St. Louis and The Flash Bus Tour 2011

I took a short trip to St. Louis last week. Why St. Louis? It was the last chance to catch David Hobby and Joe McNally and their Flash Bus Tour 2011. One day with these two and your brain goes into sensory overload... kinda like when your SB900 hits that thermal cut-off point...and then explodes into tiny little pieces.

True to form, David Hobby put it in manual and took on the morning with a balanced and methodical approach laying out his key rules for layering with light. Then in the afternoon McNally took the stage... took a few pot shots at Hobby, and then as he tweeted earlier in the day, went completely TTL haywire. You know that Hulk roller coaster at Universal Islands of Adventure park in Orlando? It goes from 0 to 40 mph in like 2 seconds... well that's what happened next, the only difference was the roller coaster only lasts 2 minutes, whereas Joe kept this up for next few hours.

Here are couple of quick snaps of David explaining one of his location set-ups, and Joe working it with Mike Cali along with some help from Drew Gurian. Both Mike and Drew were working hard and moving fast just trying to keep up.

I flew into St. Louis late Sunday afternoon and had a little bit of time to do some shooting the night before the session. However, it was overcast for most of that night and things came out somewhat flat. While I liked the composition of what I was shooting, I decided that black and white would be the best way to deal the flat grey sky. I think it was a good decision.

Enjoy!

DC

Around the Bay Road Race - March 27, 2011

The 30k Around the Bay Road Race, North America's oldest road race, challenges thousands of runners every year to see what they are made of. I have known about this race for quite a long time, but this year it has a different meaning. Last year I became a runner. I'm still not sure when it happened, still not sure how or why it happened, but it did. Last year I tacked on a runners bib and ran three 5k races...I was hooked! This year the goal is a number of 10k races (currently working on a sub 60 min. time). Next year? Maybe a half or perhaps I can convince my wife to run the Around the Bay two person relay at 15k each... however, I 'm pretty sure I'll be one to run all of the hills in last half.

I thought this was a great opportunity to grab my camera and head down to the half-way point to support and cheer on the runners, and capture some of the race action.

I think this sign at the half-way point says it all!

Here are the two front runners approaching the 15k mark at around 48 minutes.The runner in red, Derek Nakluski of Kitchener, Ontario, was the men's winner crossing the finish line in 1:37.15. 

 

Ah yes, the 2 hour pace bunny... love the ears!

Enjoy!

DC

Kenai Mountains and Whittier, Alaska

I mentioned a few posts ago about the Seward Highway in Alaska having some of the most incredible scenery that you could ever imagine. So many opportunities; however, when you are there for only a short period of time you shoot what you can, sometimes very quickly, and keep moving. The image below was one of those quick set-ups.

We were on our way back from Mt. Alyeska and I wanted to pull off to one of the vista points to see if I could grab a quick shot. We passed this spot on our way down and I was hoping to get a decent shot on the way back. The weather had changed and some more clouds moved in, which gave a more subdued tone than the colour from Mt. Alyeska. When I shoot landscapes I try to follow a simple composition process which includes a foreground, mid-ground and background. A little reflection is nice addition, too. This was looking across Turnagain Arm towards the Kenai Mountain Range. Taken with a Nikon D300 and 18-200 f3.5-5.6 VR lens (f22 @1/100). 

The following image was one from the forward deck of the Sapphire Princess while docked in Whittier, Alaska. What you're looking at is the only road in and out of Whittier. There's something I love about fog that makes scenes like this really interesting. Perhaps it's the mysterious look it gives. If the fog was not there I might not have given this a second look. Again, taken with a Nikon D300 and 18-200 f3.5-5.6 VR lens (f14 @1/25).

 
Enjoy!

DC

Joe McNally and David Hobby on a bus for 6 weeks?

This either an interesting sociological experiment or two lighting gurus extolling the virtues of big light from small flash, or perhaps a little bit of both. "The Flash Bus Tour 2011" begins on March 11 and these two lighting masters are going to put on one hell of a good show.

I'll be heading down to St. Louis to see them in April and I'm totally looking forward to it. Cities are filling up fast so you better be quick if you're interested.

Cheers!

DC