Keep Going - Day 59 #CY365

Moving up the kettlebell train. Got to keep going because as they say, "no pain - no gain". Canon 5D Mark II, 1/20 sec @ f/3.2, ISO 1600.

Seize the Moment - Day 58 #CY365

This is "Team Norfolk" following today's Resilient Cities Workshop at Norfolk's Half Moone Cruise & Celebration Center. The team which includes many of my coworkers from the City of Norfolk government and dedicated partners from community groups, non-profits, businesses and other agencies. We are proud to be included as one of the first 33 cities in the Rockefeller Foundation's 100 Resilient Cities Centennial Challenge. We are creating a strategy to make Norfolk more resilient in the way it faces socks and stresses including flooding, sea level rise, poverty and others.

Canon G15, 1/1250 sec @ f/28, ISO 160.

Admire - Day 57 #CY365

General Douglas MacArthur was one of only five men ever to rise to the rank of 5 Star General of the U.S. Army, and the only man ever to become a field marshal in the Philippine Army. A hero of World War II, he received the Medal of Honor for his service in the Philippines Campaign, which made him and his father Arthur MacArthur, Jr., the first father and son to be awarded the medal. He officially accepted Japan's surrender on September 2, 1945, and oversaw the occupation of Japan and its rebuilding from 1945 to 1951. He led the United Nations Command in the Korean War until he was removed from command by President Harry S. Truman. The relief of the famous general by the unpopular politician for communicating with Congress led to a constitutional crisis, and a storm of public controversy. Polls showed that the majority of the public disapproved of the decision to relieve MacArthur. Truman's approval rating fell to 22 percent, it remains the lowest Gallup Poll approval rating recorded by any serving president.

This is the Douglas MacArthur Memorial in Norfolk, Virginia. The statue is a duplicate of the one at West Point where he recorded the third highest academic score ever and graduated first in his 93-man class in 1903. Following World War he served as Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy leading a wave of academic reform and modernization. While his military career is also noted for controversy, his admirers continue to come to the memorial every day, many of them Philippine Americans and visitors from the Philippines. Source - Wikipedia.

iPhone 5, Camera+ app.

Bittersweet - Day 56 #CY365

Today's prompt - Bittersweet. I eschewed the obvious, chocolate, and went for liquor instead. Here my friends is a Rob Roy, a cocktail created in 1894 by a bartender at the Waldorf Astoria New York. Similar to a Manhattan, it is basically Scotch whiskey, sweet vermouth, a dash of bitters garnished with a maraschino cherry. The best part of today's project, drinking the prop. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/60sec @ f/4.5, ISO 400, illuminated with three LED Litepanels.

Predictable - Day 55 #CY365

They don't make pencils like the they used to, or maybe they do. Canon 7D, 1/200 sec @ f/13.0, ISO 1600, 100mm macro lens.

Crowded Around - Day 54 #CY365

My PEZ Army has my back as I work at my computer. This crowd of about 600 PEZ dispensers always blows visitors away. I must admit they are pretty awesome until it comes time to dust them off. Canon 5D Mark II, 1/60 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 800, 14mm wide angle lens.

Oh Boy! - Day 53

My grandson Robert was by today. I had a new "build-on brick mug" for my little Lego maniac. He built this rocket mug creation all by himself and he's showing it off for Grandpa's photo of the day. iPhone 5, 1/20 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 64, Camera+ app.

Notice - Day 52

Sometimes you just have to notice the unusual or different perspective. I was walking to Norfolk's City Hall for a meeting this afternoon and looked up to notice the reflection of the Bank America Building in the green glass of the Norfolk Southern Railroad's headquarters building. Just to left is Norfolk's Confederate Solder Monument, a.k.a. "Johnny Reb". Just about every southern city, town or county seat has one of these. There was a line of thunderstorms advancing right behind me and I got soaked on the last two blocks of my journey. iPhone 5, 1/60 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 64, Camera+ app with the Clarity effect and the vibrant filter applied.

Escape - Day 51

My escape today is performance art at the Chrysler Museum Glass Studio. I really enjoy art glass and have taken a few couses and made a few projects. But the Glass Studio takes appreciating the art of glass making to new levels with their Third Thursday performance art series. Tonight Hannah Kirkpatrick's performance of "Lights, Camera, Action" a created a giant camera obscura, 20 foot wide - 8 foot tall with hundreds of "lenses" for a dramatic live performance with music provided by members of Live Bison. In this photo we see Hannah and her team behind the "camera obscura" with glass neon lights she created. Below you see a photo of what the audience was seeing. Canon G15, 1/100 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 1600.

Canon G15, 1/8 sec @ f/2.2, ISO 1600.

These were challenging photos to capture given the almost total darkness in the studio. You can tell my Canon point and shoot was really pushed with a high ISO of 1600 and wide apertures of f/2.8 and f/2.2 and in the case of the second photo some camera blur resulting from a super slow shutter speed of 1/8th second. These were all taken using full manual control as the camera's light meter wasn't much use in the dark environment.

Two - Day 50 #CY365

Today's challenge was "Two". This is my Pebble smart watch, a Christmas gift from my son, daughter-in-law and grandson. I love watches and have a pretty decent collection of classic analog watches. So this was the perfect gift for me, a "high tech" watch. The Pebble allows you to change watch faces to thousands of possibilities. This text based face is one of the more distinctive and interesting faces. So at 2:02pm EST I took of photo on my sleek black Pebble, capturing two, twos. iPhone 5, 1/20 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 100, Camera+ app.

In the Front Yard - Day 49 #CY365

Not much happening in the front yard today, so I had to "manufacture" a picture. Went out tonight with my macro lens, two LED litepanels and a jar of bubbles. So there you have it. Oh the things one will do to get a 365 picture. Canon 7D, 1/50 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 1600, 100mm macro lens.

Where I Stand - Day 48

Today I stand with a cat toy, no a "kill", laid at my feet by our cat Sasha. This is her favorite toy and a meaningful gift. iPhone 5, 1/15 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 800, Camera+ app.

Visiting - Day 47

"Luminous beings are we" - Yoda from Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). My PEZ limited edition Crystal Head Yoda spotlighted by two LED flashlight beams while visiting the kitchen counter tonight. Canon 7D, 1/160 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Geared Up - Day 46 #CY365

Day 46 - Geared Up. This large bevel gear is most likely from a Voith gearbox or wheel set for a transit bus. It is about eight inches and diameter and weighs about 24 pounds with the attached bearing assembly. It makes an excellent door stop. Canon 7D, 1/125 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Amore - Day 45 #CY365

Today's challenge was "Amore". It was a great day, Valentine's Day, Friday, payday, 3 day weekend, and most of all sunshine after days of gray and gloomy skies. So I captured my morning shadow cast by the lovely morning sunshine. Canon G15, 1/640 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 200, post processed using the Lomo-ish filter in Google's Picasa.

Conversation - Day 44 #CY365

Used some of my vast PEZ collection for today's photo. The PEZ Valentine's Day dispensers mimic the popular conversation candy hearts. I really struggled with this topic today. Not that happy with the results. Canon 7D, 1/15 sec @ f/18, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Red - Day 43 #CY365

Everything about the Chrysler Museum's Glass Studio is hot! Including the bright red lacquered galley seats. Canon G15, 1/25 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

Retail Therapy - Day 42 #CY365

Target is a fine place for a little "Retail Therapy". Even with the pre-Christmas data security breach, I still love my Target RedCard. iPhone, 1/20 sec @ f/2.8, ISO 80, Camera+ App with the Olloclip fisheye lens attached.

It's Still Winter - Day 41 #CY365

Yes it's still winter here in Virginia Beach, Virginia. This bare parking lot tree illuminated by a single cold street lamp conveys the gray, cold and dreary days we've been having lately. Canon G1X, 1/20 sec @ f/5, ISO 800, converted to black and white using the Silver Efex Pro plug-in in Lightroom 5.

A Little Heart - Day 40 #CY365

A Little Heart - I made this blown-glass heart today at the Chrysler Museum Glass Studio's "Hot Glass Hearts" class. Cindy and I have done a couple of other glass classes at the studio and really enjoy working with glass. The red in the picture is molten glass, the cooled and finished heart will be purple-rose and dark blue. Can't wait to see how it looks after it has cooled slowly in the kiln for about 24 hours. Canon G15, 1/100 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 800 in macro mode.

Hand Tinted - Day 39 #CY365

Day 39 - Hand Tinted - Berkley sunset in Norfolk Virginia. Canon G15, 1/500 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 800, tinting applied using Color Efex Pro plugin in Lightroom 5.

Old School - Day 38 #CY365

Old School - This is my Sterling model No. 594 Decimal Trig Multi-Log slide rule ©1965. I acquired this slide rule in 1972 from the Tidewater Community College bookstore at the old Camp Pendleton Virginia Beach Campus. I still have the original 10 inch long belt holster - a symbol of geek cool. This pretty much makes it "old school" and believe it or not I still know how to use it. The slide rule would be obsolete within 5 years, replaced by cheap electronic calculators. Today these elegant mechanical analog computers are relegated to collector's items. Canon 7D, 1/200 sec @ f/18, ISO 800, 100mm macro lens.

Shadows - Day 37 #CY365

Today's challenge "Shadows". These push pins in a bulletin board were harshly lit by the sun streaming in from a near by window. iPhone 5, 1/120 sec @ f/2.4, ISO 50, Camera+ App.

From The Top - Day 36 #CY365

From the Top, a compact fluorescent light bulb. The delicate swirls remind me of a soft serve ice cream cone. Canon 7D, 1/400 sec @ f/20, ISO 100, 100mm macro lens, converted to black and white.

Heartfelt - Day 35 #CY365

Heartfelt - Yesterday a friend posted this poem written by her 15 year son in memory of a young friend who committed suicide recently. It touched my heart and I wanted to share it with you as part of today's photo.

Red
A cold hour
for a warm color soul.
hot liquid sorrow in the veins
craters of a steel heart
a frigid white breeze
freezing this warm day.
Leaving us dwellers,
siphoning a color from this world;
delivering it to the next.
never mind to it all; apathy is medication
but it can't cure the melancholy sobs for a lost friend
bitter-sweet are the days of the 'morrow
no shine from this sun today.
I wish you could have seen a world without such pain
but a world of red roses
red passion
every color of our next days
without the greys.
stay here
in our once red hearts, now a bluish fade
in this cage with no key
but loving words on our lips.

by Walter

Suicide is a national health problem that takes an enormous toll on family, friends, co-workers, and the entire community. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) provides opportunities for survivors of suicide loss to get involved through a wide variety of educational, outreach, awareness, advocacy and fundraising programs. Sponsor or attend the Hampton Roads annual "Out of the Darkness Community Walk" to help in the fight to prevent suicides.

Soft - Day 34 #CY365

Soft - Canon 7D, 1/400 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 400, 100mm macro lens.

A Silhouette - Day 33 #CY365

A Silhouette - Sasha posing for today's challenge. Canon G1X, 1/160 sec @ f/4.5, ISO 800.

In The Dark - Day 32 #CY365

Today was a self portrait challenge. Like most photographers I'm much more comfortable behind the camera rather than in front of it. With the daily inspiration as "In The Dark", I opted for a selfie of my hand holding a glass as it fills with water. The camera's self timer was set on 10 seconds. Canon 7D,1/40 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 1600 in manual exposure and focus mode.