With some close friends in town, we decided it'd be fun to go to the Asian Lantern Festival at the Cleveland Metropark Zoo, especially since none of us had ever been before. We first got there while the sun was still out, but it wasn't until it got dark that it became really cool to see.
Overall, I feel mostly "meh" about these picture, and although some did come out very nice, my overall opinion is that these pictures aren't too interesting. My focus here wasn't to get good shots, but to have a good time with friends ("awww").
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo, Entrance
About: A lot of effort is put into these displays and lanterns. They have this set up at the entrance of the zoo, welcoming guests and immediately immersing you into this imaginary world they have built.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: This was probably my favorite display they had set up, I only wish I could've seen it when it got dark out. It almost looks like the temple is floating in the air, with the cables holding it down. The lights and blue color scheme is all very impressive.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Some of the displays played audio, moved, or breathed smoke. This dragon did all three. This was part of a larger scene with another dragon that looked like a mighty battle scene out of some movie.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Along the one path were all the animals that represent different years, each with it's own lantern and description about people born that year. Of all the animals here I took a particular interest in this here rooster, as it looked more lively and happy than the other animals.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: This was another really cool display that would've been even better were it night. I'm not sure what to say about this other than "pretty cool horse, dude".
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: I guess I just have a keen liking to birds, but this one is really something; here the feathers and wings look like they are on fire, with unique patterns all throughout her body.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: It's kind of funny, right? Not a great picture, but look at these two; the one on left looks like he's going in to kiss someone, and the one on the right just looks goofy from head on. I really liked this area of the festival, the ocean vibe was really solid.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Smaller lanterns of fish hung around the length of the path here.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: This almost looks like a stained-glass window, but with more depth to it.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: My favorite picture from this day, and I'm really happy with how well this turned out. As we continued to the next area we passed through here (which is where the red panda exhibit was). The blurred banners up top with the exit fully in focus is just so cool, I love this shot a lot.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Different parts of the zoo had different themes going for it, this one having an Egyptian theme. The path along here was really cool, probably being the best decorated with the pillars, palm trees, and all the lights they had on the side here. It also wasn't too busy when we first arrived, but as the sun neared its setting point more people began showing up, creating these crowds of people you just get swallowed up into.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: The lights hanging down from this tree, the giant flowers, the giant ants... Now that it was finally dark out these exhibits popped out unlike before, making them feel more real and alive.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: This was a very cool display. There's so much to look at here and unpack, and I didn't even catch the full thing in this shot. The amount of work to make everything here must be insane, and it's all is really impressive.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Although a still display, there's a lot of action captured here. You can almost see the bees moving and crawling around in there hive while the bird swoops in.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: This display was unique from the others. There was a hidden microphone somewhere that would pick up people talking, then one of the parrots would repeat what was said (in a different tone). Some kids realizing this were shouting at the parrots to make them talk back; an interactive display like this was really fun!
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: Now this was really cool to be in, especially at night. It was difficult to get a good shot with all the people passing through, but just standing along this path gave off such a special feeling; I hope this image captures that for you too.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo
About: A much better shot from the previous, now in focus! Although all the displays throughout the zoo were cool, the simple things like this were parts that I really enjoyed. The orange lanterns with a purple-ish sky above is a great duo of color.
Location: Cleveland Metropark Zoo, Entrance
About: Displayed right in the center after walking into the zoo. Something about this picture is a bit nostalgic to me; it reminds me of when I was young, being in downtown Cleveland with family for whatever reason. And it has nothing to do with the trees or the butterflies, but the color of the light it pours out.
The first half of this gallery looks at a Friday night spent at my old High School watching the football game with family and friends. It was the perfect summer night, and a great game overall to watch! I was especially excited to see the Marching Band, having been in it myself, and really enjoyed the show they played! I unfortunately only have one picture to show for it as the rest came out blurry...
The second half show our time spent at the Cleveland Oktoberfest. This is one of my favorite things we do every year, which was especially enjoyable as it was spent with neighbors and friends.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: The home side of the Olmsted Falls Football stadium. These games, especially early in the school year, get packed full with people.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: The High School has a really big marching band, which adds a lot of energy to these games! Being a former band kid, seeing the marching band is one of my favorite parts to the game.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: The theme for this game was tropical, adding a lot of color to the dark stands! They even had a beach ball they were bouncing around.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: I really like this picture, from the people in the stands to everyone on and in the press box. It shows how all the roles people have for each of these games to make it happen, very cool!
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: A cool shot of our team on field with the opposing team in the background cheering their team on.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: There's a lot of action packed into this shot!
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: Olmsted Falls plays defense up on the 35 yard line against Mentor.
Location: OFHS; Charles A Harding Memorial Stadium
About: The Marching Band show is always fun to watch! The music they played this year was really good too.
Location: Home
About: A childhood stuffed animal that I have sitting on my window. The zoom lens I got for this camera has a micro setting, and as you can see here, it works very well! I probably should've picked the dust off him...
Location: Strongsville; Mill Stream Run Reservation
About: I spent a day walking and exploring the Metropark in Strongsville. The streams and rivers are all really neat, and shallow to walk in.
Location: Strongsville; Mill Stream Run Reservation
About: Tiny waterfalls cut through much larger stones all around. The rocky terrain is slippery yet pretty.
Location: Strongsville; Mill Stream Run Reservation
About: I like the sun and shadows both being present in this shot. It's fun to watch the water flow, and even more so calming to listen to.
Location: Strongsville; Mill Stream Run Reservation
About: This was a very difficult picture for me to take, using the micro setting on the zoom lens, I had to keep steady hands while focusing this swaying flower into view. There was actually a bug on here I was hoping to capture, I think a spider? But I was unable to get him in the shot. Still, the light purple stands out great against the blurred green background.
Location: Strongsville; Mill Stream Run Reservation
About: My favorite Metropark to go walking in is the Mill Stream Run Reservation in Strongsville. You're pretty much walking through the woods on a dingy trail. The Sugar Bush trail is my favorite of them, as it isn't overly long; although I did fall off the trail and ended up walking a few miles extra to get back!
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: Taken from the middle of Oktoberfest; looking around, the only thing you can see are people and beer.
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: Every year at Oktoberfest they have an artist make something out of sand, which is always really cool to see. We usually see the artist working on the sand whenever we've been in years past, but this year I finally got to see the finished piece. The Viking ship here sure is cool!
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: This is always fun to watch! This stage they have up here is where people will dance and drink lots and lots of beer. They do all sorts of things which usually involve a beer in one hand. What makes this great is the crowd singing, dancing, and drinking along with them!
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: One thing about Oktoberfest is that it feels dingy! Not that this is bad, I think it adds to the experience if nothing else. Taken on the dirt path with food booths on the left, seating to the right, and people all around in every direction. It's always packed full of people.
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: Like any normal person I love a good soft pretzel, and Oktoberfest has one of the best. This is always a highlight of the festival to me.
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: A big tent complete with a stage, performers, and a dance floor. It's not everyday you get to see people dance and drink to German music.
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: This is the main beer/concert hall. They do strongman competitions and have beer vendors lined all along the wall. The best part, however, are the concerts they hold here. Every night features a group loudly playing music, with tonight's band being E5C4P3, a Journey tribute band. There's so many people!
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: I'm not big on sweet foods, but something about a funnel cake is so good. The lonely lt funnel cake booth gives a different vibe compared to the other pictures. Being set amidst the darkness puts the spotlight on the workers, almost like performers on a stage. I'm thinking too deep into this, I know.
Location: Berea; Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds
About: Journey isn't my favorite band ever, but they do have some good songs, and E5C4P3 was sure to play all of them! They are really talented performers; it was fun getting up close to the stage and feeling the music vibrate through the body.
What I love about a point and shoot camera, maybe even more so than my SLR, is that it's compact and easy to take with me wherever I go. These pictures span across late summer/early fall as I traveled to local places. These places include an old workplace, biking down streets and roads, my Nana's house, and the BW Homecoming Festival. Looking back on these photos brings back warm memories of summer and the things we had going on then.
Location: Independence
About: I took this picture one morning before work. Everyday for lunch, I would come out to the edge of the parking lot to eat then walk around; this was the sight I grew very familiar with.
Location: Independence
About: This unimpressive building is where I worked for about seven months. Although my time spent there was short, I really enjoyed the people and the company I work for.
Location: Home; Back Yard
About: Foggy weather is up there as probably my favorite or second favorite weather condition, especially when it's heavy like this! This picture, taken in the morning, has the haunting quality that I absolutely adore!
Location: North Olmsted
About: I spent a lot of time biking over the summer, and North Olmsted is a great place for it. This was taken while biking down a street in a development; the empty streets made for a quiet ride, with the arching trees providing comfort from the warm sun.
Location: North Olmsted
About: One of the houses I passed during my bike ride was heavily decorated with flowers, statues, and many, many gnomes. Maintaining this and keeping it as perfect as it is must be hard! But I'm sure the duende's help out a bit too ;)
Location: North Olmsted
About: This bike path goes all the way from one development to the Great Northern Mall of North Olmsted. Biking along it is very pretty, and fun too!
Location: Nana's House; Front Yard
About: At Nana's house, you will find many statues and decorations all around (although not as many as the gnome house!). Here are all the lady statues she has set up, all of which have been weathered down over the decades.
Location: Nana's House; Back Yard
About: Statue 2, some moss grows on her arm, chest, and head.
Location: Nana's House; Back Yard
About: Statue 3, heavily eroded away.
Location: Nana's House; Back Yard
About: Statue 4, heavily eroded away.
Location: Nana's House; Back Yard
About: An old decorative piece on the shed in the back yard. Not sure what the naked lady in the center is doing here. One flower is painted yellow.
Location: Nana's House; Back Yard
About: A quince tree, one of I believe three or four that used to be in the yard. Planted by my great-Grandpa, Tieku, Nana still uses its fruit to make jam and other food things.
Location: Amish Country
About: We Spent a day out in Amish Country to eat and shop. I love driving out and seeing the countryside. Everything feels so healthy out here, from the plant life to the air. Looking out the window to see large open fields is peaceful to the mind.
Location: Amish Country
About: I like shots like this with big clouds set before a light blue sky, farmland stretching out with the occasional building placed seemingly random.
Location: Amish Country
About: A beautiful day to be in Amish Country. It's just a nice place to be.
Location: Berea; Baldwin Wallace University
About: The best part of any parade is when the marching band comes by! Seen here are the reeds, low reeds, trumpets, and other brass towards the back. This picture is kind of funny to me; looking at their feet they are all nicely in step together, exactly as a marching band should be!
Location: Berea; Baldwin Wallace University
About: The ΦKT Fraternity Truck passing by through the parade. There's always a lot of fun energy radiating from these groups, which is nice for the parade. I've got to say though, the sororities in the parade were far more structured and even louder!
Location: Berea; Baldwin Wallace University
About: Buzzy, or Stinger, is the mascot of Baldwin Wallace. Looking stylish (as always), he sits in the back of this classy red Chevrolet.
Location: Baldwin Wallace University; George Finnie Stadium
About: Taken from the top of the Football Stadium looking down on the parking lot where the festivities were held. They normally celebrate Homecoming in the grassy lawn of North Quad, but for some reason did it here, which isn't to say it wasn't good, just different. The white tents back left are the student organizations, and the empty chairs up front face a stage that was now empty. With the football game starting soon, it really began to die down.
Location: Baldwin Wallace University; George Finnie Stadium
About: The BW Marching Band is seen performing homecoming at pregame. The band may look tiny, but they've got a powerful sound like they're three times as big!
Location: Baldwin Wallace University; George Finnie Stadium
About: The BW Marching Band, in tunnel formation, plays our fight song while the football players run on field. This is always a fun part of pregame to watch; really gets you excited for the game to come!