doolittle raiders
If you are not familiar with the Doolittle Raiders and their attack on Tokyo, you would read up on them.
After the war, they have had a reunion every year. A bottle of brandy was bought and the tradition has been that the last surviving raider would open the bottle and drink to the others.
More than 70 years later, the last 4 survivors decided that it was time to open the bottle. The ceremony was held yesterday, here in Dayton. To honor the ceremony, a flight of B-25 bombers (the plane they flew) was put together to fly over the ceremony. The planes spent the night at the little airport just north of here. Through some connections, I was given a press pass (my first!) so that I could go out onto the runway and photograph the planes.
Standing there, seeing how small the planes were. Listening to their engines roaring. Seeing the planes circle the airport and then dissappear into the distance. I thought how brave those men were.
P.S. Thought you might like to hear what the engines sounded like being warmed up: http://youtu.be/MDVFdsgceVs
cooper’s thing
Cooper has this strange habit of staring into space with a mouthful of water for a few moments before swallowing. It’s so common and so unusual, that it has become his thing. After swallowing, he smacks his lips. Every mouthful seems to contain the tastiest water he has ever drunk. Life is good with simple pleasures like that. Good for you Cooper, enjoy your drink.
cornbread
As far as I am concerned, there is only one way to make cornbread…in a heavy cast iron skillit. It's the way my mom made it and the way her mother made it.
a little refreshment for a hot day
dawn cast
Two weeks ago, I was invited to shoot photos of a friend fly fishing at dawn. The photo shoot occurred this morning, so I had plenty of time to get my thoughts together.
I always first think about the conditions. Shooting at dawn meant low light and long exposures. This time of the year, it would be cold. So, I would need to dress warm and bring my tripod.
I also think about what the shot might feel like. Fly fishing always seems to be about motion. The rod waving back and forth, the fisherman moving through the water. Dawn is about long shadows. It's about that brief period of time when its not day and its not night. It's kind of an other worldly time. Everything is soft and hard to see. It's sometimes about vivid and saturated skies, but that isn't how I saw the shoot. It should be about the fisherman on the dark river, not the sky.
So, I put the thought of long exposures, motion, and that sense of otherwordly-ness together. I could use the low light and motion to create ghostly images of the fisherman's motion and the motion of the water's surface.
We shot in the cold and after coming home, I processed the images, culling the ones that were obviously not good. Next, I culled out the ones that did not have the ghostly feel that I wanted. I made some basic levels adjustments and burned some areas.
I hope you enjoy the image.
Tim
shadow portrait
blue glass abstract
black and white orchids
strange visions I have
I can’t always explain what it is I shoot. Sometimes, all I can do is focus and press the shutter button. I can’t interpret the image. I don’t know that there is any meaning. I’ll leave that up to you. I can tell you that, this year, I probably went to a better Halloween party than you. Belly dancing unicorns…yes, this party was something else.
tim mcmurdo 