Willard Chapel in Auburn, New York - an HDR conversion

Image copyright 2009 Byron O'Neal

I'm now getting back on my feet and getting the chance to review some of the images from my recent commercial photo trip to upstate New York. One of the highlights of the trip was getting to discover the Willard Chapel. It is the only chapel known to exist that was designed by the Tiffany Glass and Decorating Company. The image to the left is an HDR conversion of six images taken inside the chapel. If you are in the Finger Lakes region, take a little time to drop by the chapel and marvel at the hidden gem of the area. 

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The perils of being a photographer on the road

Everyone I meet says that I have the coolest job in the world. I get to travel around and snap pictures while meeting interesting people and checking out cool places. This is true, I do have the best job in the world but there are always bumps in the road. In this case, I bumped into a rather large tractor. This harbinger of utter destruction was driven by a boy not more than ten years old. I was following along behind he and his buddy when they slowed and pulled over to the side of the road in a little town called Locke in Wherethehellami County in New York. Thinking, as most people would, that this was an indication for me to pass them, I looked down the road and seeing nobody coming moved on by. At this point, the tractor swerved across at the rental car prompting me to inwardly scream like a little girl. I stomped on the brakes and tried to swerve out of the way to avoid the rural version of a monster truck rally. Managing to hit only the tractor's tire the front end was smashed up pretty badly. (Shit!) 

I did my best to keep the kids calm while the driver's father showed up (I'd hate to have gotten that call from my son.) It should be mentioned that the rental car was not mine either but my father-in-law's and no I was not on the rental agreement. (Shit, shit!) John, the kid's father, showed up a few minutes later and considering the situation we had a nice little chat about how beautiful upstate New York is. 

John: You from around here?

Me: Nope, from Oklahoma.

John: First time in upstate?

Me: Yes, it's really beautiful actually.

John: We think so....

Me: Sorry to meet you under these circumstances.

John: Me too. Your car?

Me: No, it's a rental.

John: (Shit) Is that a Toyota?

Me: Yep, I think.

John: (Shit) Aren't they expensive?

Me: Expensive enough, I've never owned one. It's my father-in-law's rental car. (Shit)

John: (patting me on the back) Ouch, sorry man. 

It's all part of the adventure of traveling and as nobody got hurt, makes for an interesting story. Unfortunately, it gives my father-in-law endless opportunity to bring the incident up in front of complete strangers and will be his favorite tale about me for quite some time I'm sure. I'm now christened "Crash" for all time. Ah well.

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Aerial Photography of Salt Pond's Around San Francisco

Photo courtesy Flickr Photostream of Jerry Ting 

Wow! This aerial shot is of salt evaporation ponds around San Francisco Bay. I found the article about it Killer Web Directory. The interactive google maps of the site are a bunch of fun. It makes me feel like I'm a kid again playing with a crayon box. 

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How to create a misleading graphic, brought to you by your government

This site has a bunch of graphics that the government designed that illustrate how a picture can be worth a thousand rather confusing words. Take the example to the left. What is this supposed to tell you? There is a whole series looking at signs like this and humorous suggestions of how they can be interpreted.

For instance: If a door is closed, karate chop it down.

I laughed out loud reading these.

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Why Do I Love This Picture So Much?

I, unfortunately, can't give a photo credit for this one. I came across it at a weird photo/video blog that I check every month or so and have just fallen in love with the image.  Sphere: Related Content

Michael Jackson Graffiti Stencil

More street art tribute to the "King of Pop," from Kurt Christensen's photostream over at Flickr. Sphere: Related Content

Salvador Dali Chocolate Commerical

Man he was a weird cat. I got a chance to check out the Dali Museum while on a commercial assignment this Spring. If you are in the St.Petersburg are, it is a definite stop in.

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Lightning Strike Hits the Capital

Photo copyright Teddy Smith

This is a really neat capture from Teddy Smith. Check out his Photostream on Flicker.

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Burger King Promotes the New Seven Incher

This thing takes the cake for suggestive advertising. I can't believe that they did this.

Allegedly running in the Singapore markets and not the US, the text of the ad is:

Fill your desire for something long, juicy and flame-grilled with the NEW BK SUPER SEVEN INCHER. Yearn for more after you taste the mind-blowing burger that comes with a single beef patty, topped with American cheese, crispy onions and the A1 Thick and Hearty Steak Sauce.

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Row Boats in Maine Fog

Image copyright 2009 Byron O'Neal

This wide shot has a 2:1 ratio that I am falling in love with. 

We were cruising around Seal Harbor on a foggy afternoon with little man napping in the backseat when we came upon this series of row boats tied to the docks . Fisherman and boaters use them to get out to their larger boats moored in deeper waters. The fog was rolling around quickly, obscuring and revealing great shots almost too quickly to respond to. Not wanting to wake the baby, I steadied the camera on a guardrail rather than try and snatch the tripod out of the back of the car. 

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How to make a flower pot out of a broken camera for clumsy people like myself

Photojojo has a funny article up on how to convert your camera or lens mishap into a flower pot. I wish I could say that it has never happened to me, but I'm just too clumsy for that. Mine was a Nikon D100 that went into a half frozen water trough in Cades Cove just before Christmas a few years back. 

The offending water trough is below. Arghhhhhh!

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Happy Fourth of July Weekend Everyone!

Happy Fourth of July!

I'd be happy to give a photo credit here if I had one. I did a Google search for fireworks images and here you go.

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