Category Archives: Baltimore

My Orioles usually make only one trip to the Bay Area per year.  And I catch as many games as I can.  This year that meant all three.  The bad news is that the MLB-best A’s took two of three from the Birds.  But I definitely enjoyed both the drama and the lighter moments: Britton blowing a 2-run lead in the bottom of the ninth on a  3 run walk-off by J. Donaldson; Brady Anderson making an appearance and sitting two rows in front of me; an O’s fan who (SOMEHOW?!) managed to locate, purchase, and don a Harold Baines jersey to Saturday’s game.  Classy.  I want one.  And Manny.  Wow, do they hate Manny.  Fair enough.  He earned it.  But it was so super-sized awesome when he lit into a fastball for a home run amidst the deafening boos. “Something magic happens…every time you go.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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To celebrate the holiday, I decided to shoot today entirely using a technique that I’d never tried: freelensing.  It’s basically shooting without the lens physically attached to the camera.  Instead, the lens is held close to the lens mount, tilted, manually focused, and, in my case, prayed over…all in hopes of getting something interesting.  The effect is somewhat similar to what can be done with a tilt shift lens: the focal plane can be manipulated all over the frame (and even back and forth in the Z-dimension) depending on how the lens is held and focused.  So far I would describe the technique as “impossible.”  But I did like a few images from today, including a couple of rare shots of my sister.  All images were taken with a 50mm lens wide open at f/1.4.

 

I love this image, because its CRAZY to shoot at f/1.4, from this close, and have both her chin AND her eyelashes in focus.  Awesome.

This image was actually taken the “normal” way, with the lens attached.  But I always love images of my niece, so it somehow found it way into this post:-)

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  • jon

    nice work. last two are particularly awesome.

20 years since Jon Theodore and I have seen one another.  Since we were classmates at Gilman School in Baltimore.  In the meantime, he’s become an acclaimed drummer, first for The Mars Volta, now with One Day As A Lion, a collaboration with Zack de la Rocha (click here to check out “Wild International”, one of my favorite ODAAL songs).  After his most recent tour, we were able to catch up in the Haight.  Good times!

 

 

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I was able to go home for the Thanksgiving holiday and had a chance to see a bunch of family.   My niece Jordan, who I thought was actually shy…is NOT!  She never got tired of posing for the camera, losing to me at thumb wrestling, or being the only clue-giver in charades.  It was great to see my uncle Kenneth, who is 60 but looks all of 45.  And my grandparents reminded me that they met when they were just weeks old (they were neighbors).   I think they can count the time that they’ve been apart in their entire lives in months.  I also finally built in some extra time during the drive to my mom’s house to photograph some of the great scenery along the way.  As sleepy as the town of Deale, MD is, it can also be absolutely beautiful.

Mom’s

Uncle Kenneth & Jordan

Jordan struggled to keep the camera/grip/flash steady and got a pretty nice shot in the process.

Granddad, still as sharp as a tack.  We can always count on him to stay out on the porch until we turn the corner onto Gwynns Falls.  I love that he has all the signs of a grandfather: belt + suspenders, zip-up sweater, eyeglasses in the shirt pocket (and a cell phone).

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  • Big Rob

    I love this man….

  • Georgette Varner-Haynes

    Awesome, Dana. Love this!

This weekend I visited family back home in Maryland.  Jordan, my niece (age 8), performed in the Cherry Blossom Parade in Washington, D.C.   Unfortunately its not pictured here…I missed her performance by 5 minutes.  But I was able to spend a lot of time with the kids (part of which included Serene and I chasing them around the yard with a camera and an umbrella-mounted flash), my sister Nicole, and my brother-in-law Troy.  It’s also a real shame that I didn’t capture the faces of the losing team after a NameBurst showdown.  The ladies (Mom, Nicole, Serene, and Jordan) suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the guys (Karl, Troy, Joshua, and me).  It wasn’t pretty.

 

 

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  • Slewis

    I love the split images centered around the tree.

  • Katelyn

    Dana! I love these shots! Youve done an excellent job capturing the personality of these kids- I feel like I am there with you. Keep up the great work