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I encountered this tree branch on a short hike on a rainy day while Deb and I were sailing in the Virgin Islands. I'm not sure if the caterpillars were seeking shelter from the rain on the underside of the branch or if they were up to something else. Though what caterpillars might be "up to" is a bit beyond me, not that I would attempt to pass judgement on the purpose of a caterpillar's life. . .
In honor of a predicted afternoon temperature of -15 F today*, I have left the tropics to return to a subject I started a few days ago: window frost. This time, I've created another triptych.** And even though I was amazed the first time I studied these macro photos, I am just amazed today.
If those of us in the Great Plains need a reason to feel good about our weather, people in the tropics never get to see beautiful, frosty windows.
*That's -26 for the Celsius fans. **Thanks again Dennis Newman for the inspiration.
Canon 5DIII 1/125s f/5.0 ISO100 100mm
I found these empty shoes early one morning at the resort we were staying at recently in Mexico. There was something evocative about the bright blue Crocs and I photographed them exactly as I found them. Interestly, the next morning they had been moved to another nearby location. And, of course, I photographed them again. On the third day, they were gone.
Canon 5DIII 1/500s f/2.8 ISO250 100mm
I have written about the "countless unseen details" that artists concentrate in their attempt to approach the "sublime" in their creations. In the case of this composite photo of brain coral, my title refers to Nature as the creator, not me. Frankly, all I did was record and compile the detail in this coral. But, as macro photography often does, you are being allowed to look at coral in a way you may not have done before. And there is amazing detail here that often goes unseen.
Brain coral evokes a powerful childhood memory in me, incidentally. My grandma, who lived next door to us in Sioux Fall, SD, had a perfect piece of brain coral on her front porch. I was fascinated by it largely because my older brother told me it was a petrified human brain. That was so cool. But why did Ida have a petrified human brain on her front porch, I wondered? Oh, to be a child again. . . .
I had mentioned yesterday that I had another photo that showed a drastic difference between what the human eye sees and what the camera "sees." Yesterday, the difference had to do with focus, depth of field and bokeh. What today's photo demonstrates may not be so obvious unless you understand the concept of "dynamic range."
Dynamic range is the term used by digital photographers to describe a camera's ability to show the range of shades in a scene from very bright to very dark. And, generally speaking, cameras don't do such as good job compared to the human eye, which is brilliant.
When I saw this palm leaf, singled out by the relatively bright sky above, I didn't see what you see in the photo. I saw the highlights as bright green and the shadows as dull green. And when I took the photo and looked at it on the built-in screen, I thought, "Wow! I didn't see that." And I liked it.
I'll admit that I did use a few fancy software processes to boost the dynamic range of the photo a bit. But I didn't want to kill the highlights you see here. Is is a good photo? I can't say. But, as I've already said, I like it.
Canon 5DIII 1/60s f/4.0 ISO640 102mm
And for detail junkies, Here's the raw, unprocessed file
My title for this post isn't so much about the fact that we don't see rain, or rain-drenched leaves in our normal experiences. Though most people rarely stop to study a leaf as closely as I'm asking you to do it here.
What I mean is that the camera "sees" things very differently than humans do, including color, contrast and focus. And for sure the human eye can't see unfocused areas* as the lens does because when we look at another point in a scene, our eyes automatically focus there.
And discovering the unexpected is one of the reasons I find so much joy in making a photo.
And speaking of joy, welcome to 2014! I will be celebrating five years of "A Photo A Day" soon and I do appreciate you, the viewers, who certainly provide another source of joy for me.
*The unfocused areas are called bokeh. In this photo, the blurred circles in the background are other rain drops hanging on other leaves like the one you see in focus here.
Canon 5DIII 1/100s f/4.0 ISO400 102mm
I guess it's appropriate that the final post of 2013 is a photo of our grand daughter, Glenyce Jane, whose arrival on June 2 was no doubt the biggest event in the life of the Shephard/Brass family this year. As everyone who has a grandchild has told me, she has been a blessing and a true marvel.
This photo wasn't staged and is the result of a little luck, as is so often the case in photography. Deb was intending to read this book to little Glenyce but Glenyce decided she would rather taste it instead. And I happened to have my camera ready.
Having traveled only to South Dakota and back from her native city of St. Paul, Glenyce isn't yet a "global baby." But given the nature of the world and the inclinations of her parents, she will certainly be cosmopolitan, which literally means a "citizen of the world." The world is lucky to have her. She is, of course, smart, beautiful and everything else that grandparents say about their grandchildren. :-)
Canon 5DIII 1/100s f/2.8 ISO800 100mm
When you look closely at the amazing details of a frosty window it's not hard to understand why someone chose to personify the creator under the name of Jack Frost. Ever since I was a child, I've been fascinated by the seemingly random yet ordered patterns of the kind seen in this photo.
Unfortunately, due to improved window glazing, this kind of window frost is less often seen. But fortunately my son and his family live in a venerable older home in St. Paul, MN. They may not appreciate the heating bills but I appreciate the beauty of Jack Frost's art.
If you would like to see more of this series (8 more photos) click here.
Canon 5DIII 1/60s f/5.6 ISO100 100mm
We arrived back in Minneapolis last night from a week in Mexico. The temperature was a balmy 27 degrees F. But in Watertown, SD, it is -14.
And so I thought it was appropriate (and maybe even good for the soul) that I should post a photo of a tropical plant covered with rain drops that I saw yesterday morning at the resort we were staying at. But in spite of the 94 degree temperature difference, I am happy to be on the way home.
I taking a bit of a break from writing and in the process giving you at bit of a break, as well. Enjoy the photo.
I taking a bit of a break from writing and in the process giving you at bit of a break, as well. Enjoy the photo.
Canon 5DIII 1/30s f/4.0 ISO400 100mm
This is the third in a series that I am now calling "Shades of Green in Black and White." This one was taken in the fern room at the Como Park Conservatory. I won't tell you what I like about this photo other than that I love the play of light on the contours of the fern fronds.
Canon 5DIII 1/50s f/6.3 ISO500 100mm
