RAMBLINGS by MLSTEL

William Allen Invitational Meet, Allentown, PA

2009-04-27T20:18:00.007-04:00

Attended the William Allen Invitational track meet this past week-end. While waiting for my son and his team mates to compete I tried my hand at taking some shots of other competitors and action. I parked myself just inside the gate where I was at the finish line for the hurdle and sprint events and turning to my right was in position for the long and triple jump. Not a bad seat. I would like to thank Jim "Homer" Cayer for his tips on shooting track competition. Check out his blog for some awesome track and field shots http://www.jimcayer.blogspot.com/

1600m Relay

2009-04-24T13:35:00.005-04:00

The 1600m relay is probably my favorite track event. It is the final event and often the meet is determined by its outcome thus it's a very exciting race to watch. A lot can happen in the lap that each athlete runs.

Gotta Get Away

2009-04-20T20:33:00.004-04:00

Spent Easter week-end in Ocean City, MD. I really enjoy going there any time of the year. It rained and was cold most of the day on Saturday, but like fishing, any day at the shore is better than a day at work.

Northwestern Lehigh Track

2009-04-08T19:57:00.003-04:00

A more typical track meet today, as far as weather goes. Mid forties, a few snow flurries, windy. Anyway, here are a few shots from the meet. Have to remember to take backgrounds into consideration. Enjoy. Check out my Flickr site for more of my images http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Spring has Sprung

2009-04-06T20:26:00.002-04:00

FINALLY!! Things are starting to turn green. Flowers are blooming. The sun is shining. It was a long and gray winter here in Lehigh County. It felt good to have a sunny and warm Sunday even if it is one of those "teaser" days. It's supposed to be back to the cool and gray days for the beginning of the week.

Local Landscapes

2009-04-04T14:07:00.003-04:00

Here are two more shots I took near my Lehigh County, PA home.

See more of my photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Controversy

2009-04-02T17:07:00.003-04:00

Two things, I have found, that are sure to spark controversy are religion and dead animals. While I do not try to stir up conflict on purpose, I am not opposed to chiming in especially if I think someone is being a dick like the person who said my photo of the guy with the bear skin was "awful" for the mere fact that it showed a dead bear. If he had criticized because exposure was off, cropping was bad, I didn't properly apply the rule of thirds, no problem. But, God forbid, the man was wearing a bear skin coat. Give me a break.

Track

2009-03-31T20:21:00.002-04:00

Anyone who lives in the northeast knows that spring sports are tough as far as weather goes. Snow, rain wind, cold are more the rule not the exception. Today was the exception; a March day that was warm, sunny and calm. I figured I would take a shot at shooting a track meet that my son was competing in. The problem I had at this school was that I was not allowed on the infield, a four foot high fence surrounded the track and you could only walk along the fence from turn 3 to the home stretch. As a result I was able to get some running events, but unless I had the Hubble telescope mounted to my camera I wasn't seeing much else. Home meet next so hopefully I'll get more access. I just hope it doesn't snow.

See more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Freakin Louisville

2009-03-30T21:03:00.002-04:00

Once again I picked Louisville to win it all and once again I busted. Oh well, guess I'll pull for Pitt.... What, no way....Damn. Villanova was always my favorite team anyway. Check out my Flickr site for more basketball images.

Simplicity

2009-03-27T19:07:00.002-04:00

K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) - I've heard this expression time and time again in numerous venues. In viewing photographs I admire the way certain photographers can take a shot of a simple object and make it look so good; no clutter, no distraction just a simple rock or a leaf or a reed. I am told by some, who shall remain nameless at this time, that the mere fact that I am a male should lead me toward all things simple. While this may be true, to a certain extent, transforming that simpleness into a photograph ain't so simple.

See more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Bad Weather

2009-03-26T21:27:00.003-04:00

Took the afternoon off today and thought I would get some shots in of the Poconos while on my way to my son's track meet. Of course it began to rain almost immediately after I left the office. That pretty much ended the photo excursion but I did manage to get a couple shots along the Delaware Water Gap between showers.

See more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Snow Geese

2009-03-24T17:27:00.002-04:00

Over the past month or so the snow geese have been traveling through this part of Pennsylvania on their migration northward. These birds were in a cut corn field near my home in Lehigh County.

Making Something Out of Nothing

2009-03-23T18:55:00.002-04:00

Walking along a stream one afternoon and nothing seemed to work out photographically so I decided to call it a day. As I made my way back to where I parked I went by a storm drain pipe coming under the road. I liked the way the water was splashing off the rocks so I figured I would try to capture the flow. I used a circular polarizer on the lens to allow for a longer shutter speed. I kind of like the result.

View more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

Farmscape

2009-03-20T23:29:00.003-04:00

The area of Lehigh County, PA where I live is farm country. As a result I tend to take photographs of , well, farms. Personally, I know nothing about farming but in talking to many of the experts in the area I have garnished a great deal of respect for what they do and how they do it. After all, as many of the bumper stickers in the area state "No Farms, No Beer"!

See more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

St. Patrick's Day Celebration

2009-03-19T19:04:00.006-04:00

Attended the annual St. Patrick's Day celebration in Jim Thorpe, PA last week-end. What a wild time. People all up and down Broadway were in costume and or celebrating the day. Green was definitely the color of the day. See my St. Patricks Day photos on my Flickr stream at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mlstel/

WOW I created a blog, now what?

2009-03-18T15:27:00.004-04:00

I've been taking photos of the area in which I live as well as areas to which I travel for a few years now and decided to start this blog to share some of them.

I enjoy landscape and nature photography, sports photography and lately street photography.

Feel free to comment on any shot posted or comment in general.