Rocco Galatioto, nice photos and good food

The recipe for the canaccio siciliano , below,. missed a most important ingredient, POTATOES. It has been corrected for the sake of  authenticity. I thank my wife Marcy who has been promoted to chief proofreader of the blog. SORRY for the error. Sometimes I take my multitasking too far. I have to slow down.

This is a recipe that I just got from a food site from Sicily. It's called canazzo siciliano . that literally means big bad Sicilian dog. Naturally the name is mysterious and this totally vegetarian plate has nothing to do with dogs. It simply has onions, potatoes. tomatoes, a red pepper and eggplant. It's axiomatic to add basil and the use of olive oil is inferred. Naturally, each ingredient should be added keeping in mind the different cooking time for each. Buon appetito, carissimi amici.

Sometimes you see a shot that involves a very ephemeral situation and you better be ready. I used the Olympus E-300 that proved able to the task-  

This photo dates from the spring of 1996. I was covering a large outdoor swearing in ceremony of new  US citizens at Battery Park in New York. I was taken by the intensity of this woman and the seriousness with which she participated at this very important event.

Nikon releases a new top of the line D-series HD-SLR: the Nikon D4S It's been, over two years since NIKON  came out with the full-frame D4 and this in digital camera development time is an eternity, so they have announced its successor; the all new Nikon D4S. With one of most eye popping specifications of any DSLR presently on the market, the D4S offers loads of upgrades if it's compared to its predecessor. One of the most important is the new EXPEED 4 processing engine. This chipt  can allow  continuous capture rates up to 11fps (with full-time AF and AE), ISO settings from 50 - 409,600, 1080p HD video at 60fps.  It can be practically used in semi darkness! The improved battery life (3000+ shots per charge) is very welcome news and a new smooth exposure feature (produces more pleasing video when going from bright to dark scenes, or vice versa). These are just a few. Go to Nikon.com for the whole story. This camera comes out at a sort...

s . These are two of my favorite children shots. Bot shot at an event at a daycare facility run by Family and Children Association, my client. Both were shot as regular JPEGS with the Fuji S-1 Pro and they show how great the sensor wa

No interesting light, no interest photo; interesting light interesting photo. This is a photographic axiom that any aspiring photographer must take to heart. These three shots are all from the medieval  mountain top town of Erice in north western Sicily. The town we see today is medieval but the place dates to the times of the Elimians who where here before the Greeks and were the smallest of the three original indigenous people of Sicily. The shots were all made in late afternoon as the sun was setting and the results are pleasant in a photographic manner.

  Nikon's press statement Some users of Nikon’s D600 D-SLR camera have reported the appearance of tiny spots on certain of their images. Not all users have experienced this issue. Nikon has thoroughly evaluated these reports and has determined that these spots are caused by dust particles which may become visible when the camera is used in certain circumstances and/or with certain settings. It is a well-known fact that the presence of dust particles cannot be completely avoided when using a D-SLR camera even after normal sensor cleaning procedures, because of a number of factors including components moving at high speeds when images are taken, the use of interchangeable lenses, and the different environments in which a D-SLR camera may be used. As part of its customer-service commitment, Nikon is providing a customer-service measure to reduce the potential impact of dust particles on images taken by its D600 D- SLR cameras. The solution: Nikon is making avai...

With February almost over I think of spring and my backyard flowers that are waiting to awaken and show their glory. I can only wish  at this point.  

I am continuing my series on the candid portrait with the emphasis on the non confrontational approach. At times, the subject reacts with an attitude. They agree to be photographed but also show a kind of  reaction that varies with the individual. It makes for  interesting candid portraits. .

What I mean is that this may actually my very first "serious" photo. I was In Venice long ago and used a German made Kodak Retina folding 35mm camera that had a very nice Schneider lens. Of course everything travels by barge in Venice and naturally there's was a Pepsi Cola barge. I am always surprised as how well the colors are preserved by the old Kodachrome II  slide film that was used to make the image.

Again, I want to emphasize my belief in engaging the subject while attempting to make a candid portrait. Here are three more examples. They were originally shot b color but I converted them to black and white .

Again, out of camera JPEGS from the Fuji S-2 Pro.