Missouri Botanical Garden - Chinese Pavilion

The Chinese Pavilion at the Missouri Botanical Garden is just one of many great subjects to photograph.  There are so many areas that are easy to walk past and this is one of them.  I had forgotten about this part of the garden and stumbled upon it during my last trip.  This photo is an HDR image but I tried to keep the original feeling of the subject.  It was a bright day and the clouds hadn’t moved in yet so HDR helped overcome some of the harsh shadows I was getting in the shots.  If you’re ever in St. Louis, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a must see!  Don’t forget to stop by and check out the Chinese Pavilion and garden.

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MoBot Japanese Garden Pano

 

The weather has finally taken a turn for the better in St. Louis which means it’s time for a trip to the Missouri Botanical Gardens.  Gone are the days of freezing cold air and blistering wind.  Spring has finally arrived!  To celebrate, I took my wife and daughter (now 5 months old) to the Missouri Botanical Gardens over the weekend.  We couldn’t have asked for a better day.  A slight breeze, 74 degrees and a beautiful garden to explore.  Of course, I lugged my camera gear along in the hopes of taking some images for HDR post processing.  I found this spot, at the Japanese Garden, and decided it was a good as any.  The reflections in the water, wispy clouds, turtles in the foreground and vibrant green trees made this shot ideal for HDR.  I’m quite happy with my results considering this was my first foray into HDR photography.  I’m pretty sure that I’m hooked now….I will definitely be posting more HDR images in the future.

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Gnome Buddies

 

It’s hard to get out and take photos with a newborn in the house so I did a little snooping around the yard instead. These are my little gnome buddies that like to hang out in the flower garden.  They’re a little worse for the wear but still getting their message across.  Nothing special but I’m a gnome fan so I thought I’d share it anyway.

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tree

Earlier, I posted a photo from a park near where I work.  I snapped this photo of some trees the same day, this was the first time I had used my Canon 50mm f/1.8 and was just getting used to such a fast lens.  I love how shallow the DoF can be when the aperture is stepped all the way down to 1.8.  You can see how the bark just a few inches down the tree is out of focus and everything else in the background is just a blur.  I really enjoy this lens and for about a hundred bucks you can’t go wrong!

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Lion Black and White

King of the Jungle

I took this photo during a trip to Eureka Springs, AK in 2008.  This lion was being cared for at the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge along with over 40 other big cats.  He was a very majestic lion and had a beautiful mane and seemed to enjoy having his photos taken.  I’m sure if the cage wasn’t there I would have though otherwise.  If you are ever driving through North West AK, it’s worth a stop to check out all of the big cats.  They have a large fenced in area where they let the cats run free to give them more freedom, they really seem to take good care of the cats there.

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Monarch

Twin_Monarchs_BW

I took these photos of monarch butterflies long ago with my first digital camera, a Kodak D6490.   These were really some of the first images that I took that made me fall in love with photography.  They aren’t anything special but at the time I was blown away that I was able to take such photos.  I especially like the second photo with the two monarchs, I’m not sure why either.  Do you have any of your early photographs that inspired you to pursue photography?  Please share them in the comments, I’d love to see them!

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nuts and bolts

I took this photo during our self-guided tour of the Guinness Factory in Dublin, Ireland.  They had lighting shining down the steel beam which caused the nuts and bolts to cast a dramatic shadow.  All of the steel beams and girders throughout the factory have been painted this seafoam green color and they are really quite striking.  If you are ever in Ireland, the Guinness Factory is a must see just for the architecture and memorabilia alone.  Not to mention that you get a free glass of the world’s greatest stout!

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cliff edge

To go along with my two previous photos, this one was also taken during my trip to Ireland.  We were visiting the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare and this was one of several warning/danger signs at the site.  They had somewhat recently built a wall to keep visitors from getting too close to the cliff edge.  Depending on the time of day, the wind blows out towards the ocean making it very dangerous to stand near the edge.  This one image tells you all you need to know.

 

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seagull, ireland, cliff

During our trip to Ireland last year, we saw this seagull (there were actually a few of them) on the side of the road and stopped to take a few pictures.  I especially liked this shot with the ocean crashing on the cliffs in the background.  I believe this was taken during our jaunt around the Dingle Peninsula.

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little samphire lighthosue

Last winter we took a trip to Ireland and stopped by the Fenit Pier to check this lighthouse out.  This is the Little Samphire Lighthouse, sometimes called the Fenit Lighthouse.  It wasn’t as grand as we had hoped but it was still worth the trip. Shrouded in clouds, you can make out Mount Brandon in the background which is the highest point on the Dingle Peninsula.  We found that pretty much all of the stops along the way are worth in in Ireland.

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