Being the Bear: Our First Mercer University Football Game

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Last year Mercer University revived its football team, and for the first time since their return, Michelle and I were able to make it down for a home game. The McAfee School of Theology held a tailgate party at the game, so we went with several faculty and staff to show our support.

When we decided to go, I thought it would be a great opportunity to test out the a6000 with the Sony 70-200 FE lens. So, I extended my rental from the past week’s DragonCon and had a blast with it. Unfortunately, the Bears didn’t win, but they showed a lot of heart against Furman.

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Mr. McAfee School of Theology, Barrett, our colleague and friend in admissions.

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An impressive entrance.

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Ready to play.

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I was impressed by the pressure of Mercer’s defense.

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After a punt. I just thought this shot demonstrated the great action freeze of the a6000 and the depth of field of the 70-200.

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A timely QB sack.

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The pressure on the quarterback which led to …

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… this interception.

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More Bears’ defense.

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After a good play.

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More pressure!

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A shot of the band with the flag corps for my niece.

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This guy was a riot!

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And the next two players had a lot of spirit …

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… as they cheered on their teammates.

White Walker

It May be hot Outside, but Winter is Coming: Game of Thrones Photos from DragonCon

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Lord Varys

Lord Varys, AKA, the Spider, checking in with his “little birds.”

Shae

An awesome Shae cosplay. Where is Tyrion?

Ygritte

“You know nothing, John Snow.” A fun Ygritte cosplay.

Melisandre

The props often make the cosplay. Love this Melisandre.

Brienne of Tarth

Galacticat does a great Brienne of Tarth. Perfect attitude and a great costume.

White Walker

A white walker in the DragonCon parade. I had a lot of fun with this one!

Trooper Jack Sparrow

Hey, you got your Star Wars in my Disney …

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Ariel & Captain Jack

Now I want to hear Ariel sing pirate shanties.

Princess Tiana

Princess Tiana at the Marriot

Ariel Under the Sea

This was an interesting one to shoot at the Atlanta Aquarium with very low light and a flash.

Bambi (1 of 1)

Bambi

HadesMegara (1 of 1)

Hades and Megara having a moment

JediPrincesses (1 of 1)

Sith Snow White, Princess Ariel/Leia, and Jedi Elsa. The force is strong with these princesses.

MadameGothel (1 of 1)

Madame Gothel from Tangled

Steampunk Mad Hatter

Steampunk Mad Hatter (CORRECTION: We found out that this was Caitlyn from League of Legends, though the “Steampunk Mad Hatter” description still works, I think.)

Rapunzel

A happy Rapunzel

Rumpelstiltskin

A spot on Rumpelstiltskin from Once Upon a Time offering a contract

Archer Snow White

This Snow White doesn’t need a huntsman. She’s packing her own bow and arrows.

Trooper Jack Sparrow

Aren’t you a little drunk to be a Stormtrooper?

The Ritual Bidding Adieu to DragonCon: AKA, mmmm Brisket

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DSC02591-Edit-EditAlas, the Council of Dragons has drawn to a close, which means that it is time anon to prepare the most royal of sacrifices, tender breast of Dragon. This ritual owes its roots to the deepest and most western territory of the kingdom and has been passed on through the generations to the latest great mage of sacrificial preparation, Aaron Franklinus of the wizarding tradition of central Texas.

The grand tome of preparation can be found in the mysterious Chronicles of YouTubus, presented by the high mage himself:

 

Breast of Dragon

The latest sacrificial breast of dragon rubbed with elvin spirit crystals and ground charred orc bones.

After carefully trimming the suet of the beastly villain, the Great Geektographer concocted the mixture of equal parts Elvin spirit crystals and coarsely ground, charred Orc bones, which the Great Geektographer hath deftly applied to the dragon’s flesh, setting it aside to cure.

In the meantime, the Geektographer built a fire in his colossal verdant furnace, using coals from the very tree that birthed

Colossal Verdant Furnace at Sunset

The Colossal Verdant Furnace at sunset.

Thorin’s mighty Oakenshield. The dragon’s flesh has become tough through years of guarding his golden stash and marauding the nearby villages. It must therefore rest in the colossal verdant furnace for no less than half of the rotation of Middle Earth.

At the appointed time the preparer of the Dragon sacrifice will remove the beast’s now tender flesh from the colossal verdant furnace and combine it with stewed dragon’s blood, serving it to those who keep faith in the magical power of feasting.DSC06194
Thus endeth the ritual of the Dragon Feast at the close of the Annual Council of Dragons. In the days and weeks to come, a full account of the 2014 Council of Dragons will appear. Until then, nom nom nom nom nom nom.

Enter the DragonCon

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Enter the DragonCon

Just some fun with dragons and the 70-200 FE from Lens Rentals. 🙂

On tap for today:

  1. Drop doggies off at “camp”
  2. Get DragonCon passes
  3. Get ready for a bunch of photo-shoots, including but not limited to: Disney, Game of Thrones, DC comics cross play, Justice Society, Marvel Cosmic Universe (I am Groot!), Gotham, and Secret Six!
  4. Maybe and Arrow or Firefly panel
  5. The Friday Night Costume Contest
  6. and some kind of meals, sometime.
Mad Sally Lake

The Eagles are Coming! What Happens when your Vocation and Avocation Meet?

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Bryce Canyon

A Bryce Canyon shot, Summer 2013.

Autumn of 2013 was particularly difficult for me in terms of life balance. After coming home that summer from a wonderful vacation in the western United States, I went into a bit of a rut photographically. I had seen and shot so many beautiful things that I found it difficult to be creative on my home turf.  That fall, I also had a very heavy teaching load, student count, and other professional obligations. In short, I was having problems motivating myself to get out and shoot, and my workload gave me a great excuse to lay fallow.

Turkey Vulture

A recuperating turkey vulture at the Chattahoochee Nature Center strikes a pose, December 2013.

I knew by the end of the semester that I needed a good outing, so the day after I submitted all my grades, I took some time to recharge. I decided to go to the Chattahoochee Nature Center on the north side of Atlanta, cameras at the ready. I didn’t know quite what to expect. I learned that the center provides a serene setting to rehabilitate and nurture injured wildlife, especially birds of prey. I began by practicing my wildlife shots on some of these birds before going on a nature hike around the grounds. As I hiked, I vainly pursued a cardinal who was proving quite elusive (Michelle really wants a good cardinal print to hang up in the winter). I took a couple of landscape shots of the river and pond, and I tried my hand at some more detailed nature shots as well. Continue reading →

A DragonCon Retrospective, Part II: Everyone Loves a Parade

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Death Cosplay from Neil Gaiman's Sandman

A quick portrait of a Death cosplayer from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series, DragonCon 2013 (Dave).

For some reason, we didn’t make it to the parade in 2012, but we sure did in 2013. We had a great spot near the front row and witnessed all the shenanigans. Michelle and I were both shooting, with her getting wider shots and me getting some zoomy shots. As we waited for the parade, I was able to get a portrait of this awesome Death cosplayer who was standing next to us.

Continue reading →

A DragonCon Retrospective, Part 1: From Snapshots to Portraits

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Batgirls from 2012, with the best-looking half of Garber Geektography crouching in front.

Batgirls from 2012, with the best-looking half of Garber Geektography crouching in front.

Of course some of the most fun we have with photography happens to be when we go to DragonCon in Atlanta, and it is just around the corner. In looking back at some of the pictures we’ve taken, it is amazing to see what a difference a year makes! I got a lot of views on my Flickr page for several of my shots from my first year with the camera in 2012. By far the shot with the most views on our Flickr account was the one I took of the Batgirls at the DragonCon DC comic shoot. Of course that is extra special because of the crouching Batgirl, Michelle. Continue reading →