Just another WordPress.com weblog
Here are my favorite photos from 2017. I initially selected just ten photos a couple of weeks ago that I was going present as my favorites of last year, but after multiple reviews of my 2017 photos I wasn’t totally sure I wanted to narrow down my number of favorites to ten. I ended up with sixteen after my final review.
I’ll start with my Pennsylvania Photos
My remaining favorites were taken in New York City and Montclair, NJ.
Well, we have finally emerged from the Deep Freeze of 2017/2018 here in Easton, PA and elsewhere in the Northeast. The now famous “Bomb Cyclone” hit us here in the Lehigh Valley, with Arctic like temperatures, but only a few inches of snow.
I did not have the time or inclination to venture outside of this area during the Deep Freeze that took place during the last week of December and first week of January, but I tried to capture in photos and video some of the beautiful images that the Deep Freeze produced in this area.
First off, here is another video I recorded on the Delaware Canal towpath on Jan 7th, the same place I recorded a video on New Year’s Day.
And here are some of my favorite pictures from the Deep Freeze
Here is a picture I took yesterday morning in Easton, PA, near the “Free Bridge” that spans the Delaware River and connects Easton and Phillipsburg, NJ. Several weeks of extreme cold has frozen many parts of the river. About a mile and half north of this point the entire river was frozen over.
I took quite a few pictures the last couple of weeks to capture some of the beautiful images that the cold and the now famous”Bomb Cyclone” have produced.
This picture was one of my favorites. I will be posting more to the blog soon, as well as a video or two.
I took this photo with my Canon PowerShot G9X Mk II.
I took all the photos below during evening hours hours in Easton, PA during this past October and November. All photos were taken with my Canon G9X Mk II.
I took these pictures at the World Trade Center last night. One WTC is in Holiday Season mode. The base the tower changes color from Red to Green and back again. Pretty cool. #NYC, #WTC
I took these pictures of the enormous blast furnaces at the Bethlehem Steel plant, which shut down in 1995. The former steel plant has been converted to a mixed-use development called Steel Stacks, which now includes a movie theater, indoor ice, bar, restraunts and a Sands casino.
I made a return trip to Governors Island a couple of weeks ago. The Island closed to the public for the year on Oct. 31st and does not re-open until May 1st, 2018, so it was important for me to visit the Island when I made a trip into New York City two weeks ago.
Governors Island is a former military base in New York harbor that has been a converted to a park and was opened to the general public starting in 2003. Conversion of large sections of the Island started in 2007 and is still a work in progress, but the Island is about 75% redeveloped. It is a great place to spend an afternoon in NYC when the weather is good and you can enjoy the spectacular views. You can easily spend 4 or 5 hours exploring the Island. I was on a tight schedule that day because I had other things I had to do in the city that day, so I was only able to spend about 2 hrs there that day, but it was still well worth the trip.
One of the best parts of Governors Island is a section of the Island called The Hills, which consists of four man-made Hills located in the Northwest portion of the Island.
I shot a couple of short videos with my iPhone SE on two of the Hills that occupy the Northeast portion of the Island.
The first video is my climb to the top of Outlook Hill, which is the tallest of the Hills, at 70 ft. That may not sound like much, but the 360 degree views of the New York harbor from the top hill are amazing on a clear day.
My second video was shot on Discovery Hill, right next to Outlook Hill. Discovery Hill is home to, The Cabin, a creation of British artist Rachael Whiteread and one of the permanent pieces of art that scattered around the Island. Like Outlook Hill, Discovery Hill provides outstanding views of lower Manhattan, the harbor and the Statue of Liberty and overlooks Picnic Point at the NW end of the Island.
Pictures below are from were taken in and around The Hills. I shot the pictures with my Canon GX9
I am very happy to report that I purchased a new camera a couple of weeks ago. I replaced by venerable Canon S90 with a brand new Canon G9X Mk II. I bought the S90 back in 2009 and it served me very well ever since then, but it was a bit beat up after a lot of heavy use and I needed a new camera. My S90 was still taking great pictures, but a small spot developed in the lower right corner of the image sensor. As a result I my iPhone SE and my iPAD PRO 9.7 for most of photography during the last year. Both devices have the same camera as the iPhone 6 and they take great pictures, but they can’t match a camera the caliber of G9X. So, I will definitely continue to use my iPhone and iPad for photography, but I’m very happy to have a high quality point and shoot camera again. The compact size of the G9X makes it very easy to take it everywhere.
| Full model name: | Canon PowerShot G9 X Mark II |
|---|---|
| Resolution: | 20.20 Megapixels |
| Sensor size: | 1 inch (13.2mm x 8.8mm) |
| Lens: | 3.00x zoom (28-84mm eq.) |
| Viewfinder: | No / LCD |
| Native ISO: | 125 – 12,800 |
| Extended ISO: | 125 – 12,800 |
| Shutter: | 1/2000 – 30 seconds |
| Max Aperture: | 2.0 |
| Dimensions: | 3.9 x 2.3 x 1.2 in. (98 x 58 x 31 mm) |
| Weight: | 7.3 oz (206 g) includes batteries |
| Availability: | 02/2017 |
| Manufacturer: | Canon |
| Full specs: | Canon G9X Mark II specifications |
Took a mid week break yesterday and made a trip down to Jersey Shore yesterday. The weather was beautiful in the towns that I visited, that included Spring Lake, Sea Girt and Point Pleasant.
Another stop I made in Manhattan last Sunday was at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The park looked great on this nearly perfect summer day. Whenever I visit this park these days and can’t help but admire how much it has been been improved in last ten years or so. I’m old enough to remember what this park was like back to late 70’s and 80’s when it dirty and and dangerous and not a welcoming place.
Photo taken with iPhone SE
gmf journal 