Back to School Silhouettes on my Drive to School

Silhouettes challenge was August 15th.  

But look what I found this morning on the way to school.  (And yes,  I pulled to the side of the road)

I was behind a workman’s truck and saw the silhouette.

Pulled over to the curb, mindful of the time, knew I could wait a minute. Parking brake on, the hill’s steep.

The school bus

and then two students walking to our high school.

Work truck silhouette

Turning onto Brownsville Road

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School bus coming down the hill

students in crosswalk silhouette

I was hoping for some separation between the two but not this morning.  

Daybreak October First- Comparing iPhone 5 image to Canon 5D Mark ii

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I tell the students at school, the only way to improve photographic skill is to practice. And that is what I was doing yesterday morning.

On the way to school, I detoured to Mount Washington to catch the sunrise and the PNC Park lights on, readying the field for Tuesday night’s playoff game.  The city looked so inviting, the light coming fast.

Everyday the city is a different color, a variety of colors, sometimes golden or pink.

 

And a glimpse of the Lucky Duck (which is bigger than my house!)

Daybreak October First

This picture is shot with the Canon 5D Markii- a 70-200mm L series lens.

 

 

Daybreak October First Cell phone

Looks pretty good to me and not sure why I took the photo with both the camera and the phone but this one is the iPhone 5 camera.

And here is the panorama of the scene.

Daybreak October First Cell phone 2 pano

 

Still working on getting those panorama shots right.  You can see a dark bar indicating I need more practice. But it was fun trying.   Love the lettering on the Duquesne Incline station house.

 

Daybreak October First Cell phone pano

But here is a closer shot taken with the Canon 5D Markii.

Daybreak October Canon 5D Mark2

 

These are unretouched images.  Looks like Pittsburgh of yesteryear with the Heinz Plant spewing white smoke from a stack!

 

Urban Deer

Crossing the street, a long block from school. I saw the doe cross first and sure enough she was followed by her two young ones. They were not afraid of me and took their time crossing Parkfield Street. Someone’s back garden was probably breakfast.

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Mom

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Self-Portrait in Someone’s Trash

 

 

 

 

 

On my classroom keyboard was a nice note,written on composition paper, from the computer man who stopped in yesterday  –

back up computer- hard drive must be replaced.

Now one thing I know is that discussing any sort of computer issue is instant snooze z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

BUT look what I found today as I copied photos to a borrowed external hard drive!

A photo I took last Spring of my on the way to school.

I’m in the oval mirror.  Really.  And I loved the carport and the seemingly crooked pole.

Thanks for looking and thanks for all the good birthday wishes for Michael’s 8th yesterday.

I got to partake in the festivities via FaceTime along with the other grandparents in Virginia and it was fun.

Ninth graders come to school tomorrow for orientation.
Hendricks May 1 431

Retro Storefront- Men’s Shop

New views on the way to school.

Brownsville Road, Mt. Oliver (which is a “borough surrounded entirely by the city of Pittsburgh.”)

Early Morning Fill-Up

Gas dependent and running on E is no way to start the day en route to school.  So I pulled into the Shell station on Baum Boulevard and watched the tank fill up at 3.95 a gallon- feeling  a bit glum about the state of things…yup, I should have gotten the much needed gas the afternoon before the early  morning rush.

but then I looked up and saw  the UTZ snack truck  making a delivery to the little convenient  store inside and there was a light on inside the truck. The morning sky, the snack truck, the invitation to play the lottery and skip work altogether?  The scene cheered me.

Shot it with the old iPhone 4, although I am seriously thinking I need that version 5, if for nothing else the improved camera!!

 

 

Note to Self: Leave Home Ten Minutes Earlier

Two school buses and a garbage truck stopped on the narrow street as I made my way to school. A standstill, brake lights on. Do you worry? No, you photograph the scene. Write a note to self.

Someone Left Their TV in the Rain

Glad I shot it when I did, as it was gone the next day.

The other day a friend said to me that one of the things about the blog that she enjoyed is that you never know what the topic or theme will be for the day.  It’s true, I like to change it up.  Seems to come in waves sometimes. Lately I have been documenting some discards again after being off the noticing of them for awhile.  I think it was the comments about the televisions people had that could complement the outdoor seating of the couch I posted a couple of days ago. Couches and televisions are frequently curbside.