The general public might throw the term around loosely, but for scientists, “songbird” has a more detailed meaning: It refers to a specific suborder of birds. All songbirds are perching birds, an order called passerines that share a distinct toe arrangement that helps them grasp branches. Passerines are separated into three suborders, the largest of which is Passeri. Birds in the Passeri suborder are called oscines, or songbirds. The suborder includes more than 4,000 species that range from the compact Golden-crowned Kinglet to the much larger Common Raven.

Despite their variety in size and musical talent, all songbirds do have something in common: precise control of a highly specialized vocal organ called a syrinx. Almost all birds use a syrinx to produce sound, but oscines have superior mastery of theirs. “The big difference is not the syrinx itself, but the muscles around it,” Kaufman says. “The oscines have a whole series of really complex muscles attached to the syrinx and it gives them much greater control.”

It's been a while since I uploaded a selfie, 6 months to be precise (the last one was WNGD in May) so here I am with clothes on and a new haircut, my hairdresser went a bit mad with the scissors when I asked her to get rid of my split ends 😄 Happy Selfie Sunday and Happy Sliders Sunday! I used the inbuilt Flickr filter called "Keen" which seemed appropriate.

The main reason I'm uploading this photo is because myself and thousands of other people all over Ireland are taking part in a 300,000 steps in November challenge, raising much needed funds for Barnardos Ireland. This long established charity provides a vital service helping vulnerable children & their families - this is the charity's website www.barnardos.ie/

If you feel able to donate even a small amount to support this very worthwhile cause I'd be eternally grateful but if charity donation is not your thing, or you prefer to support local charities in your own country I quite understand. You can donate anonymously if you wish and/or keep the amount private if you choose. Rest assured all monies raised go directly to the charity each week, the participants are not responsible for sending it on.

I use a Fitbit watch to track my daily steps and I will be posting weekly progress updates on my Just Giving page. I'm up to just over 72,000 steps in the 6 days since the challenge started.

Below is the link to my Just Giving page, if you can't click on it then please copy & paste :

www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Julie-C1967?utm_source=Sha....

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click to activate the icon of slideshow: the small triangle inscribed in the small rectangle, at the top right, in the photostream;

or…. press L to enlarge;

clicca sulla piccola icona per attivare lo slideshow: sulla facciata principale del photostream, in alto a destra c'è un piccolo rettangolo (rappresenta il monitor) con dentro un piccolo triangolo nero;

oppure…. premi L per ingrandire l'immagine;

Qi Bo's photos on Fluidr

Qi Bo's photos on Flickriver

www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/winners-...

www.fotografidigitali.it/gallery/2726/opere-italiane-segn...

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All the photos I present were taken in the town of Taormina (Sicily);

I made photos related to "street photography";

I photographed people who, for the most part, I had never met before, I thank them for their sympathy and availability;

I tried to capture the essence of minimal photographic stories, collected walking down the street ... in search of fleeting moments ...

I met a lady no longer young, who told me that, when she was seven years old, she met the bandit Giuliano (!) on Mount Ziretto (a mountain that is located above Taormina, in the territory of Castelmola), in telling she looked up and pointed at him, it seemed she was seeing him at that precise moment ....! (ah! if only I had had a special camera to capture the images that at that moment were resurfacing in the mind of that very nice lady ....!), she described it and ... she saw it (!): if she remembers it tall, handsome man, boots that reached mid-leg, rifle over his shoulder ....! and then the lady added: of course, I didn't know who that man was, they told me this afterwards ....! I photographed what I believe was a small advertising shoot, thanks to the availability of the photographer and the models (thank you for giving me some of their precious time ..!).

For some photographs I used a particular photographic technique at the time of shooting, which in addition to capturing the surrounding space, also "inserted" a temporal dimension, with photos characterized by being moved because the exposure times were deliberately lengthened, they are confused -focused-imprecise-undecided ... the Anglo-Saxon term that encloses this photographic genre with a single word is "blur", these images were thus created during the shooting phase, and not as an effect created subsequently, in retrospect, in the post-production.

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Tutte le foto che presento sono state realizzate nella cittadina di Taormina (Sicilia);

ho realizzato foto riconducibili alla “street photography”;

ho fotografato persone che, per la maggior parte, non avevo mai incontrato prima, le ringrazio per la loro simpatia e disponibilità;

ho cercato di cogliere al volo l’essenza di storie fotografiche minime, raccolte camminando per la strada ... alla ricerca di attimi fugaci s-fuggenti ... ho incontrato una signora non più giovane, che mi ha raccontato che, quando aveva l'età di sette anni, incontrò il bandito Giuliano (!) sul monte Ziretto (un monte che si trova sopra Taormina, nel territorio di Castelmola), nel raccontare lei guardava in alto e lo indicava, sembrava lo stesse vedendo in quel preciso momento....! (ah! se solo io avessi avuto una macchina fotografare speciale per catturare le immagini che in quel momento andavano riaffiorando nella mente di quella simpaticissima signora....!), lo descriveva e...lo vedeva (!): se lo ricorda alto, un bell'uomo, gli stivali che arrivavano a metà gamba, il fucile in spalla....! e poi la signora aggiunse: certo, io non sapevo chi fosse quell'uomo, questo me lo hanno detto dopo....! Ho fotografato quello che credo fosse un piccolo shooting pubblicitario, grazie alla disponibilità della fotografa e delle modelle (le ringrazio per avermi concesso un pò del loro prezioso tempo..!).

Ho utilizzato per alcune fotografie una tecnica fotografica particolare al momento dello scatto, che oltre a catturare lo spazio circostante, ha "inserito" anche una dimensione temporale, con foto caratterizzate dall’essere mosse poiché volutamente sono stati allungati i tempi di esposizione, sono confuse-sfocate-imprecise-indecise...il termine anglosassone che racchiude con una sola parola questo genere fotografico è "blur", queste immagini sono state così realizzate in fase di scatto, e non come un effetto creato successivamente, a posteriori, in fase di post-produzione.

mamoiada-sfilata de Sos Mamuthones

Precise sea defences

or to be more precise...

in my face, again... [see my previous 'dirt eating' ~ here]

rider: matti lehikoinen

place: downhill line, fort william, scotland

downhill world championship '09

canon 5d mark ii + canon 15mm [fish eye]

view it in large size on black ~ click

ps. this shot almost got onto the paper, but no luck this time,,,

this photo was POD on pinkbike.com on 2009-08-23

The precise origin of the practice of leaving crosses on the hill is uncertain, but it is believed that the first crosses were placed on the former Jurgaičiai or Domantai hill fort after the 1831 Uprising. Over the generations, not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but estimates put it at about 55,000 in 1990 and 100,000 in 2006.

Villa Cavrois, Croix, France, 1932

Architect Robert Mallet Stevens (1886-1945)

Built between 1929 and 1932, the villa was the result of an order placed by Paul Cavrois with the architect Robert Mallet-Stevens to house his family of seven children and his domestic servants. Covered in yellow facing bricks set on a concrete frame and double brick walls, the villa was thought out as a total work of art comprising an exemplary case of homogenous construction between architecture, decoration and furniture. It is the architect’s technical and aesthetic manifesto in terms of the care given to its materials and equipment. Clear guidelines governed the design of the building: “air, light, work, sports, hygiene, comfort and efficiency”.

The Villa Cavrois is a masterpiece of modern architecture and a unique example in the North of France. The villa is 60 meters long, it has 3.800 m² including 1.840 m² habitables and 830 m² of terraces and a garden of 17.600 m² (originally 5 ha). The Villa Cavrois is a testimony to the modernist vision of the 1920s as it was conceived by designers such as Le Corbusier, Pierre Chareau and the Bauhaus school. Luminosity, hygiene and comfort are the keywords that underlie such buildings. Villa Cavrois illustrates this concept with simplicity and elegance. The large modern mansion was organized to offer the best possible lifestyle to the nine members of the family and to facilitate the daily work of the household staff. Mallet-Stevens' work was not limited to the design of the building. He also designed the interior decoration and the gardens which surround the house. The choice of materials, concrete ceiling, metal, steel, glass, green Swedish marble in the main dining room, yellow Sienna marble in the fireplace alcove of the hall-salon, parquets of oak, iroko, zebrawood, Cuban mahogany, and the furniture of the rooms echoed the hierarchy of space: everything was conceived and adapted for use in place. Simplicity and functionality of the furniture prevail in all parts. The luxury of this house does not lie in carved detailing or gilding, it unfolds in the richness of the materials used, such as unadorned marble, metal and wood. The Villa Cavrois provided for its occupants a large number of amenities especially rare for the time, even in luxury houses. Use of the latest modern technology, especially electricity meant each room was provided with electric lighting, a radio loudspeaker, an electric clock and telephones enabled people to communicate between rooms or with the outside world. The villa was equipped with a modern boiler room and a wine cellar. The water system provided hot and cold water, as well as softened water for cooking and drinking. Lighting was the object of special care. The lighting, both direct and indirect, is very delicate and elegant. In collaboration with the lighting engineer André Salomon, Mallet-Stevens conceived an indirect lighting which fit in the architecture and he has provided most of the rooms of the villa of a lighting device system which direct the light towards the ceiling to obtain an unchanging light closer at the natural one. Hygiene was very important in the conception of the Villa Cavrois, as it is shown by the clinical aspect of the kitchen of metal and white paint and also by the presence of a swimming pool of 27 metres long and 4 metres depth at the diving boards.

The villa was occupied by German troops between 1940 and 1944 and was damaged at the end of the war. When he returned in 1947, Paul Cavrois called upon architect Pierre Barbe to add two apartments for his elder sons. The family lived in the villa until 1985. The following year, it was sold to a real estate firm that wanted to subdivide the park. Despite its automatic classification as a historic monument in 1990, the villa was no longer maintained by its owner. The State bought the property, which was in serious danger, in 2001, and undertook a major restoration project to its original historic condition as when it was inaugurated in 1932. The lighting, the furnishings attached to the decorations, as well as the bookcases and benches have all been restored using the original materials. The parquet floorings, metal doorframes and marbles have been restored or returned. The restoration of the park has returned it to the original land’s very subtle gradient with the precise layout of the alleyways, while replanting plant species identified from old photographs. The reflecting pool, which had been filled in during the war, and the swimming pool have been restored to their original state. The restoration was carried out between 2009 and 2015. Since 2012, the villa has been part of a worldwide conservation programme for emblematic houses of the 20th century, “Iconic Houses”.

After the massive Greek storm and rain departed, the sun blasted everything with it's usual intensity, and the villa garden sparkled for a while. Late in the afternoon, just before the sun disappeared below the adjacent mountain, I took several shots of an indigenous bindweed trying to tie a knot around a leaf stem. My DoF was very shallow - f1.5 - which I prefer with the Helios, as I tend to go for the optical 'feel' this generates, rather than absolute pixel-precise focusing accuracy.

Nimble and precise, Vastt uses his gravity defying powers to create mind-bending battlefields. His four wing daggers are perfect for up close combat, or can be guided from a distance to fall to their targets. Vastt's Mask of Durability protects him from even the heaviest of impacts and allows him to slice through the toughest materials.

Build Notes:

Just a quick guy for the upcoming Bionilug convention display. Also hey first MOC I've posted this year!

Man working precise THING on the street.

Subject: Dusty Thune 2018 St Paul, MN and his winning entry "Ascension"

Published as part of a print article on this very talented sculptor from The House of Thune - Minnesota Monthly Magazine Jan/Feb 2019. Many thanks to Greenspring Media!

Another photo in this stream is part of the online publication:

www.minnesotamonthly.com/Arts-and-Entertainment/The-Deadl...

The Turkey Vulture, a very large bird has a very precise neat landing technique.

Nimble and precise, Vastt uses his gravity defying powers to create mind-bending battlefields. His four wing daggers are perfect for up close combat, or can be guided from a distance to fall to their targets. Vastt's Mask of Durability protects him from even the heaviest of impacts and allows him to slice through the toughest materials.

Build Notes:

Just a quick guy for the upcoming Bionilug convention display. Also hey first MOC I've posted this year!

Photo from the Andreas Rink collection, slide kindly provided for scanning by Florian Weiß.

München-Riem

ca. May 1972

N5624

Convair 990A-30A-5

30-10-16

Modern Air Transport

N5624 is coming in to land on Riem’s runway 07 (noted here on 7 May 1972, maybe the precise date for this shot). This airframe was frequently seen at the airport during 1968, e.g. on 20 February, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June, 23 June and 30 June (dates from Klaus Held’s Riem chronicle). It returned still with Modern Air Transport, but re-registered as N5624 on 7 May 1972 (possibly the precise date for this shot) and then as N990E with Nomads Travel club on 18 September 1978. It left Riem for the last time on 24 September 1978 after a 6-day stay..

This Convair 990A started out as N5607 with American Airlines in February 1962. It went on to Modern Air Transport in April 1967 as N5607 (later reregistered N5624), then to Nomads Travel Club as N990E in August 1975 and finally Galaxy Airlines and Christ is the Answer, still as N990E. Broken up at Fort Lauderdale (FL) during 1990-1991. (Sources: scramble.nl, rzjets.net)

Registration details for this airframe:

www.scramble.nl/database/civil/details/convair990_16

This airframe as N5607 with American Airlines at DTW in November 1964:

imgproc.airliners.net/photos/airliners/7/7/5/1342577.jpg

N5607 with Modern Air Transport at BFI in May 1967 (non-standard „The Silver Palace“ colours):

www.flickr.com/photos/23032926@N05/8382436910

N5607 with Modern Air Transport at CMH in July 1971 (later colours):

www.flickr.com/photos/23032926@N05/4916759810

This airframe as N5624 with Modern Air Transport at LGW in ca. 1972:

www.flickr.com/photos/keith_brooks/37197244974

N990E in basic Nomads colours probably at KDTW in Romulus, Michigan:

www.flickr.com/photos/154191970@N03/46505426535

N990E with Galaxy at FLL in June 1986:

www.flickr.com/photos/steelhead2010/11011062906

N990E with Christ is the Answer at FLL in 1991:

www.flickr.com/photos/steelhead2010/9370334506

Scan from slide (unknown brand, possibly Agfa).

The preference for "chips" over "French fries" in British culture is deeply ingrained and can be attributed to historical and cultural factors, tradition, and culinary habits.

The term "chips" originated in Britain, where thin slices or strips of potatoes were first deep-fried. This style of fried potato gained popularity in the UK long before the thinner-cut "French fries" became popular elsewhere.

UK chips are often made from floury potatoes, which have a fluffy texture when cooked, while French fries are commonly made from starchy potatoes, which result in a crispier exterior.

They were introduced to the UK by way of Belgium, where they were originally popularised. The story goes that British soldiers stationed in Belgium during World War I tasted fries for the first time and brought the idea back to the UK. However, it wasn't until after World War II that chips became a widespread and popular dish in the UK, with fish and chips shops becoming a common sight across the country. So, while the precise date of the first consumption of chips in the UK is not documented, their popularity grew significantly during the early to mid-20th century.

The precise extent of the once wooded area from which Southwood in the town of Ramsgate takes its name is uncertain. Today, Southwood has much clearer definition in the local inhabitant's mental map as a predominantly residential area and as the home ground of Ramsgate football. It equates with the area of the former Southwood Farm and of Southwood House. Southwood's large, Victorian water tower is also one of Ramsgate's distinctive and prominent landmarks. The Southwood neighbourhood occupies an area of about half a square kilometre, and consists of predominantly late nineteenth and early twentieth century houses. It sits on elevated ground one kilometre to the west of Ramsgate town centre and behind the more prestigious houses, cliff-top promenades, and greens of the West Cliff area.

The Tower was built in 1887 and was made a grade II listed building in 1988, now converted into flats. I can see the back of this building from anywhere in the front of the house.,

Apparently my house was lot 3 when the farm was sold and was used as a brickfield until the row of houses were built in 1902. A brickfield is a common location name in southeast England. Its name derives from a field where the topsoil was removed and the clay beneath was stripped, and mixed with chalk and ash to create bricks, we now have topsoil and chalk so I suppose all the clay was used up!

MY THANKS TO ALL WHO VISIT AND COMMENT IT IS APPRECIATED

Alicja Kwade a créé un cadre spatial composé de murs de béton, de miroirs doubles, de cadres métalliques vides qui convoque le motif du labyrinthe, et plus précisément du dédale. À l'échelle de l'architecture de la nef, cette construction génère un rapport à l'espace, au temps et à la destinée. L’artiste entend décupler notre attention, nous désorienter et mettre nos sens en éveil en perturbant nos repères. Un jeu de réflexions grandeur nature qui lui permet de matérialiser les concepts abstraits de temps et d'espace.Au sol, est disposé un ensemble de 16 sculptures que l'artiste a modélisé en s'inspirant du concept de la suite de « Suite de Fibonacci » : selon ce principe, chaque sculpture constitue la somme des deux précédentes.

Pour Alicja Kwade, cette oeuvre fonctionne telle une image qui serait en constante évolution, au gré des déplacements du visiteur. En choisissant de faire se refléter ou non les objets à l'intérieur du dédale, l’artiste pousse les images à se mouvoir, les formes à se transformer selon une logique de séquençage. Au-dessus de nos têtes plane la menace d’un inquiétant pendule en action, composé d’une horloge et d’une pierre, qui tournent dangereusement à quelques mètres au-dessus de nos têtes au bout de chaines. L’espace est envahi du son amplifié du « tic-tac » généré par l’horloge. Cette vibration sonore dans l’espace matérialise le temps qui passe. Il illustre le souhait de l’artiste de rendre palpable, visible, concrète, une notion aussi abstraite que le temps qui s’écoule inéluctablement. Il souligne également une idée d’infini et nous pose la question de l’instant présent. Où sommes nous ? Est-ce le pendule qui tourne ou est-ce la Terre sur laquelle nous évoluons sans nous en rendre compte ?

Alicja Kwade has created a space frame consisting of concrete walls, double mirrors, empty metal frames that conjure the labyrinth pattern, and more precisely the maze. On the scale of the architecture of the nave, this construction generates a relationship with space, time and destiny. The artist intends to multiply our attention, to disorient us and to awaken our senses by disturbing our bearings. A game of life-size reflections that allows him to materialize the abstract concepts of time and space.At the ground, is arranged a set of 16 sculptures that the artist has modeled, inspired by the concept of the suite of "Suite de Fibonacci ": according to this principle, each sculpture constitutes the sum of the two preceding ones.

For Alicja Kwade, this work works like an image that would be constantly evolving, as the visitor moves. By choosing to reflect or not the objects inside the maze, the artist pushes the images to move, shapes to be transformed according to a logic of sequencing. Above our heads hangs the menace of a disturbing pendulum in action, composed of a clock and a stone, which turn dangerously a few meters above our heads at the end of chains. The space is invaded by the amplified sound of the "ticking" generated by the clock. This sound vibration in space materializes the passing time. It illustrates the desire of the artist to make palpable, visible, concrete, a notion as abstract as the time that elapses inevitably. He also emphasizes an idea of ​​infinity and asks us the question of the present moment. Where are we ? Is the pendulum spinning or is it the Earth on which we move without realizing it?

Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have for the first time precisely measured the distance to one of the oldest objects in the universe, a collection of stars born shortly after the big bang.

This new, refined distance yardstick provides an independent estimate for the age of the universe. The new measurement also will help astronomers improve models of stellar evolution. Star clusters are the key ingredient in stellar models because the stars in each grouping are at the same distance, have the same age, and have the same chemical composition. They therefore constitute a single stellar population to study.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and T. Brown and S. Casertano (STScI) ; Acknowledgement: NASA, ESA, and J. Anderson (STScI)

Read more

NASA Media Usage Guidelines

Hill of Crosses is a site of pilgrimage about 12 km north of the city of Šiauliai, in northern Lithuania. The precise origin of the practice of leaving crosses on the hill is uncertain, but it is believed that the first crosses were placed on the former Jurgaičiai or Domantai hill fort after the 1831 Uprising.Over the generations, not only crosses and crucifixes, but statues of the Virgin Mary, carvings of Lithuanian patriots and thousands of tiny effigies and rosaries have been brought here by Catholic pilgrims. The exact number of crosses is unknown, but estimates put it at about 55,000 in 1990 and 100,000 in 2006.

Over the generations, the place has come to signify the peaceful endurance of Lithuanian Catholicism despite the threats it faced throughout history. After the 3rd partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795, Lithuania became part of the Russian Empire. Poles and Lithuanians unsuccessfully rebelled against Russian authorities in 1831 and 1863. These two uprisings are connected with the beginnings of the hill: as families could not locate bodies of perished rebels, they started putting up symbolic crosses in place of a former hill fort.

When the old political structure of Eastern Europe fell apart in 1918, Lithuania once again declared its independence. Throughout this time, the Hill of Crosses was used as a place for Lithuanians to pray for peace, for their country, and for the loved ones they had lost during the Wars of Independence.

The site took on a special significance during the years 1944–1990, when Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union. Continuing to travel to the hill and leave their tributes, Lithuanians used it to demonstrate their allegiance to their original identity, religion and heritage. It was a venue of peaceful resistance, although the Soviets worked hard to remove new crosses, and bulldozed the site at least three times (including attempts in 1963 and 1973). There were even rumors that the authorities planned to build a dam on the nearby Kulvė River, a tributary to Mūša, so that the hill would end up underwater.

On September 7, 1993, Pope John Paul II visited the Hill of Crosses, declaring it a place for hope, peace, love and sacrifice. In 2000 a Franciscan hermitage was opened nearby. The interior decoration draws links with La Verna, the mountain where St. Francis is said to have received his stigmata. The hill remains under nobody's jurisdiction; therefore people are free to build crosses as they see fit. (-wiki)

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/xiaoyangphotography/

Instagram: inhiu

I was up early to capture this scene, 4:30 to be precise. I was wandering solo in the forest, and I had a thought. "Wouldn't it be awesome if a moose walked right here into this scene?" And right on queue, literally, this big guy showed up for some posing. I watched, admiring him for about 30 minutes with the only sounds of birds chirping, water running in the creek, his footsteps, and an occasional mosquito. A beautiful morning in isolated Denali National Park.

Join me May 17-21, 2019, for the Spring in Denali workshop. Visit www.wildernessphotoworkshops.com for more details.

+ Prints available at www.chaddutson.com

+ Workshops available at www.wildernessphotoworkshops.com

File info: 180775907

Image info: Nikon D850, 70-200mm f/2.8, f/2.8, 200mm, 1/1600, ISO-400

Palmer, Alfred T.,, photographer.

Women are trained to do precise and vital engine installation detail in Douglas Aircraft Company plants, Long Beach, Calif.

1942 Oct.

1 transparency : color.

Notes:

Title from FSA or OWI agency caption.

Transfer from U.S. Office of War Information, 1944.

Subjects:

Douglas Aircraft Company

Airplane industry

Women--Employment

World War, 1939-1945

Assembly-line methods

United States--California--Long Beach

Format: Transparencies--Color

Rights Info: No known restrictions on publication.

Repository: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

Part Of: Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information Collection 12002-39 (DLC) 93845501

General information about the FSA/OWI Color Photographs is available at hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.fsac

Higher resolution image is available (Persistent URL): hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/fsac.1a35357

Call Number: LC-USW36-130

34/365

Im in the Jungle. The Balinese Jungle, to be precise. Im not keeping up with my self portraits hardly at all, but I know i'll get back into the swing of things soon. Currently Im in Bali photographing the Sacred Circularities hoop dance and movement meditation retreat for the month of March. It's such a wild honor to be here. I can't express my gratitude for the people of this Earth and for love and acceptance I have received here.

A small group of us went to the rice paddies on our day off from "work". And what a breathtaking sight it was.

Following earlier thoughts about the relationship between photography and space, the next question for me is how to work photographically so that an image doesn’t just hang on a wall, but actually functions there.

The goal isn’t to make photography more “artistic” – but more suitable for interior space. Not less decorative, but decorative in a way that holds visual weight and emotional depth and resonates emotionally over time. A few initial "rules" suggest themselves:

- Reduction to form and surface.

The image should not show, but organize. Visual elements should be clearly placed, not narrative.

- Abstraction over representational Content.

Geometrical forms over recognizable Objects. No story, no memory. Avoid shallow “zoomed-in” abstractions that rely on texture but lack compositional depth.

- Restrained use of color and tonal values.

Muted, quiet tones. No contrasts that demand attention. No dominant color accents. If strong color is used, then use it with a clear atmospheric intention.

- Calm composition.

No perspective, no motion, no directional pull. Tension through balance, not through lines.

- Texture as a visual tool.

Surface presence instead of content. Stone, fog, light, water – not as subjects, but as structure.

- No Message, no statement.

The image doesn’t need to mean anything – just have presence. It shouldn’t want to say anything. Emotional depth should emerge quietly – through tonal transitions, atmospheric layering, and precise use of detail. Nothing explicit, but enough to move your and hold attention over time.

- Neutral format.

Square or quietly balanced rectangles. No dramatic crops.

Whether these "rules" hold up, I don’t know yet – but they offer a starting point for me. And regardless of whether they prove useful, I know I still have a long way to go before I’m able to work consistently within them.

Precise I.D unknown (probably a juvenile).

Darién rainforest, Colombia.

Yanaka, Tokyo, Japan

Leica M11-D

Light Lens Lab "1966" 50mm F1.2

The circus was in town, well in Hamilton Hill to be precise in late November early December 2018. I wonder when we will see them again, if ever.

The precise moment he decided I was too close... a fraction of a second later he was gone. :D

I cook (OK, PLAY for more precise) with the mice ^_^

PREPARATIVI.......

La mongolfiera è un aeromobile che utilizza aria calda, un gas più leggero dell'aria circostante, per ottenere la forza necessaria per sollevarsi da terra. Per la precisione non si tratta proprio di aria, ma dei gas della combustione del propano. Inizialmente il pallone mediante un ventilatore viene riempito di aria che poi viene sostituita dai prodotti della combustione. La mongolfiera fa parte della categoria degli aerostati, veicoli aerei che utilizzano gas per sollevarsi; è il tipo più comune di pallone aerostatico. Quando in volo vengono trasportati dal vento e non possiedono strumenti direzionali propri. Questo li differenzia dai dirigibili che, pur essendo mantenuti in volo da principi simili, possiedono invece motori ed eliche in grado di influenzare il percorso del mezzo.Come tutti gli aerostati, anche la mongolfiera vola in virtù del fatto che il gas che riempie il pallone è più leggero dell'aria circostante e questo determina una spinta verso l'alto secondo il ben noto principio di Archimede. Tra le manifestazioni più importanti in Italia per le mongolfiere vi è il Ferrara Balloons Festival di Ferrara, gigantesco evento turistico alle porte della città estense in grado di portare al Parco Urbano circa 400.000 persone nel 2009.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The balloon is an aircraft that uses hot air, a gas lighter than the surrounding air, to obtain the necessary strength to rise from the ground. To be precise it is not just air, but the gases of the combustion of propane. Initially the ball by means of a fan is filled with air which is then replaced by the products of combustion. The balloon is part of the category of balloons, aerial vehicles that use gas to rise; is the most common type of balloon. When in flight are carried by the wind and do not have their directional tools. This differentiates them from airships which, while being maintained in flight by similar principles, have instead engines and propellers able to influence the path of the middle. As all balloons, the balloon also flies in virtue of the fact that the gas which fills the balloon is lighter than air surrounding and this determines a thrust upwards according to the well known principle of Archimedes. Among the most important events in Italy for hot air balloons there is the Ferrara Balloons Festival of Ferrara, gigantic tourist event on the outskirts of the city of Este able to bring to the Urban Park about 400,000 people in 2009.

Oude Kerk - Delft

Rijke stinkerds verwijst naar iemand die erg rijk is, waarbij het woord stinker een spottende of afkeurende betekenis heeft, hoewel de precieze herkomst van de uitdrukking onduidelijk is. De veel gehoorde uitleg dat rijken in de kerk werden begraven en dat de geur van rottende lichamen de kerk vulde, is onjuist. Niet alleen rijken werden in de kerk begraven; ook anderen kregen een plaats daar. De geur van een rottend lichaam was waarschijnlijk niet in de kerk te ruiken. De uitdrukking "rijke stinkerd" is pas in de 19e eeuw ontstaan.

"Rich stinkers" refers to someone who is very wealthy, with the word "stinker" having a derisive or disapproving meaning, although the precise origin of the expression is unclear. The common explanation that the rich were buried in the church and that the stench of rotting bodies filled it is incorrect. Not only the wealthy were buried in the church; others were also buried there. The stench of a rotting body was probably not noticeable in the church. The expression "rich stinker" only originated in the 19th century.

The article below originated from:

Traditional Building Magazine

Updated: Jan 6, 2020

Original: Feb 2, 2016

Originally built in 1916, the Palm Beach courthouse was a tour de force of Neoclassical architecture. The architect Wilber Burt Talley designed a granite base, brick and stone façades, soaring Indiana limestone columns and Corinthian capitals that held up triangle pediments, and a dentil molding below the cornice. The four-story, 40,000-sq.ft. the building housed the county government offices and records, as well as the jail.

Almost immediately the courthouse ran out of space, and 11 years later an addition was constructed 25 feet to the east. Talley again served as the courthouse architect, and the 1927 addition was similar in appearance and used many of the same materials as the original building. In 1955, the two buildings were connected with usable rooms to accommodate the growing county.

Yet another addition was required in the late ’60s; it was completed in 1969. The architecture firm Edge & Powell delivered a brick building that nearly doubled the square footage to 180,000 sq. ft. This time, the addition was less than sympathetic. In fact, the 1916 and 1927 buildings were lost in the center of the new construction, which wrapped around them completely.

The building was utilized for 36 years in this configuration, until 1995, when a new courthouse opened across the street. Expansions had plagued the 1916 courthouse almost as soon as it was built, and this was no exception. “After the new courthouse opened, the old one was slated for demolition,” says Rick Gonzales, Jr., AIA, CEO and principal at REG Architects. “Since I knew about the 1916 courthouse, I recognized the potential of the site and got in touch with preservation specialists in the area. It took some time, but a group of us eventually convinced the county to fund a feasibility study, which we conducted in 2002.”

Gonzales talks about stimulating interest in the project: “We would go to the new courthouse to sell our idea and walk people up to the windows to look at the old site,” he says.

“‘Believe it or not, there’s a building inside that building,’ I’d say. That really piqued people’s interest.”

The county agreed to fund the project, and demolition of the additions began in January 2004 and was completed two years later. “It took a long time because it was a selective demolition,” says Gonzales. “We needed to be careful to salvage many of the materials from the 1927 building to use in the restoration of the 1916 structure. It resembled the original, so we took everything we could for reuse.” A number of materials were recovered, including limestone, granite, wood windows, doors, marble wainscot, mosaic floor tiles, wood flooring, trim, and hardware.

While a majority of the materials were the same from building to building, the detailing was not identical. “We were working from the drawings of the 1927 building because we couldn’t find drawings for the earlier structure,” says Gonzales. “We had thought the detailing was the same, but when we put our studies together we saw that the rhythm, proportion, and cornices were different.”

When REG Architects couldn’t apply the 1927 documentation to the restoration, the firm examined what was remaining of the building and the few images that had survived. “For a while, we had no cornice pieces, because all of the exterior ornamentations had been destroyed when the façades were smoothed for the addition,” says Gonzales. “Then a contractor found a 16-in. piece, which we used to re-create the cornice line.”

Other elements that needed to be re-created, such as the granite and limestone porticos on the north, south, and west façades, were designed using historic photographs. “We found limestone with the same vein from the same Indiana quarry that was originally used,” says Gonzales. “We were extremely lucky in that the quarry ran out of that vein right after our order.” REG Architects was also able to match the granite.

Many components of the building were salvaged and restored. The cornerstones were restored and placed in their original locations at the northwest corner. The 12 Corinthian capitals and the load-bearing limestone columns – each of which weighs 30,600 lbs. – were pieced back together and repaired. “Placement of the capitals was especially tedious,” says Gonzales, “because it needed to be precise. They were then secured with pegs and glue.”

On the north, south, and west elevations, the brick was restored and, when necessary, replaced. “We couldn’t locate replacement brick with the same hues as the existing brick hues,” says Gonzales, “so we hired artists to stain it so that it blended with the original brick.” On the east elevation, REG Architects specified new brick so the new façade clearly stood out from the old ones.

To the same point, new hurricane-proof wood windows were chosen for the east elevation, while REG Architects was careful to preserve as many old windows as possible on the other elevations. Hedrick Brothers repaired 76 original wood windows as well as the window hardware. “We found a local manufacturer, Coastal Millwork of Riviera Beach, FL, to get the original windows tested for hurricane-preparedness,” says Gonzales. “The company reinforced and laminated the windows, so we were able to reinstall them.”

The crowning achievement of the exterior work was the re-creation of an eagle crest on the west pediment.

Based on a small postcard and images of other eagle crests, Ontario, Canada-based Traditional Cut Stone designed the crest for Palm Beach. “They created a small scale model and then a full-scale model in clay,” says Gonzales. “The final piece, which took five months to produce, was hand-carved from five pieces of Indiana limestone.” Traditional Cut Stone was also responsible for all of the limestone work on the building. REG Architects based much of its interior design on the Desoto County Courthouse in Arcadia, FL, which was built by Talley in 1913.

“The dilemma about the interiors was that there was little archival material and few original photographs to give a precise vision for the interiors,” says Gonzales. “Emphasis was placed on trying to restore the character of the main courtroom and the main interior public spaces.” The main courtroom on the third and fourth floors was especially aided by the Desoto research. The millwork was re-created and the plaster ceiling and moldings, maple flooring, doors, and door hardware were restored. Replica lighting was fabricated.

Architectural elements in the corridors and staircases received similar treatment. Hendrick Brothers uncovered the original mosaic flooring and had it repaired. Only five percent of the tile needed to be replaced; in these cases, matching tile from the 1927 building was used. About 80 percent of the marble wainscoting was salvaged, while the other 20 percent was replaced with matching marble from the original quarry. Wood doors and door hardware were salvaged and reused.

All of the building code upgrades – including efficient HVAC, fire protection, and hurricane protection – were hidden as much as possible with historic finishes. The alley elevation provided an ADA-accessible entrance and space for elevators.

The newly restored Palm Beach County Court House now accommodates a museum for the historical society, as well as offices for the County’s Public Affairs Department and County Attorney. “People say this project was an alignment of the stars,” says Gonzales. “It was. We were lucky to have the opportunity to save this building, we worked with a lot of great people, and it turned out well. It was a great labor of love.” TB

Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:

www.traditionalbuilding.com/projects/courthouse-unwrapped

downtownwpb.com/things-to-do/history-museum-and-restored-...

www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=96755

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_and_Pat_Johnson_Palm_Beach_...

© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.

I’ve returned from Hertfordshire, Royston to be precise. We said our goodbye’s just before 8am and made it back home by 11:45. The keynote there is I didn’t have to stop for a pee, credit for that has to be down to the medication I’m on for my prostate, although as usual the cramp in my legs was giving me gyp. I filled the tank in Royston’s Tesco’s, it was 199.9p a litre, last time I filled up here in mid May it was 174p, but the kicker was that petrol was 186p, why the 13p differential. Jesse put on a brave face but was a little twisty, he doesn’t like to say goodbye to has Nonna and Nonno, but he had a treat lined up for this morning, a visit to the cinema (for the first time) to see Lightyear. We’ve been watching the trailers all week, I wish I could have been with him to see his little face. My visit was just timed right to catch the field next to my daughters full of Poppies and other meadow flora. This was the same field that was covered in Phacelia on our last visit. Although I took many a photo of this field of blooms this photo I’m posting is probably my favourite (so far) of the week, which includes my summer solstice jaunt up in Northumberland. I took this photo with a long lens on Saturday morning on the dog walk, it had the minimal feel I was looking for. I have a crazy lot of photo’s to sift through at the moment so I won’t be hard pushed to post a few this week. I hope you all have had a good weekend.

As I entered this devastated hall, I was immediately struck by the dramatic power of the scene. My intention was to capture the very essence of desolation while preserving a certain beauty within the chaos. I chose to work with the faint natural light filtering in, creating these warm tones that contrast with the blackness of the debris. The perspective framing, guided by the rows of charred seats, draws the eye towards the back of the room, suggesting the immensity of the destruction.

I wanted every detail to tell a story - the twisted metal structures on the ceiling, the seats frozen in their final position, the walls bearing the scars of the disaster. This photograph isn't just a document of destruction; it's also a reflection on the fragility of our living and cultural spaces. By working with a long exposure and choosing this precise angle, I sought to create an almost surreal atmosphere, as if suspended in time, where beauty paradoxically emerges from chaos.

Ahi weaves precise slashes and pyroclastic strikes to form his unique eruptive fighting style, leaving only ash and obsidian in his wake.

Made some changes to Ahi. The shins have been replaced to be more sleek, and some of the torso colors have been changed to be less messy. Also, the sword blade is the correct color. The leg articulation is a lot better in this version, so he can actually pull off some neat poses.

Live visuals made with processing. wormy thingy with

sound reactive colors. It was the first attempt to get

sound reacting working in linux using PD to analyse the signal and send it via osc to processing. Unfortunatelly it isn't as precise i i was expecting... one day i'll get it right... one day i'll...

more info there : www.yesyesnono.co.uk/?miam=7

Ahi weaves precise slashes and pyroclastic strikes to form his unique eruptive fighting style, leaving only ash and obsidian in his wake.

Made some changes to Ahi. The shins have been replaced to be more sleek, and some of the torso colors have been changed to be less messy. Also, the sword blade is the correct color. The leg articulation is a lot better in this version, so he can actually pull off some neat poses.

To be precise, the title should read: Dubrovnik in the very early morning because this picture was taken at exactly 4:58am on a morning during the summer.

More on this photo: sumfinity.com/photos/croatia/dubrovnik/stradun-at-night/

Follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/nicotrinkhaus/

This is the remains of Dolwyddelan Castle, Snowdonia. An interesting visit to an ancient place, 13th Century to be precise although it was restored a bit by the Victorians. Two more views in the first comment.

HWW!

Mirror, mirror, on the Moon, how far away are you?

MoonLIGHT or Moon Laser Instrumentation for General relativity/geophysics High-accuracy Tests is seeking the answer to this and more questions on general relativity, the gravitational dynamics of the Earth-Moon system and the deep lunar interior.

MoonLIGHT is a laser retroreflector, imaged here, which allows laser beams sent from Earth to be reflected back from the Moon to receivers on our planet. This allows very precise measurement of the distances between the reflector and the ground station.

Known as lunar laser ranging, this technique has been in use since the Apollo missions to investigate Einstein’s theory of general relativity, lunar geophysics and the Earth-Moon dynamics, among other fields of study. However, data from retroreflectors of the Apollo era is not as precise due to lunar vibrations, or the perceived lagging and wanning of the Moon when viewed from Earth, caused by its eccentric and tilted orbit of our planet.

The MoonLIGHT retroreflector can reduce this error thanks to its next-generation compact design. The single, larger reflector with a front face 100mm in diameter can improve accuracy to within millimeters.

Developed by the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics and managed by ESA, MoonLIGHT will launch in 2024 on NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative to the Reiner Gamma region of the Moon, which has one of the most distinctive and enigmatic natural features on the Moon, called lunar swirl, characterized by high surface luminosity (albedo) and the very rare presence of a local magnetic field.

Credits: INFN (Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare), Frascati (Rome), Italy

www.fotografik33.com

Ourang outan du zoo de Beauval.

Les Orang-outans (Pongo) forment un genre de singes anthropoïdes de la famille des Hominidés. Ils sont répandus en Insulinde, plus précisément dans les îles de Bornéo et Sumatra. La taille moyenne des orang-outans est de 1,10 à 1,40 m pour 40 à 80 kg et peuvent vivre de 30 à 40 ans.

La gestation dure 245 jours. Les jeunes orang-outans voyagent accrochés au dos ou au ventre de leur mère pendant plus de deux ans. Les naissances sont espacées, avec un intervalle d'environ huit ans en moyenne.

Les orang-outans sont parmi les plus arboricoles des grands singes. Ils passent la majeure partie de leur temps dans les arbres, à la recherche de nourriture. L'animal se nourrit la plupart du temps de fruits, de jeunes pousses, d'écorce, de petits vertébrés, d'œufs d'oiseaux et d'insectes. Voilà pourquoi Anne Russon, qui étudie l'intelligence des grands singes à l'université York, s'est étonnée d'observer une nouvelle activité des orang-outans vivant autrefois en captivité et relachés à Bornéo : la pêche. Chaque nuit, ils fabriquent un nouveau nid perché entre 12 et 18 mètres au-dessus du sol.

The orangutans are the two exclusively Asian species of extant great apes. Native to Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are currently found only in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans were considered to be one species. However, since 1996, they have been divided into two species: the Bornean orangutan (P. pygmaeus) and the Sumatran orangutan (P. abelii). In addition, the Bornean species is divided into three subspecies. The orangutans are also the only surviving species of the subfamily Ponginae, which also included several other species like Gigantopithecus, the largest known primate. Both species had their genomes sequenced and they appear to have diverged around 400,000 years ago. Orangutans diverged from the rest of the great apes approximately 15.7 to 19.3 mya (million years ago).

Orangutans are the most arboreal great apes and spend most of their time in trees. Their hair is typically reddish-brown, instead of the brown or black hair typical of chimpanzees and gorillas. Males and females differ in size and appearance. Dominant adult males have distinctive cheek pads and produce long calls that attract females and intimidate rivals. Younger males do not have these characteristics and resemble adult females. Orangutans are the most solitary of the great apes, with social bonds occurring primarily between mothers and their dependent offspring, who stay together for the first two years. Fruit is the most important component of an orangutan's diet, however, the apes will also eat vegetation, bark, honey, insects and even bird eggs. They can live over 30 years in both the wild and captivity.

Sunrise at North Lake

It was still quite dark when I arrived at the parking lot. I saw a few people leaving their vehicles. And I thought they were day hikers. I really thought I was early. And I had no idea as to how popular North Lake was.

When I reached the lake, I realized that this particular corner of the lake to be precise, which was a perfect spot to catch the sunrise glow cast on Mt. Emerson, Bishop Bowl and the ridge that ran along the canyon, was literally swarming with people. I mean, photographers. Ha! It seemed like I was the only one who didn’t get the memo!

Nonetheless, I found a spot on top of this giant rock, squeezed in between the photographers, and set up the tripod. I had seen some behind the scene photos where a mob of photographers was trying to take photos at sunrise like at Arches National Park. The arch itself may have represented tranquility, or serenity, but what was actually going on behind the cameras was utter craziness.

And I didn’t know that North Lake was that popular.

It was cold enough that the large sheet of ice was formed contouring the shoreline, and yet the reflections of the aspens in the middle of the lake were simply beautiful.

The fall colors at the lake was definitely near peaking, thanks to the warm October days accompanied by the icy cold night temperatures. It was definitely a sight to see and a moment to remember.

5837 and 5237 to be precise, the two locomotives were at Worcester Depot (85A) as Peter passed through. He probably grabbed this shot from his train, Peter was heading for Gloucester Eastgate station.

5837 was built at Brush, it entered service new to Sheffield Darnall 19/04/1962, Under TOPS it became 31304. The loco was withdrawn 07/1999 and scrapped 14/01/2000.

5237 was a Derby built locomotive it went new to Toton 19/12/1963. The loco was withdrawn 28/09/1980 and cut at Swindon Works 01/04/1981. Under TOPS it was numbered 25087.

Peter Shoesmith Circa 1970

Copyright Geoff Dowling & John Whitehouse: All rights reserved

Aira Force, to be precise.

I'd say this is one of the most well known and/or visited waterfalls from the Lake District...and if it isn't, it should be.

This is a second visit for me and I'm pretty sure there was a tad more 'force' in the fall, the last time I was here. Even so, it's a lovely place to visit with a decent walk, a fair few steps in places, with plenty to distract you along the way.

I sacrificed the bridge for the sake of the 'pool' in this shot. Definitely personal preference and at least I'm consistent as I seem to recall I did that last time.

The mimicry of a dead leaf is so precise for the Satanic Leaf-tailed Gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus), they can often hide effectively in plain sight. It has been untested to what degree these geckos actively select a substrate that matches their individual patterns, but U. phantasticus appears to typically hide among dead foliage which suits it perfectly. Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar.

This mwila tribewoman was in Hale and came to me, showing a blue cap coming out from her clothes. i first did not understood there was a baby under this cap. Then she opened her clothes to let appear this albino baby girl. She had some little dreadlocks and was incredibly white. The mother was proud to pause for the picture and discovered the magic of polaroid!

I have seen many albinos people in Angola, in the tribes. They are mainly in very bad health, as the sun is very hot there...

Perhaps the most moving picture i ever took as the future of this albino baby is not the happiest you can get in this remote area of Africa.

Mwila (or Mwela, Mumuhuila, or Muhuila) women are famous for their very special hairstyles. Hairstyles are very important and meaningful in Mwila culture. Women coat their hair with a red paste called, oncula, which is made of crushed red stone. They also put a mix of oil, crushed tree bark, dried cow dung and herbs on their hair. Besides they decorate their hairstyle with beads, cauri shells (real or plastic ones) and even dried food. Shaving the forehead is considered as a sign of beauty. The plaits, which look like dreadlocks, are called nontombi and have a precise meaning. Women or girls usually have 4 or 6 nontombi, but when they only have 3 it means that someone died in their family. Mwila Women are also famous for their necklaces, which are central and meaningful as for each period of their life corresponds a specific type of necklace. Young girls wear necklaces, heavy red made with beads covered with a mix of soil land latex. Later girls wear yellow necklaces called, Vikeka, made with wicker covered with earth. They keep until their wedding which can last 4 years. When married they start to wear a set of stacked up bead necklaces, called Vilanda. Women never take their necklace off and have to sleep with it. They also use headrests to protect their hairstyles. However, more and more men and women dress in a western way, because people make fun of them when they go to markets. Women sometimes walk 50 kilometers to sell goods in Huila market. Mwila rarely eat meat, they rather eat porridge, corn, chicken, honey and milk. They kill their cattle only on special occasions. Mwila are not allowed to mention people’s name in public.

© Eric Lafforgue

www.ericlafforgue.com