Help Portrait

As many of you know I am really into photography and take as many opportunities as I can to get out there a shoot. Well now it's time to give back a little. I've joined a group called "Help-Portrait" which is a group of photographers (beginners, advanced and Pros) take photos for FREE to bring some holiday joy to the world. Yes that's right the world. Photographers are gathering all around the world on 12 Dec 2009 to take free photos of single mom's, homeless, less fortunate than us to give them a sense of hope and show that they are important. The flier below give a litte inofrmation on where we will be on the 12th. If you own a camera or would liek to lend a hand we would love to see you there. Join by going to the following webpage to sign up.

http://www.help-portrait.com/

Washington Waterfalls

As a veteran the next best thing to being with family on Veterans Day is to hike to some beautiful waterfalls and partake in the serenity and beauty of nature. That is just what I did today. I happened to be in Tacoma, Washington so I took the opportunity to head over to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest which is close to Mount Rainer National Park to grab some photos of the falls in the area. A nice peaceful mile hike through the old forest and along the Covell Creek brought me to some nice waterfalls. I am a bit confused on which falls I say because the the website http://www.waterfallsnorthwest.com/ shows the major falls pictured below to be the Covell Falls and a sign leading to the falls indcated it was Angel Falls. Either way the hike and falls were breath taking ( yes there was some up hill climbing and boy am I out of shape). Please enjoy the photos below and as always you can see more on my photo site http://www.mikedugganphotography.com/

Colorado Road Trip

Sunday 8 Nov 2009, What a day for a drive throught eh Colorado Country side. We started out in the morning with a trip to Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. The sun had just risen and there was an overcast sky. After hiking through the Garden of the Gods we headed west just to glimpse the mountain enjoy the beautiful day. Driving along highway 24 to 50 and I do not remember the rest we we presented with the majestic beauty of the Rockies. Along the way home we saw a few cars pulled to the side of the road so we joined them to see a small heard of Big Horn Sheep. The canyon we saw them in was named Big Horn Canyon. All in all a beaufitul day. Please enjoy the few photos below and visit my website at http://www.mikedugganphotography.com/ to see the rest of the photos.

Rocky Mountain National Park

The beauty of the Rocky Mountain National Park never dulls. The last time I was at the the park was over 13 years ago and it is still a spectacular and inspiring park. Every where you look you see majestic mountains, crystal clear lakes, and streams and waterfalls. Below are a few photos from the trip. To see more please visit my website at http://www.mikedugganphotography.com/

Aw Pikes Peak

Well here are two more from beautiful Pikes Peak. I took three different exposures from this one location and created a High Dynamic Resolution (HDR) image. Have the main exposed photo with the HDR for comparison.

Pikes Peak, Colorado

We flew into Colorado from El Paso, TX today. It was a bright sunny day with unseasonably warm weather. Arriving in Colorado Springs early morning it was a great time to take a journey up Pike Peak "Americas Mountain" and enjoy the beautiful scenery. Below are a few of the photos from the drive up the mountain. We were not able to reach the summit due to high winds. Please enjoy the photos.

Good Eat'n in El Paso, TX

Ok so I'm behind on the blog so bear with me. On Monday, 2 Nov 09 we went to eat at Cattleman's Steakhouse at Indian Cliffs Ranch just outside of El Paso, TX. A really nice place that I would highly recommend to anyone that is in the El Paso area. I had this whopper of a steak that weighed in at 2 pounds (before cooking). It was the best steak I have ever had. Here are the before and after photos.

Cross Country

It’s been a little while since I posted anything here on the blog so I thought I would talk about the Cross Country meet this past weekend. Now as a photographer you sometimes have to step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself to try something new. Now some of you might be saying shooting a sporting event is nothing new for me but in truth every sport offers different challenges and perspectives. This was my first cross country meet ever. Now since I did not know how the whole thing works I was lucky enough to find one of my co-workers whose son was running in the event. This was an opportunity to learn about how the course was going to be run and where the best vantage points to capture the action would be. I was able to jump around to 4 or 5 different spots within the course and see the race from different angles. Getting from one location to the next on the course was a matter of moving my feet and walking quickly to try and catch the runners that I knew in the race. I’ll give the runners some credit I walked to the spots and they ran the 5k course and made me work to get the shots I did. Overall, it was a wonderful experience and I am a fan of cross country racing. Check out some of the photos from my website at: www.mikedugganphotography.com/sports

Wonderful Photo Journal

I wanted to highlight a recent photography blog that I have been following. The blog is entitled “Photography Blogger”. It is a creative photo journal that shows some stunning photographs and interesting photographic topics. Look for the link on the right side under “My blog list”

Baltimore Ravens Training Camp

I took the opportunity this morning to visit the Baltimore Ravens at training camp. A pleasant morning brought a large crowd to McDaniel College in Westminster, MD to see the Ravens prepare for the upcoming season. The players warmed up and then completed different drills based on position. The quarterbacks received a lot of attention form the crowd as did the defense back field players. I hope you enjoy the photos and as always please visit my web site to see the rest of the photos under the “sports” section.


Receiver Demetrius Williams (87) gets past corner back
Chris Carr (30)


Corner Back Evan Oglesby setting up.



Line backer Brendon Ayanbadejo

Quarterback Troy Smith dropping back

Quarterback Joe Flacco taking the snap

from center Chris Chester.

Joe Flacco looking down field

Troy Smith take the snap from center David

Hale

Quarterback John Beck searching for a receiver

Cornerback K.J. Gerard at the ready

The Maginot Line - Hackenberg Fortress

The Hackenberg Fortress is the largest of the fortifications along the Maginot Line. The site (on the outskirts of Veckring France) was chosen due in part to the forested ridge that rises 1,125 feet and the proximity to Germany which is only 8 miles or 13 kilometers from the boarder. The Hackenberg Fortress was the largest of the fortresses along the line and was the proto type for the remaining fortress. The French occupied the fortress from 3 Sept 1939 until the French cease fire on 25 June 1940. The Germans maintained control of the fortress until 17 Nov 1944.

More information on Hakenberg Fortress can be found here.


Front of Fortress

Front of Fortress

E.M. is the entrance. We traveled to B9 which is 1 mile
deep within the fortress and underground.


Rail line for transport supplies and men

Outside Block 8

Shell that bombed fortress

Shelled by Americans in 1944

Barracks

Operating Room

Dental Clinic

X-Ray system

The Maginot Line - Fort Schoenenbourg France

The Maginot Line was an immense fortification between France and Germany. After the First World War, where France suffered horrendous loses in both men and buildings, Andre Maginot designed a fortification system that was in theory going to be an impenetrable fortification between France and Germany.

The photos below show the fortification called Fort Schoenenbourg which is located in the Haguenau region of Alsace, France. The Maginot Line was constructed between 1930 and 1940. Unfortunately we arrived late and were not able to view the interior of the fortification. I was able to tour the inside a few years back and can only say that it was a small city within itself.

More information can be found at:
http://europeanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa070601a.htm

http://www.bunkertours.co.uk/the_maginot_line.htm