This gourd no doubt came from a long line of mutants.
Nature
09-24-12 Winter Eclipse
This is was shot in minimal light a few years ago. Having heard that there was going to be a total lunar eclipse on this night, Deb and I went driving to find a good locale to see and photograph the moon. I finally found this four trees posing nicely in front the waning moon.
09-21-12 Stare-Down
This photo was taken at the Alaska Raptor Center just outside of Sitka. I was shooting through mesh wire with a telephoto lens. I said, "Smile" and this is the look I got.
09-16-12 The Empty Nest
My wife spotted this small nest with a single unhatched egg a while back. I checked the nest again this morning and found that the bird has apparently "flown the coop." I have no idea of what kind bird egg this is and of course I have no way of knowing whether the little bird is living a successful life or not. But I do like the late summer symbolism of the empty nest. It kind of like kids going off to college. . .
09-14-12 Arachnophilia?
In a word, "no," I don't love spiders. But I don't hate or fear them, either. Given that I have posted one other spider (here) and two spider webs (here and here) in this blog in the last month, you should be able to infer my fascination with spiders.What was interesting about this particular spider is that I took several macro shots of the bark of the tree he/she is on before I even noticed him/her (how do you tell gender?). The other interesting thing about this spider is that it didn't move at all, even though my lens was only inches from it. Sleeping? Dead? Dormant? I can't say.
09-05-12 Full Bloom
As the flowers fade, the days get shorter and the nights get cooler, mundane shots of a simple flower in summer bloom start to look better and better. I took this photo in late June and the image file was gathering dust amongst the 12,000 photos in my 2012 Aperture library.Canon 5DIII 1/400s f/2.8 ISO400 100mm
08-27-12 Dewey Web
When I looked outside yesterday and noticed that our town was enveloped in a thick fog, I figured I would find something unusually photogenic . So when my wife and I went on our morning walk, I did something I don't normally do - I took my camera.Initially, I was disappointed because it was actually too foggy to get much of anything. But then I noticed hundreds of spider webs on fences and plants along the walkway. The webs were coated with beads of water because the air was so humid.I must have taken 30 photos before catching up with Deb, who was walking ahead. But I wasn't satisfied. So I went back a little bit later, this time with my macro lens and tripod. I took another 50 photos and this one is one that I liked.I especially like that each one of the beads of water is a little lens, which reflects the brown and green terrain behind the web and the foggy white sky above. Of course, because it is a lens, everthing is upside down.And, if I hadn't taken my camera, I wouldn't have seen the webs. What's the moral of this story? When I carry my camera, I am a photographer. And when I'm a photographer, I see the world a different way.
08-12-12 Wonderful Web
08-09-12 Native Grass
08-01-12 Feed Me, Seymour
So here's and example of what I was talking about yesterday when I said the sunflower had amazing textures. The plant has a bit of a gothic appearance. And, no, this is not a cousin of the man-eating plant that stars in "The Little Shop of Horrors."
07-29-12 Wing Span
I'm not really equipped to photograph birds in flight - I need a much bigger lens. But, When twelve big bird started circling the trees not too far from the Spring Creek marina, I decided (being pushed by my wife) that I needed to try to photograph one.This one came pretty much overhead, though even with my 200mm telephoto, I had to crop out about 80% of the photo to get a decent "close-up." In case my wife is wondering why I keep getting higher resolution cameras, this photo will certainly answer that question. Now, Deb, how about letting me get a 400mm lens?(We thought these might be eagles but after doing a little research, I've decided they are turkey vultures or buzzards. Oh well. . . )
07-26-12 Morning Rain
