My 2014 Weekly Photos

Well Peter, that shed doesn't have anything in the way of heating so at this time of the year the air can be quite damp. But I deliberately picked some older tools which were produced without any protective chromium finish to enhance the old tool appearance.

And those larger spanners were made to fit Whitworth nuts!

I like the edited version better, Geoff. You really brought out the rust. I'm not quite at retirement age, yet, but I must admit my body sometimes feels the way those tools look. :)

Sergio

Week 10 - Some Early Insects

Today started bright and clear so I thought I would try my large lens for some garden birds while I was doing some weeding etc. And, of course, the birds promptly vanished. :(

But I noticed some early Spring insects were buzzing around a Camellia bush; so a quick change of lenses.

Honey Bees

These were doing well from the camellia flowers, but like all bees they were rushing around faster than I could focus. So this is the only shot which was anything like usable.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...6/original.jpg

Eristalis tenax

One of the hoverflies which is a bee mimic. And this one was a rather timid beast so I had to shoot between leaves at a distance of 2 feet.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...7/original.jpg

One of the Chloropidae species of flies

These brightly coloured flies are tiny; only around 4 mm overall length. The males were rushing around on leaves trying to attract females, which made focusing difficult.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...8/original.jpg

They always seem attracted to crocus flowers, particularly the striped versions. This one was coming in to land rather quickly so this is the best I could manage in the way of focus. Seems to me that it is in a science fiction type of 'attracting beam'. :D But the crocus petal at the bottom will give an idea of size.

http://i60.tinypic.com/2afdhq9.jpg

All shot with 7D and Sigma 180 macro lens, plus a 1.4x converter for the smaller subjects. Tripod and flash. 1/200 F14 Iso 200 manually set on camera with varying amounts of flash compensation to suit the conditions.

#2 is my best:)

I also love #2... Beautiful!

Great images Geoff,am i right in saying #2 is a dronefly?,i love #3 also great colours,well done!

David

Yes, David, Eristalis tenax is sometimes referred to as a Drone Fly, because of the similarity to Honey Bees. But easily separated from bees by comparing the antennae.

Those tiny flies (#3) always give me problems. Besides their size, they reflect the light and are usually over exposed. I had to do a little bit of cloning on hotspots with this one.

Week 11 - Start Point Lighthouse

A nice sunny calm and mild morning which was too good not to go somewhere. So I drove to this point to see if I could get an angle on the lighthouse.

But it has been damp for some time and there was still a lot of moisture in the air. And the sky was rapidly filling with cloud. The light was from the right side which limited my options.

Took many shots but most were quickly discarded as I was struggling to find a perfect angle. Both of these are a merge of two different exposures.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...1/original.jpg

1/500 F11 Iso 400. I used a fairly high shutter speed because of the slight surf.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...2/original.jpg

1/400 F9 Iso 200

More nice images Geoff,looks like you had a bit of a climb to get no.2 in the bag,Well captured!

David

Missed out on week 10 but some nice images. Not seeing much airborne activity up here yet. Like the second of the lighthouse. Nice composition. How are the floods going? Needless to say they have dropped out of the front line news.

Great bugs in the previous series.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by John 2

Missed out on week 10 but some nice images. Not seeing much airborne activity up here yet. Like the second of the lighthouse. Nice composition. How are the floods going? Needless to say they have dropped out of the front line news.

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We weren't too badly affected by flooding here, at least when compared with some areas.

The local authorities have finally agreed on funding for repairs to the drainage pipe at the car park, which I posted previously; but it probably won't be completed until well into the summer.

And along the coast, the railway line which was washed away at Dawlish is ahead of schedule and should be finished before Easter.

With regard to the lighthouse shots, I have tried this scene before, and decent angles are hard to find.

The general overview shot meant going over the fence and standing close to the cliff edge, but at least it was a calm day. And I discovered the other one by walking along a narrow rough track, and over several rocky outcrops, following what is probably a trail created by the bird watchers.

Certainly a difficult struggle when you are in the retired category. And part way along, I realised that my mobile phone was still in the car. Always a sobering thought when you are doing something silly! :eek:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Geoff F

Week 11 - Start Point Lighthouse

A nice sunny calm and mild morning which was too good not to go somewhere. So I drove to this point to see if I could get an angle on the lighthouse.

But it has been damp for some time and there was still a lot of moisture in the air. And the sky was rapidly filling with cloud. The light was from the right side which limited my options.

Took many shots but most were quickly discarded as I was struggling to find a perfect angle. Both of these are a merge of two different exposures.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...1/original.jpg

1/500 F11 Iso 400. I used a fairly high shutter speed because of the slight surf.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...2/original.jpg

1/400 F9 Iso 200

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Interesting angles of the lighthouse. Nice variety.

I especially like the 2nd lighthouse image for the composition, and the beautiful soft colours and details captured in the ocean and the sky...

I like both of them:)

Geoff, while I like both of the lighthouse images I am leaning towards the 1st, oh wait a minute, maybe the 2nd:) Any ways, I am enjoying them both. I too think it is the soft colors that are really grabbing me. Nicely done.

Thanks for the comments, everybody.

It was certainly a 'pastel shades day' and I have added a little bit of selective brightness and LCE to try for a slight bit of 'pop' without going too far.

Week 12 - And deep in the woods, elves are constructing houses for dormice.

Some quick shots while they worked; and the light wasn't much good. A mixture of sun from the wrong angle and strong shadows.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...9/original.jpg

Canon 40D with 24-105 lens. 1/125, F11, Iso 400.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...1/original.jpg

1/200 F11 Iso 400.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...2/original.jpg

1/80 F11 Iso 400

And how to saw the bench in half. :D

In reality there was a little bit more of a gap than it looks from this angle.

http://www.pbase.com/crustacean/imag...3/original.jpg

1/125 F11 Iso 400.

With these boxes, produced from these local craftsmen, there wasn't one straight edge or a 90 degree angle to be seen! :eek:

With these images, I have brightened the shadows a bit but I am wondering if a high contrast alternative, as shot, might actually have a little more drama. I will have another play around later then decide.

Well here is a higher contrast version of the first image.

http://i60.tinypic.com/sb61qc.jpg

Another nice series Geoff:)

Higher contrast looks better Geoff:)