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This early arriving Hummer is one of several males that are fighting over control of the nectar feeder just below. They now compete with breath-taking high-speed aerial sky dives to impress the feeding females and get their attention (for breeding... although this year's young are already flying). This flight action is both visually and audibly impressive! It's still very early morning, and the sunlight is heavily filtered by the tall forest growth to the east. Although I have the sun at my back, the gorgets will not display full red iridescence until it gets a little brighter. In this shot you can get only a hint of the vibrant wine-red color to come with later more intense sunlight! This dazzling display is then based more on iridescence than pigment colors... but the sun angle has to be correct. The experienced males know how to precisely position themselves relative to sun angle to awe the ladies.
IMG_6348; Broad-tailed Hummingbird
298/365
"In any weather, at any hour of the day or night,
I have been anxious to improve the nick of time, and notch it on my stick too;
to stand on the meeting of two eternities, the past and future,
which is precisely the present moment; to toe that line." - Henry David Thoreau
A woman in red sits on a ledg to check her phone in London.
confess that I barely, if at all, remember making this photograph, nor can I say precisely where in London I made it. I grabbed it while in a particular mode of street photography that is the antithesis of how I might photography, say, landscape. I shoot handheld. I carry a small camera with a single small prime lens. I work extremely quickly, often not even slowing down to frame the subject, and continue on. In this case, I shot “blind,” holding the camera down at my side. (That created a little problem. More below.)
There are a few things about this photograph that could make some viewers a bit uneasy. First, I did not ask for permission and I doubt the subject was even aware that I made the photograph. There was no time, and if I had asked the photograph would have been a very different thing. (BTW, sometimes I’m in public and I see that I might end up in someone’s photograph like this — and I remind myself that it is OK since I do it, too!) Second, the original image had a serious problem. It was badly tilted, perhaps as much as 20-degrees. I liked the image, but I had to crop radically to get the framing I wanted, and there were still problems. How did I fix it? For the first time, I allowed an AI tool to generate some content in the corners of the frame. Still not sure how I feel about that, but it seems worth experimenting with at least.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.
"At least it's not a mullet!" But this is precisely how this bittern looked when he initially arrived in Raleigh last fall. If that's not a hockey mullet he's sporting, I'm Wayne Gretzky. I think this clearly answers the question of where this bittern migrates for the warmer months: Canada. Why not travel a few thousand clicks for some delicious Canadian walleye (or "pickerel" for those in parts of Ontario) and, perhaps, a yummy mummy?
Norwegen / Buskerud - Hallingskarvet-Nationalpark
On the way to Prestholtskarvet.
Auf dem Weg zum Prestholtskarvet.
Hallingskarvet National Park (Norwegian: Hallingskarvet nasjonalpark) is a national park in central Norway that was established by the government on 22 December 2006. The park is located in the municipalities of Hol (Buskerud county), Ulvik and Aurland (both in Vestland county). More precisely, the park comprises the Hallingskarv plateau and the high mountain areas to the west of it. It includes the Vargebreen glacier as well as the valleys of Såtedalen, Lengjedalen, Ynglesdalen, and parts of Raggsteindalen.
The national park covers 450 square kilometres (170 sq mi) of the Hallingskarvet mountain range and hosts large stocks of wild reindeer, an important factor in the establishment of the park. The highest point in the national park is Folarskardnuten which reaches an elevation of 1,933 metres (6,342 ft) above sea level.
The landscape of Hallingskarvet was shaped by multiple ice ages. The park shows the geological history and the connection between this history and the variation in the species living there. It includes areas of special value and which are home to threatened or vulnerable species such as Draba cacuminum (whitlow-grass) and Botrychium lanceolatum (lance-leaf grapefern).
The Bergen Line runs along the southern boundary of the park. There is no road access to the southern side of the park, so Finse Station, a stop on the railway line, is one of the few ways that people can access this part of the park. The Norwegian County Road 50 runs near the northern boundary of the park.
Protection and use
The main objective of this national park is to preserve a large, unique, and largely untouched area in order to protect the landscape and the biome with its ecosystem, species and populations of, amongst others, the wild reindeer. The protection is designed to safeguard a characteristic element needed to understand the geological history of the Norwegian landscape. It is also designed to protect valuable elements of the cultural heritage.
The park is open to the traditional forms of outdoor activities which require little or no technical means.
Name
The first element is halling (inhabitant of the Hallingdal valley) and the last is the finite form of skarv (mountain or mountainous area without vegetation).
(Wikipedia)
Der Hallingskarvet-Nationalpark (norwegisch Hallingskarvet nasjonalpark) ist ein südnorwegischer Nationalpark. Er umfasst das Hallingskarvet-Hochplateau und erstreckt sich über das Gebiet der Gemeinden Hol (Provinz Buskerud), Ulvik und Aurland (Provinz Vestland) gehört.
Gegründet wurde der Park am 22. Dezember 2006, um die dortige große, unverwechselbare und nahezu unberührte Bergregion, die Artenvielfalt von Flora und Fauna und die dort heimischen Bergrentiere zu schützen. Der Park grenzt an das Naturschutzgebiet Skaupsjøen/Hardangerjøkulen und das Biotop Finse.
Im Süden des Parkes führen sowohl die Bergenbahn als auch die Reichsstraße 7 vorbei.
Geologie, Landschaft und Geografie
Der Nationalpark umfasst größtenteils das Hallingskarvethochplateau, welches aufgrund der Kaledonischen Orogenese entstand. Das vorherrschende Gesteinsmaterial der Bergkette ist präkambrisches Pluton.
Der höchste Berg ist der Folarskardnuten mit 1.933 m. Im Hallingskarvet befindet sich auch Norwegens höchster See, der Flakavatnet, welcher auf 1.453 m Höhe liegt.
Flora
Die Pflanzenwelt gestaltet sich mit über 300 verschiedenen Arten sehr vielfältig. Die am weitesten verbreiteten Pflanzen sind der Weiße Silberwurz, Knöllchen-Knöterich und Herbst-Löwenzahn. In den höheren Lagen kommen vor allem Dreiblatt-Binsen, Polarsimsen, Moosheide und Gletscher-Hahnenfuß vor.
Fauna
Im Park gibt es an größeren Säugetieren Bergrentiere, Elche, Rehe, Polarfüchse und Schneehasen. Nördlich des Parks leben zudem Vielfraße.
Die größten Greifvögel sind Steinadler, Gerfalke, Turmfalke und Raufußbussard. Der Kolkrabe ist im Hallingskarvet ebenfalls heimisch.
Kulturerbe
Im Nationalpark wurden verschiedene Jagdutensilien gefunden, die auf eine prähistorische/historische Nutzung der Berge als Jagd- und/oder Siedlungsgebiet schließen lassen.
Im 17. bis 19. Jahrhundert lag der Park entlang einer wichtigen Handelsroute. Einfache Übernachtungshütten, sog. lægre, zeugen noch heute davon. Im Jahre 1880 ließ der englische Graf Lord Garvagh eine steinerne Jagdhütte, die Lordehytta, errichten, um in der näheren Umgebung auf Rentierjagd zu gehen.
Verwaltung und Tourismus
Der Norwegische Wanderverein unterhält im Park die Hütten Finsehytta im Süden und Geiterygghytta im Norden. Private Unterkünfte gibt es im Raggsteindalen und bei Haugastøl. Zwischen den Hütten gibt es markierte Wanderwege.
Zwischen Finse und Ustaoset verläuft ein Stück des Skarverennet durch den Park. Im Süden des Parks verläuft zudem der Rallarvegen.
(Wikipedia)
5/28/16 - Late Breaking News from Texas' Hutto Lake: At precisely 6:04 PM.....nothing happened, and it was wonderful!
The clock is a technical masterpiece which belongs to a group of similar European clocks such as in Danzig, Strasbourg or Lund. But the clock in Rostock is the only one that still has its original mediaeval clockwork from 1472 which still precisely functions. It indicates the phases of the moon and the solar year St. Mary's Church. Each hour the glockenspiel plays a tune that the cantor chooses on a roller depending on the church season The data on the current calendar disc comprise the years from 1885 to 2017, Rostock, Germany
Südafrika - Kleine Karoo
Red Stone Hills - Window Rock
The Karoo (/kəˈruː/ kə-ROO; from a Khoikhoi word, possibly garo "desert") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. There is no exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo, and therefore its extent is also not precisely defined. The Karoo is partly defined by its topography, geology and climate — above all, its low rainfall, arid air, cloudless skies, and extremes of heat and cold. The Karoo also hosted a well-preserved ecosystem hundreds of million years ago which is now represented by many fossils.
The Karoo is sharply divided into the Great Karoo and the Little Karoo by the Swartberg Mountain Range, which runs east-west, parallel to the southern coastline, but is separated from the sea by another east-west range called the Outeniqua –Langeberg Mountains. The Great Karoo lies to the north of the Swartberg range; the Little Karoo is to the south of it.
The Little Karoo is separated from the Great Karoo by the Swartberg Mountain range. Geographically, it is a 290 km long valley, only 40–60 km wide, formed by two parallel Cape Fold Mountain ranges, the Swartberg to the north, and the continuous Langeberg-Outeniqua range to the south. The northern strip of the valley, within 10–20 km from the foot of the Swartberg mountains is most un-karoo-like, in that it is a well watered area both from the rain, and the many streams that cascade down the mountain, or through narrow defiles in the Swartberg from the Great Karoo. The main towns of the region are situated along this northern strip of the Little Karoo: Montagu, Barrydale, Ladismith, Calitzdorp, Oudtshoorn and De Rust, as well as such well-known mission stations such as Zoar, Amalienstein, and Dysselsdorp.
The southern 30–50 km wide strip, north of the Langeberg range is as arid as the western Lower Karoo, except in the east, where the Langeberg range (arbitrarily) starts to be called the Outeniqua Mountains.
The Little Karoo can only be accessed by road through the narrow defiles cut through the surrounding Cape Fold Mountains by ancient, but still flowing rivers. A few roads traverse the mountains over passes, the most famous and impressive of which is the Swartberg Pass between Oudtshoorn in the Little Karoo and Prince Albert on the other side of the Swartberg mountains in the Great Karoo. There is also the main road between Oudtshoorn and George, on the coastal plain, that crosses the mountains to the south via the Outeniqua Pass. The only exit from the Little Karoo that does not involve crossing a mountain range is through the 150 km long, narrow Langkloof valley between Uniondale and Humansdorp, near Plettenberg Bay.
(Wikipedia)
Die Karoo (auch Karroo, früher Karru; Khoisan für Halbwüste) ist eine Halbwüstenlandschaft in den Hochebenen des Landes Südafrika, nördlich der Großen Randstufe und im südlichen Namibia. Unterschieden werden Kleine Karoo, Große Karoo und Obere Karoo sowie Sukkulentenkaroo und Nama-Karoo. Mit einer Ausdehnung von 500.000 km² umfasst die Karoo fast ein Drittel des Territoriums Südafrikas. Die Sukkulentenkaroo gehört zu den Biodiversitäts-Hotspots der Erde und wird u. a. im Rahmen von BIOTA AFRICA systematisch kartiert.
Der Name Karoo kommt von kurú (trocken) aus der Sprache der San, die einst hier lebten und jagten. In Hinsicht auf die geographische Ausdehnung des Karoo-Begriffs sind die folgenden Teilaspekte zu beachten und voneinander zu unterscheiden.
Die Karoo als Landschaft im traditionellen Verständnis ist eine südafrikanische Trockenregion innerhalb der Provinzen Westkap, Ostkap und Nordkap sowie im Süden Namibias. Ihre spezifische kapländische Strauchvegetation weist sie als Halbwüste aus. Ursprünglich wird in zwei Regionen unterschieden: Große Karoo und Kleine Karoo.
Die Große Karoo besitzt eine West-Ost-Ausdehnung von über 750 Kilometern und eine Nord-Süd-Ausdehnung von etwa 110 Kilometern. Sie wird im Westen vom Massiv der Zederberge und im Osten durch die Winterberge begrenzt. Im Norden bilden die Bergketten vom Roggeveld-, Koms-, Nuweveldberge und Sneeuberg und im Süden die Höhenzüge der Witteberge, Groot Swartberge und die Groot Winterhoek die natürliche Begrenzung.
Südlich dieser Region schließt sich die Kleine Karoo an. Diese wird wiederum an ihrer südlichen Flanke von den küstennahen Langebergen und Outeniqua-Bergen begrenzt.
Anders als in dieser traditionellen Gliederung, wird die Karoo heute nach ökologischen Gesichtspunkten in einen östlichen Teil, die Nama-Karoo, und einen westlichen Teil, die Sukkulenten-Karoo, gegliedert, wobei auch die Gesamtausdehnung der Karoo nach diesem Konzept von jener der traditionellen Betrachtungsweise abweicht.
(Wikipedia)
Die Little Karoo (englisch, auf Afrikaans Klein Karoo) ist eine Region in der Western Cape Provinz in Südafrika.
Durch die Little Karoo zieht sich die Route 62.
Die Klein Karoo ist ein halbwüstenartiger Landstrich, der zwischen den Swartbergen im Norden und den Outeniqua-Bergen im Süden liegt. Die Gegend ist fruchtbar und nicht ganz so trocken wie die nördlich anschließende Große Karoo. Die Kleine Karoo ist bekannt für die Straußenzucht, allein in der Umgebung von Oudtshoorn gibt es angeblich über 400 Betriebe, landwirtschaftliche Nutztiere der Region sind auch Schafe und Angoraziegen.
Die Kleine Karoo ist das östlichste Weinbaugebiet Südafrikas. Muskatweine, Portweine und Desertweine gedeihen in dem recht trockenen Klima, ein Teil des Weines wird zu Brandy verarbeitet. Auch das hier angebaute Obst wird teilweise zu Schnaps verarbeitet, man bekommt aber auch überall recht preisgünstig getrocknete Früchte.
(wikivoyage.org)
“And what do ye mean with ‘were takin over yer convoy’?” the elderly dwarf yelled. “Precisely that, miss Stonearm.” Sergeant Haelga Ulrissen replied. “Well, tell that capt’n of yers he can put that request of his RIGHT HERE!” the dwarf pointed at her arse. The folkir sighed, she wasn’t paid enough to enter in a discussion with a dwarf. Then she silently chuckled, the captain would have to deal with this now.
Martin could already tell what was going on from the loud shouts from the distance, hell, he would be surprised if anyone hadn’t. “Let me guess,” he said when the folkir made her approach “the commander has some reservations about our cooperation?” the large, blue skinned woman nodded “Not quite her precise wording sir, but close enough.” Martin silently cursed “Let me guess.” Roger said, “You were hoping that the sight of a seven-foot-tall overgrown blueberry – no offense sergeant – would be enough persuasion?” the human male nodded “Aye, it usually is anyway.” Martin returned to sergeant Haelga “Who is leading them anyway? A minotaur or something?” the folkir chuckled “You’re going to love this sir: it’s an old dwarven lady.” Martin uttered a loud groan and looked at the heavens for a moment “Cemea, why do you hate me?” Unsurprisingly, the goddess of luck remained silent. “alright then chaps, let talk to the lady in question.” Roger said, “We’ll figure something out, we’ll always do.” and began casually walking towards the blockade formed by Martins’ men. The others shrugged and followed.
“Nay can’t do bonny lad.” The dwarf responded to Martins’ request, this time in person, clearly having not a lot of respect for the man to request her to quit her assigned job, something dwarves take great offense to. “I couldn’t care less who ye are. By Murdins’ beard, I’ve got me pride!” The human cursed under his breath. Why couldn’t this caravan have been led by a friendly halfling? He wondered. He had carefully taken over ninety men and women through the dim light of the early morning and through small forest paths that the rangers and mountaineers had found in the previous weeks. He had then carefully hidden them along a rarely used piece of road. It was almost never used, save for experienced cart drivers, who knew it to be a significant shortcut. It was there they intercepted the wagons heading southward. All this trouble and effort, executed without flaw, now stopped by one of the toughest obstacles known by any race or species: a dwarf. Martin looked desperately over his shoulder to what the men had jokingly begun calling “the royal council”. The dwarf Thirn was just shrugging. The sylvaeri druid Elahna Galariel had conveniently shape-shifted into a weasel, hopped onto the shoulders of the other wood elf Celdric and now lay relaxed around her partners neck. The gnomish wizard and other long-time companion, Roger had tried something similar. Unfortunately, he was not a druid, but a mage. So, shape-shifting came far less natural and could only manage one form: that of a massive owl, which had parked its big fat behind on Thirn’s hat. Strangely enough, the dwarf didn’t seem overly pleased by this. The other gnome, Sarah Brightspark was busy loading a small crossbow with what Martin could only hope were stun-darts. When he gave her a disapproving look, she just shrugged “Just wyvern tranquilizer sir.” It was then that Ely Emberchest, a cleric of Ishala, decided she couldn’t stand this sight any longer. The voslar mumbled a quick prayer, quickly followed by a flash of golden light. “Miss Stonearm, if I could have a moment of your time.” She spoke with a voice laden with magic “I understand your reservations, but think about it. The captain is here on request from a member of the Edorian royal family, so if you think about it, nobody is asking to cancel your given assignment. It’s merely been… redirected, so to say.” The dwarf’s eyes filled with a golden light for a single moment. “Aye” she said “Of course, yer right miss.” Ely winked to Martin “So that’s how you do that, a little persuasion can get you a long way.” The human chuckled “Sure, magic can get you a long way you mean.” “I don’t know what you’re talking about sir.”
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Mary%27s_Church,_Berlin
St. Mary's Church, known in German as the Marienkirche, is a church in Berlin, Germany. It is located on Karl-Liebknecht-Straße (formerly Kaiser-Wilhelm-Straße) in central Berlin, near Alexanderplatz. The exact age of the original church site and structure is not precisely known, but it was first mentioned in German chronicles in 1292. It is presumed to date from earlier in the 13th century. The architecture of the building is now largely composed of comparatively modern restoration work which took place in the late 19th century and in the post-war period. The church was originally a Roman Catholic church, but has been a Lutheran Protestant church since the Protestant Reformation and a united Protestant church since the Prussian Union of churches in 1817.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin
Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3,723,914 (2018) inhabitants make it the second most populous city proper of the European Union after London. The city is one of Germany's 16 federal states. It is surrounded by the state of Brandenburg, and contiguous with its capital, Potsdam. The two cities are at the center of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region, which is, with 6,004,857 (2015) inhabitants and an area of 30,370 square km, Germany's third-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr and Rhine-Main regions.
Berlin straddles the banks of the River Spree, which flows into the River Havel (a tributary of the River Elbe) in the western borough of Spandau. Among the city's main topographical features are the many lakes in the western and southeastern boroughs formed by the Spree, Havel, and Dahme rivers (the largest of which is Lake Müggelsee). Due to its location in the European Plain, Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. About one-third of the city's area is composed of forests, parks, gardens, rivers, canals and lakes. The city lies in the Central German dialect area, the Berlin dialect being a variant of the Lusatian-New Marchian dialects.
First documented in the 13th century and situated at the crossing of two important historic trade routes, Berlin became the capital of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (1417–1701), the Kingdom of Prussia (1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933), and the Third Reich (1933–1945). Berlin in the 1920s was the third largest municipality in the world. After World War II and its subsequent occupation by the victorious countries, the city was divided; West Berlin became a de facto West German exclave, surrounded by the Berlin Wall (1961–1989) and East German territory. East Berlin was declared capital of East Germany, while Bonn became the West German capital. Following German reunification in 1990, Berlin once again became the capital of all of Germany.
Berlin is a world city of culture, politics, media and science. Its economy is based on high-tech firms and the service sector, encompassing a diverse range of creative industries, research facilities, media corporations and convention venues. Berlin serves as a continental hub for air and rail traffic and has a highly complex public transportation network. The metropolis is a popular tourist destination. Significant industries also include IT, pharmaceuticals, biomedical engineering, clean tech, biotechnology, construction and electronics.
Berlin is home to world-renowned universities, orchestras, museums, and entertainment venues, and is host to many sporting events. Its Zoological Garden is the most visited zoo in Europe and one of the most popular worldwide. With the world's oldest large-scale movie studio complex, Berlin is an increasingly popular location for international film productions. The city is well known for its festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife, contemporary arts and a very high quality of living. Since the 2000s Berlin has seen the emergence of a cosmopolitan entrepreneurial scene.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernsehturm_Berlin
The Fernsehturm (English: Television Tower) is a television tower in central Berlin, Germany.
Close to Alexanderplatz in Berlin-Mitte, the tower was constructed between 1965-69 by the government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was intended to be both a symbol of Communist power and of Berlin. It remains the latter today, as it is easily visible throughout the central and some suburban districts of Berlin. With its height of 368 metres (including antenna) it is the tallest structure in Germany, and the third-tallest structure in the European Union. Of four tallest structures in Europe, it is 2 m shorter than the Torreta de Guardamar, 0.5 m shorter than the Riga Radio and TV Tower, and 8 m taller than the Trbovlje Power Station in 2017. The structure is also more than 220 metres higher than the old Berlin Radio Tower in the western part of the city, which was built in the 1920s.
In addition to its main function as the location of several radio and television broadcasting stations, the building – internally known as "Fernmeldeturm 32" – serves as a viewing tower with observation deck including a bar at a height of 203 metres, as well as a rotating restaurant. Also, the Berlin TV Tower can be booked as a venue for events. The distinctive city landmark has undergone a radical, symbolic transformation: After German reunification, it changed from a politically charged, national symbol of the GDR into a citywide symbol of a reunited Berlin. Due to its universal and timeless design, it has increasingly been used as a trademark and is identified worldwide with Berlin and Germany. In 1979, the Berlin TV Tower received monument status by the GDR, a status which was perpetuated after the German reunification.
The tower has become one of the most prominent symbols of the country and is often in the establishing shot of films set in Berlin, alongside monuments such as the Brandenburg Gate, the Berlin Victory Column and the Reichstag building. It is also one of the ten most popular attractions in Germany with more than 1,000,000 visitors every year. Due to its location near Alexanderplatz, it is occasionally called Alex Tower.
Un atardecer glorioso en Cala Baladrar (foto inédita tomada en Enero 2010 con mi Canon 40D que precisamente falleció en ese lugar tras un fatídico baño en agua salada).
Unpublished image taken with my old Canon 40D that precisely passed away in this same place after a fateful bath in salt water.
Os deseo a todos un feliz verano.
I wish you a happy and long summer!
"Precisely the least, the softest, lightest, a lizard's rustling, a breath, a flash, a moment - a little makes the way of the best happiness."
- Frederich Nietzsche, Thus Spake Zarathustra
"Remember this - that very little is needed to make a happy life." - Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
I greatly appreciate your visits, comments, invitations, awards and faves, my friends. Have a wonderful week, everyone...!
Best seen on black - press L or click on image above.
I felt it was time to post another candid shot of O'Henry's. I was trying to get a close-up shot of his paw, when he started yawning. I thought it was too funny to pass ;-)
Anyway, 'good morning' and have a wonderful weekend everyone.
Title by Eiderdown from the "Title me" group.
Meantime last night or about so (my relationships with the Time are fascinating) I’ve begun or more precisely continued another project. It turned out to be small that time but promises to be big now (I’ll explain in a minute). We’ve taken photos for that project about a year ago and I feel closer to it just now. More or less. Rita run through the winter forest not just naked, which is relatively easy, but barefoot and sat bareass on snow-covered stumps, which is tough absolutely (the whole idea was all hers!). She’s my hero. Real artist. It was just pre-war like some presentiment or precognition. Homeless. Out of all the previous life. Wild. Rita called that project “Run wild”, so be it, I do like this title (decided I right now, translating the title Russian-English). It was getting dark in the forest because it took me that long to get out and that’s – because I didn’t believe that Rita really means it so why bother, let it go as it will. I’ll show you what we’ve got for you, hopefully pretty soon. So, I desire to upload all that that I’ve got for now in this previous project. It’s important for me as well. Cause I’m still bet on freedom in these awful times. Any times. How d’you like it?
Why do I still mention Behance and Patreon? Don’t get them till now. And insta? Just hate it. Fb and vk – about the dead either good or nothing. But what else do we have? What do you have?
*** Don't have to fav/comment.. u can ask qs here tho & i will try to put them up here b4 next post ***
"Not another shameless wanky post from this bugger! Move on & stop showing off!" Well, that's precisely what i was thinking when i'm about to post this shot. Seriously I PROMISEI will not post this type of self-indulge promotional shot ever again unless its something you guys can benefit from. This is most probably my 5th or 6th mag publications to date so THIS IS IT (for shameless post) as Michael Jackson said :)) Quite a no of ppl have asked me qs relating to my photostream, publications etc all along therefore i thought this is the best time to consolidate similar FAQs & answer them here. Hope u can gain something out of them. cheers!
:: FAQs ::
Q. How do I get my photos published in a magazine?
A. Well, its hard to say ...luck plays a part i suppose.. esp for journalists to spot your work out of millions. One thing i know for sure is correctly tagging your photos helps in contributing to the success of others finding your shots. All my published photos were found by editors of the publishing/magazine company through Google, Yahoo search engines & Flickr. Another possible factor is perhaps being known for the sort of photography style u do helps a fair bit too. For instance, if you are into IR photography & your entire photostream is full of IR style images, very high chance when someone is lookin' for IR publication, you will be the outstanding one.
Q. How did I achieve so much attention in flickr?
A. Pretty much the same theory as above... I reckon for me, specialising in just hdr helps bring everyone who has the same interest to my photostream. Perhaps versatility in subject tend to catch ppl's attention too. One definite fact is you should have determination to keep doing what u love & passionate about (it could be flower, macro, seascape, bokeh, BW, night photography, digital manipulation etc..) just pursue this interest be it what others might have said about your images or even negative comments to bring u down along the way (Trust me.. i get those %^$ comments esp when i just started hdr.. even now!). Believe in yourself & others will eventually believe in you & your work ;) go out & make friends in flickr...what goes around comes around.
Q. Am I paid to have your photo published?
A. About 75% of my published photos were paid. Some companies asked for quote before using my photos but usually the publishers seek for publication permission before making an offer.The remaining 25% (non-profit co) either gave me full credit in print with link to my flickr website & free copies of their magazines.
Q. How much do the publishing companies pay usually?
A. I was paid all in USD or GBP... so in Aussie rates, it ranges from 150 -250 per image. Really..all depending on where & what the publisher will be using the images for.. big coverage like front cover/double pages print or just a few small prints.
Q. You have had a lot of your photos on Explore, could you give us any tips or advice on how we could get our images on Explore?
A. Explore is a funny thing. The only tip or advice I can give is if your photo can get enough visits or comments even without adding them to groups, there is a high chance you can get your images on Explore. That's my theory at least. I know its easy to get obsessed with Explore.. i do initially but its good to get over it now :) Seriously, Explore is not about how good your shots are.. being on Explore consistently really does not make one a better photographer. Explore is just a simple way to let one explore the world within a few click of a button. If one is too concern about Explore, it definitely ruins photography in a lot of ways. If you still are really keen, be really active in flickr.. i'm sure you will get your rewards eventually but rem it always take time to build your community of friends here too ;)
Q. Is photography your fulltime job?
A. Photography is not my fulltime job. I only really started photography in April 2008. I work as a computing guy in my state uni. The only time I bring my camera out with me is mostly when i go on a trip. In fact I haven't touch my cam much since April this year except for a couple snapshots here & there... now that's really sad case haha!
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****This frame was chosen on April 4th 2014 to appear on FLICKR EXPLORE (Highest Ranking: #116. This is my Thirty second photograph to be selected, which I am amazed and delighted by as I never view my images as worthy compared to some of the amazing photography out there. EXPLORE is Flickr's way of showcasing the most interesting photos within a given point in time -- usually over a 24 hour period.
Flickr receives about 6,000 uploads every minute -- That's about 8.6 million photos a day! From this huge group of images, the Flickr Interestingness algorithm chooses only 500 images to showcase for each 24-hour period. That's only one image in every 17,000!..... so I am really thrilled to have a frame picked and most grateful to everyone who visited, favourite and commented on the frame*****
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Photograph taken in the golden hour around sunrise at 05:58am, (Sunrise was at precisely 06:07am), on Sunday 16th March 2014 opposite Marine Parade and Adventure Island, just past the old Pier, on the muddy shoreline of Southend on Sea, Essex, England.
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Nikon D800 27mm 1/15s f/7.1 iso100 Mirror Up RAW (14
I was enjoying photographing the female of this beautiful butterfly when all of a sudden she flew up and briskly flew around before landing precisely onto this dried plant stem.
In a matter of moments she was joined by the eager male and they were paired.
Norwegen / Buskerud - Hallingskarvet-Nationalpark
Prestholtseter
Hallingskarvet National Park (Norwegian: Hallingskarvet nasjonalpark) is a national park in central Norway that was established by the government on 22 December 2006. The park is located in the municipalities of Hol (Buskerud county), Ulvik and Aurland (both in Vestland county). More precisely, the park comprises the Hallingskarv plateau and the high mountain areas to the west of it. It includes the Vargebreen glacier as well as the valleys of Såtedalen, Lengjedalen, Ynglesdalen, and parts of Raggsteindalen.
The national park covers 450 square kilometres (170 sq mi) of the Hallingskarvet mountain range and hosts large stocks of wild reindeer, an important factor in the establishment of the park. The highest point in the national park is Folarskardnuten which reaches an elevation of 1,933 metres (6,342 ft) above sea level.
The landscape of Hallingskarvet was shaped by multiple ice ages. The park shows the geological history and the connection between this history and the variation in the species living there. It includes areas of special value and which are home to threatened or vulnerable species such as Draba cacuminum (whitlow-grass) and Botrychium lanceolatum (lance-leaf grapefern).
The Bergen Line runs along the southern boundary of the park. There is no road access to the southern side of the park, so Finse Station, a stop on the railway line, is one of the few ways that people can access this part of the park. The Norwegian County Road 50 runs near the northern boundary of the park.
Protection and use
The main objective of this national park is to preserve a large, unique, and largely untouched area in order to protect the landscape and the biome with its ecosystem, species and populations of, amongst others, the wild reindeer. The protection is designed to safeguard a characteristic element needed to understand the geological history of the Norwegian landscape. It is also designed to protect valuable elements of the cultural heritage.
The park is open to the traditional forms of outdoor activities which require little or no technical means.
Name
The first element is halling (inhabitant of the Hallingdal valley) and the last is the finite form of skarv (mountain or mountainous area without vegetation).
(Wikipedia)
Prestholtseter a farm cafe based on traditions. Prestholtseter is located by Hallingskarvet at 1242 m, by Hallingskarvet National Park. It is a popular destination both summer and winter. The café offers waffles, buns, the local specialties "lefsekling" (thin, sheet bread), "Rummebrød" (thin cakes made with sour cream), cakes, omelets, buns and rolls. In summer you can also get cured meats and tasty sour cream porridge By Prestholtseter you will find great hiking in the summer and cross country tracks in the winter. In summer you can hike on dirt roads or paths, either flat or the Prestholt stairs up to the top of Hallingskarvet Mountain. In summer the road goes all the way to Prestholtseter (toll road). In winter there are ski trails that are groomed daily, from Havsdalen and from Ustaoset. Prestholtseter offers catering for groups from 15 -100 people for dinner or lunch. A nice layer at the base of Hallingskarvet provides a unique and beautiful setting for the event. Prestholtseter was built in 1904 and has been in the family Uthus since. In the beginning it was a pure summer farm, where they sold products that they produced themselves. Opning hours 2017: Winter season: Starts week 7, 2017. The road usually opens around July 1st.
(visitnorway.com)
Der Hallingskarvet-Nationalpark (norwegisch Hallingskarvet nasjonalpark) ist ein südnorwegischer Nationalpark. Er umfasst das Hallingskarvet-Hochplateau und erstreckt sich über das Gebiet der Gemeinden Hol (Provinz Buskerud), Ulvik und Aurland (Provinz Vestland) gehört.
Gegründet wurde der Park am 22. Dezember 2006, um die dortige große, unverwechselbare und nahezu unberührte Bergregion, die Artenvielfalt von Flora und Fauna und die dort heimischen Bergrentiere zu schützen. Der Park grenzt an das Naturschutzgebiet Skaupsjøen/Hardangerjøkulen und das Biotop Finse.
Im Süden des Parkes führen sowohl die Bergenbahn als auch die Reichsstraße 7 vorbei.
Geologie, Landschaft und Geografie
Der Nationalpark umfasst größtenteils das Hallingskarvethochplateau, welches aufgrund der Kaledonischen Orogenese entstand. Das vorherrschende Gesteinsmaterial der Bergkette ist präkambrisches Pluton.
Der höchste Berg ist der Folarskardnuten mit 1.933 m. Im Hallingskarvet befindet sich auch Norwegens höchster See, der Flakavatnet, welcher auf 1.453 m Höhe liegt.
Flora
Die Pflanzenwelt gestaltet sich mit über 300 verschiedenen Arten sehr vielfältig. Die am weitesten verbreiteten Pflanzen sind der Weiße Silberwurz, Knöllchen-Knöterich und Herbst-Löwenzahn. In den höheren Lagen kommen vor allem Dreiblatt-Binsen, Polarsimsen, Moosheide und Gletscher-Hahnenfuß vor.
Fauna
Im Park gibt es an größeren Säugetieren Bergrentiere, Elche, Rehe, Polarfüchse und Schneehasen. Nördlich des Parks leben zudem Vielfraße.
Die größten Greifvögel sind Steinadler, Gerfalke, Turmfalke und Raufußbussard. Der Kolkrabe ist im Hallingskarvet ebenfalls heimisch.
Kulturerbe
Im Nationalpark wurden verschiedene Jagdutensilien gefunden, die auf eine prähistorische/historische Nutzung der Berge als Jagd- und/oder Siedlungsgebiet schließen lassen.
Im 17. bis 19. Jahrhundert lag der Park entlang einer wichtigen Handelsroute. Einfache Übernachtungshütten, sog. lægre, zeugen noch heute davon. Im Jahre 1880 ließ der englische Graf Lord Garvagh eine steinerne Jagdhütte, die Lordehytta, errichten, um in der näheren Umgebung auf Rentierjagd zu gehen.
Verwaltung und Tourismus
Der Norwegische Wanderverein unterhält im Park die Hütten Finsehytta im Süden und Geiterygghytta im Norden. Private Unterkünfte gibt es im Raggsteindalen und bei Haugastøl. Zwischen den Hütten gibt es markierte Wanderwege.
Zwischen Finse und Ustaoset verläuft ein Stück des Skarverennet durch den Park. Im Süden des Parks verläuft zudem der Rallarvegen.
(Wikipedia)
Precisely one third of the 36 E400 hybrids at Stagecoach's Holbrook depot in Sheffield retain original green and white colours, meaning that they will presumably never receive standard beachball livery before being repainted into one of the 2020 colour schemes. YN62BCY (12163) is seen on Windmill Greenway in Mosborough whilst operating the 14:48 120 from Halfway cross-city to Ranmoor.
The Horsehead Nebula aswell as the Flame Nebula can be found in Orions belt, more precisely near the star Alnitak.
The Horsehead nebula is a darknebula, which you can only see, because its backlit by IC 434, a emissionnebula.
You can also see the Flamenebula (NGC 2024), its also an emission nebula. Both nebulae are star forming regions.
IC434 and NGC 2024 are about 1500 light years away.
Detail about equipment:
TS PHOTON 8" 1000mm f5
EQ6 PRO belt modded
ZWO ASI 1600MM PRO
ZWO ASI 120mini
ZWO EFW
Ts 80mm Guidescope 600mm
PegasusAstro Ultimate Powerbox V2
Bortle Class 3-4
Backyard in my own Observatory
Germany, Lower Bavaria
Image details:
250 x 3 minute lightframes
50x ZWO Luminance
50x ZWO Red
50x ZWO Green
50x ZWO Blue
50x ZWO Ha
Taken with a GoPro clamped on the handle of my fishing rod.
Voice activation is a cracking feature for when your hands are full!
Really impressed with the new GoPro! So much easier to use than the previous model...and RAW photo capture too!
I used the GoPro iPad App to frame this precisely.
Then I just said "GoPro take Photo!" Would have been impossible to press any buttons or even the iPad screen!
Ai Weiwei; Fan-Tan
The Mucem is hosting Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, one of the major actors on the international art scene. The work of the photographer, architect, sculptor, performer, film-maker and social network activist combines Chinese thought with contemporary art, namely drawing his inspiration from Marcel Duchamp and Andy Warhol. His creations are able to challenge our societies with such force through his transformation of everyday objects into works of art.
Ai Weiwei is the son of Ai Qing (1910-1996), the famous Chinese poet who discovered the West in 1929 on disembarking at Marseille, on the docks of La Joliette, precisely the spot where the Mucem is located today.
This connection motivated the artist to take us on a voyage through time and his art, which he links back to his paternal lineage. Through the new resonances that emerge in this exhibition, we are able to view Ai Weiwei’s work in a new light.
His creations, placed in parallel with the collections at the Mucem, invite us to question opposing notions such as East and West, original and copy, art and craft, destruction and conservation. But above all, the artwork of Ai Weiwei also challenges the relevance of our own interpretations.
Chandra's unique ability to precisely locate and resolve individual X-ray sources in 12 globular clusters in our Galaxy has given astronomers a crucial clue as to the origin of these sources. Two clusters, known as NGC 6266 (or M62) and NGC 7099 (or M30), are shown here in this 2003 image.
A globular cluster is a spherical collection of hundreds of thousands and even millions of stars buzzing around each other in a gravitationally bound stellar beehive that is about a hundred light years in diameter. The stars in a globular cluster are often only about a tenth of a light year apart. For comparison, the nearest star to the Sun, Proxima Centauri, is 4.2 light years away.
Most of the point-like sources in these images are binary star systems containing a collapsed star, such as a neutron star or a white dwarf star, that is pulling matter off a normal companion star. While direct, head-on collisions between stars are rare even in these crowded circumstances, close encounters occur and can lead to the formation of binary star systems containing a collapsed star.
The images illustrate a general trend observed for globular clusters. Clusters such as M62 where the stars are packed very closely together and the rate of close encounters is high have more X-ray binaries than those such as M30 in which close encounters occur less often. This is strong evidence that the X-ray binaries in globular clusters are formed by close encounters.
Image credit: NASA/CXC/MIT/D.Pooley et al.
#NASA #MarshallSpaceFlightCenter #MSFC #Marshall #chandraxrayobservatory #ChandraXRay #cxo #chandra #astronomy #space #astrophysics #nasamarshallspaceflightcenter #solarsystemandbeyond #globularcluster
A few hours out running some errands, but with a 50/0.95 Noctilux along for the drive… So inevitably, it means taking some photos to keep myself entertained and make my chores more interesting :-)
Accurate ZERO with nothing in it… You can precisely measure the weight of whatever you want to buy.
At a local supermarket.
25-0819 Gen-0023 (LEICA M11, Noctilux-M 1-0.95-50 ASPH.)
Moving to Hyde Park on the Chicago's south side, here is the facade of Studio Gang's still-under-construction Solstice on the Park, so named for its views of nearby Jackson Park. The precisely slanted windows are designed to maximize sunlight in the winter and minimize heat gain in the summer.
I've been thinking about what to do with jet engines I got in a Chima set, and also thinking about building one more speeder to improve my building skills.
Today I came up with an idea of making a pod racer as in Star Wars: EP 1. However, the minifigure pilot I have is actually a resistance pilot, precisely appearing much later in the SW galaxy.
So I tried the speeder to be more like a EP 4 thing, rather than a streamlined naboo star fighter.
Probably the resistance appropriated the Pod Racer to their fighter speeder. :D
The greatest things in life are not tangible. They are the things that elude us, like a spark we try to freeze as it explodes through its brief existence. Just as we try to grasp it, dazzled by its energy, it dissolves in a wisp of smoke. But life only exists in the movement and change. It is precisely the intangible, the moments of indescribable quality slipping through our fingers, that give us the greatest meaning. Like the knowing smile of a friend or the squeeze of your lover's hand. Like the soothing sound of raindrops above you, or misty layers of mountains surrounding you. We know it can't last, but in that second, it is everything.
A life well lived is not tangible. It is not defined by the things we purchase and hoard. It is not the biggest house you can buy. Or the money in the bank. Or the status of your job. A life well lived can never be measured, or bought, or won, or competed with.
A life worth living is one of moments, appreciated and embraced, and relationships, nurtured and loved. The special moments move quickly. Slow down to see them go by.
Sunrise with the bison in Yellowstone National Park.
Nature. The most beautiful thing in the world is, precisely, the conjunction of learning and inspiration. Oh, the passion for research and the joy of discovery!
A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.
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This is a photographic story of two traditional Sicilian feasts that have in common the devotion to St. Philip, He is depicted in "black" color because a legend sees him as the protagonist in a fight in the Underworld against Lucifer, from whose fight He came out covered in soot . St. Philip is much celebrated in Sicily, but also in the Salerno area, in Calabria (following a path he made in life) up to Malta. The proximity to "my" Taormina with the towns of Calatabiano and Limina made my task easier, both as regards the feast of Calatabiano (CT), which I present here "on the descent", then eight days later "the ascent" of the Saint, that the feast of Limina (ME), and which I will present next time, “with the Saint taken to the Murazzo village", then eight days later "with the Saint taken up to Calvario mountain”. In the town of Calatabiano St. Philip acquires the appellation of "Siriaco", infact He came from Syria, while in the town of Limina he acquires the appellation "d'Agira", from the name of the town, in the province of Enna, where he will die, but it is always the same Saint. In this story done in Calatabiano (Catania) there are photographs of the "Calata (descent)" and of the "Acchianata (ascent), inserted not using a "chronological criterion", but according to a criterion that I would dare to define as "emotional-dynamic narrative" . Now a few brief notes on the life of this Saint, also to try to understand how the cult of Him was born in these (but also other) countries. There are two sources talking about of St. Philip, called "the Chronicles of Eusebio d'Agira" and "the Chronicles of Athanasius", these chronicles are largely discordant with each other, except for the descriptions on His characteristics as a priest and miracle worker, on His ability to perform exorcisms by driving out demons from the possessed (a metaphor of his latter ability is precisely in the movements of the devotees, who " that make the float dance and pirouette” with the saint at Limina, while in Calatabiano the same meaning is ascribed to the speed imprinted on the heavy float). He was probably born in Thrace (south-eastern region of the Balkan peninsula in 40 AD (?), at the time it was a Roman province, in the time of Arcadius, Eastern Roman emperor, born of a Syrian father and a Roman mother, during his childhood he was educated to the principles of Christianity which was spreading also in those territories. He comes from Thrace to Rome, is ordained a priest by Peter, and He is sent by Him to Sicily (pagan land under Roman rule), with the task of evangelizing those places and to perform exorcisms; He lands at “Capo Faro” in Messina starting His mandate immediately, then He travels the eastern part of Sicily heading south (hence Limina and Calatabiano, affected by his passage, thanks to His abilities as a healer and exorcist , they become devoted to Him); thus he reaches the town of Agira (Enna), where He dies there after forty years of Apostolate on the island. Let's go back to today's times, this "double descent-ascent story", was realized in the month of May of this year 2022, every year (except last two years due to the pandemic) during the Saturday eve of the third Sunday of May, in the church of “SS. Cross to the Castle”, there are the women who take care of the dressing, at dawn on Saturday they go to the church and decorate the float with flowers that will remain until the end of the feast, when the devotees will take them away with them, because they are blessed flowers; the “calata (descent)” comes to life at 18.30 sharp, it is a spectacular descent, certainly not without dangers, complicated both by the very heavy float (13 quintals) bearing the reliquary bust of the Saint supported by the devotees, and by the long and very steep - tortuous - slippery - very steep, path, which is traveled at a brisk pace (every year the greater or lesser speed of the gait is commented on), which foresees a very angled curve along the tormented path, and since in the past in this point the very heavy float skidded until it overturned, killing a young "carrier", since then this point, marked with a small altar, has been called by the popular imagination "death curve" (here the float must be able to make a sharp turn at the end of the steepest and steepest path and which shows all the expertise of the bearers, always with the leader of the float in the lead, who gives orders to his bearers; the float thus reaches the gates of the town, in the place called "of the First Cross", where the race ends here with a brief stop during which the Saint is dressed in gold, then the float is taken to the Mother Church of the town of Calatabiano. The following Sunday, the so-called "octave" (similar to the feast of San Filippo d'Agira of Limina - Messina) the ritual comes back to life, with the bearers who, at 7.00 pm sharp, leave from the Mother Church to go up to the top of Castle Mountain (so called due to the presence of a well-preserved Norman medieval castle), thus bringing the very heavy float back to its Church of the SS. Cross, located immediately below the castle. The "calata" and "l'acchianata" respectively the "descent" and the "ascent", are carried out at a brisk pace (it is not a race, as it is sometimes defined) to echo the vehemence of the Holy Exorcist in casting out demons. The devotees awaiting the descent and ascent crowd the hill above the path, many of them adorn themselves with intertwined ribbons of the three colors red-yellow-green (every year the colors of the bearers' shirts change, reporting each time one of the three colours), these ribbons or "measures" represent the hair of the Saint's beard, in fact legend has it that the young Philip descended into the Underworld to bind the devil with the hair of his beard.
The statue of the Saint is depicted with a book in his left hand, one is led to think that that book is the Gospel, in reality it is a manuscript released to Him by Pope Peter, with an "apotropaic" meaning (which cancels or removes evil influences) to help Him in his mandate in Sicily against the Evil Spirits, instead the raised right hand can have the double meaning of imparting the blessing or the culminating moment in performing an exorcism.
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Questo è un racconto fotografico di due feste tradizionali siciliane che hanno in comune la devozione verso San Filippo, egli viene raffigurato di colore “nero” poiché una leggenda lo vede protagonista di una lotta negli Inferi contro Lucifero, dalla cui lotta ne venne fuori ricoperto di fuliggine. San Filippo è molto festeggiato in Sicilia, ma lo è anche nel salernitano, in Calabria (seguendo un suo percorso fatto in vita) fino ad arrivare al suo culto presente nell’isola di Malta. La vicinanza con la “mia” Taormina coi paesi di Calatabiano e di Limina, mi ha facilitato il compito; la festa di Calatabiano (CT) si svolge in due giornate, la prima viene chiamata “la Calata” (la discesa), poi a otto giorni di distanza c’è “a Acchianata” (la risalita) della vara delSanto, analogamente per la festa di Limina (ME), che presenterò la prossima volta, ci sarà anche li una prima giornata col Santo portato “al borgo Murazzo”, poi a otto giorni di distanza, col Santo portato fino al “Monte Calvario”. Nel paese di Calatabiano San Filippo acquista l’appellativo di “Siriaco”, cioè proveniente dalla Siria, mentre nel paese di Limina Egli acquista l’appellativo “d’Agira”, dal nome del paese, in provincia di Enna, dove egli morirà: è sempre lo stesso santo. In questo attuale racconto fatto a Calatabiano (Catania) vi sono sia le fotografie della “Calata (discesa)” che della “Acchianata (salita), inserite non utilizzando un “criterio cronologico”, ma secondo un criterio che vorrei definire “narrativo emozionale-dinamico”. Ora qualche breve cenno sulla vita di questo santo, anche per cercare di capire come nasce il suo culto in questi (ma anche in altri) paesi. Le fonti che parlano di San Filippo sono due, chiamate “le Cronache di Eusebio d’Agira” e “le Cronache di Atanasio”, queste cronache tra loro sono in buona parte discordanti, tranne le descrizioni sulle sue caratteristiche di sacerdote e di taumaturgo, sulle sue capacità di compiere esorcismi scacciando i demoni dagli impossessati (su quest’ultima sua capacità una metafora è proprio nelle movenze dei devoti, che “fanno ballare-piroettare” la vara col santo a Limina, mentre lo stesso significato a Calatabiano è legato alla velocità impressa alla pesante vara). Egli nacque probabilmente in Tracia (regione sud-orientale della penisola balcanica nel 40 d.C. (?), all’epoca era una provincia romana, ai tempi d’Arcadio, imperatore romano d’Oriente, nato da padre siriano e da madre romana, nella sua infanzia fu educato ai principi del Cristianesimo che andava propagandosi anche in quelle terre. Egli giunge dalla Tracia a Roma, viene ordinato sacerdote da Pietro, ed è proprio da Lui che viene mandato in Sicilia (terra pagana sotto il dominio Romano), col compito di evangelizzare quei luoghi e compiere esorcismi; sbarca a Capo Faro a Messina iniziando fin da subito il suo mandato, poi percorre la fascia orientale della Sicilia dirigendosi a sud verso l’Etna (ecco che Limina e Calatabiano, interessati dal suo passaggio, grazie alle sue capacità di guaritore ed esorcista, gli divengono devoti); giunge così al paese di Agira (Enna), dove lì muore dopo quarant’anni di Apostolato nell’isola. Torniamo ai tempi odierni, questo “doppio racconto discesa-risalita”, è stato realizzato nel mese di maggio di quest’anno, ogni anno (ad eccezione della pandemia che ha fermato questa tradizione per due anni), durante il sabato vigilia della terza domenica di Maggio, nella chiesa del SS. Crocifisso al Castello, la mattina le donne salgono per adornare con fiori la vara, i cui fiori alla fine della tradizionale discesa e poi quando avverrà la risalita, vengono presi dai devoti poiché sono fiori benedetti; alle 18,30 in punto del sabato, dopo che sono stati sparati “tre colpi a cannone” inizia l’avventurosissima “Calata”, si tratta di una spettacolare discesa, non certo esente da pericoli, complicata sia dal pesantissimo fercolo (13 quintali) recante il busto reliquiario del Santo sostenuto dai devoti, sia dal lungo e ripidissimo, tortuoso, scivoloso, molto scosceso, sentiero, che viene percorso a passo molto sostenuto (ogni anno viene commentata la maggiore o minore velocità dell'andatura), che prevede lungo il tormentato percorso una curva molto angolata, e poiché in passato in questo punto la pesantissima vara sbandò fino a ribaltarsi, uccidendo un giovane “portatore”, da allora questo punto, segnato con un piccolo altare, viene chiamato dalla fantasia popolare “curva della morte” (qui la vara deve poter compiere una brusca virata al termine del percorso più ripido e scosceso e che mostra tutta la perizia dei portatori, con sempre in testa il capovara, che impartisce ordini ai suoi portatori; la vara giunge così alle porte del paese, nel luogo denominato "della Prima Croce", ove qui la corsa termina con una breve sosta durante la quale il Santo viene vestito con oro, poi il fercolo viene portato alla Chiesa Madre del paese di Calatabiano. La domenica successiva, la cosiddetta "ottava", riprende vita il rito, coi portatori che, alle 19,00 in punto partono dalla Chiesa Madre per risalire fin sopra al Monte Castello (così chiamato per la presenza di un ben conservato castello medioevale Normanno), riportando così il pesantissimo fercolo nella sua Chiesa del SS. Crocifisso, ubicata subito sotto il castello. I devoti in attesa della discesa e della risalita, si assiepano numerosissimi sulla collina sovrastante il percorso, moltissimi di loro si adornano con dei nastrini intrecciati dei tre colori rosso-giallo-verde (ogni anno i colori delle magliette dei portatori cambiano, riportando ogni volta uno dei tre colori), tali nastrini o "misure" rappresentano i peli della barba del Santo, infatti la leggenda narra che il giovane Filippo discese negli Inferi per legare il demonio coi peli della sua barba.
La statua del Santo viene raffigurata con un libro nella mano sinistra, si è portati a pensare che quel libro sia il Vangelo, in realtà è un manoscritto rilasciatogli dal Papa Pietro, dal significato "apotropaico" (che annulla o allontana gli influssi maligni) per aiutarlo nel suo mandato in Sicilia contro gli Spiriti Demoniaci, invece la mano destra alzata può avere il doppio significato di chi imparte la benedizione oppure il momento culminante di chi esegue un esorcismo nel momento in cui scaccia via il Maligno.
Note: This is an artist illustration
hot exoplanet summer! 🔥
Webb analyzed the atmosphere of an ultrahot gas giant and mapped its temperatures. Despite scorching heat (nearly 5000 F or 2700 C), WASP-18 b has small amounts of atmospheric water — precisely measured due to Webb's sensitivity.
WASP-18b zips around its star so fast that its year is only 23 hours long. It is also tidally locked, meaning one side of it always faces its star. Learn more: exoplanets.nasa.gov/news/1760/discovery-alert-webb-maps-a...
This image: WASP-18 b, seen in an artist concept, is a gas giant exoplanet 10 times more massive than Jupiter that orbits its star in just 23 hours. Researchers used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to study the planet as it moved behind its star. Temperatures there reach 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,700 C).
Artist Illustration Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech (K. Miller/IPAC)
Image description: An illustration shows a yellow-orange exoplanet in a three-quarter view against the star-smattered black of space. The planet's gaseous atmosphere fades from a very bright dayside to a much dimmer nightside and there are subtle bands going north-south. It is at its brightest to the right of center.
Gresley 'A3' Pacific 60103 'Flying Scotsman', or more precisely 'N.E.502' as it should be referred to in this composition, takes it steady heading the 1Z87 14:25 Carlisle to London Euston 'Cumbrian Mountain Express on 6th February 2016 at Duncowfold, near Cotehill, with no further explanation of the exact location being necessary! This was the last last steam charter to run over the S&C route during this winter season as Network Rail engineers closed the line on 9th January due to significant slippage on the embankment at Eden Brow. high above the River Eden, with repairs taking many weeks.
© Gordon Edgar - All rights reserved. Please do not use my images without my explicit permission
The double spacecraft of ESA’s Proba-3 mission will become the most precisely controlled objects in space, maintaining a set distance from each other down to millimetre-level precision. An ESA cleanroom was turned into a hall of mirrors to test the laser-based measuring system that will maintain the pair in position for hours at a time.
“Due to launch in 2024, Proba-3 is ESA’s precision formation flying mission,” comments Damien Galano, ESA’s Proba-3 project manager. “By maintaining their relative position against one another for up to six hours per orbit at a nominal 144 m apart, the ‘Occulter’ spacecraft will cast a shadow onto its ‘Coronagraph’ counterpart to form an artificial solar eclipse in space, so that the Sun’s faint outer atmosphere or corona can be studied freely.
“But the satellite pair require a sophisticated metrology system to hold them in position – and we needed to test the flight hardware of the most precise element of this multi-faceted system, the laser-based ‘fine optical metrology’ system.”.
The project requested support from the Metrology Laboratory of ESA’s ESTEC Test Centre in the Netherlands, part of the biggest satellite test facility in Europe, operated for the Agency by European Test Services. The Lab's Ramon Vink explains: “Our challenge was to find a cleanroom long enough to encompass the full range of distances involved for the laser and its retroreflector, as far as 250 m apart.”
The team settled on the Vacuum Test Chamber-1.5 cleanroom, adds Steven Sablerolle of the Metrology Lab: “At 60 m in length the VTC-15 cleanroom was too small, so instead they installed a folding array of mirrors that could bounce the laser beam around the chamber to cross the full range of distance required.”
Jorg Versluys, Proba-3 System Engineer, says: “The Test Centre’s Metrology Lab assisted us in precisely aligning and mapping the mirrors’ positions, using their own laser trackers. The test campaign took about six weeks, mostly during the night to minimise unwanted perturbations from the rest of the busy site – even a lorry driving past on the road outside might show up in our results. This testing marked the first time the various parts of this fine optical metrology system were operated together, but the results were right in line with our previous models.”
For the testing, Proba-3’s laser-generating optic head was integrated onto the mission’s optic bench, then placed on a granite table for maximum stability. The laser was shone onto a laser retroreflector – which is a special kind of mirror, resembling reflective ‘cat’s eyes’ on a motorway, that possesses carefully-designed internal reflectivity to bounce back the laser light in the exact same direction that it has come from.
A photo diode on the optic head then recognises reflected laser light to calculate the number of wave oscillations the light has taken to bounce back, to derive its precise travel time and therefore distance between the two satellites. A second detector, a 2D array, is acquires the lateral position of the reflected laser beam to identify the lateral displacement of the retroreflector relative to the optic head.
This is the most precise of multiple metrology methods employed by the two Proba-3 satellites, each one around a cubic metre in scale. A continuous inter-satellite radio link is supplemented by Global Navigation Satellite System receivers. When the satellites come less than 250 m apart then cameras on the Occulter spacecraft will image and detect LEDs mounted on the Coronagraph spacecraft. Then the laser-based system will come into use to maintain precise satellite alignment.
“Our testing allowed us to map just how the metrology system responds as the target moves slightly up or down or side to side,” adds Jorg. “So we’ve ended up with a complete database of the two units’ movement down to pixels per millimetre scale that we can employ for real when we reach space.”
Proba-3’s laser operates at an infrared wavelength, invisible to the naked eye. So this photograph was actually acquired as a long exposure in infrared, with the path of the beam gradually traced using a sheet of white paper. The beam seen in the photo is where the paper scatters the infrared light of the laser beam.
Credits: ESA - J.Versluys
There’s nothing quite like sipping champagne at sunset on a luxury yacht, and Ivanna Wayne knows precisely how to match the moment with effortless glamor and undeniable style. For this radiant golden hour soirée, Ivanna turned heads in a sheer, crystal-studded azure pant set that sparkled as brilliantly as the sun on the water.
Her look features a sleek bralette and sheer high-waisted pants, allowing just the right amount of skin to peek through while keeping things sophisticated and summery. The matching headscarf adds a touch of old-Hollywood allure, reminiscent of seaside icons from a bygone era — think Grace Kelly meets modern mermaid.
This looks truly stunning because it blends resort wear with runway flair. The lightweight fabric floats with the breeze, while the shimmer creates a dreamlike aura against the sunset backdrop. Ivanna’s minimal accessories make the outfit speak for itself — calm, confident, and irresistibly chic.
Whether it’s a private yacht party or a summer beach gala, this look is a showstopper that says: “I came to celebrate, and I came in style.”
Pictured here is the Devil's Throat, the main part of the waterfall (or, more precisely, view from the walkway to it from the Brazilian side). The falls on river Iguazu (Iguacu), shared by Brazil and Argentina, is the most majestic natural phenomenon that I have ever seen with my own eyes. To call this site a 'waterfall', even the greatest one in the world, is the same as to call a nuclear bomb explosion a mere clap. The power and majesty of Nature here are so indisputable and impregnable, that was gasping in amazement despite all the information I have read and even the photos I have seen prior to my visit. Nothing in the world can prepare a man to the feelings he will experience upon seeing the true World Wonder!
На фото - Глотка Дьявола, центральная часть водопада (а если точно, вид с дорожки, ведущей к ней со стороны Бразилии). Водопад на реке Игуасу, расположенный на границе Бразилии и Аргентины, - пожалуй, самый величественный природный феномен, который мне когда-либо удостаивалось увидеть своими глазами. Назвать это место "водопадом", даже самым большим на планете, - всё равно что назвать взрыв атомной бомбы хлопком. Сила стихии и величество природы здесь настолько неоспоримы и непоколебимы, что в буквальном смысле дух захватывало, даже несмотря на то что заранее я начитался информации и даже насмотрелся фотографий. Ничто на свете не может подготовить человека к тем ощущениям, которые он испытатет, увидев это настоящее Чудо Света!
My life is merely a play, a play that never ends.
Everyone in it knows precisely how to play his role perfectly without any mistake whatsoever!
I try sometimes to go with the flow and cope with the players, but at times I realize how hard it is to dye the night's black sky in perfect ivory color.
I am neither an actor nor a philosopher, yet I can tell who wares the ornamented golden mask and who does not. Who is true to himself and who is not.
Being able to look through people's masks is not a gift as much as it is some sort of a damned curse that hunts my mortal life. I tend to judge the false masks despite how beautiful and perfect they may seem.
Masks can be in any shape and color depending on what it indicates. There is the white perfect one and the black broken one, the golden feathered angelic mask and the flamed red devilish mask, and the smiling yellow face and the cried eye blue face.
A mixture combined to survive an endless masquerade on a stage full of assorted colors of lights and shades called "Life".
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This was the story of my Nickname, I chose it after writing the above lines, I thought it was about time to finally share it with you guys ^^.
Location : Balekambang Beach
Balekambang is a gently sloping beach and reef that stretches along 2 km with a width of 200 meters to the sea. When the tide is low look of pretty small fish and other marine life diversity congregate on the water.
This spectacular view can be found at Balekambang beach in south Malang regency, precisely in Srigoco village, district Bantur, about 70 kilometers south of the city of Malang, East Java.
Boddam was originally owned by the Spence family whose main holdings were in Fife and Perthshire. Precisely when the family acquired the Boddam estate is unknown but it was probably around 1459 when Thomas Spence was appointed Bishop of Aberdeen.
The castle was built by the Keiths of Ludquharn, probably in the late 16th or early 17th century, several generations after they acquired the barony of Boddam.
Gilbert Keith, 3rd of Inverugie, added the estate of Ludquhairn or Ludquharn to his land holdings by marrying the Ogstoun heiress thereof, in the second half of the 15th century. Their eldest son inherited Inverugie and their 2nd son, John inherited Ludquharn, but having no sons of his own, it passed to the next son, Andrew. Andrew was father of Sir John Keith, 4th of Ludquhairn, who was killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513.
The 5th laird was Gilbert Keith and his son and heir, Sir William Keith, topped up the family's levels of Keith blood by marrying Margaret Keith, sister of George, 5th Earl Marischal. Their son Sir William, 7th laird, perhaps influenced by the importance of his cousins, acquired a baronetcy for himself and would appear to have built Boddam Castle, to suit his enhanced status.
The 3rd baronet, another Sir Williams, supported the Stuart cause in the 1689 Jacobite Uprising and was forced to flee abroad, only returning after the Act of Indemnity (1703). His son meanwhile (another Sir William), held several commissions in North America including Surveyor General for the Southern District of the Americas and Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania. The father however, was implicated in the 1715 Jacobite Uprising which led him to financial ruin. When he died in 1718, the younger Sir William inherited his father's title, estates and his debts! He was never able to recover from the latter ultimately dying penniless in the Old Bailey debtors prison in 1749. The Ludquharn baronetcy was continued by his sons, but by then they no longer owned Boddam and the baronetcy became extinct in 1771.
In the years following the departure of the Keiths, Boddam Castle was abandoned and as we know from the Mazell's engraving, it was a complete ruin by 1784. It would seem likely that the new owners, in an age where defence and security were no longer paramount, moved inland, perhaps to the current site of Ludquhard Farm, where they could farm with proper farmland around them. As was so often the case elsewhere, most of the stone from the castle was carted off for use elsewhere.