Barn Yard Bicycle

My search for interesting bikes has continued, and this time brought me to a rather interesting placement of this fully painted purple cruiser, complete with multiple wicker baskets!

I always love when multiple interests collide in front of my lens. Obviously, I’ve developed a mild obsession with photographing bikes, but have always had an interest in them, since I was first able to ride with training wheels and all. Another interest Ive mentioned in posts before is the beauty of barns, red ones specifically. So imagine my delight when I came across this scene, with two passions converging into one, slightly chaotic yet beautiful, display. Personally I could have done without the overgrowing vegetation, but wasnt about to start ripping someones plants out for the sake of a shot (doesn’t mean it didnt cross my mind however ;) )

On a side note: Earlier today I was sitting, quietly pondering on my obsession (and I mean OBSESSION) with photography. Its incredible that it has already been 7 months of shooting, yet Im still as (if not more) excited about learning and applying as I was the day I picked up the cam for the first time! As I look back on all the places my various forms of cameras have taken me over the last 7 months, I cant help but smile, knowing this is only the beginning of something truly remarkable that is still unraveling as I continue to trek forward in this great adventure.

Everything from the wonderful Nick Exposed community, the monthly community projects (Which by the way if you missed the announcement of this months project its not to late to get in on the fun!! Check it out HERE), the exciting photo gigs and creative shoots Ive been landing lately, the incredible friendships and network within the community, and everything else that I cant think of in my insanely tired state right now (Played some very intense games of Beach Volleyball today, in some very intense sun and heat).

Thank you to all who have been following and supporting the process of both my own photographic growth, as well as the growth of this awesome photog creative community!! You Guys Rock!!

Oh btw, if you havent checked out the Nick Exposed Facebook Page just yet, you may want to do so and start following soon! Word on the street is theres going to be a pretty kick ass giveaway coming up in the next week or so :D

 

Hidden in the Onion Fields

ISO 200 18mm f/11 1/25sec

I definitely have a weakness for rundown barns, that and a huge weakness for light houses. Anytime I see a beat up discarded barn I get the sudden urge to pull over and jump out to shoot it. And thats exactly what I did with this one! I could just see the peak of the roof over the hill next to the road, but it was enough to peak my interest (get it.. because the peak of the roo… nevermind). So I threw the car in park, grabbed my ready to go camera and dashed up the hill. As soon as I hit the top I was just about knocked off my feet by a most fowl smell. It was difficult to place at first smelling like sour horse manure, but I managed to keep trekking forward off of pure excitement. It wasn’t until almost slipping on a rotten onion that I realized where the smell was coming from. I looked around the ground and realized I was standing in what I would probably say was the biggest rotten onion field this side of the mississippi (which is the only state I still spell out in my head when writing, not because Im afraid of spelling it wrong, but because as a kid we used to run around the playground chanting the letters like it was some sort of group spelling bee). With the constant change of weather out here it has left our fields quit muddy, so walking around this shack was harder then trying to walk across an ice rink wearing glass slippers, not that I’ve ever done it, but I figure it must be difficult. It was a continual battle between trying not to slip in the mud and or step on the squishy rotten onion land mines that were dispersed throughout the terrain.

I liked this particular shot the most, however this shot I also slipped when taking so the highlight exposure for the hdr was a tad off. Luckily the latest Photomatix Pro is great at reducing most of the ghosting when tone mapping the HDR images. In fact besides adjustments made in Lightroom 3 giving it my signature slightly desaturated look I’ve been loving in my hdr lately, I haven’t made any other adjustments.

Im typically more partial to red barns specifically, but this green really spoke to me! It worked so well with the muted tones of the rest of the field and wasn’t the typical bold barn Im used to seeing. It was well worth putting up with the smell and struggles against the mud. I’ve probably been its only visitor since the final days of onion season last year and more then likely it will stay that way until the soil is ready for next season. Because of that I feel privileged to have run across such an unattended beauty. One of the few that get to witness what it has to offer. The good ol’ onion patch barn.