View allAll Photos Tagged select_few
As I shared in an earlier post, I raised a few thousand tadpoles, watching them grow from adorable embryos all the way to voracious, fly-eating machines. I kept a select few indoors in a fully equipped aquarium complete with water plants, a cucumber-stocked mini bar, daily water changes, and a Netflix subscription. Over time, tiny green spots of algae began to grow on the glass. I decided not to clean them off, as they added an interesting look on camera, especially with the sun shining through the water. My star tadpoles, The Three Tenors, often put on a good show for me as appreciation for the care they received.
The Anomaly homes a little-known station
Within the vast, unpredictable expanse of the Anomaly, a faint and enigmatic station exists, its signal barely perceptible to all but the most advanced receivers. This "whisper of potential solace" offers a glimmer of hope or a "presence of hospitality" on the very fringes of Uncharted Space, a beacon in the desolate void. Its faint emission can only be detected by a select few, as its frequency is designed to be almost entirely undetectable by standard civilian vessels. Access to this mysterious haven is even more restricted, requiring the formidable capabilities of military-grade spaceships to navigate and penetrate the surrounding environmental defences.
Podcast:
www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXaHuXMcUMrhIzfjKlj9clJCOf...
Meta TV
www.facebook.com/watch/100063480315046/1020837046583872/
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#art #Spacestation #scifi #fictionalworld #story #arthouse #futuristic #spaceadventure #Sanctuary #Revitalisation #Retro #art #metaart
I recently had the pleasure of spending a weekend enjoying parts of the Bourbon Trail with my brother, Matt.
This image is taken within one of the Woodford Reserve rickhouses at their distillery in Versailles, Kentucky.
A National Historic Landmark, the Woodford Reserve distillery is located on Kentucky's oldest distilling site, incorporating historic techniques into crafting one of the best bourbons in the world.
Whereas some distilleries on the Bourbon Trail hire tour guides, our experience was that a select few, including Woodford Reserve, employ 'Brand Ambassadors', who really enhance the experience of the visit. If you get the chance, I would recommend touring this beautiful location and tasting some of their great American spirit.
Working what I think was the Y103 job, #2631 rolls down the City Market Lead to retrieve an empty reefer from Michigan Natural Storage. At the time, #2631 was one of the last YN1 units left on CSX, and one of a select few that went right from YN1 to YN3 upon being repainted! It was a fixture in Michigan for years.
This was NOT taken in the Penal Colony district of Planet Zog like someone would like to lead you to believe....again I won't mention any names (sunny_drunk!). I also think that same person isn't welcomed here at this beautiful pinkalicous location.. See only upper class Zogorian's & a select few visitors (pink luvrs) are welcomed here...
Pink Lovers Unite!! Bring down the blue & lets up the PINK!! It's for a better ZOG!!!
Thank You that is all!
One of the smallest and rarest birds in Australia, these tiny and oh-so-cute Forty-spotted Pardalotes are only found in a select few places in south-eastern Tasmania. The specieis is considered critically endangered as it forages almost exclusively in the canopies of the Manna (White) Gum which have been decimated over the years by land clearing for agriculture. Although populations of this bird species are continuing to decline, the fabulous team at @inalanaturetours are doing a great job in restoring their habitat on Bruny Island to ensure that we don't lose these little birds forever. 💛
The Spring Faeries busy themselves about the countryside, skipping merrily as they wake the flowers and their animal friends after the long and cold winter. Once the flowers are awake, they gather a select few of the choicest first flush of blooms to decorate their castle with.
This year the Flickr Friends Melbourne Group have decided to have a monthly challenge which is submitted on the 5th of every month. This month’s theme is “fantastic plastic”, which was chosen by me.
Plastic may not always be a good thing, but when it is made into toys like Playmobil that provide endless fun and imagination for children (both young and old ones), then I think it can be fantastic. I have introduced my godsons to Playmobil, and even though one is in his teens and the other two just shy of it, they still enjoy getting the Playmobil out when I come over and they create magical kingdoms and we have a ball together as we play for several hours at least!
Two of the wonderful things that attract people, young and old alike, to Playmobil are their vibrant colours and the array of different items that are produced. I wanted to continue my series of faerie Playmobil tableaux, following on from the Yellow, Blue, Pink, Rainbow, Winter and Forest Faeries who have appeared in previous challenges.
Playmobil is a line of toys produced by the Brandstätter Group, headquartered in Zirndorf, Germany. Production began in 1974. Playmobil began to be sold worldwide in 1975, and by 2009, approximately 2.2 billion Playmobil figures had been sold. The signature Playmobil toy is a 7.5 cm tall human figure with a particular smiling face. A wide range of accessories, buildings and vehicles, as well as many sorts of animals, are also part of the Playmobil line. Playmobil toys are produced in themed series of sets as well as individual special figures and playsets. New products and product lines developed by a 50-strong development team are introduced frequently, and older sets are discontinued. Promotional and one-off products are sometimes produced in very limited quantities. These practices have helped give rise to a sizeable community of collectors.
164/365
There are two 'me's. Who you know will depend upon who you are.
Some will know the calm, orderly, precise me. The me that can correctly answer the question that has stumped the rest of the class as I walk in half an hour late. The me that spends all her spare time revising and never talks about how she feels.
Some will know the crazy, oddball me. The me that can laugh maniacally at a glove puppet and can run across the beach in a t-shirt down to my knees with my arms outstretched imagining that I can fly. The me that pirouettes like a tornado and never talks about how she feels.
Maybe you know one of me. A select few know both of me. Perhaps you know neither of me. I do not know who is luckier.
But nobody really knows me. Nobody knows the me under the tight braid. Nobody knows the me behind the windswept tangle.
I am unknown and unknowable.
Barn area, there's a room set up with simple furnishing for selected few artist to spend a few days for there works and it's not an easy task to get chosen
I have been fascinated with the Black-throated Blue Warbler since I first learned of these colorful songbirds five or so years ago. Much to my disappointment, they breed sparingly in New Jersey. Only in a select few locations do they intermittently nest, meaning I would have to travel to photograph this species. As luck would have it, on one of my first true warbler outings, I would encounter a Black-throated Blue right here in the Garden State. It was a close, albeit brief encounter. Since then, not much luck. It wasn't until this most recent Spring that I made a trip up north on a whim. This was a park I had not yet explored, and the possibilities felt endless. One of the first birds I came upon, was a Black-throated Green Warbler. Close, but not my intended Target. Onward I trekked along a ridge line trail. There were warblers galore in these woods, but none I hadn't seen elsewhere this year. After passing a power line cut, I came to a boggy thicket of rhododendron. My first thoughts were of Canada Warblers, as I've always encountered them in this type of habitat. That notion quickly vanished upon hearing the buzzy song of a Black-throated Blue. He was singing from a nearby hemlock before he dove into the shrubs below. As he hopped about, he made a few appearances on the trails edge. At this moment, he emerged just fifteen feet or so away from me. I have no doubt that he was just as surprised by me as I was by him, hence that stare.
The Cincinnati metro area is blessed to have many CPL's still in operation. The vast majority of them are on masts, with a select few on modern cantilevers. Fairfield, OH contains the last true, B&O built cantilever in the city. Its days are numbered however, as are evident from the month old Safetran "Vaders" that have been installed. Here, CSXT 7726 leads a manifest under the cantilever as dusk settles in.
I have been “confined to barracks” since last Tuesday due to testing positive for Co-vid 19 and with a lot more free time and now feeling a lot better it is another scan/editing challenge from the reject box. Whilst the vast majority of my failures forty odd years ago ended up in the waste paper bin at the time a select few, usually due to an interesting subject managed to survive.
Now starting to look somewhat work stained a recently “bulled up” 47581 Great Eastern stands at the head of a Norwich express at the old Liverpool Street station, 23rd February 1981.
Locomotive History
47581 was originally D1764, built at Loughborough, entering traffic on the 8th September 1964, allocated to Tinsley. Its stay at Tinsley was short as it was transferred to March in January 1965 and Finsbury Park in October 1966 where it was to stay for the next seven years. This was followed with spells at Stratford, Immingham and Tinsley before it’s long association with Stratford commencing in August 1978 and it would stay a Stratford engine for the next twelve years. It became a Stratford favourite when in March 1979 it was selected to carry the name Great Eastern and the plates were unveiled at Liverpool Street station by Sir Kenneth Cork, Lord Mayor of London on the 7th March 1979. At the end of 1979 it was fitted with electric train heating equipment and emerged from Crewe Works in December 1979 as 47581. In April 1990 it transferred to Old Oak Common and soon lost its Great Eastern plates. This was followed by a number of years regularly being transferred between Old Oak Common, Bristol and Crewe. It was renumbered 47763 in January 1994 when fitted with remote control equipment for use parcel trains with driving trailers (PCV’s) and it settled down as a Crewe engine until withdrawn nearly seven years later in November 2000. Following withdrawal it was dumped at Motherwell until broken up on site by Sandbach Car & Commercial Dismantlers in September 2003.
Praktica LTL, Ektachrome 200
Click inside the image for a larger view.
Early 1940s Lebaron, I believe.
Taken at the Walter P. Chrysler's Museum, at the Chrysler's (FCA's) Headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Chrysler was acquired by Fiat, and the Fiat CEO became the FCA CEO. I guess he can't stand it to see an American icon, inventor, and a legend being honored with a museum. So he has now made the decision to close the museum and send all its contents to storage. He should be deported :-) ... Lens: Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8 L.
Light conditions are simply photography nightmare. A combination of Fluorescent (neon) lights, incandescent lights, flood lights, large windows daylight, etc.
The museum is a 3-story building, with lots, and lots, and lots of beautiful vehicles to see. It was also extremely crowded on that weekend because people heard that it was going to be closed for good.
The collection has vehicle models dating back as far as 1902.
All images were taken hand-held; no tripods allowed.
I did the best I could under the circumstances.
Editing almost one thousand images will take a lot of time, but only a select few will be uploaded here anyway.
I use Degoo (a Swedish company) for my Cloud storage. You can get 100GB of storage for free.
Here is the Invite link: degoo.com/g/IbJT56H
For the whole day, thick fog and freezing temperatures suffocated much of the area. However, select few of us see these conditions as perfect for photos — knowing there'll be some picture-perfect frost to come.
After leaving work, I swung by the Vegreville Subdivision, where a G3 grainer was already passing by enroute to Edmonton. I jumped down to Nashman, where are northbound sulfur train was in the hole waiting, and got set up. Soon, the headlights cut through the blue hour fog, and the rails sung as the grain loads rolled past.
I jumped in my car to find my battery had somehow died (on the dead end road, of course), and was left with no choice but to hang around for the sulfur train to pass as well!
CN Grain Loads
CN Vegreville Subdivision
CN ET44AC 3165
CN ET44AC 3275
Canon EOS R6 | Canon 24-70 f/2.8 II
November 26, 2025 - 4:32 PM MT
Brutus is an African Gray that lives at the Cape May County Zoo.
Brutus was stolen from the zoo back in 2014.
Somewhere between the time his keeper fed him breakfast and lunchtime, someone opened up his cage and swiped him. Luckily someone later spotted him walking down the side of a road and contacted authorities, and Brutus was safely returned to the zoo.
They speculate that Brutus was probably too much for the thief that took him to handle, so they just let him go.
Brutus is pretty charming from behind bars and will wolf whistle and talk to passers by, but evidently he's not friendly once you're up close and personal and willonly let a select few people handle him (typical parrot).
He even bit two policemen during the rescue.
A scary story with a happy ending!
I hope the story has the same happy ending for Flaco, the Eurasian eagle-owl that escaped the Central Park Zoo and is currently at large.)
Since the theft, they padlock the cage, but it still sits in an area that is largely unattended by zoo staff.
With all the crazy stuff that's happening in zoo's lately, I worry.
The "Old Corn Mill" or "Old Barn" in Ballymagorry, Strabane, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Most of my images have the history/story of each building or area attached. However once in a while a scene like this comes along. Ive looked everywhere online & asked many people but to no avail can I find the history on this old Leckpatrick barn/mill. I guess the real reason is because its not famous or symbolic to many people living today, so it stands lonesome & hidden away in this field along an extremely quiet country road....
We may not know its history or stories etc but I can tell you that this old barn means the world to me. My friends & I spent our childhood/teens meeting up, playing & camping out etc inside this old building. Some of the best summers of my life were spent around here.
I finally decided to return here after almost 20 years! Just to capture this image for my own personal collection. Instead of saving it for myself Ive instead decided to share it with you all. I believe that just because the history isn’t available or that this old building may only hold personal memories for a select few, isn’t a reason for others not to appreciate it
Hope you enjoy! Please favourite & add me as a contact to view my newest upcoming works, Thank you
Another one for Brickscalibur 2022 (Trading Places category) and because i used several swords, it's also good for first round of Iron Forge!
Ever wondered where the new falconer figure got her wonderful falcon? At Mr. Mundigasts secret shop for magic animals of course. But in Caliburia, any trade with magic beasts is forbidden, so Mr. Mundigast set up shop in a damp cellar and only a selected few know where to find it.
It's not unusual for signs to be associated with two planets - a result of the outer planets having been discovered only relatively recently. Before that, we could only approximate which planet might fit with which sign. Aquarius is one of the double-headed signs, and the one that seems to get overseen most often. But that might be just my impression. But then, it's current ruler Uranus only introduced himself to humanity in the late 1700s, so there sure was bound to be a traditional ruler. It never even occurred to me until someone pointed that out.
Uranus and the Aquarius archetype itself is associated, among others, with humanitarianism, with eccentricism, with unexpected and sudden change, technology and specifically high-tech, the internet, the collective, the concepts of "We the people" and "Anything goes!". The place where hopes and dreams, and the future as a whole is waiting to unfold, whatever it might have in store.
And then there's Saturn as the traditional ruler. Tradition and ruling, two words that make Saturn immediately feel right at home. Old money, old thinking, conservatism, old structures. Authority, the government, the ruling class. Basically, it doesn't get more anti-Aquarian than Saturn. And yet... I can't help thinking it's strangely fitting. Whenever something important happens in Aquarius, like the entry of Pluto just now, the old things will obviously note that as well. When the future changes, the past also does.
The last time this happened, people like to cite as the era of the French revolution and the industrial revolution, an era of great liberation for the masses, the ousting of feudalism and monarchy holding the reigns. It sure was in some ways, but it also brought about a new kind of ruling class, or at least planted the seeds that would grow into that. Your industrialists, your oil, coal and steel tycoons, your railway millionaires. Even the very word "millionaire" feels out of place anywhere that's set in pre-industrial times. Not royals, but another kind of a select few.
It's safe to assume this time around, things will not be much different. Another liberation of the masses will happen, and it will in many ways be "real" for lack of a better word. But at the same, it wouldn't surprise me if the ChatGPTs and Googles, Amazons and what not will be even more strict and relentless where your new freedoms ultimately do end. Think Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk are rich? Think again. Wait until the next generation of tycoons takes shape. I wouldn't be surprised at all if they'll dwarf anything we've seen so far. And they probably won't be from Western countries. We've had our time at the top if you want to call it that, and we're exhausted and burned out from it. Now it's someone else's turn.
THIS. This is the reason why I go out and shoot every snow storm, no matter the quality of what’s falling. Amidst the clutter of complex column crystals were some simple plates, and among them were a select few with vibrant colours. View large!
You might ask yourself what trickery I’ve done to make this snowflake orange. I can delightfully say that the tricks are being played by nature itself, through a phenomenon known as thin film interference. With the right conditions, a snowflake may naturally show you colours such as this – though orange is quite rare.
Thin Film Interference is the same phenomenon that puts rainbows in soap bubbles. Without going through an entire description that you may have read before, I’ll link to the pages of my book Sky Crystals with the full text: skycrystals.ca/img/optical-interference-pages.jpg - notice the soap film on the left and how rarely this colour shows up in the patterns.
The magic here is that I was able to see the interference colours with my own unaided eyes while searching for an interesting snowflake. For snowflakes around the 1mm size, it’s uncommon to see this – but it was encompassing such a large percentage of the crystal it caught my attention. Working as quickly as possible I began shooting the image slices to focus stack this tiny beauty into the final results you see here.
Working quickly is key, because this image was made close to the freezing point, and the snowflake could melt as easily as sublimate (evaporate from a solid). This image was shot at ISO 400 and some from the same shoot at ISO 800 which is out of the ordinary for me, but I needed to minimize the flash output that was melting the snowflakes. The higher the ISO, the less flash is required to illuminate the scene. By the end of this sequence, the top layer of ice had begun to deteriorate and it created colour shifts on the part of the snowflake closest to the light source. Only the first images in the sequence were used to present the crystal in its “original” form as best as possible.
There’s a fun trick I use to help locate my snowflakes. Looking through the viewfinder at 12:1 magnification is a challenge, especially when you’re trying to find something with no frame of reference. I use a small paintbrush to manipulate snowflakes to the right angle or clear away clutter, and I lay this brush down pointing towards the snowflake I’m after. All I need to do is locate the (much large) brush, and follow it to my subject. Voila! The snowflake can be found in seconds before it disappears.
For more fun science and all the photographic techniques you can handle, check out my book Sky Crystals: www.skycrystals.ca/book/ - it’s everything you need to enjoy macro photography through the winter, or just enjoy the beauty of winter on a different level.
When you are uphill, you have all the people for friends. You go slightly downhill and all the people who had established themselves as friends turn their backs towards you. But it's few, only a selected few - the thoroughbreds - who stay beside you throughout, through thick and thin. Those are the people you need to watch out for, for they are your truest treasure.
I know shit happens, I get that, it's just really frustrating when you like a brand and they just poof, or keep deleting items out of their store.
Kinda wanna smack your hands like hey, I was gonna buy that *smack smack* put it down and leave it alone.
I now enter this panic of oh snap, I should buy this now because this seller is notorius for deleting stuff.
Calm down it's more than one or two people who do this. If you've ever searched for a discontinued/non gacha so you can't even find it on the mp item, you know how it feels.
Pro Tip: Sometimes if you notecard them and ask nicely, the seller will sell you a discontinued item. (If they are a seller that actually reads and replies to their notecards *cough*) Those are the real MVP's. 💖
And then there's those select few that built their brand scamming people.... I hope someone steals one shoe each, of all your favorite pairs of RL shoes.
To the sellers: Take a customer service class for god's sakes. Even Femdoms have better manners.
A 35mm snipe on nitrate film. (The complete snipe, intended to be placed between trailers, announces, "And We Will Also Present On The Same Program...a SECOND HIT PICTURE to Complete a Grand Double Bill...")
Nitrate film, though more translucent than safety film and prized for its crisp, sparkling look, easily burst into flame when ignited and generated its own oxygen in the process of combustion, aiding the spread of flames and making a nitrate fire all but impossible to extinguish; fumes from burning nitrate was also very toxic. Because of the hazard of ignition in the event of a film break or jam, projectors were built with reel magazines, fire trap rollers, enclosed film paths, automatic fire shutters; film reels were stored individually in special cabinets; film was rewound in enclosed rewinders; and projection booths were bunker-like rooms with emergency fire shutters over port windows. Projectionists were highly trained back in the day and knew to immediately shut everything down, release the emergency shutters, and leave the projection booth in the event of a fire, closing the door behind them.
Slow-burning safety film on cellulose triacetate replaced dangerous nitrate in the 1950s, helping pave the way for open long-play film transports which, along with xenon-arc lamps and automation, was a crucial element in the 1970s rise of the multiplex theatre.
A select few institutions — such as the George Eastman Museum in the USA — have the capability to safely screen archival 35mm nitrate prints of pre-1950s movies, following strict protocols to minimize risk. As long as nitrate prints are still in projectable condition, entire film festivals can still be built around this volatile medium.
One last thing: 16mm film, originally considered an amateur format, has always been made of safety stock from day one.
This six-second snipe, nine feet (2.7m) in length, is the only scrap of nitrate film in my possession. It will not be run through a projector.
Out of the diverse assortment of former military, police, and other public service bodies that compose Japan's Public Security Section 9, two have proven to be the most fierce and vigilant of its members. Major Motoko Kusanagi - the cybernetic human field commander - and Batou Buttetsu - the second-in-command - have led the select few chosen to serve in Section 9 to triumph in several counter-terrorist and anti-crime operations across Japan and in select parts of the world.
At times I wonder if someone reads poetry books about how uneventful lives pass in certain social circles. It could be possible; however, most poetry books like these provide insight into turbulence, conflict and forced self-discovery. I suppose the secrets the books uncover are not so secret after all and that they are for everyone and not just a select few readers who have time to ponder the words carefully in the course of the day. If conflict were not part of all of our lives there would not be a need to write about such things to make the wold seem more manageable than it is.
The image is processed for contrast and colour saturation. I hope you like the result.
A vision about the new Romeiros (catholic pilgrims) from alto-minho region in Portugal was the call for a photographic research of many years. The photographer walked among a people that, despite being strongly attached to the ancient religious traditions, was able to create profane and intense bonds with them; this is more noticed right now on the 21st century. This work present us a vivid universe, colorful and surprising, that a selected few know so profoundly well and it makes us immediately think in a complex way about our own roots and identity.
The Romeiros Outtakes blog is the first stage of the terminus of this unique work. A bilingual book is being produced and searching for an editor and/or a sponsor (help on this matter will be much appreciated!) and there’s also four exhibitions, already confirmed, that will be divulged here.
Along 2010, at the pace of one per week, some photos from Paulo Alegria will be published together with texts written by Raul Pereira . These images won’t be present in the book and/or in at the exhibitions due to the lack of space and/or selection criteria.
www.pachecofineartprints.com/blogs/pacheco-fine-art-print...
Last night I was browsing through a morning shoot I did at Surveyors Meadow in 2012 in the eastern Sierras. I came across a few images that stuck out to me. I hadn't really looked at these raw files since the day I took them so it was a nice surprise to revisit the moment. From what I recall about the shoot, it was early morning and I was using a telephoto lens. The scene was quite cluttered with autumn in full swing. There was quite the mix of trees in peek and past color so I was busy looking for small patterns in the distance that could stand alone. The sun was on it's way over the mountains at my back, but for now the rocks of the facing mountainside took on a morning blue sky glow which had a nice contrast to the random but somewhat orderly pattern of aspens waiting in the early shade lining the slope in this image.
I wish I could say I just showed up and took 3 snaps, capturing perfectly the moment I intended... but for me personally it isn't that easy most of the time. It's more of a process... brainstorming a scene.. where I slowly dial in my idea through various shots and cropping trying to quiet my mind and realize the moment for what it is. The awareness of distractions is a powerful thing, hard to learn, hard to teach... one day it simply is present in the process. It's a notion... I don't have the answer and I'm hardly a master to teach you. But awareness in the drug you seek, a simple awareness to say "What Am I photographing" and "does this image I'm about to take WORK" or should I move on. These are simple questions that become more and more routine in my mind. Easier said than done I believe, particularly in the frantic and ever changing throws of light we photographers chase. I thought this image was one of the select few in the lot that day that had an appealing mix of patterns and light. A slight balance if you will to my very personal liking on this chilly day in December 2016.
CP 5875's multimark paint spent its last year before getting sent to Progress Rail assigned to Moose Jaw's local power pool, mostly used as the Lanigan Sub's extra 6-axle assisting southbounds outta the valley. The new cowl arrivals in late 2022 would spend plenty of time with 5875 on the Bulyea which were undergoing rigorous testing by CP to assess viability.
On a late May morning in 2023, it led an E07 north with a decent sized train of grain empties across the searchlight-protected interlocking with CN's Ross lead in Regina, which accesses the industrial parks on the northeast corner of the city, and is used by L508 to reach the Glenavon Sub. The other assigned 6-axle to the Lanigan pulled the empties in from Moose Jaw, a solo CP 6300, but for unknown reasons, it swapped with this pairing which was sitting in the shops at Regina. 5875's counterpart was 3017 which is somewhat of a prairie veteran to the region as one of a minority of 38ACs still in active service.
Whilst writing this, I'm beginning to feel more and more confident that one could never expect action reds leading on the lanigan ever again, due to internal regulations put on older SD40s. Most get tagged as "ES" to notify power planners that they are to be used for work trains only, and should not be subject to any heavy grades that would stress them (who wouldve thought that PSR closures on all heavy shops would have consequences?). A select few routes and jobs on the CPKC system are prohibited from using ES power, and I would later learn about the Lanigan Sub's status as one such ES-outlawed territory. Only a rare few evade this tag without necessitating time at Progress Rail, and 5875 was one such case until July 2023 when it was sent away. It would be released in early 2024 to join the rest of the Beaver II camp.
Prepare to be amazed!
I just read this article about California Condors in the Washington Post.
"Parthenogenesis, literally meaning “virgin origin” in Greek, describes a form of reproduction in which an egg becomes an embryo without the introduction of sperm — and only a select few animals can do it. Often, they are invertebrates like honey bees and scorpions. In rare cases, vertebrates like certain kinds of fish and snakes are capable of the “virgin births.”
Even more rarely do birds reproduce that way. Turkeys, chickens, pigeons and certain kinds of finches have laid eggs without the help of a male, though in most cases, their offspring died before they could fully develop.
Now, scientists at the San Diego Zoo say the California condor — the largest flying bird in North America with a 10-foot wingspan — can be added to the list. In a paper published last week in the Journal of Heredity, the scientists said parthenogenesis has been observed in condors for the first time.
Efforts to restore the condor population began in the ‘80s. The birds were taken into managed care, and a breeding program began. In an effort to prevent the breeding of close relatives and identify the sexes of the birds, Ryder and his colleagues took DNA fingerprints of the birds. As the population grew over the years, so did a database of all the genetic profiles of the condors that were born in a facility — as well as those found in the wild, Ryder explained.
As of 2020, the California condor population hovered just above 500, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the birds remain protected under the Endangered Species Act.
While examining the database that contained genetic profiles of every condor born since the restoration effort, Ryder and his colleagues noticed something strange and unexpected: Two of the condors were biologically fatherless. Born to two different mothers in captivity years apart, the chicks only carried their mothers’ genes, and no genes matching any of the male birds in the database, Ryder said.
“We established there was no male that could be the father to these chicks,” Ryder said. “The chicks were also genetically uniform in a way that they only had genes from their mother.”
“Nature continues to teach us,” Ryder said.
“We think we understand something, and then you make a finding like this and the world looks different after that.”
I think I’m going to raise my prices for photographing weddings. It’s not something I want to do, but the market and my schedule demands it. I have worked pretty darn hard the past 3 years to build my wedding photography business. My first one was in June of 2005 when I got $300 for shooting a friend of a guy I work with. Since then I have been the main photographer on 40 weddings. Looking at my calendar, I have up to 21 more this year. Now, shooting 32 weddings in one year is a lot for a single photographer. But I also have a full time professional job, teach a class at the local Park & Rec, and have 2 kids and a house. There is no doubt that I love what I do, but I love my family more. Even though we’re severely in debt and need the money to just survive, I just can’t continue this pace. God has blessed me with a lot of work and great clients, and I know he won’t give me more than I can handle, but at the same time, I need to know how to pace myself and how to prioritize things in life. I’m looking for GOOD photographers in the 805 who might be able to help me out with some weddings, or perhaps just take some of the weddings I’m on contract with at Casa Sirena. Due to some unplanned life events recently, I need to focus more on my family and non-photography life in order to maintain sanity.
I’ve also been told my prices are too low for what I do. Now I don’t do a whole lot. I shoot the wedding, I edit a good lot of them with Picasa, and a select few with Photoshop, then I burn the bride/groom a copy and send it to them. No albums, or crazy prints. Just simple. So that cuts my time down, but still 30+ weddings is at least double what I had wanted to do.
That being said, Tania & Vince was my favorite wedding of the year. I don’t see a wedding on my horizon that would eclipse the beauty, fun and personality of this wedding. I finally updated my neglected BLOG with a LOT of photos from this wedding. Honestly I couldn’t limit myself from finding 40 photos to post.
Anyway, so for 2010 starting today, I’m going to double my prices, which should slow things down a bit. I hate to do it, but then I can focus more on my family, and take better care of each bride/groom I do work with. I haven’t advertised on Craigslist or anywhere else in quite some time, and it’s obvious that word of mouth and my reputation is enough to at least satisfy this “part time recreational fun job”.
There are a select few residents in Escondido (where this was taken) who have WM contracted to do their trash manually! I'm real sure this is the truck that does it, only seen him once or twice but never in operation.
I hate not knowing where things are. But instead of pinpointing them exactly, maybe I should just make my life easier and say things like "Central Montana," which is a pretty vague location.
I don't have any moral issues with geotagging very public places that are well-traveled. This was along a dirt road traveled by hundreds of people each week.
Some other places, ones more difficult to preserve, I do try to keep vague. It's never for a personal reason (like not wanting others to photograph it - that's honestly a pretty shitty reason), but because I don't want to necessarily encourage people to damage the location (even inadvertantly).
I've been thinking a lot about this - about not wanting to "blow a place up" by advertising it in my photos. It's still a selfish reason. I'd be wanting the place for myself and maybe a select few.
But in this case, it's an old school house somewhere in central Montana. We'll all have to live with that little bit of knowledge for now, because my notes on this day sucked on toast.
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'Question of a Great Moment'
Camera: Canonet QL-17 G-III
Film: Kodak Ektachrome 200
Process: DIY ECN-2
Central Montana (Probably Stillwater Countyish Area)
July 2019
Between Ballymagorry & Artigarvan, Strabane, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
Most of my images have the history/story of each building or area attached. However once in a while, a scene like this comes along. I’ve looked everywhere online & asked many people but to no avail. I cannot find the history on this old Leckpatrick mill. I guess the real reason is because it’s not famous or symbolic to many people living today, so it stands lonesome & hidden away in a field alongside an extremely quiet country road.
We may not know its history or stories, but I can tell you that this old barn means the world to me. My friends & I spent our childhood/teens meeting up, playing & camping out etc inside this old building. Some of the best summers of my life were spent around here.
I decided to return to this old ruin after 25 years! to capture this photograph for my own personal memories. However Instead of keeping it in archive, I’ve decided to share it with you all. I believe that just because the history isn’t available or that this old building may only hold personal memories for a select few, it’s not a reason for others to miss out on its charm.
Hope you enjoy! Please favourite & add me as a contact to view my newest upcoming works, Thank you
The Lamp/ Light-Fixture below
is in the far right of this image.
Made it for a “Lighting Design Competition” and it was one
(of, only a select few) of my pieces I shipped
across the Ocean to Portugal.
Family on their way to Woolwich Arsenal station pass a shop that has been closed for a long time.
I am documenting parts of Woolwich before regeneration takes over. Don't worry, I won't be posting them all just a select few.
Vincent Road, Woolwich, South East London.
Socrates (middle): "All man must strive to discover the truth, therein lies happiness and virtue!"
Plato (right): " Preposterous! Truth is only for the selected few, we, the ones able to know the truth, will teach the rest"
Charlie the cat (left): " I don't like this Plato bloke"
The most reluctant to lead in the First Makuta War, Krika was eventually sent by Teridax to maintain order of the reserve armies, far away from the frontline. Krika fulfilled these duties until Teridax's apparent demise. After Makuta Ventrahk assumed control of the Brotherhood, Krika was recalled to Destral with his brethren. Ventrahk was not popular with most Makuta after his declaration at the Treaty of Odina, but Krika saw the new leader as an opportunity to ensure lasting peace between the Brotherhood and the rest of the Matoran Universe. Krika and a select few Makuta joined Ventrahk's inner circle, Krika primarily being tasked with recording and archiving the events of the War, as well as offering counsel to Ventrahk. As such, Krika spent much of his time exploring the battlefields within the Makuta's annexed lands. Aside from that, he led a largely solitary existence in an inaccessible fortress deep within a misty swamp somewhere on the Southern Islands, rarely venturing out unless summoned.
(To be continued...)
Beyond the last stretches of civilization lie the vast green seas of the eternal steppe. Windswept plains of grass as far as the eye can see, criss-crossed by near unsurmountable mountain ranges in a select few places. To the uninitiated the steppe seems like a barren and inhospitable place, yet it is the home of a myriad of tribes and people.
These are the descendants of the Great Raider: the Scourge of the Gods and Wolf That Ate the Moon. The great uniter that once forged the steppe people into a near-unstoppable war machine.
While the Kingdoms of the Great Raider are now wel beyond their zenith and many having fallen to frequent infighting and inter-tribal raiding, they are still a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield and continue to harass the western border of the Great Alliance State in search of fame and plunder.
Little is in fact known about the various peoples who call the steppes their home and they are mostly only seen on raids or on the occasional visit to a far-flung trade outpost, bartering their goods for guns or other precious commodities.
Their gear may seem outlandish and dated to many a Northerner, but it is still deadly efficient and perfectly suited to fast-paced mobile combat.
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Rainy day off, so I threw these guys together. None of the above stuff is in any way "official", but I just liked exploring the domain beyond the Great Alliance State. I kind of like it being shrouded in mystery and ambiguity: who are those of the Great Raider ...?
"I know it seems anachronistic to tap into fiber directly like this, but there are more systems vulnerable in this way than you might think, and even more clients willing to pay for someone who can do it discreetly."
- Anonymous Sector 4 Hacker
The numerous blocks of the bay sectors were not planned in any way, and that included utilities. 'Legitimate' data lines were spliced into over and over. Even repairing these messy systems took special skill. Only a select few knew enough about the layout to perform hardwired attacks such as this.
Amalfi and the coast named after it are beautiful. So beautiful, that tourists have overtaken the area. During the day, thousands of visitors stream through the small lanes. Most will leave again, leaving the exclusive hotels to the affluent select few.
Taking 60 of my best lightning strike images, I took the following instant in time image (www.flickr.com/photos/79387036@N07/28788548731/in/datepos...) and applied Photoshop's layer stacking (light) to create this rather interesting image.
The trick in stacking lightning images is to take only a select few that do not interfer with adjacent details and contrast. This image combines about 60 images (22 minutes lapsed time) but the most important one is the brightest since that serves as the base for the other images.
If you look at the star trails, you can see images I didn't use in the sequence as gaps.
Anyway, this is a fun artistic approach to photography that you should try.
WC westbound freight from White Pine behind rebuilt GP35 (4006) at "high cut at Abitosse"...one of the select few photo stops I requested. It was a prime objective to complete this trip within the hours of service and prior to bar closing, I'm sure, and I had a long drive home to Stevens Point besides that. The engineer had started with the Soo Line back in the late '70s/early '80s on this territory, and told me of running trains around 80 cars long on this former DSS&A "mainline." Those were the days when the Michigan Northern, a shortline that had taken over the former PRR to the top of the lower peninsula of Michigan (the "mitten") had made attractive rates for shippers who wanted to use that route with the carferry "Chief Wawatam" and the Soo to Duluth, in order to avoid the congestion of the Chicago gateway. That brief fling was the last hurrah for the South Shore route - the one that was not in Indiana - and the Soo certainly found other parts of their railroad to invest their money. Meanwhile, the Fall colors of the Northland are in full evidence in what a DSS&A timetable called a "high cut" for which trains had to reduce to 15mph (the mainline speeds here were around 40-50mph at the time.)
Sitting in front of one of the antique shops in Comfort, Texas.
Note: I am slowly replacing all my photos with ones containing copyright signatures, starting with my most popular shots. I don't like to detract from the photo but I've had too many flicker friends have photos stolen. I know I am only talking to a select few here, but if you want to use my photo elsewhere, pleeeease contact me first!
As mayhem spread across the desolate planet Pandora, legends of the fabled Vault compelled droves of would-be adventurers and treasure hunters to make an attempt at striking it rich. Out of the overwhelming majority who met a variety of violent ends, a select few nailed themselves into the pages of history. Among these few is Lilith, a young woman who joined the first four successful Vault Hunters in their campaign for fortune amid the chaos. Hailing from the planet Dionysus, Lilith is one of six human women in the galaxy who was born with mysterious psychic abilities passed down from an ancient spacefaring civilization, better known simply as a "Siren." As her time on Pandora continued with more friends, allies, and enemies passing through her lived experiences, Lilith's latent powers continued to expand. They soon grew to such an extent that certain populations of marauders and raiders began to worship her as a deity, helped by her choice of pseudonym when she went into hiding for a brief window of time: the Firehawk. By the time a new band of Vault Hunters arrived on the planet and got entangled in their own adventure, they sought out the Firehawk for aid in their battles against their foes. In a remarkable display of mystical powers, Lilith emerged from hiding, wreathed in flames manifested from her own inner will. Revealing herself to the six new Vault Hunters and returning to the fight for Pandora, Lilith had but one remark to proclaim her anticipated return to change the tides of the galaxy's future:
"Sup."
I was tagged by Beth (LifeLooksLikeASentence) to share 10 random facts about myself, soo here they are!
1. The place in the world I would most like to visit is Iceland
2. My favourite TV show at the moment is probably Grandma's House, a BBC2 sitcom starring Simon Amstell (as himself). Me and my friend are going to see his stand-up show when he tours Australia in April - I can't wait!
3. I detest any form of discrimination, especially sexism and homophobia, which sadly seems to be the most prevalent in today's society.
4. I am terminally sarcastic
5. I don't drink or smoke
6. I love music! My favourite bands would probably be Joy Division, Radiohead, Arcade Fire, The xx, Crystal Castles... just to name a very select few!
7. I will be eligible to vote in the next federal election. I will probably vote for Julia Gillard, purely because she is not Tony Abbott, who is the racist, sexist and homophobic leader of the opposition (www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJTX0iWYX9A).
8. I spend more time thinking about doing my homework than actually working on it.
9. I quit my first part-time job after my first three-hour shift. And people say I have trouble with commitment? (although in my defence, my boss proved himself to be a racist sociopath :/)
10. I am currently going through a childhood nostalgia phase, which means revisiting every aspect of the early-00's - I know, I'm tragic.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuvWc3ToDHg
To all who I have tagged, I thank you so much for the support, inspiration and friendship you have given me through Flickr. I am truly grateful :)
Back to nature...
I am very happy with how this shot turned out and it was just one of those spur of the moment impulse shots as we walked the dog at the park today...
Note: I am slowly replacing all my photos with ones containing copyright signatures, starting with my most popular shots. I don't like to detract from the photo but I've had too many flicker friends have photos stolen. I know I am only talking to a select few here, but if you want to use my photo elsewhere, pleeeease contact me first!