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Die Mega-Rose steht in einem Kübel auf der Terrasse vor der Neuen Nationalgalerie. Sie überragt die Nationalgalerie und sendet
ihre Botschaft, besucht die Ausstelllung "75/75" der Künstlerin Isa Genzken.
Danke für Euren Besuch, liebe Freunde.
© Alle Rechte vorbehalten.
The Mega Rose stands in a tub on the terrace in front of the Neue Nationalgalerie. It towers over the National Gallery and sends
its message, visit the exhibition "75/75" by the artist Isa Genzken.
Thank you for your visit, dear friends.
© All rights reserved.
La méga-rose se trouve dans un bac sur la terrasse devant la Neue Nationalgalerie. Elle surplombe la Nationalgalerie et envoie
son message, visitez l'exposition "75/75" de l'artiste Isa Genzken.
Merci de votre visite, chers amis.
© Tous droits réservés.
Give me your wondering eyes
and I'll peer into the roots of things.
Give me your skilful hands
and I'll sow the seeds of your dreams.
Give me your chestful of thoughts
and I'll pour its treasures through the sky.
Give me your breath of life
and I'll spread my wings to fly.
Give me your awestruck silence
and it'll ease the agony of absence.
Give me your warm, glowing heart
and I'll be alive, at last.
Hi my friends, here it is another sunrise from Umbria, Italy - actually, same time and same place as one of my previous uploads (Then Someone drew the curtains and..., as you can easily see from the warped trunk of the oak tree near the center of the scene).
If you are thinking that it is a bit more than pretentious that an Italian is composing verses in English, you are in part right - only in part, though, since I do not assume that I have written good verses, but I felt like trying to convey the emotions that went with the adventure of processing this scene. Hope that the result is at least decent.
I have obtained this picture by blending an exposure bracketing [-1.3/0/+1.3 EV] by luminosity masks in the Gimp (EXIF data, as usual, refer to the "normal exposure" shot), then I added some final touches with Nik Color Efex Pro 4 (and a little trick of mine involving a bw version of the photo). Raw files has been processed with Darktable.
Beautiful scenery awaits as you leave Anchorage on the Seward Hwy and head toward the Kenai Peninsula. The Turnagain Arm is a body of water that has the unusual phenomenon of bore tides. The sandbars dotted against the beautiful blue of the water make a striking effect. Add the mountain backdrop and you've got a winner!
#MacroMondays
#OneWord
I admit I'm a little late for Halloween but the (pretty scary but visually beautiful) 2019 Lovecraftian horror movie with Nicolas Cage and Joely Richardson came to my mind while searching for a title for this photo. And it's probably the "Protection" against said "Color Out of Space".
You've seen small parts of this Casio G-Shock watch for two earlier MM themes (please see the first comment). Please don't ask me how I got this distortion effect. I wanted to get as close as possible to the "Protection" lettering (that you find on all G-Shocks) while showing all its letters, and I wanted to play with sharpness and blur. That's the obvious part. At one point I put the translucent red plastic lid behind the little scene instead of using it as a colour filter, next I rearranged the LED lamps, and the weird distortion just happened. I liked it so I took a few images. And since my first idea didn't work out as planned, I decided to stick to the "pink distortion".
The "Protection" lettering measures 1,7 cm/0,66 inches. The photo is a single shot taken with the Laowa 50mm Ultra Macro lens. Processed mainly in DXO PhotoLab 8 and LR, and I had to do some de-dusting in PS although I had carefully polished the watch before taking the photo. It's the old macro dust story ;)
HMM, Everyone!
#FenceFriday
Some fence and bokeh fun for Friday. Photo taken on a recent stroll around the corner to check out my "new-old" Lumix GX9 and my rediscovered OM System 20mm F1.4 lens.
The GX9 is another new, used acquisition (this time from MPB), a camera I considered buying back in 2018 when, for rational grounds (High-Res mode, splashproof, designated HDR button, etc., all of what the GX9 doesn't have), I got the Oly EM-5 Mark II instead but, strangely, never warmed up to the latter so I traded it in for the OM1 two years ago. Of my few outings so far with the GX9 I can say that the camera was instant fun. True, the electrical viewfinder is nothing to call home about but still nice to have, and it's a cool feature that it can be folded up. And the battery life... it shares the battery with the much smaller LX100 series, so it doesn't last that long but since I now also own both LX 100s (I and, since Easter, the Mark II) and I already had a couple of extra batteries for these, it's not a big deal.
With the huge hype about (and general unavailability of) the Fuji X100V and VI, cameras like the GX9 (and even the still older GX80/85), the Ricoh GRIII, the 8-year-old Pen-F and such are being extremely hyped up as well right now. So I'm glad I got a GX9 copy "as new". I'd have loved to get a Pen-F but the "as new" prices are almost the same as the original retail price of its release year 2016, and that's insane.
As for the 20mm F1.4 lens, the 40mm equivalent is a focal length I like very much. However, at first, I also didn't warm up to that lens, either. I thought it lacked in sharpness, and my copy suffers from extreme red (!) and turquoise-green chromatic aberrations which, however, can be dealt with in post even if it takes a few more slider tweaks than your regular aberrations. But I love the bubbly bokeh and the general rendering, and now, the first walk with the GX9 confirmed that the lens's sharpness is excellent. So it will see more camera time in the future.
In case you've read to this point (and I could understand if you haven't): Wishing you HFF, and a nice weekend!
#MacroMondays
#Iron
This is an item that I've already used for the MM theme "Made of Metal" back in 2017: it's a broad, rustic-looking bracelet/bangle made of iron (please see the first comment).
Since I didn't want to reuse the "volcano" idea, I decided to focus on the interesting-looking forged surface of the bracelet which reminds me of an ancient secret code or tribal drawings. It's about the iron the bracelet was made of, after all, not the holes that are a design element.
Even though it doesn't look like a focus stacking image, it is one, made of 15 single Raw shots combined in Helicon Focus (method B, radius 8, smoothing 1). At first, I had taken a few images with the Laowa Ultra Macro lens but the DOF, even when stopped down, was way too shallow for a theme that highlights a special material.
The width, from the bracelet's outer edge to the edge of one of the aforementioned holes (in the upper right corner), is exactly 1 cm/0,39 inches. I used the translucent red chocolate box lid as a background, and some blue light (from the left, created with the semi-translucent blue snack can lid) as colour dashes. To highlight the bracelet's surface texture, I illuminated it with my small LED flashlight (set on "spotlight") from above which added a silvery look to it. Actually, the bracelet is of that quite typical, darkish-grey colour one would expect from something made of iron.
HMM, Everyone! I'll catch up with you a little later!
#MacroMondays
#TeddyBear
Caught in the act, arrested, and found guilty of beguiling people worldwide into indulging in sweets: the (in)famous Goldbear®, gummy bear by nature, criminal mastermind by design. Interrogations brought his cunning methods to light: a particularly lulling chanting technique called the "Nom chant®". It turns people into totally submissive underlings, nom®ing away without reason until the bag is empty. At least the convict had the grace to duly blush in shame of his evil deeds when his mugshot was taken.
This photo is quite similar to my "Grumpy Rainbow Bear" image (please see the first comment) that I took back in October 2020 for our "Translucent" theme, a "face to face" front view setup. I had this one idea which I was so sure would work out that I didn't start shooting before Sunday evening. You know what's coming. It. Didn't. Work. The glass bear in this image is a giant (in comparison with its tiny edible brothers and sisters) shaped like the original Haribo gummy bear. I have no idea what deluded me into thinking that I could make the shapes of real gummy bears visible if I placed them behind the glass bear's head. The glass bear's head is not only 4 cm / 1, 57 inches wide (which gives you an idea about the size of the frame), but also 3,5 cm deep: much too thick to see anything behind it except colours.
So what next? One lucky thing in this failed setup was that I needed something to put the gummy bears on to bring them to the right height with the glass bear's head. And for that, I randomly used the semi-transparent yellow washing liquid bottle lid that I use as a colour filter for my LED lamps. And all of a sudden the Goldbear® appeared... I had placed two red gummy bears behind the glass bear's head which created a nice blushing effect which gave me the idea for the short crime story. A happy ending? In a way, yes, but I wish I would stop repeating the same mistake over and over again: starting too late with the MM shooting ;)
One last question: What is your favourite gummy bear/ fruit jelly candy colour and flavour?
HMM, Everyone!
...with an angel...
#MacroMondays
#Wing
I didn't have much choice for "Wing" if I didn't want to photograph the white feather again. So I photographed a souvenir from a cruise along the Danube in December 2016, a tiny guardian angel pendant/talisman bought at Melk Abbey, the famous monastery complex in Austria. Melk was the first station of that cruise, albeit way too short. Our group was rushed through the most important parts of the impressive and huge building complex in a guided tour, and we were only left "off the leash" at the souvenir shop, so that is the clearest memory I have from Melk because the guided tour itself was somewhat of an information (and image) overload.
Since, as you know, sharpness isn't everything and the pattern of the silver wings gave a nice bokeh, I decided to go for the blur, focusing only on the tip of the tiny angel's right wing (or the left wing; it's practically identical here because the angel's head and body are made of two amethyst beads that you can turn around every way you want to). The "eyes" are the two LED lamps I'd placed on both sides of the talisman. The blur helps to obscure any unwanted detail or dust on the amethyst beads. I also used the natural light LED light from above, placed slightly behind the angel so it would give just a little bit of backlight to give a nice glow to the semi-translucent beads.
HMM, Everyone, and have a nice week ahead!
Wandeling 1105 OUD-VALKENBURG - WIJLRE 13,3 km.
Start in Wijlre.
Tijdens deze heuvelachtige wandeling wandelt u eerst langs het mooie kasteel Schaloen en dan volgt u een mooi pad langs de meanderende Geul naar Schin op Geul. Dan loopt u een mooie stuk door het prachtige Geuldal en via mooi graspad langs de toeristische spoorlijn komt u in Wijlre waar u bij Brasserie Amuseer komt, een mooie pauzeplek met terras. Dan loopt u o. a. langs kasteel Wijlre naar de buurtschap Beertsenhoven. Via mooie stijgende holle veldweg komt u boven op het Plateau van Margraten. Via leuk bos en trappenpad komt u in het mooie rustige Gerendal. Vervolgens loopt u via mooi pad door het Gerendal terug naar Het Valkennest met mooi gelegen terras. U kunt ook starten in Wijlre bij Brasserie Amuseer (punt 4) en dan pauzeren (koffie en vlaai) bij Het Valkennest (geen restaurant).
#MacroMondays
#DutchAngle
A classic: I took a few first shots, thought "This is nice, maybe I should take a look at the images first," and then simply continued taking photos with differently coloured smiley beads, from different angles (and yes, that short, golden-glittery ribbon was hard to handle because it kept twisting) – of course without taking a look first. And then I ended up using one of the first photos anyway. Duh. Actually, the very first set of (focus-stacked) photos was that of an autumn leaf. It turned out very nice, and I will also upload it this week because it's too nice not to. I will explain on Wednesday why I didn't pick it for our "Dutch Angle" theme.
Back to the smiley: The golden-glittery ribbon that once belonged to a small present bag originally was one part of my second idea for last Monday's "Cogwheel". Just for fun, I had placed the plastic cogs on the ribbon and I liked the bokeh the quite roughly woven fabric created. But it somehow didn't make much sense to put cogs on a glitter ribbon except that it looked nice, and since the theme's focus was on the cogs, not on bokeh, I discarded the idea for later. And "later" already happened to be yesterday. So does it make sense to put a smiley bead on a golden ribbon? No, but it looks nice.
For the smiley photo, I used the Laowa Ultra Macro lens because it creates such nice bokeh and because I only needed a single shot for this idea anyway. To enhance the bokeh, I used the small gold-coated cardboard cake board that I held above the ribbon (illuminated by a single LED lamp from the right). I also used an LED lamp from the left, set to a lower angle, to illuminate the smiley bead. I had considered backlight (which I had used for the leaf) but it took away contrast from the semi-translucent bead, so I stuck to my two light sources.
Processing: I did the basics in DXO PhotoLab 8 and Lightroom and did some minor enhancements in Color Efex such as "Brilliance and Warmth" and "Detail Extractor" for some parts of the bokeh.
HMM, Everyone!
... But the crows will get it first ;)
Explored September 22, 2023
The hotels Waldorf Astoria (on the left) and Upper West (a Motel One hotel) in Berlin's Charlottenburg district. At a height of 118,8 meters (389,76 feet) each, both buildings are among the highest in Berlin. Not exactly skyscraper dimensions but not to be scoffed at either ;) Both buildings are fairly new, the Waldorf Astoria opened in 2013, and the Upper West in 2017. Side by side in the City West are the luxurious Waldorf Astoria and the way more affordable Motel One. The Waldorf Astoria's building is officially called Zoofenster ("zoo window") because Berlin's Zoological Garden lies right across it.
Photography-wise, the Upper West with its futuristic look and the elegant curves is the more interesting subject, but this view up with both buildings in the frame, taken from the center strip of Kantstrasse, also looked interesting, especially with the cotton candy sky :)
P.S. This was taken with the Laowa C-Dreamer 7.5 mm F/2, not the (equally fantastic) C-Dreamer 6mm (which belongs to my Mom, magrit k.. I forgot to change my camera's lens info settings back to the 7.5 mm lens.
The second shot in the series I captured while visiting the Ocean Beach community of San Diego earlier this year.
OB is a great place, super laid back with great people. Definitely a nice place to visit while in San Diego.
I was drawn to the crack between these two rocks where the water would rush in and out with the tide.
Image was captured with my D4 using a Lee Big Stopper to get the exposure down to two minutes.
#MacroMondays
#Hexagon
Another spoke reflector, shiny and new (yes, I bought it for the theme). The honey jar lid (I don't know how it is in your countries, but in Germany, we often have specific honey jars with lids that are either printed with a bee picture or have a nice 3D hexagonal honeycomb pattern) was easier to photograph but I somehow was set on the reflector.
As you know, the typical cat's eye-style bicycle reflector also has a honeycomb-like structure that is best seen when photographed straight from the front. When you slightly turn the reflector to the side, however, these hexagons turn into cascade-like cubes which is almost like an optical illusion. And this is what I aimed for. I wanted to show this peculiar optical illusion, and include the cube shapes.
I tried to "place" the transition from hexagon to cube in the center diagonal line (bottom left corner to upper right corner), and I think it (kind of) worked, but I have looked at this image a tad too often today to see the forest for the trees. So I hope I don't give you a headache with this image ;)
HMM, Everyone, and have a great week ahead!
One of my favorite winter visitors to our garden. Here he sits on a crepe myrtle branch near the feeder patiently waiting his turn for a meal...
#MacroMondays
#Paper
A rare "close-up" photograph of one of the many solar flares on Papyrus, the sun of the Charta-spissa solar system. "Close-up" in this planetary context means that it was taken at a distance of 2:1 million kilometers from Papyrus. The photographic material was commissioned by me and provided by Roby, intergalactic traveller, cake lover, and UFO sightings creator, or should I say perpetrator (whenever she is visiting our solar system she simply can't resist causing some UFO sightings for the records). Some of you might remember Roby, and for more info on her, please see the first comment.
Solar flares on a star like Papyrus might sound like a contradiction – given the material this star and all the planets of Charta-spissa consist of – but, in reality, are not. Due to Papyrus' specific surface properties, its flares are extremely long-lasting, slow, and cold. To the untrained eye, they might even appear permanent. So Roby had all the time in the world to choose the prettiest of the many Papyrus flares and properly set my (I lent it to her) camera and extreme zoom lens ("Why can't I shoot in "P" mode, Silke?" "Because "P" mode is boring, Roby." "But your camera is sooo complicated!" "When you come back, you get an extra Pastel de Nata with lots of Dulce de Leche on top for your efforts, Roby, I promise.").
As for Papyrus' surface properties: This is one of the cardboard "reflectors" I use to help illuminate my macro photos. This one is small and round, and it was part of a small chocolate cardboard box I once got as a present. The, rather thin (1 mm / 0,039 inches), cardboard is laminated on both sides (gold and silver, I believe it's thin foil that is used for lamination), just like cake (or fish packaging) board. I used the gold-coated side which I "coloured" red with the help of the translucent red plastic chocolate box lid and an LED lamp. I also used my small LED Lenser flashlight (set on spotlight), handheld from the right, which created/brought out the web-like golden pattern.
Now I was a little unsure if it still counts as "Paper" if it's laminated (although technically, it still is because it's the main material), but the part in focus, the "flares", are pure paper: two small frays on the cardboard's edge that slightly protrude from it. So I think (hope) my photo is within the theme's requirements. The bigger of the two "flares" is 2 mm / 0,078 inches long. It's a single shot taken with the Laowa Ultra Macro lens at a little less than 2:1 magnification.
I'll catch up with you later.
HMM, Everyone!
Every shade of purple shows itself in the clematis blossom... “All the other colors are just colors, but purple seems to have a soul. Purple is not just a noun and an adjective but also a verb — when you look at it, it's looking back at you.” ~Uniek Swain~
#florida_scrub_jay #florida #best_birds_planet #planet_birds #birdbrilliance #birdphotography #nature #wildlifephotography #birdextreme #bestbirdshots #discovertheworld #nature_perfection #wildlifeperfection #gregorymountainpacks #canon #gitzo #leofotousa #markins #manfrotto #TKpanel #luminarneo #adobe_LR_PS #nikcollection #topaz #dxo #capture_1 #rrs
#MacroMondays
#Wet
You might as well call it "jester, fool, or harlequin bokeh" because this Amaryllis stigma with its fully opened three lobes and the water droplets reminds me of a jester's "cap and bells". The Amaryllis blossom is the same that provided the background colour for my "New" MM photo. The blossoms of our Christmas Amaryllis bouquet are amazingly sturdy, they still look good and pretty fresh more than a week after parting from their stems.
As for the silly title: People with astigmatism know about blur, and there is plenty of blur in this very close close-up. I wish I had managed to get a nicer refraction/reflection in the in-focus droplet, and a nice, clear droplet refraction is definitely something to keep in mind for a future MM theme. This is one of the first test shots, so I just took a couple of photos without particularly taking care of the reflection in the droplets, and in the end, I ran out of time. As backdrop, I had placed the gold-coated cardboard behind the blossom, and another part of the background is the Amaryllis petals themselves. The other colours are from stuff that was on the table – test shot colours ;) At least they match the "jester theme" ;)
The image is a single shot taken at 2:1 (or close to that) magnification with the Laowa 50mm Ultra Macro. Since it features the same Amaryllis blossom and somewhat similar colours to my previous MM photo, I decided to process it similarly (please see the first comment). Processed in DXO PL7, Analog and Color Efex, and LR.
Happy Macro Monday, Everyone! I'll try to catch up with you tonight!