I’m finally working through some of the photos from this summer.  Throughout this summer, when I’ve had time to work on personal photos, I haven’t always wanted to.  When I get free time, sometimes I just want to go to a park, watch TV, or have a beer.  However, it’s time to get down to the business of editing the summer photos and start showing some stuff.

The shot above is from the boardwalk at Coney Island, and is pretty simple to see what it is.  This was the afternoon of the Coney Island Mermaid Parade.  If you’ve never been to the Mermaid Parade, which I hadn’t, I recommend going.  I have no  intention of going back again, however, at least not as a behind-the-ropes spectator.  It was hot, crowded, and the photo opportunities just weren’t doing it for me.  After we gave up on the parade, we walked down the boardwalk, and I saw this ticket booth which brought back childhood memories of the Cleveland County Fair.  A quick three-shot HDR and this is what you get.  Unlike Coney Island, this is pretty simple, but I still like it.

It has been a few days since I’ve posted to the blog, and it seems like today is a good time to do so. Mike Pittman Photography’s “World Headquarters” have been buzzing with activity.  I’ve been busy editing the photos from Matt & Di’s wedding as well as moving my entire photo archive (at least the part that’s digitized) back to 2000 from SmugMug to Flickr.  I really enjoyed SmugMug, but Flickr has a better offering for my requirements.  There are also some not-so-secret changes taking place behind the scenes, but for now I’ll let those remain “not-so-secret” and unveil the curtain at a later date.

Anyone who has been to New York City knows the Flatiron Building.  Then again, most people who haven’t been to New York City know the Flatiron Building.  It’s famous for it’s triangular shape, and is historical for being one of the city’s first skyscrapers.  The HDR photo above was taken on a cold winter night, just before sunset, as the reflection of the setting sun made it’s mark on the east side of the building.  Sometimes these things just align, and this is one of those days.  I was out and about with my trusty Canon G11 and looked up to see the reflection.  I braced myself against a light pole, and started shooting bracketed sets.  I was able to fire off six frames, and the beautiful light was gone.  At sunset, patience is not a virtue.  Shoot through the sunset, and worry with the perfect light later.  If you wait for the light to improve, you may well have just missed the best light of the evening.

Last weekend I had the pleasure of working with Matt & Di at 620 Loft & Garden in midtown Manhattan.  Matt and Di, and all of their guests, were great to work with.  The love these two share was almost palpable, and so was the love their family and friends share for the two of them.  I am so glad I was able to be a present for their wedding to capture the wedding day of a great couple, and look forward to sharing the moments I captured with them and their family.

Yet another photo from my European vacation.  This one is also from Croatia… also from Dubrovnik… but from an island just off the mainland called Lokrum Island.  You can read more about Lokrum Island if you want to, but really all you need to know is this:  it’s beautiful.  The view back to the mainland is fantastic, and a short walk to the other side of the island and you see nothing but the sea.  Beautiful sea.  Then again, if you walk to the left when you get off of the boat docks, you might get to see more than you bargain for.  I’ll let you look that one up on your own.

I’m sure this boat has a story to tell, at least it looks like it does.  I’m glad I stumbled across it while we spent our day on Lokrum Island.

If I could spend two weeks of every year on a vacation where I took as many photos as I did during the two weeks I spent in Europe…  well, I wouldn’t have time to edit anything else.  I took over three months just to do my initial edit on the photos from Prague, Croatia, and Italy.  Looking back at the way I edited them just two years ago, I want to go through the process all over again, but time just doesn’t permit right now.  Sometime soon, when I have more free time, I’ll go back and work on those photos again.

This harbor is in Dubrovnik Croatia.  Going to Dubrovnik was a game-time decision and replaced Florence, Italy in the trip itinerary while I was on an un-planned 6 hour layover in London.  That change, in my opinion, was the decision of the trip.  Croatia, and Dubrovnik especially, is truly the “Gem of the Adriatic.”  The people were nice, and the photos were even better.  I could easily spend just two weeks in and around Dubrovnik, not to mention the rest of Croatia.

If you thought only Southern Baptists are against the sins of drinking alcohol, head out to Portland, OR and have a gander at the Benson Bubblers.  The bubblers were added to the city sidewalks after Simon Benson donated $10,000 to the city of Portland for their installation.  Benson, a complete non-drinker, was tired of his workers having alcoholic beverages during the middle of the workday, so decided to donate the money to the city of Portland for bubblers to be installed.  History says that alcohol consumption decreased by 25% after the initial 20 bubblers were installed.

The photo above is a single photo with a bit of post-processing to get the HDR-ish look I wanted when I took the photo originally.  I can also attest that the water that comes from these bubblers is cool, and on a hot summer day, a welcome relief after downing a couple beers.  Thanks, Simon!

The photo above is from the shore of the Vltava river, looking back at the Old Town in Prague.  It’s an HDR photo, and I’m lucky to have gotten it.  Before I left for the trip, I purchased a small imitation Gorillapod that wouldn’t even hold my Canon G9 stable.  It was shaky, and the weight of the camera caused it to slouch. I donated it to a hostel in Rome.  Regardless, the best part of having the bittypod was as I was taking this photo, a group of teenagers walked by and had quite the laugh at my expense for using such a small tripod.  “It’s so tiny!” and “look how small it is!” did nothing for my confidence.  The shot, however, worked out… who’s laughing now kids?

When we talked about where we were going with some people, I heard a lot of comments about our first stop, Prague.  Prague, they said, had been too westernized.  It was a tourist trap now on the scale of Venice, Italy or France.  Having spent a few days in Prague, not nearly enough mind you, I beg to differ with that assertion.

Yes, there were a lot of Americans and western type folk there.  But the Old Town in Prague was beautiful, and to get away from the tourists all you have to do is walk a block away from the main square and main roads.  The buildings and architecture are beautiful, and the people beyond friendly.  The last thing you want to do in Prague, however, is try to cross the street when you don’t have the “walk” sign.  You might as well just put a gun to your head.  The citizens of Prague do not mess around when it comes to driving.

There were a lot of things I really enjoyed about my time living in Spokane, WA.  The people were friendly for the most part, the seasons were great (four of them, each uniquely different), it was a haven for an outdoor lover, but most of all Spokane, and the area around Spokane, is beautiful and perfect for photography.

The river above is the Spokane River, and you may have guessed that the city beyond the river is Spokane, WA.  The great and interesting thing about this river is how variable the flow is. During peak snow runoff which is usually sometime in early May, the water flow is so severe they actually close down the bridges across the river because the spray from the waterfalls makes crossing treacherous.  Come back just 3 months later in August, and the river you see above is barely flowing enough to be considered a creek.

During the spring, with flowers in bloom and high clouds to accent the sky, water flowing in the river, and the still cool evenings, you would be hard pressed to find a better area to find beautiful photographs waiting to be made, all within an easy drive from Spokane, WA.

I don’t get much of a chance to practice my architectural photograph skills, largely because I have almost none and just enjoy shooting pretty buildings.  From time to time, however, I take a little time to get a nice shot, and work on it in Lightroom even though it will probably never be published or show up anywhere other than here.

Like most regions of the US, the Pacific Northwest has its own architectural style, and the McCarthey Athletic Center, home of the Gonzaga Bulldogs basketball programs, is no different.  The large windows, sloping roof line, and natural looking landscaping help to make the building look right at home in Spokane, WA.

The photo above was taken on a beautiful spring morning as I was wandering around taking photos of other campus buildings.  This is my favorite shot from that morning, and one of a very few architectural photos I’ve been pleased with.

The photo above is an homage to Moose Peterson (http://twitter.com/moosepeterson @moosepeterson http://www.moosepeterson.com/) who will very often post photos of his “office” on Twitter with the sole purpose of making all of his followers electric green with envy.  That’s at least the only explanation I can come up with for why he does that to us.

As I was sitting in my office at home this afternoon, I thought back to what someone told me a few weeks ago, “Mike… your office has a beautiful view, a large window, and it’s 20 feet to your fridge… you’re quite lucky.”  My quick reply was a quote from an old photographer friend of mine – Robert Willett – that I hope I always keep in mind, no matter how “tough” this gets: “Yuup…  sure beats having a real job.”