November 19, 2009
To start with, I finally had to move from the marina again… Another incident, but the final one… A friend came to my aid and I stayed behind his home on the river for a few weeks to finish up the boat.
He has an amazing view…
Just finishing up…
Starting to look like a real dive boat.
I moved the boat down to a place with dry storage and set it there for long term storage. After driving the boat for 7 hours, when I get back, I will rebuild the motor and pump up the horsepower from 160 hp to 225 hp. I think it needs it to achieve better speed. I also need to replace the propeller…
Now, I’m off to Philadelphia, where I will be eating macaroni and cheese and writing code till the late hours of the morning. I need to finish up the online booking software. I also need to write a couple of other programs, so that I have a second income source and don’t have to depend entirely upon the dive boat. That way, I can use the dive boat for myself and get some underwater photos and video.
Capn Scott
August 26, 2009
Starting to work on the online charter software to run the dive charters. Started up a new website for the software. I’m just beginning to program the web server to accept charters online. It is server based and platform independent. It will run on your smart phone or any browser.
http://charterboatsoftware.com
I looked for the software and it just doesn’t exist. A possible income opportunity. I know that I’m not the only one that needs this. I searched google and google says that almost 1,000 persons per day search for chartering software.
On a side note, we seem to have picked up a baby gator in the marina. As long as he stays small, I don’t have a problem swimming around, and working on the boat. He is very friendly, which means, someone is feeding him. Bad, Bad, Bad… Hopefully, I don’t have to be the designated jerk to hit him with the paddle to frighten him of humans…
Capn Scott
April 19, 2009
I do enjoy shooting with others… Got an invite to shoot with the J’ville photographers of the Saint Augustine Lighthouse.
Myself and one other decided to get there before sunrise and before the others to get some great night/sunrise shots as well…
stunning at night…
This was shot from in front of the Castillo San Marco, with the lighthouse in the distance.
Another shot of the bay in front of the Castillo San Marco and the entrance to the Atlantic.
Using a polarizer, I bring out the very blue sky.
From the boat ramp a short distance away.
You know me… had to shoot the flowers as well…
Some people made a statement about climbing the stairs. I can’t image what they would have said about the stairway to La Piedra in Colombia.
The fresnel lens. Now this is a serious piece of glass…
Another shot of the lens bending light and exposing the hidden colors.
Looking back down the stairs. This was shot f16, handheld and a quarter of a second exposure.
You can actually see the lighthouse from miles at sea. I’ve used it as a reference before when I had the dive op here in Saint Augustine.
From a distance at sea, this is a navigational aid. It doesn’t mark the present channel, but it does mark the town. From up close, it’s just a wonderful historical work of art.
The top…
Had to shoot the screaming kids… with a camera, of course…
This was a great outing with a great group of happy shooters. This was also my first time to see this close-up. Like the lighthouse (faro) en Colonia, Uruguay, this is a great photographic opportunity. I need to add “aids to navigation” to my repertoire of photography…
Capn Scott
April 3, 2009
More progress on the new dive boat…
I have the engine and transmission over at the transmission shop.
We have the transmission torn down into all of it’s pieces. We’ve checked the bearings…
And, we’ve changed the gearing ratio from being a 2 to 1 to a 1.5 to 1. This will give me better power and a more reasonable propellor pitch.
We found 2 plates that needed to be replaced, but everything else was in pretty good shape.
Doesn’t look like much, when you break it down into it’s little pieces. But a good transmission is as important as a good diesel. This is a commercial grade Twin Disc 502-1.
Though, there are alot of tiny pieces involved inside of the box.
The engine is a Cummins 6BT. I’m reconditioning it and marinizing it. More on it later. Time to button up the transmission and finish painting it…
Capn Scott
April 2, 2009
We’ve had a great deal of rain, but even better, a great deal of wildflowers…
These little dudes are about as big as your thumbnail. You cannot see the blue hair or that the yellow tips of the stamins look like miniature flowers themselves. Definitely some macro work…
The trick was not in getting the shots, but in waiting for the wind to die down.
The macros were shot on a cloudy day and the shutter exposure was fairly long for the lens.
These shots are amazing printed at 13″ x 19″ …
I really enjoy shooting flowers, and the local wildflowers are just spectacular. I hope to get out a bit more often on no-wind days and get some more shots…
Capn Scott
March 22, 2009
Got a chance to shoot with a great group of photographers.
I’ve lived in Jacksonville for many years and this is my first time at the zoo. The zoo is across the river from me and daily I hear the train and the monkeys at feeding time.
They also have a great exhibition of many flowering trees and shrubs.
Pink Flamingos… This is Florida…
Some kind of ritual…
The coy in the Japanese Garden…
Stunning Iris in the Japanese Garden.
The new Komodo Dragon exhibition. Now that’s a big lizard…
More beautiful flowers…
Did I say how much I like shooting flowers?
Stunning Japanese Plum…
More and more… there were so many flowers in bloom…
This was a fun group of shooters. Everyone enjoyed themselves and got some great shots.
Capn Scott
March 8, 2009
Finally got a chance to run down to Saint Augustine early in the morning and get some shots of the old fort that guards the north side of the town.
This is another HDR shot.
Another HDR shot. I used the high dynamic range to pick up a bit of the texture of the walls.
Of course, the sunrise had some pretty spectacular color as well.
Lots of color… This structure is very similar to the fort down in Colonia, Uruguay…
And, the obligatory seascape/marinescape shot from the front…
Capn Scott
February 21, 2009
From out of the mist appeared this lonely ghost boat… Abandoned? Adrift? Haunted???
I’ve been learning some of the old stories about this little craft. The hull is made of cement, about 30 years ago. Not sure who the owner is. It has never left the area… But sounds like a great start to a novel…
This was another one of those mornings that I wake up, relax into the morning… Then the sun shows up… Dressed to the nines. I have so little time to set up and take pics… And, again, it looks like a chinese fire drill in my boat. I’m trying to get dressed as fast as possible, grab my camera gear and get outside to get the shots. The time is so limited when the colors are really golden…
Capn Scott
February 16, 2009
Well.. boats are free sometimes. I just had someone give me a boat. It is in pretty bad shape. But, I’ve gutted the entire insides, and can build it up from the hull… This boat has no title, so, can’t really be registered. I have the yard bill marked paid, and could probably fight for the title. But, I would rather use it as an ocean going barge.
Ready for transport.
Like I need another boat building project…
Capn Scott
February 9, 2009
I shot this moon shot… Though, my monitor blew out and I have an old CRT monitor right now… It seems to have lost the red channel… This is very different, using a non-calibrated monitor.
I can’t see any reds on this monitor… Time to go monitor hunting…
Capn Scott
