Penn Field Austin Texas - Building J

 

Penn Field in Austin is home to many locally-grown architecture and design firms.  

This building (J) is the most recent to be completed.

Architectural Perspective Control: Canon Tilt + Shift Lens

Ever wonder how some photographers manage to take photos of buildings that are NOT leaning back?

The leaning buildings come from tilting the camera up to get the top of the building in the frame.  Most lenses, even wide angle ones, aren't wide enough to get the whole building in the frame while keeping the sensor of the camera parallel with the face of the building.

The solution to this is to use a Shift Lens, a lens that permits the lens to shift relative to the sensor of the camera, to capture the top of the building without tilting the camera.  It is like climbing up on a 2-story building across from the one you're photographing, and eliminated perspective distortion.

The technical detail underlying this are complex, so Google variations on "Tilt-shift lens" to find out more.

I've started using a Canon TS-E 24mm f3.5L Tilt and Shift lens on my Canon 5d Mark II DSLR to take our architectural photographs.  The quality of the images from this lens are absolutely stunning and I can't wait to go take more and more and more.

If your photos are looking like this one, consider getting a tilt-shift lens for a more professional photograph.

Wal-Mart vs. Small Town America

 

I was setting up the shot for this building in Lockhart, Texas, with my camera on a tripod when I saw the Wal-Mart truck coming. I had already been looking at the building with dismay - it clearly needed some life breathed back into it as a home for businesses.

The lens on my camera was a Canon TS-E 24mm f3.5L, otherwise known as a "Tilt and Shift" lens because you can shift the lens relative to the sensor of the camera to eliminate perspective distortion (where the building is leaning back). The lens is manual focus only, and the truck was coming fast, so I took my chances and took a single shot.

I do think this image captures why we have empty downtowns in these small towns that were once booming with business. Wal-Mart takes away business from local business owners, under pays their employees who then can't afford to support the local businesses that haven't yet been run out of town.

It is a sad and vicious cycle.  Do you keep your money local when you can?

Cows for Neighbors?

As subdivisions push farther and farther outside of the city limits, new home buyers are increasingly likely to find themselves peering over their back fence, wondering why it smells like . . . a farm . . . or farm animals.

When you buy into a new development, look at the development maps, and drive around.  Ask what surrounds the property, then confirm that information independently from the developer.

January 2011 Review of The Texas Economy - an Excerpt from Texas A&M

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Even if you don't, the

The quick numbers on Texas Job Growth from Dec 2009 to Dec 2010

Gruene Texas: Talk of the Town

Gruene, Texas - Historic Buildings, Tons of People and Gorgeous

See Fabulous Photos from Gruene Texas at Appraisal IQ

The Robert Mueller Airport Development Area in Austin

Mueller Austin - Urban Infill at it's Best
Would you rather see a gigantic concrete lot with weedy fields, or homes for people who work in the nearby area?
The 2009 to 2010 Mueller Austin Real Estate Report