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.

As I'm sure you all notice I'm a bit all over the place with my photography. I'm not sure I'll ever fit into one mold or style, experimenting is fun and I find it enjoyable. I've fooled around with long exposures in the past, but never to any extent where it was a serious thing, so after running into an article about using welding glass as a ND filter, I was inspired to do some DIY photography experimenting.

I could have gone all out and purchased the camera gear needed to do this from a store like Adorama or B&H, but that would have taken a little bit of the fun out of it. So I got on eBay and ordered two pieces of welding glass, some rings to hot glue the glass too and a few step-up rings to be able to use them on multiple lenses.

First day out, was a little rough getting things to work well, this is a trial and error situation since this isn't a standard setup, I was taking a shortcut by keeping the filter loose on the lens for quick removale for refocusing.. and the results were ruined images.

All the images started getting a weird reflection in them, which I believe now is from a bit of light leaking in and causing the aperture blades to bounce off the welding glass. Anyhow, a little bit more trial and error has wielded some good results in my opinion.

The downside of this method is the fact that it turns your photo completely green, and while it can be brought back into correct color with work, it is a pain. Below I'll give you a quick example, and don't hold it against me.. but I wasn't trying to get this spot on as it is just an example.

Anyhow, this has been a lot of fun and it is something that I plan on continuing to use for now, I will more than likely add in some real photography filters in the future, but I have every intention on continuing on with the DIY fun that this is.

Here are two other results.

     Sometimes it can get tough getting out of the house to make new photos, even tougher to scout for good locations, so on a whim I hit up a good photographer buddy of mine Ryan Silva who does amazing black and whites and decided to try out Rocky Point.... one of my favorite places of all time, at least when I was a child... long gone, but now converted from a waste of land rotting away to a beautiful walking path. I even ran into my friend Cinnamon there, of all places....anyhow it turned my boring day into a fun day. Lesson learned today, be more spontaneous and just go somewhere and see what you can produce.

Every month in downtown New Bedford we get the luxury of having a night where a bunch of people will head downtown for a special event, it's call AHA! Night ... simply put AHA = Art , History, Architecture which this city has plenty of.  We have a ton of great stores, coffee shops, restaurants and bars as well as many galleries with great art.

Interesting piece from the Ugly gallery (don't know the artist, sorry)

For me, the events can be kind of hit or miss aside from the fact that there are always some great live music. One of my favorite parts happens in front of the 767 Exchange they make sure we get our monthly musical dose of The O'Tooles at the very least (sometimes multiple musical acts) and usually we can find a live painting happening.  In the end, I usually meet up with a few fellow photographers walk around taking some photos and ending our night at the Pour Farm tossing a few back. It doesn't really matter what you are into there is always a good time to be had in one form or another.

The O'Tooles

 

The zoo can be a great place to take pictures of animals you'd never have the chance of shooting anywhere else, and you can definitely get some captivating shots, but if you are there with your little one, enjoy them instead! I think I took 10 shots of animals in the few hours we were there, but I did have a blast with my son.