nature

photo diary | photographing a wedding in Key West

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , 1 Comment

On May 4th, 2017, I was blessed with the opportunity to travel to Key West for the weekend to photograph a wedding! My best friend Jessie, her mom and soon to be husband came to me in hopes that I do my part in capturing their special moment. Humbled and absolutely floored, I accepted the offer and headed south towards the Keys. Not only was the destination gorgeous, but I got to spend time exploring this gorgeous place with one of my best friends!

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The wedding ceremony took place on a sail boat, which was a first for me! I’ve been on many boats in my life, but never a sail boat. I was in awe from our gorgeous views and just being able to feel the wind in my hair.

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Here’s a few wedding photographs.

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photo diary | photographing a wedding in Key West

an intro to astrophotography

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

As a little girl, I’ve always been fascinated by the stars and moon. My nose pointed up at the night sky soon became my nose in books- reading about and memorizing planets and constellations.

Flash forward a few years and I’m sitting in a college Astronomy class, wide-eyed at the plethora of information being presented before me. I fell in love. My professor, Dr. Mike D. Reynolds happens to be just as passionate as myself, if not more. I formed an immediate appreciation of his passion and took it upon myself to email him some of my Lunar photographs. He instantaneously responded, discussing how much he admired my work- even sent the photographs to the President of the college.

After much thought, my Professor decided to launch an Astrophotography class for the following semester- and here I am. Once a week we come together with an army of DSLR cameras, tripods and telescopes. Us nerdy Astro-folk find ourselves getting chills by the views that we witness and are fortunate enough to photograph.

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Waxing Crescent Moon. Taken with Celestron telescope; ISO 400, 1/400

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Prior to this class, I used a telephoto lens (300 mm) to photograph the moon. However, I have recently discovered that you can literally mount a telescope onto a DSLR camera to counteract as the lens. This allows for crazy details and incredible deep space photographs.

While this is just the beginning, I am quite proud of the photographs that I’ve achieved. I hope to do another update by the end of this course to showcase further work.

 

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The Orion Nebula. Taken with Celestron telescope; ISO 1600, 15″

 

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Captured movement of the International Space Station. ISO 100, f/4, 30″
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Long exposure taken from my backyard. ISO 2500, f/5, 13″
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Daytime lunar photograph. ISO 400, f/9, 1/1000
an intro to astrophotography

photo diary | Thanksgiving in Mexico

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , , , , 1 Comment

It boggles my mind how, even after fourteen cruises, the beauty of it never ceases to amaze me. From the warm glow of the morning sunrise peeking over the horizon, to the white caps of the salty waves crashing into the distance. There’s something so incredibly calming about every detail of the ocean. I have no words for how thankful I am to live the beautiful life that I do.

Processed with VSCO with g3 presetA photograph of my mother and I mesmerized by the sunrise. Taken by my wonderful Dad.

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photo diary | Thanksgiving in Mexico

photo diary | farewell fall (+another visit to VA)

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

Well, another fall season has come and gone. It was radiant, alluring and inspiring as always. Despite Florida’s measly seasonal changes, I took it upon myself to book a flight to Virginia. While visiting my brother there, we made it a point to journey back to Shenandoah National Park. Leaving the house at 3 a.m., we were able to catch the sun rise up and over the mountain peaks. These pictures don’t share a justice of how beautiful it was.

Anyway, here is a collection of photographs I’ve put together- all taken from the fall season.

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photo diary | farewell fall (+another visit to VA)

photo diary | adventures in nyc

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

Prior to this trip, I sat down on my bed with a pen in one hand and my journal in the other. I wanted this trip to be unique- an adventure. I wanted to see and experience New York like I never have before. So, I did some research. I jotted down events and locations that caught my eye, and made a tiny checkbox next to each one. It was my mission to check off every single box.

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DUMBO, Brooklyn; this was my very first time visiting this part of town and let me tell you- I was utterly and completely in love. It was an artistic community filled with gorgeous buildings and lovely coffee shops. If I could pack up my things and move there tomorrow, I most definitely would.

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Here is a photograph of me in a state of complete happiness, complimented by the ever-so-glorious Manhattan skyline. The photo is a bit overexposed and the shadows on my face are weird, but my smile is so genuine that I just fall in love with this photograph every time.

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Turtleneck gal (me) in a subway station

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Another first: visiting Chelsea! If you ever find yourself in this part of the city, check out The High Line. (It actually runs through multiple parts of town: Lower West Side, Meatpacking District, etc). Anyway, The High Line is an abandoned railway that was eventually repurposed into an elevated public park. It’s filled with so many lovely plants and flowers and you get to walk through and above the city. HOW AMAZING IS THAT

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Washington Square Park; finally got a chance to walk under the Washington Square Arc and take in the gorgeous scenery of this park. (didn’t intend to make that rhyme)

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Lastly, I took a ride on the top of an incredibly touristy sightseeing bus. Whether you’ve lived in NYC or not, I highly recommend spending the money to take this tour. My parents and I learned so many interesting facts about the city, like how the Oreo was invented in Chelsea. On top of that, I got amazing photographs of the city that wouldn’t be achievable from walking around on the streets.

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Overall, I managed to complete my checklist and experience one of the most incredibly unique trips to New York I’ve taken thus far. This city never fails to inspire me and keep me coming back for more. You have my heart, New York.

photo diary | adventures in nyc

SC → VA

Kayla Catalano, , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

DSC_0005DSC_0022DSC_0026DSC_0065Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

dsc_0083dsc_0097dsc_0102Luray Caverns, Virginia 

Filled with stallagmites and stalactites, these underground caverns were a true work of art. At about 200 feet into the earth, the air that filled my lungs was a cool 60 degrees, setting a true cave-like tone. I’m still completely blown away by the magnificent creations that lie below the earths surface. 

dsc_0076DSC_0147dsc_0138DSC_0172Shenandoah National Park

This was my first time at a National Park and I can’t even begin to describe how alive I felt. Between the vast horizons, fresh air and lack of civilization, I can definitely say I was high on life. I was surrounded by mountains and tree tops. Butterflies played around my hair as the sun kissed my skin. This experience allowed me to feel renewed. It allowed me to reconnect with myself and become one with the earth. If you’ve never been to a National Park before, I would highly recommend it. 

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