The ghosts of Dubrovnik

Posted on 31 July, 2014 by Eric

A long duration (3.2 seconds) shot along the main street (Stradun) of the old town of Dubrovnik, Croatia:

One of the reasons for our recent trip to eastern Europe was the desire to see some still less-visited places before they’re “discovered” by tourist mania. Dubrovnik was the one spot on our route that we knew in advance was definitely “discovered” already, yet it still didn’t disappoint.

OK, the prices there are accordingly a bit high. But the old town’s got scenery in spades, the people are wonderful, and there’s a wealth of history to explore (its more-recent history being more than a little sad). And as you can guess from this shot, it’s got some pretty good nightlife. The two figures in yellow over black, BTW, really were two young women — identically dressed.

Fireworks in Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Posted on 15 July, 2014 by Eric

This past weekend, our family was able to spend a few days (including July 4th) in Steamboat Springs — always a treat and source of plenty of photographic opportunities to boot. This is the first time, though, that I had the opportunity to photograph the town’s fireworks. So since there’s not a whole lot of information about the show online, I thought I should do a quick write-up to help future visiting photographers.

At least when we visited, the fireworks were shot off from three locations on the sides of Howelsen Hill — centered roughly on the ski jump, south and west of downtown. This means that many spots downtown will give you a partial view of the fireworks, but they seem to be fired to a low altitude — so unless you’ve got rooftop access, you’re likely to have an obstructed view. Continue reading →

All lit up

Posted on 24 December, 2013 by Eric

There’s a house in our corner of town whose owners go above and beyond when it comes to Christmas yard decorations. Â The tree is just the start of things:

But as I said, that’s just the start. You have to see the whole yard for the full effect:

Continue reading →

Frosty mirror

Posted on 22 December, 2013 by Eric

A few nights ago, we took advantage of a warmer night to check out the “Blossoms of Light” display at the Denver Botanic Gardens. They put on a nice show, as always, and it hasn’t been as warm since — so, fortunate timing.

I took this shot toward the north end of the gardens; with the lens closed down to f/22, a nice long exposure erased the slow parade of other viewers along the path…

Eiffel squared

Posted on 26 January, 2011 by Eric

A really good reason to embarrass yourself publicly in Paris — to get a unique shot of a thoroughly-photographed landmark:

Come to think of it, I guess I didn’t make *too* many people laugh by laying on my back for this one. Makes me wish I could go back again soon…

Pinnacle

Posted on 27 December, 2010 by Eric

Every year in December, the city of Denver turns off the street lights near the City and County building for a few “photographers’ nights” — so we can get good shots of the (somewhat gaudily) lit building.

Here’s one shot I took last night — of the building’s clock tower. More to come…

All the pretty horses

Posted on 9 December, 2010 by Eric

This past Thanksgiving, we made a quick family trip out east to spend a bit of time with some of Mrs. Argos’ relatives. While we were “in the neighborhood,” we swung through the Oglebay Resort’s “Winter Festival of Lights.”

Well worth a stop, should you ever find yourself near Wheeling, West Virginia some December…

The night’s reflected brilliance

Posted on 6 December, 2010 by Eric

Captured on a photowalk through the Denver Botanic Gardens:

Every year in December, the Denver Botanic Gardens puts on a “Blossoms of Light” show — it’s always a great display, although generally also a bit cold. But if you bundle up and carry a spare battery in your coat’s inside pocket, you’re good to go!

Oh yes, and don’t forget a tripod too — this is a 2.5 second exposure (at ISO 800 for minimal noise). Fortunately there are plenty of turf areas along the paths, so you can set up a tripod without blocking traffic or damaging the plants. But no commercial photography (i.e., stock shots for Getty) unless you want to fork over a $350 fee to the Gardens…

Making land

Posted on 15 November, 2010 by Eric

Not landfall, land — the new, volcanic kind:

Along the south coast of the big island of Hawaii. Another shot from this fun trip…

Sacré Coeur – en noir

Posted on 22 October, 2010 by Eric

If you’ve been following this blog for long, you may remember that I do most of my image post-processing in Aperture on a Mac. Well, Apple just released an update to Aperture (containing a slew of needed bug fixes), so I’m taking the opportunity to dig back in my archives to revisit some old shots that were ready for a second chance.