Princeton Blog

hmorris March 5th, 2010

March is National Nutrition Month. The Hopewell Township Health Department offers these easy to follow tips: choose a variety of foods from each food group, look for nutrient-dense foods that have the most vitamins and minerals for the fewest calories, and find a balance between intake and physical activity. Visit www.mypyramid.gov and www.eatright.org for more tips and guides.

Looking for some healthy inspiration and motivation? Visit Princeton Living Well for articles, food sources, business directories, activity trackers, blogs and a community calendar of all things health and wellness.

The Momo brothers of the Terra Momo Restaurant Group anxiously awaited word on whether their mother Teresa, the inspiration for the widly popular Palmer Square restaurant of the same name, was safe in Chile following the devastating earthquake. Upon hearing that she was safe, they decided to celebrate and take action by holding two benefits next week at Mediterra to go to The Red Cross for Chile Relief. Monday March 8th at 6pm will be a Chilean wine tasting ($25 per person) and Wednesday March 13th at 6pm will be a traditional meal with foods from Southern Cone, Chile and Argentine ($45 per person). Call Mediterra for reservations 609-252-9680

Princeton Corkscrew is having an anniversary sale where you can get 15% off of cases of 12 bottles of more. Sale runs from Saturday (3/6) through next Sunday (3/14). Shop in store or online at http://www.princetoncorkscrew.com/.

Have you ever seen a game of soccer and pinball among robots? That’s what you can find at the 2010 NJ FIRST Robotics competition this weekend at Sun National Bank Center (formerly Sovereign Bank) in Trenton. Come to watch 62 teams of high school students from NY, NJ and as far away as Puerto Rico and Brazil face-off alongside professional engineers and FIRST alumni.  FIRST is a 501c3 organization that helps to inspired youth to pursue studies and careers in science and technology.

• 5toknowFriday , Community Events
• Comments(0)

hmorris March 3rd, 2010

I’d like you all to meet Princeton resident/blogger/mom/photographer Robin Birkel, otherwise known as her Twitter handle and blog , @ShutterBugGeek (blog link). Before I met Robin in person at the Mrs G’s VIB Series events, I looked through her portfolio of photos and was amazed by her Princeton shots using a motion blur effect.  So I brought her here today to share some tips with anyone who loves photography and is still learning how to use their super cool SLR camera.

Use Motion Blur in Photos to Highlight Action

Photography allows a moment to be captured, freezing time for a split second. But what if we don’t want the action to stand still? What if we want to show the speed of the activity in a different way? It can be done by blurring the motion. A camera with manual, aperture, and shutter controls is required for these effects.

1. Long Exposure

This method requires a tripod or steady surface to place the camera on since the shutter will be left open for a longer period of time. The mirror lock setting, and using a remote cable release is recommended to avoid camera shake, but not necessary. The timer can used in lieu of a remote cable release. Subjects moving during exposure will appear to be unfocused, transparent or streaked depending on speed.

EXIF: ISO 1600, exposure 1/10, aperture f/8, focal length 33mm (manual exposure and handheld, which is why ISO 1600 was used)

2. Panning

Panning is achieved by simply focusing on your subject and following it. Capture the image while still tracking it. This will keep the subject in focus, and blur the background. For these shots, it’s preferable to set your camera to shutter priority, dialing it to 1/40 or 1/60.

EXIF: exposure 1/40, aperture f/18, focal length 17mm

3. Zoom Blur

This technique isn’t difficult, but takes some finessing. Either zooming in or out during exposure leaves blurry streaks away from the subject. If the lens is zoomed slowly, the results are more subtle with most or all of the subject remaining in focus. If done quickly, the effect will be intense with the subject only focused at the center point, and longer streaks from the core. They key is to get the right balance you’re looking for.

Freezing action allows us to see a subject that’s too fast for our minds to process; however, blurring things permits us to creatively witness motion in ways we could only imagine.

EXIF: ISO 400, exposure 1/25, aperture f/7.1, focal length 19mm (manual exposure)

(Exposed while quickly zooming out from 17 - 40 mm)

• Princeton People
• Comments(0)

hmorris February 26th, 2010

Hey Tweeps! Palmer Square is now on Twitter. Follow them and say Hello! at @PalmerSquare.

It’s not too early to think about SUMMER CAMP! Especially since The Arts Council of Princeton is offering discounts in the full and morning sessions of the Junior School. Offer ends March 31st so you have some time to consider your summer plans, but not too long!

Happy 50th Birthday Pennington Quality Market (PQM)! To celebrate their golden anniversary, PQM wants to hear from loyal customers to feature in future promotional material. Contact Mike at pqm@aol.com or call 609-737-2055

If you have been affected in some way by Ovarian Cancer-whether you are a survivor, know someone with the disease, or have a passion for the cause-then you’ll want to get tickets NOW for the Teal Tea at the Hyatt in Princeton. While the event is in May, tickets are on sale now.  Reserve your table and show your support for the Teal Tea Foundation’s efforts to bring awareness to Ovarian Cancer.

Calling all Ghostbuster and SNL fans! Dan Aykroyd is coming to Lawrenceville! He will be at Canal’s Liquor Store on Friday, March 19th at 1pm to promote and sign bottles of his Crystal Head Vodka.  You can RSVP with the Philadelphia Ghostbusters on Facebook or just come on by!

• 5toknowFriday , Community Events
• Comments(0)