2/20/09 Super-creepy insect on a fuzzy leaf in the botanical gardens. I don't know what type of plant and insect this is, so chime in if you do! This was taken with my compact, so I'm happy that it turned out really sharp. UPDATE: the insect is a crane fly, plant is Sideritis cypria - part of the mint family If you didn't catch the link yesterday, here are my Joshua Tree photos.

Since 2/29/08, I've been uploading a photo every day to this gallery. The idea is to challenge myself to take interesting shots, even if it means having to stage some sort of random scene. Some photos are heavily photoshopped, but the rule is that I have to take the source photo on that particular day - no pulling from the past. I also try and add comments about how I shot/edited each photo. Please comment and let me know what you think!

Gallery pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 > >>

< 9 of 366 >

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/28/09
Self portrait at the beach at sunset.

I wanted to have a fitting ending to my first year of daily photos. True, this is my 366th photo, but I started on 2/29/08 (leap day) so there's an extra day this year. I went to the beach expecting to get a shot similar to this, so I'm happy it turned out, since I didn't really have a backup plan for my final daily photo. Well, final for this year, I plan on continuing! Stay tuned at my year 2 gallery. My goal is 4 years, until leap day 2012.

I've experienced a lot in life this last year, and it's great to have a sort of photo diary that brings back thoughts and memories that would otherwise be buried away. It's also nice to have such supportive daily photo community members, you guys are very encouraging!

Until tomorrow... cheers.
- Jonathan

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/27/09
365 days ago, I took my first daily photo of a bee and some cherry blossoms. Now that a year has passed and the same tree is in bloom again, I decided to try the same thing! I like the exposure on this - I used my SB800 for some extra lighting, which definitely got rid of some hard shadows from the noon sunlight. I also like the interesting pose of the bee, like she's circling the flower or something.
I started my dailies on leap day (2/29) so that's why I still have one more day to go before I complete my full year. Hopefully I'll have a super-amazing photo tomorrow to close out the year, but no promises. You can't force art, right? :)

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/26/09
Today at work I attended a fire extinguisher training and we all got to put out a fire, it was fun! This is my fellow employee Monique, with other coworkers looking on (there were about 20 of us total). If you think she's missing the flame, don't worry, she got it out very quickly!
I took many, many photos, most of which were throwaways, but I like this one because it shows the propellant (basically baking soda) and the flame at the same time. The heat from the flame makes some neat ripples in the air, too. I slightly desaturated this photo except for orange and red.
If you're curious, the metal container is filled with water, and the hose attached is propane, which bubbles up to fuel the flame. Our fire fighter instructor relit the flame after every person with a flare attached to a long handle.

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/25/09
I had big plans to ride my bike to the coast after work and get some great sunset shots, but I feel like I'm coming down with a cold, so I canceled the trip :(
I got this shot in the botanical gardens as I sat and ate lunch. The deteriorating timbers that are used to construct planters and paths looked neat, so I snapped a quick shot. I played with the colors to make it darker, and increased the contrast significantly.

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/24/09
Bulbine alooideae is what this plant was labeled, I'm not sure if it has a friendlier name. I like this photo because it shows the old, shriveled flowers, the bright yellow flowers and the future flowers (buds).

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/23/09
Can you guess what this is?
Cheaters can check the filename :)

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/22/09
Cleaned my sensor today! I was a little scared to do it, but it really helped and didn't seem to do any damage! Sadly I still have some dust, but it's barely noticeable compared to before the cleaning.
I wanted this shot to focus on patterns, inspired by the neat looking clouds. I'm not sure how the branches AND the power lines add to the shot, but I was using my 60mm and didn't have the ability to zoom in or out, and my angles were quite limited. Cheers!

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/21/09
We baked some cookies tonight, they were quite delicious! Bounced my flash off the wall on the right for the lighting. The pattern under the cookies is a silicone baking mat.

For yesterday's photo, I think dedmanshootn is right - it's a crane fly. Fotoeffects, I'll try and check sometime next week and see if that plant has information posted to it. Almost all of the plants in the botanical gardens are identified, but I usually forget to take note. Thanks for the input!

Jonathan Wilson (jawsnap) > 2/20/09
Super-creepy insect on a fuzzy leaf in the botanical gardens. I don't know what type of plant and insect this is, so chime in if you do! This was taken with my compact, so I'm happy that it turned out really sharp.
UPDATE: the insect is a crane fly, plant is Sideritis cypria - part of the mint family

If you didn't catch the link yesterday, here are my Joshua Tree photos.

2/20/09
Super-creepy insect on a fuzzy leaf in the botanical gardens. I don't know what type of plant and insect this is, so chime in if you do! This was taken with my compact, so I'm happy that it turned out really sharp.
UPDATE: the insect is a crane fly, plant is Sideritis cypria - part of the mint family

If you didn't catch the link yesterday, here are my Joshua Tree photos.