I am typing this blog with an injured hand. You see, I did a very dumb thing early this morning...well, actually a couple of really dumb things.
First, I put my spare batteries on the charger so they would have a full charge when I went out on a photo safari today. Second, I let the dog out (which I have always done in the morning), but did so before he had a chance to eat (which is inside the house). It wasn't intentional, it just happened. I fed the horses and the cat and the dog, but Rosco (the dog) was so glad to see me this morning, he followed me on every step I took and when I went out to feed the horses, he naturally followed me outside.
Well, when I finished the outside chores, I came back in to gather my things and got ready to go on my safari. And even though Rosco wanted to follow me into the house, I told him to stay outside. When I was ready, I climbed into the rig, backed out of the garage and headed off.
I went eastward at first, to see if any Rough-legged Hawks were around to photograph. And although I saw a couple they were too far away to get any good shots. Since I was close to Prineville (somewhere I used to live), I thought I would stop and say hi to folks there I hadn't seen in a while. At one of the stops, I was told I should go see a friend's daughter, and that she would love to see me. So after getting directions, I headed that way. But I never got to the daughter's place....well, maybe I did, but the directions I got were so bad, I had no idea which building or which place (or even if I was in the right place) her daughter lived, so I turned around and headed to one of my main areas of interest for some photography.
When I arrived at the Ochoco Reservoir, I gathered my camera and headed towards the waterline to check on the shore birds. There were a number of birds there, most of which I have yet to photograph. So I started to move toward a good group and a Great Blue Heron caught my eye. I turned, fired off five shots and my camera froze on me. Actually, it just stopped working. This had happened before and I knew the problem...the batteries were dead.
I headed back to the rig, reached for the fanny pack I keep my spare stuff in and suddenly realized that the spare batteries I was about to get weren't where they were suppose to be. They were still on the charger here at the house. DUH!!!!! So, after kicking myself several times, I got back in the rig and headed out of town. At this point, I was so angry with myself, I blew off going back to another friend's place, didn't stop to clarify directions to the daughter's place, and didn't notice the poorly marked change in traffic flow at a construction site.
Lucky for me, when I did notice my error, I was able to swing back to where I was suppose to be before anyone came from the opposite direction, but the folks behind me must have wondered what kind of yahoo was driving that Jeep Cherokee. By the time I got back here to the house, I was really angry at myself. So I decide I would grab my fully charged batteries and head back out to shoot some photos somewhere. However, I remembered Rosco and figured I would keep up his spirits a little and play a game of catch, or fetch, with him.
For those who don't know, Rosco is like a 120 pound baby. Actually, he's a BIG Pit Bull and one of the best dogs I have ever been around. He isn't mine (he belongs to my sister's family), but I know he'd take a bullet for me. I'm one of his favorite people...or so I thought.
When I walked into the backyard to see Rosco, he was on the far side of the yard. The moment he saw me, he headed straight for me at full speed. I figured out a moment to late what he was going to do. He leaped off the porch and hit me square in the chest, knocked me flat on my ass and had his tongue covering my face before I could react. After catching my breath, I rolled over, got to my feet and reached for the hard rubber toy I had been tossing around for Rosco to run, get and bring back to me and as I went to toss it, Rosco figured he would get a jump on the fetch part and leaped again. This time, he headed straight for the object in my hand.
He grabbed it before I could release it. Unfortunately, he grabbed something else...my hand. He realized what he had done as soon as he did it, but the damage was already done. His powerful jaws had come down on my hand just inside the area of the right thumb. He let go as soon as he could, and slinked away knowing he was a bad dog. I naturally, jerked my hand away from the pain, and luckily did so just a split second after Rosco had released his jaws, which saved me from pulling my hand out through his teeth.
I grabbed my aching hand, winced in pain and looked for Rosco. He was laying down near the back door of the house, ears back and tail still tucked between his legs. I walked over to him and he naturally went into a submissive mood and when I scratched him behind his ear and said he was a good dog, he jumped up and once again, began inhaling my face with his tongue.
That happened two hours ago, and the hand still hurts. Typing this isn't helping it, but at least I can move (more or less) all my appendages. There is swelling and a very sore spot about an inch above the wrist. But overall, I was lucky.
Rosco didn't mean to get my hand...all he wanted to do was play and he got a little over anxious. And, it wasn't the first time a dog my sister's family owned missed something and got me.
Years ago, I came home on leave and found my mom visiting my sister when I arrived. Since I had been gone several years, they were making me a dinner in the house. I had gone out to the backyard to see Brutus, my sister's beautiful Staffordshire Terrier (Pit Bull in other words). After he welcomed me back (in the typical fashion Pit Bulls welcome me), he brought over a rope he liked to play tug-of-war with. I think he played that because he knew he could win every time...well, almost every time.
We both started pulling and I was yanking and pulling as hard as I could, when Brutus decide he wanted to better grip on the rope. So he loosened his grip at the same time I gave the rope a yank. His end of the rope went flying out of his mouth and directly towards my crotch. Again, I realized what was going to happen a moment to late. Brutus lunged for the rope, mouth opened wide, headed straight for my family jewels.
And he got them...and the rope.
I was suddenly in so much pain, I fell backwards with my hands covering the source of the pain and rocked back and forth. And then I saw my mom looking out the kitchen window. She had seen the entire incident and was laughing. I got up, slightly bent over, and headed into the house. When I got to the kitchen, my mom said, "I sure wish I had had a video camera. We could split $10,000!" At that time, America's Funniest Home Videos was not in reruns, and I am sure my fun in the sun with the dog would have made the show, if not taken the prize for that episode.
But there was no way I was going to play tug-of-war with Brutus for a long time.
Well, the incident with Brutus is long over, but it was the first thing that flashed through my mind when I saw Rosco leaping for the hard rubber toy.
I don't think anything is broken, but my hand does hurt. I'll keep an eye on it for now, and keep it away from Rosco.
The worst part of it is the hand Rosco clipped, is the hand I hold I my camera with.
I just wonder if it wasn't revenge for leaving him alone in the backyard for long...without food.
Oh...he gobbled down his food and I even gave him a new chew toy. Hopefully he won't want to go leaping at me for a while.
Showing posts with label nature photography. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nature photography. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
When is Autumn?
Winter is coming to the high desert.
I say that not because summer is over, but because the winter critters of the high desert are starting to move to their wintering grounds in town.
Today while out on safari, I saw and heard a number Townsend's Solitaires on the tops of trees. These birds come to town in the winter. During the summer, they spend a lot of their time in badland areas (areas of scrub, sage and juniper found anywhere outside of towns in the area of where I live).
Something else I noticed was only one butterfly, one dragonfly and few bees. There were a lot of Honey Bees around, but when I say bees, I mean those big, gorgeous Bumble Bee type bees. The last time I passed through the area I went to today, I noticed several large, and I do mean large, Bumble Bees I wanted to photograph. But I didn't have my camera with me that day. Today I did, and of course, I didn't see the bugs. But I didn't see many bugs and I like shooting bugs.
I can only assume the week or so of below freezing temps we have had here lately has taken a toll on the wildlife...mostly the small stuff that flies around. I did notice a Common Raven nest I hadn't seen before and was about to take a photo of it with a couple of birds nearby, when I saw a Steller's Jay. I have only one photo of a Steller's Jay and figured I could go back to the raven nest. I probably would have had I not spaced it entirely.
But I chased after the jay hoping to get a shot of it and it led me to the northern end of the Dry Canyon...and I still couldn't get a shot of it. The bird constantly stayed far enough ahead of me and in the trees making a good shot almost impossible. But after wandering around trying to get close, I gave up and headed back to my bicycle. Just as I mounted my "Specialized" beast, I saw a lizard moving.
It was a young Western Fence Lizard and it wasn't more than six feet away from me. So I brought out the camera and began shooting. I have seen (and photographed) a lot of lizards lately. But I don't care. All the shots are cool (in my opinion). Besides, lately they have been almost all I have found to shoot.
But back to what's coming. One thing I haven't seen yet, is snow in the mountains. That's a sure fire indication of winter here...and probably anywhere mountains and snows meet. I remember when I was stationed in Alaska at Elmendorf AFB outside of Anchorage, you could literally watch winter come down on you.
Elmendorf had mountains to the east...the Chugach Mountains, the northern part of a series of coastal ranges in the northwest. When the first snows would come, it normally blanketed the top portions of the mountains. Days later, another snowfall would drop the snow line lower. As more snowfall came, the line lowered and lowered until it met the ground and snow was everywhere. Then, everyone knew winter had come to Anchorage, Alaska.
It's not that easy here. Snow falls in the mountains, but normally when it does, it blankets the slopes. And it continues to blanket the slopes. Sometimes it will spread to the 3,000 foot level where I live and blanket the ground, but not often (knock on wood). Last winter I think we got less than two inches the entire season. However, four or five years ago, we got something like 60 inches, with several storms dumping 18 inches each.
Generally when the first snows fall in the mountains, the birds which live high in the ranges, move down to the valleys and towns of central Oregon. The most prominent of these birds is the Dark-eyed Junco. They come down after the first flakes fall so regularly, that they are called Snow Birds by the locals. But I haven't seen one of them yet.
But the lack of insects to photograph is a sure sign change that seasonal change is coming. And when that happens, I am going to miss summer. You see, I love the heat of the high desert. The hotter the better.
And believe me, I'll be waiting for the summer of 2008.
I say that not because summer is over, but because the winter critters of the high desert are starting to move to their wintering grounds in town.
Today while out on safari, I saw and heard a number Townsend's Solitaires on the tops of trees. These birds come to town in the winter. During the summer, they spend a lot of their time in badland areas (areas of scrub, sage and juniper found anywhere outside of towns in the area of where I live).
Something else I noticed was only one butterfly, one dragonfly and few bees. There were a lot of Honey Bees around, but when I say bees, I mean those big, gorgeous Bumble Bee type bees. The last time I passed through the area I went to today, I noticed several large, and I do mean large, Bumble Bees I wanted to photograph. But I didn't have my camera with me that day. Today I did, and of course, I didn't see the bugs. But I didn't see many bugs and I like shooting bugs.
I can only assume the week or so of below freezing temps we have had here lately has taken a toll on the wildlife...mostly the small stuff that flies around. I did notice a Common Raven nest I hadn't seen before and was about to take a photo of it with a couple of birds nearby, when I saw a Steller's Jay. I have only one photo of a Steller's Jay and figured I could go back to the raven nest. I probably would have had I not spaced it entirely.
But I chased after the jay hoping to get a shot of it and it led me to the northern end of the Dry Canyon...and I still couldn't get a shot of it. The bird constantly stayed far enough ahead of me and in the trees making a good shot almost impossible. But after wandering around trying to get close, I gave up and headed back to my bicycle. Just as I mounted my "Specialized" beast, I saw a lizard moving.
It was a young Western Fence Lizard and it wasn't more than six feet away from me. So I brought out the camera and began shooting. I have seen (and photographed) a lot of lizards lately. But I don't care. All the shots are cool (in my opinion). Besides, lately they have been almost all I have found to shoot.
But back to what's coming. One thing I haven't seen yet, is snow in the mountains. That's a sure fire indication of winter here...and probably anywhere mountains and snows meet. I remember when I was stationed in Alaska at Elmendorf AFB outside of Anchorage, you could literally watch winter come down on you.
Elmendorf had mountains to the east...the Chugach Mountains, the northern part of a series of coastal ranges in the northwest. When the first snows would come, it normally blanketed the top portions of the mountains. Days later, another snowfall would drop the snow line lower. As more snowfall came, the line lowered and lowered until it met the ground and snow was everywhere. Then, everyone knew winter had come to Anchorage, Alaska.
It's not that easy here. Snow falls in the mountains, but normally when it does, it blankets the slopes. And it continues to blanket the slopes. Sometimes it will spread to the 3,000 foot level where I live and blanket the ground, but not often (knock on wood). Last winter I think we got less than two inches the entire season. However, four or five years ago, we got something like 60 inches, with several storms dumping 18 inches each.
Generally when the first snows fall in the mountains, the birds which live high in the ranges, move down to the valleys and towns of central Oregon. The most prominent of these birds is the Dark-eyed Junco. They come down after the first flakes fall so regularly, that they are called Snow Birds by the locals. But I haven't seen one of them yet.
But the lack of insects to photograph is a sure sign change that seasonal change is coming. And when that happens, I am going to miss summer. You see, I love the heat of the high desert. The hotter the better.
And believe me, I'll be waiting for the summer of 2008.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
The Comical Life of a Blogger
I was reading a blog post of a friend of mine and laughter came over me. Not that I was laughing at the post (it was funny), but I was laughing at what I had done a couple of days earlier.
I had laid back in my Lazyboy and tuned the TV to Fox News Channel to catch up on the news of the day when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something crawling on my wall. Normally when I see something on my wall, it is a spider. I don't mind spiders, and am not afraid of them, but I refuse to share my living space with them. I figure the great outdoors is big enough for them to find a nice a place to live.
Anyway, I looked at the critter on the wall and realized it was a centipede. My first thought was, where did this creature come from. My second thought was "get a photo" (after all, I love nature photography). Well, I don't like unnatural images, so I figured I would capture the bug, take him outside, release him in an apple tree in the back and take its picture there.
So I got paper towel, and after a bit of an adventure, I finally got the critter on the towel, folded it in such a way to keep the centipede inside and grabbed my camera. As I moved past my bed (I live in a small studio style apartment) with camera in hand, I felt something on my hand which held the paper towel containing the bug.
A bit of background here is needed. When I was stationed in The Philippines, I found a large centipede on the keyboard of my office computer. I picked it up thinking to toss it outside and when I did, it bit me...and the bite hurt. Then the bite swelled and remained slightly puffy for several days before things got back to normal.
Back to the present and the paper towel.
As soon as I felt whatever it was on my hand, I flashed to the biting centipede in The Philippines and flicked my hand up and away, thinking the centipede had gotten out. I then looked around the area where whatever was on my hand would have landed and saw nothing. Confused about what was on my hand, I tucked my camera under my left arm (my right hand held the towel) and slowly unfolded the paper towel to see if the centipede was still there.
After undoing the third fold, something dark and long came flying out of the towel. It was a blur as it traveled up my left forearm towards my shoulder and parts elsewhere on my body. And I knew what it was...it was the centipede! I again flashed back to the biting centipede in The Philippines and flicked my arm to get the bug off it. Unfortunately, I forgot about my camera.
As soon as my arm moved, I remembered the camera, lifted my left leg, which caught the camera...momentarily...and swung my leg in such a way as to get the camera to fall on the bed. But I wasn't quite nimble enough. I did catch the camera, and I did deflect fall, but it hit the side of the bed and fell heavily onto my right foot. When I am in the house, I wear moccasin style slippers exclusively. They are comfortable to me for wearing but provide very little protection from falling objects, which includes a Canon Digital Rebel with vertical grip and 70-300mm image stabilized telephoto lens.
Seeing the camera now sliding off the corner of the mattress on the bed, headed towards the floor and my exposed foot, I quickly reached down and grabbed the strap, but was a little too late. There was enough slack in the strap for the camera to land squarely on the ridge of the foot, just as I was able to lift it out of the way. And it hurt.
Fearing I would do more damage to either my camera or myself or both, I froze and watched the camera come up and land squarely on the bed and stop there. With the camera safely on the bed, I looked down at my foot, lifted it and rubbed the ridge of it against the calf of my left leg. Pissed at what had just too place, I began to sit down when I remember the centipede.
Bolting back to a standing position while at the same time release my hold on my camera strap, I looked down on my arm and saw nothing. You see, what I described above took about two or three seconds to happen and the centipede should have still been on my arm. Again, I scanned the area the creature would have, or should have landed had the flick of my arm worked to dislodge him, but it wasn't there.
I then began to look elsewhere for the centipede...behind books, under the chest of drawers, behind the TV, on the Lazyboy, on the walls...all to no avail. The centipede was nowhere to be found.
It's been almost two days since all this took place. I have yet to see the centipede again. But I figure being caged inside a paper towel and flicked off a human arm to parts unknown, it decided that life in the world of humans isn't worth the exposure and has gone underground...hopefully there to remain.
But I still don't know what it was on my hand to cause me to flick the first time bringing about the chain of events described above...and probably never will.
As for the camera, it's none the worse for wear, or dropping in this case.
I had laid back in my Lazyboy and tuned the TV to Fox News Channel to catch up on the news of the day when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something crawling on my wall. Normally when I see something on my wall, it is a spider. I don't mind spiders, and am not afraid of them, but I refuse to share my living space with them. I figure the great outdoors is big enough for them to find a nice a place to live.
Anyway, I looked at the critter on the wall and realized it was a centipede. My first thought was, where did this creature come from. My second thought was "get a photo" (after all, I love nature photography). Well, I don't like unnatural images, so I figured I would capture the bug, take him outside, release him in an apple tree in the back and take its picture there.
So I got paper towel, and after a bit of an adventure, I finally got the critter on the towel, folded it in such a way to keep the centipede inside and grabbed my camera. As I moved past my bed (I live in a small studio style apartment) with camera in hand, I felt something on my hand which held the paper towel containing the bug.
A bit of background here is needed. When I was stationed in The Philippines, I found a large centipede on the keyboard of my office computer. I picked it up thinking to toss it outside and when I did, it bit me...and the bite hurt. Then the bite swelled and remained slightly puffy for several days before things got back to normal.
Back to the present and the paper towel.
As soon as I felt whatever it was on my hand, I flashed to the biting centipede in The Philippines and flicked my hand up and away, thinking the centipede had gotten out. I then looked around the area where whatever was on my hand would have landed and saw nothing. Confused about what was on my hand, I tucked my camera under my left arm (my right hand held the towel) and slowly unfolded the paper towel to see if the centipede was still there.
After undoing the third fold, something dark and long came flying out of the towel. It was a blur as it traveled up my left forearm towards my shoulder and parts elsewhere on my body. And I knew what it was...it was the centipede! I again flashed back to the biting centipede in The Philippines and flicked my arm to get the bug off it. Unfortunately, I forgot about my camera.
As soon as my arm moved, I remembered the camera, lifted my left leg, which caught the camera...momentarily...and swung my leg in such a way as to get the camera to fall on the bed. But I wasn't quite nimble enough. I did catch the camera, and I did deflect fall, but it hit the side of the bed and fell heavily onto my right foot. When I am in the house, I wear moccasin style slippers exclusively. They are comfortable to me for wearing but provide very little protection from falling objects, which includes a Canon Digital Rebel with vertical grip and 70-300mm image stabilized telephoto lens.
Seeing the camera now sliding off the corner of the mattress on the bed, headed towards the floor and my exposed foot, I quickly reached down and grabbed the strap, but was a little too late. There was enough slack in the strap for the camera to land squarely on the ridge of the foot, just as I was able to lift it out of the way. And it hurt.
Fearing I would do more damage to either my camera or myself or both, I froze and watched the camera come up and land squarely on the bed and stop there. With the camera safely on the bed, I looked down at my foot, lifted it and rubbed the ridge of it against the calf of my left leg. Pissed at what had just too place, I began to sit down when I remember the centipede.
Bolting back to a standing position while at the same time release my hold on my camera strap, I looked down on my arm and saw nothing. You see, what I described above took about two or three seconds to happen and the centipede should have still been on my arm. Again, I scanned the area the creature would have, or should have landed had the flick of my arm worked to dislodge him, but it wasn't there.
I then began to look elsewhere for the centipede...behind books, under the chest of drawers, behind the TV, on the Lazyboy, on the walls...all to no avail. The centipede was nowhere to be found.
It's been almost two days since all this took place. I have yet to see the centipede again. But I figure being caged inside a paper towel and flicked off a human arm to parts unknown, it decided that life in the world of humans isn't worth the exposure and has gone underground...hopefully there to remain.
But I still don't know what it was on my hand to cause me to flick the first time bringing about the chain of events described above...and probably never will.
As for the camera, it's none the worse for wear, or dropping in this case.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
The Eyes of Texas are in My Photos
I have been working on my Texas pics and posting them on Flickr. It's a slow process of select the best image, work it over until I am satisfied, locate an identification on the subject, upload the image, title and describe it, ok it, then go on to the next one.
Depending on the image, that can take between 30 minutes and several hours. I even spent four days trying to ID one critter in my early uploading days.
I don't mind...I learn a lot on each image I search for identities, so it's a win-win situation. A person can never know too much, which is a hell of a lot better than not knowing enough.
I also redid one of those MySpace things. I always wondered why my nephew has sooo many women on his site. But I don't anymore. He must "approve" everyone of those spamming hussies he gets a request from...hehehe. I have declined at least a dozen already. If those gals really looked at my profile and/or really looked at my photo, they never would have sent me the request. Well...maybe they would...but a pic of a hot, sexy slut begging me to approve her as one of my friends just ain't what I am about.
Now, if they would knock on my door, well, that's a different story.
Depending on the image, that can take between 30 minutes and several hours. I even spent four days trying to ID one critter in my early uploading days.
I don't mind...I learn a lot on each image I search for identities, so it's a win-win situation. A person can never know too much, which is a hell of a lot better than not knowing enough.
I also redid one of those MySpace things. I always wondered why my nephew has sooo many women on his site. But I don't anymore. He must "approve" everyone of those spamming hussies he gets a request from...hehehe. I have declined at least a dozen already. If those gals really looked at my profile and/or really looked at my photo, they never would have sent me the request. Well...maybe they would...but a pic of a hot, sexy slut begging me to approve her as one of my friends just ain't what I am about.
Now, if they would knock on my door, well, that's a different story.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Home Again
I probably should have updated this a couple of days ago, but I didn't. 8v) I am back in Oregon now. San Antonio was fun, humid and stormy. The best part of the trip was seeing family and an old friend I hadn't seen since like 1970 plus or minus a year or two.
The evening I arrived in San Antonio, my brother and his son went to a gathering of amateur astronomers they knew my friend would be at. When we got there, I had a little fun with my old buddy and walked up like I was just an interested person with a question. I asked one, my friend turned around and began to answer when suddenly, I could see things began clicking in his head. It took a moment for him to figure it out, but needless to say, the look on his face was worth it. Sorry Yogie...but I couldn't resist.
I also saw a lot of new birds, bugs and butterflies and got some good photos. However, I had some equipment problems and my photos aren't as good as I hoped they would be. I did however, push my 20,000th image through my Canon Digital Rebel.
I am currently working on the uploadable images and will be posting them to my Flickr photostream when finished. Most of them are of butterflies. The birds in San Antonio knew how to hide from me. The trees were all fully fledged with leaves and I figure the comfort of all that green surrounding them made it a nice place to hide...but that is bad for a photographer with low-end gear. 8v(
Anyway, it might snow tonight in central Oregon. I have a lens to ship off for repairs. And it's time I got it out.
The evening I arrived in San Antonio, my brother and his son went to a gathering of amateur astronomers they knew my friend would be at. When we got there, I had a little fun with my old buddy and walked up like I was just an interested person with a question. I asked one, my friend turned around and began to answer when suddenly, I could see things began clicking in his head. It took a moment for him to figure it out, but needless to say, the look on his face was worth it. Sorry Yogie...but I couldn't resist.
I also saw a lot of new birds, bugs and butterflies and got some good photos. However, I had some equipment problems and my photos aren't as good as I hoped they would be. I did however, push my 20,000th image through my Canon Digital Rebel.
I am currently working on the uploadable images and will be posting them to my Flickr photostream when finished. Most of them are of butterflies. The birds in San Antonio knew how to hide from me. The trees were all fully fledged with leaves and I figure the comfort of all that green surrounding them made it a nice place to hide...but that is bad for a photographer with low-end gear. 8v(
Anyway, it might snow tonight in central Oregon. I have a lens to ship off for repairs. And it's time I got it out.
Friday, April 6, 2007
Good Day Shooting
I was out shooting images again this afternoon. Great afternoon for it. Sunny and warm, but a bit breezy. I got some decent images, which isn't all that bad considering I have recently been shooting in Manual mode. Seems I remember a lot of what I knew before fully automatic cameras came into being. It is fun shooting when you figure out the expose yourself.
One interesting thing happened while I was out on the photo safari...I was in my favorite area, the Dry Canyon Trail, and I had a visitor. I have folks often ask me what I am doing and I tell them what I am shooting. Most look at me weirdly, and go on about their business. Seems photographing bugs isn't an all that well appreciated occupation 8v)
Anyway, this visitor was a young woman who walked up to me while I was sitting on a rock. She wanted to know if I was okay. A kind enough thought. I looked at her and said I was, then told her I was just waiting for a butterfly to return. When she asked me how I knew it would return, I simply said, "It always does." Well, she sat on the rock next to me and I explained what I was talking about. It wasn't much more than five minutes, when a butterfly landed about 15 feet away. It wasn't the Mourning Cloak I was waiting for, but a Zephyr Anglewing. It couldn't have been more than 30 seconds when the Mourning Cloak drifted by and the anglewing took off and attacked it.
They pair circled each other for a few seconds then split and I heard the young woman say, "Cool. It landed right in front of us." There it was, the Mourning Cloak less than six feet away. I fired off six or seven shots before it flew again and I went back to sitting on the rock. The young woman asked if I was going to wait again and I said I was. She said, "Have fun. Butterflies are really cool," and she headed back to the trail and walked off.
I may not have made her a nature lover, but hopefully she now has a better appreciation for the world around her.
One interesting thing happened while I was out on the photo safari...I was in my favorite area, the Dry Canyon Trail, and I had a visitor. I have folks often ask me what I am doing and I tell them what I am shooting. Most look at me weirdly, and go on about their business. Seems photographing bugs isn't an all that well appreciated occupation 8v)
Anyway, this visitor was a young woman who walked up to me while I was sitting on a rock. She wanted to know if I was okay. A kind enough thought. I looked at her and said I was, then told her I was just waiting for a butterfly to return. When she asked me how I knew it would return, I simply said, "It always does." Well, she sat on the rock next to me and I explained what I was talking about. It wasn't much more than five minutes, when a butterfly landed about 15 feet away. It wasn't the Mourning Cloak I was waiting for, but a Zephyr Anglewing. It couldn't have been more than 30 seconds when the Mourning Cloak drifted by and the anglewing took off and attacked it.
They pair circled each other for a few seconds then split and I heard the young woman say, "Cool. It landed right in front of us." There it was, the Mourning Cloak less than six feet away. I fired off six or seven shots before it flew again and I went back to sitting on the rock. The young woman asked if I was going to wait again and I said I was. She said, "Have fun. Butterflies are really cool," and she headed back to the trail and walked off.
I may not have made her a nature lover, but hopefully she now has a better appreciation for the world around her.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Photo-lema
For those of you who haven't looked at my profile, I enjoy photography. These days, I shoot photos of nature. There are a couple of places on the net where I upload my better shots for the world to see. One of those places is Ashrunner's Photo Safaris. I put what I consider my best images there. Some are from my past, but most were shot within the past couple of years.
Another site I post photos to is a nature site. There, photographers from around the world look at your shot, comment on it, critique it and grade it. The site also allows (if the posting photographer allows it) others to workshop the image, or "fix" the photo. I generally don't have a problem with this, as I process my photos to a look I prefer.
However, the critiquing is what I look for. People critiquing other photos say things like, focus is soft, image is washed-out, point-of-view would have been better if..., things like that. But some of what is said, isn't critiquing...at least not in my opinion. When another photographer comments on soft focus, that photographer is basing the comment on his or her equipment. Not all camera gear is created equal. If a photographer wants to take tack sharp images every time he or she triggers the shutter, they need high quality glass...and that costs money. A lot of people can afford such luxuries, but many can't. Every time I read a comment like that, it burns my ass.
Comparing great equipment to average equipment is asinine. What if the originating photographer wanted the image to look soft? What if the originating photographer was doing the best he or she can with the best equipment they can afford, which may or may not be great equipment? Telling someone something they already subconsciously know already is a great way to build animosity and discourage future work. So, if you're a photographer reading this and like to critique the work of other shooters, keep things in perspective when you talk about someone else's work. They may not have the resources you have and are only trying to produce the best image they can with what they got.
But the other things I mentioned above are good to point out. Telling someone how the POV change would have given the image more impact is a great way to improve someone's photography. I learned how to "frame" my shots by shooting, and listening to people when they asked why I did something and their comments to my reply. Constructive criticism is a great learning tool. But it also has to be done in a positive manner. Something like, "I see what you were trying to do with this image. I might have moved to this position to shoot it. Either way, its a good image." The person then looks at the mentioned angle, thinks about it, and it's in the back of their head for the next time they shoot a similar subject. Telling a person something like, "Point of view could have been better," tells that person absolutely nothing.
Then there is the critique about the processing process. That too is subjective to the individuals equipment. Someone who can't afford Photoshop is going to have a hard time duplicating the results of someone who has the program. There are good substitutes out there, but 90 percent of the tutorials on how to do something revolve around the defacto industry standard...not the programs on the fringes. Sure, many of the commands or actions are called the same, but they don't do things as well as Photoshop does. Then there is the hardware. A well calibrated system is going to produce consistently better results over a system which isn't calibrated. Calibrating hardware is available, works wonders, but again, not everyone can afford a good calibrating system. I personally shoot all my shots in AdobeRGB(1998) and process them with the AdobeRGB(1998) ICC profile. Every graphics program I have which allows me to select a color profile to use, has that profile selected. The images are converted to sRGB for uploading on the net.
And monitors aren't the same either. An older monitor may have its brightness fading slowly which is like a child growing. You never really notice it until you leave for a month or so and come back. I have that problem with my monitor. The brightness faded on me...enough to the point where images I post to various sites were washed-out. I never would have know that had someone not mentioned it. But I can't afford a new monitor. So, looking over the "workshop" photos, I realized that most images needed a boost of 20 percent or so in contrast. Once I started doing that, two words left most of my critiques -- washed and out.
For the most part, people mean well when they critique something someone else did. It's hard to look at something you have created in a critical enough way to tear apart the way it looks to the point of improving it. When I was a journalist, I would generally give my article to someone else to proof for me, as I would miss a lot typos simply because I saw what I thought I wrote. It's the same with a photograph. When I process my images, I do it to where I think the image looks best. And herein lies the need for sites where photographers critique other photographers.
But remember if you ever do it to critique style and content, not equipment capability.
Another site I post photos to is a nature site. There, photographers from around the world look at your shot, comment on it, critique it and grade it. The site also allows (if the posting photographer allows it) others to workshop the image, or "fix" the photo. I generally don't have a problem with this, as I process my photos to a look I prefer.
However, the critiquing is what I look for. People critiquing other photos say things like, focus is soft, image is washed-out, point-of-view would have been better if..., things like that. But some of what is said, isn't critiquing...at least not in my opinion. When another photographer comments on soft focus, that photographer is basing the comment on his or her equipment. Not all camera gear is created equal. If a photographer wants to take tack sharp images every time he or she triggers the shutter, they need high quality glass...and that costs money. A lot of people can afford such luxuries, but many can't. Every time I read a comment like that, it burns my ass.
Comparing great equipment to average equipment is asinine. What if the originating photographer wanted the image to look soft? What if the originating photographer was doing the best he or she can with the best equipment they can afford, which may or may not be great equipment? Telling someone something they already subconsciously know already is a great way to build animosity and discourage future work. So, if you're a photographer reading this and like to critique the work of other shooters, keep things in perspective when you talk about someone else's work. They may not have the resources you have and are only trying to produce the best image they can with what they got.
But the other things I mentioned above are good to point out. Telling someone how the POV change would have given the image more impact is a great way to improve someone's photography. I learned how to "frame" my shots by shooting, and listening to people when they asked why I did something and their comments to my reply. Constructive criticism is a great learning tool. But it also has to be done in a positive manner. Something like, "I see what you were trying to do with this image. I might have moved to this position to shoot it. Either way, its a good image." The person then looks at the mentioned angle, thinks about it, and it's in the back of their head for the next time they shoot a similar subject. Telling a person something like, "Point of view could have been better," tells that person absolutely nothing.
Then there is the critique about the processing process. That too is subjective to the individuals equipment. Someone who can't afford Photoshop is going to have a hard time duplicating the results of someone who has the program. There are good substitutes out there, but 90 percent of the tutorials on how to do something revolve around the defacto industry standard...not the programs on the fringes. Sure, many of the commands or actions are called the same, but they don't do things as well as Photoshop does. Then there is the hardware. A well calibrated system is going to produce consistently better results over a system which isn't calibrated. Calibrating hardware is available, works wonders, but again, not everyone can afford a good calibrating system. I personally shoot all my shots in AdobeRGB(1998) and process them with the AdobeRGB(1998) ICC profile. Every graphics program I have which allows me to select a color profile to use, has that profile selected. The images are converted to sRGB for uploading on the net.
And monitors aren't the same either. An older monitor may have its brightness fading slowly which is like a child growing. You never really notice it until you leave for a month or so and come back. I have that problem with my monitor. The brightness faded on me...enough to the point where images I post to various sites were washed-out. I never would have know that had someone not mentioned it. But I can't afford a new monitor. So, looking over the "workshop" photos, I realized that most images needed a boost of 20 percent or so in contrast. Once I started doing that, two words left most of my critiques -- washed and out.
For the most part, people mean well when they critique something someone else did. It's hard to look at something you have created in a critical enough way to tear apart the way it looks to the point of improving it. When I was a journalist, I would generally give my article to someone else to proof for me, as I would miss a lot typos simply because I saw what I thought I wrote. It's the same with a photograph. When I process my images, I do it to where I think the image looks best. And herein lies the need for sites where photographers critique other photographers.
But remember if you ever do it to critique style and content, not equipment capability.
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