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Usually the wings are moving so rapidly that you can barely distinguish the white patterns... see image below. But a higher need to reproduce has stilled this pair for us to see in detail, male and female.
Troides rhadamantus inhabits the Philippines and is the country's most common birdwing. T. rhadamantus' flight is high above ground in the warm gullies and creeks, but the species frequently visits lower flowers such as Lantana.
Golden Birdwing, Troides rhadamantus
Wings of the Tropics, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Usually,access to Fira is mainly by roads on its eastern side, climbing from its port via the Z-shaped footpath on foot or on donkeys, or by riding the steep cable car from its lower terminal by the port.
Fira. Santorini Island (Greece)
I photographed this Rose Hip plant in north-western Canada recently.
Rose hips are the fruit, or seed pods, of rose plants. They are usually red or orange but can be purple or black, and they typically ripen in the late summer or fall. Rose hips remain on the plant after rose blooms fade. They are ornamental, looking like small crabapples. Rose hips are edible and many birds enjoy them.
Both rose hips and rose petals are edible. Roses are in the same family as apples and crab apples, which is why their fruits bear such a strong resemblance to those plants. Rose hips have a bit of the tartness of crab apples and are a great source of vitamin C.1 All roses should produce hips, though rugosa roses—native shrub rose species—are said to have the best-tasting hips. These hips are also generally the largest and most abundant.
Rose hips make great jellies, sauces, syrups, soups and seasoning, and even fruit leather. To get a sense of the taste of rose hips, start out by brewing yourself a cup of rose hip tea.
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J'ai récemment photographié cette plante d'églantier dans le nord-ouest du Canada.
Les cynorrhodons sont les fruits ou les gousses des rosiers. Ils sont généralement rouges ou orange, mais peuvent être violets ou noirs, et ils mûrissent généralement à la fin de l'été ou à l'automne. Les cynorrhodons restent sur la plante après la disparition des fleurs de rose. Ils sont ornementaux, ressemblant à de petits pommetiers. Les cynorrhodons sont comestibles et de nombreux oiseaux les apprécient.
Les cynorrhodons et les pétales de rose sont comestibles. Les roses sont de la même famille que les pommes et les pommettes, c'est pourquoi leurs fruits ressemblent tellement à ces plantes. Les cynorrhodons ont un peu l'acidité des pommes de crabe et sont une excellente source de vitamine C1. Ces hanches sont aussi généralement les plus grosses et les plus abondantes.
Les cynorrhodons font d'excellentes gelées, sauces, sirops, soupes et assaisonnements, et même du cuir de fruits. Pour avoir une idée du goût des cynorrhodons, commencez par vous préparer une tasse de thé à l'églantier.
I usually don't go outside when I see interesting birds in the crabapple tree, but on this day I did, as I needed to put some seed out for Miss Stumpy, a Red Squirrel who has a nest nearby. In the woods, Waxwings are generally quite wary, and large flocks will often roost in a high tree near a food source, and then only a few a time will swoop down, feed, and then return to the group. This one allowed me to walk under the crabapple tree to the place where I put the seed out, and let me take a few captures. This angle is very nice, as it shows of the lovely reds and yellows of in the wing and tail feathers.
I usually spend time (sometimes quite a lot!) selecting and arranging bits and pieces before taking photos, so it felt quite strange doing this one. A bit like a holiday. :)
For this week's Looking Close... on Friday! group theme, Flora on White Background.
Usually I don't plan my photos ahead. This was an exception. I had shot this lightpost in the dark before, but felt like the scene was missing something. Last Sunday was full moon, so I set out with my camera and tripod to give it another go. What do you think?
Helsinki, Finland, 2022.
All rights reserved. Please send me a private message if you wish to use this photo. Adding to Flickr galleries is fine without permission.
We used to have holidays.
These usually involved a beach, pool, restaurants, something of cultural interest to visit & a great deal of relaxation.
Since I bought a DSLR we don't have holidays any more.
We have missions to capture images of beautiful views & it isn't relaxing
Why didn't the camera come with the following warning;
Your behaviour may change
You will probably get addicted to Flickr
You may find yourself getting up in the dark when on holiday.
You may be running around with your camera when normal people are relaxing in the bar/ restaurant
You may find yourself driving around the country in search of views with light, mist, waves, boats, structures, flowers or wildlife
You may find yourself exploring corners of cities & places in this wonderful world we all inhabit (before it gets Nuked) that you'd never previously bothered checking out
Hasn't that got to be a great thing???
Let's be honest - I'm not the only one
This wasn't the easiest of shots trying to guess what the lasers were going to do & avoiding blown highlights from the mall opposite.
This was my favourite angle but there was a never ending stream of Bumboats into the bay from the Singapore river leaving skid marks on the water as you can see here.
Don't worry, you can relax, Bumboat doesn't mean what you might think - it comes from the Dutch word "boomschuit" meaning canoe :))
Many thanks to everyone who took the trouble to view comment or fave.
Usually I prefer to place characters in a scene, rather than make a figbarf, but those famous game characters certainly require a figbarf! ;)
As a big fan of murder mysteries, I certainly couldn't resist buying a game about one! Can't say if I like it or not, because I never played it (this requires like a group of friends, and offline, which is difficult), but those standard Hasbro figurines were boring, so I thought I should build my own versions, using game art as a reference. xD They fit in those squares on a board perfectly, though!
Those are the characters from 2015 edition of Cluedo (or Clue, as you say in America). International localized editions are translated from UK edition (and mine was made in Ireland), so here we call it Cluedo as well and use names and character backstory from UK version. :) So... who murdered Dr. Black (aka Mr. Boddy in US), how and where?
Was it femme fatale Miss Scarlett with a rope?
Was it an alpha male (sic! seriously, that's written in my rulebook) Colonel Mustard with a revolver?
Was it a charming con artist Reverend Green with a dagger (aka Mr. Green with a knife in US)?
Was it socialite Mrs. Peacock with a spanner (wrench in US)?
Was it an intellectual Professor Plum with a candlestick holder?
Was it a genius Dr. Orchid with a lead piping (lead pipe in US)?
Yes, 2015 edition had Mrs. White replaced by Dr. Orchid, so I don't have a reference art for her. I didn't know my game was not a classic edition... Anyway, what do you think? Who dunnit? ;)
I usually pass on photographing White Ibis, the exception is juveniles in transition colors. Most of them are beautiful and this one is exceptionally so. There were two of them together but the other one is mostly white with only a small amount of brown speckling. Since this guy put on a real show I will post a few more shots of him.
One usually gets a good view from up high on a crane so maybe this could have read "we craned, we sored, we conquered"? But "soared" reflects that and more I thought. Anyway, I think you get the picture!!!
A bit of an experiment going on here as to what my camera was capable of. These are deliberate 'distortions' done while capturing. I have not done any layering, rather just some minor changes in Aperture.
Please note a horizontal crane in the distance on the horizon and then directly in front of it, the same crane redeployed in mid-ground at a different scale. I thought the effect with the crane was cool, although I was initially drawn to the lovely colours in the dusk sky! :)
Thanks for stopping by. Appreciate your comments. :)
_MG_0401 2014_07_13
I usually step away from a crowd of photographers and hope the birds will come in my area by following its trajectory. That is exactly what happened here. It stopped for a second or two outside of the zone and I was lucky enough to be at the right place. This Magnolia Warbler is one you don't see every year so it is always a fantastic time when you can see one and even more, when you can photograh one.
Usually when I see a new world sparrow with a yellow supercilium (eyebrow), it is a white-throated sparrow, the bird that whistles in the forrest a bit as if my father in law was trying to „call“ us during a hike or while mushroom hunting. This bird is different however - it has quite extensive streaking on its chest, which white-throated sparrows only have when they are young. But then white-throated juveniles do not have the yellow supercilium. Also the ear coverts are much more distinctly marked than on the white-throated. The bird in the picture is therefore a Savannah sparrow, found in Round Lake Preserve, upstate NY. This may not be the quality shot that I usually try to upload here, but I found the bird and the identification still worth sharing.
I usually saw these tiny antelope (they stand less than 2 feet tall at the shoulder) lying beneath acacia trees, on the edge of arid areas of The Kalahari, in Botswana. This animal was no exception but, after running away, it turned back to look at us from the safety of dense grasses. Just like the larger springbok, these antelope can survive without drinking water because of a diet of vegetation. More at "Colin Pacitti Wildlife Photography & Fishing Travels" - www.colin-pacitti.com.
A typometer is a ruler which is usually divided in typographic points or ciceros on one of its sides and in centimeters or millimeters on the other, which was traditionally used in the graphic arts to inspect the measures of typographic materials. The most developed typometers could also measure the type size of a particular typeface, the leading of a text, the width of paragraph rules and other features of a printed text. This way, designers could study and reproduce the layout of a document.
One of the domains where the typometer was most widely used was the editorial offices of newspapers and magazines, where it was used along with other tools such as tracing paper and linen testers to define the layout of the pages of the publications, until the 1980s.
Typometers were initially made of wood or metal (in later times, of transparent plastic or acetate), and were produced in diverse shapes and sizes. Some of them presented several scales that were used to measure the properties of the text. Each scale corresponded with a type size or with a leading unit, if line blocks were divided by blank spaces. However, typometers could not be used to measure certain computer-generated type sizes, that could be set in fractions of points.
Due to the technological advancements in desktop publishing, that allow for a greater precision when setting the type size of texts, typometers have disappeared from most graphic design related professions. It keeps being used, even today, by traditional printers who still employ type metal. Source Wikipedia.
I usually don't post photos of my family, but I had to share this one because of the spontaneity & tenderness of the moment. My son holds my little grandson as he is just getting up from his nap.
Thanks to my iphone!
"My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.
-- Jim Valvano
Usually, when the female is seen, the male is not far behind.
Member of Nature’s Spirit
Good Stewards of Nature
This is where I usually take my nature walks nearly everyday, it's about 2.5 miles. Sometimes at midnight, at which time there are lots of wild animals watching me as me and my little dog try to get some exercise before bedtime.
Most of the bird photos I take are taken right along this path that is about 7 miles long. That's the Feather River to the left of the photo, and the stuff that happens down there is a joy to watch.
------------------------------ JESUS ✝️ SAVES-------------------------------
SALVATION THROUGH FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS ALONE!
❤️❤️ IT'S ALL JESUS AND NONE OF OURSELVES! ❤️❤️
1. Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2. BY THIS GOSPEL YOU ARE SAVED, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4. that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5. and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8. and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
9. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them--yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)
7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me WILL BE SAVED. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10. The thief comes only to STEAL and KILL and DESTROY; I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. (John 10:7-10)
Jesus came to bring spiritual LIFE to the spiritually dead and set the captives FREE! FREE from RELIGION, ERROR and outright LIES, so WE might serve THE LIVING GOD! In SPIRIT and in TRUTH!
So you'll KNOW, and not think you're to bad for God to love. The Christian LIFE isn't about how good WE are, because NONE of us are! It's about how GOOD JESUS IS! Because JESUS LOVES US, so much he died in our place and took the punishment for all of our sins on himself. The wages of sin is DEATH, and Jesus died that death for YOU and I. The good news is there no more punishment for sin left, we were and are all born forgive as a result of the crucifixion of God himself on the cross that took away the sins of the whole world. All we have to do is believe it, and put your Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. That my friends is REAL UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! YOU ARE LOVED. ❤️ ✝️ ❤️
For the best Biblical teaching in the last 2 centuries! Please listen to and down load these FREE audio files that were created with YOU in mind. It's ALL FREE, if you like it, please share it with others. ❤️
archive.org/details/PeopleToPeopleByBobGeorgeFREE-ARCHIVE...
CLICK ON THE LETTER "L" TO ENLARGE.
My THANK'S in advance to all who fave and/or comment on my photos I very much appreciate it! ❤️
© All Rights reserved no publication or copying without permission from the author.
I usually try to go on Highland county trip once a year and this year I made it for the warblers! This little guy was singing proudly along a road on the way up to Reddish knob. Reddish Knob VA.
SN/NC: Mussaenda Erythrophylla Var. Hybrid C, M. Philippica, Rubiaceae Family
Mussaendas belong to the Rubiacea family which also includes the Gardenia, Ixora, Pentas and coffee plants (Coffea arabica). This red one is not the most common, usually they are coral or pale rose. This shrub is sometimes referred to as "Bangkok Rose". It produces a showy display in shades of white, pink, salmon to red, depending on the variety. While the the bushes are not so attractive in winter (when they can lose their leaves if cold enough) they are a valuable addition to a tropical or subtropical garden for their showy display over an extended period in the warm months.
Mussaendas behoren tot de Rubiacea-familie, die ook de Gardenia, Ixora, Pentas en koffieplanten (Coffea arabica) omvat. Deze rode is niet de meest voorkomende, meestal zijn ze koraal of lichtroze. Deze struik wordt ook wel "Bangkok Rose" genoemd. Het produceert een opzichtige weergave in de kleuren wit, roze, zalm tot rood, afhankelijk van de variëteit. Hoewel de struiken in de winter niet zo aantrekkelijk zijn (wanneer ze hun bladeren kunnen verliezen als ze koud genoeg zijn), zijn ze een waardevolle toevoeging aan een tropische of subtropische tuin voor hun opzichtige weergave gedurende een langere periode in de warme maanden.
Las mussaendas pertenecen a la familia Rubiacea, que también incluye las plantas de Gardenia, Ixora, Pentas y café (Coffea arabica). Estos rojos no son los más comunes, generalmente son coral o rosa pálido. Este arbusto también se llama "Bangkok Rose". Produce una exhibición llamativa en tonos de blanco, rosa, salmón a rojo dependiendo de la variedad. Si bien los arbustos no son tan atractivos en invierno (cuando pueden perder sus hojas cuando hace suficiente frío), son una valiosa adición a un jardín tropical o subtropical para su exhibición llamativa durante un período prolongado en los meses cálidos. La Mussaenda también es conocida como Flor-de-Trapo y el color rojo no es tan común. Es muy elegante y delicada y la flor central pequeñita varia de acuerdo al color de la planta.
As mussaendas mais comuns são as corais, cor de rosa forte ou pálido. Mas a vermelha, para mim, é totalmente diferente. Tem alguns lugares que a chamam Hybrid e outros simplesmente o mesmo nome. Muito delicada, bonita e chama a atenção. Ela pertence à mesma família do café, a rubiácea. Também recebe o nome de mussaenda-arbustiva no Brasil. Também é chamada de flor-de-trapo, devido ao seu formato "amarrotado". Dura bastante aberta e é uma "folha-flor" duradoura. Dentro dela existe uma flor pequena de 5 pétalas cuja cor varia de acordo a cor da planta: Nas corais, amarela, Nas vermelhas, creme e nas brancas cor laranja. Muito interessante.
Les Mussaendas appartiennent à la famille des Rubiacea qui comprend également les Gardenia, Ixora, Pentas et les caféiers (Coffea arabica). Ce rouge n'est pas le plus commun, généralement ils sont corail ou rose pâle. Cet arbuste est parfois appelé "Bangkok Rose". Il produit un affichage voyant dans les tons de blanc, rose, saumon à rouge, selon la variété. Bien que les buissons ne soient pas si attrayants en hiver (lorsqu'ils peuvent perdre leurs feuilles s'ils sont suffisamment froids), ils constituent un ajout précieux à un jardin tropical ou subtropical pour leur exposition voyante sur une longue période pendant les mois chauds.
Le Mussaendas appartengono alla famiglia delle Rubiacee che comprende anche le Gardenia, Ixora, Pentas e le piante del caffè (Coffea arabica). Questo rosso non è il più comune, di solito sono corallo o rosa pallido. Questo arbusto è talvolta indicato come "Bangkok Rose". Produce un vistoso display nei toni del bianco, rosa, salmone al rosso, a seconda della varietà. Mentre i cespugli non sono così attraenti in inverno (quando possono perdere le foglie se abbastanza freddi) sono una preziosa aggiunta a un giardino tropicale o subtropicale per la loro vistosa esposizione per un lungo periodo nei mesi caldi.
Mussaendas gehören zur Familie der Rubiacea, zu der auch Gardenien, Ixora, Pentas und Kaffeepflanzen (Coffea arabica) gehören. Dieses Rot kommt nicht am häufigsten vor, normalerweise sind es Koralle oder Hellrosa. Dieser Strauch wird manchmal als „Bangkok Rose" bezeichnet. Je nach Sorte ist sie in den Farbtönen Weiß, Rosa, Lachs bis Rot auffällig. Während die Büsche im Winter nicht so attraktiv sind (wenn sie bei ausreichender Kälte ihre Blätter verlieren können), sind sie eine wertvolle Ergänzung für einen tropischen oder subtropischen Garten, da sie in den warmen Monaten über einen längeren Zeitraum hinweg auffällig zur Schau stehen.
ムッセンダはアカネ科に属し、クチナシ、イクソラ、ペンタス、コーヒーの木 (Coffea arabica) も含まれます。この赤いものは最も一般的ではなく、通常はサンゴまたは淡いバラです。この低木は「バンコク ローズ」と呼ばれることもあります。品種に応じて、白、ピンク、サーモンから赤の色合いで派手なディスプレイを演出します。この低木は冬（十分に寒いと葉を失う可能性があるため）にはそれほど魅力的ではありませんが、暖かい季節には長期間派手に表示できるため、熱帯または亜熱帯の庭園に貴重な追加物です。
تنتمي Mussaendas إلى عائلة Rubiacea التي تضم أيضًا نباتات Gardenia و Ixora و Pentas والقهوة (Coffea arabica). هذا اللون الأحمر ليس الأكثر شيوعًا ، وعادة ما يكون من المرجان أو الوردة الشاحبة. يشار إلى هذه الشجيرة أحيانًا باسم "زهرة بانكوك". ينتج عرضًا مبهرجًا بظلال من الأبيض والوردي وسمك السلمون إلى الأحمر ، اعتمادًا على التنوع. في حين أن الشجيرات ليست جذابة للغاية في فصل الشتاء (عندما تفقد أوراقها إذا كانت باردة بدرجة كافية) فهي إضافة قيمة إلى حديقة استوائية أو شبه استوائية لعرضها المبهرج على مدى فترة طويلة في الأشهر الدافئة.
image/jpeg:08C3549F-0808-463C-92CE-996278476929/40EBBB93-58E1-4FC7-AAF4-89D90B3F3DEB:2048.000000:1536.000000
Usually the swallowtails are here by mid June. I was surprised to see it on this butterfly bush (Buddleia 'Ile de France') because it has just started to bloom.
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
# 12 in my 2015 butterfly count.
The Trinity Sergius Lavra (usually referred to in church literature as the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra) is the largest monastery of the Russian Orthodox Church with a centuries-old history.
Usually the only photos of Canada Geese I get is of them running the other way. So it was pure pleasure to be trusted enough to get a photo of one of their dear little ones just sitting on the bank of a lake.
Usually, I don't take the 85mm with me, when shooting landscapes. But this time I did, hoping to shoot something a little bit creative in the tulipfields. And this bokehmonster didn't let me down, as well as the circumstances with a nice, warm sunset!
Thanks for having a look! All faves and comments are highly appreciated!
You do me (and hopefully yourself) a big favour by pressing L and then F11, to view at maximum size.
Explore Apr 17, 2023 #437
The brilliant yellow color. The tight globe shape. Beautiful and usually unnoticed floating on the surface of wetland ponds and slow moving streams. Undulating heart shaped leaves and long thick underwater stems. But this one popped almost out of the pool!
Nuphar lutea, the spatterdock, yellow water-lily, cow lily, or yellow pond-lily, is an aquatic plant of the family Nymphaeaceae, native to Eurasia and North America. It grows in eutrophic freshwater beds, with its roots fixed into the ground and its leaves floating on the water's surface.
The plant's inflorescence is a solitary, terminal hermaphrodite flower, pollinated by insects, which blooms from June to September in the Northern Hemisphere. The flower is followed by achenes which are distributed by the water current. It can grow in water up to 40 cm (16 in)
Spatterdock was long used in traditional medicine, with the root applied to the skin and/or the root and seeds eaten for a variety of conditions. The seeds are edible, and can be ground into flour. The root is edible too, but may be extremely bitter in some plants.
Spatterdock, Founder's Pool, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami FL
Usually these birds turn up the day before or the day after my visit so I was happy to have this bird land in front of the hide even though it was very brief
Usually, I'll sit quietly and well camouflaged and let these skittish birds slowly come into shooting distance, but this time I came across one that allowed me to closely approach it, at one point I was only about six feet away from it.
A very strong aroma used in every home here, the aroma is usually produced by burning high grade fragrant wood pieces!
Thanks for visiting and commenting friends. All criticism are welcome.
We usually visit Camden when all the big schooner are going in and out. This time we were fascinated to watch another aspect of keeping these schooners going. As we were getting ready to leave Camden, we were able to see some of them getting ready for the coming winter. The put on a wooden frame which will hold a white plastic fitted cover. The schooner on the right already has its cover on. During the winter, they can do maintenece work under the cover. The schooners in front are Mistress, Grace Bailey (built 1882), and Mercantile (built 1916).
You usually find this beautiful but elusive bird in the forest, where the light is not great. I have been trying to get a decent photo for a long time. A few weeks ago, while working on the computer, a big bang came from the backyard. I rushed to the garden door and saw a varied thrush unconscious on the ground. I brought it inside and tried to revive it. I made a call to the BC SPCA Wild Animal Rehabilitation Centre (Wild ARC). They accepted the bird in their shelter, even though it was the weekend. I stayed in touch with Wild Arc to see how the bird was doing. I was happy to find out that the bird was recovering very well. Because Wild Arc likes to release birds where they were found, I was able to pick up the bird and release it in my backyard. When I opened to box, the bird flew up right away and I never got a chance to take a photo of it. This being said, I continue from time to time to have varied thrush visit our yard and I like to think that one of the visitors is the bird that was rescued. I was great to be able to count on Wild Arc whose existence is based on public donations.
If you live in BC and you are thinking about making a Christmas gift to the wildlife, you may want to consider this organization.
www.spca.bc.ca/branches/wild-arc/
Another one of my preferred wildlife organizations in BC is Rocky Point Bird Observatory (RPBO). Here is a link to RPBO who could not exist without generous donations from the public.
PS To all my Flickr friends and followers, who were thinking about giving me a Christmas Gift, I would rather prefer that you support one of these two organizations ... I already feel spoiled with all the support and encouragement you give me on Flickr. :-)
Essentially my first piece of artwork created using Adobe Photoshop 2025…………and what a frustrating project this turned out to be! In addition to dealing with the “learning curve” of having to work with a new and unfamiliar photo-editing software, I discovered , to my chagrin, that not only did Adobe make many changes in this software, they eliminated several features that I have been used to working with for over 25 years! I spend as much time…….well actually more time searching for answers and explanations on the internet in reference to the use of, fixing glitches and trying to find where certain controls, panels and features have been relocated. And then dealing with application freezes and glitches. Thankfully YouTube proved to be a good source for information and of course video tutorials. On the other hand, however, proving not to be helpful in several other instances. One of the problems I ran into was that I am working with the newest version of Photoshop (2025) and not many graphic artists have yet to embrace version 26.2.0. In past years upgrades in applications software (and operating systems) usually did not entail major, radically changes but in today's world technology seems to have an obsession with “changing things” - many times, for no other reason other than change for change sake only.
Picture of car recorded at Abbey Farm car show - 2024
Actually I probably could have done this using PSCS6 in half the time……………
Hope ya’all enjoy…………..
Yesterday's visit by Storm Arwen found one photographer in Cornwall doing two things he wouldn't usually dream of. Firstly, he set out without his tripod, intentionally at that, and secondly he was in the car by noon, hours before sunset even at this time of year. It was the beginning of a strange and exhilarating couple of hours in the company of the storm.
I almost always head for Portreath when the weather gets exciting, partly because it's so close to home, but also because it offers a couple of handily placed objects that always grab the attention here. If you look at the other shots in this album you'll see plenty of images of the famous Monkey Hut, rebuilt for no apparent reason other than as a seascape photography subject after the winter storms of 2014. It's less often that I train the lens on the megalith of Gull Rock, planted by giants in the middle of the sea a few hundred yards from the shoreline here. Wondering how big it is? Zoom into the top right hand corner and that herring gull will give you a better idea.
As you drive towards the coast on a day like this, you gradually sense the ramping up of the elements; trees sway ever more wildly as you approach your destination. You open and close the car doors with two hands, praying the wind doesn't rip them from you as you watch them smash into the side of the vehicle you park next to. From the main drag of the village you catch glimpses of the angry sea, with occasional columns of spray drifting towards you along the harbour front.
Yesterday I'd decided on an hour at most. I'd then go home and drink coffee as I pored over the results. I'd attached the 70-200, and at the very last moment popped the 100-400 into the bag as backup. As is so often the case, the moment I was ready to shoot, the sun disappeared, taking the contrast and what colours there were with it. I'd decided a fast shutter speed was important to what I wanted to achieve, hence the absence of the tripod, and taken the ISO to a place I usually prefer not to go to. As I pointed the camera towards the sea, a volley of foam flew towards me like snow, and throughout the episode I found myself continually turning my back to the scene to protect the camera. Almost immediately it became apparent that more reach was needed - it's always fun trying to change lenses in a storm, or at least so I feel when I'm not actually doing it. In the moments when I could shoot, I'd turn and face the sea, looking for big waves to focus on in rapid bursts.
A while passed and I decided I was done, so began my walk back to the car, only for the sunshine to return as I reached for the keys in my pocket. The prospect of coffee and brunch were deeply embedded in my conscious by now, but I reflected on what was almost certainly a poor collection of images on the SD card and turned around, hastening my stride back to the beach before the sun disappeared once more. Suddenly those dull waves were sporting glowing white crests; suddenly the scene had come alive. I set up by the breakwater once more, facing the regular blasts from flying sand and foam across the beach. I was joined by another photographer who was braving it with his Hasselblad film camera on a tripod, attempting the seemingly impossible with a long exposure. If you don't try, you don't succeed and nobody needs to know how many times you failed after all - even though we all do from our own experiences.
From time to time I'd move my focus from the sea, to the Monkey Hut, to Gull Rock, losing track of exactly how many exposures I'd made. Later on at home I recoiled in horror at the number of shots I'd have to sift through - 582 times I'd clicked the shutter in this briefest of outings. A serious cull was needed and before I'd even downloaded them onto the PC I'd reduced that number to 460. Of those, 285 were taken before the half time oranges in the dull light So I disregarded them completely and downloaded just 175, eventually refining my selection to 74. It's so much easier going out to shoot a calm sea with a big ND filter because there's only time to take a handful of shots. 74 is still enough to cause a lot of confusion.
As I looked more closely at the final selection, two things became clear. Firstly, I should have taken the tripod. Those waves really could have been a bit sharper and I struggle to focus my handheld shots with such a big focal length. Answers on a postcard please. Secondly, it seems that a sorcerer, lit up by the sun and almost 100 feet tall lives in the sea beside Gull Rock. Can you see his pointy hat and his long nose? It's worth coming here in a storm just to see what shapes those enormous plumes develop for fleeing seconds as the waves crash into the rock. There will be plenty more shapes in the coming months as the sorcerer contorts and bends his form in the winter storms that are yet to batter the coast here.
This species can usually be located midst dense, woodland shrubbery along woodlot edges and most often close to or on the ground. Sometimes they forage in the low shrubs or saplings but their favored way to feed is hopping about on both feet both frontward and backward dislodging the leaf litter to expose insects, seeds and berries. They like being quite vocal as they flit about in the undergrowth. The curiosity of this member of the sparrow family will bring it out of the brush to investigate any new or curious noise.
When I made a pishing sound this male came out into the open to see what I was about.
As I usually do this time of year I leave Alaska for points south. This year I was concentrating on Eastern WA, ID & MT. High on my list was to get some good shots of the St. Maries railroad as my one previous visit was nothing but overcast skies. This time my results would be different although that didn't appear to be the case at first. I had talked to several folks and most said Mon-Tue-Thu were regular operating days. Based on our travel schedule we picked Thursday as that seemed to be the most reliable day to take the loads from St.. Maries to Plummer. We arrived Wednesday grabbed a room and headed down to the depot where we found the crew working and working and working. It appears in addition to lumber the railroad also stores quite a number of double stack cars for the UP. UP had requested some back and it took the crew longer than they had expected to dig them out so the run to Plummer was postponed until Friday. As you might guess we decided to stay until the next day and as it turns out we were rewarded for our patience. STMA Geeps 101-103 cross the large steel trestle east of the large Pee Dee Creek trestle as they bring empties back to town.
Usually a common sight at Manning Park but this time there were very few to be seen. I am hoping it was due to the high temperatures and not a decrease in the parks population
Usually found curled up in a sleeping position under a leaf, I occasionally find a Charred Dagger stretching its legs on top of a leaf...
This is what I usually look like on any given day in SL (and RL). Grunged out in my favorite rock t-shirt, drinking coffee, hair in braids and wondering 'What the F*)# am I going to photograph next'.
I have a gorgeous house down 4000m but instead I spend all my time up here organizing stuff. BTW if you own a slew of backdrops like I do, this LunaMare backdrop panel system rocks! I have a few setup on my SIM and turned my friends on them too. Takes about 2 minutes to add a new backdrop into them.
T-SHIRT: Tres Blah - Casual Tee Joie
JEANS: HIME*DREAM - Nikki Jeans
HAIR: Wings - ES0601
GLASSES: Bondi - Blondie Glasses
COFFEE: Hive - Nicotine & Caffeine
MACHINE ON LEFT: LunaMare - Preview Station for Backdrops
MACHINE WITH NUMBERS: BOOM - Animation Station
MACHINE BEHIND ME: LunaMare - Weather Panel
BTW I love this T-shirt from Tres Blah. It's inspired by one of my favorite bands Joy Division. I was probably listening to Love Will Tear us Apart when I took this!
Usually a late tulip, but this was grown in pots in the conservatory. Peony-flowered, so heavy that some of the stems broke. under their weight. When the flower started to open it was white but it is getting pinker and pinker...
Usually we think of tomatoes as red or may be yellow. The bushes are a beautiful green and I have a in pots on my deck. Most of the growing season they act as a most luxurious green bush. Later on they feed us with their delicious colourful fruit. Then at the end of the season we revert to eat delicious green tomatoes.
I think this would have looked a lot different with a different background but when you want the centers you usually can't get them looking up, you get the backside of the flower..
Sunset usually sees cumulus clouds dissipating as the sun's energy driving their uplift wanes. Here we see a mix of cloud dissipating and building, the latter driven by "outwash winds" from a large thunderstorm cell to the east, which provide the thermal gradient driving cloud uplift. Within an hour of taking this photo light rain was falling. Later in the evening larger thunderstorms formed generating frequent lightning.
One of our regular visitors in the back yard, the superb fairy wren. I can always tell when they are around, lots of twittering. They are hard to catch usually, as they hide in the bushes, but they seem to like my very dry grass at the moment. We definitely need some rain.
I usually photograph the SeaWorld fireworks from outside the park, but on the 4th of July I endured long lines, overpriced food and massive crowds to make this composition from inside the park at the exit ramp of the Emperor Dive Coaster. Favorite, share and comment!
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I'm not usually a big fan of perfectly centered images but sometimes a nice hard charging 'in your face' shot just works.
Providence and Worcester local freight PR-3 is building their train in the small Valley Falls yard getting ready to head south through downtown Providence to Cranston yard to access the Harbor Junction Running Track and their customers in the port area on the south side of the city. This view looks north into the yard just north of the High Street crossing at MP 6 at PW GP38-2 2008 (built new for the then only 7 yr newly independent road by EMD in Dec 1980). It's really amazing that this scene has been possible seemingly unchanged for more than four decades and counting. It's all I've ever knoen of freight railroading in my home state but I still don't take it for granted...neither should you. Come get it while you still can!
Cumberland, Rhode Island
Monday July 25, 2022