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Bob Shank Photography |
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Bob's
Photo Blog
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| Blogging April 28, 2009 I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about my blog. I believe that blogging is not only a great way to keep in touch and share information, but it is also an invaluable tool. I am not sure how effective my blog has been so far, so I've been doing some research. I am relatively new to the world of blogging so I've spent some time checking out some other blogs. I've dabbled in WordPress and you can see what I started doing here. Compare that layout and style with what you see here and let me know which one you like better. The WordPress option would actually be easier to use, but I believe it also has some drawbacks. I am curious what others think. What features do you like to see in a blog? What information is helpful for you to read? Just the other day I heard a photographer/blogger say that if you are blogging, you should blog every day. Okay, I am going to take that advice and see what happens. I figure even this old dog can learn at least some new tricks, so I am game to give it a try. Tomorrow is Wednesday, so I will be featuring a new weekly blog entry I am going to call Wildlife Wednesday. I enjoy photographing wildlife and will share some wildlife photo tips each Wednesday. What do you think about blogging? What are you looking to read in photography blogs? |
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| Sports
Photography April 26, 2009 I have been a huge sports fan for nearly all my life. I guess I didn't have much of a choice. My dad played football in high school for a team that won the championship in his junior year and then he went on to play semi-pro football. This high interest in sports was in my genes from the beginning and I wouldn't have it any other way! I coached baseball and football for the past nine years, which I truly enjoyed. I learned a lot about the great game of baseball and tried passing my insights and love of the game to the players I coached. I also coached the middle school football team, which was a thrill for me. Busy schedules and a desire to no longer be my son's baseball coach, figuring it was time he learned from someone else besides dear old dad, led me to stop coaching. It was one of the most difficult decisions of my life and one I still have regrets about at times. But I found a way to keep myself involved in the world of sports by using my camera to try to capture the plays on the field. My coaching experiences allow me to anticipate where the action will most likely be taking place so I can be ready to capture the special moment. My favorite sports photographs can be viewed here. I hope you enjoy viewing these sports photos. Do you think I am successful at capturing the special moments on the field? Do my photos tell a story? Baseball is our national pastime. Some may think it is a boring sport, but I do not agree. The action takes place in spurts but this is true in any sport. Baseball is the only game where the defense is in control of the "clock." The pitcher holds the baseball in his hands, grips it in his glove, and waits for the sign from his catcher. Meanwhile, the infielders are getting ready to implement their prep step so they will be prepared for the exact moment the ball is put into play by the batter. In just this short amount of time, I can think of a variety of photographs that could be fun to capture: the pitcher taking the signs, the catcher giving the signs, an infielder blowing a bubble with his chewing gum as he gets ready, the third base coach giving the hitter his signs, or the umpire pointing to the pitcher to indicate now is the time to play ball! The purpose of a photograph is to tell a story. Who is winning the game? Is the pitcher in a bind? Did the base runner successfully steal second base? Did the batter hit a 3-run dinger? What was the call of the umpire? Is the manger cool, calm, and collect; or is he pacing up and down the dugout or chirping at the umpire? You see, baseball is a great sport to photograph. I also am learning that the background in a photo is crucial. Chain link fences, parking lots, and power lines can all distract greatly from an action photo. There are a few options that we have at our disposal as photographers who want to eliminate these distracting backgrounds from our photographs. First, we can utilize a shallow depth of field where just the main subject is in focus. Using a large aperture (low numbered f-stop) we can cause the background to be blurred in the photo. This works very well with backgrounds that are of the same color. Another option is to zoom in on the subject, thereby eliminating most of the extraneous and distracting backgrounds. Obviously a large and powerful lens is needed to make this possible. Many photographers simply do not get close enough to their subjects. They think they have to get each and every detail in the frame. You can, however, create some extremely interesting and amazing shots by zooming in even more than you think is normal. And the more you zoom in, the more you eliminate the possibility of a background ruining your photograph. The other option is to consider the background even before setting up to photograph a play. Is there a fence back there? Are parked cars in the background? Can you remove that house out in right field by moving down the line twenty feet? I thoroughly enjoy sports photography. It keeps me involved in the games I enjoy and the challenge of attempting to capture the plays and emotions on the field is a thrill for me! I plan to keep learning how to be a better sports photographer and have several goals that I would like to accomplish before I am too old to click the shutter of my camera. I can't wait for the next time I hear the umpire yell, "Play ball!" |
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| Let
There Be Light! April 22, 2009 I finally purchased a flash unit for my camera--a Nikon SB-900 Speedlight to be specific. I had been relying mostly on my pop-up flash or natural light ever since I switched to digital photography back in 2003. I do prefer natural light for most subjects, but harsh shadows and low-lit places always caused problems for me. Now, the SB-900 will allow me to use more focused fill light and even provide off-camera lighting as a remote unit that will be triggered by the pop-up flash. It is one sweet flash! Light is key for good photographs. In fact, light is essential for photography, which is literally translated as "writing or painting with light." If there is no light, there is no photograph. But now I have a new flash that will help me bring light to the party! |
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| Pocono
Mountain East vs. Pleasant Valley April 16, 2009 Today I photographed another high school baseball game. Pleasant Valley hosted Pocono Mountain East on a beautiful sunny day. Xavier Hammond pitched a very good game for the Bears and was able to go all the way. He kept opposing batters off balance with his offspeed pitches and Pleasant Valley went on to win by a score of 7 - 2. I posted some photos of the game on my photo gallery and you can click on this link to see them. http://www.bobshankphotography.com/Photography%20PVBears.htm Look through these action photos and let me know what you think of them. -Bob |
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Spring e-newsletter posted I just posted the spring 2009 edition of my e-newsletter. It is filled with many of my recent photography outings and other photo-related content. Check it out and please let me know what you think of it. Lately, I am amazed at how many people know something about photography. It is an ever-increasing trend for people to be carrying iphones, point and shoot cameras, and PDAs; many of which double as cameras. They are lightweight and easy to use. What kind of camera do you have? Do you keep it with you? Are you prepared for when that special moment appears before you eyes? |
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Pleasant Valley vs. Freedom
- High School Baseball Today I photographed the baseball game held at Pleasant Valley High School. The Bears hosted Freedom at 11 o'clock in the morning. The Bears jumped to an early lead in the 2nd inning and played well throughout the game. Strong hitting, effective pitching, and successful base-stealing all contributed to a solid game by Pleasant Valley. They won the game 7-1. You can see some of the photos I posted from this game here: http://www.bobshankphotography.com/Photography%20PVBears.htm |
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Over 1,000 Unique Visits
to my website this month! You have probably noticed some new changes to my website. I added a script to present a rolling slildeshow of photos on my main page and also repeated this action on the LVBA 13U Team page. I figured it was a neat feature to have a variety of photos displayed like a slideshow as people were viewing my website. It is also a good way for people to see the kinds of photos I have been taking recently. I also added a box that flashes interesting comments and features of interest on my website. The white-bordered box displays these announcements and allows visitors to my site to be aware of new features or things to check out while viewing my pages. In addition, I have added 3 photo-related articles from some of my photography experiences. The articles are entitled, "Wildlife Fashion," "Get Rid of that Photo Vest," and "How I Shoot the Elk of Pennsylvania." I believe we can all learn from one another and it seemed logical for me to share this information in the article format. I will be periodically adding new photo articles, so keep checking back to read them. If you have a chance to email me, I would love to know what you think of these new features on my website. I have to admit that I am having a lot of fun designing my website and trying to make it more appealing and user friendly. Sharing my love of photography is a passion that I cannot seem to ignore. The time spent outdoors with my camera is my most favorite thing to do in my free time, but sharing my photos with others is a close second, and my website allows me to accomplish this quite easily. I've been tracking the number of visitors coming to my site and I am amazed at the attention it is getting. In January of this year, 998 unique visitors made their way to my website. I was anxious to see when that number would break over 1,000. Well, it is time to celebrate because in the month of March it happened. Not only did the number of unique visitors break the 1,000 mark but it easily surpassed it with a total of 1,291! Amazing! Thank you for visiting my website! I hope you enjoy the photographs and other information I am presenting. Let me know what else you would like to see or read about from the exciting world of photography. Have a great day! -Bob |
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Baseball Season is About
Set to Begin! Our son, James, plays travel baseball for the Lehigh Valley Baseball Academy. He is currently on the 13U team and they held a scrimmage last Saturday. You can view the photos I took at the scrimmage here. I enjoy the challenge of trying to capture the baseball action on the ballfield. Baseball is a great game and I find it extremely rewarding when I am able to freeze an action-moment with my Nikon D300. By the way, this new camera of mine is working tremendously well! I particularly like its 6 frames-per-second feature to capture moments like an attempted steal or the batter's swing. It is amazing how much of the action this camera is able to capture. The first official tournament is scheduled for this coming weekend and I will be there on the firstbase side behind my camera. The boys have been working hard in practice and their skills will soon be tested in the first official tournament of the season. Do you like baseball as much as I do? |
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Elk County Wildlife We just returned from our photo excursion in Elk County. James and I enjoyed 2 days in the beautiful mountains surrounding Benezette where the Pennsylvania elk roam freely. They provide plenty of photographic opportunities, but along the way other wildlife species attract our attention. Today, as I was searching for elk, I came upon a porcupine. These creatures get a bad rap in my opinion. This little guy was cute! He put on a little show for me and then got a little scared when I got too close. Then he climbed up a tree. It was interesting to watch him move along in what seemed like slow motion. James met me and was able to observe this little guy for a while, too. Porcupines are not nearly as large as elk but they are every bit as fascinating. You just never know what you might come across out on the mountain! I just posted a gallery of photos taken on this photo excursion. You can check them out here. Take a look at these wildlife photos and let me know what you think of them. Add a Comment
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Tomorrow's Photo Trip Early tomorrow morning, my son, James, and I will be heading off on another photography excursion. We are excited about this trip for two primary reasons. First, we always enjoy going to the beautiful mountains of Elk County and trying our hand at photographing the elk. The challenge is a welcome one for both of us because the beauty we see is always something to behold! Secondly, this is the time of year that the elk drop their antlers. Some years ago we found a spike antler, but we have not yet found any of the big boy’s antlers. We will be hiking many miles in our search and will hopefully come back with some good photos and perhaps even a shed antler. At the very least, we will come back with some incredible memories. There is no place like the mountians!
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My Son, James, and His
Photography My son, James Shank, is becoming quite proficient behind a camera. He has his own Nikon D40 and enjoys going out with me on all kinds of photographic excursions. He thoroughly enjoys photographing the elk of Pennsylvania and lately we have been working on some winter landscapes. You can some of his photos here on his gallery. I think you will enjoy his creative technique! Yesterday, my good friend, Dick McCreight, and I journeyed to the Upper Delaware National Park to try to find some bald eagles. The eagles winter in this park, which follows the Delaware River on the state line between Pennsylvania and New York. We did manage to see one bald eagle, but in my excitement I was not able to capture even one shot! This was a humble reminder to me that one can never be prepared enough. It was my lack of preparedness which resulted in me coming home empty-handed. We did manage to see some snow geese and a few turkeys as well. My new Nikon D300 is performing beautifully. I created 3 custom banks of menu settings so I can quickly change to specific shooting conditions. The camera is solidly built and is user friendly in so many ways. The bigger LCD screen makes setting the menus and looking at the photos much easier. The menus make sense are easily navigated. And the buttons and knobs on the camera make for quick changes as shooting conditions warrant. I am extremely impressed with the D300 so far and I am sure this camera body will suit my needs perfectly.
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My New Camera I just received delivery of a brand new Nikon D300 this afternoon from our friendly UPS delivery man. I carefully opened the box and slowly took the camera out. I knew, and often live by, the old adage that a real man never reads directions. But this time that old adage went right out the window. The User's Manual for my new D300 is exactly 421 pages long and I plan on reading many of those pages. Of course, I could not wait too long to actually use my new camera, so I loaded a battery and inserted an empty flash card and went outside. It was 26 degrees Farenheit but that didn't stop me from traipsing around the yard with my new camera! It didn't take long for this camera to feel like an old friend in my cold hands. I just love the way Nikon places their controls on their cameras! None of these first photos taken by my new D300 are going to win any prizes or even show up in my galleries, but almost immediately I could see why this camera has received such rave reviews. Compared to my old D70 the D300 has many more switches and controls to keep many options within easy reach, allowing the photographer to make many necessary changes on the fly without having to navigate through menus. It also boasts an impressive 6 frames per second, which should be very useful when I am shooting sports events. I've only had the D300 for about 8 hours now, but it has quickly become my favorite camera that I've ever owned. Stay tuned to this blog to hear more about my impressions on the D300. I will also be posting photos from this camera, too. It truly is a sweet piece of photographic equipment!
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Pennsylvania Elk Photography
Experience Well, another Pennsylvania Elk Photography Experience is in the books and we had a fantastic weekend! We arrived on Thursday to a cold day and over 18 inches of snow! The snowplow took care of making a drivable path to our cabin and we started the heater right away. It did take a while to get water into the camp because of the cold weather, but eventually the pipes thawed out enough to allow water to flow into the cabin. Elk were not as abundant early in the weekend as they usually are in warmer weather. We did see a few cows and a spike or two on Thursday. We also saw a number of trees that were stripped of some of their bark from the hungry elk attempting to find food in the snowy landscape. The weather began to get warmer as the weekend progressed and by Sunday it was downright warm enough to melt a lot of the snow! Elk became more abundantly seen as the warmer weather coaxed them from their hiding places. We did manage to see some nice bulls toward the end of the photo trip. These photogenic creatures offered us plenty of angles and poses to make our photographers happy. And on Sunday we had about 200 elk in the vicinity of our cabin! Cows were spread out all over the mountain and a couple of nice bulls put on quite a show for our guests. In-between shooting the elk we did see, we also found some beautiful landscapes and other subjects to photograph. One area in particular provided some frozen ice cycles and snowy scenes that had us switching lenses and trying creative techniques to capture its beauty. Our goal is always to find the elk and photograph them, but they are wild animals and can be unpredictable and difficult to locate. Fortunately, the elk range provides a variety of beautiful subjects and landscapes to provide us with chances to exercise our photographic creativity in those times when we are not seeing elk. You can look through my gallery for this photo trip and see some of the different scenes we were able to capture. The participants had a great time and we enjoyed being together, learning more about wildlife photography, and putting our photographic skills into use as we captured the elk with our cameras. I am looking forward to our Fall Photo Trip. This time of the year is my favorite for photographing the elk as they are actively in the rut. We would love to have you join us for this PA Elk Photo Experience, so check out the info here. We will feed you well and provide you with some up amazing sights of the Pennsylvania Elk in the beauty of the Fall colors. It will be a memorable experience!
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Trip Prep We are getting ready for our next "Pennsylvania Elk Photography Experience" so I am beginning to prepare for the trip. I typically work with lists of things I need to get ready and a packing list so I don't forget to pack anything. The excitement of wondering what all we might see and be able to photograph is enough to create plenty of energy and enthusiasm for this phase of the pre-trip planning! Food shopping and menu planning are not unimportant matters because photographers work up an appitite and must find sustinence at the end of a long day. There are rumors that two feet of snow are blanketing the ground around our cabin. If this is true then we will be in for some interesting hikes! This causes me to wonder how the animals of the mountains are able to survive such harsh winters. Here in the Poconos we've had snow on the ground for over a month now. It has been cold, too. Our lowest temperature in the month of January was -9.8. The weather is beginning to change now and this weekend is supposed to be much warmer. Forty-degrees in February is not bad at all. I am sure we will have some cold weather to deal with this week, but it could always be worse. Besides, anytime to be outdoors enjoying nature is a pure joy! I will post another blog after we return from this week's photo trip. In the meantime get out there and capture some photographs!
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Photos from Chincoteague I just posted some of the photographs I took at Chincoteague last week. You can view them here. I spent two days at this wildlife refuge and saw a lot of wildlife! I thoroughly enjoy this special place and the birds especially are amazing! I spent almost one hour watching two great egrets and one blue heron fishing and feeding on small fish. It was incredible to watch their sneaky tactics to find the swimming fish and then plunge their beaks into the water the catch their dinner! I also was able to capture of a few of the birds in flight as they were flying. This is not an easy task even with a good camera, so I was thankful for the few in-flight shots I was able to capture. Check out the photos and let me know what you think of them.
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New Website Features You now can order prints online from this website! Some of you have wanted this feature to make it easier to order prints with your credit card. Well, now you can do this! I have found a relatively easy way for you to order the prints you desire. When you get to the Order Prints page you just need to enter the photo ID number of the specific photograph you want to order. Then when you arrive at the shopping cart you can increase the quantity of that print or continue shopping to add other prints to your order. I suggest you either write down the photo ID numbers of the prints you want to order or make a list of these photo ID numbers in a separate spreadsheet so you can toggle back and forth to enter these ID numbers on the Order Prints webpage. If you have any questions or problems with this new feature, please let me know. I continue to find new and better ways to enhance this website but your input is invaluable. Next week I will be traveling to Ocean City, Maryland for a conference. I hope to arrive early and make a side-trip to Chincoteague to do some bird and wildlife photography. This will be a welcome change from the snowy scenery we have currently here in the Poconos! More snow is expected to fall tomorrow and we just had an ice storm this past week. Nature sure has a way to keep changing and providing beautiful photographs for us to capture! Are you still using your camera this winter? There are some neat photos just waiting to be captured if you can brave the elements and endure the cold temperatures and windy gusts!
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Wrestling Photographs This past Saturday our nephew, Shane Rosenberry, was in a wresting tournament at Whitehall. It was my first attempt at shooting the sport of wrestling with my camera. I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and learned a few things along the way! One obvious lesson was that the lighting in a gymnasium is not the best for photography. Even with my fast 70-200mm lens with an f-stop of 2.8 I had to bump up my ISO to 400. I was able to capture a few decent photos and you can check them out by clicking here. I continue to learn more and more about the fascinating art of photography! Our upcoming PA Elk Photography Experience will be taking place the first full weekend in February. I am looking forward to this trip and I am sure we will have a great time! This past week, over the New Year holiday, we saw a lot of elk. The cows were herded up in large groups and stayed in the same area for two days before moving to a new location. We didn't see all that many bulls, but we did manage to see 7 nice bulls. I will hopefully post a few photos from this trip in the next day or so.
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Christmas Photography Winter has definitely set in up here in the Poconos. Although we are currently enjoying a warm-spell, the past few months have been snowy and icy. I have been taking the usual Christmas photos as our families have gathered to exchange gifts and sit down to enjoy the Christmas meals. My family does not always enjoy the flash from my camera but somehow they always seem to smile anyway! There are still openings for our two photo trips planned for February and September. They promise to be awesome experiences so sign up and join us for these unforgettable experiences. The elk have been active up on the mountain and our family will be celebrating the New Year in Elk County. I am sure we will have ample opportunities to photograph more of these majestic animals! I hope that you had a great holiday season and have acquired some new photo equipment. I am saving up for a new camera body, so I have no recent acquisitions since I am saving my money for this. I am planning on purchasing the D300 and am looking forward to using it for wildlife and sports photography. Have a happy and photographically successful New Year!
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Holiday Boutique This past Saturday, James and I attended the Holiday Boutique at Stroudsburg United Methodist Church. This was a craft fair and we displayed some of our wildlife photographs hoping that some would draw some attention and perhaps even be purchased. I was not sure what to expect because we never really put our photographs out on display before other than on the website. The website does draw a fair amount of attention, but the feedback there is minimal. So I thought the craft fair display would be a good barometer test of sorts for us. Well, our photo booth did attract some attention and we actually sold 9 photographs! The "Egret Reflection" and the "Blue Heron Reflection" drew the most attention. We also had 4 people sign up for our upcoming "Basic Digital Photography Workshop." This was a very good day for us and we are considering other venues in which to display our photographs. If you like what you see on the website, please drop me a line via email. I'd love to hear from you. I am also considering a way for viewers to order photographic prints online. I like to surf the web and see the digital images, but there is nothing quite the same as seeing a beautiful 8x10 or 11x14 photograph right before you eyes! If you like the idea of online ordering let me know. I also am trying to expand my email database. If you know someone in your family or circle of acquaintances, please forward their email address to me or have them be in contact with me via email. In another week I will be up in the mountains of Elk County again and I can't wait! Did you ever hear me say this before: "There is no place like the mountains!"
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Wildlife Photography Wildlife photography continues to be an increasingly exciting activity for us. James, my son, and I spent some time up in Elk County at our camp again and we were able to see and photograph a lot of elk. We saw herds of elk on the mountain sides and were surprised to see some cows still hanging out with some bulls. The rut should be over by now but nature often is difficult to predict. We also witnessed some phenomenal sunsets in the evening. Do you enjoy nature photography? There are times when patience is definitely required, but it is always worth the wait in my opinion. It was unseasonably warm, which made the shooting hours not only bearable but entirely enjoyable! I also continue to learn more and more about photography in general. Just this past weekend I watched my good friend, Bob Amundsen, photograph a wedding. Bob and his wife have an excellent wedding photography business and they produce reliable and breathtaking images for newlywed couples. I was able to watch and take notes as they captured the moments and did the formal portraits. The sports seasons are over so I am looking forward to shooting some different venues in the near future. Last year I did some photography at Chincoteague Wildlife Refuge and the big birds cooperated beautifully. I am thinking about going back there again. I am also hoping to capture some winter scenes this year. We live in the Poconos of northeast Pennsylvania so we typically have a decent amount of snowfall. Last winter we seemed to get more ice than snow, so I am hoping for more snow this year. The woodstove is already lit for the season and we did have an eight-inch snowfall in October, so things are looking good for the winter snowfall. I thoroughly enjoy the seasonal changes we experience here in Pennsylvania. And capturing the variety of scenes with my camera is always an exciting adventure!
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Photography Equipment
Suggestion We just had our first snow of the season here in the Poconos. Eight inches or more of snow fell today as the wind whipped through the mountains creating drifts of snow and making visibility difficult. Welcome to life in the mountains! Actually I thoroughly enjoy living in the mountains. While some think us absolutely crazy for living up here, I would have it no other way. There is no place in the world like the mountains! Lydia, James, and I are planning to head up to the mountains of Elk County this coming weekend. Our main goal is photographing the elk again. The rut will now be over so the bulls should be hanging out together in what are referred to as bachelor groups. If at least some of the snow lasts through the week, it should make for some stunning backdrops for our photographs. The thrill of shooting the elk with our cameras is always an exciting adventure for us. The planning stages for this trip are about to begin and figuring out what to take is not always an easy procedure. A one-and-a-half day trip demands at least a reasonable amount of caution to avoid taking everything including the kitchen sink! However, the weather change and the new snow require some forethought in figuring out what to pack to make the trip comfortable. There is nothing worse than getting up early in the morning to go out for a shoot and then realize that you have not packed enough layers of clothing. That old saying about "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" comes to mind when planning on what to pack. Planning ahead and even foreseeing the events unfold in one's mind's eye can be invaluable! I recently purchased the Think Tank belt system. This system includes a belt that is worn around the waist to which modular cases are attached. These hold lenses or other photographic accessories right on the photographer's person and makes for both portability and quick lens changes. While a photographer's backpack is good in some situations, this belt system does not result in a sweaty back and yet keeps components within easy reach. I especially like this system's portability for hiking up mountains in search of elk. I typically keep my camera on my tripod, which I carry on my shoulder with legs extended. One never knows when a wildlife subject may appear, so being prepared is critical. Then I use the Think Tank modular system to carry my lenses and other accessories, keeping everything within easy reach. This works well for me in my wildlife endeavors and I encourage you to give it a try, too. You can find the Think Tank products at www.thinktankphoto.com
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Elk Photos Yesterday our family spent Columbus Day at our camp on Winslow Hill in Elk County. This is a favorite spot for us and we were hoping to see some elk in the early morning and at dusk. We were rewarded by seeing 4 bulls in the morning just after 7am. The fog was just beginning to lift, which provided an eerie backdrop as we watched and photographed the bulls. A few were still bugling, indicating that the rut for this season is not quite over yet. One bull was eating berries off a tree just on the other side of a fence along the road. We were photographing him as he walked down the fencerow to an opening and then he came out on the other side of the fence to eat more berries from the other side of the tree. We concluded that elk are smart! We spent the middle of the day doing some chores around the camp, which consisted of cutting some weeds down, clearing some brush, and cutting some tree limbs off. Then by 4pm we were out looking for elk again. We didn't see any in a favorite field we like to frequent and for a while I thought we might get skunked because it was so hot. But then as the heat began to dissipate, the elk slowly began to appear. We photographed 3 more bulls until well after sunset. We were also able to capture some beautiful photographs of the sunset. You can see the photos here.
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Sports Photography Banner Recently I was just asked to help create a sports bannner for the Lehigh Valley Baseball Academy's website. Our son, James, plays on one of the travel teams and I have been capturing the action with my camera. Steve asked me if I could create a banner to be placed at the top of their redesigned website. He wanted it to be a collage of photos. You can check it out by clicking here: http://www.lehighvalleybaseballacademy.com/index.shtml Last Saturday Lydia, James, and I hiked to Hawk Falls in Hickory Run State Park. Our goal was to enjoy the beautiful Fall weather and do some photography around the falls. It was a great day that we enjoyed thoroughly. You can see some of our photographs here: http://www.bobshankphotography.com/Gallery%20Photos/Hawk%20Falls%20Slideshow/index.html
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Pennsylvania Elk Photography
Experience We just returned from our
Elk in Rut Experience and we had a very rewarding time. The bulls were
bugling and displaying their signs of dominance as they herded up their
cows. We saw elk every day, and in fact, we saw elk just about every
time we went out to photograph them! Talk about cooperative subjects! We saw some elk sparing
with their antlers as they were practicing for the bigger fights for
dominance, we saw cows eating turnips and keeping their distance from
the overly excited bulls, we saw a spike bull and a cow "boxing,"
and we saw one calf born late this summer that was still nursing from
its mother! The weather couldn't have
cooperated any better. The leaves were actually changing colors throughout
the week, which provided some splash of color in our composition. You
can see some examples of this in my PA Elk Photo Experience Gallery
slideshow. It was fascinating to see
how three different photographers could see the same subjects and yet
acquire very different photographs. Each time we returned to camp, we
would upload our photos onto our laptops and then begin to go through
them. We learned a lot about Adobe Lightroom and I am now a big fan
of this software. We learned a lot by having the same software installed
on our individual laptops so we could ask questions along the way as
we worked on uploading and editing our photos. This experience was very
rewarding on many levels. We saw lots of elk, we learned much about
Lightroom, and we enjoyed shooting side by side and talking about composition,
light, and other approaches to capturing these incredible moments with
our digital cameras. We shared some basic information about the Pennsylvania
elk herd. And we thoroughly enjoyed being together as photographers. You can see more photos
from the 2008 Elk in Rut Experience here: If you would like to join
us on an upcoming trip, please contact us. You can find more information
here. -Bob
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