Postcard Project: Week 6

For background on the Postcard Project, please see the introductory post.

Home of the St. Michael campus of The Good Shepherd Dog Training.

Finally some “postcard skies” earlier this week. I had a couple of additional shots planned for Saturday, when the weather was decent, but I came down with a cold, and wasn’t up for walking a few miles with my gear. Maybe next week. In the meantime, we are once again under a Winter Storm Warning, with 4–8” of snow expected tonight and tomorrow.

I’ve been using Timehop to see my social media history from past years, and it mostly consists of last year’s Lenten project. The contrast in weather is shocking and depressing.

Postcard Project: Week 5

For background on the Postcard Project, please see the introductory post.

Well, this was a tough week for postcards. The solid white skies continue almost every day, and we’re even under a Winter Storm Warning tonight. Overcast and muddy is pretty much the theme. It’s a big change from last year, and it makes it hard to get the “picture postcard” look for the area’s attractions. I had more luck shooting the details than the sweeping vistas.

Postcard Project: Week 4

For background on the Postcard Project, please see the introductory post.

The photograph of the Inclined Plane (top) was made during an effort to photograph Comet PanSTARRS Saturday night. The comet has just become visible in the northern hemisphere, and is very close to the sun. On Saturday, it was to be just 5° above the horizon 30 minutes after sunset.

I planned a shot from somewhere I’d never been: Cover Hill, between the Little Conemaugh and Stonycreek rivers. There’s a radio tower there, and paths to power line rights-of-way. From that vantage point, the comet would have set directly over the top of the Inclined Plane. The sightlines from that area were moderately good; trees kept me from going much wider than you see above.

Unfortunately, cirrus clouds accumulated in the west as sunset approached, and the comet was never visible. The weather forecast for the next few days is worse, so I may not get to see this one. But I was able to get an interesting shot of the Inclined Plane against the sunset light, from an unusual vantage point (eye-level to the top).

This may be the last week for the Pentax K10D… something new (to me) is coming. More on that later.

Postcard Project: Week 3

For background on the Postcard Project, please see the introductory post.

Postcard Project: Week 2

For background on the Postcard Project, please see the introductory post.

Postcard Project: Week 1

It’s going to be a busy weekend, so I wanted to get the first week of the Postcard Project in the can. It was a gray day, not great for shooting, but I managed to find some targets after work.

Lent 2013: Introducing the Postcard Project

Oh, wow, I have a blog! I almost forgot.

Last year I did a photography project for Lent, shooting with a single lens. Once again, I’ve found the winter to be slow for shooting, so I wanted to do another project. This year, I’m taking my lead from Blake Andrews:

Eugene Greyhound Terminal, Blake Andrews

That’s right, I’m doing a postcard project. Each week during Lent, I will produce two postcard designs. One will (I hope) be a “good” postcard that visitors might actually want to buy. The second will be more like Blake’s example above, or those found in Boring Postcards USA (Phaidon, 2000). The cards are due on the blog by Sunday night. At the end of the project, I’ll get a set printed at Moo.

Last winter was remarkably mild, making outdoor shooting quite pleasant most of the time. This winter has been more typical, with cold snaps and a good bit of snow. Not “picture postcard” weather by any means, but we’ll hope for some agreeable days as spring marches on.

To whet your appetite, here are some Johnstown postcards currently for sale on eBay: