R. Doug Wicker's Blog, page 129

Norwegian Epic — Tenerife; La Orotava

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La Orotava, Tenerife

The first port of call for the Norwegian Epic following our departure from Barcelona was Santa Cruz on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. As many of my blog followers may already know, I’m a former air traffic controller, and I still teach air traffic control at the local FAA Airport Traffic Control Tower (ATCT)/Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON). When you mention Tenerife to a controller of my generation, the worst aviation disaster in history comes to mind. Fortunate...

Fun Photo Friday — Epic photos of an Epic ship

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Epic LED Chandelier

This week’s Fun Photo Friday is a tribute to some of the really fun photo opportunities aboard the Norwegian Epic:

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: cruise lines, cruise ship, cruise vacation, Fun Photo Friday, Norwegain Epic, R. Doug Wicker

Touring the Norwegian Epic

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The massive Norwegian Epic

After three days in Madrid, Dolores and Earl Daniels with Ursula and I took the Alta Velocidad Española (AVE) high-speed train to Barcelona. Along the way we frequently hit speeds in excess of 300 kph/186 mph. Impressive. At these speed it takes only 2 hours to cover the 621 kilometers/386 miles. Very impressive. The next morning we headed out to the port to catch our transatlantic ride — the massive Norwegian Epic, which when built was the third largest cruise shi...

Merry Christmas and Season’s Greetings to One and All

Merry Christmas and Season’s Greetings from the Wickers

Filed under: Photography, R. Doug Wicker Tagged: R. Doug Wicker

A Spillane Christmas Carol (Humor)

Time for a little more Christmas humor. Below is the investigation into the murder portrayed in yesterday’s poem. A word of explanation about the inside joke on word counts. This story was originally written for a contest that had a 1,500 word-count limit. That was up from a 1,000-word limit the preceding year. So, here is:

A Spillane Interpretation of A Dickens Christmas

It was the best of times, Christmas.  It was the worst of crimes, murder.  She was a store clerk at the Old Curiosity Shop...

If Edgar Allan Poe Had Written A Christmas Carol (Humor)

Now time for a little Christmas humor (tune in tomorrow for the sequel on the subsequent murder investigation, written in the style of Mickey Spillane):

A Poe Christmas

Once upon a snowstorm dreary, through which I trudged all weak and weary,
Past many a quaint and curious number of advertisement lore
I saw the ad, above some wrapping; on the door I started tapping
At first it was a gentle tapping, tapping at the storefront door
I must gain entry to this store, as there was nothing then I wan...

The Christmas Lights of Eastridge — Part 2

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Continuing with our Christmas lighting show from the Eastridge neighborhood here in El Paso, here are some more photos from 2012:

Filed under: Photography, R. Doug Wicker Tagged: Christmas lights, Eastridge Christmas displays, photography, R. Doug Wicker

The Christmas Lights of Eastridge — Part 1

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Yesterday we learned a little about how to photograph Christmas lights. Today and tomorrow we’re going to put all those lessons to use. Every year, the Eastwood neighborhood in El Paso decorates like no other. The following photos of Eastridge Christmas lighting decorations were taken in 2012. I hope you enjoy the show:

Filed under: Photography, R. Doug Wicker Tagged: Christmas lights, Eastridge Christmas displays, photography, R. Doug Wicker

Photographing Outdoor (and Indoor) Christmas Lights

It’s the Christmas season.  That means it’s camera time, because you won’t see this much nighttime splashing of color again until July 4, and that’s only if we’re all still around come Mayan dawn on December 21 (remember — those west of the International Dateline get it first).

Taking pictures of Christmas lights requires special care and preparation.  Regular readers of my blog know that I don’t usually advocate taking the camera out of JPEG and shooting in your camera’s Raw format (especial...

Fun Photo Friday — Almudena Cathedral and Royal Palace Favorites

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The Lamppost

I hate selfies. Nobody knows how to take them, especially when incorporating the portrait in a tourist shot. Additionally, nothing gets my goat faster than some idiot with a selfie stick ruining my composition because they insist upon standing in front of the best view while holding that stick high above his head. If you must take a shot of others in your group, compose the shot while remembering the rule-of-thirds, snap the picture quickly, and get the heck out of everyone else’...