Mandrell.com

Surrender Cover Stingray

2011-02-02T10:52:00.000-06:00

Recorded this on Jan 28, 2011. Stingray performing at a Fox HS Theatre Troupe Benefit.

Fist full run of the new gear.

Camera: Nikon D7000

Lens: Nikon 70-200 f2.8 VR

Audio: Zoom H4N recording in 4 channel (built-in + Rode Video Mic + feed straight off the sound board)

Enough is Enough Cover Stingray

2011-02-02T10:50:00.000-06:00

Recorded this on Jan 28, 2011. Stingray performing at a Fox HS Theatre Troupe Benefit.

Fist full run of the new gear.

Camera: Nikon D7000

Lens: Nikon 70-200 f2.8 VR

Audio: Zoom H4N recording in 4 channel (built-in + Rode Video Mic + feed straight off the sound board)

Mamma Let Him Play Cover Stingray

2011-02-02T10:49:00.000-06:00

Recorded this on Jan 28, 2011. Stingray performing at a Fox HS Theatre Troupe Benefit.

Fist full run of the new gear.

Camera: Nikon D7000

Lens: Nikon 70-200 f2.8 VR

Audio: Zoom H4N recording in 4 channel (built-in + Rode Video Mic + feed straight off the sound board)

Back to the Mac...

2010-11-01T16:14:00.000-05:00

After a 10 year stint completely in the world of Windows - I have returned back to the Mac world. My newest machine is a brand new MacBook Pro 15.4" i7 w/8GB RAM and 500GB HD. This is now my primary daily machine. I am not completely able to function solely on the Mac OS, I am running Parallels 6 with a VM of Windows 7 to facilitate running Microsoft Access and a few other apps.

How did I get here? Why did I get here? I have contemplated the move several times over the last 10 years, but cost has always been the thing that held me back. Not just the cost of the hardware, but the investment I had in Windows software. The road back started last year with the purchase of an iPhone... followed by an iPad... and the need for me to buy a reliable powerful laptop.

More later.

King of All Cars Tops 267 MPH

2010-07-06T16:54:00.003-05:00

The Bugatti Veyron is, once again, the fastest production car on the planet.

Bugatti says an orange-and-black Veyron 16.4 Super Sport achieved an average top speed of 267.8 mph at the hands of test driver Pierre Henri Raphanel. Stop and think about that for a moment. That’s more than 393 feet per second and almost 4.5 miles per minute. Even Bugatti’s engineers were surprised.

“We took it that we would reach an average value of 425 km/h (264 mph),” chief engineer Wolfgang Schreiber said in a statement. “But the conditions today were perfect and allowed even more.”

Raphanel made his record-setting run at Volkswagen’s test track in Ehra-Lessien, Germany, in the latest version of the greatest automobile ever made. He had one hour to make back-to-back runs in each direction. The speedo hit 427.933 km/h against the wind and 434.211 with it. That came to an average of 431.072, which by our math is 267.8 mph.

And that was more than enough to take the title back from Shelby Super Cars and the Ultimate Aero, which had held the record since peeling off an average of 256 mph in 2007. Raphanel set the record on June 24; Bugatti announced it on July 4. Bugatti says Guinness was on-hand to verify the record, and we imagine the guys at SSC will not take this sitting down.

As the name suggests, the Super Sport is a hot-rodded version of a car that already has too much of everything. The 16-cylinder engine has been tweaked and tuned with bigger turbochargers (four, count ‘em, four) and intercoolers. Bugatti says the engine is good for 1,200 horsepower and a staggering 1,106 pound feet of torque.

The carbon-fiber monocoque is stiffer yet lighter, the suspension has been stiffened and Bugatti says the car is capable of 1.4g of lateral acceleration. The body has been revised, and the engine draws air through a pair of NACA ducts in the roof instead of two big scoops.

Bugatti plans to begin building the Super Sport this fall. The first five off the line will be identical to the record-setting car. The remainder will have the top speed governed at 415 km/h (257.8 mph) “to protect the tyres,” Bugatti says.

Our own Joe Brown drove the Veyron 1.6 Grand Sport last year; his review is definitely worth reading.

Photos: Bugatti

COTM - Dad Life

2010-07-06T08:36:00.000-05:00

The iPhone Fashion Shoot

2010-07-05T17:08:00.000-05:00

Scooter Crashes Into Guardrail on Mulholland

2010-07-01T21:38:00.000-05:00

Crocs are not proper riding apparel :)

Finger Painting on the Apple iPad from the live model David Kassan http...

2010-06-29T22:28:00.001-05:00

GeekBeat.tv Episode 3

2010-06-29T22:13:00.004-05:00

The former GeekBrief.tv is now on Revision3 as GeekBeat.tv!

Short Film shot and edited entirely on the iPhone 4 / iMovie App

2010-06-29T22:07:00.004-05:00

"Apple of My Eye" - an iPhone 4 film - UPDATE: Behind the scenes footage included from Michael Koerbel on Vimeo.

This is really really cool. They used quite a few custom camera supports - I can't figure out how they achieved the shallow depth of field in a couple of the shots.

Ice Ducks at Sunset

2010-02-17T23:05:00.002-06:00

Ice Ducks at Sunset, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Finally a day where there was an interesting sky that wasn't completely gray! Stopped at Kirkwood Park on the way home as the sun was setting. Nikon D90 with the 18-200mm VR lens. This was a blended 3 exposure image.

Day 6 - 12

2010-01-20T11:08:00.002-06:00

Day 6 - 12, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Simple pool ball in B/W - shot with the iPhone.

Day 5 - Eat

2010-01-20T11:07:00.002-06:00

Day 5 - Eat, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Neon sign in Sirros Restaurant in Ste. Genevieve, MO.

Day 4 - Orris Theater in Ste. Genevieve, MO

2010-01-20T11:06:00.002-06:00

Day 4 - Orris Theater in Ste. Genevieve, MO, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Old theater that is now a Restaurant and Bar in Ste. Genevieve, MO.

Day 3 - Dead Netbook...

2010-01-20T11:03:00.002-06:00

Day 3 - Dead Netbook..., originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

The motherboard from my now dead Acer Aspire One Net Book. Spent an inordinate amount of time with this...

Day 2 - Ice Fall

2010-01-20T11:02:00.001-06:00

Day 2 - Ice Fall, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

The massive ice fall in my back yard.

Day 1 - Numbers

2010-01-20T10:58:00.001-06:00

Day 1 - Numbers, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

I decided to undertake a 356 photo project. After the success that I felt I achieved with the iPhone 30 days last fall - I got lazy with my shooting. This time it is for the long haul. I don't feel that the first image in this series is very strong - but it got me started. This was what I saw for most of the day - just a simple spreadsheet of endless numbers. My goal with this series is mainly to document what I encounter on a daily basis and to try to see ordinary things in a creative way.

Cheap Game Reviews

2009-12-13T09:27:00.002-06:00

My friend Dave and his son are posting Game Reviews on-line. Go check it out.
Cheap Game Reviews

Valley Park RR Bridge

2009-11-23T10:29:00.001-06:00

Valley Park RR Bridge, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Stopped in Valley Park on the way home last week and shop this on the RR Bridge that crosses the Meramec River. I love the reflection in the rail. 3 shot exposure(+2/-2) was captured. I blended 2 HDR renders from Photomatix with the -2 exposure in Photoshop - with a few adjustment layers as well.

R1200RT back at 100%

2009-11-13T16:44:00.001-06:00

Picked up the RT last night and all is well! Except the wallet... But the bike is back to 100% power again with no clutch slippage. Now I just need to put some miles on it!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

R1200RT Clutch

2009-11-10T14:03:00.001-06:00

Well, the RT went into the shop today to get the clutch replaced at 51000 miles. Just got the call that the pressure plates are toast as well. Going to have the transmission seals and rear main seal replacedwhile they are in there, since I will be keeping the bike for a while. Hopefully I will have it back by Thursday.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

South Moulton Barn

2009-11-04T07:51:00.002-06:00

South Moulton Barn, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

This was a shot from Grand Teton National Park in August. I made a second attempt to process and crop it last night. I like this version much better. It is based it off of a single exposure tonemapped in Photomatix Pro 3, however there are sections that I blended in 3 exposure HDR renders (mainly the sky and mountains). The grasses in the foreground were blowing in the wind - because of the approaching storm and prohibited using a 3 exposure version of them. I ended up using adjustment layers in Photoshop to get the effect I was after.

Fenton Bridge

2009-10-29T16:30:00.001-05:00

Fenton Bridge, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Stopped at the old Fenton bridge last night on the way home - during the 30 minutes that the cloud cover finally lifted! Spent some time limiting myself to 1 lens - 50mm f1.4. I had been wanting to try a puddle refection shot for some time. This was a single exposure processed through Lightroom and Photoshop.

Devil's Tower

2009-10-28T09:40:00.001-05:00

Devil's Tower, originally uploaded by MandrellPhoto.

Another picture from vacation this year. This was my favorite shot of Devil's Tower. Took this while hiking the trail around the base. When we arrived the rock was completely back lit. This was shot from the backside - away from the parking area. Single Exposure RAW file - some blended tone mapping from Photomatix was layer masked in via Photoshop to enhance texture and dimension.