It's a beautiful day for a road trip

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood!  Nice day for a road trip.  Don't worry, I won't follow this guy quite so close as we barrel down the freeway enjoying the 80 mph signs along the way.  It is such a better trip these days compared to what is was when all the signs limited speeds to 55 mph throughout the state.  At least now we can move through the beautiful, but barren, areas in a more timely fashion.  When the trip is over 700 miles, each mph of speed we can safely squeeze out brings us closer to the finish line.

It's a beautiful day for a road trip

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Rappelling--Joe style

Joe had to do a little reppelling to make a fast, Ninja getaway.  When he doesn't have his climbing harness he just improvises and wraps the rope (or yarn, in this case) aound his neck.  Since he is a Lego guy there is not too much risk--unless he lets the pressure build up around the neck which could cause his head to pop right off....  In this case, he make his escape, kept his head on and lived to tell the story.

Rappelling--Joe style

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio

Original image:

Original image

The Rocker

Here is the biggest rocker I have ever seen.  It sits in front of this gas station off the freeway as an icon for those who travel this route.  I always stop at this station.  It is the only one in my state that I know of where the attendant comes out, helps you fill your tank and washes your windshield.  No, they don't check your oil (although they probably would if asked).  Just like the old full-service days.  The price is the same so I always stop at this place.  Actually they have one of the best Mexican food restaurants next door too.  Too bad that this trip put us here too early for lunch.

The Rocker 

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, Retouch, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Big Boy Toy

The only difference between a man and a boy is the price and size of their toys.  This bad boy is a man-sized toy--Tonka style.  Ready for some real farming?

Big Boy Toy

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, Snapseed, ProHDR, Noise Master, Photo FX


Original image:

Original image

Follow-up from yesterday's mystery post.  The image yesterday was a close-up of the lid from my blender.  Pretty gross-I agree.

Mystery post subject

Guessing game today...

Today's post is a "guess what this is" post.  What does it look like to you?  So I will leave you wondering today.  Come back tomorrow to find out the answer.  In the meantime, what does it look like to you?  And why?  And no, it is not a name plate for you Tio Steve.

Guessing game today...

Details:
iPhone 5 and a few post processing apps.  See tomorrow's post for more details.

Happy Hay

Happy Monday!  Hope your day and week is as happy as it is for these hay bales.  I found these off the road but it was on an overcast day.  When exposed for the hay, the sky turned completely white as you can see in the original hay image included below.  So I found myself looking for a sky background that could be combined with the hay bales to go along with their happy smiles.  Then, in the Superimpose app I combined the sky with the hay bales image and this is the end result.  Happy Hay Day to you too!

Happy Hay

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, Superimpose, PhotoStudio


Original images:

Original hay image on overcast day

Original sky image

Stitched

I don't quite know what I was after with this image.  After playing mainly with the symmetry function in PhotoStudio and the Curves function in Filterstorm I ended up turning the green bands of a cloth bowl into this stitched image.  Sort of reminds me of a set of lips sewn shut.  Haven't you ever been around someone who talked so much you wanted to sew their lips shut?  Well it has been awhile since I have but this final image just brought back memories of the last such experience.

Stitched

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original

All hung up

All hung up.  A close look and I am reminded of the old Sesame Street feature our kids used to watch--"Which of these things just doesn't belong here..."

All hung up

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

It's an ice cream day

Yep it looks like an ice cream day today.  Of course every day should be an ice cream day.  Especially if you're talking homemade ice cream or Breyer's All Natural Vanilla Bean ice cream.  Toppings and regular fruits, even Oreos, can be added and mixed in for whatever flavor of the day is desired.  It definitely is one of my weaknesses.  Maybe it stems back to my high school years.  Attending four years of high school overseas where no ice cream was available (unless we made our own the old fashioned way, with a hand-cranked ice cream maker) set me back so far that I have spent decades since then trying to catch up.

It's an ice cream day.

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Decisions, Decisions...

So many choices...  I just want to go into the store, find the card isle, pick the card, pay and leave.  Good intentions.  The reality is that I go into store, find the card isle then get stuck trying to find the right card for the person and occasion at hand.  After spending much more than the allotted time I finally just have to make that decision.  Sometimes I wonder if it would be more efficient just to close my eyes, twirl around three times and reach out and take which ever card I first touch.  Decisions, decisions...

Decisions, Decisions...

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Land of Colors

I was intrigued by the colors and graphic design of these kid bracelets hanging in a local retail store.  The more I played with them, the more Joe begged to be included in the image.  I finally relented and let him show his sensitive side by jumping into the image with all these feminine colors--maybe he is just shopping for his girls....

Land of colors

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Superimpose, Filterstorm, WrapCam, PhotoStudio


Original images:

Original images of bracelets

Original image of Joe

Found Waldo

Joe finally found Waldo and had to jump in here, front and center, to take the credit for his discovery.

Found Waldo

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, Superimpose (for the surprise visit of my Lego man Joe), PhotoStudio

Factory Man

I liked the lighting on this conveyor belt but it just seemed like it was missing something to complete the image.  Then along come Joe to save the day.  Just placing Joe in the foreground makes it a bit more interesting and certainly adds some color to the image.  It ends up looking to me like Joe is in a factory--hence today's title of Factory Man.  Actually the conveyor belt is at the airport in the baggage claim area.  Yep it is where one picks up luggage after landing.

Once again the Superimpose app lets me mask away the green background to isolate Joe (the app does a fair job of eliminating the green but leaves a small green tint around all the edges that must be painstakingly removed with the masking brush to complete the job).  Then I can place the isolated Joe in any position and transform him to any size.  Here is seemed to work for this image.

Factory Man

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Superimpose, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original images:

Original conveyor belt image

Original Joe image (with makeshift green screen background--hey, it's all I had laying around that was green)

Surveying the Scene

Whoa!  Now that I am learning the Superimpose app, a whole new world of possibilities is opening up.  Like this composite image of Joe standing on the lamppost surveying the holiday scene.  I actually did not have to place him on the lamp, tape his feet down and then take the picture like I always have before.  Now I can find the picture and insert Joe from a green screened image (after masking away the green stuff of course), resize and rotate him into any position to be placed into the image.  Hmmm, I could even do some fun stuff by altering the scale of Joe compared to other things in the image--an idea for later photos.  So far I am about at the pre-school level of learning with this Superimpose app but it sure looks like it offers some really creative possibilities.  Although it may take awhile to progress to higher levels of learning and skill, it certainly offers some newly found excitement into the possibilities.  Now I just have to expand my vision to create some of those possibilities.

Surveying the scene

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, Superimpose, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original images:

Original lamp image

Original Joe image

Turn on the wipers!

Rainy day morning.  The RainX treatment has worn off.  It is about time to turn on the wipers so the driver can see where he is going.  Doesn't it just bug you as a passenger when you don't have control over the wipers and the driver doesn't use them often enough for you?  Now there is an idea for a unique car feature--a button the passenger can push to cause the passenger side wiper to wipe once.  Sort of like the mist feature but only for the passenger who is riding with a nutty driver....

Turn on the wipers!

Details:
iPhone 5, Camera+, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio, rainy day


Original image:

Original image

Morning wake up time

For today's image I went to the double exposure app called MultiExpo.  This is my first time using the app and I played around until I got this shower image combined with some patterned glass I found in a restaurant. It looks like that app might be a lot of fun if I begin thinking of layering images together in a double exposure type of arrangement.  Anyway, this is the place I go to wake up for the morning and the patterned glass adds an interesting effect.  Good morning!

Morning wake up time

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, MultiExpo, PhotoStudio, shower and restaurant (for the glass)


Original images:

Original shower image

Original glass image in a restaurant

Rake'em up, bag'em up, toss'em out!

Rake'em up, bag'em up, toss'em out!  Yep, it's the good old time of the year when rakes and leaf bags come out of their summer hibernation and go to work.  By the time it is all over there will have been several stages to this drill.  So far we are only about mid-way through the process.  This is the fruit of one morning's labor. There are more yet to come. It's fall clean-up time!

Rake'em up, bag'em, toss'em out!

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Bottled Heat

Winter is coming.  Every day brings us closer to those cold temperatures and the ice and snow that is inevitable.  Already furnaces have come out of their summer hibernation, fireplaces have awakened with their smoldering logs and coats are getting thicker on the early morning students walking to school.  Everyone is doing their thing to stay warm.  Here is another way to stay warm--from the inside out.  Forget the hot cocoa and marshmallows.  Just carry a bottle of Tobasco sauce around, or two, or three, or four.... This bottled heat will light your inner fire on the coldest of days.  

Bottled Heat

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Fry Sauce with that?

Where's Waldo today?  Of course the big hint is just where in the country do you find Fry Sauce outnumbering ketchup by two to one?  Those who know and have been here in Utah instantly know the answer.  Especially when you travel to other locations throughout the United States (except for a few places in Idaho) and cannot even find Fry Sauce.

For the benefit of everyone else here is a brief explanation.  Fry Sauce is a regional condiment used mostly for french fries.  In simple terms it is approximately two parts mayonnaise and one part ketchup.  Different spices modify it slightly.  A Utah based fast food hamburger joint claims to have invented it in the late 1940's.  Anyway, it is everywhere in Utah and cannot hardly be found in most other states.

Do you want Fry Sauce with that?

Fry sauce with that?

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Garage mural and parallax correction surprise solution

My brother-in-law comes from a long line of hunters.  His family has hunted all their lives.  My sister will not let him hang his trophy heads in the house so they agreed on a spot on the garage wall.  Then one day a friend came in and said, "You need a mural behind those heads."  So the friend painted this mural up on the wall.

After I took the picture I thought of all the photo processing apps that I have and could not think of one that can correct parallax (making sloping vertical lines vertical again caused by the camera tilting upwards in this case).  I probably have an app that does it but could not think of one.  I have dozens and dozens of photo processing apps and just don't remember all the capabilities each one contains.  So off I went to Google to find some help.  Turns out that the first recommendation was my scanning app--Jot Not Pro.  I had not thought about that one because I have never used it for photos.  I use it to scan documents and convert them to PDF documents.  Once I set the app with no enhancements and full size capture, I just placed the four corner marks on the painting corners and...PRESTO!  Parallax fixed!  Cool!  Now I have a new resource for photos when needed.  Since I stopped searching after I found this solution with an app I already use regularly, I still don't know if any of the dozens and dozens of other photo apps on my iPhone or iPad will also fix parallax issues.  I left that one for another day.

Then it was off to my TouchRetouch app to remove the name plates under the mounted heads.  TouchRetouch is just the most amazing app I have.  I am constantly blown away when I just paint over the item I want removed, click on the "process" button and it magically disappears.  Its simplicity and the results, even when the areas are complicated, are just so awesome!  It really is magic. I call it my abracadabra app. I don't use this app a lot but when I do, WOW!

Anyway, today's photo may not be all that great but the garage mural is really impressive.  And I also now have a new photo processing app (even if it is not meant primarily for photos) in my quiver...

Garage mural

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, JotNot Pro, TouchRetouch, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio, brother-in-law's garage wall


Original image:

Original image

Candle Power

So we are at a nephew's wedding reception held in the clubhouse of a local golf course, sitting at a table enjoying some refreshments.  The table centerpiece decorations included this oil lamp/candle and lace set-up. So I pull out my iPhone, rest it on edge on the table and take a few photos of this "candle."  The low perspective, the flame and the lace all come together for a good image.  However, I first had to simplify the shot by cropping in and darkening the background to remove distracting items.  I liked the resulting image shown below even if it isn't officially a "candle."  Just another example of a simple, powerful image sitting in plain sight as part of my daily life activities.

Candle Power

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Catch the wave!

I love this fast food Mexican Food restaurant with a surfing motif.  Costa Vida always tastes fresh and does it the way I like.  Plus I love to sit and watch the surfer videos they play on their big screen TVs.  So I snapped a photo of the the wave they have in frosted glass.  The original picture is much too distracting with all the background noise.  After spending a little time in Filterstorm, using Curves to paint out the background, and then adjusting the colors with Saturation adjustments I ended up with this wave image that I had envisioned from the start.  Now I just wish I were on a board on that wave....

Catch the wave

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image

Poor business model

Now there is a business model that has gone out of style.  The old pay phone just doesn't show up in many locations anymore.  What's more, there is never anyone using the phone when you find it.  Surely it is a sign of the times--the slow disappearance of the pay phone.  I had to capture this one so I have personal evidence to, someday in the futre, show my recently born grandkids just what life was like back in 2013 when we occasionally came across public pay phones that no one used anymore.

Poor business model

Details:
iPhone 5, ProCamera, Filterstorm, PhotoStudio


Original image:

Original image