Saturday, January 14, 2012

One (Semi) Giant Leap....

To travel in space is to leave Earth. Blasting off on a Shuttle Mission would require trained Astronauts and a huge support team. Those fellows who landed - and walked - on the moon rightfully claimed a "giant leap for mankind." The flag and the Lunar Rover they drove are still sitting up there on the lunar surface. They left the keys in the ignition, I understand. That pesky GRAVITY makes it extremely hard to jump high enough to "leave" earth. My photo group recently was on a downtown Photo Walk and I suggested we experiment with levitation. Several of us would pose, crouch and count down "3-2-1" and then jump as high as we could. The others in the group - with cameras set at a fast shutter speed - clicked rapidly to record our momentary elevation above the ground. It was a fun experience and created some interesting digital results. None of us made it very far up into the sky. On my way to dinner the other night, I saw an old picnic table next to a brick wall. I handed my camera to a friend and showed him the area I wanted to include. We waited until several passersby had passed by and then I stood on the bench seat of the table. I posed as if I were airborne and he snapped the shutter. Later, using Photoshop, I "removed" the outdoor bench and table by covering it over with a clone of the bricks. I am keeping an eye out for something much, much higher for my next launch into space. (Click - twice- on the photos to see more details. Look closely at the bricks beneath me. The next "leap" will have to be spectacular!

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