Project Blown Away

This image is being posted to participate in a project by a fellow photographer that he has titled: Blown Away.





This image has overexposed highlights along the upper edge of the pink blossom as well as the upper part of the stem where it is attached.

Try as I might with Photoshop, I wasn't able to "fix" this problem, which could have been avoided when originally taking the picture.

The image was darker originally, and any lightening that I attempted to do in the post processing only made the over exposed part more predominate.

I have been trying to make a practice of bracketing exposures when shooting the images so I can study the differences.

One thing about overexposed areas - the camera picks up no details whatsoever, and any attempt to gain them in post processing is useless - they are just not there. Better to underexpose in this instance so when the image is lightened, there will be some details to work with.

Awards

I am so honored to have received this award from Walks Far Woman, author of Kissing the Dogwood Blog. I enjoy visiting her site and reading her posts. She has a generous heart, and I always appreciate her kind words. My many thanks to her!

I would like to pass this award on to my favorite blogs that I enjoy visiting. They are well deserving and I hope they are as pleased as I was in receiving it.

Please take a minute to visit these great blogs:

Anna - My Only Photo
Theresa - Sleeping Kitten - Dancing Dog!
Cindy - Rosehaven Cottage
Bob - Blackholes and Astrostuff
Thomas - Photos From Northern Norway


You are welcome to pass this award on to the blogs that you also consider special.

ABC Wednesday - F

F is for Flag.......

A back lit American Flag waves in the late afternoon sun.


The Stars and Stripes looked so crisp against the blue sky that I couldn't resist capturing them.

Hiking

The Audubon society in our state maintains several hiking trails that are within driving distance from us.

We have been taking advantage of these nature trails this summer before we strike out on unmarked hikes later this fall.





Along with the danger of mosquitoes and poison ivy, we keep our eyes open for falling tree limbs and the occasional quicksand areas around the water.

On one hike we came upon a broken glass bottle that was partially hidden in the leaves on the forest floor.

This carelessness of another reminds me that some of the danger in this world comes from our fellow man, whether meaning to or not, and one needs to keep aware of all.

ABC Wednesday - E

E is for Engine.......

A truck engine that was damaged in a fire sits rusting in the auto salvage yard.


Melted wires and belts hang amid the fiberglass and metal remains of gears and parts.


This cropped view creates a unique abstract of shapes and patterns with a neutral color scheme.

Bloggers Unite

The Blog Catalog community has set the date of Sept. 27 as a day for posting a blog entry about ending abuse of all kinds. The image link below will take you to the details regarding this blogging for a cause.





The abuse subject can pertain to any topic of abuse that the blogger feels passionate about.

The community welcomes all newcomers and non-members to participate in this first of a kind cause through the blogging platform.

It will be interesting to be involved in this world wide event and to read many of the posts and thoughts on that day.

Macro Photography

Macro photography is one of my favorite styles of shooting photos.

Sometimes the subject becomes almost abstract when it has been zoomed in on. Often the textures become the main focus and a simple object is seen in a new way.

I use a 90mm Tamron Macro lens for most of this type of work.

It is a clear, sharp lens that offers just what I need for macro images. It also works great as an overall lens, but since it is a prime lens and not a zoom, I myself need to do the moving around sometimes instead of just zooming with a lens. So it can be limiting at times.

Tripods

To shoot images that are sharp and clear, especially at lower shutter speeds, a tripod is a necessity.





Many things can lead to blurred images. It could be a focusing problem, an incorrect depth of field, a moving subject, or a moving camera. The solution to the camera moving is to use a tripod.

Many DSLR cameras are heavy and adding any kind of telephoto or zoom lens to the camera body will only increase the weight. Using a tripod will ensure that camera shake or movement will not be an issue in your images.

There are many different kinds, sizes, and styles of tripods and tripod heads. I use a small sturdy tabletop model for much of my indoor macro shots in the light tent. I have a full-size model that I use outdoors and for larger subjects.

My favorite "pod" to carry with me is a lightweight monopod. When hiking and traveling it is perfect.

ABC Wednesday - D

D is for Dinghy......

A Dinghy or rowboat sits on the rocky shore.

After a busy morning at sea, the wooden dinghy is put ashore to await the next day.

We found this sturdy vessel on a walk through a small boat yard that was in a small cove along the NH coast.

Bracketing Exposures

I have been experimenting on many of my images these days. I have been bracketing my exposures just so I can study the differences in the lighting.






I have been finding that when using a wider angle or shooting landscape photography, I need to keep the exposure right on because if I push the exposure compensation up, then the image is too washed out.

Pushing it up on a macro or closer image seems to work really well. The image is not as dark, and more of the details are visible. I believe it also cuts down on the noise that is produced when there are a lot of darker tones. I have noticed though, that the background tends to be over exposed on these images.

I have also been paying attention to the histogram of the image and how it changes on these bracketed exposures. Sometimes it is really tough to keep those hills and valleys from going to extremes or shifting too far to one side.

It is a good feeling when an image is captured right on - technically as well as composition wise. Sometimes you only get one image out of every hundred that is worth keeping - but that is the beauty of using a digital camera - no extra money spent on wasted film and photo processing labs.

Polarizing Filter

The filter I use the most on my camera is a polarizing filter. I keep it on just about all the time when I am taking outdoor and landscape photos.






There are two basic kinds of polarizing filters. There are linear and circular varieties, and the choice between them depends on the kind of lens you are going to put it on.

The older, non-auto focusing, lens will use the linear polarizer. The circular polarizer was developed for the auto focusing lens. Using the linear on the auto focus lens will yield very undesirable results with the exposure.

I have recently discovered a new type of polarizer that is called Moose's Filter. It is a circular polarizer combined with a 81A warming filter which yields beautiful results.

A polarizer traditionally casts a bluish hue over the entire scene. This is very desirable for skies and water and landscapes, but the warming filter corrects the color temperature, adding a pleasing, warm color balance to the scene.

The greens and reds seem to "pop" with this filter also, so it adds a nice color saturation to the image. I have been finding though, that bracketing exposures is even more important, since adding this filter reduces the light passing through the lens, and throws off the exposure.

It stills works great with removing reflections as well. I have one for each of my lenses, and am very glad I decided to try one.

Evening Catnap

For the last couple of years, we have had a feral cat that has adopted us as his family. We have appropriately named him "Rusty".





He tends to be skittish especially around people he doesn't know, but every morning he is at the front door looking for his breakfast.

We don't know where he came from, but we used to see him around several years ago when our cats were still alive. Lately we have been seeing a small fluffy gray haired cat hanging around. I think it realizes that Rusty is getting older and it is getting bolder.

If it ever warms up to us as Rusty has I should be able to catch it napping also.

Purple Lilacs

This past spring was an exceptionally wet season, and it enabled the purple lilacs to bloom profusely.





We had so much rain while they were in bloom I was worried that I might not be able to get any pictures before they faded away.

It all worked out in the end, and thanks to photoshop, a couple of the browning edges were able to be fixed as good as new. Ahh - the power of technology!

Summer Storms

After several days of hot, humid weather in our region, some summer thunderstorms moved through yesterday.






The light was amazing after the storm passed over. It cast a warm glow over us and reflected off the dark clouds that had already passed over. The conditions for this kind of light only come around a couple times a year, and it is always a beautiful sight.

Dragon Fly

The dragon flies have returned in droves this summer. It is good to see them buzzing around and gently landing on the tall grasses and flowers.





While swimming last night at the lake, they were flying over our heads above the smooth as glass lake water. Once in a while they would land on us and the smaller ones would even land on top of the water - which was not too good for a couple of them.

Approximately 3 feet away from me, a small one was on the water, and a fish came up and made him his dinner. It was such a beautiful sight to see that fish come out of the smooth water that close to me - barely a ripple as he turned back under and swam away.

I felt really bad for the little dragonfly, but the gift that I had just been given was spectacular. It did make me a bit nervous though to know that something that big was in the water next to me, and I had no clue.

Even if I had a waterproof camera to take in the water with me, that action was so fast and unexpected, I could never had captured it, even if I was prepared. This is one image that will remain in my mind's eye, with me just wishing I could share it. It was beautiful.