Reflection on Dining

I can see myself here (if you know what I mean).

Amphitheater

I'm traveling for a week or so; it's possible I may miss a few days' posting. And when I do post, it may be from the stockpile, like this one from last Sunday's visit to Arlington Cemetery.

Arlington House

I spent several hours on Sunday wandering around Arlington Cemetary. The Custis-Lee Mansion is stuck partway through renovation, for lack of funds, which I find absolutely preposterous and shameful.

Elliptical

It's been a while since I looked at sculpture. Several years ago, the Katzen Art Center opened just up Massachusetts Avenue from me. It's about a quarter mile away. Have I been inside yet? NO. (Muttering. Shame. Embarrrassment.)

Finally, I went by and gave the exterior, complete with staircases, fountains, and sculpture garden, a thorough going-over. And I actually liked quite a bit of what I saw.

Can the interior be far behind?

Strange Light

Here's another example of reflected light illuminating the mundane in an unexpected way. Where is the sun in this picture? It's to the left and behind a building.

Undaunted

There are some serious advantages to living across the street from a fabulous piece of art.

Vine Gothic

Brave New Mall

This is an image you simply could not create with a single conventional exposure.

It's a handheld HDR, this time using only two exposures: Photomatix HDR and tone-mapping based on two camera JPEGS, exported as TIFF, adjusted in Lightroom, exported as JPEG for the web. I tried to keep it looking 'real' this time, but if you snoop around in the image you'll see a few anomalies. I didn't take the trouble to bring it into Photoshop and fix everything properly.

Amazingly decent result considering the completely ad hoc nature of the entire enterprise.

Thank You DMV

Three words you don't hear together very often!

I had to go down to Georgetown to deal with some car bureaucracy: two hours of my life I'll never get back. The entire experience was redeemed by the dozen or so photos I managed to take between the DMV office and my car. The light, the environment, and my eye all happened to be on the same page for half an hour. It's a great feeling when that happens.

Late Sun Through Stained Glass

It was all I could do to cross the street in the cold & wind to bring you this image from the National Cathedral. You're welcome.

[UPDATE]

I purchased Photomatix Pro and have started fooling around with using HDR processing for exposure-bracketed shots. All these images were foolhardily hand-held (no tripod for me, I'm a rebel,man!).

For comparison purposes, here's an "exposure fusion" version of the Stained Glass image.



And now here's a "tone-mapped" version.



And a special bonus for you lovely people: a tone-mapped version of the National Cathedral nave, given a rather more "painterly" treatment.



I'd be interested in your thoughts… any preferences among these images? Please comment!

Another Light

What time of day is it? Where is that other light coming from? Are those Christmas pin-lights on the trees or buds? I love the subtle ambiguity of this image.

My New Joy-Toy

So there I was, at National Airport, to collect my holiday visitor. I had some time to kill before his plane arrived, and ~ whaddaya know ~ I just happened to have acquired a new camera the day before. I spent a happy half an hour wandering around the terminal, beginning to learn how to use it. What fun! Big, luscious images to work with, an expanded gamut, what a treat!

Might as well…

…have something nice to look at while occupied with other business. Ladies Room wall at Raku in Bethesda.

House of Knowledge

The Library of Congress gives me a warm, fuzzy, proud 'n' patriotic feeling.

Eastern Lights

Looking Up

Stained glass dome over the lobby entrance at Harrah's in Atlantic City.

Patriotic

One of the things I love about living in Washington is that there are beautiful buildings and monuments everywhere. Be as cynical as you like: most of the people who come specifically to Washington to work come because they want to make a difference. You may disagree with their goals (hey, it's a free country!), but at least give them credit for giving a damn. The architecture and artwork pay homage to the motivation to serve the public good, and they do it eloquently.

Gothic Beauty

I live across the street from the most beautiful outdoor sculpture in Washington, D.C. Of course it's not actually a sculpture; it's the National Cathedral, diocesan seat of the Episcopal Church in Washington, and site of many important ceremonial occasions. It is well worth the inconvenience of the occasional infestation of limos and Secret Service vehicles to enjoy this magnificent building on a daily basis. (The inside is glorious too.)