by Scott Martin Photography | Dec 25, 2011 | Blog, General, Landscapes, Naturescapes
It’s a pleasure for Deb & I to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year for 2012. It is such a busy part of the year that time allowed for photography is at a minimum and keeping up to date with posting images and writing blog entries is almost impossible.
The single image in this post is of the famous Mesa Arch which is located in the ‘Islands of the Sky’ region within the vast Canyonlands National Park in Utah, USA. It is a ‘bucket list’ location for landscape photographers looking for that perfect sunrise shot and the effort required to be there was absolutely worth it. This shot was taken on a Saturday morning in October and we left our hotel room in Moab Utah at 4:30 a.m. and thirty-eight degrees for the almost hour-long drive into Canyonlands, where we parked at the trail-head in the dark and set out on the three-quarters of a mile hike under the moonlight to arrive at the arch in time to set up our gear and await the spectacular sunrise.
I will explain more about the experience and show many more images of the arch in upcoming posts, along with many other photographs from our recent trip through the American mid-west.
This image today is a Christmas one for a couple of reasons, the first is the sun breaking through the night sky reminds me of what it must have been like for the shepherds and wise men following the star that led them to Jesus over two thousand years ago. A celebration we continue to enjoy today, remembering an event that changed the world like none other ever has or ever will. Jesus is the only reason for the season. The second thing is the sunrise reminds us that a new day is upon us and at this time of year we take pause to think about the New Year that awaits us.
So once again, Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year to you and yours.
by Scott Martin Photography | Dec 7, 2011 | Birds, Blog, Raptors
My wife and I came across a beautiful Barred Owl while visiting Presqu’ile Provincial Park a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately it was late in the afternoon, long past the nice light, and to make things worse my tripod was at home so a monopod was the only means of support. The following images were taken at ISO 1250 at shutter speeds of about 1/120 sec at f/5.6 (wide open for the 500/f4 + 1.4x TC combination). The great thing was that the owl was perched on a small stick about eight feet off the ground and the stick was in the middle of a small meadow in the woods so there were no sight obstructing branches within about 100 feet of the owl. Better yet, the owl allowed me to slowly but completely circumduct him which accounts for the varying background changes seen in the photographs.
These images are also the first posted since undergoing a fairly radical change to both hardware and software workflow which included saying goodbye to windows and hello to iMac. Although we’re still getting acquainted with the new computer, it’s quickly becoming obvious why so many photographers endorse the Macs. In the software department we upgraded to the CS5.5 creative suite (from CS4) and also purchased Nik’s suite of plug-ins for Photoshop, which are really quite amazing.
Straight on view. The separation between the owl and the back ground created the perfect out of focus back drop for these images, which are all uncropped as the owl allowed me to ‘foot zoom’ for these frame filling shots.
Three quarter view.
Ontario’s mixed forests are great this time of year with the conifers providing rich green back grounds, while the deciduous trees, devoid of their leaves, create lots of grey tones which look equally good.
The orange & browns from dead leaves make for yet another interesting back ground.
The next time we are visiting Presqu’ile we will arrive earlier in the day and hope to catch this beautiful owl on the same perch!
Today my wife and I had the privilege to see a Snowy Owl that arrived in Whitby about a week ago. Based on its size it appears to be a juvenile female and hopefully she will pose for us in the next day or two. A number of Snowy owls have been reported in Southern Ontario this fall so hopefully this will be an irruption year (if it isn’t already). Perhaps some Great Grays will also find their way further south this winter.
by Scott Martin Photography | Sep 27, 2011 | Blog, General, Transportation
This past July, General Motors held a Camaro Open House weekend at the Oshawa Vehicle Assembly Facility which is the only Camaro production plant. Yes, that means every new Camaro you’ve seen on the road was built in Oshawa, Ontario, a city of 150,000 about 40km east of Toronto. It was a fabulous event which included full access to the new and very high-tech Flex Plant assembly facility while production was running. It was the first time I’d seen the plant in production since working as a security guard as a summer student in 1979.
The ‘Flex Plant’ is a modern redesign of the traditional automotive assembly line that allows for the production of up to four different vehicle types on the same ‘line’ at the same time. While we were touring the facility the flex line was producing the Chevrolet Camaro and the Buick Regal. It was interesting to watch as two very different vehicles would roll off the line one after the other. General Motors recently announced that they will be adding a new full-sized Cadillac to the flex line next year.
Since beginning Camaro production a couple of years ago, more that 250,000 vehicles have been produced. Most of the Camaros have been coupes however with the introduction of the roadster last year a lot of convertibles are now being built. I must admit to a strong bias as I’ve owned Camaros in the past, but to put the production numbers into perspective, between April 2009 and May 2010 General Motors sold 100,486 Camaros while Ford sold 87,670 Mustangs and Chrysler sold 30,521 Challengers.
It was a rare pleasure to be allowed to take pictures of the cars being assembled and I trust you enjoy the images that follow. Most were taken with the 24-105mm f/4 EF L lens to take advantage of the image stabilization however I also used a 16-35 f/2.8 EF L lens as well.
The old and the new!
The process begins (coupe first followed by a roadster).
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Meticulously checked for surface defects before being sent to the paint shop.
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They look better painted!
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The following image shows the attention to ergonomics that is taken to reduce work related injuries and increase production efficiencies. Note how the chassis rests on a large bellows platform that raises and lowers as it moves through the facility maintaining the optimal height for the workers to safely carry out specific tasks for that part of the assembly process. Notice the white vehicle is much lower than the black one in this shot.
Although these are V6 engines destined for the Buick Regal (the open house didn’t allow access to the Camaro engine line) it’s an example of the many production design intricacies required to efficiently assemble a car today.
While the chassis is being developed in one area the power train is being assembled in another. You’ve gotta love that dual exhaust!
Completed power trains sitting on computer guided platforms ready to be mated with their chassis. This process is almost fully automated and it was incredible to watch as everything lined up perfectly every time! I’ve tried to capture the process in the next few images which show the power train moving into place beneath the chassis, raising into place and then the empty platform leaving to go back and get fitted with another power train. The entire process takes about five minutes per vehicle.
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Notice the car behind the yellow Camaro is a Buick Regal.
Tires are one of the last things to make their way onto the vehicle.
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Another Camaro comes to life!
Coming off the line.
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I couldn’t resist attempting a few artistic shots, even in a vehicle assembly plant. I hope you enjoy them!
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Camaro Car Clubs from all across North America came to the open house. There were over one thousand Camaro’s of every year and model at the event. It was a treat to walk among the cars, chat with the owners and hear the many stories behind each car. I think its time to buy another Camaro!
by Scott Martin Photography | Aug 17, 2011 | Blog, Weddings & Engagements
Here are a few more snaps taken in our hotel room before leaving for the church. It was a very hectic hour or two with all the bridesmaids and Lindsay getting changed, doing last-minute hair and make-up modifications but also have a truly great time with lots of laughter and excitement. Deb & I actually had to leave and get ready in a friend’s room.
I’m not really certain where I found the time to play around with a few artsy shots, especially as there was a professional photographer there to do those kinds of things, however here are some samples.
The jewel work on the wedding dress (taken with the 100mm macro lens at f/2.8, handheld thanks to the new four stop hybrid image stabilization that Canon has developed)
It seems that a shot of the wedding shoes is becoming a standard wedding album image. These two images are of the bridesmaids shoes using the wedding dress as the back ground.
Lindsay chose the perfect brand of shoe for her bridesmaids “Unforgettable Moments”.
And the Brides shoes, complete with band-aids 🙂
Here is proof positive that I’m blessed beyond measure….. Ellesse, Deb, Lindsay and Stacey.
A quiet moment captured through the veil.
This last shot is becoming one of my favourites; although in a messy room with awful lighting, it captures a very special moment between sisters. It was truly a candid shot and I don’t think either one knew it was being taken.
by Scott Martin Photography | Aug 10, 2011 | Blog, Weddings & Engagements
Our oldest daughter, Lindsay, married Cameron Bechtold on July 24, 2011 in Geneva which is located on the North end of Lake Seneca in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State. It was a fabulous day in every way and I’ll report more comprehensively in an upcoming blog post. Although being Father of the Bride prevented taking many pictures, I was able to get a few shots before the wedding and at the reception.
The two images in this post were taken in our hotel room about an hour before the wedding using the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS macro lens which really performs well as a portrait lens.
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by Scott Martin Photography | Jul 31, 2011 | Blog, General, Weddings & Engagements
It’s been a month since the last SMP blog entry so an update is long over due. It seems we’ve been just too busy to process any files and keep the website & blog refreshed with everything else that’s been going on at our place. The CF cards have been piling up by my computer so there will be lots of fresh material coming soon.
Our daughter Lindsay married Cameron Bechtold on July 24th in Geneva, New York, so we now have a wonderful son-in-law. They will be living in Lynchburg, Virginia for the next two or three years while they finish their degrees and then start grad school at Liberty University. Although I wasn’t the wedding photographer (too busy being father of the bride) I was able to take a few portraits of Lindsay before the wedding which I’ll post as soon as they are processed. For the portraits I used the new Canon EF 100 mm f/2.8 L IS macro. It’s an excellent lens and fun to use although I must admit I still have a huge soft spot for the 85mm f/1.2 L lens that it replaced in my lens kit. The versatilty of the macro is much better than the 85/1.2 and it’s equally as sharp even though a lot less expensive.
We are now looking forward to our son Jeffrey and his fiance Ellesse’s wedding in Toronto on October 1st….only eight weeks away! It’s been a busy season for weddings in the Martin family but it’s been fantastic as we have gained an incredible daughter in law and son in law.
Jeff & Ellesse were engaged in March in Florida and I was pleased to be able to take the engagement photographs. They were all taken at Disney World at the Grand Floridian Hotel. Most of the images were taken with the 24-105 f/4 L IS and the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS lenses.
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More images of Jeff & Ellesse can be seen in their gallery
This entire blog entry was done from the cottage on an iPad2 tethered to an iPhone4 for internet access. It worked very well except I couldn’t resize the images to better fit the blog layout. That will have to wait until I get home.
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