Project 365, Day 15. Graffiti Falls

In between setting stuff on fire and taking pictures of the results yesterday, I started looking for other places to shoot.

I've been looking for out of the way stuff. Things that you don't see everyday, even if you live here in Colorado.

During my search, I came across a place just outside of Colorado Springs called Rainbow Falls. It has quite an interesting history. In the 1800's, it was quite the tourist attraction. People would take mules up to see these falls. Then as often happens, progress came. A highway was built quite literally over it and the falls were forgotten by most. Then right around the advent of spray paint (I'm guessing on that part), the graffiti artists found this place and decorated it in their own style. Hence the name Graffiti Falls.

This century, the city has bought the land and is trying to clean it up. There has been some outcry from the art community, saying that the graffiti has become a part of this place.

Me? I'm of two minds on graffiti. One, I can't stand snot nosed punks running around defacing things for shits and giggles and often these are tags for gangs. However, on the other hand, I do feel it is a valid form of art, and as any piece of art if done well, can be quite amazing.

While not as impressive as some of the artistic graffiti I have seen before, I would have to agree that it does lend an interesting character to the location. I'll be interested to see what becomes of this area.

Enough jiber-jabber. Picture time:


I took quite a few pictures here that will end up on my website. Just not tonight.

Remember to click on the picture once or twice to see it larger and get the full effect.

Until tomorrow....!

Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 14. What do you MEAN I can't set it on fire!?!?

So, yesterday's picture of a match was an experiment to see how fire behaves while I try to photograph it.

Funny enough, it's easier to manage than most 5 year old kids.

The purpose of that was to try to set ice on fire.

I believe that's what you call a dichotomy.

Turns out what it is..is a pain in the ass.

I tried Isopropyl alcohol, as I learned recently that's what you use to set something on fire that you don't really want on fire. (Don't ask....)

It didn't work.

Back to the drawing board.


Remember kids, don't try this at home without your parent's permission! The best way to get it is to tell mom that dad said it was ok! Have fun with fire!

Click on the picture once or twice to see it larger and get the full effect!

Until tomorrow...!

Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 13. Playing with fire? This isn't what I had planned!

I was hoping to share another image from a professional shoot today. I was supposed to work for David Tejada again today, but his client didn't make it to town today. So it goes.

As a side note, some of the pictures I took of Dave shooting last time I worked for him appear on his blog today. Click the link above to check it out! Thanks Dave!

So, without my planned shot of the day, I did what any bored kid does.

I started playing with matches.

No mother, I didn't burn the house down. I told the wife that's what I had planned for the day. She was on board with that.

Tonight I was, well, playing with matches. I have an idea I want to try so tonight was an experiment in how fire is photographed.


I got an interesting array of results by changing all factors involved, exposure, aperture, flash strength and even types of matches.

But I like this one best:


All that and I didn't even set one of the dogs on fire! Or did I? What IS that smell?

More fun with fire in the future!
Remember to click on the picture once or twice to see it larger for the full effect.

Until tomorrow....!


Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 12. Why did I buy this? Oh yeah...!

I bought most of my camera gear while I was working in Afghanistan. While most of the stuff I had shipped to me in Kabul, some of it got sent straight home.

There was a lot of stuff I knew that I would either not have room for or have a chance to learn how to use it, let alone the opportunity to play with it.

My tripod, monopod, a few lenses and most of my flash gear got sent straight to the house.

Including this little bad boy. The Nikon R1C1 Flash set. It's two small speedlights (flashes) that attach to a ring that attaches to your lens. It's used for macro photography.

While I got plenty of chances to do macro photography in Afghanistan, the shots usually followed the phrase "Hey doc, does this look infected to you?" I didn't need something this fancy to take pictures with.

It has a pretty steep learning curve, but I think I'm slowly getting the hang of it.

Today's subject? Doug's Blue Angels edition Citizen Ecodrive watch:


Doug wasn't too happy when he noticed that there is a tiny scratch on the face of the watch. Luckily, I didn't cause it...

For those interested, it was a long exposure lit by the two small speedlights that fired at the end of the exposure.

A gold star to anyone who can guess how long the exposure was...

Remember to click on the picture once or twice to see it much larger and get the full effect.

Until tomorrow...!

Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 11. I am but the student before the master...

It's not every day you get to see a professional photographer at work.

However, I have been lucky enough to have landed a part time job as a photographer's assistant for one.

That pro is master photographer David Tejada.

You might not have seen his work before. He does a lot of industrial work... and he is the master of flash photography.

You feel brighter just standing next to this guy. (Get it? Brighter? That's a flash joke...)

As his assistant, I helped set his gear up for a "Guys in ties" shoot today. After getting everything set up I got a chance to play a bit.

Since he shoots the same camera as I do, I set my camera to his settings and took a shot of him:


Not too bad, huh?

I also took it into Photoshop and made him look 20 years younger....

The indispensable assistant, me.

Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 10. There is always somewhere close...

As I am quickly finding out, it's tough to find something new to shoot everyday.

I'm not quite to the point of taking a picture of the dog taking a dump in the backyard.

I'm saving that. That's my ace in the hole.

However, there is always somewhere close here in Colorado that worth going and shooting, no matter the time of the year.

I had to get out to mail something to a buddy, so I went shooting...or did I have to get out to go shooting, so I mailed something to a buddy?

At any rate, not more than a mile or two down the road was this:


It's a nine shot bracket to maximize the light then converted to black and white.

Remember to click on the picture once or twice to get the full effect!

Until tomorrow....

Brian Hatch photography

Project 365, Day 9. It snowed!

We have three dogs.

The two blue heelers, Angie and Tess are 9 and 6 years old respectively. They aren't ready for the old folks home, but they aren't puppies either.

Sera the Mutt, is a professional Slug Dog. Do you have a sofa or bed that you worry about wandering off? She'll hold it down for you, she's the best.

But when it snows? Forgettaboutit.

They want out to play in fresh snow. They cry and whine like a five year old kid in the toy isle of Wal-Mart. Once outside, they run around like a jackrabbit on cocaine when paws hit snow. And it snowed a lot today for the first time this winter...

I tried a few new camera techniques too. I shot in Shutter Priority, meaning I chose my shutter speed and my camera chose my aperture for me. I also tried my Auto ISO feature too, which chooses the best ISO for the light and the settings I'm using.

What's all that mean?

It freed me up to try my best to get stop motion shots of the dogs as they ran around like meth heads on a bender.

I had a hell of a time choosing a picture, so I didn't.
I chose three. I shot over 500 pictures today and had a high number of keepers. Even narrowing it down to three was tough...

Here is Sera trying to corner at Mach 5 in the snow as Tess watches over her shoulder with trepidation...



Angie (yeah, the old one) about four and a half feet in the air going after the ball while Tess waits, hoping Angie misses her catch...



And to show what can happen in a split second.... Angie starts on her decent from the same jump in the previous picture and Tess makes her move to grab the ball that Angie missed....


Remember to click once or twice on the pictures to see them larger and get the full effect!

Until tomorrow....

Brian Hatch photography