Tag: Photography; Nikon

The Matadors

Posted in California, PhotographyTagged , , , , , , 2 Comments

Copyright © Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.

Portuguese & Azorean Style California Bloodless Bullfights

Matador means “killer” and one who fights bulls on foot.

Photograph by Deborah M. Zajac. © All Rights Reserved

These are who we’ve come to see. Their ensemble is quite elaborate with both their riding pants, and bolero jackets being covered with sequins that glint, sparkle in the afternoon or evening light. The Matador is sequined in Gold and their costume is called. “Suit of Light”.  Matadors have worn suits like this since the 1800’s.

Matadors are professionals. They have training, and have gone through a ceremony to become professional called the “alternativa”.

Bullfighting is considered a Performance Art, not a sport.   There is no contest or elements of competition among the bullfighters.

When the Matador first faces the bull he uses the pink cape and tries to tire the angry bull out, and weaken him.

Photography by Deborah M. Zajac. © All Rights Reserved.

While watching the Matador lead the bull around the ring I kept thinking, “It’s a dance.”  The Matador is very graceful, and his steps are small, quick, and purposeful.  Notice his shoes? They remind me of ballet slippers. Notice too how he holds his feet.  He rarely stands with his feet apart. He stands tall, and I want to say compact…his limbs are held in close so he can move quickly if needed.

When the Matador feels the bull is tired, and weakened he switches to the Red Cape, and his sword. The last of the dance is about to begin.

Photography by Deborah M. Zajac. © All Rights Reserved

In some countries the Matador would kill the bull, but the Portuguese and Azorean style the sword is symbolic, and used for traditions sake. The bull is not killed. The Matador uses his “Velcro dart” to symbolically kill the bull.  In California it is illegal to kill the bull as well.

Photograph by Deborah M. Zajac. © All Rights Reserved.

The best Matadors kill the bull on the first strike. The fans applaud, and chant Bravo! They toss him single flowers, and bouquets, as he walks around the arena thanking the fans for their support.

Photograph by Deborah M. Zajac. © All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D300s| Nikkor 80-200mm| Induro CT213 tripod

Resources:

Wikipedia

The Art of California Bloodless Bullfights

Purchase the Nikon D5100 Digital SLR Kit and Save $100 on a Select NIKKOR Lens

Posted in Gear, Nikon, PhotographyTagged Leave a comment

For a limited time only (  valid through May 28, 2011) purchase a Nikon D5100 with a 55-300mmVR or 55-200mmVR and save $100.

Discount codes are on the page. Link is here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&ref_=amb_link_356387742_3&docId=1000691591#

 

H/T Nikon Rumors

 

A morning hike in Uvas Canyon

Posted in California, Flowers, hikes, Landscapes, Nature, Nikon, PhotographyTagged , , 2 Comments

Myself and the Cheeky Monkey hiked in Uvas Canyon County Park this morning. To stretch out my legs, and continue training for a hike up to Cloud’s Rest in Yosemite this summer.

We picked the Alec Canyon Trail with a side trip up to Triple Falls.  The trail is steep in places, and there were a few fallen trees blocking the trail as we climbed higher. We had to crouch so low to get under one tree our backpacks got caught. I’ll feel that tomorrow in my quads I’m sure!

We saw a Common Star Lily about a mile up the trail. I don’t think it’s very common. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen this wildflower!

Other wildflowers we spotted along the trail were; Wild lilac, Monkey Flower, Thistle, I think I spotted some Trillium, Miner’s lettuce, and Leafystem Coreopsis that a Variable Checkerspot was warming up on. I used my Canon 500 D close up filter to try and get a good shot of him. I really do need to spend some more time playing with this. It’s neat, but does require some practice. The Depth of Field is very shallow as you can see on the butterfly, but I did manage a good close up the Leafystem Coreopsis.

Up at Triple Falls I worked a couple of areas, and nearly ended up in the creek when I slid down the embankment while on my way down to the photograph closer to the creek. The soil was loser than I thought it was.Thankfully it was a soft landing.

There wasn’t much color down where I was so I pulled myself back up the embankment after taking several shots of a little fall and pool. I moved over to photograph Triple Falls. It doesn’t look that big at first, but then you get to the observation fence and Whoa! It’s pretty high. It must fall 35 feet at least, but I liked the base the best today and the way it cascaded down a huge boulder.

After we left Triple Falls we headed back up to the end of Alec Canyon Trail. There were groves of Redwood trees, and the sound of the water cascading down the mountain, and chirping bird were lovely.  I tried to mimic one bird. I can do a Finch fairly well. We hiked up past the end of the trail deep into the canopy and found ourselves right on the creek, and to our delight there were lots of beautiful moss covered rocks and little spill overs to photograph. We worked this area for quite a while. I chose to use my B+W 3 stop Neutral Density filter today because it wasn’t too bright under the canopy, and I knew with that light it would be enough to slow down the shutter speed to get the look I was going for.

It was the first time I’d been to these sections of the park. I am looking forward to returning to them again in the future.

The hike details:

Total miles 3.54

Elevation gain: 900 ft

Nikon D300s| Nikkor 17-35mm & Nikkor 80-200mm| Canon 500D close up filter| B+W 3 Stop ND filter| Handheld and Tripod

All Photos are Copyright © 2011 Deborah M. Zajac.  All Rights Reserved.