nature

Wildflower Book Project

Kevin

Last year, I shared the beginnings of a project with you,  a book documenting the wilflowers that grow at a local buisiness park.  Since I there is not much opportunity to create new wildflower images between November and March, I had planned to begin the book layout in December.  Now February, I am finally piecing together the book layout.

In the past, I have used book layout software provided by the book printer (Mpix, Blurb, PhotoBook America).  This time, I am using Adobe InDesign.  This being the first project of any significant size for which I have used InDesign, I have found that the learning curve was not particularly difficult.  I quite like InDesign.

Pokeweed

Here are a couple images that I am including in the book.

The first is a relatively common weed, but I find it very interesting because it looks like small green peppers.  I really like this image because it shows two slightly different stages and because the background is very soft, not distracting from the foregound subject.

Common Verbena
 
Click on either image for a larger view.
 
 
 
 
The second image is Common Verbena (which is not particularly common in my experience).  The flowers begin at the bottom of the flower spike and progressively bloom toward the top of the flower spike.  I really like this image because of the somewhat unusual background, which I think is not readily obvious.  There is a pool of water, with trees reflecting in it, and a grassy embankment.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

River Reflection

Kevin

When snow covers the landscape like a white crystal blanket, it is an undeniable visual transformation.  But when the deciduous forests are not blanketed in white, they are dominated by greys and faded browns; it can be photgraphically challenging.

Lumix G3 - ISO 400 - f 7.1

The warm light of sunrise and sunset adds a burst of color to an otherwise bleak pallette.  And reflections in the river add an ever-changing texture that is unpredictable and full of surprises.

Somedays, I happen by the river and see something interesting.  On other days, I anticipate a visual image, with the sun low on the horizon or the changes in the ice.

Lumix G3 - ISO 1600 - f 7.1
 
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(Click on either image for a larger view.)

Backyard Bird Photography

Kevin

In 2011,  wildlife photographer Jeff Wendoff told me that I must add wildlife to my photography portfolio.  Got some tips on basic backyard bird photography from Jeff and photographer David Middleton.  The wheels of my progress may move slowly, but they do move.

( Click on any image to see a larger view )

By end of 2011, I had prepared a place to hang bird feeders within clear view of my home windows and I hung my first bird feeder. Within two weeks, the birds began to find the new feeders.  However, having created natural perches for the birds in precise locations where I wanted them to land,  they were not perching here.


A few days ago, I saw the birds begin to perch in the places I had prepared.  When I awoke this morning, there were many birds and they were perching in the right locations.  So I photographed backyard birds for the first time.  It just so happened that snow was falling, which added an extra special touch of beauty.

Sitting next to a window and photographing from the comfort of my home, these birds are perhaps 35-ft away. I found that my telephoto lens did not have quite enough reach.  The birds appear quite small in the original images; so the photos attached here are cropped about 50% from original size.

I used a class of camera known as Micro Four-Thirds (MFT) with a 45-200mm lens at maximum telephoto (200mm).  If I had used my Full-Frame DSLR, I would have needed a 400mm lens to capture the same field of view.  That’s because the image sensor on any MFT camera is 1/2 the size of Full-Frame  (for you Nikonians out there, that means “FX” format).  To get a tighter shot, I will need big glass.

 

Colorado Wildflowers book

Kevin

Here is the new wildflower book (the images are from 2007, but I just created the book this month).   The link below provides a preview of the book.   It is a thin little book with 36 wildflower images.  (Yes, you can purchase copies here via this link.)

This book is PoD (publish on demand) via Blurb.  Specifically, Blurb refers to this 6×9 format as a “trade” book.    The paper thickness is “text” weight rather than the heavier paper typically used for photo books.   Until this year, Blurb offered the trade format only for black&white books, but they now offer color. 

This particular book is 40 pages, meaning 20 double-sided papers.  Why?  Because Blurb pricing is based on 20-page increments.  A book with 22 pages cost the same as 40 pages, but a book with 42 pages would cost a bit more.

 

Different Light

Kevin

In some parts of the world, the weather is known to change quickly and people often say: If you don’t like the weather … wait a few minutes.  With regard to outdoor photography, the same thing can often be said about the quality of the light:  if you don’t like the light … wait a few minutes.

 

Case in point, the attached photos of Purple Fringe.  The first shot was captured in open sun near mid day.  Bright light like this causes not just shadows, but hard-edged shadows (transition from light to shadow is crisp rather than soft).  This is sometimes refered to as hard light.

For the second image, I simply waited for clouds to obscure the sun, resulting in soft light.  This eliminates the harsh shadows, but the image looses overal contrast. 

Keep in mind that light can change quickly and can greatly impact the mood of an image.  The second image here was captured 3 minutes after the first image.

Typically, I prefer soft light or side light.  I prefer the second image.  (Many outdoor photographers will tell you that mid-day hard light is “bad light”.)

However, both images suffer from cluttered background of grasses.  Perhaps I was so enamored with this amazing flower that I did not pay attention to the background.  I don’t recall.  A lower camera angle might have helped eliminate the grasses from the photo, but likely not enough. Perhaps the only recourse here is to walk away from this plant and find a different Purble Fringe with less grass nearby.

 

When the Light is not quite what you want

Kevin

Friday evening, as Hurricane Irene thrashed the coast of Florida, the weather in New England was clear and the warm glow of the setting sun raked across the land.  I went a short distance down the road to photograph the river.   But, to my surprise, the light on the weeds and grasses was largely back-lit and unflattering.  So I planned to return and try again Saturday morning, as the weather forecast called for overcast clouds.

Soft light / overcast sky

As expected, the morning provided soft diffuse light and I snapped a few images.  To get a bit of elevation above the river, I used two familiar tools.  One, a portable telescoping ladder.  Two, a tripod fully extended and raised far over my head.  The latter requires a bit more shutter speed to compensate for the unstable camera perch. 

A bit later, after returning home, the sun was peeking through the clouds and I considered repeating my brief excursion in different light.  But, in the end, I did not.

As you can see in the image here, the soft light features no distinct shadows.  This is not automatically good or bad.  A diffuse light avoids high contrast and specular reflections, but it can also reduce sense of  shape and depth.  A moderate light from the side (side light) will wrap around a subject and enhance the subject shape.  But too much and the shadows may be too dark, loosing all details.

When dealing with natural light (not electronic flash), sometimes we can anticipate the light we want.  But sometimes, the light really is not doing what we expect or want.  When that happens, sometimes the right thing to do is simply try again after the light has changed.

 

 

 

Park Wildflower Project

Kevin
multiflora rose

Working at an office park, anyone with an inclination towards the outdoors world … simply has to get out of the office and walk.  In this course, I discovered that numerous wildflowers grow around the periphery of the park.  Being both photographer and sometimes amateur naturalist,  I began photographing and cataloging the various flowers. 

That was the humble beginning of what I will refer to as the Park Wildflower Project.  My catalog is more than 60 species …  but I’m not done yet.  I find it necessary to return frequently.  From year to year, the species can vary.  (This year, Common Tansy has invasively taken over the northwest meadow.)  I find flowers that I have not seen before;  and I no longer find some of those that I have seen.

 For identification, I rely primarily upon two books.  For a quick visual reference, I like “Wildflowers in the Field and Forest” by Clemants and Gracie.   But that’s not always enough.   Newcomb’s “Wildflower Guide” is absolutely essential !

 

Trees @ Mt.Auburn

Trees @ Mt.Auburn

Kevin

When you get the urge to make some outdoor photographs, do you have places that you return to repeatedly?  Would one of those places be a cemetary?   Likely not.  But, Mt.Auburn cemetary (in Cambridge Massachusetts) hosts a marvelous array of flowering trees.  It really is a beautiful place, (with or without tombstones).

Today, I received another canvas print (from ArtisticPhotoCanvas.com) of an image from Mt.Auburn.  So, I am just sharing this image with you, along with another Mt.Auburn image, which I had printed earlier this year (also printed on canvas by APC).

   (To see a larger version, click on the image)







The most recent print is apparently an azalea shrub, though I do not know the exact species.  It is photgraphed with a Canon 100mm f\2.8L macro lens.  (My experience has been that this lens is superior to using a non-macro lens coupled with an extension tube)

The second is a crabapple tree, photographed with the Canon 70-200mm IS f\4.

Fir branch under ice

Kevin


Hiking in the white mountains of NH on Dec.1, there was no snow at the trail head, but eventually became a foot deep. Having made such a mistake once before (several years ago), I kicked myself for doing it again.

It was a long cold day, but there were rewards. In particular there were a few little streams that crossed the trail with small waterfalls only a few inches in height. The spray of water caused some interesting ice formations, including the one shown here. The fir branch was covered in ice, but the mossy rock beneath it was not, presumably because the movement of the water was enough to prevent freezing.

In retrospect, the choice of aperature plays an important role in the success of this image. Both the extreme foreground and the extreme background are slightly out of focus. However, I wish I had framed the image a bit more to the left to avoid the ice touching the left edge of the frame.

Click on the image for a larger view.

Canon EOS 5D mk II, 70-200mm (@ 170), ISO 800, f/7.1, 1/200 sec

The Third Sheep

Kevin

Often, I will plan to be at a certain place at sunrise in order to photograph with the warm sunrise light. However, on this particular day, the weather forecast called for cloudy and cold. So I did not leave my motel room until 7:30am and only then found that some sun was dodging through the cloud cover.
Looking at a map, I chose some back roads to explore. The first road followed a river, but I saw nothing that caught my photographic intentions. Then I drove off through some farmland and stumbled upon these sheep, grazing on a hillside covered with frost. Atop the hill, the sun was catching the orange leaves of autumn maple trees. At the bottom of the hill was a still pool catching reflections.
Just a bit of sunlight on the trees, combined with general cloud cover, the conditions were fleeting and did not last. I captured about a dozen images; this is one of my favorites.
Where is the third sheep? Uphill, further toward the trees, out of frame … but appears in the reflection.

Canon EOS 5D mkII; 70-200mm @ 200; ISO 800, 1/320, f/10