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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
April
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
Mar 032012
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Hungry for color, I broke down and bought a bunch of tulips the other day.
These were photographed with my Panasonic Lumix (on a tripod), because I originally envisioned a square format—though I ended up with a 4:3 composition instead. The ability to choose different aspect ratios in-camera is my favorite feature of the Lumix.
What really delighted me, however, was how beautifully the Lumix captured reds—normally so difficult to hold on my Nikon D300! This image required very little post-processing.
I did use a circular polarizer for this frame, but that was primarily to reduce glare on the waxy petals. Color was equally good on previous frames without the polarizer.
Panasonic DMC-FZ40; f8 @ 5 sec, ISO 80 (Neotec tripod);
Focal length: 76.4mm (424mm EFL)
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 122012
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Today I landed on a site called The Quiet Place. Go ahead, take a peek. The link will open in a new window/tab; I’ll wait… 🙂
In that Quiet Place, gazing out my window and trying to do absolutely nothing, I thought “Don’t even look for a photo.”
Then this appeared.
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/125 sec, ISO 320 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 200mm (300mm EFL); focus distance 14.96m
Feb 112012
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After spending a couple of hours photographing beautiful flowers in the Lincoln Park Conservatory, what really caught my eye was this scene just as I was leaving…
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Nikon D300; f8 @ 1/60 sec, ISO 2200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 18mm 27m EFL); focus distance .79m
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
Feb 052012
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Another image photographed in hard light around 1 p.m. The bright white and strong graphic elements jumped out at me while walking with my mother through the River Arts District in Asheville, North Carolina this past December. She was carrying her Lumix. 🙂
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Nikon D300; 19.5 @ 1/500 sec, ISO 200 (handheld);
18.0-200.0 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 95mm (142mm EFL); focus distance 1.12m