I Love This Car…! v.BMWE28M5
Friday was my Wife’s birthday, and so her parents came down for the weekend. Her dad had to come separately because of prior engagements, which means that he drove his E28 M5.
He has not one, but TWO 88 E28 M5’s. These cars are awesome. One of them is in great shape, but not perfect. The other, which is the one pictures, is in amazing condition! It is one of the nicest/cleanest you will ever see, and I do mean that literally. Both are pretty close to stock, except (if I remember correctly), the one pictured has a Dinan chip. I just can’t say enough how nice his M5’s are! They are beautiful!
The pics were taken on a whim. I didn’t have time to take nice pics this weekend, although I hope to next time I am in the same city as this rolling piece of awesome. The static shots were taken outside of a restaurant, hence all the cars cluttering my background. I took the rolling shots on 290. I took them from the Jeep I was driving, and since my attention was focused on the road, I couldn’t aim, change settings, ect. I did adjust the camera setting a tad, but I “shot from the hip” (so to speak), which is why a little of the door is in the shots, and it was not in a position to be cropped out. Cloned maybe, but not efficiently or cleanly, so I didn’t try.
On to the pics:
And just playing around w/ PP on this one… I’m not a huge fan of selective color, but I like it here…
Venus Made Itself Visible This Morning…
I knew about this ahead of time, and I had a plan. I had the intention of waking up about an hour earlier than normal this morning (usually around 5am, so 4am today), take the tripod, hit a field on the way to work, and experiment with different exposures, etc. for shots of out Moon and/or Venus. Yea, that didn’t happen.
There is a LOT going on right now, and I just completely forgot. I left the house around 5:45am this morning, no tripod w/ me, and no time to play. I couldn’t go back in for the pod because I would wake everyone up, so I didn’t. I wound up stopping next to a field right by my neighborhood for a few captures.
Thanks to the lack of tripod, I had to make due with a round, flat-top fence pole. It was leaning sideways a bit, so I had to be inventive to straighten the shot. I used and insert for my backpack, and the wireless receiver for my flash. I only had a few minutes to play since I had to fight father time (MMA style!) to get to work w/out being late.
These are the few shots that made the cut (of about 11). Nothing great, but I thought I would share…
Canon 30D & 70-200 F/4L:
F/4 – 4.0s – ISO100
Canon 30D & 10-22mm:
F/4 – 15.0s – ISO100
Canon 30D & 10-22mm:
F/4 – 10.0s – ISO100
My Wife Never Ceases To Amaze Me…
Yea, my wife is awesome!
As a family, we try to help people when we can. Last Christmas, we took clothes and toys to a family that couldn’t provide them for the kids. We aren’t in a position to help people monetarily at all, but we try, and the thought is there. So…
The daycare my wife works for does a Relay For Life thing every year. She wanted to be able to do more than just a few $$ donation, which is all we can really do, most of the time. So, she worked the week of Relay For Life, and then donated her entire paycheck to the charity. A week’s pay doesn’t seem like a lot, but when it is a good part of what you use for bills, fuel, food, etc, it is a relatively large amount.
Anyway, this was her idea, her sacrifice, and her effort that made this happen, and I thought she deserved a shout-out from me. I am very, VERY proud of her, and very proud to call her my wife…
You Might Be A Photographer When/If….
I often constantly visit a photography message board called POTN/Canon Forums. This site is full of ‘Togs’ that love Canon, and some that shoot, *gasp*, Nikon. More often than not, I come across hilarious threads that keep me laughing for hours. One of these has been on-going for quite a while, and it’s the “You Might Be A Photographer When/If….” thread. I don’t think I need to explain the purpose of this thread, but I would like to give examples…
Below are quotes from this thread. While there are 300 posts in this thread, these are my favorites, and every single one of these applies to me in one variation or another. My wife can attest to that lol…
And off we go…
Me:
YMBAP …When you critique Exposure, White Balance, and Bokeh in/on paintings.
justincase724:
YMBAP …You try to devise a plan to trade your car for a camera – and the wife is okay with the idea!
Killjoy:
YMBAP …People at work ask you “Are you taking photos AGAIN?” and you tell them “No, still”.
Mark_Cohran:
YMBAP …if your camera case and everything in it costs more than your car and everything in it.
dkspook:
YMBAP …If you make sure to take your camera bag out of the car every time you park it. In case the car is stolen. Screw the car, you can always get another one. But the camera gear is *special*!
YMBAP …If you smile every time you see 2.8, 1.4, 5.6 etc. on on non-photo-related displays.
MikeZip007:
YMBAP …you agree to take someone’s picture for them, then smile to yourself as they tell you which button to press on their P&S to take the picture.
YMBAP …you smile to yourself as someone lectures you about how their 12 megapixel P&S is better than your 30D.
queenbee288:
YMBAP …if you have B&H on your cell phone contact list.
gary88:
YMBAP …if the words “Out for delivery” made you giddy with excitement.
YMBAP …if you are happy to tell others that you love to shoot people.
YMBAP …if you have a mental list of all the gear you want to get and have memorized the current approximate/exact prices.
YMBAP … when you see a camera used in a movie you have to pause the film to explain to your family what camera they were using and why that lens was not the right one to use in the situation.
powerslave:
YMBAP …if you get paranoid about sensor dust everytime you have some dirt on your computer screen.
YMBAP …if you count your income in number of lenses.
YMBAP …if you know that Macro isn’t what a regular point and shoot gives you.
YMBAP …if a few hundred GBs of storage is temporary storage.
YMBAP …if you tend to talk for at least 20 minutes if someone mentions they might be looking to buy a camera.
masayako:
YMBAP …if the letter “L” has a special meaning in your heart.
JCam07:
YMBAP …if you feel nekid without a camera.
maytay20:
YMBAP …If you are looking at houses to buy and you are considering the lighting in every room to see if you could possibly use the whole house for pictures.
Zilly:
YMBAP …when your walking along the beach at sunset with the woman you love and think . . . . . . . . . f8 at 1/200th.
BillsBayou:
YMBAP …when you look at the centerfold in Playboy and can figure out the lighting setup, DOF, and how you’d make it a better shot.
Meglet:
YMBAP …if rainy Saturday afternoon boredom + docile cat= 50 pictures of a cat’s face at various distances, with different lighting styles, and with different lenses.
Jamie Holladay:
YMBAP …if you stop in the middle of a winding road and photograph the vehicle.
ghostrider_9:
YMBAP …if you’ve ever had lens envy.
mladams:
YMBAP …if your new camera bag costs more then your first camera. (P&S of course)
musicmaster:
YMBAP …If your 70-300 4-5.6 becomes a 70-200 4.0 which becomes a 70-200 2.8.
ZGMF-X20A:
YMBAP …if you can identify the lenses used by sports photographers during Lakers game.
YMBAP …if you know that 1.4 is bigger than 2.8.
YMBAP …if you know that 1/500s-f1.8@ISO400 is neither mathematical formula nor email address.
YMBAP …if you walk weird without the weight of a camera bag.
YMBAP …if a friend asks “which camera is good” and your response is “It’s not the body, but the lens”.
YMBAP …if you know the what’s a crop body and what’s full frame when your buddy thinks you’re referring to women.
Maureen Souza:
YMBAP …when you tell your spouse that the only bling you want is L glass.
neilwood32:
YMBAP …You permanently have a camera of some type nearby.
YMBAP …You walk around town planning a photowalk.
YMBAP …You see landscapes as “18mm f11 @1/100 ISO 100″.
Perry Ge:
YMBAP …When your camera bag is heavier than your suitcase.
YMBAP …When your holiday photos are the reason you go on holidays.
michaelgreen78:
YMBAP …you get drunk and think that Image Stabilisation for eyes would be a good idea.
JAZZ D.P.G.:
YMBAP …Your wife grabs her purse and then waits for you to get your camera bag before going anywhere.
YMBAP …Your watching a TV show called Dirt and right at the time when the photog hangs out the window of a speeding car to snap the shot of the fleeing celebrity, you notice the word “Canon” right in the middle of his lens. Yep..lens cap on!
cosworth:
YMBAP …You go shopping with your wife and stare at the 10 foot tall images printed on the wall and try to guess the camera/lens instead of the model’s bra size.
gkuenning:
YMBAP …if you stay up late at night, shooting test shots of a random object to learn more about exposure and lighting.
skygod44:
YMBAP …when you look at a tropical beach paradise and just wish there was something in the foreground to make a great UWA shot.
YMBAP …when you will only consider going on trips if you can take your gear.
jrntr:
YMBAP …if you’ve tested the minimum focusing distance of your eyes.
Aksamin:
YMBAP …you know that Cost of an Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III and L Series would be a Kidney and a Lever.
Easter Dogs: v.Roxy-&-Ruby
So Easter is one of holidays that I always take pics of my kids. They have so much fun finding eggs, and their faces light up with joy, and it’s nice to have visual memories of that, especially as they get older. I took a number of pics Sunday, and since the dogs were out in the back yard with us, I grabbed a few of them…
Sarah always wants pics of her little Chinese Crested, and she had her groomed on Saturday, so I thought I’d get a few shots of her. Notice the haircut? Yea, she had that done Sat. I’m not sure what to say…
So here are some of the dog pics. Nothing special. These are all taken with the Canon 70-200 F/4L on my 30D. I might post a few of the better pics of Josie and Caleb later, but I’m not big on posting them online, so I doubt it…
*FYI* Sarah’s dog, Ruby, is the white one w/ the strange hair cut. My dog, Roxy, is the cool, goldish/brown one…
No Good Deed…
I think it goes something like, “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished“…?
Yea. So I like to do what I can to help people in need, so I signed up for the blood drive at work today. I’ve given blood multiple times, and I have no issue watching the needle go in, etc. There is usually a problem getting the vein. Finding it is easy, getting blood from it, not so much. Most times, they put the needle in, move it around a bunch, make a new puncture, and start over. This was the case today, although a bit better than usual. So here is where it was “fun”…
I took my camera. We all know I take it EVERYWHERE, so why not somewhere interesting, like a bus where they intentionally make you bleed? Exactly, no big deal, or so I thought.
The lady outside, that I signed papers with, didn’t say anything about me carrying it. I went into this little room (see below) for blood pressure, temperature, and red blood cell tests. The lady was super nice. She asked me not to take pictures of the paperwork, but said everything else was game, and even tried to turn/move things so I could take these pictures better. I thought, “Whoa, cool, she is supportive of my addiction!” Then I went out to the “beds” where you lay down to have your red goo taken.
The lady that is going to take it comes over and starts to do her thing. Then she says, “Why do you have a camera? You work for the news or ’sumthin’?”I explained that I thought it would be a good opportunity to take some pics, and I thought my wife would like them. So, she spent the next 20-30 minutes drilling me about why I had a camera with me. I guess I see her point, I mean, no one outside of the investigative media owns a “professional camera”, right?
As she is finishing up, I see the building security guard walk in, but I don’t think much of it, as he starts talking to another donor that he is apparently friends with. The curiously accusing lady tells me that I need to sit at the end of the bus for 5 minutes, and get a drink and snack to make sure I’m not light headed. Then I realize she sent me to sit next to the security guard. Just after I sit next to where he’s standing, he turns to talk to me. Remember, this is at my work. We would have had a MUCH different dialogue if I weren’t worried about repercussions at my place of work. The conversation went like this:
Him: “Do you have pictures of anyone on this bus on the camera?”
Me: “No.”
Him: “Let me see.”
Against my beliefs, and not wanting to cause a scene at work, I show him the first few pics, then I say, ” They are all like that.”
Him: “Let me see all of them.”
Again, holding back an assortment of things I want to say and/or do, I politely show him. This is me being mature. If this were say, 7 years ago, I would have lost my cool.
He says ok, and turns around to talk to someone.
About 30 seconds later (after talking to a girl you could tell he was trying to be cool for), he turns to me and says: “You can go now, step off the bus.”
OMG! I *almost* lost it. Instead I said, “No, I can’t, she told me to wait 5 minutes (while pointing to the rude lady).”
He kind of grunted, and a minute or two later I said I would now be happy to leave, and I did so…
I’m not trying to tout my big bad 30D, but you know if I had a little Canon P&S, there would not have been a second look. WTF? I’ll still donate blood, because I do it to help people, but I won’t take a (”pro-looking”) camera next time. Like I said, no good deed…..
- I should note that there were absolutely NO signs banning photography, and not only did not ask me to stop (or not enter w/ the camera), one lady told me it was fine and helped me take shots. -
This is the bus parked outside…
The finger prick. This was the nice lady…
This is the little room I spoke of…
My blood pressure was a little high to start with, but it went down by the time we did it second time. I also had a fever of 100.6 (who new?), which was 99.7 once we did it a second time…
And we’re off…..
I really do hope this helps someone…
This is what my blood looks like in a little bag. This is a VERY small portion of what they took…
Taking out the needle to clean me up…
And my nice blue wrap thing (taken w/ my cell)…
A Couple More Wide Shots…
So, I went out to start the car this morning (it was 30 degrees, and I want it to warm up before I took my son to school), and pulled out the 30D. We had what we thought was a gas leak in the garage (water heater) last night, and the garage door was cracked to air out when I got home. I didn’t want to pull the Jeep up to the garage, so I parked on the street. In case the house exploded (unlikely), I left my camera in the rig. We all know I am way over protective! Longer story short, I forgot it was in the car, so when the gas guy came out and gave the A-OK, I didn’t go get it, and it spent the night in below-freezing temperatures. When I went to start the car I saw my bag, and realized what I had done. I had to take her out and make sure she was ok, and these are the pictures that came of that test. Mainly just showing how wide the then-mounted 10-22 is on a crop (1.6) sensor.
This is my house. Pardon the open trash can on the side. Today is trash day, and the wind blew it open…
This is my Jeep. I took this shot, and then I took the one after it. This gives an idea of the width of this lens because I didn’t move between the two shots. I was standing maybe 2 or 2 1/2 feet from my Jeep, and still got it all in-frame.
18mm vs. 10mm – Round 1…
Ok, so the people at my work are afraid of cameras. Yea, I don’t know, but it sure does make it hard to compare wide-angle mm’s by taking their pictures… Due to the absence of a human participant, I decided to go with the next best thing, my new 2gb Blue iPod Shuffle (which I bought for $10 btw lol). These were taken from right at the same distance from the iPod, obviously one shot at 18mm and the next at 10mm. I did not do any editing beyond a resize/brightness. Easier to say, I did not crop these at all. Lighting sucks, iPod is small, etc, but the example still works… On to the pics —>
This is shot at 18mm w/ the 18-55mm kit lens…
And this was shot at 10mm with my new baby, the Canon 10-22mm EF-s…
Why Am I So Goofy?
I debated posting these, and decided that I might as well. I had the lens on last night, playing around and taking shots of my kids, and somewhere in between I took these. Yea, I know, I’m just goofy like that.
Guess What I got?
Yup, you guessed it. Last night I purchased a Canon 10-22mm EF-s. I am SO completely excited. Now I need to get a group of friends together, and go walk around downtown or somewhere and take pics… It’s SOOO nice out right now, and I have to work… 
I am going to *try* to take two shots of someone at work today. One with the 18-55 kit lens, and one with the 10-22mm. This should give a good view of just how wide this lens is. “Full-Frame ain’t got nothing on me!” (so to speak)
Here are a few pics of the new lens. Again, taken with my phone, however, I have to say that it takes some really good shots for what it is. Must be that mechanical auto-focus… 
