City and County 1, originally uploaded by DeNic Photos.

This HDR image of Denver’s City and County Building quickly became a fan favorite. I wanted to get a perspective that removed as many of the people as I could on this busy night in downtown Denver.

I took this image during a night outing with a local photography group.

I try to take part in as many group outings as I can. No matter the group, I always take something positive from it so I find them invaluable.

This month I have two group portrait workshops to attend to work on lighting and posing. I am looking forward to both of them as it gives me a chance to try out new ideas that I can then bring back to my clients.

Capitol and more, originally uploaded by DeNic Photos.

I had always wondered how photographers got those great shots that encompassed so much of a city skyline. Since this whole landscape thing is new to me and my idea of a landscape photo is little less than traditional (I tend to like night images…call me weird) I wanted to try to emulate some of the great images I have found over the years.

I picked up a Tokina 12-24/f4 lens, what they call an ultra wide angle lens, and have been playing with it. The image of the Colorado State Capitol was taken with this lens on a December night with a full cold moon hiding behind the clouds.

All the other lenses I tried that night would either capture the Capitol and some street, or the moon and some street. But the UWA lens got it all and the shot was nice and clear and free of digital noise.

Having the right equipment is key in getting “that” image.

I have made a resolution for 2009, albeit a tad bit early. One of my resolutions is to make sure that I have the right equipment to get the right image…no matter what the image may be. Yes, reworking the equipment bag is a huge priority for me in this coming year.

All done to make my services a better value for YOU!

Japanese Candle Shelf, originally uploaded by Dizzle @ 2*3 Photos.

During a break from shooting a fashion show I wandered around Wish Nightclub and came across a wall of shelves with a few random candles in them. For some reason this stood out to me

I shot a fashion show on Friday. It was inside of a nightclub. I was really tired and wanted to be sleep so to keep myself awake while waiting for the show to start I started wandering around the club, checking out all the nooks and crannies.

I came upon this wall of shelves that had a few candles placed inside. From where I was standing I could only see this one lone candle even though there were probably about 10 candles through out the shelf.

I immediately perked up and knew what I had to do. I think the image turned out well, low light, slower shutter, hand held.

platte-river-foot-bridge, originally uploaded by Dizzle @ 2*3 Photos.

A foot bridge over the Platte River to Denver’s Riverfront Park.

Take advantage of every opportunity presented to you. I was fortunate to be able to join Efrain Cruz and Armando Martinez from Denver’s Illuminate Workshops for their free Night Shoot workshop in Denver’s Riverfront Park area Saturday night.

We all had a great time shooting at the Denver Skatepark and I especially enjoyed taking advantage of the Millenium Bridge to get some amazing night photographs of Denver.

I meet several new photographer faces and got caught up with old friends I had not seen in a while. My friend and fellow photog Sheba Wheeler made the evening fun with her first real venture out in the dark and trying to figure out her tripod.

Efrain is a great teacher, very patient and understanding and he explains things in terms that everyone gets. Photography is a lot of technical jargon, but Efrain explains it so that even my young son could understand it.

If you are looking for a good photography school in the Denver area, check out Efrain and Illuminate Workshops…you won’t be disappointed.

republic-plaza-at-night, originally uploaded by Dizzle @ 2*3 Photos.

Night shot of the Rebuplic Plaza on Denver’s 16th Street Mall at night.

Got hassled by security for “being on private property and photographing the building” by Top Flight Security. Odd since I had been out there for a good 30 minutes shooting away with a tripod and not one other security type said a word to me.

Boy do I love playing in the dark! When I look out at the horizon when the sun goes down I see a completely different world. Maybe it was that crazy trip to Vegas where my friend got lost on the Strip or maybe it was that other crazy trip to Hollywood where we lost the car…but the lights and the neon just bring out a different animal in me.

Many people laugh, but for me night photography is “easy” for me. I can look at a scene and know what settings I need to start with and know that within a shot or three I will have “the shot”.

Just because the sun goes down doesn’t mean that the shooting time is over.