Friday (09-November-2018) — New Jersey

Backyard Autumn Nature in New Jersey.

I noticed some yellow color out my window just before sunrise. I ran out with my Leica CL camera to catch some of the color before it faded. The prediction is more rain today and tonight. The county already sent out local flooding warnings until Saturday morning.

alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Autumn Sunrise Panorama. Composite of seven images taken with a Leica CL camera and 18 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 200, 18 mm, f/11, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)


alt_title. (David J Mathre)
Autumn Sunrise. Image taken with a Leica CL camera and 18 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 200, 18 mm, f/11, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)

Thursday (25-October-2018) — New Jersey

Backyard Autumn Nature in New Jersey.

I woke up at 05:30. It was cold out, right around freezing and the sky clear with no clouds. I set up the Garmin VIRB-360 camera to record dawn and sunrise as practice for a day that I may get some colorful clouds. I used the camera again as I picked the remaining hot peppers (still green). The plants are pretty much dead after several nights when the temperatures dipped below freezing. I haven’t decided if I will use the remaining peppers for a salsa or will just dry them. Later in the afternoon I watched the ever busy squirrels hiding their acorns. This year the deer are also competing for acorns.

Time-Lapse Video: Tunnel View — Dawn and Sunrise. Garmin VIRB-360 Camera.

Time-Lapse Video: Little Planet View — Picking Green Hot Peppers. Garmin VIRB-360 Camera.


Individual images in the slideshow can be viewed here.

Saturday (20-October-2018) — Portugal

Gone to See Portugal. Street Photography Workshop with Steve Simon. Day 6: Lisbon, Portugal.

We had free time in the morning to go out and shoot on our own. After a quick breakfast, I headed down to the river to catch the sun rising over the Tagus river. I made it just in time. Police blocked access to the; main square for more movie filming. This time for real, not practice and rehearsal. I managed to catch a bit of the motorcycle action from a block away before being chased off. The new Fuji X-T3 camera stayed focused on the motorcycles even though the security guy with the orange vest kept waking toward me. I spent the rest of the morning getting high-resolution images using the Nikon D850 camera and 8-15 mm fisheye lens for high-resolution 360 degree panorama, little-planet view, and tunnel view; images. I only had time (and the computing horsepower) to process a few of these while in Portugal. The locations included areas I passed on the long walk from the subway station on Wednesday. I also found a large indoor farmers market in the Time Out building. After lunch we reviewed yesterday’s images, then attended a dinner with Fado performance. I nearly fell down the narrow stairs at the restaurant but was saved when Sean grabbed my shoulder. There were several signs in the restaurant forbidding photos and videos. I didn’t record the dinner or Fado performance. Funny thing, at least six other folks at other tables did record the Fado performance with their smartphones.

Sunrise Panorama over the Tagus River in Lisbon. Composite of eight images taken with a Leica CL camera and 23 mm f/2 lens (ISO 200, 23 mm, f/8, 1/60 sec). Raw images processed with Capture One Pro and AutoPano Giga. (David J Mathre)
Sunrise Panorama over the Tagus River in Lisbon. Composite of eight images taken with a Leica CL camera and 23 mm f/2 lens (ISO 200, 23 mm, f/8, 1/60 sec). Raw images processed with Capture One Pro and AutoPano Giga. (David J Mathre)


Movie Crew Filming Motorcycle Action. Image taken with a Fuji X-T3 camera and 80 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 160, 80 mm, f/4, 1/250 sec). (David J Mathre)
Movie Crew Filming Motorcycle Action. Image taken with a Fuji X-T3 camera and 80 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 160, 80 mm, f/4, 1/250 sec). (David J Mathre)


Time-Lapse Video (360 degree Pano, Tunnel View and Little Planet View) of the Morning Walkabout. Images recorded with a Garmin VIRB-360 camera.






Time-Lapse Video (360 degree Pano, Tunnel View and Little Planet View) of the Morning Walkabout. Images recorded with a Garmin VIRB-360 camera.

Sunday (14-October-2018) — Portugal

Gone to See Portugal. Street Photography Workshop with Steve Simon. Day 0: Lisbon, Portugal.

The TAP flight from Newark arrived in Lisbon early, before 05:00. Lisbon is one of the airports where international passengers deplane outdoors, and then bussed to the terminal. We climbed the stairs in the terminal as the escalators were not running yet, then waited for the customs & immigration folks to set up for the morning. Other than some homeless folks sleeping on the benches, the airport terminal was deserted. I took a taxi from the airport to the Bessa Hotel. It was still dark out as the sun wouldn’t rise until 07:44. The air was clear and cool. The driver told me that they had a bit of wind and rain from Hurricane Leslie the day before — but no real damage in Lisbon. Apparently, the storm hit further up the coast. The hotel didn’t have a room ready, but did allow me to check in early and leave my luggage, computer, and camera bag in a locked room. I had a quick breakfast at the hotel restaurant (opened at 07:00). Other than the scrambled eggs being undercooked and watery the breakfast was good, especially the selection of fresh fruit. I ate fast since I wanted to get to the Tagus river to catch sunrise. I took my Fuji X-T3 camera and 35 mm f/1.4 lens for my morning walkabout. I’ve visited Lisbon twice before while on Semester at Sea voyages, so had some memory of the city layout. I arrived at the Tagus river near the twin columns (Cais das Colunas) at one of the large squares (Praça do Comércio) just in time for sunrise. For an early Sunday morning a lot of activity was going on in the square. TV crews setting up cameras, city workers picking up trash and cleaning the streets, and construction workers setting something up for a large crowd. Then I remembered that the taxi driver said the Lisbon Marathon was happening today with the finish line in the square. During an earlier visit to Lisbon I remembered the square set up with a large video screen for a crowd to watch World Cup playoffs.  I walked along the river down to where the Semester at Sea MV Explorer docked during my previous visit. I got there too late to see the Lux nightclub close, but saw lots of bottles and glasses from the previous nights party on the street. I returned to the hotel just as Steve Simon arrived from the airport. While waiting for our rooms  we went to a local Starbucks for coffee. Steve seems to know the location of  Starbucks in any city. I walked around a bit more and when I returned to the hotel my room was ready. I unpacked, and downloaded the mornings images before going out again. This time with a Garmin VIRB-360 camera mounted on my walking stick. I walked part of the marathon route watching the runners and later on the slower walkers pass down the road. I picked up some fresh fruit and a sandwich for lunch. By this time my feet were sore from all the walking and the jet lag caught up with me. I took a short nap, then joined Steve and Don for dinner at a nearby Indian restaurant. I used the Garmin VIRB-360 camera to capture images for a “little planet” and “inverse little planet/tunnel view” time-lapse video of the dinner.






Individual Images from the slideshows can be viewed here.

Afternoon Walkabout in Lisbon during the Marathon. Little-planet time-lapse video (Garmin VIRB-360).

Dinner at an Indian restaurant. Little planet and Tunnel View time-lapse video (Garmin VIRB-360)

Two-Years Ago (22-March-2016) — Atlantic Ocean

Gone to See the World. Semester at Sea Spring 2016 Voyage on the MV World Odyssey. Day 77: At Sea, Atlantic Ocean.

This was a classroom day (B19) as we traveled northwest off the west coast of Africa (Namibia). We were far enough at sea that we didn’t see land. Images of Dawn, Sunrise, Student Portraits including the Sunrise Breakfast Club, the Statues, and then Students and other Passengers “Viewing, and Holding the Moon”. Individual images from the slide-shows can be viewed here.

Catching Venus at Dawn. Image taken with a Fuji X-T1 camera and 35 mm f/1.4 lens. (David J Mathre)
Catching Venus at Dawn. Image taken with a Fuji X-T1 camera and 35 mm f/1.4 lens. (David J Mathre)



Catching the Sun. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 23 mm f/2 lens. (David J Mathre)
Catching the Sun. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 23 mm f/2 lens. (David J Mathre)


Moon at Dusk over the Atlantic Ocean (Album Cover). Image taken with a Nikon 1 V3 camera and 70-300 mm VR lens (David J Mathre)
Moon at Dusk over the Atlantic Ocean (Album Cover). Image taken with a Nikon 1 V3 camera and 70-300 mm VR lens (David J Mathre)
Reaching for the Moon. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 55-135 mm lens. (David J Mathre)
Reaching for the Moon. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 55-135 mm lens. (David J Mathre)


 (David Mathre)
Google Earth Map of  the GPS Track for Day 77. Contact me for the Route Coordinates. (David J Mathre)