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Photographed in Callaway Gardens, the variation below was shot just one minute earlier.
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Nikon D300; f11 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 400 (handheld);
70-300 mm f/4.5-5.6 @ 300mm (450mm EFL); focus distance 1.68m
Apr 122012
Apr 112012
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Last week, I had the great pleasure of assisting Marti Jeffers during her Callaway Gardens and Warm Springs workshop. The area is wonderfully rich in photographic possibilities—from landscape through macro to vintage architecture—and it was inspiring to work with all of the participants.
Photographed in the Cecil B. Day Butterfly Center, I was struck by the peaceful quality of this intimate scene.
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 3200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance 1.33m
Mar 262012
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A friend recently pointed me to this hidden gem of a location just 5 miles from my home, and I had a wonderful time exploring one morning in the rain and fog.
Photographed from a bird watching platform during a brief downpour, this image gave me an opportunity to try out my new Brella Bag—which actually kept the camera dry while I worked handheld!
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Nikon D300; f11 @ 1/60 sec, ISO 320 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 36mm (54mm EFL); focus distance 10.59m
Mar 222012
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Narcissus, squill, forsythia, azaleas, vinca, tulips, dogwood, magnolias, serviceberry, viburnum and crabapples—all are blooming together in Chicago right now.
“Slow down so we can enjoy it longer,” I wish! Yet this rare spring is incredibly lush.
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/250 sec, ISO 640 (handheld);
105 mm f/2.8 (157mm EFL); focus distance 1.19m
Feb 272012
“The Conversation”
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/250 sec, ISO 200 (handheld);
105mm f/2.8 (157mm EFL); focus distance .89m
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“Hanging Out Together”
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Nikon D300; f9.5 @ 1/90 sec, ISO 3200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 150mm (225mm EFL); focus distance 1.33m
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Something “pretty” for a change… 🙂
Chicago’s butterfly haven is a wonderful tonic for winter “blahs”—a greenhouse filled with light, flowers, water, butterflies and birds!
I made two visits recently: The first with Usha’s 105mm macro lens, which captured “The Conversation”. On the second, when “Hanging Out” was captured, I took my trusty all-purpose zoom and tucked a Canon 500D Close-up Lens into a cargo pocket.
Two things I (re-)learned:
- Do not go from cold into a hot (80F) and humid environment without a large plastic bag in which to place your equipment until it acclimates—which can take awhile. I’m pretty lucky I didn’t kill the electronics in my camera on that first visit.
- A day with light overcast is ideal in a greenhouse environment. My first visit was on a clear day, and the dynamic range was much wider than my camera could accommodate. Bracketing isn’t an option with these fast-moving subjects, so there’s a trade-off between loss of highlight/shadow detail on a high contrast day and higher ISO’s with more noise when it’s overcast.
Feb 082012
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Though presented as a diptych, I rather like the first image solo…
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/60 sec, ISO 560/800 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance 1.33/.67m
Jan 192012
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Revealed in snowmelt, about a week after Chicago’s one major snowfall this winter—so far!
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Nikon D300; f9.5 @ 1/90 sec, ISO 200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 55mm (82mm EFL); focus distance 1m
Nov 112011
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To watch this flock dance along the ground and in the air was a glorious gift yesterday!
I think now what I saw was a “mini” mumuration of starlings. A Flickr contact pointed me to this (two minute) video which shows their ballet on a grand scale: Murmuration of Starlings in Ireland.
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Nikon D300; f5.6 @ 1/350 sec, ISO 250 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance 33.5m
Oct 302011
“Bagged”
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance .71m
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“Flow”
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/350sec, ISO 200 (handheld);
105mm f/2.8 @ 105mm (157mm EFL); focus distance .45m
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Two takes on one theme I’m noticing often at this time of year—as temperatures begin to fall, but the sun still has some warmth.
Oct 132011
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To sample colors for this image using Photoshop, I first converted to 8-bit Mode and then applied Filter > Pixelate > Mosaic with a Cell Size of 200 square. The resulting palette is pretty cool!
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 3200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance .67m