Monthly Archives: August 2013

Weekly Photo Challenge: Sea, Take Two

Posted on August 31, 2013 by | 31 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Sea.

Where the sea meets the land is where it’s at. But you never know what you’ll get. It can be

too wimpy—

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too scary—

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or just right!

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The first Sea post was here.

31 Comments

Posted in Nature, Photography

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Sea

Posted on August 30, 2013 by | 70 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Sea.

On the broad windswept beaches of England’s North Sea coast, the presence of the sea really forces itself upon your attention…

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(Norfolk, England, August 2001)

A second Sea post is here.

70 Comments

Posted in Nature, Photography, Travel

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Ederle Swim 2013

Posted on August 27, 2013 by | 49 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

Under the Verrazano Narrows BridgeOn Sunday a week ago, August 18th, I found myself once more in my kayak accompanying a long-distance swimmer through New York Harbor.

It was the day of this year’s Ederle Swim, a 17.5 -mile open-water swim from Manhattan to Sandy Hook, New Jersey, organized by NYC Swim. This year’s swim was in fact the centennial swim, since the first successful swim over that course, after a number of failed attempts, occurred a hundred years ago almost to the day, on August 28th, 1913.

My swimmer this year was Barbara Held, from San Diego, California. Having completed her Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming—the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim, the Catalina Channel, and the English Channel—Barbara was looking for new challenges!

Continue reading →

49 Comments

Posted in Kayaking, New York City, Sports

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The Cardboard Kayak Race

Posted on August 24, 2013 by | 22 comments

By Johna Till Johnson 

Every now and then something comes along that’s just a sheer delight from start to finish.

Yesterday, it was this video of the 2013 City of Water Day’s First Annual Cardboard Kayak Race.  It features practically all of my favorite things: kayaking, engineering, competition (the thrill of victory and the cold splash of defeat), creativity, ingenuity, and whimsy. All on a beautiful summer’s day in New York!

The event was hosted by the Metropolitan Water Alliance, a not-for-profit that, in its own words, “works to transform the New York and New Jersey Harbor and Waterways to make them cleaner and more accessible, a vibrant place to play, learn and work with great parks, great jobs and great transportation for all.”

The Cardboard Kayak Race is exactly what it sounds like: Teams of competitors are each given identical materials from which they construct, and then race, cardboard kayaks. Starting materials include:

  • 10 5×5 squares of cardboard
  • 10 rolls of packing tape
  • 3 rolls of gaffer tape, and
  • a box knife

The video is long (though well worth watching—it will leave you laughing with joy!). But  if you’re pressed for time, here are some highlights:

  • The first 12 minutes feature various shots of boat construction
  • At 12:00, judging commences. You’ll meet the teams, which include the Brooklyn Bridge Park Boathouse, the NYC Watertrail Village Community Boathouse, the High School of Math, Science, and Engineering Alumni, El Centro (from Staten Island), the North Brooklyn Boathouse, the Stevens Institute of Technology, the Stuyvesant High School Village Community Boathouse, and the US Coast Guard Marine Inspectors.
  • There’s a great comment at 17:30 where the judge asks the Coast Guard team, “Which do you think is the front part of the boat?”, then adds, “I don’t want to confuse you with technical questions!”
  • The race begins at 18:18
  • There’s a nail-biter of a finish at 19:15
  • Disastrous and heartbreaking collision at 19:50
  • Dramatic capsize at 20:46

It’s all wonderful fun, and well worth the watch!

22 Comments

Posted in Kayaking, New York City, Science and Technology

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Focus, Take Two

Posted on August 23, 2013 by | 80 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Focus.

Isolating the main subject in sharp focus against a blurry background is often the beginning of a powerful photograph. But it’s easy to then lose sight of the fact that the blurry background is still there and can make or break the photo, no less than the main subject. It’s helpful to forget that the photo is of something and see it instead, for a moment, just as a two-dimensional plane of abstract shapes and colors…

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The first Focus post was here.

80 Comments

Posted in Photography

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Focus

Posted on August 23, 2013 by | 68 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Focus.

Got to focus on what’s most important…

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Thunderstorm over the Gulf of Mexico, St. Pete Beach, Florida, August 2013. More photos are here.

A second Focus post is here.

68 Comments

Posted in Photography

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Travel Theme: Play

Posted on August 23, 2013 by | 20 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

Ailsa’s travel-themed photo challenge this week is Play.

Blow your horn
... And sing out loud!

From the 2013 Coney Island Mermaid Parade.

20 Comments

Posted in New York City, Photography

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Photography 101: Finding Your Focus

Posted on August 20, 2013 by | 2 comments

<— Previous in Photography 101

This is the eighth installment of Photography 101.

Next in Photography 101 —>

The Daily Post

So far in our Photography 101 series, we’ve asked guest photographers to share their insights and tips on various elements of the craft, from light to composition. Today, meet Matthew George: the blogger at Photo Lord, a site that features and recognizes other photographers, and a passionate high school photography teacher. In this installment, Matthew introduces focus and the concepts of depth of field and aperture. 

Finding your focus — the basics

I provide some general guidelines to my students:

View original post 1,708 more words

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Posted in Photography

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree, Take Two

Posted on August 17, 2013 by | 68 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Carefree.

Any guesses where, and what, this is?

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Answer:

It’s the Greasy Pole in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

From Wikipedia:

The Greasy Pole Contest takes place every year during St. Peter’s Fiesta in Gloucester, Massachusetts. During this time, many young men try their luck at walking down a greased, wooden pole in the middle of Gloucester Harbor. The goal is to be the first person to grab the red flag at the end of the pole.

The Greasy Pole competition originated in Sicily in the 19th century or earlier, and was brought to Gloucester by the Italian immigrant population of fishermen in the early 20th century. The object is to walk across a greased pole protruding from a platform about 200 yards from shore. This platform, depending on the tide, can be anywhere from 10–25 ft above the water. The pole, which hangs over the water, is 45 feet long, and only about as wide as a standard telephone pole. This pole is then heavily greased with biodegradable axle grease mixed with anything from Tabasco sauce to oil, banana peels, and various other slippery objects. A red flag (or sometimes the Italian Flag with a red flag underneath it) is then nailed to the very end of the pole. The idea is to run out on the heavily greased pole and try to grab the flag before slipping and falling into the water. About 40 or 50 men between age 18–60 go out from Pavilion Beach in Gloucester MA during the St. Peter Fiesta, the last weekend of June. They walk the pole one at a time in a pre-determined order. Generally, the men are of Italian descent, although the walkers may include all nationalities. Because of the popularity of the event, there are strict rules as to who is eligible to walk on Sunday. The event is currently held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 4:45PM.

But this was in July. The Greasy Pole was deserted, except for these few kids out to have some fun… or maybe get a leg up on the competition for when they turn eighteen ;-)

The first Carefree post was here.

68 Comments

Posted in Photography

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree

Posted on August 16, 2013 by | 56 comments

By Vladimir Brezina

This week’s Photo Challenge is Carefree.

In New York City, carefree is still pretty intense.

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From this years Coney Island Mermaid Parade.

Another Carefree post is here.

56 Comments

Posted in New York City, Photography

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