News Bites

 

This coming days will be a busy ones for me. I’m looking forward to attending Close Encounters..with M. Night Shyamalan – clips and conversation with Carrie Rickey tomorrow night at the Perelman  theater.  I’m looking forward to learning new stuff during this event and writing about it on the blog.  During the weekend, I’ve a 10 mile training run scheduled and I’m adopting a dog on Sunday. Also, did you know it is the season for pickling cucumbers and beets?  Let me tell you, there is nothing like a good pickled beet salad. Anyone who tells you differently is an idiot.

I’ve a lot on my plate in the upcoming days, yet the world still turns and drama occurs daily.  While I’m out living life, here are a few news items that have caught my attention. Feel free to leave your thoughts on this topics in the comment section.

1. Some data points to think about regarding DOMA – via The Foundry.  There is way too much rhetoric being flung about regarding DOMA and the SCOTUS ruling. I want to inject a bit of measured data into this discussion, also I want my readers to have access to reasoned facts instead of flaming rhetoric.

50        The number of states whose marriage laws remain the same after the Court’s marriage decisions.

38        The number of states with laws defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman. That includes California, where the scope of today’s Prop 8 decision beyond the specific plaintiffs will be the subject of ongoing debate and, most likely, further litigation.

12        The number of states that can now force the federal government to recognize their redefinition of marriage. The Court struck Section 3 of DOMA, which means that it must recognize same-sex marriages in states that redefine marriage.

1          The number of sections of the Defense of Marriage Act struck down yesterday (Section 3). Section 2, which ensures that no state will be forced to recognize another state’s redefinition of marriage, is still law.

0          The number of states forced to recognize other states’ redefinition of marriage.

The important news you may not be hearing is that the U.S. Supreme Court did not redefine marriage across the nation. That means the debate about marriage will continue. States are free to uphold policies recognizing that marriage is the union of a man and a woman, so that children have a mother and a father.

2. Regarding the SCOTUS decision on Prop8 – I am troubled – not by the content of Prop 8 but the undermining of basic democratic self governance. The people of California voted for Prop8 twice and their will should be respected by all. Equality cannot be forced, it must be earned. That is the ugly marketing truth the gay and lesbian community have not learned as of yet.  Inexplicably.

3. So who, outside the dayside producers of MSNBC, didn’t see this confirmation coming? IRS auditor reconfirms conservative groups, not liberal groups were targeted by the IRS.    It seems the IRS is truly the bogeyman we all loath and fear.  Now would be a good time to start discussion on how to reign in and defang this beast.

4. What in the name of physics is causing this ancient Egyptian statue to rotate? I’m hoping one of my NSA watchers could anonymously comment on why this is happening.  Don’t worry, I won’t tell 🙂

 

5.  ICYMI – It appears a pork laden amnesty bill passed Senate scrutiny today and all reports point to it being DOA in the House.

Snark Factor Tonight!

Listen live to the Snark Factor every Wednesday night at 8pm EST on FTR Radio where I will be joining Fingers Malloy, Irish Duke to bring news bites at the top of the hour followed by sparkling chats with invited guests. If you are a fan of my blog, you’ll know that I have an eclectic taste in news of the day.

On tap tonight:

DOMA, DOMA, DOMA!

Texas SB5

S.E. Cupp moving on from  MSNBC’s ‘The Cycle’.

Home brewed beer!

 

 

 

 

David Gregory Goes Squirrel Hunting

Should I be concerned?

Bravo to David Gregory with his totally void of  fact question asked to David Greenwald in regards to NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden:

 

DAVID GREGORY: To the extent that you have aided and abetted Snowden, even in his current movements, why shouldn’t you, Mr. Greenwald, be charged with a crime?

 

Glenn managed to shred David’s line of questioning with this stunning rebuttal.

 

David’s question was successful in deflecting attention from this devastating leak which is seriously damaging the credibility of the Obama administration. The chattering class on Twitter today was abuzz over the guilt or innocence of a journalist rather than questioning why the administration along with the NSA are more interested in spying on Americans  than terrorists.

What is horrifying about this revelation by Edward Snowden is how easily the data can be exploited for political purposes. Don’t think for one second that the DNCC or David Axelrod would refrain from employing data mining strategies within this mountain of data to search for potentially damaging  or embarrassing opposition research.   Is this the new normal for modern day politics?  I’m not sure – is this 2013 or 1984?

Thoughts? Comments?  Use the comment box below.

 

2013 Blog Survey Results

In January I asked readers and followers on several social media platforms to share  their thoughts and ideas on how to make this blog a better online experience.  I have been able to extract a fair bit of quality data from this survey that I am happy to share with you. A review of the data confirmed a few general ideas I had about the blog and illuminated some new and pleasantly surprising perceptions. Overall, I found the data extremely helpful while I craft the next phase of ‘MidnightBlue’.

I had promised this data months earlier and apologize for the delay.

To start, I have released the top percentage answers from the eight multiple choice questions.

How did you find this blog?

• Friend 29%
• Link from other blog 21%
• Twitter/Conference 18%

How do you follow this blog?

• Direct visit 68%
• Twitter 42%

Why do you follow this blog?

• Sense of connection with the author 76%
• Quality information 41%
• Photo tips/Eclectic content 35%

What topics would you like to see more of on this blog? 

• Politics 57%
• Photography tips 46%
• Opinion on current national and global issues 46%

Post frequency preference on this blog.

• Whenever you post is good for me 64%

Would you be interested in occasional guest bloggers?

• Yes 32%
• No 3%
• Maybe 53%

What type of posts would you like to see more of on the blog?

• A mix of all the above 60 % (Interviews, Reader Q&A, Video posts, Photo essays, Podcasts)
• Photo essays 40%
• Video blog posts 29 %

Appearance matters. How do you like the overall design of MidnightBlue? What can be improved?

• Perfect –  no changes 58%
• Go with two columns 19%
• Too cluttered 11%

 

Far and away take home message was the authenticity of the collection of posts through readers sense of connection with me. This sense of authenticity and connection has also been confirmed off line when meeting twitter followers.   I will continue to post in this manner across all social media platforms – I am me online or offline.

I’m not sure how to interpret the results of the guest blogger question. While I’m not philosophically opposed to guest blogging, I like to have a certain level of control over the content produced on this website.

Thanks again to all who participated in this survey. I learned quite a lot about how my content is received in public and hope to use this information to improve the level of content provided within this website.

Supermoon Saturday

June 2013 full moon has garnered the title of ‘super moon’ due to the moon being closest to perigree. What this means to us mere mortals is the full moon will be at its closest point to the earth.  What a fabulous time to take photographs of the moon. The one pictured above was taken in September 2012 at Longwood Garden. Quite frankly I was lucky to get this photo as I knew nothing at the time about lunar photography.  This time around, I researched what I need to use to snap a better photo of the moon.

Below are listed what gear and settings I plan to use to photograph the moon.

Gear:
70-200 L lens
Lens Hood
Tripod

Settings:
ISO 100
Aperature f-11 or higher
Shutter Speed 1/125 through 1/250

Feel free to copy and try these settings tomorrow night.   If this works as planned, I will post the photos to this blog.  Please share links to your lunar photos in the comment section.

Here is a photo I took of tonight’s Supermoon.  The detail captured of the lunar surface is simply stunning!

The EXIF data for this photograph:

• Canon EOS Rebel T1i
• 200mm
• 100 ISO
• F/4.0
• 1/250 (0.004 sec)
• +1 EV

The entire photoshoot tonight I kept humming ‘That’s Amore‘ and thinking of one of the best scenes from the Academy Award winning movie Moonstruck:

LightRoom 5 Mini Review

 

For the past two weeks I’ve been tinkering with a beta version of LightRoom 5.  Using the Adobe TV tutorials by Julieanne Kost, I discovered two tools that really stand out with my editing process in LightRoom. Let me present Radial Gradient and the Upright tool.  Below are screen shots of LightRoom5 beta where I’m using both of these tools to edit a photo taken at Longwood Garden.

Radial Gradient. What is this? Adobe describes this tool as a way to “emphasize important parts of your image with more flexibility and control. The Radial Gradient tool lets you create off-center vignette effects, or multiple vignetted areas within a single image.”

Straighten tool alows photographers to “Straighten tilted images with a single click. The new Upright™ tool analyzes images and detects skewed horizontal and vertical lines, even straightening shots where the horizon is hidden.”

A-freaking-mazing.

Also, after two years of working with LightRoom software I figured out the difference between Folders and Collections. Quick learner that I am.

Based on the amazing editing work I’ve done using just these two tools, I’ve made the decision to upgrade to LR5.  If you are looking for a robust photo editor that gives you room to grow your photography skills, look no further than LightRoom 5.

2013 1/2 Sauer 1/2 Kraut Half Marathon

Getting a bit excited about tomorrow’s half marathon in Pennypack Park famously titled 1/2 Sauer 1/2 Kraut Half Marathon. The hottest race in town – literally. Mid June is hot time to run in Philly and so is July, August, September as well.

You can check out my race recap from last year to get a feel for this fun, local race.

Recap:

A beautiful yet humid morning for a half marathon race in Pennypack Park.  This half marathon not meant to be a PR race as the hills on this course and a mile long trail run called Mount Cookoo will slow your pace.  The course has other features that make the event unique and fun.  I know of no other race where runners are serenaded  by “Uberhans”  the toughest accordian player in the U.S.  Oreo cookies at the finish line – yum! Also, who doesn’t like Bavarian food, beer and dancing post race?

 

The rains over the past few days made the trail extra muddy forcing me to walk carefully through mud puddles.  I am happy to report no falls or broken bones came from running this trail.  However, my running shoes collected a fair amount of mud during this run.  Earlier in the morning the were a pristine white with purple highlights.

 

 

This is a local race which raises funds to support Pennypack Park and HCM Foundation. The race course is set entirely within the bounds of Pennypack Park in a lollipop configuration.   You will start and finish at the same place. Those who have decided to run the Half Sauer Half Kraut Marathon will repeat this course twice.  I’ll never chose that option. FYI –  I’ve registered for the 2013 Philadelphia Marathon and with fingers crossed hope to get into the 2014 London Marathon.

Overall, this is a wonderfully well organized local race on a course that will challenge your running skills. I would definitely recommend the half marathon to intermediate to advanced runners.

Diner en Blanc Preview Party

Diner en Blanc Philadelphia (DEBphl) organized a preview party hosted by Williams Sonoma that included food tastings  from Garces Catering, DiBruno Brothers and Chef Tod of McCrossen’s Tavern. Guests munched and mingled while admiring several Diner en Blanc inspired tablecapes.

What is Diner en Blanc? Is is a chic picnic invented by François Pasquier and his close friends 25 years ago in Paris. A “friends and word of mouth” event that is invitation only keeping the character and dymamic of the event intimate and friendly. Invited participants are asked to dress in white, organize a high quality picnic meal with tables, chairs, glasses, silver and white linen.  The secret destination for this posh picnic is revealed when the invited guests are escorted there by their hosts.

Sweden’s Princess Madeleine Weds Her Prince – Chris O’Neill

Today in Stockholm, the youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden wed her American fiance, Chris O’Neill is an exquisite ceremony. The white tie event brought out glittering crown jewels and gowns from numerous royal families invited to the wedding.  With exception to HSH Princess Charlene of Monaco who wore no ribbon, crown or jewelry of any type to this wedding, also, her husband was MIA.

I have to say, the bridal entrance was the most touching one I’ve seen of all the royal weddings. I love how the children literally sung Madeline and her father down the isle to the waiting groom. Watch the video below and you’ll find yourself agreeing with my assessment of this beautiful, loving royal swedish wedding:

Congratulations, Madeleine and Chris, today is the begining of your beautiful journey together.  I wish the both of you all the best!

Philly Cycling Classic 2013

Had a great time spectating the men’s event of the 2013 Philly Cycling Classic in the sweltering heat.  Still learning the fine points of focusing with the 70-200 f/4 L lens while continuing to be blown away by the quality of photos taken with the ‘pancake’ 40mm f/2.8 lens.

Congratulations to Kiel Reijnen and Evelyn Stevens who took first prize in the Men’s and Women’s Philly Cycling Classic events.

More photos can be found at this LINK.

Hmm,  it seems the new version of Flickr has taken away the ability to embed a photo sideshow.