ANGELA B. PAN

So after all the color burned off, I was walking back to my car when I noticed that the Martin Luther King Jr memorial was looking especially glow-y. I kind of have this habit of not putting my camera away right away but it’s for moments like this. I thought I was done shooting for the morning but realized that the sun had risen enough that it was casting it’s early morning light on the memorial making it an orange-yellow color. I love when that happens. I tried several different angles but loved this one when I walked to the side to find the Washington Monument and the Martin Luther King Jr memorial lineup with each other. I intentionally photographed this making it look like the two memorials were touching.

In other news, it’s only Tuesday and I’m already looking forward to the weekend. Andrew and I will be visiting New York for a quick birthday getaway. His birthday, not mine. It seems like we take trips to New York several times a year but this year has been so crazy that this is going to be my first time all year. I love that city and really looking forward to just walking around, taking pics and eating delicious food. If you have any NYC recommendations, let me know! We always try to do different things each trip so any tips would be extremely helpful.

Andrew did say that we can go to B&H though. I can’t wait. For some reason I’ve never been but I always had the impression that they aren’t open on the weekends. Since we usually just go for the weekends I never even bothered. Turns out they’re just not opened on Saturdays, so guess what we’re doing Sunday 🙂

My camera settings for this image is F6.3 at 1/125th sec and ISO 500 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm handheld.

Last week was a stunner. There were so many great sunrises and sunsets. I was able to capture some but not all. This particular sunrise colors didn’t last too long but when they were out, they were out in full force and so vibrant. It totally makes waking up early worth it but that part it isn’t too bad now that it’s winter. It’s a little bit after 7a which makes it pretty manageable. The difficult part about winter sunrises is the cold. I’m definietly bundled up and walking around like the michelin tire man.

I decided to go to the Tidal Basin because it’s been a little while since I’ve watched the sun rise from there. This is pretty close to the Martin Luther King Jr memorial along the tidal basin and one of my favorite spots for sunrise that I mention in this post. I met up with my friend, Larry and we spent the morning just catching up and snapping pics. It was great.

Lately whenever I go out, I carry just two lenses with me. The 70-200mm and the 16-35mm but have been favoring the 70-200mm even more. There have been times when I don’t even switch between the two lenses and only use the 70-200mm. I love it. Capturing this scene with the 16-35mm wide angle would have made the Jefferson Memorial look so small and since the color didn’t fill the whole sky, being able to zoom in to a tighter frame gives the impression of more color than there actually was.

So whenever someone asks me what camera equipment they should get, I always say that it’s really about the lens you use. It can totally change your perception of a scene and make you see things differently. Just something to think about in case you’re in the market 🙂

My camera settings for this image is F9 and 1/25th sec at ISO 320 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom.

Attention! Attention! I have a new sunset spot that I need to share. It’s very similar to the view at this one, but at least this time you’ll be able to go whenever you want and won’t be trespassing on residential property. LOL.

Its at the Observation Deck at the CEB Tower in Arlington, VA. If you haven’t already you gotta go! I honestly don’t know what took me so long because it opened in the summertime and earlier this week was my first time visiting. You can walk 360 degrees all around the 31st floor of this building which gives you very interesting viewpoints of Rosslyn, VA and Washington, DC. It’s absolutely stunning! The one downside is that you’re always shooting through windows.

This image was captured right before sunset through the window. The glow on the memorials is what caught my attention to this scene and I couldn’t help but snap multiple images. My tip is to put your lens right up against the glass to reduce glare. If you have a dark black cloth that you can put over the lens, that’s even better! In order to capture this, I actually used my cell phone as a shield against the little spot that was being reflected. It was enough for the day but in case you’re there on a super sunny day, a cloth would be best.

But I haven’t told you the best part yet! The best part is that you can go up to the second floor of this observatory and go outside! You’re still shooting through glass but it’s even better with the fresh air. There are little spaces in between the glass panes that you can sort of fit your lens through but otherwise, it’s an interesting place to experiment.

My camera setting for this image is F5.6 at 1/100th sec at ISO 640 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm zoom lens.

I checked another thing off of my bucket list. I have been eyeing this library for years. Honestly, I don’t even know how long because I’ve been wanting to visit it for forever. So after I was done photographing my work at BWI airport, I wasn’t ready to go home yet. I was still on this high that I felt like I wanted to take even more pictures. After a quick google search I found out that the George Peabody Library was 8 miles away and I was there.

I was a little confused when I drove up to it. I thought it was going to be this grand, stand alone building filled with people coming in and out with books in their hands. But it wasn’t. It’s actually a part of a larger multi-use building and it the library itself is a little hard to find especially when the doors are closed. To be honest, it was smaller than I envisioned but standing inside the library was amazing. The interior is absolutely breathtaking. You look up and there’s rows and rows of books. It’s an absolute dream.

At first I was nervous to take pictures because there were people there who were actually studying but they didn’t seem to mind. So I took my time and really appreciated the architecture. Unfortunately all the stairs were closed off so I couldn’t go up any levels. I would have loved to see what this place looks like from the very top.

Did you know that you can get married here? OMG that would be absolutely amazing! I also heard that this library was the inspiration for the library in Beauty and the Beast. Is that true? Or am I making that up? If you know for sure, let me know in the comments 🙂

My camera settings for this image is F4 at 1/80th sec at ISO 2000 with my Sony A7II and 16-35mm.

Speaking of fog, Saturday was really foggy. There were times that you could not even see the Washington Monument it was so foggy. But at sunrise, the fog brought this beautiful glow to the city and it was amazing.

On this particular day, I parked on Ohio Dr. so coming from that side of the National Mall, I had my first glimpse of the US Capitol at the Reflecting Pool. I love how the dome is partially covered by the mist and lights. This was the very first shot I took and probably my favorite from the entire morning. I didn’t have my tripod with me so I sort of balanced my camera along the side of the reflecting pool and for this shot it worked well. Others, not so much. Another reason why this is my favorite shot. LOL.

So I have been getting questions about foggy mornings. Just like a colorful sunrise, they’re hard to predict. This particular morning I knew it was going to be foggy because the night before had been incredibly foggy and the weather apps said it was going to last all night. However, there have been times that I have been out and knew there was going to be fog without the weather apps saying so. I’ve realized that when I listen to the radio or a weather forecast and the meteorologist says, “warm front” then there’s a good chance for fog. It’s the combination of the warm air mixing with the cold that brings the foggy mornings and I love it. Foggy mornings like this is what makes photography so much fun. You just never know what you’re going to get.

My camera settings for this image is F5.6 at 0.6 sec and ISO 800 with my Sony A7II with my 70-200mm ultra zoom lens.

This past weekend was an unusual one. If you have been in the Washington DC area then you know that it pretty much skipped fall weather and went straight from summer to winter. We may have had a week or so of ‘warm’ weather but it didn’t last too long. So when I saw that Saturday was raining all day but Sunday was going to be a little foggy with the high in the 50’s, I knew I had to take advantage.

My original Sunday plans were canceled so Andrew and I were left with a whole afternoon to ourselves. That’s when we decided to take Frankie to the US National Arboretum. Neither Andrew or Frankie had ever been there so I thought it would be a great place to just get out of the house. That and the fact that a lot of it is paved and Frankie wouldn’t get too wet walking around was a huge plus.

Typically when the three of us are out together, I’m busy taking pictures while Andrew and Frankie are checking out the scene. When we arrived at the National Capitol Columns, I was happy to see the yellow shrubs in front of the columns. It was a great pop of color in an otherwise gloomy day but it needed something. Frankie obviously! LOL.

I called Andrew over and asked him to stand a little bit inside of the bushes and lift Frankie up above his head. I had no idea how it was going to turn out but I love it. LOL. It definietly has some Lion King vibes to it. Thankfully Frankie’s so great that he’s not even phased by all our weird ideas.

My camera settings for this image is F4.0 at 1/1600th sec at ISO 400 with my Sony A7II and 70-200mm lens.