Punderson Sled Dog Classic 2013

Photographers, Get your cameras ready!!!!

NOTE: The race has been CANCELED for Jan 12 & 13th, make up dates are Feb 23 and 24th.

Now for something different the 2013 Punderson Sled Dog Classic taking place on Saturday Feb 23th and Sunday Feb 24th 2013!

A lot of photographer's in the Google + Northeast Ohio Photographers Community will be going on Saturday February 23rd, if you can't make it then you can always go on Sunday Feb 24th. Join us if you want, everyone is welcome! If you use Google + feel free to join the community, the more the merrier!

Note: The conditions have to be just right for the dogs to race, even if there is snow they sometimes cancel the race if it's not safe for the dogs or racers. 

Click the photo to go to Sled Dog Gallery

Hi Everyone a cool place to shoot this winter is the Sled Dog Classic at Punderson State Park on 2/23/2013 and 2/24/2013. The event is free for spectators. This should be a fun Photo Shoot,  a lot of us went in 2010 and had a great time.  You can see my photos at this link Sled Dog Classic Photos

More information can be found here: Sled Dog Classic Race Info

Time : 9:00 am    Races start at 10am on Saturday and 9:30am on Sunday
Place: Punderson State Park
Park Map: Punderson State Park Map
Directions: Click on the camera icon to get directions from your location. To view a larger map Click on "View Larger Map" below.

GPS Coordinates
latitude: 41.46118938889867
longitude: -81.21947765350342


View Larger Map


Sled Dog Photo Tips

This will be the second time at the Sled Dog Classic for me, here are some photo tips I learned from 2010

1. The best shots are taken with the Sled Dogs running toward you.  Shots from the side are not as dramatic

2. Get down low at the dogs eye level.

3. Try and take some human interest shots of the dogs and their owners

4. Sled Dogs are cool, try and get some good portrait shots of them.

5. Try to capture the peak action.

6. Try to show how strong these animals are as they pull the sleds.

Well those are some of my tips, if anyone else has any tips to share, just click on "comments" below and leave your tips, comments and suggestions.

If you are going on the Sled Dog Classic Shoot or any cold weather shoot you want to keep your hands warm but still be able to use the controls on your camera so what do you do?

I'm going to try out my new Freehands Gloves, the index finger and thumb fold back so you can control the camera:

See a Sled Dog Classic Slideshow 

Balloon Classic Invitational 2012 7/20-7/22

If you like photographing Hot Air Balloons then you might want to check out the Balloon Classic Invitational taking place in North Canton Ohio from 7-20 - 7-22. This is one of the largest balloon fests in the area, I think there's going to be about  75 Balloons

I plan on going Friday evening and to all the Balloon events on Saturday, during the day I may also check out the Football Hall of Fame.  If you see me, come up and say hello! I look just like the guy on the right of this blog ------------------> LOL

You can see a slideshow of the photos I took in 2010 and 2011 in the slideshow link below

Balloon Classic Invitational Slideshow


NOTE: Access on the field is not allowed except for pilots and crews, but you should still be able to get some good photos.





Click the photo to see more photos!

BALLOON CLASSIC ACTIVITIES:  Hot air balloons fly best in less than 8 mph winds, and the weather must be almost perfect for these beautiful balloons to take to the skies. Pilots are briefed on weather before each and every flight; flights may be delayed or cancelled due to weather conditions.

Helpful hints:  If you’re an early bird, come check out the morning flights!  For evening flights, traffic is especially heavy, so plan ahead.

TIMES ARE TENTATIVE AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE, SO CHECK BACK PERIODICALLY. . .

FRIDAY, JULY 20

5:00 AM: Dawn Patrol

6:30 AM: Media Flight

5:30 PM: Activities begin at the Balloon Classic

6:30 PM: Balloon Launch

9:30 PM: Night Glow

SATURDAY, JULY 21

6:30 AM: Balloon Launch

5:30 PM: Activities begin at the Balloon Classic

6:30 PM: Balloon Launch

SUNDAY, JULY 22

6:30 AM: Balloon Launch

JACKSON-BELDEN FOOD FEST ACTIVITIES:

FRIDAY, JULY 20

4:00 PM:  Activities begin at the Food Fest

4:00 - 5:45 PM: Brighter Side Band

6:00 - 8:45 PM: Wild West Band

9:00 - 11:30 PM: Buckle Down Band

SATURDAY, JULY 21

4:00 PM:  Activities begin at the Food Fest

5:00 - 6:45 PM: Messy Face Band

7:00 - 8:45 PM: OFHUMAN Band

9:00 - 10:00 PM: Downplay Band

10:00 - 10:30 PM: Fireworks

10:30 - 11:30 PM: Downplay Band

At both venues, there are also awide variety of food and beverage vendors, as well as family activities such as a playground of inflatables and balloon education area.

Here are some of my Balloon Photography Tips

Balloon Photo Tips:

1. See which way the wind is blowing then position yourself so the balloons will fly toward you.

2. Look for colors, shapes and patterns





















3. Use people as scale to show how large the Balloons are











4. Show the crew at work











5. And of course show them in the air!!!











More balloon photos here: Hot Air Balloons

Here's the address and a Google Map

Kent State University Stark Campus &
Stark State College of Technology
6000 - 6200 Frank Road NW
North Canton, Ohio 44720

Convenient parking available
Enter public parking lots off Frank Road,
and pay only $5.00 per vehicle after 3:00 PM

For those with a GPS here are the Coordinates in the Decimal Degree format

LAT N 40.867810
Long W 81.441656

Click on the Camera Icon to get directions from your location.


View Balloon Classic Invitational - Canton in a larger map

Veterans Memorial Bridge Tour 7/7/2012

Here's another great Photo Op over the Memorial Day weekend - a self guided tour of the Veterans Memorial Bridge (aka Detroit Superior Bridge) The bottom part of this bridge was used for Trolley traffic over the Cuyahoga River in the Flats. I've done the tour about 3 or 4 times and its a great place to photograph Cleveland history. They'll have displays of old trolley cars and you can even see the old tracks in the ground. You can also get some great views of the Flats from the bridge. So if your looking for something different to shoot on Saturday July 7th check out the Veterans Memorial Bridge.

When: Saturday, July 7th, 2012

Times: Open from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Location: Northeast Corner of W. 25th Street &

Detroit Avenue, at the west end of the bridge.

FREE parking is available at the County Engineer’s

Bridge Garage, which is located at the tour’s entrance.

Cost: FREE

Other:
 No reservations

 Self guided tour with volunteers on hand

to answer questions

 Wheelchair & stroller accessible

 Cameras are welcome

 Attractions include films, trolley displays,

streetcar, and a unique view of the area

Click on the Camera Icon below to get directions from your location to the Bridge

View Veterans Memorial Bridge Tour in a larger map

GPS Coordinates of the Parking Lot:
Latitude: 41.4923313

Longitude: -81.7061913

More Photos here: Veterans Memorial Bridge Photos

Hocking Hills Photo Shoot Schedule

Hi Everyone, here's a suggested schedule for the Hocking Hills Shoot..... since everyone is coming on different days and times I suggest we make the State Park Dining Lodge our meeting location, it has a large parking lot, a place to eat and restrooms.  We want to make sure everyone gets to enjoy all areas of the park no matter what day or time they get there. Places we're going to see are Ash Cave, Cedar Falls, Old Man's Cave, Conkle's Hollow, Rock House and maybe Cantwell Cliffs. Here's a link to all the trail maps, print them out if you like, also at the link will be a list of the parks on the left side of the screen, if you click on a park name it will show you photos and a description of the park.  Here's the link...  Hocking Hills Trail Maps

Here's a Tentative Daily Schedule, it's not set in stone and if you've been to Hocking Hills before and want to head out and explore on your own and just meet up for lunch or dinner or just to BS about photography that's fine.  For those that want to hang out in a group here's what's planned and could change depending on how the water's flowing.  Since people will be getting there at various times, we will meet back at the dining lodge a few times a day to meet up with people, depending on when you arrive you may want to give me a call to see where we are shooting when you get there.

Also for anyone staying at a Hotel in Logan that doesn't want to make trips back and forth to the Hotel during the day, you are more than welcome to stash your laptops and battery chargers in my Cottage, in case you want to charge batteries and download photos to your laptop during the afternoon lunch break.  What I usually do when I go to Hocking Hills is get up early go out and shoot, then during the afternoon yucky light period, eat lunch, download photos, then head back out for a late afternoon shoot.

Thursday:
   A few of us are getting there Thursday, call me when you get  there and we can go out and shoot if it's not to late.  (Either email me at ronskinner4435@sbcglobal.net or send me a message on Facebook and I'll give you my cell number)  I'll be staying in Cottage 24 in the State Park

Friday:

•  7am Meet at Dining Lodge  We will shoot Ash Cave and Cedar Falls
• 12:00 Noon Meet at Dining Lodge meet up with others, have lunch
• 2pm Meet at Dining Lodge - Afternoon Shoot - Conkle's Hollow
• 6pm (Optional) Either meet at Dining Lodge for Dinner or go back to Cottages, Hotel ...

Saturday:

• 7am Meet at Dining Lodge We will shoot Old Mans Cave
• 12:00 Meet at Dining Lodge. Meet up with late arrivals, Have Lunch
• 2pm Meet at Dining Lodge - Afternoon Shoot TBD
• 6pm (Optional) Either meet at Dining Lodge for Dinner or go back to Cottages, Hotel ...
• 7:30pm (Optional)  Hang out at Cottage 24 to relax and get photo tips on using Tripods, Ballheads, Reflectors, Camera Bags and equipment. Think Tank Pixel Pocket Rocket drawing.

Sunday:

• 7am Meet at Dining Lodge - Shoot TBD

The above schedule it just a suggestion to give some structure to the shoot and to make sure we meet up with everyone and that everyone gets to shoot all areas of the park. If you like a location and want to stay longer, feel free to do so, and if you want to head out on your own to explore a favorite place that's cool too.

Here's a map showing where the Dining Lodge, Cottages, Old Man's Cave Parking and the State Park HQ are located:

View Hocking Hills in a larger map

Super Moon Shoot at Marblehead Lighthouse plus Lakeside Daisy Nature Preserve

Hi everyone, as you know the Super Moon will be happening Saturday May 5th and a lot of people are wondering just where they should go to get a photo of the Super Moon. Well using the free program The Photographer's Ephemeris  I searched for places to get a good photo of the Super Moon. What I was looking for was a good foreground subject and I wanted it to be near a Lake so I could get a nice reflection of the Moon. The moon is going to be rising in the southeast at an azimuth of 114.4 degrees.  First I looked to see if I could get a good shot of the Cleveland Skyline with the moon behind it, to do this I would have to go down to the East Bank of the Flat's and shoot up at the city. This didn't look that great to me. Next I thought of Hinckley Lake, this would be ok, but there wasn't a very interesting foreground. I finally found what I think is the best opportunity to shoot the Super Moon and that is the Marblehead Lighthouse.

If you look at the photo below, the red balloon is the photographer and the light blue line shows the direction of the moonrise, and the orange line is where the sun will be setting behind you. As you can see the Moon will be rising behind the Lighthouse and will be front lit by the setting sun. The Moonrise at this location will be a 20:24 (8:24pm) and the sunset will be 9 minutes later at 20:33.  If you want to get the moon nice and large behind the lighthouse you will have to move back as far as you can from the location in the photo and use a telephoto lens to compress the distance between the lighthouse and the moon. I'm not sure how clear of a shot you'll get cause there are a lot of trees lining the walkway, but it might be worth a try. If you use a wider angle lens and move closer to the lighthouse, the Lighthouse will appear larger in the photo and the moon smaller. If you just want to get the moon rising over Lake Erie you can do that to from the rocks surrounding the lighthouse.

 Anyway this is where I'm going to shoot the Super Moon. Join me if you want!!!




Since the Super Moonrise doesn't happen till 8:24pm I'm planning on getting to Marblehead around 2:30 to 3Pm and checking out the nearby Lakeside Daisy Nature Preserve,

So here's my schedule of events:
 2:30 or 3PM Explore Lakeside Daisy Nature Preserve

 4:30 or 5Pm Get something to eat

 6PM Meet at Marblehead Lighthouse and scout out places to shoot the Supermoon

 8:24pm Supermoon rises
 8:33 Sunset

 Google Map Click the Blue Icon to get directions to Marblehead Lighthouse, Click the red icon to get directions to Lakeside Daisy Nature Preserve

 
View Marblehead Lighthouse and Lakeside Daisy in a larger map

Photography Road Trip to Dawes Arboretum and more....

The Facebook  Ohio's Nature and Wildlife Photographers group is heading to the Dawes Arboretum on Saturday April 7th for an informal photo shoot, all photographers are welcome to join in the fun. The early birds will be getting there at 7:00am but since everyone has a different schedule a lot of photographers will be getting there later in the day. We can all meet up around noon at the Visitor's Center to get to know each other and maybe head out to get something to eat.

For more info on this and other events please check out the  Ohio's Nature and Wildlife Photographers group page on Facebook. The group was set up by Debbie Dingus to allow Ohio photographers to post their nature and wildlife photos. Debbie is also setting up photo trips to various places in Ohio. The Dawes Arboretum is the one of the first trips. A trip to Hocking Hills is coming up the weekend of June 8th.  The group is open to all Ohio photographers feel free to join the group if you want.



Also, since it's a long drive to Dawes some people are planning on heading down a day early on Friday and staying overnight. For those going down early on Friday, some of us are planning on checking out the Newark Earthworks and meeting there at around 10 or 11am.


Here's a Google Map with directions to Dawes and the Newark Earthworks,  click on the northern camera icon for directions to the Earthworks, click on the southern camera icon for directions to Dawes Arboretum.  The bed icon is for the Best Western where some of us are staying on Friday night.


View Dawes and Newark Earthworks map in a larger map

Lake View Cemetery - Maps and Information

Every year in the spring hundreds of Daffodils bloom on Daffodil Hill in Lake View Cemetery, this year with the unseasonably warm temperatures the Daffodils are blooming early as well as the other plants and trees in Lake View.

I'm going to check it out on Sunday March 25th.  I plan on getting there between 7:30 and 8:00am to catch the good early morning light and the dew on the plants.

There are lots of famous people buried in Lake View and lots of interesting buildings and Crypts to photograph. Buildings you want to check out are the Garfield Memorial where President Garfield and his family are entombed.  Also check out Wade Hall.



Daffodil Hill (Click on the photo to go to the gallery)



Here's a Map with the locations of the Garfield Memorial, Wade Chapel, and Daffodil Hill and also the Euclid Ave entrance to Lake View. Click on the blue icon to get directions from your location.


View Lake View Cemetery in a larger map

Ohio Nature and Wildlife Photo Shoot at Hocking Hills 6/8 to 6/10/2012

Hi everyone the Ohio's Nature and Wildlife Photographer's group on Facebook is having a photo shoot at Hocking Hills State Park from Friday June 8th till Sunday June 10th, everyone is welcome!!!!

When: June 8 to June 10th   ( I will be there from June 7-10)  Come for all the days or the days convenient for you

Where: Hocking Hills State Park

Where to stay:  A lot of us are going to be staying in the State Park Cottages, they sleep up to six people, they are a little expensive but close to the action.  You can also stay at a hotel in Logan or at any of the nearby private cabins and cottages in the area, or even in the State Park Campground.  For those who make their own lodging arrangements, we will probably use the State Park Dining Lodge as a central meeting place.

For those of you that have never been to Hocking Hills you can hang out and go on  group shoots with everyone, for those that have been there before you can venture out on your own if you want and then meet up later for lunch and dinner and shoot the breeze and ask questions about Hocking Hills and photography stuff.

Here's a link to the Hocking Hills Trail Maps

Hocking Hills is a large park with lots of waterfalls and some of the best hiking trails in Ohio, here's some of what you'll see:
Ash Cave in Spring and Winter



Cedar Falls


Lower Falls and Upper Falls at Old Man's Cave


Other things to see and explore are Conkle's Hollow, Rockhouse, Cantwell Cliff's

More Hocking Hills photos can be seen here:  Hocking Hills Galleries

GPS Coordinates in Decimal Degree format:
Lat: N 39.4376
Long W 82.5379

To get directions to Hocking Hills from your location click on the Green State Park HQ icon:


View Hocking Hills in a larger map