Category Archives: OUTSIDE FLORIDA

Christmas Time Cruising

December 30, 2012Cruise Ships, OUTSIDE FLORIDABahamas, Christmas, cloud, Coco Cay, holiday, Nassau, Starfish, sunrise, vacationEd Rosack

Mike, Sara, and Mary joined Lynn and I for Christmas this year. When we’re together we often visit a theme park, but since we liked our last cruise so much, we decided to take a holiday cruise instead. We booked on Royal Caribbean’s Monarch of the Seas and departed from Port Canaveral for Nassau and Coco Cay on Friday, Dec. 21st.

Port Canaveral is about an hour east of Orlando on the 528 Beachline. We found parking right at the pier and the embarkation wasn’t too bad, although there was a line getting through security.

Overall the Monarch of the Seas was very enjoyable. The food was good (the Strawberry Pavlova dessert was a BIG hit!), and so was the service. Our staterooms were in different parts of the ship this time, which made coordination a little more difficult – but we worked it out. Once nice thing about sailing at this time of year is that the ship was fully decked out for the holidays – Christmas trees, gingerbread houses, and other seasonal touches.

Ship’s decorations in the main atrium

We departed Port Canaveral late in the afternoon. The weather was nice for the whole cruise and although Friday’s sunset wasn’t that great Saturday’s sunrise made up for it:

Pre-dawn clouds in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida

We arrived in Nassau Saturday afternoon and spent time shopping. Then Mike and Sara found us a great place to sample the local food (the Bahamian Cookin’ Restaurant) where we enjoyed their Conch Fritters. After that, we all boarded a catamaran for a sunset tour of the harbor. The low light combined with a moving boat made for a challenging photo-op, but I did get a few nice images. One of the highlights was seeing Oprah Winfrey’s pair of side by side mansions (with a huge matching yacht). I guess she uses the second mansion for guests – quite impressive.

Nassau harbor at night from the sunset cruise catamaran. I thought the red and green running lights were an unexpected seasonal bonus!

From Nassau, we sailed to the Berry Islands where Royal Caribbean has exclusive use of Coco Cay (also known as Little Stirrup Cay). They’ve set the place up for cruise passengers to enjoy beach time, snorkeling, shopping at a straw market, parasailing, wave runners, an aqua park, kayaking, hammocks, and of course – food. We had kayak reservations for first thing in the morning. The wind was really blowing and even though we were a bit worried about it we went anyway. It was a workout, but worth it in the end. We paddled about a mile to a sand bar off of Big Stirrup Cay, where I made this photo:

A starfish in the ocean near a sand bar at Big Stirrup Cay. We haven’t been able to ID this one – our guide told us it isn’t common.

Later, back on Coco Cay we relaxed, shopped, and yes, ate too much. Mike and Sara also went snorkeling and saw fish, Sting Rays, Spotted Eagle Rays, and coral.

Sara and Mike enjoy the view from our Coco Cay cabana

It was a wonderful way to spend time with our family. Except for the wind, the weather was great and not at all typical of the season in most of the country. Poor Mike and Sara had to return home to winter storms and snow. I imagine it was a bit of a change!

You can click any of the photos above to see larger versions on Flickr and I’ve posted several more from our cruise in this set.

This is my last post of 2012. I’ll be back next year and I hope you will too. May you, your family, and your friends all have a happy and prosperous new year. Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now, get cruising and make some photos!

U.S. Veterans Day

November 12, 2012OUTSIDE FLORIDA, VARIOUS, Washington D.C.black and white, infrared, Korean War Memorial, memorial, veteransEd Rosack

Germany and the Allied nations signed the armistice ending World War I in 1918 on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Armistice Day (later renamed Veterans Day after World War II) was commemorated for the first time on November 11, 1919.

Now every year in the United States, we pause on Veteran’s Day to honor the service and sacrifice of all men and women who answer the call of freedom. To all of our veterans and to those serving today – you have our deepest gratitude. We honor you for your service and sacrifices “in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.”

Statues of GIs crossing a field – Korean War Memorial, Washington, DC – Black and White Infrared

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. And if you’re a veteran, thank you for your service.
©2011, 2012 Ed Rosack. All rights reserved

Cruise Ship Photography Ops

April 29, 2012Cruise Ships, INSIDE FLORIDA, Must do list, OUTSIDE FLORIDAbirds, Frigatebird, Grand Cayman, infrared, Mexico, reviews, sunrise, travel, vacation, wildlifeEd Rosack

Intro / Description

Cruising is a great way to vacation and Florida is a great departure point. There are several ports where you can board a ship, leave your everyday concerns behind, and set sail for exotic destinations. Tampa, Miami, Palm Beach, Port Everglades, and Port Canaveral all offer cruises – both seasonal and some that go farther. We recently cruised out of Tampa on the Carnival Paradise sailing to Grand Cayman, Cozumel, and back.

The party starts – The Carnival Paradise departing Tampa.

Cruising provides a large choice of activities: Spend time with friends and family, relax, sample gourmet level food, party, attend shows and other entertainment, lose money at the casino, etc. Ports of call along the way let you to see the sights and sample what life is like in other cultures. You can sign up for excursions to do things you may not get a chance to do everyday. And even if your trip isn’t photography centric, you can sneak in some non-interference photography ops.

A snorkeling excursion off of Grand Cayman – Lynn’s getting ready to jump in.

Your preferences will help you select which cruise to go on. For ours, we were limited to a small selection since we wanted to leave from Tampa on a specific date.

Info for Photographers

There are some cruises that cater to photographers and some destinations that are more photogenic than others. Why you are going, where you are going, and what you expect to see will decide what equipment you should bring. Since our cruise was a family get together, I brought a much lighter gear bag than on our Alaskan cruise in 2009. We went snorkeling in Grand Cayman, so I took my old Canon G9 (which still works remarkably well) and the underwater housing I have for it. I also wanted to take my IR modified camera to use at the Mayan ruins in Cozumel. Your trip and interests will be different so you’ll need to plan accordingly.

The San Gervasio Arch Structure on Cozumel. This Mayan ruin dates from 1000 to 1600 AD.

Photo hints:

Spend some time enjoying sunrise and sunset. Relax, get a cup of coffee or a drink and sit and watch. It’s hard to tell what will develop, especially when there are clouds around. Do some research before you go. Flickr is a great place to search for the places you’re going to see what others have posted.

If you’re on a family trip, you’ll want to document all the fun and together times. Be careful not to spend too much time away from your family making photographs.

One good idea is to combine everyone’s photos into a common pool and share them so that everyone has images of everything that happens. You’ll be glad you did.

Another thing to think about is creating a photo book from your images. Make several copies and share them with your travel companions. They’ll make good reading several years in the future and will remind you of the good times.

Always keep a camera with you and when you’re wandering around the ship, keep an eye out for interesting art work or interesting people.

A cruise is also a good time to practice some food photography. Take your camera to dinner and see if you can create some drool worthy images.

Tripod/Monopod: The ship’s motion will make long exposures from the deck problematic. A Gorillapod or something similar would be handy for HDR or long exposure photography inside the ship. You might also want to use it for some time-lapse photography from a railing on deck. This can be interesting as you cruise along a shoreline or enter / leave a port.

Lenses: This depends on your destination / interests. Bring a versatile zoom or a small assortment of lenses. On a family cruise, you don’t want to be lugging a huge camera bag around all the time. If you’re going to Alaska or some other once in a lifetime destination, you’ll want to take your full kit.

Best time to visit: Do some research on your departure port and destinations. April is a great time for the route we took. It’s before hurricane season and the weather is warm, but not too warm yet. If you’re into birding, April is a big time in the Caribbean for migration. I only did some incidental birding, but I did get three life birds in Cozumel. The Mayan ruins at San Gervasio are out in the middle of the jungle, so there are birds around. I saw a Black-and-white Warbler, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird, and several others I couldn’t get a photo of or ID. I also saw this one circling the ship when we returned:

A Magnificent Frigatebird

Other:

I’ve posted three sets of photos from this cruise on Flickr. If you look through them, you can get an idea of the things you’ll see on a similar cruise.

For descriptions of a different type of cruise experience, you can go back and read my three posts about our Alaska cruise here, here, and here.

Summary

You’ll have a great time!

My Gallery / Flickr photo set:	http://www.flickr.com/photos/edrosack/collections/72157629896267577/
Website:	Various – search out the cruise line / travel sites for the departure port you select
Central Florida Photo Ops Rating:	This is a Central Florida Photo Op MUST DO!

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now, get cruising and make some photos!

Water Dragon Sunrise

April 22, 2012OUTSIDE FLORIDA, Techniquesunrise, vacationEd Rosack

Just a quick entry to say I’m very sorry about not posting last week. I was busy with family and found it hard to update the blog. But the good news is that I’ve got a lot of new images and info to share with you (as soon as I get finished editing my photos).

Mary graduated from the University of Florida with her MBA degree and Lynn and I celebrated with her, Mike, and Sara by taking a family cruise. Here’s one favorite image from the trip:

Water Dragon Sunrise – The view from the deck of the Carnival Paradise last Thursday morning, somewhere near Yucatán in the Gulf of Mexico.

This illustrates an important point for sunrise photography: It’s very hard to predict – so you have to wait and see what develops. This scene looked very mundane at first. Several people came out on deck, took a photo and went back inside. But then an interesting cloud formation developed and drifted left right in front of the sun. I really liked the shape. And the back / rim lighting. And the rays. And the shadows coming up from the head that look like smoke. And the mist on the horizon. And the ocean…

And the food at breakfast was pretty good too!

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now, go make some photos!

Infrared Photography Follow Up

April 1, 2012Infrared processing, INSIDE FLORIDA, Merritt Island NWR, Ohio, OUTSIDE FLORIDA, Technique, Washington D.C.birds, infrared, landscapeEd Rosack

If you’re a regular reader, you saw my post from a couple of weeks ago about infrared photography and how I post process my IR images. If not, please check it out!

That post concentrated on a single image and tried to show some detail on how I processed it. Today, I’d like to show you a few more examples of what you can expect when you try this very interesting genre of photography. I made these photos with my IR modified Olympus E-PL1 camera.

I R n Air: A river runs through the countryside in this B&W digital infra-red photo made out the window at ~30,000 feet. The IR light cuts right through the haze to show a lot of detail.

Palm Tree: IR sensitivity makes the foliage stand out against the sky in this false color image.

Calm water and birds: Bird photography is not a strength of IR, but the birds in the water and the ones flying through the frame add to this landscape.

Play time at Union Station: Buildings, architecture, and people can be good subjects.

Jefferson Memorial from across the Tidal Basin: IR adds a different look to this classic view.

I have some other IR photos on Flickr in this set. And you can see examples from other photographers in The Infrared and The Digital infrared groups on Flickr. How about it – are you inspired to try IR photography? Let me know if you do.

Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. Now, go make some photos!

[Additional info, added 1/24/2014]: https://edrosack.com/2014/01/12/infrared-updates/

Theraputic Photography

January 31, 2012Colorado, OUTSIDE FLORIDADenver, Elk, landscape, philosophy, snow, sunrise, wildlifeEd Rosack

Why do we photograph? For many reasons: To capture a moment and save it. To document something, so others can see what we see. To amuse or delight viewers with our images. To create art as a form of self-expression. To report facts as in a newspaper, or slant facts as in an advertisement.

Most of the time I’m trying to make something interesting or beautiful. To show viewers what I’ve seen and how I’ve seen it. I also like to record where I’ve been. And making family photos at gatherings / events is also important to me.

Great Gloomy Plains – Photographs often reflect the photographer’s mood. I made this photo during a break in a light snowstorm near the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Hudson, Colorado.

For the last couple of weeks, my photography has served another purpose – one that I hadn’t ever considered.

My Mother was 80 years old and apparently in worse health than any of us knew. She passed away while in the hospital for back surgery. Even though she hated to carry around her oxygen tank, she was sharp and active until the end. Mom was a great woman and much loved by everyone who knew her. She was a wonderful mother and I miss her terribly.

Lynn and I went to Denver to be with family and help settle Mom’s estate. Her affairs were in good order, but there was still a lot to do. As you might imagine, it was an emotional and stressful time.

Bull Elk, photographed near Buffalo Bill’s Grave outside of Denver, Colorado

Of course this wasn’t a photo trip, but I did decide to bring a small point and shoot camera. I’m very glad I did. During the two weeks we were there, we took a couple of short side trips. I found that when concentrating on photography, I could exclude other things from my mind and feel almost normal for a while. It really helped me cope and get my emotions back toward a more even keel. These are three of the photos I made.

Sunrise over Chatfield Lake – I made this photo on the morning we left to return to Orlando.

Photography helps us remember. It can also help us forget. At least for a short time.

You can see more Denver images in this set on Flickr.

Thank you for stopping by and reading my blog. Now – go make some photos.

Cincinnati Christmas

December 30, 2011Ohioblack and white, bridge, Cincinnati, infrared, night, panorama, people, travel, vacationEd Rosack

Lynn and I had a wonderful visit with our daughter Mary at her place in Cincinnati over Christmas. Once again, she was the perfect hostess and kept us busy with all sorts of activities. We spent a lot of time eating, both at restaurants (Nada, Melt, Christmas brunch at the Hilton, Tom+Chee, Papa Johns pizza, Cracker Barrel) and cooking (crab cakes, Quiche, salmon, gingerbread, etc.) and too much time shopping (antique mall, after Christmas sales, outlet mall). In between we went to the Nutcracker, bought hats at Batsakes, visited the local wine shop and gave her new Nespresso machine a real work out. It was primo family time, but I did sneak in a little photography:

Roebling Bridge and Ohio River at night from Kentucky

Play time at Union Station – Cincinnati, Ohio. I usually wait for people to clear out when I’m trying to make a photo. This time I went ahead and made it while these two girls played around the fountain. Since this is a stitched panorama, they show up multiple times, which I think adds to the image.

Cappuccino: We enjoyed using Mary’s new machine and overdosed on caffeine while we were there.

What a great visit! You can see more photos from our trip to Cincinnati in this set on Flickr. You can re-read my other posts mentioning Cincinnati here and here.

Merry Christmas!!

December 25, 2011OhioChristmas, holiday, mangerEd Rosack

I hope everyone is having a great holiday!

Thanksgiving in Wisconsin

December 2, 2011Wisconsinbirds, black and white, infrared, Lake Michigan, submarine, travelEd Rosack

I just wanted to let you know that I haven’t forgotten about you. I apologize for the irregular posting, but I’ve been busy with little time for photography or blogging over the last week or two.

Lynn and I visited Mike and Sara for Thanksgiving and Mary joined us, so we had a very nice family holiday. Wisconsin was different from Florida. The day we left it was sunny with a high in the 80s. In Wisconsin, it was overcast with a temperature in the 40s, and because it’s so much farther north, the sun set at 4:15pm – making the days shorter than at home.

One thing that was hard to ignore was all the geese – they were everywhere, and you could frequently hear them honking even while inside. This surprised me, since I thought they all migrated south for the winter. When I researched this, it turns out that many do stay in Wisconsin year round. I wonder what they eat and how they stay warm when the snow gets heavy?

Fox River shoreline near Kaukona, Wisconsin; Canada Geese in the distance

Mike drove us over to Manitowic on Lake Michigan where we went through the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. It was interesting to learn that the shipyard here made submarines during WW II. They moved to the Gulf via the Mississippi River.

Shipbuilding scene, at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum; Manitowic, Wisconsin

There’s a WW II diesel boat that you can tour.

The USS Cobia, SS 245, at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum; Manitowic, Wisconsin

The “Christmas Tree” aboard the submarine USS Cobia: the red and green lights on this panel show the status of hull openings

On the way home, I convinced Mike to stop and let me make a photo of this scene.

Lake Michigan Shoreline; Manitowic, Wisconsin

Here’s one previous post I wrote about Wisconsin. And you can see other photos from Wisconsin in this set on Flickr.

In some other news, the Fotobug podcast interviewed me last night. We talked about my trip to the Circle B Bar Reserve a couple of weeks ago and the bobcat photo I made. It’s supposed to come out this Sunday afternoon (December 4, 2011) and I’ll post a link to the episode when it goes up.

The National Mall in Washington D.C.

November 19, 2011Must do list, Washington D.C.black and white, infrared, landscape, travelEd Rosack

I had another opportunity to fly up to Reagan Airport early last Sunday for a business trip, and spend a few hours in downtown Washington D.C. on the National Mall.

The Washington Monument in infrared

I brought my Olympus cameras, including my IR modified E-PL1. I’m really enjoying the way it lets me see things differently. So much so that I have to be careful not to over use it.

I also brought an app I discovered for my iPhone: The NPS National Mall and Memorial Parks app is very useful – I highly recommend it if you travel to Washington D.C. And it’s free! (Update, October 2020: Doesn’t seem to be available now.)

Using the app, I followed the “4 hour tour” and saw several memorials that I haven’t been to, including the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. I also went by the Jefferson, Lincoln, and Vietnam War Memorials and of course – the Washington Monument.

Breadline and fall color, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial – Washington, DC. The inscription reads:

“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”

I was talking about my visit with my friend Patrick and he said something that really resonated with me: These memorials are named in honor of our famous founding fathers, or events from our history. But when you visit them, one thing you notice is that at each there are words / thoughts written in the stones that make up each monument. And it’s really these ideas that we should remember. Maybe a periodic tour of the monuments along with a test on every inscription should be required for members of congress.

I was also surprised by how much color remained in the foliage – quite pretty. And I was grateful that the weather was so different from my last visit. This time it was partly cloudy and cool – very good walking weather.

And just because I can’t resist, here’s one more IR photo. This one’s a false color image of a small Japanese Pagoda located near the Roosevelt Memorial.

Japanese pagoda on the west side of the Tidal Basin, Washington, DC. Given to Washington DC city commissioner Renah Camalier by Yokohama Mayor Ryozo Hiranuma in 1957 and subsequently donated to the city. This pagoda may be from the Kamakura period (1192–1333).

You can see other photos I’ve made in Washington D.C. in this set on Flickr.