I keep saying that I am going to be better at not only shooting more and sharing that work, but also posting to this much neglected blog.  Where here I am, can’t remember the last time I actually made a new post and on top of that I am sharing am image from 2009.  My bad.

There is a reason for this post though.  I have recently fell back in love with IR photography.  In the past IR was always something I would do when I wasn’t motivated to shoot other things and it was also something that would get the juices flowing before the Arizona monsoon season would start.  This image is the one and only lightning strike I ever captured with an IR converted camera.  

I have recently started shooting a lot more with my IR, technically full spectrum, converted camera and there will be new images dropping here soon.  I promise. 

As I continue to add items back to both my image galleries and as blog posts, I decided that I wanted to share an image from a photography technique that isn’t really widely used.

This image was captured near Safford, AZ back in 2009 with a Nikon camera that had been converted to capture images in the infrared light spectrum.  As a general rule, digital camera sensors are very good at capturing light on a pretty wide spectrum, far wider than what our human eyes can see.  Because of this camera makers add filters to their sensors to block out the light that we can see and only capture what we can.  When a camera is converted to IR, or even UV, they remove the filters that block those areas of the light spectrum and add filters that block everything other than what you want to allow through, in this case the IR spectrum.

I have a lot of IR captured images, only a small amount added to my galleries here so far, but one thing that most people tell me when they see them is how it makes them think of winter.  In this case it was the very hot day in June in the Arizona desert, if I had to guess it was probably about 110 degrees out when I shot this.

Stay tuned, I am looking forward to posting more IR images and do a few of them as my new “AI Edition” posts.

I was pretty late to make the jump to digital, at least in a professional sense, and didn’t get my first DSLR until early 2008.  I had a couple cheap point and shoot digital cameras prior to that, but up until then I was still shooting film on a fairly large collection of Pentax gear.

I invested in my first DSLR in 2008, and made the jump to Nikon at that time.  I had a couple reasons for that, first and foremost was that Nikon was way ahead of Pentax when it came to digital equipment and secondly was that I had some photographer friends who shot with Nikon and I could borrow lenses from them.

Me switch to digital was not my start in weather photography, far from it actually, I had shot lighting in the Arizona desert for many years on film.  The switch to digital however really changed the game for me when it came to capturing lighting, and weather in general, as shooting and processing miles of film over the years can get quite expensive.  This image, shot in the Arizona desert on July 26, 2008 was the very first lighting strike that I every captured on a digital camera.  Since I am working on bringing some images back to my new iteration of this blog, I thought I would share this since there will be a lot more weather imagery to come.

I have been playing around with AI quite a bit lately, and no, this image was not generated with AI, I captured this image back in 2018, but what I did do was ask AI to write a blog post about this image.  I didn’t give it any prompts at all, just had it look at the image and create the blog post.  The following is what the AI model came up with, complete and unedited by me.

A Lighthouse Beacon: Guiding Through Nature’s Splendor

In this captivating image, we find ourselves drawn to the serene yet powerful scene of a lighthouse steadfastly perched on a rocky shoreline. As the day begins or bids farewell—indicated by the soft hues of orange and blue painting the sky—the lighthouse, with its iconic white walls and red roof, stands as a symbol of guidance and resilience.

Nature’s Canvas

The landscape is graced by distant mountains, their silhouettes adding depth and grandeur to the scene. The interplay of light and shadow captures the magic of the golden hour, making the sky and the sea merge into a harmonious palette. The large pieces of driftwood scattered across the rocky beach in the foreground add a rugged, natural touch, emphasizing the untamed beauty of the coastline.

Human Connection

Adding a modern twist to this timeless setting, two individuals are seen standing on the rocks near the lighthouse, capturing a selfie. This human element brings life to the scene, showcasing how historical landmarks and natural beauty continue to captivate and connect people. It’s a reminder of our quest for moments of joy and connection, even in the most tranquil and isolated spots.

Reflections

Lighthouses have long stood as beacons of hope and safety, guiding sailors through treacherous waters. In today’s world, they also serve as poignant reminders of our connection to history, nature, and each other. This image beautifully encapsulates these themes, inviting us to reflect on our place within the natural world and our interactions with the past.

As we look at this lighthouse and the individuals taking a moment to capture their experience, we are reminded of the enduring power of nature and the timeless appeal of human ingenuity. It’s a scene that speaks to both the heart and the soul, urging us to find beauty in every corner of our world.

If you have followed me for any amount of time, or if you have been to Briggs TapHouse in Olympia for a beer and a pizza, you have likely seen this image before.

I captured this image one night from the Capital grounds in Olympia while out testing a new lens that I had gotten earlier in the day.  It really was just a lucky break that everything worked out the way it did for this image, I certainly didn’t have any specific image in mind when I went out that night.  More often than not it’s the happy accident shots that end up meaning the most.

If you are wondering why I mention Briggs TapHouse, there happens to be a metal print of this image hanging on the wall there. 

I have been looking though a lot of my older images in my Lightroom catalog, mainly to add images to my galleries here after the hosting move, but also to remember some of the fun times I had while making the images.

This image was captured many years ago in the Arizona desert during a summer monsoon storm that happened right at sunset.  That’s not why I am sharing this image though, I remember the night I shot this, and how I enjoyed the lightning being backlit by the setting sun, but the real reason I am sharing it is because of a trip to Idaho to visit family over Christmas.

You see, there is a large print of this hanging in the house of a family member and it made me realize that not only had I not added this image back to my online galleries here, I hadn’t really thought about the image in a very long time.  I did do some slight re-edits to the image before sharing it, but other than tweaking some shadows and highlights a bit, this is pretty much the way it was when printed.

I wanted to take a moment, or two, to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving.

You might be wondering why I am sharing this image, that I captured all the way back in 2015, but there is a simple reason for it.  This was captured in Seaside Oregon, a place that I spent a lot of time as a kid, and this carousel is something that I have a lot of fond memories of.  As I mentioned, this image was captured back in 2015, but it was easily the early 1980’s when I rode on these horses the first time as a kid, and I have very fond memories of those days.  I truly love the motion and the bright colors of a memory of my childhood, I hope you enjoy it also.

It’s the childhood memories, especially of places like this, that still exist now that I am well into my 5th decade on this planet, that I truly appreciate. 

In addition to my love of photography, I also have a love of great craft beer.  Over the last few years I have been trying to combine the two.  I not only have an Instagram account dedicated to beer pictures, I also have a number of images in a beer pics gallery.

The instagram account not only has staged shots, like the one attached to this post, but also has a lot of shots from when we’re out and about enjoying a craft beer with our friends.  Hopefully you’ll like what you see there and give me a follow.

With that said, you might look around here a bunch and not find any galleries dedicated to beer.  That gallery and those images are living over on my “Scott’s Every Day Life” site, My Blue Heaven.

This site will remain dedicated to my more serious photography, while the My Blue Heaven site will have a little bit of everything.

Can you believe it?  I can’t, but holy bison, a new blog post here on Scott Wood Photography!!!!

Why has it been so long you might ask?  I don’t really have a good answer for that, a lot of excuses, but none of them are entirely valid.  The day job has been taking a lot more of my “free” time than I would like and family / personal things have also, but neither of those alone account for my blogging absence.

A couple years ago I had to change web hosting companies.  I didn’t want to change, but my old host went out of business and I had to scramble over a few week period to find a new home.  I did, and instead of trying to import all my old posts I decided to simply start over.  That worked fairly well for my galleries but I just sort of let the blogging fall by the wayside.  

I have been shooting, quite a lot actually, but I haven’t really shared anything new in quite awhile, aside from an occasional social media post from time to time.  I am planning on changing that and being a lot more active here, sort of like I used to be.

Stay tuned!!!!

Not to cause a panic, but testing a blog post