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Crows Nest National Park, South East Queensland. I haven't been able to find an ID for this one... any ideas?
First time I was able to photo this, actually both didn't even know the Grackle was in the pic until I downloaded it.
Both rainbows and sun dogs are formed by moisture filtering the sunlight.
Rainbows form when drops of rain act as prisms, breaking sunlight into a multitude of colors. Sun dogs appear when sunlight passes through a thin veil of ice crystal clouds (usually cirrus or cirrostratus), and the ice acts as a prism, refracting the light.
A sun dog is seen about 22° to the left or right of the Sun. Sun dogs often form in pairs on either side of the Sun. Often, they appear white, but sometimes they are quite colorful, looking like patches of rainbow. The colors usually go from red on the side nearest to the Sun, shifting from orange to blue on the outside of the sun dog.
Having been away this past weekend, I wasn't able to post a "parting shot" as the D&H South End transferred from Canadian Pacific to Norfolk Southern, so I share this now. To me, the "loss" of the South End could be compared to losing a loved one after a long battle with illness. The signs were all there: Elimination of a local between Binghamton and Oneonta in favor of a "super local," the replacement of said "super local" with road trains making set-offs and pick-ups, less CP-powered trains and more NS-powered trains, and finally things like the repainting of the engine in this photo. As time went on, the D&H as we knew it was disappearing right before our eyes. Finally, it was time to say goodbye. While scenes like this of the D&H 7312 leading an inspection train past the classic Cobleskill Coal building will never happen again, NS ownership will probably ensure that freight trains will be passing through here for a long time to come.
One of the wonders of Granada is its sunset. You can’t talk about twilights in Granada without talking about the Mirador de San Nicolás. Located in the Albaicin, you’ll be able to see the Alhambra with the city of Granada below.
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It was hard to be able to photograph this shy bird. I'm this beautiful species encountered only once.
We were able to play with this little lion cub at the Ukutula Conservation Center in South Africa. As adolescent cubs, they had sharp teeth and sharp claws when they pounced.
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This image is included in 2 galleries 1) "Birds" curated by Rolf (rosch1949) and 2) "KINGFISHERS FROM OUR WORLD" by SØS'Nature.
The laughing kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae) is a bird in the kingfisher subfamily Halcyoninae. It is a large robust kingfisher with a whitish head and a dark eye-stripe. The upperparts are mostly dark brown but there is a mottled light-blue patch on the wing coverts. The underparts are white and the tail is barred with rufous and black. The plumage of the male and female birds is similar. The territorial call is a distinctive laugh that is often delivered by several birds at the same time, and is widely used as a stock sound effect in situations that involve a jungle setting.
The laughing kookaburra is native to eastern mainland Australia, but has also been introduced to parts of New Zealand, Tasmania, and Western Australia. It occupies dry eucalypt forest, woodland, city parks and gardens. This species is sedentary and occupies the same territory throughout the year. It is monogamous, retaining the same partner for life. A breeding pair can be accompanied by up to five fully grown non-breeding offspring from previous years that help the parents defend their territory and raise their young. The laughing kookaburra generally breeds in unlined tree holes or in excavated holes in arboreal termite nests. The usual clutch is three white eggs. The parents and the helpers incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. The youngest of the three nestlings or chicks is often killed by the older siblings. When the chicks fledge they continue to be fed by the group for six to ten weeks until they are able to forage independently.
A predator of a wide variety of small animals, the laughing kookaburra typically waits perched on a branch until it sees an animal on the ground and then flies down and pounces on its prey. Its diet includes lizards, insects, worms, snakes and are known to take goldfish out of garden ponds. (Wikipedia)
This bird seems happy to visit my back yard from time to time. This image was taken on an overcast winter afternoon.
Thank you everyone so much for sharing your quality photos which is a great way to see and keep in touch with the world from home. Also for your kind comments and favours which are much valued.I am not able to take on any more members to follow or to post to groups. I prefer not to receive invites to groups
The very elegant and magnificent Fallow Deer (Dama dama) in the parkland of the National Trust's Tatton Park in Cheshire. Truly amazing to observe them in their small herds. It's clear they are used to people being in their presence, I still kept my distance so I was able to capture them in a relaxed natural state grazing.
Fallow Deer.
Introduced, but naturalised species. Protected in the UK under the Deer Act 1991.
The fallow deer is variable in colour, but is mostly pale gingery-brown, with white spots on the back, a characteristic black and white tail and a white rump patch outlined in black. Some animals are darker brown without any spots, and others are very pale, almost white.
Fallow deer are native to Asia and were introduced into the UK by the Normans around the 11th century.
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We were able to find many of these beautiful kingsnakes on our trip and my son found the first one pictured here. These are another harmless snake which not only eats rodents but will also eat venomous snakes as well.
I recently did some extreme social distancing with my son in the wilds of Kansas. We were able to turn up many reptile species and some good birds while staying far away from people. I will be posting photos from this trip for quite a while.
I hope all my flickr friends are staying safe and healthy.
We weren't able to go too far from home due to Covid restrictions but it was nice to enjoy a do-nothing-much/staycation-of-sorts-long-weekend at a seaside cottage in Crescent Beach....South Surrey :-) It was lovely, relaxing, and really quite nice - I'd highly recommend it :-) (And no, we didn't actually go fishing...not a fan, always seems cruel to me.)
(In Explore: May 28, 2021)
I have not been able to get out and about to take any photographs in the last couple of months and like many people find the month of January very depressing. Thought I would try to find something from a better time of the year and came across this from a couple of hours spent in the lovely and ancient village of Lower Slaughter in the Cotswolds.
Despite its sinister name, it must be one of the most beautiful villages in Britain and on this particular Spring day a lovely place to be even though we had to dodge a few rain showers!
These cottages, alongside the River Eye, date from the mid 1800’s and are connected to the main road on the opposite bank by footbridges such as this one.
What a lovely place to live!
It was a colorful day last year, and I was able to catch some pictures of the derelict car and sometimes of the people there to see it.
Camera: Nikon D810
Lens: 24-85mm Nikon
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On this night the skies were beautifully clear and I was able to capture the data to create this image of Centaurus A (aka NGC5128 or 'The Hamburger Galaxy').
This is one of the closest radio galaxies to earth and is the fifth-brightest in the sky thanks to the supermassive black hole at the centre. This black hole has an estimated mass of around 55 million solar masses and ejects cosmic rays from it's core which can be captured in images taken at different wavelengths.
🌀🌠🌌🌟
Image Information
Telescope: Planewave 17" CDK | f6.8
Camera: FLI Proline 16803 CCD
Mount: Planewave Ascension 200HR
Exposure Details: L 12 x 300 sec (bin 1x1), R 6 x 200 sec (bin 2x2), G 6 x 150 sec (bin 2x2), B 6 x 300 sec (bin 2x2),
Observatory: Siding Spring, NSW, Australia
Date Taken: 15 April 2020
Post-Processing: AstroPixelProcessor, Lightroom Classic CC
The 2nd day of my journey:
due to the relief in iceland every river or waterstream becomes a waterfall at the edge of the mountains. Some of them are as stunning as this one.Furthermore the weather canges soo quick. i was lucky to be able to capture one of these changes. The sun hitting only the background completely,the wing blowing around the water of the waterfall. Hope u like it as much as i do
Somewhere back in the Soo Line train featured in my last post taken at Pewaukee, slightly damaged caboose 108 was riding on a Milwaukee Road flat car heading for the repair shop.
With the usual emphasis on the power up front, I have to admit that over the years I have too often been negligent with being alert for interesting freight cars - luckily this one didn’t get past me before I was able to catch a photo. – December 31st, 1988 ~~ A Jeff Hampton Photograph ©
Being able to spend a few weeks within a 5 minute walk to this fascinating shoreline area has been very Inspiring
Hello all, haven't been able to order any vehicles parts as I have been super busy but should be able to do soon! :)
The panzerschreck and Panzerfaust are super cool!
Enjoy
101/365.
No more self portraits only.
I'm sick of my face, I'm sure you are too.
I'm still gonna try to include self portraits [as many as I can] but some days I just won't be able to to...
And on days like that, you get pictures like this.
I've seen pictures like this all around Flickr and decided to do my own. So yah.
I'm missing childhood and my childhood friends. I know I'm only 15 and have a longass way to go but man I miss naptime like crazy. And I miss Dubai. And the people there.
What do you miss?
Explored ! # 1! It made front pageee.
THAT'S CRAZY. Omgwhaaat?!
THANK YOU GUYS <3
I don't understand the huge response. Lol.
The Jpod made their first pass by the island, where I live, last Sunday. The good news is that there are two new babies, and another on the way. Fingers crossed that they make it through their first year, as the mortality rate is 40% in the first year. The mother needs to be able to find enough salmon so that she can produce the milk her calf needs. Taken from shore, and cropped.
My dad and I were able to make it up to Mt Baker ski area this holiday to go snowshoe around for a bit. The day we were there, it was really cloudy with heavy snowfall. Unfortunately, were were pretty much skunked on photo opportunities, except at the end of the day, it started to clear up and we had to rush over to picture lake and get a photo of Mt Shuksan after sunset. I am super glad that we did because it was breathtakingly beautiful! The warm glow of the set sun simply lit up the mountain. This ended up being 16 photos stacked (a pan of two stacks of 8) for added resolution and lower image noise. Anyway, I hope you all are able to enjoy it as much as I enjoyed spending the time with my father!
For the first time I was able to get a decent shot of this gorgeous duck, so beautiful!
The eerie calls of Common Loons echo across clear lakes of the northern wilderness. Summer adults are regally patterned in black and white. In winter, they are plain gray above and white below, and you’ll find them close to shore on most seacoasts and a good many inland reservoirs and lakes. Common Loons are powerful, agile divers that catch small fish in fast underwater chases.
I am able to wear my heels on the yachts but everyone else has to take their shotes off. I had the perfect excuse because they match my bag.
Wearing:
Lilleth Mills x LUSTER the Glitter Collection
Here is a photo from about this time last year that i've been meaning to post. I haven't been able to get out and shoot many snowy pictures due to work, so I felt I should post this. It's a little bit sad looking back on this photo as the RoadRailer was one of my favorite trains.
The train almost got away from me this day, but I managed to snag one shot of it. Here is a long story detailing what happened.
While out shooting the IC and waiting for A408 with a deathstar leader to finish work in Champaign, I bounced down to the Lafayette District to shoot some NS. After receiving intel on 255's location, I moseyed around looking for spots between Tolono and Homer while shooting other NS trains. After assessing the time I think the train might arrive, I came to the conclusion that I had time to sit in my car at Tolono and look at Facebook and wait for a line-up over the diamond on ATCS. Being my first time out here, I didn't know how stuff worked such as the ATCS tendencies and how fast trains move.
It's now getting to the time where one thinks the train might be close if it hauled absolute ass, but my gut is saying it'll probably be another hour or so. As these thoughts are going through my head, another foamer pulls up next to me. I'm now thinking things will get interesting soon, but who really knows. As I start driving out of Tolono due to boredom, I hear my scanner call out "---55---" and a bunch of static per usual. I'm thinking there is no way it's here this soon. Sure enough as I get out of town, I see a tiny string of white in the distance coming out of Philo towards me at a decent speed.
After shouting a few choice words in my car, I whipped a U-turn and tried to quickly get out of town. This was difficult with low road speeds, many intersections, ice, crossing over two mainlines, and the usual slow drivers. Sure enough as this is happening, the CN lines 255 across the diamond. Now I have no idea where to shoot this. The roads are crappy and the train has no plans to stop. I got to the crossing at CP Dawn and pondered if I should play if safe and settle for what I thought was a crappy shot or move somewhere possibly better. After about 15 seconds of self deliberation, I risked it and hauled ass east. The train was now in my rearview mirror and picking up speed. Shit! I settled for the shot posted and had minimal time to get set up. If I knew the lay of the land better, I probably would've went for the nice shot just west of Sadorus but the train probably would've beaten me to it. This was the only place I felt I could get to. Regardless, it's a shot of a train that no longer exists. The slight sag, snow, and glimmering grain elevators in Tolono are nice additions.
After revisiting this line for 255 a month later and almost going through a similar situation, I learned that the RoadRailer and other NS trains don't play around here and haul ass.
I don't usually post very long play-by-play captions like this, but I know many of you enjoy reading and relating to these adrenaline-rushing situations.
NS 8030
255
NS Lafayette District
Sadorus, IL
1/20/24
This spot is absolutely awesome, period. The northwest is known for its rugged coastlines and amazing waterfalls, but I never thought I'd be able to photograph a spot that has both. Tide was perfect too. When I first got here, tide had me pushed up against a pretty high cliff wall with falling rocks. I wasn't really keen on dodging rocks while finding a composition so I hiked out into the ocean and found some rocks to stand on. As tide went out, I used the rocks to create this photo. I waited for some large waves to come in and then fired off as many shots as I could at 1/5 sec when the waves splashed off the rocks. It is definitely not easy to capture wave splashes like this and you need to accept the fact that you and your camera are going to get soaked. I did a good job of protecting my cam, but I got hit with two big waves where my camera just got absolutely soaked. I thought it would be done for sure, but apparently Nikon's weather sealing is fantastic. At the end of my trip, I think it got hit by 5 waves and experienced 2 downpours in the Gorge...and it's still working. Anyways back to the shot, I spent all night trying to get water texture/splashes that I wanted. All the highlights and shadows were captured in one shot, but I still blended in a few other exposures for sharpness. I would pull my camera away at the last second to protect it from waves, which resulted in some cool water effects, but blurry backgrounds. The sunset light was actually even better about an hour earlier, but I kind of blew it. I have a solid shot that I might post eventually, but I was in that photographer's daze where you're mesmerized by the light and just forget to expose for the highlights. But, that's part of the learning experience I guess.
This is 2-3 shots from a Nikon D800e:
EXIF: 14mm, f/16, ISO 100, 1/5sec
I am on Instagram - @mattymeis
I was able to take a few long exposure shots before I was hit by the rain. I think this was the last one since it had lots of rain drops on the lens.
Not able to get out shooting but a little inspiration from the wicked @koaliticvisuals, lacking some nice flowers so the dandelions get picked on. #stayathome people
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I like GWGUs for some reason. It was fun being able to increase contrast a lot too; the bird is just that pale!
Moon in totality for the 4th time in 18 months! This time I went out to the country away from light pollution and I was able to get many more stars surrounding the moon. The glare of the moon washed out the Milky Way until total phase and then the sky was very dark almost like a night without a moon. This was 1 minute after totality started and there was a slight blue tint on the edge from earth's ozone.
Taken with a Sony a6000 mounted on a Celestron C8-SGT with f/6.3 focal reducer for 1260mm focal length.
Buddha inside the Tha Gyar Hit Phaya Temple. It is one of the smaller pagodas but it is possible to climb to higher levels through small tunnel stairways and able to walk around the outside of pagoda through narrow walkways. This temple provides wide views of the surrounding temples. Parts of the pagoda and it’s walkways is falling apart. It is located on Bagan-Nyaung-U Rd north of Old Bagan Myanmar. There are several neighboring temples named Lawka Chanthar Phaya and Tha Gyar Pone Phaya.
We were able to hike on Christmas Day to the shores of Georgian Bay in the national park just north of us. We were blown away by the wild waves crashing on the shoreline. We were also literally blown away by the wind gusts that day. Bert is trying hard to stand in one place. His crampons helped keep him rooted on the icy rocks. We were hoping to capture an image of one of the nearly 3m waves that splashed up and into a spiral. However, the spray would send water droplets onto the camera lens which would freeze instantly. We couldn’t just wipe the lens clean. It had to be warmed before we could dry it. I was really just gauging my camera settings as best as I could with variable light and rushing water movements. I was able to bring my tripod on this hike but it did me no good with those winds. It was exhilarating to watch the power of the water though and the sun broke through the clouds a little later. One of my greatest gifts is sharing time with Bert on little adventures and big ones. This little adventure was awesome. Once we got to the car again, we ate a hearty bun with leftover Christmas ham and sipped warm Thai Carrot soup from a thermos. I hope everyone else made their day special in some small way.
"Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.”
See Erwin's lovely version here: www.flickr.com/photos/43332066@N04/53527895473/in/datepos...
I was fortunate to be able to go out on a Whale watching trip from Los Gigantes, Tenerife. A few Pilot Whales, Finn Whale, Turtles etc only a few Shearwaters were seen this is the best I could do with regards a photograph :) Early mornings they were in there thousands passing by, the earliest trips were 10am......by this time they had all but disappeared.
From the headland at Punta de Rasca on a few different visits I was able to see a number of Storm and one Bulwer's Petrel.
Thanks to all who view and comment on my images, much appreciated.
I was able to see the beautiful waterfall rainbow. The waterfalls of Norikura Kogen are wonderful and powerful.
Daisies, family Asteraceae, often have fluorescent pollen. Sunflowers are a part of that family and are no exception. Glowing yellow under an ultraviolet light, the pollen coats the flower petals with illuminated points of light like a field of stars. UV fluorescence photography is really easy to explore, you only need darkness and a UV flashlight!
UVIVF. Let’s break that down: Ultraviolet-induced visible fluorescence. This happens when UV light strikes a subject and is able to excite the electrons in certain atoms. Those electrons rise to a higher orbit, but instantaneously decay back to their original location. This spends a small amount of energy, so the light that is re-emitted from the subject now has less energy. UV light then transforms into visible light, and you can use your ordinary camera and lenses, so special equipment or filters required. The UV flashlight / torch I most commonly recommend is the Convoy S2. It’s all you need to start exploring this wonderful unseen world.
Sunflowers hold a special place in my heart because they tend to fluoresce blue and yellow, while simultaneously being the national flower of Ukraine. Today marks 150 days since the Russian Federation decided to destroy the sovereignty of the largest nation in Europe. They have not succeeded. I am continuously amazed at the resolve of the Ukrainian people, and I am thrilled to continue to support them in any way we can. Most recently we have contributed funds to purchase a surveillance drone for citizen soldiers, and we have two solar generators on order for use near the front lines. The people of Ukraine are the strongest that I have ever seen in my lifetime, and I’m glad that the world is coming to their aid.
It's also a great example of leadership, good and bad. Corruption runs deep in many Eastern European countries (probably all countries?) and this war has allowed for the discovery and dismantling of significant Russian influence. While Russia regroups for their next move, Ukraine uses the most precise and damaging weapons to erase countless enemy ammunition depots. The war is in one of the most peaceful moments, where weapons of intense destructive and terrorizing force are being systemically ruined.
Putin’s methodology for forward progress is sinister. He is forcibly conscripting Ukrainian men in occupied regions to fight for Russia – holding their families for ransom in the process. “Referendums” loom in various regions where the population will vote to be annexed by Russia. The Russian forces interview the population and if you say you’d vote for Ukraine, you are deported by force. This isn’t just a fight for some big country in Eastern Europe you’ve never visited, it’s a fight against the tyrannical actions of one of the most powerful countries on the planet. Putin’s Kleptocracy allows for these deceitful strategies, but it is also what has left his military weak and untrained.
Through this series of images supporting Ukraine, I have encouraged many ways to help. We heard of a Ukrainian restaurant that just opened up here in Varna earlier this month, Stefania: www.facebook.com/stefania.rest/ - the food was marvelous and it’s staffed by Ukrainians. It reminded me of the food being served today at my own Ukrainian family reunion taking place in Canada this very day. It’s important to support those around you affected by this conflict.
It also reminds me of the simple act of being kind to strangers. Around me, there are many people who have seen the terrors of this war. You never know what story someone is simply not telling you. As with all images in this series, I deliberately place “Starfield” into the Public Domain. More to come. Sorry for my absence in posting, life can get busy. I’ve used the proceeds from some of my own professional activities recently to further support Ukraine, and I would hope that world does not turn away from this continuing tragedy. There’s always more we can do.
Not being able to see the sun setting on the horizon, here in New Zealand I've learned to look for sunset beauty elsewhere in the sky. It's all about light, what it touches and how it touches. Beauty is everywhere!
This photo made it to EXPLORE, at #63, on the 30th May 2013. :)))
Your honest comments and critiques are very much welcomed. Favs too! ;) Please refrain from posting awards and groups' "comment codes". They're really not my thing.
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"Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst." – Henri Cartier-Bresson
♥♥ Anglais ♥♥
Hello my darlings, the beautiful days are coming and we will be able to go on sometimes wild outings with beautiful outfits, look at Amui spoiling us with a very pretty little dress, available in 10 colors.
She is available for Maitreya Lara/Petite - Reborn - Legacy Perky/ perky petite - Kupra/Kups - Prima petite/busty - Belleza Freya - Slink Hourglass
To have this pretty little outfit, follow the route of my Blog or my Fb which will give you more information --------->
Facebook: www.facebook.com/leyakine.resident.5
Blog: lemondeleyakine.blogspot.com/
♥♥ Francais ♥♥
Coucou mes chéries, les beaux jours arrivent et on va pouvoir faire des sorties parfois sauvage avec de belle tenue, regardez Amui nous gate avec une très jolie petite robe, déclinée en 10 couleurs.
Elle est disponible pour Maitreya Lara/Petite - Reborn - Legacy Perky/ perky petite - Kupra/Kups - Prima petite/busty - Belleza Freya - Slink Hourglass
Pour avoir cette jolie petite tenue, suivez la route de mon Blog ou mon Fb qui vous donnera plus d'informations --------->
I had to clamber out on a drainage pipe to get this shot but said Seal obliged and stayed in one place whilst I did. He appeared to not mind the camera as I was able to get several shots close- up!
This RoidWeek I will be solely sharing Polaroids from my trip to Mexico at the end of last year. When we all were still able to explore this wonderful world.
I was able to shoot this with the help of my husband, I had the remote in my hand while he poured red sand over my face, so the sand is not "faked". If you could even tell it was sand heheh.
I really wanted to play with the idea here that humans can be built, re-made, or even de-constructed. The sheet as representation of flesh, the sand as representation of blood.
••On a side note••
Scotch and I arrived in Los Angeles after 10 day 4,000+ mile journey a year ago late on a Christmas Eve and it was around this time on Christmas morning that I was able to start exporting my memory cards and the 8,000 or so photos from the roadtrip onto my computer. Because of the frantic nature of the trip and pretty extreme weather, i didn't really review anything on the drive and I was finally able see all the shots I took on my memorable, amazing trip for the first time. I made my brother sit and watch too rationalizing how after 10 very full days in a car with a dog, he could spare a few minutes of a boring slideshow like recap of the trip. It's really hard to believe it's been a year now in Los Angeles and I'm so thankful to be here now and still have Scotch around. This trip put him over 100,000 miles cumulatively on car rides which seems like a ton to me but for a dog who loved it so much, it was time well spent together. As I've noted quite frequently during my time here, this has been a really challenging year for him as he's aged a lot and has dealt with a lot of health issues. He was done to his last weekend in november when last minute throats surgery gave him a reprieve of shorts. Despite a few infections, he said healing well and I hope 2017 is a really happy year for for him. It's been a wild ride so far. For both of us.
This is another shot from a location I only visited once in 2016 and haven't posted yet. Back when I shot this in April, the majority of my trips were either to Malibu Pier or Venice, with a few visits to a handful of other places scattered in. I didn't know the area too well even after 4 months and when the cloudy winter skies because less frequent and were replaced mainly by hazy cloudless spring days, I didn't want to jeopardize rare good conditions on a place I didn't know at all. Fortunately since (and despite my frequent trips and posts from Venice) I have gotten accustomed to the area and have a much more substantial list of locations to choose from depending on the conditions.
I was focused back on areas around Malibu at this point after a series of lousy days at Venice but with the pier area closed for renovations, I began driving further down the Pacific Coast Highway in search of non crowded/interesting vantages for sunsets. This was around the time I started driving all the way to Point Mugu in Ventura County and along the way, I'd usually detour off the PCH to see if any of the 5 or 6 parking spaces at Point Dume were open. I have yet to find a spot and typically there's a row of idling cars waiting for people to leave. If you pass with Point Dume on the left and hook around towards the ocean before getting back on the highway, you run into Malibu Beach which has a single restaurant and is lined on both sides with free parking. Here, I've never had an issue finding a place to stop and with light starting to fade, I unpacked my car here and wandered a bit down the shoreline towards the mountains.
There was a heavy colorful cloud cover out to sea and with the mountains so close (and extended right out of frame), there were plenty of times where the clouds and rolling fog met and it was pretty amazing to see. It was the first time out here I've seen thick fog by the ocean and it almost didn't look real. The beach wasn't very crowded which was fine because at the time, I was still mostly focused on very long exposures and prefered a completely clean view in front of me. I also was still not real comfortable shooting with anyone watching me. I didn't get here early enough to explore more and I wish I hadn't shot so many long exposures with this view. It would've been nice to get some crisper images of the incoming water but that didn't really happen. Further, this was the only direction that was interesting, since the color faded further to the left and there were no mountains as a backdrop so I took no photos directly out to sea of the horizon which is something I do quite often now.
Sometimes when I shoot long exposures with people in the frame, I try hard to wait out the release of the shutter as long as those subjects are still, releasing it as soon as I sense movement. On quicker shutter shots, I do something similar where I wait until the last possible moment before the surf washes under my low tripod to take the shot. While the sky and sunset turned out to be pretty remarkable, I was more amazed by the motionless couple standing in the middle of the beach for well over a minute--and yes, that is a couple not a single person like I originally thought.
This visit is an example of one of the places I've gone where I wouldn't mind a do-over. I knew about 16 months ago when my obsession with long exposure began that there would be days I'd look back on and regret not taking a more varied approach to my shooting. Further, my understanding of photography is much different now and having seen some conditions here I have yet to find anywhere else, I missed chances at some very memorable shots. Until my shooting gets a bit more on track, I doubt long exposure will dominate a shoot like it used to unless it's specifically a trip for long exposure, like to Hollywood Bowl Overlook. With winter here and lifeguard stations mostly empty, this might be a great spot to bring Scotch at some point for a relaxing night on the beach. The drive isn't quick but it's one he still enjoys and being able to park 5ft from the sand makes it even easier. He's getting closer to being as healthy and active as I can hope for at this point in his life and from his recovery from throat surgery and there's plenty of places I still want to take him to see :)
WHEN & WHERE
Malibu Beach
Malibu, California
April 10th, 2016
SETTINGS
Canon T4i
EF-S 18-135mm IS STM
@18mm
ISO 100
f/16
72 seconds
ND1000 + CPL
Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) is a medium-sized stocky hummingbird native to the west coast of North America. This bird was named after Anna Masséna, Duchess of Rivoli. In the early 20th century, Anna's hummingbird bred only in northern Baja California and southern California. The transplanting of exotic ornamental plants in residential areas throughout the Pacific coast and inland deserts provided expanded nectar and nesting sites, and the species was able to expand its breeding range greatly.
Anna's hummingbird is 3.9 to 4.3 in (9.9 to 10.9 cm) long. It has an iridescent bronze-green back, a pale grey chest and belly, and green flanks. Its bill is long, straight and slender. The adult male has an iridescent crimson-red derived from magenta to a reddish-pink crown and gorget, which can look dull brown or gray without direct sunlight and a dark, slightly forked tail. Female Anna's hummingbirds also have iridescent red gorgets, though they are usually smaller and less brilliant than the males'. Anna's is the only North American hummingbird species with a red crown. Females and juvenile males have a dull green crown, a grey throat with or without some red iridescence, a grey chest and belly, and a dark, rounded tail with white tips on the outer feathers.
These birds feed on nectar from flowers using a long extendable tongue. They also consume small insects and other arthropods caught in flight or gleaned from vegetation. A PBS documentary shows how Anna's hummingbirds eat flying insects. They aim for the flying insect, then open their beaks very wide. That technique has a greater success rate than trying to aim the end of a long beak at the insect. On rare occasions, bees and wasps may become impaled on the bill of an Anna's hummingbird, causing the bird to starve to death.
Los Angeles. California.