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The U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

My wife and I made our almost annual trek into DC to view the capital Christmas tree.  As usual, we suffered freezing temperatures but it was worth it.  While this year’s tree looks a little smaller than previous, and has a slight lean, its still impressive.  Especially with the Capital dome as a backdrop.  The picture to the left shows just how tall this tree is (thats my 5′10″ wife standing next to it).

If you plan on visiting to take your shots I highly recommend bringing a tripod along.  We unfortunately left both of ours at home, a tragic mistake since the cold caused massive shivering which many of our shots suffered from.

The majority of the photos were taken with my 50mm 1.8 lens but the few wide angle shots were with my kit EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 IS lens. Continue reading »

Happy Holidays in Reston

Christmas in Reston

Burglar Returns Stolen Camera After Realizing It’s True Value

I found this to be a touching article from FOXNews, one that shows how important photography can be.

It tells the story of a woman that had her camera stolen and the burglar that returned it after learning that she was terminally ill.  She was collecting photographs on this camera to create a scrapbook for her children.  The burglar must have realized that he stole more than just a material thing but had taken valuable memories that to her and her children were priceless.

McElrath, who has inoperable cancer, was collecting photos to place in a scrapbook for her children so they could remember her after she was gone. The camera had belonged to her father, who died of a heart attack two years ago.

The woman told her heart-wrenching story to Dallas-area news station WFAA TV, appealing to the burglar to return the camera. [...]

“I just want my camera back,” she told WFAA reporter Jim Douglas. “I just want those memories back.”

Then something remarkable happened. A few days after the story aired, Douglas got a call from a man who told him to look behind a red car in the station’s parking lot. The caller didn’t leave his name; he said only that he felt bad about the incident and wanted to return the camera.

FDR Memorial

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial in Washington DC is one of the newest memorials along the tidal basin.  A commission was established for the design and implemention of this monument in 1955 but the final design by Lawrence Halprin was chosen in 1978. The dedication occurred on May 2, 1997.

Spanning 7.5 acres it is divided into 4 sections, or rooms, one for each of FDR’s terms in office.  The design allows you to actually feel like you are walking through history. Framed by walls made from South Dakota red granite, the monument is filled with quotes, statues both of FDR and other scenes from the era, along with many many water cascades and pools.  Water was an important element in Halprin’s design due to the factor it played in his history, including the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Civilian Conservation Corps. Continue reading »

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