Wow ....2012 is about to be over, and what a year it has been!!  Getting back in to photography has been very rewarding for me. Not only because it is awesome to have something to do that you actually enjoy, but I've met so many great people because of sharing the same passion or sharing the photos I've made. I'm not going to go crazy here, just going to share a few of my favorite images from 2012. Can not wait to see what happens in 2013!

While I normally don't like to post photos of my son all over the internet this is my absolute favorite shot of all year that came out of my camera it just so happens that this one would be one that my wife took when I handed her the camera.

Sometimes a photo is less about beauty and more about what the content of the photo is, sometimes there are things you pass by and don't notice. Maybe it has gotten buried behind overgrowth, or hidden by the shadow of a new building that towers over an area.  I recently made a trip to Stony Brook Wildlife Sanctuary with a friend to take some photos (Some can be seen here) and while walking threw the area enjoying the calm atmosphere and beautiful scenery I happened to notice a name carved in a tree and I snapped a photo and thought nothing more of it. A moment later, I notice another tree, with more carvings, and than another and another. Deep in areas where the walking path does not exist, there were more!

So I continued to take a few more photos, and it hits me, some of these are from 30 years ago, maybe longer, how old were they when they did the carving, are they still together? Those kind of things are pretty fun to think about, what was the story behind the initials put in the tree, when was the first one carved there, and when was the last?  Unfortunately , my questions will more than likely go unanswered, but the lover trees in Stony Brook will more likely than not outlive their love, their life and mine, they have etched their names into the earth where the mystery will live on for many lifetimes. 

I'm going to keep this short and sweet, and just show off a few quick images from the first two days of my ownership of the new Samsung Galaxy Note 2.  The camera system has a ton of great features including anti-shake (which actually works well) while obviously having the ability to use many different Apps that are out there.

Anyways, I could go in depth and dig real deep into mobile photography, but its been done a thousand times, so instead some straight out of camera shots from the new Note 2 and then a few edited.

Example of a picture without and with Steady Shot

As you can see, the feature works very well. I imagine it will help some people save some photos.

Straight out of the camera shots. (resized)

And the photos edit up really well here I think!

And one shot into the sun, to show it doesn't have the same problem as the iPhone 5

As you see mobile phones totally hold their own, they aren't replacements for your DSLR, but damn they're getting closer to killing off point and shoot cameras. What I will say is I am getting more and more confident with every smartphone that I purchase that the camera will not let me down when I'm in a pinch and need a camera.

Want to see more mobile stuff? Let me know!