Another despicable instance of working on my alliteration and foregoing all that's decent. Tis the season.

If you enjoy this kind of wretched excess, you might not hate my Photoshopped set. www.flickr.com/photos/9422878@N08/sets/72157604211983504/...

One thing about choosing and processing these a few months after taking them, I forget things! For instance, I rember the sun rising over place Fell, the wind getting up, and the mist all dispersing. I had completely forgotten that it returned...wonderfuly!

In this instance Tufty was without his trademark tufts which moult during the summer months.

Sadly now despite his road safety campaign in the 60's Tufty is very rare in most of the UK.

Was anyone else a member of the Tufty Club - I still have my badge.

Red Squirrel (Sciurus Vulgaris)

Highland Titles Nature Reserve, Duror - Scotland

Many thanks to all those who take the time to comment on my photos. It is truly appreciated.

DSC_4867 Explore 27 January 2024

Another gorgeous sunset right outside my front door! At this instance, birds were flying by settling in for the night.

I've discovered that our local church yard has several Japanese Cherry trees; this one is of the Pink Blossom variety (unlike the earlier one which was white).

The Blossom in this instance is coming to an end, but there's still a bit of Life in it - enough anyway to attract a hard-working Bumble Bee!

Thanks so much for visiting my Site Folks, and thanks especially for taking the time and trouble to leave a Comment; it's always nice to hear from you...!

(Left (or Right!) click the Mouse to view Large; click again to return to normal).

For the car in this instance

Abandoned House

A rare instance when I could snap an interesting sky from my balcony

"It is senseless to claim that things exist in their instancing only. The template for the world and all in it was drawn long ago. Yet the story of the world, which is all the world we know, does not exist outside of the instruments of its execution. Nor can those instruments exist outside of their own history. And so on. This life of yours is not a picture of the world. It is the world itself and it is composed not of bone or dream or time but of worship. Nothing else can contain it. Nothing else be by it contained."

Cormac McCarthy - Cities of the Plain

Faux cowboy atop Kallison's Western Wear shop in downtown San Antonio, Texas.

For instance, I found this flying, fully armed huge tractor on the floor of my closet. Fun!

Alexander Dennis Enviro400s are relatively unusual on the 61 route, being mainly dedicated to the 60. Afternoon-only appearances such as this instance are more common than all-day allocations, and here 4426 (MX09LXH) terminates from Aigburth. Photo taken on 14/02/12.

Recording that instance before the Deluge.

"Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house."

Matthew 5:15

Sometimes being in the right place at the right time just happens as in this instance. The shot is a HDR merge from three frames 2 stops apart.

Another instance where the morning light streaming into my flat inspired me to grab a quick photo. Here the shadow frame of the kitchen window provided the perfect opportunity for a silhouette self portrait, complete with my ever growing level of bed hair!

El Monte Park nest and chicks:

They say persistence pays off and in this instance it truly did...

I have always said that a good photographer works very hard at getting unique good images that tell a wonderful story. I happen to get very lucky!!!

If you look back two posts at the two fledgling Red-tail Hawks in their nest I said there was another downstairs in the deep nest. Well going back each day to chronicle their growth and life I got the frame of a lifetime. This folks is the very first flight leaving the nest of "one" of those Red-tailed chicks in that very nest that I posted two posts prior to this one. I am absolutely thrilled to offer this to YOU as the "FIRST FLIGHT OF ONE OF THOSE CHICKS"

This is NOT about me as I am doing the last post a disservice by posting this so early on the back of the last post. But I could not wait to share this epic event with my flickr friend. This is what flickr is all about to me...sharing of great moments in time and this certainly qualifies as a great moment for this new fledgling dropping down out of his security blanket as the adults offered a a meal on a rock as shown in the comment section.

This flight was unintentional as the branch he or she was using to catch air and lift off for practice gave way and he glided out of frame in front of a tree blocking the cameras view onto the ground about 100 yards away. The frame in comments shows him on the rock where the adults left dinner enticing any of the three to leave and come get the spoils. Enjoy I hope as much as I the wonderful event of the first flight...

As always I so appreciate you dropping by and if you choose to leave a comment all the better.

Make it a wonderful week and sore like an Red-tail Hawk in life tossing caution to wind and following your dreams.

When going on walks together, Buba always checks out any lady friends that Candor attracts... and most of the time, she disapproves quite ferociously.

So here's one of the rare instances where Buba isn't around and Candor is free to socialize with whomever he wants. You can tell he enjoys it very much (though his admirer is of course way too young for him ;)).

How often? It takes just once...

NEW JERSEY 2017 BALD EAGLE PROJECT REPORT

ANOTHER PRODUCTIVE YEAR FOR NJ’S EAGLES

by Larissa Smith, CWF Wildlife Biologist

The Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ in partnership with the NJ Endangered and Nongame Species Program has released the 2017 NJ Bald Eagle Project Report. In 2017, 178 eagle nests were monitored during the nesting season. Of these nests 153 were active (with eggs) and 25 were territorial or housekeeping pairs. One hundred and ninety young were fledged.

In 2017 the number of active nests was three more than in 2016, but the number young fledged decreased by 27 from a record high of 216 fledged in 2016. The productivity rate this season of 1.25 young/active nest is still above the required range of 0.0 to 1.1 for population maintenance. Productivity could be lower this season for many reasons including weather, predation and disturbance to the nesting area. In 2017 nest monitors reported several instances of “intruder” eagles at nests which did disrupt the nesting attempts of several pairs. One of these “eagle dramas” unfolded at the Duke Farms eagle cam watched by millions of people. An intruder female attempted to replace the current female. This harassment interrupted the pairs bonding and copulation and no eggs were laid.

This year’s report includes a section on Resightings of banded eagles. Resightings of NJ (green) banded eagles have increased over the years, as well as eagles seen in NJ that were banded in other states. These resightings are important, as they help us to understand eagle movements during the years between fledging and settling into a territory, as well as adult birds at a nest site.

For more info: www.conservewildlifenj.org/blog/2017/12/06/new-jersey-201...

New Jersey Bald Eagle Project Report | 2017 may be downloaded here: www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/eglrpt17.pdf

Sometimes when I look at pictures I've taken at rallies I find mysteries. In this instance the woman seated in the lawn chair has a walkie talkie jammed into her cup holder. Why and who would bring a walkie talkie to a protest? Don't most people communicate with smart phones these days? Even if she were a covert agent for the police (who were otherwise not physically present) wouldn't she have some device less obvious?

DXO Photolab 8 + Silver Efex Pro

Here is an example of the benefits of using a program such as Adobe's Lightroom (v2.5 in this instance). I have only used one type of processing within this picture, which is the Local Adjustment filter. This is an excellent tool, as it allows specific editing of points, for example, brightening the forground, whilst still darkening the sky exposure and adding shadow detail to one specific tree.

Originally when I took this photo, I was amazed at the beauty of the view, the colours, the atmopshere, it was almost magical. Yet this was totally lost within the stock output photo. I also happened to be tripod-less at the time, so a quality HDR was going to be out of the picture. I was going to bin this picture finally as I couldn't get the process I needed to bring it back to life..

I have been using lightroom now for multiple versions, and I have only just stumbled on this feature myself whilst perusing Lightroom tutorial videos on a Lightroom group. Anyway, I hope this is informative to people, and can maybe enlighten others as too how some people seem to get such excellent results from almost nothing, or those that don't see how one D40X puts out a picture like the top, and another puts out a picture like the the second... (PS I'm not blowing any trumpets here, I just think the change in picture is somewhat astonishing when some development of the article is actually taken on - after all, photographers for years have been developing in darkrooms, why shouldn't the PC and technological age give us our own "Lightroom"!)...

Please take the time to view large & on black

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Enjoy.. thanks for any comments, always appreciate those of you that take the time to leave comments or suggestions.. ta people :)

Habitat is a “home ground” or an environment in which an organism or group of species normally lives or occurs. In this sense, a habitat is any particular place that supports animal or plant life. From the habitat is where plants or animals get their survival essentialities such as water, food, shelter, and breeding grounds.

Different plant or animal species have different necessities for water, shelter, nesting and food. Thus, each and every plant or animal is adapted to survive in a specific kind of habitat. For instance, some turtles live in the seas while others live on land. Some plants grow in the deserts, some in the seas, and some in swampy areas. This shows different species have different needs. Examples of habitats include oceans, streams, or forests.

When a habitat is dramatically altered due to natural or anthropogenic activities such as earthquakes, agriculture, pollution or oil exploration, these places may no longer be able to provide shelter, food, water, or breeding grounds for the living organisms.

Such kind of events lessens the places where plants or animals such as wildlife can live and threatens the survival of various species. That sort of habitat degradation or fragmentation is what is termed as habitat loss and destruction. Habitat loss and destruction are influenced by several drivers which include:

1. Agriculture

Agricultural production has claimed much space of the natural habitat since settlers began converting forests and grasslands to croplands. In the modern world, the pressure to convert lands into resource areas for producing priced foods and crops has increasingly led to habitat loss.

Runoff of agricultural waste, fertilizers, and pesticides into marine and freshwater environments has also transformed streams and water systems. As a result, there has been a tremendous loss of natural crop species, aquatic life, and wildlife habitat.

2. Animal Waste, Sewage, Fertilizer, and Mining Waste Pollution

Marine and freshwater life forms are the most affected by pollution. Pollutants from animal waste, untreated sewage, fertilizers, pesticides, and heavy metals find way into wetlands and water systems and subsequently end up in the food web.

Animal wastes and fertilizers generate nutrients that cause an outburst in algae growth that depletes dissolved oxygen in aquatic systems. Mining wastes may also contain heavy metals that affect the health and breeding of aquatic organisms. Sewage sediments may destroy dwelling grounds of aquatic animals.

3. Industrial and Automobile Pollution

The majority of animal and plant habitats have been destroyed due to the toxic substances and chemicals emitted from industries and automobiles that pose long-term cumulative impacts on the species health. Seriously polluted regions have become dead zones since the conditions have become very harsh for biotic survival. A prime example is an acidic lake which cannot support aquatic life forms. In some areas, only a few organisms can survive owing to the cumulative effects of industrial and automobile pollution.

4. Water Projects

The development of water projects such as hydropower plants, dam construction, and water diversion frequently disconnect or draw off waters thereby altering water chemistry and hydrology. This is because such water projects limit the amount of water and nutrients running downstream.

The downstream section of the river can dry out and the nutrients supporting aquatic life can significantly reduce. As an outcome, gradual habitat loss happens as the water flows downstream.

5. Land Use and Development

The conversion of lands into urban settings, housing developments, office spaces, shopping malls, industrial sites, parking areas, road networks, and so on takes away the naturally occurring land that provided habitat for wildlife and other living organisms. This practice has substantially led to the loss and destruction of millions of acre of natural habitable environments.

6. Global Warming

Global warming is one of the recent leading causes of habitat loss since it changes the physical environmental factors such as temperature and moisture which are essential for a sustainable habitat.

For instance, wildlife that requires cool temperatures of high elevations such as the rock rabbit and mountain gorillas may in the near future run out of habitat due to global warming. Excessive rains, flooding or drought arising out of global warming have also impacted several habitats, contributing to the loss of wildlife and other living organisms.

7. Diversity Loss and Invasive Species

When a certain ecosystem which is home to numerous species collapse, more aggressive species may enter the territory. As the original species struggle to cope in a harsher environment, the invasive species contributes to a further and rapid decline of the habitat and subsequently dominates.

The explosive entry of invasive species into a habitat presents a strong threat to the native species as they struggle to survive in the increasingly changing environment. Invasive species directly competes for food with the native species and can also alter the structure of the habitat.

8. Vegetation Removal and Logging

Vegetation removal and logging destroy the structure of the habitat since it takes away the vital materials and natural systems responsible for replenishing and purifying the habitat. Removal of vegetation cover and logging also creates room for soil erosion and decrease stormwater infiltration which leads to the degradation of water quality, further destroying the habitat.

9. Dredging and Bottom Trawling Fishing

Dredging and bottom trawling fishing gives rise to the physical destruction of the dwelling, feeding and breeding areas for aquatic plants and animals. The displaced sediments may further smother the bottom dwelling organisms. Fish gills can as well become blocked with sediments and plant life activity is reduced due to limited light.

Dredging might also release underground toxic materials into aquatic habitats. Besides, bottom trawling fishing can by-catch unmarketable fish which turns out to be the food for other bigger fish in that particular underwater habitats.

Inframe :

The greater sand plover (Charadrius leschenaultii) is a small wader in the plover family of birds.

It breeds in the semi-deserts of Turkey and eastwards through Central Asia. It nests in a bare ground scrape. This species is strongly migratory, wintering on sandy beaches in East Africa, South Asia and Australasia. It is a rare vagrant in western Europe, where it has been recorded as far west as Great Britain, France and Iceland. It has been spotted twice in North America, the most recent being on May 14, 2009, in Jacksonville, Florida.

This species is fully migratory, and is likely to migrate without stopping on a broad front between breeding and non-breeding areas . Migratory flocks form after the end of breeding between mid-June and early-August, and arrive in the wintering grounds between mid-July and November (adults and immature birds arriving before juveniles. Those birds wintering in South-East Asia start moving northwards to the breeding grounds in late-February (the migration peaking in March to early-April), arriving from mid-March to May; whereas those wintering in East Africa and southern Asia depart for breeding grounds from mid-April to early-May. Most non-adult wintering birds remain in the wintering areas during the breeding season . The species is typically gregarious, feeding in flocks of 2-50, and sometimes congregating in groups of up to 1,000 when roosting (Urban et al. 1986, del Hoyo et al. 1996). Habitat Breeding During the breeding season this species is predominantly found in open, dry, treeless, uncultivated areas up to 3,000 m , including dried mud, silt and clay flats, hard salt-pans overgrown with halophytic plants , and rocky plains near mountains in desert or semi-desert . In Turkey the species frequents heavily grazed saline steppe . The species usually breeds near water but exceptionally it will nest up to 20 km away from it. Non-breeding During the non-breeding season this species shows a preference for littoral habitats with mixed sand and mud substrata . It is found on sheltered sandy, shelly or muddy beaches, large intertidal mudflats, sandbanks, salt-marshes, estuaries, coral reefs, rocky islands, tidal lagoons and dunes near the coast , although it may sometimes feed on coastal grasslands . Whilst on migration the species will occasionally utilise inland habitats such as salt-lakes and brackish swamps, usually roosting on sandbanks and spits . Diet This species is carnivorous: during the breeding season its diet consists mainly of terrestrial insects and their larvae (especially beetles, termites, midges and ants), and occasionally lizards whereas during the non-breeding season its diet contains mainly marine invertebrates such as molluscs (snails), worms and crustaceans (such as shrimps and crabs). Breeding site The nest is a shallow scrape on the ground amongst sand-hills, gravel, or on other barren substrates.

My Nan was a prodigious collector of useless things. For instance, she had 17 rolls of the single ugliest contact paper in creation - a kitchen themed hodgepodge of images. For what purpose did she have it? We don't know. But we know that she never used it because it was still in the wrapper. So the question remains why did she keep it? Why did she keep the 32 vases of fake flowers? We can't know.

(These are the things we miss.)

Well, as usual, I screwed up! In this instance I screwed up big time.

First, I did not pay much attention to my wife telling me there will be light. I said not in California and that too in Bay area.

Second, I did not take the tripod ball head and any other lens than a 20mm F1.8. It was a huge struggle to mount my camera on the gimbal head and adjust the tripod legs to get the right angle. So I wasted much precious time.

Third, I did not know anything about how to photograph auroras. So, stupid me used 30s-60s exposure to get the photos. And this last mistake was the absolute blunder. This is unfixable. My stars are long and my Aurora strikes are not that prominent.

But it was worth experiencing what might be once in a while event. I also went to the nearest darkest area that I know too well. Thankfully, most of the Bay area was busy doing what they do.

The naked eye did not see much other than some faint colors. But a 60s exposure did gather a lot of the hue of the Aurora. I am told this hue is not often seen.

Hello everybody :)

Here´s my latest creation I made for my current "ExploringTheShire" project. The MOC shows the Hobbit hole from the Sackville-Baggins. I had a lot of fun building that creation, I tried to include some new techniques, for instance for the bench, the bird house or the mailbox and I also tried to make some kitbash minifigures for the Sackville-Baggins. For Otho I used the head of Kimi Räikkönen from an old Ferrari set :D

Credits to Sanel Lukovic for the use of the whips for the tree (www.flickr.com/photos/92767814@N02), Markus Rollbühler for the use of the quarter-tiles for the bushes (www.flickr.com/photos/moriartus) and to Travis Brickle for the idea with the flower box and for the rake (www.flickr.com/photos/brick_surgeon)

I hope you like it :)

Believed to be the first instance of a 5 engine lashup on the SCFE, CSX sending TRRA 3004 (USSC 6327) back and forth through Florida for a week ultimately coincided the delivery of 3004 with the completion of traction motor swaps at Childs for 6322 and 6323, making for a massive power move of 3 SD40s DIT. One of the wackiest consists to date

SCFE SBT-25 w/ USSC 4204, USSC 6325, USSC 6322, TRRA 3004 (USSC 6327), & USSC 6323

A rare instance of level and almost centered framing from a moving car. I was driving, so I only took a fleeting glance as I held the camera out to the side at arm's length. I did crop it some on the right side to put the tree more in the center, but made no other adjustments. The odd sky color must be the result of shooting through a dusty window. I like how opaque the sky looks and that the tree is in focus, also a hit or miss phenomenon in drivebys.

Every photo has a story behind it, not least the circumstances around location finding. On this occasion I had carefully planned my spot (Google Earth, tides, weather etc), only to discover what looked promising in silico was in fact a flop of a location.

Time was short 'til sunset, the wind was blowing, there was rain threatening and the photographer was feeling a bit despondent. Feeling defeated but not wanting to admit it, I decided (somewhat half-heartedly) to stop at Manu Bay on the way back to Raglan. I was fortunate enough to stumble upon this raised boulder bed overlooking the surf in the nick of time! Before the sun had set the clouds had gathered and the rain started.

It's said that photography is the coming together of careful planning and good luck. In this instance luck was by far the dominant influence!

On June 5, 2012, Hinode captured this stunning view of the transit of Venus -- the last instance of this rare phenomenon until 2117. Hinode is a joint JAXA/NASA mission to study the connections of the sun's surface magnetism, primarily in and around sunspots. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages Hinode science operations and oversaw development of the scientific instrumentation provided for the mission by NASA, and industry. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Mass., is the lead U.S. investigator for the X-ray Telescope.

Image credit: JAXA/NASA

NASA image use policy.

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission.

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more instances of our lovely Highland cow gang :) Happy Fringed Furry Friday!!

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Thanks for the visits, comments, awards, invitations and favorites. Please don't use my images on websites, blogs or others medias without my explicit permission.

Thanks!

© All rights reserved

My technique is alway the same:

Three exposures -2EV, 0, +2EV and then temperature adjustement using Lightroom and layering with luminosity mask using photoshop. Removal of distracting stuff with the stamp tool or patch tool. High pass filter to enhance details. Then saturation, contrast selectively control, dodge and burn where need...

DRI stand for Dynamic Range Increase. Three RAW files are used to achieve this. Rather than using a software like Photomatix for instance, I simply use mask to blend, my own way, the light, dark and normal shot with Photoshop and Lightroom.. To me, It looks more natural than the usual HDR treatment that I would normally applied.

Merci pour les visites, commentaires, récompenses, invitations et favoris. S.V.P. n'utilisez pas mes images sur des sites web, blogs ou autres médias sans ma permission.

Merci!

© Tous droits réservés

Ma technique est toujours la même:

Trois prises de vue -2EV, 0, +2EV. Ensuite ajustement de la température de couleur avec Lightroom et usage de calques et masques de luminosités avec Photoshop. Retrait d'éléments de distraction avec l'outil tampon. Filtre High pass pour le rehaussement des détails. Ensuite saturation et contraste ajustés de façon sélectives et locales. Dodge and burn là où requis...

DRI vient de l'anglais Dynmic Range Increase, qui pourrait se traduire par étendue dynamique améliorée. Les même 3 fichiers RAW entrent dans la composition d'un DRI. Plutôt que de se servir d'un logiciel comme Photomatix qui fait tout le travail, je me sers plutôt de masques pour filtrer l'éclairage dans photoshop et Lightroom. De mon point de vue, cette façon de faire donne une image plus naturel que le traitement HDR que j'employais auparavant.

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The Baron von Münchhausen reaches and boards the Galleon of the Flying Dutchman. By following Pegasus they are about to start together a journey towards the Moon.

Baron von Munchausen is a fictional German nobleman created by the German writer Rudolf Erich Raspe in his 1785 book "Baron Munchausen's Narrative of his Marvellous Travels". The character is loosely based on a real baron, Hieronymus Karl Friedrich, Freiherr von Münchhausen (1720-1797).

After hearing some of Münchhausen's stories, Raspe adapted them anonymously into literary form, first in German as ephemeral magazine pieces and then in English as the book, which was first published in Oxford.. The book was soon translated into other European languages, including a German version.

The fictional Baron's exploits, narrated in the first person, focus on his impossible achievements as a sportsman, soldier, and traveller, for instance riding on a cannonball, fighting a forty-foot crocodile, and travelling to the Moon. Intentionally comedic, the stories play on the absurdity and inconsistency of Munchausen's claims, and contain an undercurrent of social satire.

The Flying Dutchman (Dutch: De Vliegende Hollander) is a legendary ghost ship that can never make port and is doomed to sail the oceans forever. The myth is likely to have originated from the 17th-century golden age of the Dutch East India Company. The oldest extant version has been dated to the late 18th century. Sightings in the 19th and 20th centuries reported the ship to be glowing with ghostly light. In ocean lore, the sight of this phantom ship is a portent of doom.

Pegasus (Greek: Πήγασος, Latin: Pegasus, Pegasos) is a famous pterippus, a mythical winged divine stallion who is one of the most recognized creatures in Greek mythology. Pegasus is usually depicted as pure white in color. Pegasus is a child of the Olympian god Poseidon. He sprang from the blood issuing from the Gorgon Medusa's neck as Perseus was beheading her, similar to the manner in which Athena was born from the head of Zeus.

Since the Middle Ages the mythical winged horse has inspired many works of fantasy to poets and artists.

Galleon : Sarel Theron

Texture and background : my own

Pegasus : photomanipulated from an old print.

Created for : MIXMASTER CHALLENGE #30 Chef : studiodobs www.flickr.com/groups/artisticmanipulation/discuss/721577...

Artistic Manipulation Group : www.flickr.com/groups/1000750@N24/

Part of the pleasure of holidays (in this instance the Easter holidays) is having a bit more time to oneself to go out to the beach with the camera again (the last time was in January to Saltwick Bay).

Being over at the in-laws in Rochdale gave us the opportunity to take a visit to Formby, just north of Liverpool. This was my first visit, so I didn't know quite what to expect.

When I got to the beach I was presented with a length of sand which reminded me of Bamburgh, such was its vastness.

Not having the Nikon I took this with the point-and-shoot Ricoh GX100. Even though the Ricoh doesn't have the ultra-wide aspect of the Tokina 11-16mm I thought it managed to capture the vastness of the this beach quite well, with the dunes captured to the right of the composition being the only other main feature of this beautiful stretch of beach.

A seemingly rare instance of fall having actual color...

Photo of Icicle Creek captured via Minolta MD Zoom Rokkor-X 24-50mm F/4 lens. On the Snow Lakes Trail and on the way to the Core Enchantments. Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Stuart Mountain Range. Central Cascades Range. Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. Chelan County, Washington. Late October 2017.

Exposure Time: 1/100 sec. * ISO Speed: ISO-200 * Aperture: F/5.6 * Bracketing: None * Color Temperature: 9000 K * Plug-In: Vibrant Fall Minimal - Lou & Marks

Looking up Sgùrr nan Gillean from Bealach a' Bhàsteir. Very difficult obstacles make this an impassable route for walkers and scramblers.

After taking this shot, I turned the other way and ascended Am Bàsteir for the first time, finding the route that gets round the bad step on the ridge. The routefinding is the hardest part - the scrambling is relatively easy, compared for instance to the SE ridge "tourist route" on Gillean itself. The Bàsteir bad step - a 2 meter vertical drop on the ridge caused by a rockfall - can actually be scrambled on the way back from the summit, or at least it could be 20 years ago when I took this shot.

Taken with my first digital camera, a 3MP Canon A70.

Nature always amazes me. For instance the rain splashed on the ground made the woods debris bounce up and make shapes and forms as they attached to just a blade of grass beside

a mushroom. On top of the mushroom you can see the grains of sand on top of it that were there when the mushroom was raising itself out of the ground. Love nature! Macro photography gives a way to see this

[polski tekst niżej]

I uploaded this photo to the WRP gallery in the second half of the 2000s. Then, doing a remake of photo processing for my Polish flog that now is being transferred here, I have left the original stuff. Even if maybe not every fact fits today, let me keep this, here after translation.

Golce... Golce is a village, located by a railway line (even two lines - there is also the broad gauge LHS). The passenger trains are running there but in Golce none stops, despite the existence of the platform (indeed, devastated heavily, but always a platform). Moreover, if any citizen of Golce would like to show the train for example to his young offspring, he can do it either very early in the morning (around 6:20 am) or quite late at night (around 10:30 pm), because only in these two moments there's a chance of spotting a train there. If for instance he chose the early morning of August 5, 2006, he would see the express train number 26101, named "Hetman" and the heading locomotive SU45-135 from Lublin depot, temporary residing in Zamość only to service this pair of trains every day. Children in Golce have something to enjoy anyway, because in previous years it was much worse with spotting the train. Fortunately, to see a freight train, regardless of broad-gauge or standard-gauge, it is enough to spend some time on the platform in Golce not necessarily in very early morning or late night.

Photo by Jarek / Chester

Tę fotkę wrzuciłem na galerię WRP w drugiej połowie lat dwutysięcznych. Potem, robiąc remake obróbki zdjęcia na mojego floga, zostawiłem oryginalny opis. I dalej go tu zostawię, nawet jeśli nie wszystko jest dzisiaj aktualne.

Golce... Golce to taka wioska, położona przy linii kolejowej (a nawet dwóch - jeszcze jest LHS), po której poruszają się pociągi pasażerskie. Jednak w Golcach żaden pociąg pasażerski nie staje, mimo peronu (fakt, zdewastowanego niemożebnie, ale zawsze peronu). Mało tego, jeśli obywatel Golców chciałby swojemu młodemu potomstwu pokazać taki pociąg pasażerski, musi to zrobić albo dość wcześnie rano (coś ok. 6:20), albo dość późno w nocy (ok. 22:30), bo tylko wtedy taki pociąg przez Golce przejeżdża. Jeśliby wybrał ranek 5 sierpnia 2006, zobaczyłby ów pociąg, o numerze 26101, nazwie "Hetman" i obsłudze trakcyjnej w postaci lokomotywy SU45-135 z Zakładu Taboru w Lublinie, czasowo mieszkającej w Zamościu celowo do obsługi tych unikalnych dla Golców pociągów. Dzieci w Golcach w sumie i tak mają się z czego cieszyć, w ubiegłych latach potrafiło z tą widzialnością pociągów być znacznie gorzej. Na szczęście i wtedy i teraz, aby zobaczyć pociąg towarowy, obojętnie czy szeroko- czy normalnotorowy, starczy poświęcić niewiele czasu, ślęcząc przy linii w Golcach.

Fot. Jarek / Chester

try it on black :)

Check out my new site: The Beautiful Stranger

Guatemala.

I took this pic before leavin' this impressive 3,000 mts high lake surrounded by volcanoes.

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En la lengua maya local, el sufijo ~tenango significa "el lugar (donde hay abundancia) de".

Siempre es una pena irse de este lago a 3.000 pies rodeado de volcanes.

Halation: The scattering of light. To surround, as if with a halo. The instance where light disperses while hitting film emulsions, especially around highlights.

I try to keep my geeky, technical side in check with photography. I am a bit wary of it, truth be told. I try to make my photography less technical and more creatively by chance. But I do enjoy geeking out now and again while learning the technical nuts and bolts of how film emulsions work and why certain films do certain things that other films don't. When pursued properly, such technical information can inform the less formal creative exploration of film photography. As long as I don't get too fixated on it, or too narrow-visioned, I find it can open possible avenues of exploration.

Anyhow, I was reminded of this general philosophy recently while researching the characteristics of Fomapan 400, which is kind of a unique film among black and white negative films. There are two things it does kind of strangely. The first is that it has a very uncharacteristic spectral sensitivity chart. While most black and white films kind of balance out in their sensitivity to the visible spectrum, Fomapan 400 starts out with relatively low blue sensitivity and progressively gains sensitivity as it moves to the red end of the spectrum. It makes the film behave almost as if it has a built-in red filter in terms of how it renders tonality and translates color into shades of gray. The other thing it does is exhibit frequent halation, especially in 120. I am guessing this is because the 120 format is coated onto a polyester base instead of the more usual triacetate base, and polyester bases are prone to "light piping". Fomapan 400 has an anti-halation layer added to it to help prevent this but apparently it is not super effective, as evidenced by this and other images I have made.

Anyhow, I dig this kind of thing and just wanted to share a little bit of it. I don't think I was aware of all these qualities while making this image, so they were a bit of a surprise... but a good one.

Hasselblad 500C

Fomapan 400

Stieglitz would never say that certain objects of the world were more or less beautiful than others...telegraph poles, for instance, compared with oak trees. He would accept them for what they are, and use the most appropriate objects to express his thoughts and convey his vision. -- Ansel Adams

I picked up this vintage chair at a garage sale, several years ago, and it's been rusting away in the back corner of the yard ever since. My intentions were to remove the rust and repaint it as no one wants to sit in it as it is. Well, along came flickr and now who's got time to de-rust an old patio chair. Oh well, I've gotten some great texture shots off the seat so it's still functional for something and maybe I'll take a day off from flickr someday soon, grease my elbows, and get this old timer cleaned up.

I will be driving to our mountain cabin today and won't be back on the computer until later this even. Yippee...fall color coming up...I hope!

yet another instance of this magnificent urban plaza in Granada, Andalucia.

Always a balance. Each instance is only one moment, one idea, one event. At the same time, each instance is a reflection of and part of the overall.

May your Friday be full of peace and reflection.

Lanner Falcon Falco biarmicus hunting insects on the dry Nossob riverbed in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. These powerful flyers look quite comical when they rush and run after insects - big black ants, in this instance.

© Gerda van Schalkwyk. All rights reserved. This photograph and all others on my photostream are protected by copyright and may not be used on any site, blog or forum, nor linked to without my permission.

another instance of York's impressive Victorian railway station. You can tell that I am a convert ;)

A very different approach to the crocus shot from yesterday. In that instance, I isolated two on a hillside, shooting upslope and trying for as clean a look as possible. Here, in contrast, a beautiful cluster buried in a tangle of old and new grasses. I did think of doing some grooming, ie. removal of dead material, but two things stopped me: 1. the grasses provided some insulation - protection from wind and cold - and removing them would expose the plant and maybe damage it; 2. this is how we often see wildflowers, in context, as part of their habitat, not neat and clean, not calendar-worthy... so why not show them like this? Perhaps the pattern of blue splashes is enough to cut through the chaos of criss-crossing lines.

The two photos were made minutes apart. Are they equally successful? I don't know; probably not. But there's no point in endlessly repeating what I know will work.

Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2019 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

God and I had several conversations on my drive to and from Kelly Butte Lookout. I took a wrong turn going to and leaving from this wonderful place resulting in several instances where I couldn't pull the hill or turn around and backed down cliff side roads for at least a half mile with loose gravel and a loose rear end. (sorry Gerty, truth hurts) Staring at this shot serves as a reminder to me as to why risking heart attack, bear mauling, and rolling my faithful truck and self off a cliff side to get a photo is worth it. (at one point I even high centered on a log that had rolled off a cliff and wedged under the frame) I put a stone behind the tire to lift me off of it. That stone is now enshrined in my front yard...

so blow this up and take 30 seconds to admire the view, no photoshop, no layers or masking, dodging or burning, just what it looks like to stand there thankful to be alive and feeling blessed to live where I do.

Other than the stray cats and trees, the other living thing in significant numbers at Dakota Crescent happen to be the pigeons, which can be seen hanging in the most unusual places sometimes. Like for in this instance, hanging on a clothes drying pole.

Chandeshvara Nayanar

The South Indian legend, narrated, for instance, in the Periyapuranam, states that he was born into a Brahmin family and was called Visarasarman. When he was a young boy, he found that cows remain uncared for, and hence he himself commenced tendering and caring for the cows. While doing so, he would pour some milk on a lingam, which he made of sand. The news of this wastage of milk reached the ear of his father, Datta; and he himself came to the field to scold his son. Chandesha was deep in meditation in front of the sand lingam, and he did not see his father. The enraged father kicked the sand lingam. At this Chnadesha’s meditation was interrupted, and he struck his father’s leg with a staff. The staff turned into an axe and his father’s leg was severed. At this point, Shiva manifested himself, and blessed Chandesha, declared that he would become a father to Chandesha; and restored the severed leg of Datta to normal state.

A pair of tornadoes north of Dodge City, Kansas—24 May 2016. A satellite tornado is reaching down from the periphery of a larger circulation beneath a conical updraft. These were the seventh and eighth tornadoes we observed on this cyclical supercell — one of several instances where two were down at once.