Friday, April 29, 2011

Ubehebe Crater


2000 yr. old eruption, that left a half mile wide crater 400 ft. deep and spread debris over 6 miles. Very impresive piece of real estate.
Pano image taken with Zeiss 50m f4 Distagon, Kodak Eftar 100.
Dan

1 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

Impressive mother nature.... I love the colours inside the crater. It's interesting to imagine the dirt falling back in over time.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011 at 11:53:00 AM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Spider!!!


I don't particularly love spiders, they creep me out when they run really fast. This sculpture is outside the National Gallery of Canada (in Ottawa). I was lucky enough to go in and visit their exhibit of British photographs from as early as the 1830's. It was really amazing to me. The earliest ones were daguerreotype, and later dates had photograms.

4 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

I took the photo with Lensbaby. And I have a new camera --Panasonic GF2. It's so small and fits easily in my purse :) I love it.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 1:03:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

aaaahhhh! The spider that ate Seattle! :)

Congrats on your GF2! As you know, I have the GF1, and G1 bodies. Dan has the GH2. Welcome to the Micro 4/3 club.

Did you get the 14mm prime lens or 14-42mm with the kit?

--Warren

Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 1:10:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Lea, great angle, the slant makes it more imposing. I believe we had a very similar sculpture outside the Ferry Bldg in SF for a year or so and then it was returned to the artist. I wonder if it is the same work?

Dan

Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 3:23:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

I have the 20mm, didn't get the kit lens. I found this article on the spider, the artist is Louise Bourgeois and there are six other similar sculptures.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/story/2005/05/11/ot-maman20050511.html

Oh looks like they were different sculptures but the same artist yeah: http://www.flickr.com/photos/45108119@N00/2163057610/

Good eye! :)

Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 1:27:00 PM PDT  

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Monday, April 25, 2011

Not a Troll But a Turtle


This big one was under a bridge. My aunt spotted it as we passed by... I have never seen one this big in nature. Too bad there was no good size comparison nearby. ... I wonder if its tail can still go inside the shell with all those scales and spikes.

3 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

I've never seen a turtle quite like this one. It looks like an aquatic species, yet it has spikes on its tail and it looks rough like a land-based one.

How big was it?

--WT

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 1:02:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Lea, did you find this guy in the Pacfic NW, looks like a tortoise? I like your image with the little guy seeming to be at odds with the wall.

Dan

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 8:08:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

It's difficult to guess now how big... hmm, I'd say the shell was about a foot long. This one is from a fresh water river outside of Ottawa, Ontario.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 12:46:00 PM PDT  

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Antelope Valley

Continue my L.A. saga. Besides my digital Z2, I also brought along my medium format Seagull. The 120 film jammed in my Seagull. I struggled to unjammed it while standing in the middle paradise. I only managed to get one good shot. The one you are looking at. Sad, isn't it.

4 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

It would have been nice to see some more shots from the Seagull. This one has very saturated colors. What kind of film were you using?

--WT

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 12:59:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Simon Chan said...

Warren, the film was Kodak Portra 160 NC. The image color is very close the the actual scene. In my effort to unjam the film and not breaking the camera, I opened the back cover to loosen the spool. Some of the film was exposed to the sun and some of the shots overlapped due to film jam. This is the only shot survives.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 6:33:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Wow Simon, the CA State flowers are in their full glory. Too bad about the rest of the roll. Hopefully you will use the Seagull for some more great captures.

Dan

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 8:11:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Simon Chan said...

Dan, thanks for your encouragement. This shot is worthy of the trip. I have been doing test runs with an undeveloped ruined roll. My Seagull seems normal again. I plan to take my Seagull to Mount Shasta area in fall.

Friday, April 29, 2011 at 11:28:00 PM PDT  

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No Dry Rot in Death Valley

Wood and just about everything else is naturally preserved in this extraordinary climate.
Leica M9 50m f2 summicron.
Dan

1 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Nice geometry on the first picture. Your 2nd picture is very interesting because your composition makes the wood beam look just like the striations that one would find in ancient rock formations.

--WT

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 12:57:00 PM PDT  

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Death Valley Ruins in the Spring


Borax miners lived in these ruins.
Leica M9 28m f2.8 elmarit
Dan

3 Comments:

Blogger Ted M said...

Great photos Dan, also love the Kernville ones. I'm seeing more contrast than your earlier RAW ones. Are you shooting JPG, or adding the contrast in post with DNGs, or are the scenes just more contrasty?

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 11:59:00 AM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Thanx Ted, the first posts were right from the card and the scanner, these later posts have been PP in LR and/or PS.

Dan

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 5:34:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Really cool framing!! Such a strange mood,,, empty, alone, quiet, and beautiful. Intriguing composition.

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 11:56:00 PM PDT  

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Salt Flats



Imagine walking across this landscape when it is 120 degrees.
Leica M9 28m f2.8 elmarit.
Dan

4 Comments:

Blogger Simon Chan said...

Any tip on keeping film and camera cool?

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 10:54:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Wow that's gorgeous! I love that white stripe in the middle and those clouds carrying themselves just overtop the mountain peaks.

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 11:50:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

At first glance, the white looks like a light dusting of snow. How hot was it when you were there?

--WT

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 12:55:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

No problem keeping the photographer or the equipment cool in March and April, 70 to 80 degrees during the day and into the low 40s at night. Spring and Fall are actually very pleasant and the most popular time to visit this National Park.

Dan

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 8:13:00 PM PDT  

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Curtain



An arrangement of textures, colours, and lines that I found appealing.

3 Comments:

Blogger dan in marin said...

I like the contrast of the aqua and bricks Lea

Dan

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 8:12:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

The blue patch looks like a portal to another world (a world of sky and sea vs. bricks and mortar).

--WT

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 12:54:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Warren I love that idea that it's a portal :D Fun idea!

Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 11:48:00 AM PDT  

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Friday, April 22, 2011

The End of the Cherry Blossom Parade


Hi all. Long time no post.

This is the ending of a great parade in the annual Cherry Blossom Parade in San Francisco's Japantown.

Note all of the sake casks. Wish I had one.

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3 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Welcome back :).

colorful shot...it looks like the participants had some sake before the parade.

--WT

Friday, April 22, 2011 at 9:57:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Nice image Eric, captured the essence of a Sake fueled moment.

Dan

Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 6:47:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Eric said...

Thanks guys. I wish I had some of that sake.

Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 9:48:00 PM PDT  

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Alpine Meadow

Coming down from 9,000 ft. to 6,000 ft. in the So. Sierra, came upon this hillside of wildflowers

3 Comments:

Blogger Simon Chan said...

Wow, wild flowers bloomed above 6000 ft. Antelope Valley where I shot wild poppies was at about 3000 ft.

Friday, April 22, 2011 at 11:29:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

A feeling of Spring tempered by the ominous cloud cover. :)

--WT

Saturday, April 23, 2011 at 5:30:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Nice angle! The clouds are breaking up -I see some blue :))

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 12:25:00 AM PDT  

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Kernville Ghost Town




Outside of Kernville in Southern CA, a transplant from the Bay Area runs this little museum ghost town. Quite a character. Leica M9 28m f2.8 elmarit.
Dan

5 Comments:

Blogger Simon Chan said...

Great find! Post Card quality!

Friday, April 22, 2011 at 11:24:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Interesting place, reminds me of Bodie. It really looks deserted. Did you get any shots of that guy? :)

--Warren

Saturday, April 23, 2011 at 8:08:00 AM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Thanx guys, no he did not want to pose, did get a shot of his cat. Actually the town was in the middle of a resort town on the shores of Lake Isabella. I will be posting some images of the Ghost town of Ryholite in Nevada, that is in the middle of no- where.

Dan

Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 6:50:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Dan, I found a web site for the place:

http://www.lakeisabella.net/silvercity/

It's supposed to be haunted! :)

--Warren

Sunday, April 24, 2011 at 8:59:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Wow that's amazing! Great place. I love the third one. So many abandoned and weathered items... and the style of storefronts... The blue sky peeks through, making this a happier place. Beautiful trees.

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 12:30:00 AM PDT  

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Sunday, April 17, 2011

Foamy Surf at Ocean Beach

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 20mm f1.7

This was taken on a clear day last February.

(Here's a wide shot from my Mu-43 gear for Ted, LOL!)

I'm practicing my B&W conversions. You can see the incredible resolution of the little Lumix 20mm here.

--Warren

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3 Comments:

Blogger Ted M said...

Hi Warren, interesting vertical shot. Yes, I am surprised you did a wide shot with the m4/3 20mm kit. After my last post, I went digging through archives here and most of your previous posts with the 20mm were kind of artsy close-ups and abstracts, while your D100/24 (~36mm equiv. 35mm fov?) shots were more "normal" ;) Also noticed you did this in 3:2, is that how you set your camera up, or do you crop from 4/3 in post?

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 8:44:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Ted, I always take in full 4/3.

--WT

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 11:25:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

a great composition, great B&W!

If you have Photoshop Elements or Photoshop or PaintShop Pro, try adding a red filter to see if it will darken the sky. You can even do this in Google's free Picassa program by playing around a bit.

Monday, April 18, 2011 at 4:27:00 PM PDT  

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Artists' Palette




Mineralized rock formations in Death Valley. First two captured digitally with M9 Elmarit 28m f2.8 and 90m f2.8. MF Velvia with warming filter distagon 50m f4.
Dan

3 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

That's real nice scenery and interesting rock formations in general.

The M9 shots look like they need some PP to bring out their full potential. This Velvia shot is spectacular with good color balance, detail, and composition.

--WT

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 6:25:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Ted M said...

Hi Dan, Velvia is a great slide film, one of my favorites, but far from neutral. Comparing Velvia images with out of camera RAW or JPGs from a non-film emulating digital, is an apples to oranges comparison.

If your goal is to get better out of camera images from your M9, I'd go into your M9 settings and adjust some things in there that by design, make default RAW and JPGs look pretty flat. (If you're all about RAW and not at all into JPG, you're missing out on some cool JPG only technology in the Leica digitals.).

Here are some landscapes out of camera with Hexanon 28/2.8, as well as CV 21/4s, with an M8: http://matsumura.smugmug.com/Landscapes/Grand-Palouse-Wheatscapes/13433495_KjKhU No photoshop.

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 7:30:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Thanx Ted, I thought I could shoot RAW and PP. On my next outing I will play around with capturing in both formats and see what I can come up with.

Dan

Monday, April 18, 2011 at 3:48:00 PM PDT  

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Saturday, April 16, 2011

farmer's market


3 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

They look suspicious of you Joe :)

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 9:11:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

just kidding, you must be a regular at the Farmers Market.

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 9:12:00 AM PDT  
Blogger back alley said...

i don't think either were very pleased...i shoot at the market most saturday mornings.

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 9:33:00 AM PDT  

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Death Valley Zabrieskie Pt.



Two formats for one scene. The first image was captured with a 50m f4 distagon, with Fuji Velvia 50, while the second was captured with a 28m f2.8 elmarit, and the Leica M9. As I recall the M9 has accurately captured the scene and qualities of the light at the moment, but I seem to be partial to the MF sq. format the the over saturated Velvia colors.
Dan

2 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Welcome back, Dan. :)

Interesting comparison. The M9 shot looks a little flat/neutral, is it straight out of the camera? OTOH, the Velvia shot is much more vivid, but with the characteristic blue cast. Does the actual transparency look like this? I heard that sometimes the scanning process makes the blue cast looks worse when scanning Velvia.

--Warren

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 2:56:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Yes Warren they are both out of the sd card and the positive. No color adjustments. I thought it presented an interesting comparison. Many photographers choose a warming filter with the Velvia. The M9 captured pretty close to the actual available light as the sunrise was coming through a cload bank.

Continuing to work through all of the images including some Illford SFX. The Velvia was captured through a borrowed Hasselbald and I am hooked. Very nice camera to use. This was fitted with a metered VF, and it was a pleasure.

Dan

Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 4:23:00 PM PDT  

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Thursday, April 14, 2011

'take our picture' they said...and i did!


rd1 with 40/2.8 rollei sonnar

5 Comments:

Blogger Steve Rosenbach said...

A very, very good portrait!

I love the way the taller fellow is playing it straight, while the other guy is hamming it up!

Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 10:37:00 AM PDT  
Blogger back alley said...

thanks steve. the little guy would have posed all day i think.

Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 11:31:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Joe, great expressions on those guys :). Thanks for posting here.

--Warren

Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 10:00:00 PM PDT  
Blogger back alley said...

thanks warren.

Friday, April 15, 2011 at 10:20:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Joe, nice juxtaposition for the portrait.

Dan

Saturday, April 16, 2011 at 11:38:00 AM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Chinatown Scenes

Nikon D100, Nikkor 24mm f2.8 AF

Last Sunday we went for a walk in Chinatown, and I decided to bring the D100 and Nikkor 24mm for a change. I wanted to shoot with a 35mm FOV (35mm equiv.) and also to exercise the old D100. I have to say that after shooting with mostly my Mu-43 gear for over a year, the D100 felt like a massive beast. And I was only using a lightweight 24mm AF prime lens on it. I must be getting old :).

This first picture is not in Chinatown. It was in the Sunset District, and was kind of a 'warm up' shot. Does anyone else do 'warm up' shots?

The Sunset is known for its pastel colored homes, and here we have some pastel mixed with weeds and old rusty gas meters:



Gail poses in front of the famous Chinatown Gate. She's holding a SF tour book, and a Starbucks coffee. Yes, we often look like tourists in our own town, especially this day because she decided to do part of a walking tour that was suggested in that book just for fun:



This is an old, dingy stairway in a building on Stockton Street. We were on our way up to the 4th floor Buddhist Temple where there was a big sign that says: "Do not touch anything", and a xeroxed picture of a Nikon DSLR with a bold slash across it (no pictures allowed). It was eerily quiet compared to the busy street below:



Waiting on a red light at an intersection:



Fast paced shoppers in action:



It was hot in the sun that day. This young mom faced her child away from the sun while waiting for (probably) Grandma to finish shopping:



To me, the faces here reveal, a mother who is pleased to be out and about, and a daughter who feels a sense of obligation to take her out:



"_RIENTAL HOUSE of BEAUTY". I've been photographing this same building for years, and it has looked the same for years, sort of an urban decay or historical preservation depending on how you look at it:




--Warren

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5 Comments:

Blogger tedm said...

Hi Warren, these are wonderful photos. I have a theory that when you are holding the hefty Nikon, you have a tendency to take broader wider angle shots, while with your m4/3 setup, you tend to crop tighter or go for more artsy type shots. All are good, and I could be wrong, just a guess. My favorite is the mother and daughter shot from the hip photo. I think your description nailed the scenario, and the angle is interesting. Great photos!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011 at 10:53:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Warren T. said...

Hi Ted,

Thanks for the comments, they're much appreciated. That's a very interesting and observant theory. I also think it may be a question of using the right tool for the occasion. The widest that I can go right now on Mu-43 is 14mm (28mm equiv in 35mm), which is fine but in order to get that focal length, I need to use the Lumix 14-45mm zoom lens. I prefer to shoot with prime lenses. Every once in a while, I like to shoot wider, and I can only do so by using my dslr or film bodies.

Last weekend I felt like shooting with a 35mm equiv. FOV on a digital. So out came the D100 w/24mm prime.

On the Mu-43 side, I have been exploring and enjoying the long tele-zoom. The 45-200mm (90-400mm 35mm equiv) is something that I have not had convenient access to until now. The G1 w/45-200mm is compact, lightweight, and image stabilized. I wouldn't relish lugging a similar range of lenses in film or aps-c format because of their inevitable bulk and weight.

I think I mentioned this before, but my plan for a compact prime kit in Mu-43 is:

14mm Lumix (future acquisition)
20mm Lumix
40mm Hexanon (legacy/adapted)

I will be very happy if someone comes out with a 12mm native prime lens in Mu-43, but I'm not holding my breath for that to happen anytime soon.

--Warren

Wednesday, April 13, 2011 at 1:55:00 PM PDT  
Blogger dan in marin said...

Interesting theory by Ted, working in that format and not in a 35mm format, I too think it is a matter of the equipment on hand. Both formats lend themselves to wide or tight compostions.

I believe the 4/3 is just taking off and we will have super wide equipment available soon.

Warren, I really like your staircase image, very compelling with the light and the angle you chose.

Your street scenes are very nice and capture the feeling of a busy day in the district.

Dan

Saturday, April 16, 2011 at 11:33:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Simon Chan said...

Warren, you have the look of photo journalist. Maybe that's why people let you take their photos.

Saturday, April 23, 2011 at 10:34:00 AM PDT  
Blogger Lea said...

Hi Warren, I do find myself thinking of some shots as warm-ups. And I like that one of yours the best here. It's a sweet garden amidst concrete, where funny looking gas-meter-creatures live.

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 12:41:00 AM PDT  

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Saturday, April 09, 2011

Maple Leaves

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 14-45mm

This was taken last fall, but I'm just getting around to posting it now.

--Warren

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1 Comments:

Blogger dan in marin said...

Warren, tell me you knew the spider web would catch the sunlight perfectly.

Dan

Saturday, April 16, 2011 at 11:39:00 AM PDT  

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Dragonfly

Panasonic DMC-G1, Lumix 14-45mm

I liked the shadow that it cast on the metal bar that it was perched on.

--Warren

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1 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

Ah that's perfect! I wonder if he's looking at himself there thinking about his proportions. Never seen my shadow on a cylindrical surface before...

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 12:44:00 AM PDT  

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Thursday, April 07, 2011

Hello, It's Me

Panasonic DMC-G1, Konica Hexanon 40mm f1.8

Photo by Gail.

More goodness from the Hexanon 40mm, we were at Yerba Buena Gardens where I handed Gail the camera and told her to take my picture.

She was not used to the manual focus, but one of the three pictures that she took of me came out sharp. She took the shot horizontally, and I cropped it to portrait format in post-processing.

--Warren

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1 Comments:

Blogger Lea said...

Hello hello :)

Monday, April 25, 2011 at 12:46:00 AM PDT  

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Wednesday, April 06, 2011



First thanks Warren for his comment on my last post. Here are two more panoramas from my L.A. trip. The one on top is a garden in Getty Center. It is the most beautiful garden I ever visited. The bottom one is Disney Concert Hall. In 1997, I was enchanted by a photo of the similar looking Guggenheim Museum in Bilbo. At the present of DCH, I was awestruck.

1 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

solid objects in motion! ghostly effects! (I'm sure it's because of the slight image overlap in the stitching).

very cool images and compositions.

--WT

Thursday, April 7, 2011 at 7:47:00 AM PDT  

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Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Antelope Valley

This wonderful display of wild poppy was taken on April 1, 2011. Location is less than a mile from Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. There were not many poppy flowers in the reserve itself, many visitors and I left disappointed; very fitting on an April Fool's Day. But I spotted this patch from a high point, then found my way there by remembering shapes and colors of nearby hills.

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2 Comments:

Blogger Warren T. said...

Nice way to kick off the spring season :). This is a us of the panoramic format.

Thanks for posting.

--Warren

Tuesday, April 5, 2011 at 11:18:00 PM PDT  
Blogger Unknown said...

i meant to say: This is a good use of the panoramic format. :)

Wednesday, April 6, 2011 at 11:16:00 AM PDT  

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