This Challenge....

Manual focusing with a Lensbaby lens. The following shots were taken with a Lensbaby Sweet 50. What the heck is that?

Well the lens itself is odd looking because you can change the place of focus. Choosing your aperture and place of focus is a challenge. Most lenses are static, they stay in place and you focus on what you want composing your photo with a fair amount of ease.

The Lensbaby Sweet 50 looks like this. You can swivel the lens about to change the spot of focus you wish to have. The one pictured is a Sweet 35. To the right of the shot you can see the apertures that can be picked for shooting.

The lens can be locked in place so your focus point is in the middle or slightly off center. The smaller the aperture, the smaller the point of focus.

Why on earth would anyone want to monkey with something like this? This is considered an 'art' lens. It allows the photographer to step out of their comfort zone. The lens can create unique affects inside the camera. Meaning, no after processing needed in most cases.

The shots can create dreamy bokeh with dreamy distortions...or produce unusual effects in camera.
 

I shot this crab spider on a white moss rose. The focus was moved by me to try and catch this little spider crawling around on the petals. Was it easy? Oh heck no!

It wouldn't have been easy with any lens at all. It took me several tries and a lot of patience to get this one shot. I shot it at f 2.5 which didn't give me a whole lot of focus room. But I liked the challenge.

Here is another example. A spent sunflower in black and white.

I went to a larger aperture and backed away from the flower to capture just the flower in focus. I could have done this one with any lens, but I wanted to practice with this one.

These are a few of the other shots I felt worth keeping after walking around with this odd contraption on my Olympus camera. 

I used focus peaking which works most of the time to see what exactly was in focus. Not every shot came out as expected. 

This is an alphalfa flower blooming in a hay field.

A beautiful blue Chicory flower.

Highbush Cranberries

Nasturtium, ready to open.

In this shot, I shifted the focus slightly to the right on this oak tree. I wanted to show how the focus shifts and the areas around are 'blurred'. 

I'm fairly sure that this beloved tree will disappear once the loggers get to it. 

Sunshine walking past some Vervain flowers in her pasture. [Yes, she still needs a hair cut and a few burrs pulled from her mane]

Fishing and photos....

 We had a perfect day ... to go fishing. 

With Steve's help, we made it to Lee Lake in Cazenovia once more. And...the fish actually were biting. It was only the little fish, but at least the guys had fun deciding which one was going to be the BIG one.

It was a great day to take my Infrared Camera and more than one light spectrum filter. Below are the two guys deep in conversation...or they are just sitting quietly enjoying each others company. These two do chat but have long silences in between.

Some conversations start with ... Do you remember when....???  I listen intently to those stories because it is a history of things that occurred before I met Rich.

To think these guys are in their late 70's ... and have known each other since they were in their late 20's. 

Their friendship never ended but their lives took different directions with the two of them connecting up every once in a while.

Below...Steve tied a table umbrella to the dock so Rich can stay cooler in the shade. He thinks of everything!

Infrared Photo...

Bassy the stuffy fish did come along! Rich said she couldn't stay on the dock with them. He was afraid that she'd blow off as we actually had a breeze.

Cell shot....

The cool thing about Infrared is that you can get so 
many different looks with one filter. This
bench was filmed in the spectrum of

550nm.

This first shot is what it looks like

in camera. Startling blue foliage

and an orange hued sky.
Red becomes pink.

This is the black and white version. Basically I just desaturated the shot

and upped the contrast a bit.

The shot below is achieved by

what is called Channel swapping.
IR only picks up a few colors.

This is very hard to explain and it

is pretty technical.

I know that I enjoy the results.

The world looks foreign.

Here are a couple more views of the man made lake in Infrared using different light spectrums.

I really had fun with the Infrared camera. Hot sunny days are the best for using this camera.

Below are shots I did with my upgraded but not very fancy Google Pixel 9a. My 6a was on its last legs. What did surprise me [aside from the price] was the new ability of the camera to take 'long' exposures. So I went and tried it out by the Caz Dam.

I've been fighting off using my cell phone as a camera for a long time. But I can see its uses while hiking a long distance and not lugging along heavy camera equipment.

I did some other experimenting with a clearfield center diopter filter I found at a second hand store for $1. It was the filter I used in the very first shot which allowed the center to be in focus and the edges become blurred.

I can see where it will be very very handy in some toy photography.

This is the Lady of Pain from the Dungeons and Dragons collection. I thought she'd go perfect with a poison dart frog.

We had more adventures after leaving the lake. 

Eventually we did make it home safe and sound and tired out. But Rich and I are looking forward to our adventure next week.

Catching up

Well here we are on a Sunday. I was going to send in a grocery order and go pick it up in town when we got a phone call.

Rich's nurse is coming out at noonish today. He called while I was doing morning chores.

So instead of doing that, I am readjusting my schedule once more.

Before the Rich got sick, I did a nice long hike in the neighbor's valley.  There is this very gnarly and twisted tree in the grassy part of the valley that always fascinated me. The tree has been dead for quite a few years and has a lot of interesting lichen on it.

I've always wanted to do a 'good' shot of this tree but never quite figured it out. So here is the tree. Once I decided to convert it to black and white, it seemed to stand out a bit better.

It is surrounded by a variety of plants and quite a bit of golden rod shown below. I'd read an article about shooting through a plant at another plant to give a bit of interest to the shot. 

So I shot the tree from the other side with the lens close to the golden rod for a light blur effect. Below is the result. It only took me a gazillion years to get a shot of this twisted tree that I liked. And there it is.

During the big melt down on February 25th, I spent quite a bit walking around through the creek bottom. In my bag I had another Titan 13. This one is gold. I thought with the late afternoon sun he'd surely shine.

I had a bit of excitement when the Titan fell forward into the rush of water. I had to chase him downstream a bit to rescue him. The water wasn't deep at all. But I had to try another shot just for the heck of it.

I thought he'd look more regal and I wanted to shoot more up at him than this direction. I'll find another time and place to do that but without the water.

That run off on the 26th was really quite beautiful. I enjoyed taking it all in. The sound of the water was relaxing and invigorating at the same time.

Now I'm trying to figure out my new routine[s] and get used to another change in our lives.

Including creativity is going to be a new challenge to explore. I can think of it in a way as being pushed to change things up.

Caught up and now moving forward.

Ice Baby Ice!

Our driveway ... even with the new gravel from last year was pure ice Saturday morning!

YakTraks were in order!

So for most of Saturday night and most of the Sunday we were encased in ice and fog with dense fog predicted through Monday forenoon.

I went to get Saturday's mail and was struck by how cool the forest looked.

The tree below is one I followed last year. It is a Hop Hornbeam tree that generally keeps some of its leaves through the winter. This year wicked winds stripped them.

The fog was thick and the road was iced.

It was a fine day to stay off the roads.

I did venture down into our creek bottom and enjoyed some bird watching through the dim light. I walked on the ice as it was easier than walking on the rocks.

Some think cold, damp, and foggy days are awful. I think of it as having Mother Nature is a soft light box.

It is dismal looking in a way. But sometimes one can find beautiful things. 

I am very lucky to be surrounded by an interesting landscape.

The temperatures warmed up quite a bit during the day and some of the ice melted down almost enough for me to be able to drive up the hill if I needed to.

That said, even though it was a pain to so many people. I liked our fog and ice.

Just this

Someone suggested that I wear bubble wrap...hmmmm...

Good idea? Maybe!

Moe to Joe: We aren't catching anything!

Joe: From what I understand it doesn't matter. It's just relaxing to sit and do nothing. Relax and enjoy the fresh air.

Moe: And you are still wearing that silly hat.

Joe: It suits me. Let's fish.

Have a great weekend everyone.

The Death of my Old Faithful Camera

 

I started to get these every once

in a while...see below...

so I knew it's time was 

coming to 

an end.

The Oak Tree was the last shot ever for my Old Olympus. I have no idea how many shots or 'clicks' were on it. 
Apparently there is something called a Shutter Count. Being a mirrorless camera, the count may last longer? The mirror doesn't have to flip up and down each time you use it.

Truthfully, I just read about that on some site regarding shutter life expectancy. 

The camera was having issues for quite a long time. However, being raised by a mom who believed that you had to get the 'goody' out of anything ever owned, I kept using it. It only worked in Program Mode or in Manual Mode for the past two years. 
That was fine. I don't think all the 'modes' are really necessary any way. Program Mode allows the camera to act a bit like Auto and pick a general setting that should work for the scene. Manual allows so much more control.

Anyway, I digress. 

Since I got the Old Oly, I have almost used it daily. I took it with me all of the time. It bashed around in my backpack. I'd purchased a nice sling pack for it which had a zipper failure so when I slung the pack over my shoulder the camera tumbled out. That was after I'd owned it for only two months. 

After two more zipper failures, I tossed the sling pack and opted for modifying a regular backpack for carrying the camera. 

Even the Little Soldiers couldn't fix it. The pronounced it a goner.

Of course the electronics just shut down. The cost of repair would be nearly two to three hundred dollars. 

I think I will wait to send in the camera I will replace it with, ---- my other older Olympus until after the election. I think the post office will be overwhelmed for a bit right now handling ballots.

I leave you with a couple of my recent favorites from this camera just before it gave up the ghost.

There is not a lot of opportunities for Infrared during the winter. However I think black and white IR light would still be stunning in a black and white type of landscape.

So why is it that I am having such a hard time parting with my old camera?

Whimsy and me

Some folks give me an odd look and move away when I tell them I like to go out at night and hike.
When I told my mother in law about my latest adventure she sat back slightly and stared at me as if I'd grown an extra head.
Her mouth screwed up into an expression of horror or perhaps a silent "OHMYGOODNESS".
I'm sure she thought I'd lost my marbles.
I think she was relieved when I changed subjects.

I especially like hikes at night in the winter.
The land is raw and wild feeling.
But not unfriendly at all.
I feel comfortable even when the temperatures hover below freezing.

I especially love seeing the stars.
I am amazed at how the full moon can light up a landscape like it is a monotone version of day, bathed in an black and blue light.

Most photographers who love to shoot at the stars wish only for those moonless nights.
I revel in moon lit nights.
It is even more wonderful if there is snow to bounce back the cold light.
The moonlight will sparkle on ice crystals as the snowshoes or boots squeak with each step.

So now I await the snow.
However with the recent temperature drop I think we will be getting some incredible ice formations.

I've changed the batteries in the headlamp and have packed extra hand warmers.
I'm ready for some wild night life.

“You must not ever stop being whimsical. And you must not, ever, give anyone else the responsibility for your life.” ~~ Mary Oliver