Old Town Alexandria, VA

Here are some photos from an afternoon in Old Town Alexandria, VA. Old Town is great place to check out some local artist at the Torpedo Factory and watch performances by local musicians. While I was down there I discovered 10 year-old Geoffrey Gallante, who is an amazing trumpet player.

Photographing Fireworks - Brambleton, VA

So last Saturday my neighborhood had their annual Red, White and Bram (Brambleton) Festival which included a day of concerts, food and fireworks. I decided to experiment and shoot fireworks at different shutter speeds and aperture settings to see what I would get. I didn't have a tripod on me so most of these shots were handheld while leaning the camera against a rail.  These were shot with my Nikon D90.  Can you tell which ones where shot with a slower shutter speed?

Frying Pan Farm Park - Herndon, VA

One of the best perks about living in the DC area as a parent is all the free stuff you can do with your kids. The museums, zoo, and local farms are all free for your kids to explore. This past Saturday we took our kids and my sister's kids to Frying Pan Farm Park in Herndon. It's a working farm where children can run around and pet the animals. It has a playground too and a picnic area to enjoy some outdoor eats.

I had fun making these photos below. I used Kodak Portra 160 NC and rated it at an ISO of 50. Learned one thing though, it's tough using manual focus on children. You can't get them to sit still long enough :).

My first film roll (part 2)

Here are more photos from my first roll of film. I developed the film at Walgreens so that scan quality isn't that great. With shooting film and 100% manual, you really have to trust yourself with what you know. Right now I'm learning the quirkiness of my Yaschica and possibilities with film.

My first film roll

I think I get it now why there are some people who think you can only achieve certain results with film. I'm a believer now. Below are my first photos with film using Kodak Portra 160 NC (expired 2007). I had lunch with the family in Old Town Leesburg today at Fireworks Pizza and made these photos below. My light meter didn't work on my Yashica because I couldn't find any batteries for it, instead I used a light meter app on my iPhone...not bad.

I gotta say that Carl Zeiss lens is a beast. I need to learn how to tame it...it's one powerful lens. I'll post more from my first roll tomorrow.