Busy Weekend

This has been quite a busy weekend of shooting.  Last night we went to a fireworks show at the new Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge.  This is a new bridge that has been built in downtown Dallas.  This weekend is filled with different activities before the bridge opens to traffic.  This was a great suggestion from my wife and she and I went out with my shooting buddy Jill.  It was a great fireworks show and a great looking bridge.  Take a look at the pictures below.

This is an HDR shot of downtown Dallas.

2 Sec. Exp, 75mm, F/13, ISO 400

2 Sec. Exp., 75mm, F/13, ISO 400

3 Sec. Exp., 80mm, F/13, ISO 400

Saturday afternoon, my wife and I went to the North Texas Irish Festival.  It was held in Fair Park in downtown Dallas.  This is also where the Great State Fair of Texas is held.  The park is easily accessible via the DART train.... it drops you off right in front of the entrance.  

There was a lot to do there.  Plenty of Irish bands playing, there was a blacksmith and as is the tradition for Fair Park, plenty of food to eat.

1/2 Sec. Exp., 30mm, F/5.6, ISO 100

My wife and I went to Ireland in the summer of 2011.  It is a beautiful country and it was nice to see the Irish flag again.  This was an indoor shot, so I had to slow down my shutter speed to compensate for the low light.  I think the shot came out pretty well and I like the Irish crests that are in the shot as well.

1/160 Sec. Exp., 38mm, F/5.6, ISO 100

1/125 Sec. Exp., 135mm, F\5.6, ISO 100

Here, I have never seen a blacksmith at work before, so this was a cool experience.  This blacksmith was making a knife.  It is a much slower process than I ever knew, so I have a new appreciation for this craft.  The metal comes out of the fire glowing hot as you can see from the pictures.  However, after two or three strikes, it has cooled to the point where they need to reheat it.  I really liked this second picture, because you can see little bits of metal coming off the knife from the strike.

1/250 Sec. Exp., 120mm, F/5.6, ISO 100

I thought these were some nice looking flowers.  This was a nice mix of unbloomed and fully bloomed flowers.  I wanted to get closer, but my lens would not focus that closely.  The next lens I plan to buy is a macro lens, so with that, I'll be able to get the pictures I would like.

1/1000 Sec. Exp., 100mm, F/5.6, ISO 100

 This is considered one of the symbols of the Great State Fair of Texas.  (I think the other would be fried food).  It is called the Texas Star, is 212.5 feet tall and is the tallest ferris wheel in the western hemisphere.  When I took this picture, she asked me if I was taking a picture of the couple kissing.  I didn't see a couple kissing until I got home and pulled the picture up on the computer.  It's interesting what you miss when you're focused on something else within the frame.

Well, that's it for now.   This was kind of a long post.  It's been a busy shooting weekend for me.  I have a different take on the sunrise that I am going to try for tomorrow.  I'll see how it comes out and report back.  Have a great night, and thank you for continuing to follow my blog.

You can see some more of my pictures on my Facebook webpage for Marcus Davis Photography.

Until next time...