A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

photography

The HooHaa 52 is back!

The HooHaa 52 is back for its second year.

Those of you who haven’t followed my blog might not have a clue what I’m talking about. So here’s the brief synopsis of what it is. Basically, it’s a 52-week photography challenge. I have a group on Flickr with some fellow flickrites and each week, there’s a new theme. All of the participants have a week to interpret the theme and take a photo, positing it to the group.

This year, we have 13 people participating.

That’s a good number as it gives each person four weeks where they will choose the theme.

Last year, we started with a lot of people. However, as the year went on, people dropped out. It was disappointing, but it’s not too shocking as many people drop out of long photo challenges (I almost dropped out of the Project 365 so many times, but plodded through and was happy I did it).

Several people had mentioned doing something a little less stressful, so I came up with the basic premise for the 52.

I like the group we have this year as it’s a diverse group and some talented photographers.

I’m personally really excited for this as it’s hopefully going to push me in photography again. Over the past few months, I haven’t been able to push myself with my photos. I didn’t take near as many as I wanted to at GeoWoodstock and I didn’t utilize a few other things. The reality is that I live in a rural area and, at times, it gets hard to take photos of trees, back roads and small town stuff. Though there are some bigger metro areas within 1:30 or so (Albany, Binghamton), it’s still not that easy to up and do all the time because of current gas prices.

So, who knows what this can do for my photo inspiration.

Last year’s themes were interesting. Some of the more intriguing ones were:

  • Communication
  • The Wilderness in my …..
  • Abandoned
  • Signs
  • Geometric shapes
  • Juxtaposition
  • My peeps!

Now, remember, each photographer can interprit the theme any way they see fit. For example, the “My Peeps” one. Though most people thought of friends etc., at least one person used the candy Peeps. So it can be whatever each photographer thinks. It’s very cool.

I haven’t made it “illegal” for themes from last year to not be used, but I am hoping most people will stay away from it and try and expand even more. Or, at worst, take one of last year’s themes and make it a little different.

The first topic is to be posted this Sunday and next week is the first week. I’m pumped to see what is around the bend with the photo challenge!

For those of you reading… have any ideas for themes I should consider during my weeks? Post them in the comments section!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.

Finding photo inspiration

I’m doing everything I can.

Seriously.

I just can’t seem to get the inspiration to get out and take photos. I don’t know if it’s the weather or something else, but I’m having a hard time going and taking photos. My Flickr stream has been quiet for too long. I tried taking photos of my niece and nephew’s eighth-grade graduation, but the lighting stunk and I forgot my flash (smart move, eh?)

I did take a few photos at the horse track, but that’s been it for a while.

<sigh>

I’ve been in these funks before. But I want to go out and shoot photos, I’m just stuck.

It could be this area. I can only take photos of a rural scene for so long before having to do it over and over. I do plan on taking a bike ride one night and shooting photos of all the fire hydrants on our main drag as they’ve been painted. Some are really cool and nice.

To help, I’ve also rented a Lensbaby lens for this upcoming weekend, which includes GeoWoodstock and then the Fourth of July.

I’ve always wanted a Lensbaby, which is an artistic lens that one can tilt to get interesting blurs, a small focal point and cool angles. I’m looking forward to using this lens and am hoping it will give me a little oomph when it comes to taking photos.

I’ve also been looking at a few photo books and websites for inspiration. It’s a funk I’m sure I’ll be out of soon, but I’m hoping the Lensbaby will help me break out.

With the lens baby, I’m looking forward to trying some geocaching photos with it. Maybe a few portraits. If I really dig how the lens works, I might try and extend it for a few more days as I have a thing or two I want to do the weekend after as well. I wouldn’t mind trying it with a little disc golf, too.

If I like it as I think I will, I know once I get a job again, it’s a lens I’ll look into buying. There’s so much you can do with it.

I’ll post shots I take from it on my Flickr as well as probably do a post on the blog.

For those of you who are photographers, what do you do to get out of these funks? Leave a comment and let me know.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.

Snapshot: June 25

It’s another blast from the past.

This one should be fun. This is a photo of my niece when she was just a tot. Cutie, eh? She graduated from 8th grade (a ceremony for this! Who knew?) the other day. My how time flies.

(And congrats, too, to my step-nephew Alex, who also moved on from the 8th grade. However, I don’t have any photos of him as a tot to be able to embarrass him with!).

Enjoy!

Dinner time!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.

Notes from my noodle: June 23 edition

One week!

A week from today/tonight, I’ll be heading out to Western New York and Pennsylvania to attend my first GeoWoodstock. I’ve been looking forward to this since it was announced last year that it would be so close. The weekend is shaping up to be a good one, so hopefully, Mother Nature will cooperate! But who can tell with the weather as the Northeast has had threats of thunderstorms for a lot of the warmer days. It will likely be hit or miss, so we’ll see.

I’m also going to work on a story for the blog and for a geocaching magazine while down there, so that will be fun.

For those of you who aren’t geocachers, GeoWoodstock is the biggest event of the year — the crowning jewel for many. There are more than 3,000 people expected at this event, which is a one-day affair at the Warren County Fairgrounds in Pennsylvania.

This is the ninth straight year GeoWoodstock has been held.

On top of the main event, there are several other smaller ones. Three of them are on Friday and two on Saturday (three total with the big event) and one Sunday. I’m hoping to hit all seven events, so we’ll see how that goes.

Of course there will be some geocaching, though I’m not sure how much will get done Saturday!

It should be a hoot, though, and I’m looking forward to getting away and thinking about geocaching for a weekend. I can’t wait to meet a lot of people and such, so it should be a blast.

And for readers of the blog — if you are going to be there, drop me a note! I am hoping to meet as many people as possible down there.

***

I don’t know what’s going on, but three of the last six or seven postcards I have received through Postcrossing have come in an envelope.

That stinks.

I’m one who like to receive the postcards with a stamp and postmark on it. I save all of these cards and just having one that is written on and put in an envelope kind of stinks. I even have it in my profile that I would rather not receive cards in an envelope. I know some people like that. Some people like the card untouched in an envelope. That’s their right, I guess, but I can guarantee I’ll never send a postcard in an envelope for this hobby. It seems to take away from what this whole thing is!

To each their own, I guess, but when I start scanning them in for an eventual personal book I am going to make, it will stink to have them not have stamps etc.

As of writing this, I’ve sent 97 postcards (that have been received), have nine more traveling and have one expired (which means it either did not arrive there or has not been logged in the 60-day span given before Postcrossing “releases” it. On the other end, I’ve received 92 cards so far.

***

I don’t usually write about a lot of current event/newsy/political things on this blog, but I saw something the other day on Twitter that blew my mind.

Someone, posting in regard to the death of Jackass star Ryan Dunn, said, “Does it matter if Ryan Dunn was drunk? The outcome isn’t going to change.”

Really?

That has to be one of the most idiotic things I’ve ever seen written.

It turns out that Dunn was more than two-times the legal limit in regard to his BAC levels. Also, it’s reported he was driving in upward of 140 miles per hour.

With another person in his car.

So yes, dear Twitter user, it DOES matter. He killed himself and another person because he was extremely irresponsible.

And you, ma’am, are an idiot for thinking, on a social network like Twitter, that it didn’t matter that he was drunk and driving.

***

I need to get out and take some photos. I haven’t been out with the camera in a while and I’m really missing it. I need some inspiration.

On that note, I’ve started the wheels in motion to get the second year of the HooHaa 52 rolling. The idea of the 52 is a 52-week challenge. Each participant takes a photo a week for a full year. Each week, a new theme is posted and a different member posts it. This way, the people participating have a lot of control over this challenge.

I’m hoping to start it up in a couple of weeks and have reached out to many people who participated and finished last year. If this sounds of interest to you, let me know. I am only allowing a certain number of people into the group so that it stays small and participants get more than one week to name a theme.

If interested, a couple of things to note. Be sure you’ll stick it out with us. We had too many people drop out last year (we had a lot of people, though), which made it so I had to come up with random themes too often and that got me a little burnt out at the end. The other is, you’ll need to be on Flickr (you can have a free account) as the group is on there.

Leave a comment or e-mail me if interested and I’ll let you know how many slots we have left etc.

***

And to close this edition of Notes from my Noodle, I give you my Twitter entry of the week, which comes from former WWE superstar “Stone Cold Steve Austin.

“Locked my keys in the truck @ super wal mart today in town. What an idiot. Thanks to Pursch Motors for the help. Gonna go kick my own ass.”

He did follow that up by posting a photo of the guy trying to unlock his truck and said:

“Guy trying to unlock my truck…just gave myself a Stunner….time for a cold one…cheers.”

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com.