National Day of Prayer

I used this image in my other blog http://xeniadailyphoto.blogspot.com/ yesterday it was taken during the National Day of Prayer Rally at the Legacy Center in Xenia. These students are from Xenia Christian High School, I love the emotion of the moment that is visible on the face of the students as they pray and sing praises to God. Xenia Christian has a homecoming banquet every year and a few years ago their photographer pulled a no show on them. At the last minute one of the students suggested they call me and see if I would be able to come and take the pictures. I said sure what time do you need me to be there, they responded by telling me that the photos were to have started a half hour ago and that as soon as I could get there would be great. I happened to be in just 2 minutes down the road but my gear was 15 minutes away one way. Long story short, I went and took the images and in a way saved the day for them as a result they awarded me the opportunity to shoot all of the homecoming events in the future. I will be shooting a week from tonight for this years homecoming and I am looking forward to it.

Photoman

Fore

Well sorta, he is in a sand trap not at the tee, but I needed a good title and sand trap or golf just sound boring. This young man was representing Xenia Christian High School in a golf tournament a while ago. I was able to cover the game and this is one of my favorite images. I love the sand and the ball flying in the air.

Photoman

Getting close to my 100th post.

This is post number 93 for this blog, I am nearing my 100th post. I don't know if I will have anything special to blog about then but it seems like it should be special. We'll see, who knows what i will come up with.

Today's image may have been posted in the past I am not really sure. I just really have liked this image ever since I first viewed it on my computer. So when I came across it today I decided that this would be my blog image for today. This is a group of students from Xenia Christian High School praying. It was the National Day of Prayer and the students were observing the day while walking around the school property praying and praising God.

Photoman

Macro lens verses extension tubes.

I guess my blog yesterday was weak so I am trying to do a better job tonight. I must say in my own defense I said in my blog that I didn't feel like writing so I didn't. That said let me apologize to my loyal readers for my lack of inspiration yesterday. No monkeying around tonight, I am going to talk about macro photography.

What is all the fuss about macro lenses all about? Are they really that much better than a long lens with extension tubes? The image above was taken with a Tamron 70-200 mm f2.8 lens with an extension tube. Unfortunately I can't remember what size extension tube I used for the shot. I may have had all 3 tubes on for the shot but I don't honestly remember. I have several different exposures of this stand of small wildflowers this is one of my favorites because of the ant that is climbing around on the flower. I am very happy with the sharpness of the image but then for this image I wasn't really going for sharpness, I like the soft glowing edges of the flowers it gives the image a dream like feeling.

I purchased a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lens about a year ago but I have not really done much macro work with it. I do love the lens for its sharp images, it is not an L series lens but it is often compared to them for its sharpness. Many photographer's feel it is as sharp as any L series lens. I use the lens primarily for portrait work, but I think it is wonderful for Macro. The working distance between the subject and the lens is a huge advantage. With extension tubes you lose distance between you and the subject and it gets harder to focus. The macro lens elements are flat and sharp from edge to edge where a telephoto lens elements are curved and the sharpness falls off at the edges. There are many advantages to a true macro lens but there are also disadvantages. Cost - a macro is much more expensive than tubes that is the only disadvantage I could come up with. I am glad that I purchased the 100mm macro lens and I wouldn't trade it for anything, except for maybe 2 of them.

Photoman

I hope this post is good enough for Spartanburg, SC. :)

Cincinnati Zoo

I have no motivation to write tonight so I am just going to post this image and let it go at that.

Photoman

Critique Please

I am not sure what it is about this image but every time I look at it I just feel like it has potential to be a good image. Like I said I am not sure what it is or what I would need to do to make it better. I don't know maybe it's just wishful thinking. Anyway what I would like from my readers is ideas as to what I may be able to do to improve the image. Maybe it isn't worth fixing, just give me your opinion.

Photoman

Broom

I love this image, I took this while I was in photography school. This is one of those moments that I will remember forever but will in my lifetime never be able to return to it. This building has been remodeled since this image was taken. The room you are looking into is now an office in a beautifully remodeled banquet center. While I was walking through this building I came up a stairwell and was immediately drawn to the broom that you see in this image. When I made this image I had my camera on a tripod and had it set up in the stairwell. I couldn't actually see through the viewfinder so it took me a few exposures to get this shot. My new camera has a live view feature that would have made this much easier.

Photoman

Micro Stock Agencies 2

This image has nothing to do with Micro Stock Photography but this is a photography site and I need to post an image so here is my image. A friend of mine helps manage bands and this is one of his clients, Starfield. I had the privilege of going to the concert and shooting, so I wanted to post an image from the concert today. They were very good and I would recommend the concert to you if they happen to be in your area.

Now for the title of this blog post, Micro Stock Agencies 2. I have posted another article about Micro stock agencies a while ago and told you I would share more info with you as I learned more. I recently started selling stock photography on iStock and have been a little disheartened with the idea of micro stock photography. More recently I decided to try other micro agencies to compare them and that is what I wanted to talk about tonight. Each of the micro stock sites are different in the way that they function. Some are much easier to use than others and some are more user friendly than others. Let me start with iStock I am most familiar with it. iStock is far from user friendly it has taken me 8 months to get to the point that I am today. They give you little information and expect you to learn from your mistakes or to use their open forums to gain advice and education. I have learned quite a bit from the forums but like any forums on the web you get both good and bad information and have to sift through and filter the info and determine what is correct. It works but it truly takes a lot of effort on your part to figure things out. iStock definitely has the traffic of image buyers but they are at the lower end of the royalties they pay to the seller. Snapvillage is the next one I know a little bit about, they are much more user friendly and they have more information posted on their site to help when you are trying to figure something out. They are also better on the royalties than iStock but they have much less buyer traffic. StockXpert is another I have tried to use but they are less user friendly than iStock and helpful information is even harder to find. They also have a forum for use but I have not tried it for information yet. The problem that has me stuck at the moment is how to upload a model release with and image, I have not been able to figure out how to do it yet and I cannot find any information on how to do it. I have not tried to hard but it should be obvious but it isn't. I am not impressed with the usability of StockXpert but their royalty payments are better than iStock, however if you cannot figure out how to upload properly then you will never be able to take part in the higher royalties. I am also not sure what kind of buyer traffic they have. The last agency I have tried to use is Fotolia, and so far I am least impressed by them. I submitted 1 image to them so far. I decided that I would submit the image I have had the most success with on iStock and it was rejected. Worst of all there was no real explanation of why, just a long list of things that may have been wrong with the image. The message said to find out what may be wrong with the image log onto the forum and submit the image to the users for critique. The only problem with that is you get different opinions and unless the person giving you the opinion knows what they are talking about you may trying things to get the image accepted that are not helping it. So I am least impressed with Fotolia than any of them. I plan to stick with iStock as my main agency and keep slowly uploading to the others and see what happens. What I have learned is that iStock is not the biggest micro stock agency at least not in the size of their library. Fotolia has the larger library at almost 5 million images and iStock at just over 4 million. If I can ever get any images accepted to their library I will know if they have the buyer that iStock has. Until then I will not know for sure who is truly the bigger and better stock site.

Photoman

Photoman

Clock Tower

This is the clock tower of the courthouse in Xenia. I love this image with the beige stone building contrasted against the rich blue sky. I can't believe it turned out so nice. I didn't do anything to the colors of this image in photoshop. The sky was pretty much cloudy and gray while I was shooting, the sun was out and the sky was blue for this image but I didn't know it was a deep and rich as it was until I saw this image on my computer. I had tried to get this same image a few days ago but when I got the files up on my computer I noticed spots all over the image, predominately in the blue sky. I looked at each image of the clock tower and it was on each one. I looked at the rest of the images I had shot and sure enough there were those ugly splotches. Long story short something had found its way onto the cmos sensor inside my camera. I was almost sick, I just got this camera. I was able to get the sensor cleaned and I shot this image again and voila no nasty spots just clean blue skies.

Photoman

Basilique Notre-Dame-de-Fourvière, Lyon, France

While I was in Lyon, France I had an opportunity to visit Basilique Notre-Dame-de-Fourvière. It was massive and beautiful, it sits on top of a hill overlooking the city of Lyon and can be seen from any part of Lyon that offers a view. When we were there they were having services so we had to be very quiet, we were also told that taking pictures was prohibited so I had to be very covert while shooting. One of the things that I was continually attracted to when I visited the different Catholic churches was the candles. Lit and unlit candles were everywhere you looked, it was quite beautiful. I really liked these candles the colorful jars stood out to me, I don't know if it is because they are the color of our flag or if it just because I love these 3 colors together. Regardless of why, I really liked this particular candle arrangement. Thanks for looking at my blog today.

Photoman

Victoria's Eyes

I am in a monthly photography challenge and this months challenge topic was eyes. This image is the image that I chose for my entry though I left it in color for the competition. I really like the contrast of this image in Black and White with a high contrast red filter applied to the image. I really like this young ladies eyes, I had been looking for a subject for this image and had a couple of people in mind but when I saw Victoria I knew I had found the eyes that I had been looking for. The image came out just as I had planned, I am very pleased. I am very thankful to her and her family who worked so well with me to allow me to get this image. I do not know yet how I did in the challenge but I will let you know as soon as I find out. The results should be posted some time next week. I hope you enjoy this image as much as I do.

Photoman

Water Drops

I like shooting water droplets but they have proven to be hard for me. I am not sure why but I have never had good luck with them. I found a way to make it easier but of course everything has a price. It is easier to get the droplets to stay in place for the photograph if they are frozen to whatever it is you are shooting. The problem that it poses is that it makes it very hard to keep yourself warm. I found this one on a very cold day, one of the coldest days of 2008. It was fun to be out shooting even though it was cold. I would recommend that you be patient and do your water droplet shooting in the summer months. This image was shot just outside of the Hooven Allison property on the south east side of Xenia.

Photoman

Association of Christian Photographers

Association of Christian Photographers or ACP for short, was an attempt by myself and a few of my friends to start an organized group of christian photographers. It started out well but never really got off of the ground. I was the brainchild behind the group but I nor did any of the others have the time or the necessary knowledge in order to truly get the organization going. The image above is from one of our early meetings, we typically would hold our meetings as a group without our families. This was our first meeting where we decided to have a family time, so we had a picnic and had a time of fellowship. One of our major goals with this association was to foster a family atmosphere, one where we could have fun and yet our time and conversations would be dominated with the topic of photography. ACP was a lofty goal and the outcome was not what I had hoped for. I still would like to see some kind of group of christian photographers become united but I don't think it will be in the way that I have tried in the past. The above image is of my good friend Todd and his family. I miss being able to see him if I want to, but the funny thing is, now that he has moved away I actually talk with him more than when he lived here. If you are reading this and you know of an association or group of christian photographers, please let me know, I would like to check them out.

Photoman

Peacock Blue

I love this image of a blue peacock. I took this photo at the Cincinnati Zoo a while ago. I love the way the blacktop creates a soft gray background behind the blue of the peacock. Since I am stuck living in Ohio for the time being, I have to get most of my wildlife images in Zoos. Some of my better wildlife images were taken in the Cincinnati Zoo. Earlier this week I did another blog about a park in Ohio called The Wilds of Ohio, this is by far my favorite place to shoot wildlife images. It isn't your typical zoo but it falls into the zoo category. It is most likely the closest I will ever get to an African Safari. It is affiliated with the Columbus Zoo which is probably my favorite zoo in Ohio. I have only been to the Cleveland Zoo one time and I enjoyed it but it is to far away to see on a regular basis. I have never had an opportunity to visit the Toledo Zoo but I hope to sometime before we move to California. My birthday is coming up next month and the only thing I am asking for is a Family Pass to the Columbus Zoo. If you would like more information on the Zoos I have mentioned just click on the name of the zoo and it will take you to the official zoo web site. If you would like to donate money toward a family pass for my birthday gift, just click on the comment section at the end of this post and let me know. I will gladly tell you where to mail a check, lol!

Photoman

When fall and winter meet.

Ohio sucks it gets cold in the winter time, I totally wish winter would go away. I really like this image with the snow and leaves, but I would be fine if the snow and cold would never come again. I could live in a warm part of the world and never miss the cold weather again.

Photoman

Not the post I had hoped for!

This isn't what I had planned on talking about tonight, I wanted to post an image that I had taken today but when I got home and was looking at the images on my computer, I noticed a bunch of spots on the files. I quickly got the camera and looked through the lens, but there was nothing there. I took a picture of the wall and sure enough there were the spots again, not a good sign. I removed the lens, nothing on the mirror of focusing glass, now I am getting worried. I locked up the mirror and looked at the sensor, there was a nice big mess of something on the sensor. It isn't just a spot it is several spots all over the sensor, looks like someone spit on it. What I don't understand is why all of the images I took today don't show the spots, they didn't show up until about halfway through the shoot. What is even more weird is the fact that I didn't change or remove the lens, so I can't figure out where the spots came from or what they are. The worst thing is that I have a shoot in the morning and now my camera is not taking good images. My luck has been terrible lately. So instead of one of the images from today's shooting, I decided to show you this image from the barn fire that I mentioned in a past post. This is the first fire that I covered, it was a huge fire cool to watch but I hated to see it at the same time. This barn was my favorite building to shoot in, it was full of all kind of interesting images. Now it is gone and I am sad, but not as sad as I am about my camera.

Photoman

Rhinoceros roam "The Wilds" of Ohio!

There are Rhinoceros that roam "The Wilds" of Ohio, and no, I am not hallucinating. I took this photo of an Asian rhinoceros near Zainsville, Ohio. I had heard rumors of wild animals roaming free in this area for some time but didn't believe it until I went to see for myself. Not only did I see this Rhino but I saw Giraffes, Gazelles of all kind, Buffalo or Bison (not quite sure what they were), Zebra and a whole host of other animals. I am not making this up I have the photos to prove it. There is an area somewhere South East of Zainesville that used to be a mining facility, I am not sure what they used to mine there but you can see old oil rigs here and there. The mine consisted of about 10,000 acres of grassy fields with many small stands of trees spread about. It reminds me very much of the African Grasslands only with a bit more hills. When the mining stopped the land sat idle for a number of years, it was during this time that the animals began appearing. I am not sure which animals came first but they are definitely there now. If you don't believe me take a drive out and see for yourself.

Enough of the story, though I hope it has peeked your interest. These animals really are roaming "The Wilds" of Ohio. After the mining stopped the land sat idle for a number of years just like I said. At some point the land was donated to an organization that wanted to protect and preserve wildlife. As a result "The Wilds" of Ohio was born. The animals that they have really do roam the land, they have them segregated from one another but each kind of animal has several hundred acres of land to roam. "The Wilds" is associated with the Columbus Zoo and it is my favorite place to go. I have been 2 or 3 times now and I have enjoyed it every time. They have just started a Carnivorous Animal area where they have wild cats. If you would like more info on "The Wilds" just click on any of the words "The Wilds" and you will be directed to their website. If you live in Ohio I highly recommend you visit, I don't think you will be disappointed. Be sure to check their calender as their hours of operation are very unusual.

Photoman

P.S.

I would like to say welcome to my newest follower, Todd Kuhns who I guilted into becoming a follower of my blog.

iStock vs. Snapvillage

As I told you yesterday I have been doing the stock photography thing for a while now and I am primarily using iStock. The only problem is I am not satisfied that iStock is the best agency to be with, so I am looking at some other agencies. Snapvillage among others is one of the agencies that I am looking at. I had used Photoshelter in the past but they were not able to compete with iStock and have since closed their Stock Photography Site. I have noticed a lot of similarities between Snapvillage and Photoshelter, hopefully that is not bad news for Snapvillage. I like Snapvillage better as it is easier to figure out than iStock. iStock is not a user friendly website, and they really don't seem to care. iStock is like Microsoft in this way, they are both so big and have so much money that they don't care if they are user friendly. I spent part of my day looking around Snapvillage today getting familiar with the site. One of the things that I discovered is that there doesn't seem to be a lot of images on the site, they seem young and therefore it will be easier to get images accepted. One thing that I didn't see that I wanted to see was images with very high download numbers. I never looked at all of the images but of those that I did, I never found an image with over 100 downloads. This could be good or this could be bad I am not sure. With Snapvillage you get a lot more money per download than with iStock so they are selling the images for more money. My point is with Snapvillage you don't need as many downloads to make as the same amount of money as you do with iStock. I guess the gist of this blog is that I really don't know if Snapvillage is better than iStock but I have just started with Snapvillage and it is way to early to know. I am still waiting to be accepted as a contributor to StockXpert, so I can't tell you much about them. As I learn more I will share it with you. O.K. let me explain the image at I posted with this blog post. The image has nothing to do with Stock Photography, I posted this image for the benefit of my good friend Todd Kuhns who reads my blog daily but for some reason won't sign up as a follower of my blog. Maybe he doesn't want people to know he reads nonsense like mine on a daily basis. Someday he'll come around and see the benefit of being a follower of my blog.

Photoman

Micro Stock Photgraphy Agencies

A couple of weeks ago or maybe longer I made a post about my experience with iStock. I guess it came across as a bit negative, I must say that I have not been the most pleased with iStock but I also have to say that I am not giving up on them. I see a potential to make some money with iStock but at this point the potential is far out of reach. So I have decided to try out some of iStock's competitors, I have currently started submitting images to Snapvillage and StocXpert. Snapvillage is owned and operated by Corbis Stock Photography, iStock's biggest competitor. Snapvillage is owned by Jupiter Images, iStock's 2nd biggest competitor. I have so far like the process of uploading to Snapvillage, it is much smoother and faster that iStock. I have not found any type of upload limit with Snapvillage either, so it should be easy to get a large portfolio with them rather quickly, very much the opposite of iStock. It is so hard to get images uploaded and accepted to iStock that I don't see me being able to make any real money with iStock for 3 or 4 years at best. I have been praying and asking God to give me one or two good ideas or images that will allow me to get some serious downloads, if He has given me the idea or the image iStock hasn't approved it yet. So I am still praying, if you are a believer I would appreciate it if you would add to your prayers that God would allow me to find the images that He wants me to post to iStock that will allow me to support myself on the mission field as a missionary photographer. Back to the post at hand, so far I am impressed with Snapvillage, I was impressed with Photoshelter before they closed down hopefully Snapvillage will not close. I also submitted some images to StockXpert which is owned by Jupiter Images. One of the big differences between Snapvillage and StockXpert is that StockXpert makes you submit 5 images to be approved before you can upload to their site, just like iStock. I am still waiting for them to approve me as a submitter then I can start submitting images to their site. I am not sure if either on of these new agencies will have the amount of traffic that iStock has but unless I try I will never know. There are many differences between iStock and Snapvillage and I am not sure which is better but I hope to know soon one way or another. I will keep you informed as I learn more about the 3 agencies. The image that I have shown today is one that was rejected by iStock but accepted by Photoshelter, I have submitted it to Sanpvillage to see if they will accept it. I will keep you informed.

Photoman

Xenia's Finest

I sometimes do some photojournalism work for the local newspapers. The image in today's post is not from one of those times but it could have been if I had submitted the images to them. I was just to busy to make the time to give them the images from this shoot. This building is across the street from where I work and when I got the call that a building was on fire I had to go and see it for myself. Of course before I could go I had to get my camera, lucky for me I live where I work so my camera was close by. I grabbed my camera and was on the site in time to get quite a few images. This fire is nothing in comparison to the first fire that I had the opportunity to photograph, which was probably the biggest and worst fire I will ever have an opportunity to shoot. If you look close enough you can see some small flames at the point where the roof is damaged. This building is attached to another building that is part of a historical pickle packaging factory. Unfortunately the building was lost to the fire but thankfully the rest of the structures were not affected. I credit Xenia's fine fire department for saving the remaining structures.
Photoman

Bicycle Capital of the Midwest!

The image that I am posting today is a photo I took at Xenia Station. Years ago when trains were a major means of transportation Xenia Station was a bustling place. The advent of the Bus was the ultimate demise of the train system in the U.S. With the Interstate people could travel faster and cheaper by bus and soon the trains were used for transportation of cargo. Then not long after that the Semi Truck replaced the train as the cargo carrier of choice, much for the same reason they were faster and cheaper. After the demise of the rail system Xenia Station sat empty for many years and ultimately it was demolished. The tracks have pretty much all been removed and replaced with blacktop bicycle and walking trails. Xenia Station is once again a bustling hub of activity, this time instead of trains coming through Xenia we have bicycles coming to town. Instead of a train hub we have a bicycle hub. A replica of the original train station has been built in much the same place and bicyclist's, walkers, runners, and roller blader's of all shapes and sizes make their way through Xenia Station on any given day. The station house is a place for folks to stop to have a break and get a refreshing drink or snack. While they are there they can also learn a bit of the Xenia Station history. In the above image you just get a glimpse of the building and one of the trails with a walker and cyclist in the picture. I hope you enjoy the photo and will come back to visit my blog in the future.

Photoman

Panoramic 5

When I went to bed last night I was expecting to wake up to a mess. The news had reported that we were going to get an inch of ice and then about 2 to 4 inches of snow. When I looked out the window I only saw a small amount of snow, there was quite a bit of ice on the trees but no way near an inch. Later that day I was sitting in my chair looking at my iStock site to see how my images were doing when my son said that I should go out and take pictures of the ice on the trees. From his window it was quite pretty to see, from the ground floor it wasn't so impressive. What I did notice that made we want to go out and shoot was the fog. It was a fairly warm day and as the snow and ice melted it became quite foggy. I love shooting in the fog but I hae never been able to reproduce the images that I see with my eys through my camera. I decided that I would go out and shoot and while I was out I decided to practice doing a panoramic again. The fog and the overcast light doesn't make for a colorful image but I was only doing this for practice. I thought I would show it to you tonight so here it is.

Photoman

Keys to what?

I don't have much to talk about tonight, but I am never one to not have anything to say, so I am going to say something. I am just going to type and see what I end up with when I am done. O.K. let me tell you about the above image. I didn't choose this image for any specific reason, I don't know exactly why I chose it. Maybe it is because I carry a large ring of keys with me everyday at work but I don't think so. There are all different kinds of keys, keys that start your car, keys that unlock the doors in your home, keys that unlock padlocks and keys that turn lights on and off. Most of us use keys every day of our lives, though I really don't think I chose this image because we all use keys most everyday of our life. Maybe I subconsciously chose this image because it represents something less concrete but still very important. Maybe it symbolizes the key to my future, iStock. As I said in an earlier post, I have recently started a relationship with iStock, a stock photography agency. I have been praying that God would give me enough success with iStock that I might be able to support myself as a missionary photographer in the future. This thought is continually in the back of my mind and maybe I chose this image as a result of that thought. Only God knows exactly why I chose this image because I sure don't. Maybe it is a quiet revelation from Him that I am on the right path with iStock.

Thanks for looking at my blog today,

Photoman

Shawnee State Park Snakes.

I have blogged in the past about Shawnee State Park, one of our favorite camping destinations. One of the reasons we like Shawnee so well is because of it Nature Center. We haven't camped in all of the Ohio State Parks but of those we have Shawnee has the best Naturalist and Nature Center. Jenny the Naturalist is great with the kids and they love her. Her knowledge of the natural world and her love for it is obvious from the first time you meet her. One of the reasons we like the Nature Center is because Jenny keeps it stocked with all different kinds of wildlife. At any given visit you may see as many as 10-12 snakes, lizards, turtles, toads, fish, bugs and any other thing that someone might find wandering through their campsite. My girls love to go and hold the snakes, so much so that now they are asking for a pet snake. I would allow it but I am afraid there mom won't. She is a bit of a fraidy cat, she also brings up the point that their food can be expensive and that is why I won't allow one in the house. If you ever get the urge to go on a drive, you may just want to take a ride to Shawnee State Park's Nature Center. If you go, look up Jenny and tell her I said hi.

Photoman

Neither need the other, but.......

I took this photo of my daughter while we were in California looking into GRN (Global Recordings Network). I don't remember which beach we were at when I took this photo, I do however remember this moment. I remember it because as usual my family got tired of waiting for me before I was done shooting. I took this shot of my oldest daughter and then a few more. Then I had my second oldest pose and I took a few of her. I wanted to get my youngest but she, my wife and my son were almost back to the van. They were tired of waiting for me and left me in the sand. I am very pleased with how the images turned out, I only wish I could have at least been able to shoot all 3 girls. I would have tired to do my wife and my son as well, if the sun had stayed up long enough but this day my family set before the sun. I really love the gold color of the sky and the way the sun highlights my daughter. It is like she has a gold band around her. Sunsets are so beautiful it is hard to improve them, in this case my beautiful daughter is draped in the beauty of the sunset. Neither need the other to be beautiful but together they are improved upon by lending their beauty to the other.

Photoman

I almost forgot, I would like to say welcome to Jeff and Jeniffer, my two followers. Feel free to leave comments, sugg

estions or requests. I will do my best to answer them.

iStock, My Experience!

I have recently became a stock photographer, I started selling stock images in June of 2008. When I first started I was with 2 agencies iStock and Photoshelter. I am now only with iStock as Photoshelter has closed their stock agency. I liked Photoshelter better than iStock because Photoshelter seemed more concerned with helping the industry be better than they were with making money (that is the impression I got from my brief experience with them). Maybe that is why they didn't last in the world of stock agencies. iStock on the other hand is all about making money for iStock and if you stick with it long enough, like 2 years, then you as the photographer can start making some money. If I was an exceptional photographer with superior skills I would be able to make decent money relatively quick, but then if this were the case, I wouldn't need iStock to make money. No, I fall into the category of a photographer with very little experience and no stock experience. I have learned that Stock Photography is definitely a style of photography unlike any other. Commercial Photography is probably the closest you can come to being a stock photographer but stock is still a unique type of photography. I could spend a long time writing about my experience with iStock but I don't want to bore you, so I am just going to say this much for tonight and see how well this blog is received. If you want to hear more about Stock Photography let me know and I will do more blogs about it. I am uploading an image that I just took tonight specifically for iStock. I don't know if it will be accepted but I hope it is.

Photman

I need help from my fans!

If you read this blog on a regular or irregular basis or if this is simply your first visit, I need your help. I would like to start doing some tutorial blogs, but I don't want to do a tutorial on just whatever pops into my head. I want my tutorial to be beneficial to you my readers or viewers or fans or whatever you consider yourself. So if you have a question about photography or photoshop or would like to know how something I have talked about is accomplished please leave a comment on this post and I will do my best to accommodate you. I really want this to be a blog that is more than just me talking about my pictures, I would like to be able to use my knowledge of photography and photoshop to help you out with your photography. All comments will be posted on the blog unless they are obscene so please feel free to comment or ask questions.

Photoman

Winter!

Here is a good reminder of what winter looks like. Paris Daily Photo is a blog that I like to check in on from time to time. It is actually the blog that peeked my interest and ultimately what inspired me to start my blog. If you click on the words Paris Daily Photo you can see the blog that I am referring to. I mention Paris Daily Photo because two of the recent blogs he has posted showed images of snow in Paris. It looks more like dust than snow, I am just jealous I wish we didn't get any snow but we do. So I thought I would share with my readers a picture of snow in the States. The image that I have posted was actually shot in Michigan not Ohio but I like this winter scene so I am showing it to you. I was in Michigan for a friends funeral and we were very close to Lake Michigan. I couldn't get that close and not see the lake so we made a point after the funeral to check it out. In the foreground you see the snow on the ground where I am standing to get this image. Well it turns out that it is actually the lake that I was standing on. No, I was not walking on water but I was walking on the frozen surface of Lake Michigan. I didn't realize it at first but when I got close to the edge of the ice (that I thought was snow covering the beach), I could see the ice moving. When I first realized that I was on ice and not beach, I stopped in my tracks got a few shots turned around and hightailed it back to the beach. I found out after that it is against the law to be on the ice, for obvious reasons. It was very cold by the lake that day. It was very cold and I was dressed for a funeral not for being out in the cold. My friend who I was with had a few warm things that I threw on so that I could stand the temperatures. With the wind chill it was around 30 below Zero. This is one image that I can honestly say many photographers would not have been photographer enough to brave the elements to get. I am not sure that I would a second time.

Photoman

Panoramic 4

I was looking for an image for yesterdays blog when I stumbled upon this image. I had totally forgot that I made this panoramic image while I was on vacation in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. This image was shot from Clingman's Dome, it is the highest point in the park at 6643 feet and as you can kind of see, gives you some great views of the park. This particular day was not the best day to be trying to see the views, you can see that the clouds are very low and the view is diminished as a result. What you are seeing is a huge storm (we had no idea) that was moving in on us, we made it down just before storm hit. We made it safely to the car before it cut loose with thunder, lightning, rain and hail. It was a short but nasty storm, the top of the mountain was not the place to be when it hit. I feel bad for those who were on there way up the mountain while we were coming down, they surely got caught in the mayhem. Well anyway back to the image, this particular panoramic was actually 5 exposures that I stitched together to make this 1 image. In the foreground you can see the skeletons of many dead trees, I don't remember what they say is killing the trees but something has been introduced that is killing off a certain type of hemlock tree. You can go to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park website to learn more about the blight or you can click here. Well I hope you enjoy the photo, I still need to find a good topic and do another panoramic. Someone has suggested the Cincinnati Reds baseball stadium which I will try but I won't be able to get in there until summer. I need to come up with an idea to shoot sooner than summer. If you have any good ideas please leave me a comment with your suggestion.

Photoman

The Smokies at Sunset

I love the sunsets in the Smokies, the sky is almost always colorful at this time of the day. On this particular day we were driving back from the North Carolina side of the Smokies when we saw this sunset happening. I had to quickly find a overlook and pull over to get this shot. I have another sunset photo that I took while we were in the heart of the National Park near Clingman's Dome. I will look for it and post it some time for you to see. The only thing that is better than the sunsets are the sunrises. I don't have any sunrise images as I would have to get up early for them. I know, I know a real photographer wouldn't care about the time but hey, I was on vacation o.k. so leave me alone. I will get there someday and get up early and get me some sunrise photos, really, I will. As I was saying the sunrises there are amazing with the smoke and mist rising amongst the trees back lit by the sun it's beautiful. The sunsets as you can see above are usually more colorful than the sunrises but they are both beautiful sites to behold. If you have never been to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park I highly recommend it. It is a beautiful part of the U.S. where you have the opportunity to view beautiful scenery as well as wildlife that you cannot see in Ohio.

Photoman

Comments

If you have been to my blog in the past and have been kind enough to leave a comment I would like to say thank you. I would also like to let you know that I have recently figured out that my comments have not been getting to me. So if you have left a comment I never received it, I finally figured out the problem and it has been rectified. So I have not been ignoring anyone's comments I truly have not been getting them. Please comment away, it takes a day to get them posted for all to see but at least I get them now.

Photman

I wonder?

When I see an old house like this one, I wonder what it would say if it could talk. What stories it would tell me of the people who inhabited it's walls. I wonder, would it tell me stories that would make me laugh, perhaps the people who lived in this house were fun loving people who on every given occasion played pranks on each other.



Maybe they just liked to sit around and play games together and tell jokes over a good cup of coffee. I wonder, if it would tell me sad stories, perhaps it would tell me stories that would break my heart for those who lived here in the past.



I wonder, if it would tell me stories of romantic acts of heroism or maybe stories of helping slaves to freedom. I see old homes like this and I am compelled to stop and photograph them, it is as if the houses call to me longing to tell me their stories. I wonder if there is anyone who knows the story of this old home.



It was almost 3 years ago when I shot this house. I didn't go inside that day, I will be going back to the area where this house stood in a few months if it still stands I intend to go inside it and shoot. I wonder, if I will talk to me while a I am inside it.
I wonder!


Photoman

So, God Isn't Answering Your Prayers!

This message was not written by me it is something that a photographer friend of mine from New Zealand named Mark Jackson wrote. I needed to hear it and I am sure that I am not the only one who does, so I wanted to share it with all who read my blog. I hope you will take the time to read it is very true, even if you are not feeling like God isn't answering your prayers. It is still a good reminder of exactly who God is.

Photoman

The devil's final strategy in deceiving believers is to make them doubt the faithfulness of God in answering prayer. Satan would have us believe God has shut His ears to our cry and left us to work things out for ourselves.I believe the greatest tragedy in the church of Jesus Christ today is that so few now believe in the power and effectiveness of prayer. Without meaning to blaspheme, multitudes of God's people can now be heard complaining, "I pray, but I get no answers. I've prayed so long, so hard, without any results. All I want is to see a little evidence of God changing things. Things go on as usual - nothing happens. How long must I wait?" They no longer visit the secret closet because they are convinced that their petitions, born in prayer, are somewhere miscarried at the throne. Others are convinced that only Daniel, David, and Elijah types can get their prayers through to God.In all honesty, many saints of God struggle with these thoughts - "If God's ear is open to my prayer, and I pray diligently, why is there such little evidence of His answering?" Is there one certain prayer you have been praying for such a long time, and as yet it has not been answered? Have even years gone by and still you wait, hoping, yet wondering?Let us be careful not to charge God, as did Job, with being slothful; and unconcerned about our needs and petitions. Job complained, "I cry unto thee and thou dost not hear me; I stand up, and though regardest me not" (Job 30:20).His vision of God's faithfulness was clouded by his present difficulties, and he ended up accusing God of forgetting him. God rebuked him soundly for it.It's time we Christians took an honest look at the reasons why our prayers are aborted. We can be guilty of charging God with neglect, when all along our own behavior is responsible. Let me name six, of many reasons why our prayers are not answered.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reason One: Our Prayers Are Aborted When They Are Not According To God's Will.
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We are not at liberty to pray at random for whatever our selfish minds conceive. We are not permitted to come into his presence and vent our silly notions and mindless ramblings. If God signed all our petitions without discretion, He would end up giving His glory away.There is a law of prayer! It is a law meant to weed out beggarly, self-centered prayers - while, at the same time, making it possible for honest seekers to ask in confidence. In other words, we can pray for whatsoever we will, as long as it is his will."If we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us" (1 John 5:14).The disciples were not praying according to God's will when they prayed with vindictiveness and revenge. They petitioned God thusly, "Shall we command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" Jesus answered, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of" (Luke 9:54,55).Job, in his sorrow, begged God to take his life away. What if God had answered such a prayer? Such praying was contrary to the will of God. The Word warns, "Let not thy lip be hasty to utter a matter before the Lord."Daniel prayed the right way. First, he went to the Scriptures and searched out the mind of God. Having gotten clear direction, and sure of God's will, he runs to God's throne with a mighty assurance. "And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer" (Daniel 9:3).We know too much about what we want and too little about what He wants.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reason Two: Our Prayers Can Be Aborted When They Are Designed To Fulfill An Inner Lust, Dreams, Or Illusions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------"Ye ask and receive not because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lust" (James 4:3).God will answer no prayer that would add to our honor or assist our temptations. In the first place, God answers no prayer of a person who harbors lust in his or her heart. All answers are dependent on upon the plucking out of our hearts the evil, the lust, and the besetting sins."If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me" (Psalm 66:18).The test of knowing whether or not our request is based on lust is very simple. How we handle delays and denials is the clue. Prayers founded on lust demand hasty answers. If the lusting heart does not get the thing desired, quickly, it whimpers and cries, it swoons and faints - or it breaks out in a spell of murmuring and complaining, finally accusing God of deafness."Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not" (Isaiah 58:3).The lustful heart cannot see God's glory in His denials and delays. Yet did God not get more glory by denying Christ's prayer to save His life, if possible, from death? Shudder to think of where we would be today had God not denied that request.God, in His justice, is obligated to delay or deny our prayers until they are purged of all selfishness and lust.Could it be there is one simple reason why most of our prayers are hindered? Could it be a result of our ongoing flirtation with a lust or besetting sin? Have we forgotten that only those with clean hands and pure hearts can set their feet on His holy hill? Only a total forsaking of a pet sin will throw open the gates of heaven and unclog the blessings.Instead of yielding, we run from counselor to counselor - trying to find help to cope with despair, emptiness, and restlessness. Yet, it is all in vain because sin and lust have not yet been plucked out. Sin is the root of all our problems. Peace comes only when we surrender and forsake all lust and secret sin.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reason Three: Our Prayers Can Be Denied When We Show No Diligence to Assist God In The Answer.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------We go to God as if He were a kind of rich relative who will support us and give us all we beg for, while we lift not even a hand to help. We lift our hands to God in prayer, then put them in our pockets.We expect our prayers to get God to working for us, while we sit idly by, thinking to ourselves, "He has all the power; I have none, so I will simply stand still and let him do the work."It sounds like good theology, but it is not. God will have no idle beggars at His door. God won't even allow us to be charitable to those who on earth refuse to work."We command you that, if any would not work, neither should he eat" (2 Thessalonians 3:10).There is nothing unscriptural about adding sweat to our tears. Take, for example, the matter of praying for victory over a secret lust that lingers in the heart. Do you simply ask God to take it away miraculously, then sit by, hoping it will die on its own? No sin has ever been slain in the heart without the cooperation of man's own hand, as in the case of Joshua. All night long, he lay prostrated and mourning over Israel's defeat. God set him on his feet saying, "Get thee up; wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face? Israel hath sinned. Up, sanctify the people..." (Joshua 7:10-13).God has every right to rouse us from our knees and say, "Why sit around lazily, waiting for a miracle? Have I not commanded you to flee from the very appearance of evil? You are to do more than simply pray against your lust, but you are commanded also to run from it. You cannot rest until you have done all that is commanded."We cannot go about all day long giving in to our lust and evil desires, then run into the secret closet at night to pray for a miracle of deliverance.Secret sin causes us to lose ground with God in prayer, because unyielded sin is actually siding with the devil. One of God's names is "Revealer of Secrets" (Daniel 2:47). He must bring to light the hidden secrets of darkness, no matter how saintly the one who tries to hide it. The more pains one goes to in hiding sin, the surer God is to expose it. The coast is never clear to secret sin."Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance" (Psalm 90:8).God will protect his own honor above the reputation of those who sin in secret. God exposed David's sin in order to keep His own honor before ungodly men. And David, who was so jealous of his own good name and reputation, even today stands before our eyes exposed and still confessing - every time we read about him in the Scripture.No - God will not allow us to drink from stolen waters, then attempt to drink at His holy fountain. Not only will our secret sin find us out, it will deny us God's best and bring on a flood of despair, doubt, and fear.Don't blame God for not listening to your prayers if you're not listening to His call to obedience. You will end up blaspheming God and accusing Him of negligence, while all along you'll be the culprit.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reason Four: Our Prayers Can Be Aborted By A Secret Grudge Lodged In The Heart Against Another.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Christ will not deal with anyone with a wrathful and unforgiving spirit. We are commanded to "lay aside all malice, envy, and evil speaking, and as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word" (1 Peter 2:1,2).Christ will not even communicate with a wrangling, jangling, unforgiving person. God's law of prayer is clear on this matter, "Lift up pure hands without wrath or doubting" (1 Timothy 2:8). By not forgiving the sins committed against us, we make it impossible for God to forgive and bless us. He instructed us to pray, "Forgive us, as we forgive others."Is there a grudge smoldering in your heart against another? Don't look upon it as something you have a right to indulge in. God takes such things very seriously. All the wranglings and disputing among Christian brothers and sisters must grieve His heart more than all the sins of the ungodly. No wonder our prayers are hindered - we have become so obsessed with our own hurt feelings and so concerned about our mistreatment from others.There is also a malignant mistrust rising up in religious circles. Jealousies, uncharitableness, bitterness - and a spirit of revenge, all in God's name. We should not wonder if God shuts the very gates of heaven on us, until we learn to love and forgive. Yes, even those who have hurt us the most. Get this Jonah off your ship and the storm will settle.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reason Five: Our Prayers Can Be Aborted By Not Expecting Much To Come Of Them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------He who expects little from prayer will not have much power and authority in prayer. When we question the power of prayer, we lose it. The devil is trying to rob us of hope by making it appear that prayer is no longer effective.How clever Satan is, as he tries to deceive us with lies and unnecessary fears. When Isaac was brought the false news that Joseph had been killed, it sickened him to despair, even though it was a lie. Joseph was alive and prospering, while all this time his father grieved in sorrow - having believed the lie. So Satan is trying to deceive us today with lies.Unbelieving fears rob the believer of joy and confidence in God. God does not hear all prayer - He hears only believing prayer. Prayer is the only weapon we have against all the fiery darkness of the enemy. That weapon must be used in great confidence, or else we have no other defense against Satan's lies. Gods' reputation is at stake.Our lack of patience is proof enough we don't expect much from prayer. We leave the secret closet of prayer, ready to go on muddling our way through - and we would even be shocked if God did answer.We think God has not heard us because we see no evidence of an answer. But of this you can be sure - the longer a prayer is delayed, the more perfect it will come forth at last. Also, the deeper the silence, the louder the answer.Abraham prayed for a child, and God answered. Yet, how many years went by before he held that child in his arms? Every faithful prayer is heard the moment it is prayed, but God chooses to answer in His own way and in His own time. Meanwhile, God expects us to rejoice in the naked promises and feast on hope while we wait for the fulfillment. Also, he wraps His denials in the sweet package of love, to prevent us from falling into despair.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reason Six: Our Prayers Are Aborted When We Ourselves Attempt To Prescribe How God Should Answer.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The only person we lay down terms to is the one we don't trust. Those we trust we leave to themselves to do what is right. It all boils down to a lack of trust.The believing soul, after he has unburdened his heart in prayer to the Lord, resigns himself to the faithfulness, goodness, and wisdom of God. The true believer will leave the shaping of the answer to God's mercy. Whatever way God chooses to answer, the believer will welcome it.David prayed diligently for his household, and then committed all to God's covenant - "Though my house be not so with God, yet He hath made with me a covenant" (2 Samuel 23:5).Those who prescribe to God how and when to answer actually limit the Holy one of Israel. Since God will not bring the answer in the front door, they are not aware of His coming in the back. They trust only in conclusions and not promises. But God will not be bound up to time, manner, or means of answering. He will forever do exceedingly, abundantly more than we ask or think of asking. He will answer with health, or grace that is better than health. He will send love, or something beyond it. He will deliver, or do something even greater.He desires that we simply leave our requests lodged in His powerful arms, cast all our care upon Him, and go forth with peace and serenity to wait His relief. How tragic to have so great a God and so little faith in Him.No more of "Is He able?" Away with such blasphemy! How that must grate on the ears of our almighty God. "Can He pardon? Can He heal? Can He work a work for me?" Away with such unbelief! Come, rather, to him "as unto a faithful Creator." When Hannah prayed through in faith, she "rose from her knees to eat, and her countenance was no more sad."
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A Few More Encouragments and Warnings Concerning Prayer:
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When You Are Down, and Satan Whispers In Your Ear That God Has Forgotten You, Stop His Mouth With This -"Devil - it is not God who has forgotten, but it is me. I've forgotten all His past blessings, or else I could not now be questioning his faithfulness."You see, faith should have a good memory. Our rash and hasty words are results of our forgetting His past benefits. With David, we should pray:"This is my infirmity, but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High, I will remember the works of the Lord, surely I will remember Thy wonders of old." (Psalm 77:10,11).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reject That Secret Whisper In The Soul That Says, "The Answer Will Be So Long Delayed, I Will Not Enjoy It Should It Come."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------You can be guilty of spiritual mutiny by not trusting God to answer at the most opportune time. You can be sure that when the answer comes, it will come in a way and in a time it will be most enjoyed. If what you prayed for is not worth the waiting, it is not worth the asking.
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Stop Fretting About Receiving, and Learn to Rely.
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God never groans or complains about the power of His enemies, but rather the impatience of His own people. How unbelief does break His heart, with so many wondering whether to love Him or leave Him.God wants us to rely on His love. Love is the principle He constantly acts from, and from this He never swerves. When He frowns with His brow, rebukes with His lips, or strikes with His hand, even in all this, His heart burns with love and all His thoughts toward us are of peace and goodness.All hypocrisy lies in distrust, and the soul that cannot rely on God cannot long be true to God. When once we begin to question His faithfulness, we begin to live by our own wits and care for ourselves. Like the backslidden children of Israel, we are saying, "Up, make us gods...We know not what has become of Moses..." (Exodus 32:1).You are no company to God unless you rely on Him.
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When You Are Down, You Are Allowed To Groan, But Not To Grumble.
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How can love for God be preserved in the heart that grumbles? The Word calls it 'contending with God'. What a foolish person to dare find fault with God - He will challenge such a person to lay his hand upon his mouth or else be consumed with bitterness.The Holy Spirit within us groans, with that unutterable language of heaven that prays according to the perfect will of God. But the fleshly grumble that proceeds out of the heart of the disenchanted believer is poison. Grumbling kept an entire nation out of the Promised Land, and it is today keeping multitudes from the blessings of the Lord. Groan if you must, but God forbid that you should grumble.
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Those Who Ask in Faith Go Forth Praising in Hope.
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"His words are pure as silver tried seven times in a furnace" (Psalm 12:6).God will not permit a liar or covenant-breaker to enter His presence or set foot on His holy hill. How then can we conceive that such a holy God can ever break His word to us? God has made himself, a name on earth - a name of 'Everlasting Faithfulness'. The more we believe that, the less troubled our souls will be. In the same proportion that there is faith in the heart, there is peace also."In quietness and confidence shall be your strength" (Isaiah 30:15).God's promises are like the ice on a frozen lake - which He says will hold us. The believer ventures out on it with boldness; the unbeliever with fear, lest it should break under him and leave him floundering.
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Never, Never Question Because You Don't Hear From God Presently.
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If God is delaying, it simply means your request is gaining interest in God's bank of blessings. So assured were the saints of God that He was faithful to His promises, they rejoiced before even seeing any conclusions. They went on merrily, as if they had already received. God wants us to pay in praises before we receive the promises.The Holy Ghost assists us in prayer - and is He not welcome at the throne? Will the Father deny the Spirit? Never! That groaning in your soul is no less than God Himself - and God will not deny Himself.

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Conclusion

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Saints of God - we alone are the losers if we do not get back to watching and praying. We become cold, sensuous, and playful when we avoid the secret closet of prayer. What a sad awakening there will be for those who carelessly harbor secret grudges against the Lord for not answering their prayers, when all along they have been slothful. We have not been effectual and fervent. We have not shut ourselves in with Him. We have not put aside our besetting sins. We have asked mostly to consume it on our own lust. We have been materialistic, lazy, unbelieving, doubtful - and then we wonder why our prayers are not answered.When Christ returns, He will not find faith on the earth, unless we get back into the secret closet, shut in with Christ and His Word.Time is short; the day of the Lord is at hand. Should we not then be watching and praying?

10 ways to tell if you’re a photographer

1. 1 GB of memory lasts most people a month but barely lasts you the afternoon.
2. You know what aperture-priority means.
3. You delete more photos in a week than most people make all year.
4. You need just one more lens.
5. You’ve crawled on the ground to get a shot of something rusty.
6. Your camera equipment is worth more than your car.
7. No one else brings a camera to an event if they know you’re coming.
8. Your family doesn’t recognize you without a camera covering your face.
9. You have thousands of pictures and you’re not in any of them.
10. You’ve been up before dawn or out in the freezing cold or even done something semi-dangerous… all for a photograph.

I found this on facebook and I thought it was so true, I had to share it with you guys.

Photoman