Gerber Daisy And Lens

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The title clearly states what we're looking at.
A big question is why?

Not much of a Texas View here.
In fact, except for the black paper background this
doesn't even look like my work.
It's a bit grainy, and not nearly as sharp as my other
close-up photos. This is due in part to my using the
smallest aperture available with a long exposure, so as
to get the maximum depth of focus. My lens is sharpest
wide-open and closer to the subject.
I shot it a few hours ago while testing a tripod attachment
that I built Tuesday night. Cutting steel and aluminum is
fun, but drilling holes in them is easier.
The tests went well, but it's final result(s) won't be shown.
I'm waiting to shoot something more interesting tomorrow
using this new/old technique, so will remain cryptic and vague
until my next post.

All I'll say is that it's going to be very cool.
And deep.
And a bit of a strain on the eyes.
You have 3 guesses.

Fallen Blossom

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Another outtake from our trip to the island, I spotted
this flower that had been pinched off and fell to the
railroad ties that served as retaining walls for the
stream and pathway to the beach.
Finding the little details that everyone else misses
is one of the great joys of photography.
Hundreds of people walked past it without giving the
poor broken flower a second thought, but to me it was
an important discovery that spoke volumes about the
cycle of life and death.
Your mileage may vary.

On the camera front: The damn thing works perfectly
still, and after some custom hardware gets re-invented
and built by me in the next few days there will be some
very interesting new developments here.

Still Life

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This is a recently re-discovered photo from our
last trip to South Padre Island in May.
I took it to remember the feelings I had at the very moment
when I finished reading the book shown, because it made a
huge impact on my understanding of both the history of
photography as art, and where I want to go with my own work.
Published when I was but four years old, and presenting
the best recorded written works of some
of the greatest photographers of the last century
including Adams, Strand, Weston and Stieglitz, this
little gem cost me $3 and has zero pictures.
The essays I found between the covers blew my mind.

Dark Clouds And Broken Windows

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The little tourist-towns of Texas are a strange mix of
fresh paint facing Main Street and crumbling bricks with
busted glass in the alleys.
I like this because it exposes some truth about buildings
from 150 years ago, but I hate it because the window with
the broken glass was supposed to be where the other one is
in the composition.
I'll chalk it up to being rattled by the sensor issue
and my lack of experience in 'portrait orientation', and
try to do better next time.

Dark Clouds Over Boerne

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This was taken last weekend, just minutes after
discovering that my previous shots were useless due
to the random banding caused by my faulty sensor.
The fun photos of the egg-toss competition and the
dachsund races were ruined.
I never saw so many weiner-dogs in one place in my life,
being all cute while tripping everyone with their sneaky
leash antics.

I guess it's prophetic that one of the only usable
photos featured dark clouds.

Unpatched SP #8577

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This engine is one of a dying breed.
When Union Pacific bought the ailing Southern Pacific
railroad and added their equipment to the mix of regular
UP stuff (as well as those from other RRs previously
assimilated by 'The Borg'), many of the engines had to be
re-numbered to keep the roster from having duplicates.
With over 8000 locomotives (not to mention all of the
various types of boxcar, hopper, flatcar, etc) keeping
your numbers straight is very important.
This particular unit is one of only a few handfuls that
have escaped the process, retaining the original SP
paintjob with no ugly yellow 'patches' of paint over
the numbers and logos.

One possible reason is that #8577 never ventures out
onto the open road, instead being used exclusively to
move cars and engines around the busy repair shops just
northeast of downtown San Antonio.
It's only fitting, since they were Southern Pacific's
shops in the first place.
(That's them in the background)

In the world of railfan photography, getting a picture
of an unpatched SP unit is something to brag about.
But this engine is almost always within a quarter mile
of where I caught it here, so I have a few dozen pics
of it so far.
This particular view is my favorite because not only was
it lit fairly well, but the shops behind places it
nicely in it's native habitat and the crew member at the
rear reminds us that people make the railroads run.