Day 21 – Caucus Day

Nevada Democrats met all over the state today to caucus in our individual precincts. Just like in Iowa and other caucus states, the precinct caucuses are the first step in selecting our party’s presidential nominee (no contest this time), selecting delegates for the county convention, submitting planks for the party platform, and to rally the troops for the election to come. I shot a lot of pictures and really liked this one of my friend and how intently she’s listening. I started the day shooting with my flash but didn’t like how the photos were turning out, not to mention that it was distracting to the caucus goers, so I dispensed with the flash and bumped my ISO to 800. I don’t generally like to go that high due to the noise, but sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. And the results were much better.

Day 20 – Broken Bird

I slipped out to the duck pond by NV Energy again today. Amidst all the geese, ducks and coots, this little guy caught my eye. Hopping along on one leg, he didn’t appear to feel the least bit sorry for himself, but he just broke my heart. I converted the shot to black and white. It seemed fitting.

Day 19 – Fire

I went out at about 1:30 with my camera and saw some smoke in the sky. Given the nature of the topography in Reno and the Truckee Meadows, it is often difficult to tell where a fire is located. However, this fire appeared to be fairly close because the smoke was moving quickly and starting to move into south Reno.

I took this picture because I liked the size and beauty of the tree. But those aren’t clouds in the background. It is smoke.

When I got back to work at 2pm there was a voice mail from my boss letting me that he had to leave as there was a brush fire in his area. I checked in with him a little while ago and they have just evacuated. Snow and rain were forecast for this afternoon but it is just now that we are starting to get some precipitation. A tiny bit. We really have no idea how many homes have been lost.

It is Reno’s second major fire in less than two months.

Day 18 – Under the bridge

I was out looking for some color today I stumbled upon this little park about a block from where I work. A redwood bridge spans the park’s tiny width, and I stepped underneath it to shoot some patches of ice.

And then I looked to my left and saw this:

As you can see, this post is up a bit earlier than I thought it would be. The blackout across the internet appears to have gotten the attention of people in Washington and I’m feeling optimistic.

Day 17 – Barbed Wire

There is a lot of barbed wire in my neck of the woods. Two shots for you today.

By the way, I will be participating in the SOPA blackout tomorrow. I will shoot for the day and post Day 18 at the same time I post for Day 19.

Day 16 – Harbinger

Snow. Finally! It was anywhere from a dusting to an inch. And most of it was gone by afternoon. Still, it felt like a promise of things to come.

Day 15 – Virginia Lake

I went to Reno this morning for a breakfast meeting and afterward I drove around looking for something interesting to shoot. I wound up driving down Lakeside Drive and as I pulled up to Virginia Lake I saw a throng of ducks, geese, coots, seagulls and pigeons massed along the shore. I immediately pulled over and grabbed my camera. A small family was feeding the birds and it was chow time! I tried to catch the excitement and movement of it all, but wasn’t as successful as I would have liked. I did take a lot of other shots though and this handsome fella is today’s 365 photo.

The teeming shore.

Day 14 – Buddy & Nina

This shot of Buddy came out as close to perfect as I could hope. I didn’t do a thing to it except convert to TIF and JPEG. This is my 365 shot for the day.

This one of Nina isn’t quite as successful as Buddy’s. I would have liked a little more sharpness in her eyes but for Nina, being the whirling dervish that she is, it’s pretty good.