Category Archives: Orlando

Keb’ Mo’ at the Plaza

February 2, 2012INSIDE FLORIDA, Orlando, Plaza Theatreconcert, music, peopleEd Rosack

Another wonderful concert at Orlando’s Plaza Theater last night! Keb’ Mo’ was in town – if you like the blues you probably already know about him. If not, you should.

Lynn and I had excellent seats which made for great listening as well as a great photo vantage point.

Keb’ Mo’

He and his band seemed to really enjoy themselves. They played a combination of older tunes and some off of his new album (The Reflection). The audience enjoyed it too.

… And the band

If you live in or near Orlando, pay attention to the Plaza. There might be some shows you’d be interested in. It’s a great venue. If you go and want to take a camera, bring a smaller one. They don’t allow “professional cameras or flash photography”. I’ve posted a couple other photos from last night in this set on Flickr. And you can read a blog entry I wrote about Hot Tuna at the Plaza here.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos!
©2012, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved

Year of the Dragon

January 23, 2012INSIDE FLORIDA, Orlando, Orlando Wetlands, Theme ParksAlligator, Animal Kingdom, Komodo Dragon, wildlifeEd Rosack

Today is the Chinese New Year, also known as the “Spring Festival”. 2012 is the Year of the Dragon.

The dragon is the most powerful of the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac, and is associated with high energy and prosperity. It’s also the only mythological beast in the Chinese astrological stable that also includes the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig.

I don’t have a photo of a mythological dragon. But I do have this image:

Komodo Dragon

Komodo Dragons are found in Indonesia and can grow to about 10 feet in size. They’re carnivores and dominate the ecosystem where they’re found. This particular one lives at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

This year is considered especially auspicious because it is the year of the water dragon, something that only happens once every 60 years. I don’t have a photo of a mythological water dragon either. Perhaps this one will do?

Rising Gator at Orlando Wetlands Park: Is this a Water Dragon?

So happy Chinese New Year! Thank you for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos.
©2012, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved

September 11 Sunrise – Orlando, Florida – 2011

September 11, 2011INSIDE FLORIDA, Orlando, VARIOUSlandscape, Politics, sunriseEd Rosack

Orlando skyline sunrise, 9/11/11

The human capacity for evil, ugly, cruelty is overwhelming if contemplated in isolation. To stay sane and somewhat unafraid, we must consider it in concert with our greater capacity for good, kindness, and beauty. Of all the events from this day 10 years ago, we should remember the uncounted acts of heroism, bravery, and kindness. On the other hand, our enemies should remember how we overcame that evil and that no matter how long it takes, we will bring them to justice.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos. Create more beauty in our world.
©2011, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved

Hot Tuna at the Plaza

August 5, 2011INSIDE FLORIDA, Orlando, Plaza Theatreconcert, Hot Tuna, Jorma KaukonenEd Rosack

I’ve been a fan of Jorma Kaukonen for a long time. His band (Hot Tuna) was in town last night at the Plaza Theater and I went to see him. Here’s a couple of photos:

Hot Tuna: Jack Casady, Jorma Kaukonen, and Barry Mitterhoff at the Plaza Theater in Orlando, Florida. August 4th, 2011

Jorma Kaukonen, and Barry Mitterhoff at the Plaza Theater in Orlando, Florida. August 4th, 2011

If you live in Orlando and haven’t checked out the Plaza, do so. It’s a great venue: nice sound and maybe a photo op or two.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos!
©2011, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved

I just don’t get these. Can someone help me?

May 22, 2011Cameras and Photography, INSIDE FLORIDA, Lake Eola, VARIOUSlandscape, philosophy, sunsetEd Rosack

OK first, here’s a photo.

Lake Eola at Dusk: Downtown Orlando, Florida

The photo has nothing to do with the subject of the post, but I like it and I thought we should have at least one photo today. I made this one a while ago and went back yesterday to re-process it with some new SW. I was able to bring out more highlight detail as well as adjust the brightness / curves and saturation.

Now for the main section of the post. I promise that this isn’t a rant, although it might sound like it. Also, it isn’t a normal Central Florida Photo Ops post – but there are a few photo related things I need help with. I admit, I just don’t get them. Do you get them? Can you help me?

I don’t know if you’re a Flickr member or not. If you take a look at Flickr Explore, you’ll notice that there’s a surprising (at least to me) number of doll or toy photos there each day. To each his or her own, but I just don’t get this. I don’t really see why these are interesting to everyone. What is artistic or appealing about photos of toy dolls? How do these get on Flickr Explore? What am I missing? (Note: Flickr revised their Explore algorithm in 2020 and it’s much better now!)
The Lensbaby: OK, I’ve never used one, but why would I? It’s an inexpensive, imprecise tilt lens, with not so good optics. You can sort of cause an area within the frame to be in focus while blurring the rest. Is it just fun to play around with? Why would you put this on an expensive DSLR? Can you really do something artistic and controlled with it? Can anyone point me to an outstanding photo made with a Lensbaby? If so, was the Lensbaby critical to the photo or could you make it another way (Gaussian filters anyone)?
Micro 4/3 cameras: Yes, they have interchangeable lenses and larger sensors (=better image quality) than point and shoot cameras. And a 4/3 kit is smaller and lighter than a DSLR kit. But … Is it your only camera or a secondary / backup / travel camera? If it’s a secondary camera, you have to buy a whole new kit (body, lenses, flash?). That’s pretty expensive. If you want small and light, why not go for smallest and lightest (e.g. a point and shoot) for a lot less money. If you want quality why not go for quality (e.g. your DSLR). Will you be happy with a compromise? —– 9/2/11 Update: I think I do get this now. These cameras are much smaller and lighter. The lenses are less expensive than corresponding DSLR lenses. And they can be used (with reasonably long lenses) in places that don’t allow DSLR photography – like most theaters, some sports arenas, etc. Since they are less conspicuous, many people prefer to use them instead of DSLRs for street photography. And finally, although micro 4/3 sensor quality lags a generation or more behind the best APS C size sensors, it is enormously better than compact point and shoot sensors and good enough for most applications.
Not posting EXIF data with images: Some people go to great lengths to make sure the EXIF data captured by their camera gets filtered out before they post the photo. Why? How does it hurt to have someone on-line look at this data and try to understand how the photo was made?
Paying all those $ for a DSLR kit and not using it: You’ve got to have it with you, know how to use it, and use it. If you don’t know how to use it, use it anyway, make mistakes, and learn from them.
Paying all those $ for a DSLR kit and using it like a phone camera: Don’t leave it on “A”. Learn what all those other modes are and use them. Take charge – don’t let the camera think for you.
Not post processing: Some of my friends have expensive DSLR cameras and they live with the .jpg output of their cameras. I’ve tried to explain the benefits of RAW capture and post processing, but they don’t want to listen. I just don’t get this.
All right, no one gets this: Flash in the stands at sporting events and concerts: But why do you still see this? How can anyone do this without dying of embarrassment?
Film: Film is fun, but for most serious photographers, digital is so much better. OK, maybe I do get the 8×10 view camera people, but still It’s a lot of extra work and many compromises for an improvement in a few small areas.
Comment Spam on photo blogs (OK, any blog): I think the intent of comment spam is to get links back to their oh so relevant pages. Really? How are children’s shoes related to Central Florida Photo Ops? And that’s a G-rated one. There are many that are R-rated or worse. Why would I allow these comments through on my site? Does anyone? I really don’t get this.

If you “get” any of these things, or would just like to leave a comment to tell me how crazy I am, feel free (although I do moderate comments because of #10).

In the mean time, thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos!
©2011, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved.

Eagles, Owls, and more at Orlando’s Greenwood Park and Greenwood Cemetery

April 24, 2011Greenwood Park, INSIDE FLORIDA, OrlandoBarred Owl, birds, cemetery, Eagle, landscape, sunriseEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Greenwood Urban Wetlands is a 19 acre park in downtown Orlando and was created in 1991 to help handle the sometimes massive rainwater runoff in the area. The park is right next to Greenwood municipal cemetery, where many of Orlando’s notables have been buried since 1880.

Venus Rising: Pre-dawn pond at Greenwood Park – This is a two image composite that I hand merged in Photoshop.

I arrived before dawn a couple of Saturday’s ago. I’d heard about it on Flickr and seen photos others had made there, although I still wasn’t sure what to expect. I was hoping for a sunrise photo, but the sky was very clear and I didn’t know the area. So, I picked a spot near the parking area and set up for the image above. For this one, I made two exposures (one for the sky and one for the ground) and merged them as described in this post. I like the way it turned out, especially with the morning star Venus rising, and the leaves and flowers on the left.

Kevin M. joined me a bit later and we walked around exploring. There were a few birds (coots, wood ducks, egrets, Great Blue Heron) in the small lakes, but nothing too unusual. We’d heard about an eagle nest nearby, so we decided to look for it in Greenwood Cemetery.

The nest was easy to find, since there were two juvenile eagles perched right next to it calling quite often. We made several photos while we waited for better light and were eventually able to get the birds facing us with the sun at our backs. These two young birds were flying between trees in the area, but didn’t act like they knew much at all about feeding themselves. They seemed to be waiting for the parents to bring back food – but that didn’t happen while we were there.

Juvenile Eagle

We also saw a very pretty Wood Duck pair in nice light, a couple of Barred owls, and some very aggressive Blue Jays (harassing the owls) on the way out. You can see the other photos I made in this Flickr set.

Barred Owl

Info for Photographers

Photo hints:

There’s not much to work with for landscapes. But there’s a surprising variety of birds for such an urban setting. Make sure you walk through both the park and cemetery if you go. You could also drive through the cemetery if you don’t have time to walk.

Tripod/Monopod:

Of course.

Lenses:

Take appropriate lenses for your subjects. Mostly long lenses for the birds. A flash might help control the contrast for the subjects back in the leaves (owls).

Best time to visit:

February – March might allow eagle nesting activity to be observed.

Other:

This close by park may be an opportunity to snag a few keeper shots for your bird portfolio, and won’t take too long to check out.

Halloween 2012 update: Don Price, the Greenwood Cemetery Sexton, offers guided moonlight walking tours once a month where you can learn about Orlando and the people who have contributed to the history of the city. The tour is usually crowded and reservations are required. Go to the cemetery website and click on “Moonlight Walking Tours” for more info.

Summary

My Gallery / Flickr photo set:	http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157626518075606/
Website:	http://www.cityoforlando.net/fpr/html/Parks/Greenwood.htm
Address / Phone:	1411 Greenwood Street, Orlando, Florida 407.246.2283
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	A surprising urban opportunity for a few bird photos.

Thanks for stopping by my blog, now – go make some photos!
©2011, Ed Rosack. All rights reserved.

Gaylord Palms, Orlando

July 11, 2010Gaylord Palms, INSIDE FLORIDA, OrlandoCastillo de San Marco, Fish, reviews, vacation, waterfallEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Lynn and I spent a couple of nights at the Gaylord Palms Resort last weekend. This very nice hotel is located in the Kissimmee area, near the Disney parks. It has several great restaurants and a huge atrium divided into four sections modeled after different areas of Florida. There are also two outdoor swimming pools, one for kids and one that’s adults only. It made for a nice weekend and also provided quite a bit of photographic interest.

One of my favorite photos from the trip. It’s called “One second Koi” or “One second, Koi”, or “One second Koi?”

Info for Photographers

You’ll find photo opportunities just about everywhere you point your camera – so make sure you do bring one!

A small waterfall in the Everglades portion of the Atrium, just outside of the Old Hickory Steakhouse

Photo hints: Light can be a bit on the low side, so be prepared: Higher ISOs, wide apertures, image stabilization and camera supports will all help. I used some pretty slow shutter speeds. If you look at any of these images on Flickr (just click on the photos) and then click on the “More properties” link, you can see the exposures I used for each and use that as a guide for the conditions you can expect.

Tripod/Monopod: Would come in handy, and shouldn’t be a problem. I didn’t see anyone with a tripod, although I didn’t see any signs saying they weren’t allowed. In most areas there should be room for one – just be courteous and don’t block the pathways. I didn’t bring my tripod and ended up sometimes bracing my camera on various objects.

Lenses: The wider the aperture the more flexibility you’ll have, and image stabilization will be a plus. You might especially enjoy using a wide angle zoom and a macro.

Best time to visit: Anytime.

Other: Check Priceline.com for potentially lower room rates. Be prepared to pay for parking. And bring plenty of money for the restaurants.

Interior of the resort’s version of Castillo de San Marco

Summary

My Gallery / Flickr photo set:	http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157624473721270/
Website:	http://www.gaylordhotels.com/gaylord-palms/
Address / Phone:	6000 W Osceola Parkway Kissimmee, FL 34746 Hotel Operator: 407-586-0000 View in Google Maps
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	Make some nice photos while you relax

Dusk at Lake Eola

April 4, 2010INSIDE FLORIDA, Lake Eolaastronomy, birds, sunsetEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Dusk, Lake Eola, 8:14pm, 17mm, 6.0 seconds @ f/8

This large lake in downtown Orlando formed from a sinkhole and has been a city park since 1892. It’s famous for its fountain – which unfortunately isn’t working now although it’s supposed to be repaired in 2010. There are swan shaped paddle boats that you can rent and live swans you can feed along with occasional other birds that you can watch and photograph. There’s also a playground, a small outdoor café and an amphitheater for special events. The night we were there the First Annual Orlando Chillounge Night at Lake Eola was taking place on the east side of the lake, which made for quite a crowd.

We saw a boat leave the dock as we arrived with what looked like fireworks aboard. We kept an eye on it and tried to be ready when they launched. After a while, we gave up and of course, they launched right after that. There was only one quick set. Lynn really enjoyed watching us scramble to reset our cameras and by the time we were ready there was nothing left but a few smoke trails. Oh well, a reason to go back.

If you’re looking for a place in Orlando to take a photo walk, practice some street photography, and / or make some cityscape images at sunset – Lake Eola is a good place to start.

Info for Photographers

Photo hints: Get there well before sunset and stay for a while after. You never know what the sky colors will do. You’ll want to set up on the south-east side for sunset. After sunset, try a few small aperture / long exposure photos to blur the water in the fountains and make the lights into nice star shapes.

Tripod/Monopod: No problem – there’s plenty of room to set up. You’ll definitely need one for long exposures. Bring your cable release or remote too.

Lenses: This is a wide-angle photo-op. My 16 – 35mm lens worked nicely to take in the whole lake and cityscape. To practice your street photography a 35mm will probably work, although you might want to bring another lens (24 – 70?) too.

Best time to visit: You’ve heard me say before that spring is a wonderful time in Central Florida. The weather is just fantastic. We had temperatures in the 70s and the humidity wasn’t too high. There were some insects out, but they weren’t the biting kind.

Other: Parking could be a problem depending on what else is going on when you visit. We were there on a Saturday evening, and even with an event happening at the east end of the lake, we found a parking spot in a lot about a block south for $5. The park hours are Mon-Sun 6 a.m. – 12 a.m

Summary

My Lake Eola photo set on Flickr:	The set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157623643136939/Here’s a slide show of the images (click to start, and when running click to go to the photo on Flickr):
Website:	http://www.cityoforlando.net/FPR/HTML/Parks/lakeeola.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_eola
Address / Phone:	195 N Rosalind Avenue, Orlando, Florida(407) 246-2827
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	Nice evening for a stroll. Bring your photo gear!

The Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (Disney's EPCOT)

March 15, 2010INSIDE FLORIDA, Orlando, Theme Parksbonsai, Disney, EPCOT, Flowers, reviewsEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Disney opened the EPCOT theme park in 1982. It is a different sort of park with two main areas: Future world, and the World Showcase. They also occasionally have special events, which can greatly add to the photo op quotient.

Future world has a mix of rides, and the ones we enjoyed the most were Mission Space, Test Track and Spaceship Earth. The Seas with Nemo & Friends is aimed at small children, but there is a nice, large aquarium there as well.

World Showcase is where you can enjoy shopping, food and a sample of culture from many places around the world. Pavilions include: Norway (don’t miss the Maelstrom ride!), Mexico, China, Germany, Italy, The American Adventure Japan, Morocco (check out the shops and architecture), France, United Kingdom, and Canada. There are many fine restaurants, and although a little pricey – you don’t have to settle for standard theme park food. Be sure to make a reservation early.

Gifts of Morocco

The EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival runs from March 3 – May 16, 2010 so this is an especially nice time for a photographer to visit. The entire park is planted with flowers with many Disney themed topiaries throughout. There was also a collection of bonsai trees near the Japanese pavilion when we were there.

Bonsai boca

The Flower and Garden Festival also has some special activities such as The Pixie Hollow Fairy Garden, Fawn’s Butterfly House, The Community Garden and Flower Power Concert Series and more. I was impressed by all of this, but the Butterfly Garden was still getting started when we were there.

Intense Flower

Info for Photographers

Photo hints: Make sure you keep your eyes open – there are photo ops everywhere.

Tripod/Monopod: Definitely allowed – I saw several people with tripods and quite a bit of high end camera gear.

Lenses: For the Flower Exhibition, a macro lens was nice. You’ll want a general purpose zoom for most of the park. I didn’t see a lot of need for a longer lens. I used a 105mm macro on my D700 for the flowers and other things and my Canon S90 for some shots.

Best time to visit: Spring time is a wonderful time in Central Florida. The weather is great and the The Flower and Garden show runs through May 16th.

Other: Like many of the Orlando parks, it’s pricey. General admission is now $79 for adults and $68 for children. You’ll have to budget an additional $14 for parking and additional money for any food and gifts you buy. There are sometimes discounts for Florida residents.

Summary

The EPCOT theme park is a place where the entire family can have fun, while at the same time providing a large and varied number of photo ops for the photography enthusiast. The photos in this post are just a few of the ones I made, and there was much more to see. See below for links to the rest.

My EPCOT photo set on Flickr:	The set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157623621620712/ Here’s a slide show of the images (click to start, and when running click to go to the photo on Flickr):
Website:	http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/epcot/
Address / Phone:	1510 Avenue of the Stars Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830 (407) 824-4321?
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	Fun family day – will keep the photographer interested!

Gatorland in Kissimmee, Florida

January 9, 2010Cameras and Photography, Gatorland, INSIDE FLORIDA, OrlandoAlligator, birds, Great Blue Heron, reviews, wildlife, Wood StorkEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Great Blue Heron portrait

Note: you can click on any of these photos to go to my Flickr photo stream and view a larger version (click on the magnifying glass icon at the top). There’s also links at the end of this entry to the entire set and a slide show version of the photos.

In a “ToDo” post last year, I promised to visit and report on Gatorland and to compare it to the St. Augustine Alligator farm for you. I was finally able to go and this post is the basic review. I’ll follow-up with a comparison to the Alligator Farm shortly. Gatorland is a vintage, Florida, roadside attraction (started in 1949) and has grown into a 110-acre, photographer friendly theme park featuring some great shows with many kinds of animals on display. Although there are a lot of things to do in the park, the two that may attract nature and wildlife photographers more than others are:

The Bird Rookery: Created in 1991 as a natural breeding area for the gators, the 10 acre Breeding Marsh has over 100 adult alligators and is a completely natural environment. It attracts wild birds,which tend to nest above the alligators, since they provide protection against some of the bird predators such as raccoons and snakes.

The bird rookery and breeding marsh

The Swamp Walk: This is located at the southern end of the park and is a self guided tour on a raised wooden walkway through a Cypress Swamp and affords visitors a rare look back into what much of Central Florida looked like before development.

There is also quite a bit for the non-photo family members to do, including shows, a small water park, a petting zoo, and displays of other captive animals.

The gator jumparoo show

Photo hints: Gatorland reinstated its photo pass in 2012. It allows entry at 7:30 and lets you stay inside until dusk. Quite an advantage for bird photography.

Tripod/Monopod : Gatorland is a photographer friendly place. You can bring all of your equipment, including a tripod or monopod and there is ample room to use them as long as you are courteous.

Lenses: Of course, long lenses are a must for most bird photography and they will certainly help you at Gatorland. But since many of the birds are so used to people you can get very close to some of them, so very good shots with not so long lenses are possible.

Wood Stork and Alligator bokeh

Best time to visit : Early February through June (nesting season) where the weather is also not as hot.

Other : Normal hours are 10:00am – 5:00pm. Be sure to ask about Senior Citizen and Florida Resident discounts.

Summary

Families will find lots to interest them at Gatorland. It’s a good value in today’s overpriced theme park environment. And photographers will enjoy visiting this park multiple times.

My Gatorland photo set on Flickr:	The set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157623039154783/A slide show version: http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/sets/72157623039154783/show/
Website:	http://www.gatorland.com/
Address:	14501 S Orange Blossom Trail Orlando, FL 32837 (407) 855-5496
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	Birds and gators galore – family fun too!