Welcome

Hi Everyone!

Beginnings

Remember the old adage "Never start quitting, never end beginning!". Today is such an event. The start of my blog. I am a photo enthusiast, and I want to use my blog to reach out to friends and family distributed over the globe. My intention is to let them know how I am pursuing my hobby, but also to get in touch with my fellow shutterbugs. Photography is a lifelong journey. Even after you have mastered the basic techniques, you never stop learning about composition, color contrast, lighting, subjects, effects, the interactions of light and shadow, and so much more. I will use this blog to document my ongoing journey. I hope to get feedback from the community on my pictures, technique, and concepts.
My pictures are displayed in the homes of friends and family, but have yet to take the step of showing my work in public or publishing them on a web page. Well, my pictures will be soon available at a new web site featuring several photographers. You will be able to find it under www.pictr.biz

I also took another first step last weekend, I entered six of my photos into a photo contest. The Napa Valley Mustard Festival hosts a yearly photography contest at the end of March. This coinsides with the end of the mustard blooming season. Amateur and professional photographers can enter in 3 main categories (Traditional, Digital, Creative) and two sub-categories (Carneros and Silverado Trail). Photos should highlight mustard at its best, in bloom and glorious. The above photo was one of many taken during my quest for what would be the "best" photo for this years competition. It was taken in the Carneros region of Napa Valley. It is about an hours drive north-east of San Francisco. Carneros is the region at the south end of Napa Valley, closest to the Bay. It has more exposure to the fog which rolls in from the Pacific Ocean. This creates a micro climate that is about 10 degrees cooler than more interior parts of the Valley. It is home to great Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. The Silverado Trail is the less-traveled road on the east side of Napa Valley. It meanders from the city of Napa at the southern end of the valley, to the charming town of Calistoga at the northern end.

While Carneros has rolling hills covered with vineyards, Napa valley's vineyards are predominantly on the flat valley floor. This opens the opportunity for two completely different ways to compose a picture. While Carneros offers the play with curved lines of vines up and across rolling hillsides, Napa Valley allows strong geometrical set-ups with lines of vines going straight to the horizon. More on these two different challenges later in a different posting.

Enjoy the journey with me. If you like or dislike what I write, please post your comment, good and constructive feedback is always welcome!