I have played around with editing. Most of these just have filters flung on them, and not much else… so don’t get too excited. Also, I may have posted some of these already… most (if not all) of them are from Italy…

Enjoy!

P.S. I realize there are some dust spots and on some of these, the crop is less than lovely… but I haven’t quite figured everything out with the new editing program I’ve started using…

I am learning… I think…

BLAST! after posting, the quality decreased MASSIVELY. Just use your imagination and pretend this is a lot more crisp and fabulous. I’ll try reformatting soon…

Expect updates in a million years.

So, I’ve still got some more Italy pictures to put up. I need to just set out some time to do it. I’ve been very busy with school and a million other things… you know the drill…

But I’m also here to rant about my camera. I’ve had it for several years now, so naturally it’s got some wear. In the viewfinder there are a whole bunch of dust particles that make it look all yucky… but that’s not a big deal- after all, it’s just the viewfinder. But [gasp] my lens has acquired some nasty dust particles as well. I’ve cleaned my filters and the surface of my lens (on both sides) but many of the particles are still there. They are so frustrating because then, after I take some nice pictures, I have to retouch the crap out of it! It’s like playing connect-the-dots… only instead of connecting them, I’m destroying them… it’s not nearly as fun. So needless to say, that’s kind of set me back a little… as well as the cold. I’m in my fifth week back at school now and we have yet to have a full week. Every week either had a snowday or delay or holiday! So the cold has kept me inside too…

I feel like more often than not, I put up ramblings full of excuses why I’m not taking pictures. Maybe I should just be honest: I’m busy and not terribly inspired. But hopefully some inspiration will return and I will be back on the ball, snapping away with my smudged be ever-trusty Nikon…

Till then,

Rachel

This is a photoblog; here’s a picture from the first snowstorm:

I do not know them. I am a creep.

You know the drill: Mostly unedited, taken with the Nikon.

I did not capture this picture as well as I would have liked to. I just tried to capture the powerful contrast between the Americans getting money and the Italian woman sitting down in front.

I liked the bright orange here.

Roar.

Underexposed. This is Florence.

Il Duomo

Lazise

I liked the yellow and red.

Bicycle #1

Bicycle #2

Beautiful colored boats!

The blur in this photo was kind of accidental. We were in a mask store in Venice and I was taking a picture of Chloe in a mask when Will popped out from behind her. I thought it turned out pretty cool, though. I like the richness of the colors.

And that’s all for now… there will be even more later! Enjoy! Feedback, as always, is welcome.

Rachel

On the plus side, as I was driving home from a friend’s house yesterday, the sky was absolutely stunning. I scampered inside, got my camera and went zipping around town snapping away in different places. None of the shots are mind-blowing, but some are pretty decent. Plus, it’s something… I’ve been seriously slacking so it’s better than nothing. I’ll put those up sometime soon.

Don’t give up on me yet…

THE ITALY PICTURES!

I’m going to add them slowly. Post a couple every couple days. On some/most of them, I will add [dumb] captions with background stories, descriptions,  explanations and the like.

As usual: these pictures are pretty bare. I don’t edit my pictures besides minor cropping or contrast adjustments.

For the life of me, I could not get a satisfying picture of the Colosseum. It is a beautiful and massive structure, and it’s extremely difficult to capture all of it in one picture. This picture certainly does not suffice, but it’s all I’ve got.

I liked how clear and blue the sky was. And I like the intricate column too.

I probably should not like this as much as I do. I just love the texture. And generally, I really like the cobblestones that are all over Europe.

This is my best friend Erika. I guess I just liked the way this one turned out…

I liked the rich orange color in this shot.

I loved this scene. I  saw the Italian man casually reading his paper in the foreground while throngs of camera-happy tourists snapped away at the Trevi Fountain in the background. It was a powerful contrast, I thought.

And to cap off this set of pictures: some eye candy. I just loved the colors of the flowers contrasted with the gray road and the pale buildings.

More to come… just hold tight!

But… here’s something way cool:

Dillon Kemble, an excellent animation student and a close friend of mine, has a blog that he updates frequently with his latest work, and this post is dedicated to him. If you haven’t been there yet, be sure to check it out. The link is on the right side of my blog and also listed below.

I APPRECIATE THE ARTS. ESPECIALLY THE GOOD ONES! like his… :]

Dillon’s Blog

** Just a note- his blog is set up differently; in order to see older work be sure to hit the “older posts” link on the bottom on the right side. You don’t want to miss out on all the other great things he’s been up to!**

Enjoy! and stay warm!

But it’s better than nothing, I guess. Even though it’s pretty bad… heh.

It was taken in Key Largo, Florida over Thanksgiving.

You’re welcome, Dillon! :]

It’s been mighty chilly in Boston; today was bitter. I’d guess it was in the low 20′s…

I’ve been meaning to go take some nice night shots of Harvard Square. There are some pretty Christmas lights hanging between buildings and as always, plenty of interesting scenery, people, happenings, etc… but because of the freezing weather, I’ve been too focused on scuttling from the T to my classes, not even stopping to appreciate the beauty of it all.

Also, larger lenses get all funky in the cold. If they transition quickly from a warm environment to a cool (or downright freezing) one, tiny drops of moisture form inside and ruin the lens. And to be frank, I don’t want that to happen. I think in reality, it’s less common than I make it out to be, but it frightens me, and I don’t want to take any chances.

But complaints and excuses aside, I will surely head out one of these days to capture Boston’s (and Cambridge’s) visual holiday spirit and all around winter beauty.

That’s all for now! Don’t give up on me! :]

Rachel