Almost…

…spring. As this is posted we are probably in full swing with spring. Hey! A rhyme!

I love this flower. It looks like it has a little tongue sticking out at you. I know the name of it. I search for the plant in the nursery every spring. It makes me smile all summer long.

In this instance a macro lens helps. The flowers are tiny. Every task has its best tool. For closeups… well, rest assured, you can get a shot without a special lens. I did it for a long time. But the purchase is justified in the end by the results and the ease with which the proper tool makes it so much better. Does it? Hey! One always tries to justify expense to my dear wife in the face of a lot of $$ going out the door. My previous macro lens was so old… how old?… it still focused manually. I would liken it to a hard line phone in your home. How quaint!

My cat

We all … shhhhhh… got a favorite… Feather is in my lap as I type… She chose me, long ago, and I remain hers! No one argues. There’s no jealousy. It’s a fact. I guess. Colleen giggles all the time about it. Before we met, I had never “had” a cat. …Kids grow up, they move away… A faithful cat is so “calming” in your lap in the early morning hours as I await my darling wife to awake to greet the new day. A hug from Feather is perfect until then.

Focus, composition, timing, lessons? Really? Either you get a shot, or not. When you do… so, to focus, get the eyes. After that, all follows. Ha ha, Feather? I recognize her by the white fur on her paw(s). Otherwise she is identical to Spice. But, I “belong” to Feather.

Winter

Which came first – climate change or the geographic move to a warmer clime? Since we came there has only been a single blizzard in which our car did not “go.” It’s not good to tempt Mother Nature… yet I am waiting. We really don’t see winter of old where the snow falls and the winter wonderland outside is so peaceful in shades of gray. Color is all around us. It ain’t Florida. But, still, we are rarely snow challenged. Good. I guess.

High contrast – that is to say very bright to very dark. Bright sunlight can take shadow and light to extreme. This is not flattering for faces. In other instances it is hardly noticed. And, other times the bright contrast is an added dimension to the picture. Keep it in mind, and, make your wife look good. She’ll thank you. You’re welcome!

This weekend is Fire and Ice, a display of ice sculptures in town, a festival to make folks stroll and tour the town. Ha ha. It’s due to rain and be about 50 degrees. Have fun.

Inside

Speaking of… when I started taking pictures of the flowers in my garden and before I was using a macro lens again… There is a world of detail inside flowers. Aha! Who knew? Yeah yeah, a whole lot of people and scientists know. I’m late to the party as usual. Or, I am newly bowled over by my discovery. Enthusiasm! Wonderful! Ain’t life grand?

Zoom. There is a limitation on how close up you can get with a regular camera. A macro lens will get you in very close. That would be work. My macro lens was very old and creaky. … till I got a new real one. Meanwhile, I was looking inside all the flowers in my garden. I had the sneaking guilt of looking up girls’ skirts. Ah! Nothing so crass. But suddenly I had new interest in flowers other than a riot of pattern. Anatomy! The inside of a flower had so much fascination.

You can get a lot of detail with patience and a point and shoot camera. And there is more to be had by far with a dedicated macro lens. I have evolved. With my trusty macro lens I cruise my garden about twice a day for images worthy to be captured. The same flowers over and over might be boring. However, flowers are changing constantly. And I keep seeking the perfect image. I am still seeking.

Late afternoon

Later afternoon light comes earlier as daylight savings time fades. Suddenly it gets dark soon after 5PM. I hate it. Out with the cats on the deck for an afternoon stroll… there were a few last images in the fast receding summer garden. The light is now a rosy glow as contrasted to harsh midday sun. Great!

Focus – I coulda done better. it’s soft. There are details. Sure, something is always gonna be in focus. Composition – ok, Subject – what’s my point? I am drawn to the stamens more than the petals. But the real point was the late afternoon light giving that glow only seen around sunset. I have SAD. The light at this time of day makes me wistful.

(Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that comes and goes in a seasonal pattern. SAD is sometimes known as “winter depression” because the symptoms are usually more apparent and more severe during the winter.)

I wish

There is always something more. More? Yes, more to make the picture better. Do you really need it? For the beloved black cat in a bag – Tillie could always have more texture to her fur. She’s a black cat! It ain’t easy to do. Lightroom or Photoshop algorithms will help. Out of the camera the shot was “arresting.” Did the adjustments make a difference?

Bee on a flower. Sure. Everyday. Closeup. Special. We’ve all seen this before. So? Improvement. I wish – pollen on the legs; better flower; better bee detail…. Nice shot? Yeah. Yup! I think so. Did it need more? Not for me. I’m amateur. This is not my day job. Enjoy!

Hullo

The pandemic is still amongst us. It’s early for Halloween. Colleen greeted the flower with a name? It looks like a hibiscus to me. But I am probably wrong. We were happy to see it.

The attitude used to be: “I’ll fix it later in Photoshop.” No, it is wrong to be lazy. Do the work when you take the pic. Compose, focus, edit. I have become reticent to crop or adjust in post process editing. Otherwise, out of the “box” works for me.

It works like this. I have edited and criticized my own work often in the past. The admonishments play gently cajoling me to zoom closer or toe compose better. Watch the background distractions. Sometimes you just can’t get a better shot? I know this. I just keep trying.

Dilemma

Passionflower. What catches your eye? Do you focus on the petal, stamen, pistil? Composition? Whole flower or close-up? The color alone makes the image stand out in the catalog.

Here’s my choice. Eye catching! Could it be better? Always! There is something that caught my attention immediately while editing. Perfect? Nope. But close enough to open a discussion.

Double

I got a double blossom. Deformity. How unusual!? It happens? No harm. I suppose it will not happen again. I got seven cats. This one with two pictures.

Focus. It’s all about the focus for me. Eyes. You have to have the eyes in focus. Flowers? I focus on the center, more or less. Petals or center? The viewers eye drifts to the center. In the portrait is is Peas’ eye that counts. Stay focused.

Today

I cruise my garden about once a day. Today a butterfly flew into my view as I was about to focus. Okay! Nice shot. Purely fortuitous timing. Really!

And a caterpillar! With a matching red flower. Come to think of it, I do not think I have seen a red caterpillar. Talk about shoes to match the bag…. Hey! It was a lucky day!

Technical? Well, focus is the key to all. The details of the caterpillar hair ensures your image is sharp. I try to focus on the eye of the butterfly. It’s nice if the antennae are sharp.

Caterpillars move slow. A butterfly paused on a flower is also in one spot. The butterfly did not stay long. The caterpillar burrowed under a petal. Photo op done.