Jeff Self Photography Blog

Christopher Newport University put their undefeated record on the line against fellow NJAC rival Montclair State on Saturday, November 1st at TowneBank Stadium in Newport News.

A perfect day for football, sunny skies, temps in the low 60’s. You couldn’t ask for a better day. And the football game was exciting! Both offenses were clicking in this game, but it was CNU’s defense that rose to the occasion in the 4th quarter with two interceptions including a pick 6 and CNU held on to win 49-42.

I took a trip out to the Lesner Bridge on Sunday morning. I had been hearing that the Ospreys were feeding by the bridge. It was a pretty cloudy and dull morning so I decided to focus mostly on video. However, I’m still trying to get used to my Nikon 800mm PF and believe it or not, the Ospreys were really too close to shoot video at 800mm. A 600mm lens would have been perfect for video here.

Another Saturday morning. Another morning at Stumpy Lake. The leaves were really starting to look like Autumn. The birds were still not there in big numbers.

When I first arrived, I went over to the kayak launch and noticed a lot of small birds in the trees behind me. I turned my attention to them and did my best trying to locate them with my Nikon 800mm PF lens that was attached to my Nikon Z9.

I spent another Saturday morning at Stumpy Lake Natural Area in Virginia Beach. The colors were just starting to change. Still not a lot of birds but there were a few that were in photographic range.

The water level is a bit higher than normal due to the nor’easter we just had, but it didn’t stop this Great Blue Heron from still wading in the water in search of breakfast.

I went over to Stumpy Lake Natural Area in Virginia Beach on Saturday morning to see and shoot some wildlife. And by wildlife, I mean birds. I know it’s still about three or four weeks before they start to show up in large numbers. But I still need to get some practice with my Nikon 800mm PF lens.

We had a nor’easter approaching but it wasn’t going to be here until later in the day. But the clouds really made for some good landscape photography.

Old Dominion’s first conference home game of the season took place October 4, 2025 at S.B. Ballard Stadium in Norfolk as they hosted the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. It was a 6pm kickoff and it was a beautiful evening for football with temperatures in the low 70’s at kickoff. I was bringing along my Nikon Z9 and Nikon Z8 along with my Nikkor 400mm f/4.5 VR S and Nikkor Z 70-200mm f/2.8 VR S lenses.

Old Dominion’s home season kicked off September 6 at S.B. Ballard Stadium in Norfolk as they hosted the North Carolina Central Eagles. It was a 6pm kickoff but it was still a very warm evening to start as the day’s high temperature was 95°F. I was bringing along my Nikon Z9 and Nikon Z8 along with my Nikkor 400mm f/4.5 and Nikkor Z 135mm f/1.8 S Plena lenses.

Old Dominion was coming off a 27-14 loss to the Indiana Hoosiers and were looking for their first win. Trequan Jones of Old Dominion had a monster game gaining 163 yards on only 5 carries. Three of the carries went for touchdowns including runs of 93 yards and 39 yards. Complete coverage of the game can be found here.

I ordered my Nikkor 800mm PF lens from Nikon on Friday night and it was delivered late Saturday evening thanks to priority delivery from Nikon Professional Services.

I went out to the Great Bridge Lock Park on Sunday morning to put it through its paces. The first thing I noticed was how light it was. It’s pretty amazing that a 800mm lens is light enough to be hand-held. It’s only September, so the winter migratory birds have not arrived yet. The Brown Pelicans that were so abundant in February were nowhere to be seen. All in all, the pickings were very slim.

Exploring with Ilford Delta 400 and the Nikon F6

For this roll, I loaded Ilford Delta 400 into my Nikon F6 and carried it across several locations in Chesapeake and Norfolk between December 28, 2024 and February 14, 2025. Delta 400 is one of my favorite black-and-white films because of its fine grain and wide tonal range, which make it a good fit for different subjects and lighting conditions.

Battlefield Park – Great Bridge

I caputured a couple of images at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens after changing film on my F6. From there I moved to Battlefield Park in Great Bridge, where the film’s tonal range really stood out. The mix of open spaces, tree lines, water and the Great Bridge bridge made for varied scenes, and Delta 400 delivered consistent results across them.

Fading Malls and Coastal Light with Kodak Portra 400

This roll of Kodak Portra 400, shot on my Nikon F6, gave me a good mix of subjects to work with—abandoned malls, lakes, bridges, and gardens. Portra 400 handled everything well, showing why it’s such a versatile film. The colors came out natural and balanced, the grain stayed fine, and the film’s wide exposure latitude made it easy to manage both tricky lighting indoors and bright conditions outdoors.