RupertG's flickr score: 4582

Please remember that all images are copyrighted and cannot be used without permission and credit.

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Since purchasing my first digital camera I’ve found an intense appreciation for nature and you’ll see that most of my shots are of nature. You’ll never realize the awesome detail and complexity of a common insect or a tiny flower until you look closely at them.

I try to get the names correct but I’m not always right or I’ll omit them because I don’t know. Please feel free to correct or advise me either by a post to the picture or to my flickr email. I’ll make the correction as soon as I’m able to.

I try to maintain a few rules for myself while taking my images.

No insects or plants are hurt or destroyed to get a “good” shot. I may pluck a few strands of grass, move a leaf, lie on my belly, stand on my head, or hold my breath until blue to get a better angle but that’s about the limit. When it seems I might be stressing the subject I back off. I believe they have as much right to enjoy their life as I have to enjoy mine and it’s not my right to harass them. I apologize to any elk or deer I’ve disturbed however I think I may have been more startled. My photos are “opportunistic”, in other words I move about, investigate, and explore to find a good or interesting shot. I very seldom contrive my shots by removing anything from its originally discovered location to a “better” location. These rules apply only to me, I would never want to imply that doing otherwise is wrong.

I use adobe elements to make minor touchups and I note so next to the image number, for example:

_c = crop

_l = level

_a = adjustment, (highlight/shadows)

_u = unsharp

_art = some sort of artistic change, usually I can’t remember what that was!

The image number is noted as a tag or in the “old” days the title.

Now that I’m using RAW I may make minor changes to that image, usually to the temperature, I tend towards warm. I don’t document these changes.

New equipment (July 2006)

Canon EOS 20D

Kit Lens EF-S 18-55 mm

Macro lens EF-S 60 1:2.8 USM

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM (3-26-07)

A set of diopter filters.

Slik Sprint Pro GM tripod

Manfrotto 484RC2 Ball Mount

Manfrotto 694 Magfiber monopod.

A very large wish list.

Original equipment is the Pentax OptioWP (now with a cracked LCD).

Thanks go to all of you flickr’ers for your comments, for your assistance in naming some of my subjects and your guidance as to what makes a good image. If I don’t respond with a posted thank you, believe me, thank you.