Story by Lindsey Chester. Photos by Brooke Meyer.

Cary, NC – Nnenna Freelon, originally scheduled to appear in Cary back in November, put on a show this past Saturday night at Cary Arts Center. Brooke Meyer snuck backstage during the warm-up and took some pictures for CaryCitizen.

For a small town, we attract some pretty big acts. Nnenna Freelon is a world-reknowned jazz singer and composer, Six-time GRAMMY® Award-nominee and is hailed as the “international voice of Jazz.” Her version of Duke Ellington’s Prelude to a Kiss was showcased on that glossy TV hit Mad Men.

Brooke Meyer visited backstage stage during the sound check and sent us a few photographs. Many thanks to Ms. Freelon for the access.

Video: Nature Boy

We found this video on YouTube of Nnenna Freelon singing “Nature Boy.”

She’s today’s Ella Fitzgerald, people. Must get her back to CAC.

Cary, NC – Recently, some stellar basketball pictures came floating across the Cary Flickr Group. They are by Marvin of The M Factor and they are this weeks Wide World of Cary Sports.

High School Basketball in Cary

Marvin has been catching a few games around town – boys and girls, Panther Creek, Athens Drive, Cary High and Green Hope.

Interesting (at least to photographers), Marvin shot these pictures with a remote controlled flash. That’s unusual for sporting events and accounts for the crisp action pictures and vibrant indoor colors.

How About Your High School?

If your Cary area high school is not represented here, reach out to someone in your community who is shooting your games and recommend they contact the photo editor at CaryCitizen.

All our photographers make a voluntary contribution of their work. We rely on the community for our high school sports coverage. Any sport, any school in Cary is welcome.

Alternatively, maybe you know a pizza parlor or ice cream shop that might want to sponsor coverage of your school’s sports. Hook us up!

Wide World of Cary Sports

Cary, NC – Last month, I wrote about taking pictures during “Magic Hour” – the time just after sunset when everything looks golden and lovely.

The Lochmere Christmas Flotilla this past weekend presented the challenge of photographing at night, when it was truly dark.

Herewith, a few tips and tricks for photographing at night.

5:30 PM

A kind invitation from Harold and Gerry Ritter gave me the opportunity to shoot the festivities from their dock on Lake Lochmere.

I’d classify this first shot as “magic hour” – it was dark enough to even see a small planet in the sky.

I used a tripod throughout the evening to steady the shot.

5:45 PM

Around the lake, folks started to prepare for the flotilla. Seen below is a float dubbed “The Lochmere Monster.”

Many of the boats sailed up to the Ritter’s dock to say hello to the former Cary Mayor.

In the minutes before 6 o’clock, boats arranged themselves on the lake for the flotilla.

6:00 PM

At 6:00 PM sharp, Harold set sail. You can see him in his red jacket in the boat on the right.

As the boats got into position, the Lochmere Monster cruised past, too fast for my slow nighttime shutter speed. But it made for a cool picture that accentuates the motion.

Composite Shot

Going into this assignment, I sort of knew it would probably be impossible to get the “perfect shot.” What I visualized was one boat in the foreground and all the rest across the horizon in the background.

To achieve what I wanted, I used Photoshop to make a composite shot. That is, I combined six or seven different photographs into one image.

I started by making a background – black water and midnight blue sky. Then I created a line of boats and the shoreline in the background. Finally, I dropped Harold’s boat into the foreground. You can see most of the pieces and parts up above.

Some photographic purists might look askance at compositing. But it’s not about some imaginary purity of technique – it’s about making an image that tells a story. Anyway, that’s my philosophy.

Happy nighttime shooting!

Cary, NC – On Saturday, after taking a few pictures at the Cary Jaycees Christmas Parade, I wandered over to Winter Wonderland at Waverly Place.

There were snowball fights, sledding, toasted marshmallows, tasty treats and a giant amount of fun.

Cary, NC – Saturday was the 32nd Annual Cary Jaycees Christmas Parade. The weather was perfect, with thousands lining the parade route in Downtown Cary.

There were floats, mascots, marching bands, dancers, scouts, old cars, hoopers, dogs, artificial snow, real bubbles, elected officials, Elvis, Santa and a giant pelting of candy. It was literally raining candy at the corner of Chatham and Academy for two straight hours, thrown by participants into the crowd along the parade route. Wise children brought bags.

Cary, NC – I had a chance to stop by the Old Time Winter Festival in downtown Cary on Saturday. It was a lively good time and a beautiful afternoon so I took a few pictures.

Cary Citizen contributing photographer Brooke Meyer ended up taking the Santa pictures.

An outdoor theater had been set up on the north side of the street. I caught a few of the dance performances. Best costumes definitely went to this group.

Vendors and artists lined Chatham Street from Harrison to Academy.

Good times, low-key, neighborhoody and nice – that was this year’s Old Time Winter Festival.

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Events coverage on CaryCitizen is sponsored, in part, by The Meat House in Saltbox Village.

Story by Nita Whitfield, photo by Brooke Meyer. Photo above by 3rd place winner Don Lutter, titled “Spot With Hooded Figure”

Cary, NC- Cary Photographic Artists (CPA) recently announced the awards of its 4^th Annual Open Juried Photographic Exhibition, currently on display at the Cary Senior Center.   The diverse show of local photographers talent, amateur and professional, is on display through Dec. 16^th. 

Record Number of Entries

Drawing a record number of entries, the annual event continues to grow in reputation.  The high quality of submissions and generous cash awards are establishing  the CPA Annual as the premiere area Photographic Exhibition.

This year’s Jurors, Mary Kay Kennedy, and Diana Hooper Bloomfield, devoted hours to the very difficult task of selecting 87 entries from the nearly 300 submitted. They were assisted by the  many Cary Photographic Artists members who volunteered time to assist with all the preparation, data entry, receiving and hanging of the show.

Cash Awards

Overall Cash Awards of $2,275 keep interest in this show high.  Best of Show receives $500.  The 1stPlace Award in each category (Color and Black&White) is $350.  2nd Place Awards are $250 each and 3rd Place Awards are $150 each. Four Honorable Mentions are awarded at $50 each.  A $25 Peoples Choice award is given on the evening of the Exhibit Reception.

The Exhibit Reception will be held Friday, Dec. 2nd, 6 to 8 pm, in Room 302 at the Cary Senior Center.  Come visit to see wonderful work by local talent and meet the photographers. You may start seeing the world around you in a whole new light.

Above, winner of “Best in Show” photo titled Shoshone Building #2 by Joe Lipka

Exhibition Winners

Joe Lipka, Shoshone Building #2, Best In Show
Wayne Dockery, Anonymous Tobacco, 1^st Place/Color
Harry O’Connor, Rag Time Detailing, 2^nd Place/Color
Don Lutter, Spot With Hooded Figure, 3^rd Place/Color
Ashley Hutchinson, Procrastination, HM/Color
Michael Ligett, Round Pond Dory, HM/Color
Joe Lipka, Shoshone Building #3, 1^st Place/B&W
Brooke Meyer, Understudy, 2^nd Place/B&W
JJ Raia, Foggy Morning, Spruce Run, 3^rd Place/B&W
William C. Walker, One South, HM/B&W
Bruce Melkowits, Line Up, HM/B&W

Story and photo by Hal Goodtree.

Cary, NC – Is your family coming in from out of town? Want a picture? I’ll be taking bookings for informal family portraits and photography over the Thanksgiving weekend.

Thanksgiving Moments and Family Portraits

Thanksgiving family portrait sessions are one-hour and can take place at your home or any nearby location.

Sessions are $100 and include free digital download. Prints available from wallets to posters.

Limited availability – book now to get your best selection of time slots.

Story by Hal Goodtree. Photo by Brooke Meyer.

Cary, NC – Crowdsourcing is a popular tool in the new journalism newsroom. Four years ago, I started the Cary NC Group on Flickr and it has proven a rich trove of images about the town.

Cary NC Flickr Group

Flickr is a little like Facebook, but just for photographers and images.

Since starting the group in July of 2007, it has grown to 171 members and more than 1,400 photos about our town.

What’s interesting is the wide range of interests and perspective. I always hoped the group would become a kind of artistic record of the town. I think that is proving to be true.

The 2011 Cary Flickr Group Autumn Slideshow

We regularly show the latest pictures from the Cary Flickr Group in a box on the right column sidebar of the CaryCitizen website.

During the last few weeks, I’ve been fascinated by the new images that keep cropping up. So, here’s a slideshow from the group pool depicting the unfolding of autumn in Cary. Pictures start with the most recent and go back in time.

If you can’t see the embedded slideshow, go to Cary Flickr Group.

Thanks to all the talented photographers in and around Cary who have contributed to this wonderful resource.

Story and photos by Hal Goodtree. First published on FotoHal.com.

Cary, NC – There are lots of tricks to shooting effective pictures for real estate. But when it comes to shooting the exterior of a house, you can’t go wrong with Magic Hour.

Magic Hour in Photography

Magic Hour is a special time of the day when the sky is a deep indigo blue and the golden orange lights from the house can be seen through the windows.

Technically, it’s about half an hour before sunrise or after sunset.

The sky has to look almost black – just a hint of blue vibrating up in the sky. That’s when the Magic happens.

The Blue We Can’t See

Cameras are built to see things as humans do. But at the extremes of lighting, the camera sees far better than humans, particularly in the blues.

To us, the sky looks almost black. But at just the right moment, the sky will look electric blue to a digital camera.

This is because cameras have a wider spectrum of sensitivity. They are designed to see into low light.

At Magic Hour (really Magic Minute), the light still in the sky is a super-blue. We can’t see it, but the camera can.

How to Do It

For real estate, most Magic Hour pictures are at sunset. Who wants to get up at sunrise for a picture?

Pay attention to the time of sunset. No need to get there while you can see any piece of the sun in the sky. It has to be below the horizon.

Make sure you’ve turned on a few lights in the house. Exterior spotlights can add some definition, but generally avoid the front door lights. They are usually too bright for the Magic Hour effect.

A tripod and a cable release or timer helps, but I’ve hand held this many times with good results.

Start with your camera in normal exposure mode. Take a picture every minute or two.

At some point, you’ll be at the perfect balance of light in the sky and from the home. Keep taking pictures every minute until the sky becomes too dark.

If you’re happy, you can quit and go home. But if you know how to change the exposure on your camera, you can continue working. I crank up the ISO on my camera in increments until I’m at the max (6400 on my Nikon).

The Mother of All Magic Hour Pictures

A couple of years ago, I took a panorama made of 75 photos that captures the transition from afternoon to evening at North Hills.

Click on the picture to see the entire composited shot.

Or, better yet, visit the North Hills homepage. Run your mouse over the photograph left or right of center. The picture will begin to scroll – right for night, left for day.