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Approaching Zuccotti Park on Broadway I could feel the atmosphere change.  The normal hustle and bustle of New York City had an unfamiliar feeling of unity.  I could hear the call and response chants of “Show me what democracy looks like, this is what democracy looks like” as I entered the park.  It was like nothing I had ever seen before.  Not being old enough to remember any other type of large scale protests the Occupy Wall Street protest was something truly extraordinary.  As I took out my camera and timidly walked closer to the edge of the park entrance I saw an older man standing on a ledge reciting the entire Constitution while another younger man held a sign asking where Robin Hood was.  As I entered the organized chaos of the park I was completely surprised by the solidarity of a leaderless movement and the kindness the protestors.  The protestors were happy to be there and felt as though they were genuinely accomplishing something.  A medic at their makeshift hospital, Stephanie told me “We are showing ‘them’ that there has to be more financial responsibility.  We need to decrease the gap between the 1% and 99%. They can’t ignore us forever.”

Even though there is an overall idea of why the protestors are there, a common objective is hard to find.  Every protestor I talked to had a different idea of what “victory” would be.  Some wanted the conflict between the President and Congress to end while others wanted the Afghan War to end.

No matter what they wanted in the end, they were all angry…peacefully angry.  There was never a threat of violence from any of the protestors and they all had respect for the hundred or so NYPD police officers surrounding Zucatti Park.  Part of the respect is because the protestors realize that the NYPD officers are part of the 1% and feel they should join in the protests as well.

As the protestors started to march down Broadway towards Time Square the show of support from other New Yorkers was amazing.  Taxi cab passengers gave thumbs out their windows, cars honked their horns and tourists on top of tour buses yelled words of support.  Even as an objective observer it was hard not to get sucked into the revolution.  Although I did not march the entire way to Times Square the protestors made it there and once again made their voices heard.  It’s clear that they won’t stop until something changes and until something does there will be an occupation of Wall Street.

With the 10^th anniversary of 9/11 there were certain photos that pulled on my heart strings and evoked emotions in me that were more powerful than anything else ever could.  The following picture is extremely emotional and leaves so many questions unanswered.  Without asking you to, I am sure you will give this photo more than just a passing glance.

There are photos that will live on forever that have changed the world.  The photo of a sailor kissing a woman after World War II was so powerful that they wrote a story about that kiss 60 years after it was taken.  Albert Einstein sticking his tongue out at a photographer has become the icon for hipsters across the country.  That photo was taken in 1951.  Do a Google search for “Lock Ness Monster” and the result will be a photo taken in 1934, long before the word Google appeared in Webster’s Dictionary.

It is very rare that a photograph simply stops a person in their tracks and makes them think about what was going on at that point in time.  People often feel that photography is something unnecessary and requiring too much effort to invest any time in.  But I pose a question to those of you that feel that way.  What is the first thing your parents say they would grab if they had to evacuate their home?

• The Wave
• Canyon de Chelly
• Window Rock
• Sedona
• The Painted Desert

There are quite a few more, I will keep you all updated.

I know it has been a long time since I posted, but…good news!  I am currently planning a trip to Arizona in November.  I will be touring the canyons as well as some of the beautiful countryside!  I am very excited about it and will continue to blog on my progress.  Check back for updates.

Willy’s Wild West Adventure begins!

For those curious how to do this, it is quite simple.  You just need to trace the statue (or whatever you are trying to isolate) and then fill the background with black.

The new photos are located in the landscape gallery.

PS…I also got LASIK, so all future photos will have been taken with “new” eyes!

Now, I know “they” say, “if you want your photo to look like you painted it, become a painter!” Shenanigans!  There is no reason why I can’t have some fun with my photos.

Enjoy the results!

I started out shooting with no exposure compensation and would get shots that look like this: (Keep in mind, I added an extra stop of exposure on this shot to illustrate my point)

Now, as you can see, the shot is terribly over-exposed and all the details are washed out and grainy.  I dialed down my exposure compensation in camera a full stop and came away with the following raw image.

Most of the detail has returned, but it is still a little washed out.  At least it is salvageable.  Using Lightroom’s or Photoshop’s recovery slider on a RAW image can bring back a lot of the lost detail in the face and shirt.  After bumping it up to almost 100 and using some curves, you can get a very usable image, as seen below.

The details in the chest and face are visible and the photo looks a lot better.  It is hard to get a shot in this kind of light, but by dialing down the EV compensation and doing a little post, you can get something very usable.