View allAll Photos Tagged APpicoftheweek
I wish you could smell this room... it was filled with drying herbs and the sunlight streaming through the old windows made the odour even stronger and sweeter.
Apparently, in medieval times herbs were used to ward off the "bad smells" that were thought to carry diseases. If only it were that easy!
Thanks for looking!
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Praktica MTL3 / Optomax 35mm lens / Kodak Tri-X 400
Taken at film speed - developed in Ilfosol 3 (1:9, 7'30" - agitation first minute and then inverted once every 30")
Marsh harrier quartering the sand dunes and only flying close when I wasn't looking. North Norfolk coast
I have fond memories of my Cycling Club days. Apart from grinding up hills like a broken ski-lift, trying to keep a steady rhythm on the pedals meanwhile watching my heart rate monitor display figures that defied medical science. I'll walk now thanks...
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Near Hadleigh Castle, Essex UK
Black arches - just at the start of their flight season. In my experience they are never numerous but what a beautiful thing. Some of the best antennae in the insect world. Lymantria monacha
Replicas of one of a number of walrus ivory chess sets buried on the Isle of Lewis around 800 years ago. What today we call the Castle was then the Warder - a warrior so ferocious he bites his shield in frustration - often called the Berserker.
Now how do they do that? A gift from a friend this Christmas, with a familiar face imprinted...!
Not an original Zippo from Bradford, PA but an amusing little thing which I like very much. BTW, I have a small collection of old and original Zippos, now retired and gathering dust.
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Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens. 9 raw image focus merge, 2s delayed shutter, bounce flash & room light, developed and processed in Affinity Photo..
From the Richard Harvey Studio One
Fortunately didn't get out yesterday; told myself I needed to stay in and watch the inauguration but if I'm honest is was more about staying out of the awful weather. A lot of standing water on Deep Lane on the way to Hardwick and I don't think I have ever seen the water level so high in any of the ponds. Outflow from Millers Pond and Great Pond was awesome. The ground is totally saturated with springs in places I have never seen them before.
I should call this one 'Into the Light', certainly contra-jour. It was a lovely bright and sunny morning but it felt cold due to a strong wing; the effects of which can be seen on the surface of the pond. A few people about but everyone keeping to social distancing.
Industrial Saboteur, Chapter 4
The fourth of a series titled Industrial Saboteur. Gearwheels, miniature nuts and bolts that might be fashioned into sculptures and abstracts.
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Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens. 12 image focus merge in Affinity Photo, individual exposures SOOC, 2s delayed shutter, natural light from right, no crop. The yellow is a glass worktop protector borrowed from the kitchen.
From the Richard Harvey Studio One
Delighted to find a few marbled whites feeding on thistles - one of my favourites. Here seen alongside marmalade hoverflies and a thick-knee beetle. I read they have a marked preference for purple flowers - well here they are in the shape of thistles.
Tree nesting duck in a tree. Mandarin numbers keep increasing in Derbyshire, even though every book claims they nest in holes in trees and there are very few duck size tree holes that I can find when I look.
Under the ancient trees there's a light breeze gently swaying the bluebells. We can't quite let them go without a closer look. The 2 shots today will signal my 2024 Bluebell Season Finale. This one catches the early morning light from behind.
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Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens. Single shot, slight curve adjustment and 10:8 crop.
Northlands Wood, Nr Corringham, Essex UK
Duffus Castle, near Elgin, Moray, Scotland, was a motte-and-bailey castle and was in use from c.1140 to 1705. During its occupation it underwent many alterations. The most fundamental was the destruction of the original wooden structure and its replacement with one of stone. At the time of its establishment, it was one of the most secure fortifications in Scotland. At the death of the 2nd Lord Duffus in 1705, the castle had become totally unsuitable as a dwelling and so was abandoned
Further to my earlier post - here's a better impression of the chain of oyster mushrooms I found the other day.
Crazy action in a local pond with frogs and toads totally confused with who is mating with whom. Here 2 frogs atop a toad.
Well, if we simply have to get up in the dark we might as well take advantage...
A short time later as we reached open country it rained, thereby proving the old sailor's adage.
(07:40am Corringham Recreation Ground, Essex UK
SOOC Exposure, 16:9 crop)