Archive for flickr

The Circus Comes to Town

June 25, 2011 jacquelinem barnum and bailey, circus, clown, flickr, thomas and mack

The greatest show on earth is making their stop in the city that never stops. Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey perform in Las Vegas as they travel the nation bringing laughter, joy, and excitement to all that attend this great event. There was an abundance of thrills being performed throughout the arena floor, from all of the amazing animal acts to the daring superhuman stunts. You definitely didn’t have to be an adult to enjoy this event!

I took my son to this very fun event, but not with some hesitation at first. This circus is definitely in a league of their own and anyone that hasn’t been, will definitely need to take the trip to Thomas and Mack. Families are given the opportunity to attend the event an hour early to see all of the circus animals and trainers, which was by far very interesting because you got to see all of the animals up close, from the enormous elephants to the beautiful tigers. My son was in awe over the wild cats, as was myself, but very happy they were on the other side of the cage becasue their roar was very intimitdating.

The various acts were also very entertaining from circus clowns to tight rope gymnasts to even a human cannon ball. Although the show was very fun and enjoyable, it was on the lengthy side, at almost three hours and with a two-year-old, that is a bit too long. I was even very tired at the end of the show, especially because by the time we got done with everything, we had been at the stadium for already five hours.

I feel that this is my best picture, especially from where I was taking the picture from, my lighting, and the equipment I used, which was an older camera. I tried to take as many pictures and videos as I could, but the megapixels on my camera was very poor and the lighting effects were terrible when it came to having to take pictures.

 

 

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Las Vegas Businesses Succomb To Economic Crisis

June 22, 2011 dalynb centennial hills, economy, flickr, journalism, Photography

 

When thinking about what I wanted to cover in this blog post, I couldn’t help but to focus on the way the economy has affected local businesses.

I remember that when I first moved here in 2005, the Centennial Hills area was right up there with Anthem and The Lakes in terms of posh amenities and multi-million dollar homes.

Fast forward to 2011. I bought a home up here last June for 1/3 of what it sold for in 2006. It is still a beautiful location lined with palm trees and Mount Charleston in the not too far distance. However, the downfall of the economy really shows in this area of town with one look at the businesses in the area. Huge, lavish buildings sit vacant. The architecturally stimulating Echelon apartments are empty-having not had a single tenant.

As I drove around taking pictures I wanted to make sure I captured the essence of vacancy. Hence the fence being included in the foreground of the Grand Montecito office buildings, and the picture of the Courtesy Import building with not a single car in the lot.

I used two different cameras. One being my Canon SD780 IS and the other being in the Hipstomatic app on my IPhone. I like the way that the app seems to capture the mood of the surroundings.

I took over 100 pictures today but find that these were the strongest and seem to really convey what the economic downturn has done to the area.

 

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War training in Las Vegas’ backyard

June 22, 2011 jessicam aircrew, flickr, missile, photo, Photojournalism, training, war

The Threat Training Facility located at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nev., is a place where aircrew members study weaponry currently being used in the warzone. TTF curators collect vehicles and equipment from overseas and bring them to the base where members learn to identify what they are and what their capabilities entail.

Most of the items are leftover from the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, where mujahideen fighters were provided with equipment and weapons to fight back.

Once a classified facility, the TTF is now open as a museum. Although it still maintains its original purpose in training aircrew members on these weapons systems, to include learning how to tell the difference between real and decoy equipment.

SA-9 decoyDecoys such as mock surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites are used to make pilots think they are in danger and deter them from the area, or cause them to waste their own ammunition destroying the “weapon” on the ground.

I’ve been to the TTF many times, and it remains interesting because new equipment is regularly brought in. And it’s always fun to show people the decoys because they look so simplistic up close.

In photographing this project, I attempted to capture as many unique angles as possible so that I didn’t post numerous straight on images. I also tried framing the shots accordingly in order to minimize the need for cropping while editing.

Personally, I enjoy looking at photos of people more than things, but I felt that this might be an interesting topic because the majority of the general public wouldn’t have access to this facility. It’s something that’s going on right in the middle of Las Vegas, that perhaps not too many people know about.

There weren’t any training classes in session on when I was shooting yesterday, and being that it was over 100 degrees, the museum was clear of visitors. My Nikon D40 and I had the place to ourselves to climb all over the equipment and try to capture the best imagery for the Flickr photo gallery.

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Construction

June 17, 2011 kristinaf construction, flickr, roadwork, street photography, The Real World, traffic

A part of Vegas culture.

Cones and barrels line the streets. Cars backed up for miles, inching through heavy traffic and angry drivers yelling at the air in front of themselves. Construction, everywhere, all the time. At least it is in Vegas. What’s the first thought that comes to mind? Usually will go something like this, “UGH! I’m going to be late!” Or maybe like this, “Not again!” Road work and construction has become a part of Las Vegas’s everyday lifestyle. 

I’m sure that picture on top looks familiar along with these. Flickr But it’s a wonderful and annoying thing at the same time. Knowing there will be that extra lane is a bit of comfort we get when driving by that other blocked lane you would normally be in. It’s there whether you like it or not. But what can you really do about it?

Here’s what we can do! Beat the Traffic is one of many sites that help you do just that. You’re Facebooking anyway. Might as well see if your route to work is going to be blocked tomorrow. (Lesson learned from personal experience.) Here’s another site, lasvegasnevada.gov. It not only tells you where roads are blocked but for how long they will be and why! How great is that?

Yes, going through construction zones is not the most pleasant thing to do, but look at it this way. Even though it doesn’t seem like it now, it won’t last forever. The conditions of our roads will be better. I’m sure I’m the only one relieved to see less of the tire popping pot holes. Or wider roads and highways, depending where, are always nice. Especially with the ever popular I15. And the most important thing is it provides jobs.

Ever taken a detour and got lost? I have. Believe me I’m not a fan of the ever popular bright orange cones that line our streets, but instead of fighting against it make it easier on yourself. Here’s another site I thought was interesting, NDOT. If you like road trips as much as I do it might come in handy for maps and road conditions.

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