumors the latest post talks about Canon holding off coming up with a new body till late 2009 while Nikon is planing on a body to be shown in a couple weeks or so... I don't know if I really believe that Canon will sit that long. While I believe the turn the economy has taken makes it harder for new equipment to be sold as everyone is penny-pinching, will the camera giant be allowed to be shown up for too long without coming back with a one up of their own. 

Looking back at the recent scuffle with video on a still body, Nikon was first to market, but Canon one-upped them with more impressive features. At the same time Canon did this to the mid range cameras which means it is either going to one-up them selves with even more features in the flagship model or not have this feature in the flagship model and really concentrate on making it a studio/ high image quality camera. Also with the latest breakthrough (now a couple weeks old) in reducing the space between the micro-lenses and developments of new forms of substrate such as black silicone the future looks interesting. Going back to the post that got me thinking about this, in the winter/spring (March) the photographic industry will be converging on Vegas for PMA 09, an ideal location me thinks for a one upping... 

Well we are going to have to be patient about it... but being as I am in a vegetative mood... I guess I can wait.

Just the words

They say a picture is worth a thousand words... well I guess that would be true if I had the chance to get the picture. Since I had about an hour and a half of free time this morning between classes and work I decided to be productive and go fishing... 

I headed down to the Walla Walla and spent about half an hour walking along the bank when I spotted a splash and the back of a monster trout. Quickly switching flies to one that I though would entice it I cast up stream and tried to get a natural as possible drift to the fish. Being a novice it took more times than I wish to confess to but in the end I was rewarded with a slash and a grab and the game was on. At first the fish was not fighting too hard as the river at that point was not very deep nor wide so it did not have much room to run and I was able to bring it towards me quite quickly. That was my first mistake.

Being that this was a beautiful steely that was glowing with color and if I had to guess several pounds... it was about 18 or 20 inches easy and definitely thicker than my shoe to which it got about 3 feet away from... well I guess my shoe was not to its liking and my 3wt, which was the second mistake, was not the beefiest rod... it did a flip, splash, slip and was off down stream, reel screaming for a couple seconds before the line managed to wrap its self around a snag and with a twang give back the fish its freedom. Man I was so close.... Next time I need to take the 6wt and someone else to carry the camera. That way I can just show you the picture and not have to worry about the thousand words, which in retrospect would not have done that picture justice anyway had I got it.

A day and today...

Well it is officially thursday which means a day and today till the weekend. Its been a busy week as all weeks around here tend to be. The weather has been on the wet side with gusts of wind bringing rain one moment and blowing it away the next. As it is the end of fall the rain is hastening the dropping of leaves creating giant piles which are tempting to go jumping in except for the fact that the whole pile is like a sponge soaking up the rain and would make for a wet landing. Not quite the idyllic situation. 

I hope the weather starts to get dryer as the forecast is predicting. It might be a good weekend to go dunk a fly with the hopes of pulling it back out of the water with a fish attached to it. But a day and today to get through till then.

Back at home

Well the adventure over I am back at home. It was not exactly what I had planned but not all things happen as we expect. Anyway I did get to go fishing today and saw the sun so overall it was a good day. As an added bonus I got to see Dalls Sheep in the Yakima canyon.  Pictures from this weekend.

Off on another adventure...

Well I am out the door and looking forward to another adventure. I will be going fishing in the morning with a fellow fly fisherman that I met online via a fly fishing forum so it will be a great opportunity to met someone new as well. 

Went on a lovely walk this afternoon with some friends and it was cloudy and cold, but the kind that makes you want to be out and just enjoy the mist as it faintly swirls around you. When a warm jacket is like a long hug. And the colors of the fall though past its prime still lingers in the limbs and on the ground covering the trail in a golden carpet. 

But, I must move on. More later...

Energy from the sun and other clean energy

As a graduate with a degree in Environmental Science I am always interested in seeing what new technological advances are made that would create clean energy. While browsing though the articles I came across a couple that caught my attention.

Sun + Water = Fuel

This article in the MIT tech review caught my attention as the concept of plants capturing energy from the sun to perform such feats as to grow for hundreds of feet or like varieties of bamboo a foot per day where you can almost watch it grow... How can such a humble organism with its fragile proteins and enzymes do what keeps scientist scratching their heads. Well looks like we have finally caught up. This discovery combined with another recent discovery for black silicone might bring about a new revolution in clean energy. Interesting times.

On another note, Walla Walla is surrounded by hills where wind farms are common. I have on occasion had the opportunity to go close to these giants and watch as the sometimes 50 ft blades swing round with a commanding swish. Another new discovery that may make this form of energy more efficient is right now being tested up in Canada at a wind farm. 

Laser Sensors for Wind turbines

Maybe one day soon all these new devises will go into production and we can gain the benefits. 

A blustery day in the Valley

Election day and as the presidential race has been called all the pundits and commentators are on the air gloating about having called the results or defending their statements. In the valley it was a cold windy day and I must give props to anyone who braved it to vote. Way to make you voice heard regardless if your candidate won or not. 

I on the other hand decided to be proactive as well but regarding lugging my camera and using those otherwise wasted moments to and from places to make some images. I think I will be doing that more often.