White Tank Mountain Park

White Tank Mountain Park
Originally uploaded by indykaleu
This picture was made in White Tank Mountain park, near Phoenix, Arizona. After seeing the exit sign for this park several times during our recent vacation to Phoenix, we decided to visit the park before leaving.

It was a sunny day and while the sun was a pale blue color, I wanted something a little richer and a darker blue. After making a few pictures with the pale blue sky, I decided to underexpose the rest of my pictures in order to get a deeper blue sky.

I'm happy with the results. The only thing that is missing are the clouds that were present in Phoenix the previous day. Oh well, maybe on another visit?

We certainly were not disappointed. This was my first visit to the park and I hope to come back multiple times. We hiked on several trails and had a thoroughly good visit. The park has many trails along with clean and modern facilities. Be sure to stop in at the visitors center and the entrance to the park.

For more on the park, go here:

www.maricopa.gov/parks/white_tank/

Hey, a timely post from me about a festival or event happening in Indianapolis.  Finally!  Last night as everyone living in Indianapolis knows was the Circle of Lights festival, or as it could be known, turning the lights on the Monument Circle.

This event has grown from a small ceremony of initially lasting a few minutes to something now that lasts over an hour and is broadcast live on WRTV 6.  The event annually draws over 100,000 people every year to watch the live performances and to witness the lighting of Monument Circle.  A small fireworks show is also included once the lights are lit.

Last night was the 50th anniversary of the lighting ceremony and for most of the day I couldn't decide if I wanted to photograph the event or not.  I was downtown last year, but chose a wrong spot on the west side of Monument Circle and didn't get any good shots of the fireworks and the lights in the same picture.  I wanted to have better results this year.

I arrived early, but not early enough for a spot on the southside of the circle, maybe next year? I don't know.  I did manage to get a spot that would put the fireworks and Monument Circle in the same shot.  Other than constantly having to readjust my tripod after getting bumped by person after person (doesn't anybody look where they are walking anymore?), it was a relatively short hour wait until the circle was lit and the fireworks started.

Here are a couple of pictures that I shot this year:

Both were made using a Canon EOS 30d.  The lens I used was a Sigma 17-50mm f2.8  I used Bulb mode, had the aperture set to f11 and the ISO was at 200.

I think this area might be a good location for the July 4th fireworks display next year. That is if I can get over my annual disappointment of the Indianapolis fireworks display.  On a completely unrelated topic, if you want to see a spectacular fireworks display, go the Thunder over Louisville event or go west to Heritage Lake and see their displays. I shot both events this year and they are both excellent displays.

Winding country road

Winding country road
Originally uploaded by indykaleu
Down the long and winding road. This was made in Brown County Indiana, near Belmont. This is a private driveway off of the TC Steele road and is near the TC Steele state historic site, which is a must visit if you have any interest in landscape and portrait painting. Do a little research on TC Steele before visiting.

This was my first time shooting fall colors in southern Indiana and for certain, it won't be my last time. I'm very glad that I visited on this particular weekend as the leaves were already starting to fall and would likely have been mostly gone if I had waited another week.

I'd like to visit this area again and probably at night. The winding road would make for some excellent light trail photos at night. Just a reminder, bring a reflective vest and someone else to drive the car. The road had traffic during the day, but might not be so busy at night.

TC Steele estate and historic site

TC Steele estate and historic site
Originally uploaded by indykaleu
I'm a little behind with my posts, this was taken in October and was made at the TC Steele estate and state historic site in Brown County, Indiana.

To be more precise, his former home is near Belmont, Indiana, which is south of Nashville, Indiana.

His home is about 221 acres and offers several trails, a couple of which will test your endurance and hiking ability. A helpful tip, be sure to bring water with you. Nothing is available at the home site.

The TC Steele home site is an incredibly beautiful place to visit in the fall. I think it will also look great for a visit when snow is on the ground and again in the spring when the flowers are blooming.

The road which takes you to his home is called appropriately enough "TC Steele road" and is also offers many good opportunities for photography.

Places to pull over can be scarce and be sure to watch out for hunters in the area, but a couple of lakes are located along the road and well worth the visit. One of the lakes will be a good location for star trail photography. No lights!

For more information on TC Steele, go to http://www.tcsteele.org/ .

His first time?

His first time?
Originally uploaded by indykaleu

Now that it is getting colder, how about a picture to warm you up? I think this may end up as my Christmas card for this year. I think I
will call it "Peace". Haha.

This shot was made at the Indianapolis Zoo on the Lemur island. These two brown lemurs were constantly being harassed by the white lemurs. It looked to me like it was a territory/turf disagreement to me. Still a fun picture.