Burning Marshmallow

I don’t know any guy who doesn’t enjoy setting things on fire. I’m no exception. I love watching things burn. Mix this with my affinity for food, photography and well … things that are sugary … and this is what you get.

Additionally, while there may be a debate about the optimal roasting of a marshmallow, I prefer my burnt.

What I enjoyed finding in the stills was the puffs of smoke that burst out like little smoke rings. Air, sugar and fire. What a fun combination with very interesting results.

This video is a series of stills from my experiment. Each marshmallow burn was about 15-30 seconds. I was grabbing an image/frame about every second.

So, next time you’re at a campfire roasting marshmallows, think of all the little things happening that we usually don’t see with the naked eye.

Hmmm … what to burn next? Any suggestions?

-Kyle

Morning Light. Early Bird.

Sometimes I have to slow down a little and remind myself why I chose photography as a career – particularly when I’ve been as busy as I’ve been the past few weeks.

The day to day business activities can many times overshadow what I really enjoy about photography. The answer? Getting up at 5 am this morning was the shot in the arm I needed.

It’s amazing how beautiful God’s creation is when all is still and the day is breaking. Gradually things come to life. Rabbits. Birds. Hawks. … and in this case … Leiper’s Fork.

There you have it. That was my early morning today. Now I need to get back to work … I’ve got to get ready for an architectural shoot next week as well as a full day of food photography.

Life is good.

- Kyle

Out for a Spin

My three boys have an affinity for cars … and the oldest isn’t even 6 yet. I suppose that get that naturally.

So, I thought I’d take their love of cars (and mine, too) and my passion for photography and find where the two converge.

The backdrop for this was shot during the Fall here in Franklin, TN. The colors are incredible that time of year.

The car is a slightly worn/loved Maisto … a Hot Wheel wannabe … from their collection.

Lighting was a little tricky. I can’t imagine lighting a full-sized car.

See a larger photo image here: http://www.dreier.com/kyle/photography/sandbox/

– Kyle Dreier

Confessions of a “Texture-holic”

OK, can I just say that I love textures! I’m drawn to textures. Texture is so much more interesting than smooth.

I was darting down an off the beaten path highway in Alabama and this old weathered billboard caught my attention. Two miles and one (safe) u-turn later I was recording what I saw through my lens.

Doesn’t this speak to you? It does to me. It say “I am interesting. I am more beautiful than ‘new’ and ’smooth’.”

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Enjoy.

-Kyle Dreier

Lunar Eclipse

Last night was a beautiful evening to watch, and photograph, the lunar eclipse. We won’t see another until December 2010. I captured these images with my Canon 20D with a 300MM 4.0L lens. I chose my 20D over my 5D to get the 1.6X benefit of the smaller sensor making my 300mm a 480mm. Even with that focal length I had to crop these images by about 50% to get a decent sized moon.

Full moon one hour prior to the lunar eclipse.

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During the lunar eclipse.

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Saturn during the lunar eclipse. (lower left corner)

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I wonder what people thought back in the dark ages or before when they experienced a lunar eclipse. Must have been a little scary to them.

- Kyle Dreier