[Sony A57 with Sigma 18-250mm at 250mm f/6.3 ISO-1000 1/400sec]
Pretty sure this is Rhus glabra, or smooth sumac. I’m rather enjoying trying to identify the things I’m photographing. Quite different than being at the zoo with a nameplate posted nearby.
[Sony A57 with Sigma 18-250mm at 75mm f/5.6 ISO-1000 1/125sec]
With the amount of bugs swarming around, it shouldn’t have taken that spider too long to catch it’s meal.
[Panasonic Lumix FZ40 at 20mm f/4 ISO-80 1/160sec]
Today’s flashback goes to 26 April, 2012. Rick Porcello pitching to the Seattle Mariners. The Tigers would end up losing 5-4. It’s also the last time I was at Comerica Park.
[Sony A57 with Sigma 18-250 Macro at 250mm f/6.3 ISO-200 1/400sec]
My new lens arrived while I slept yesterday, so I couldn’t wait to get home and take it out for testing. And for the most part, it did not disappoint. For those times when I can only carry one lens, this will be it. A wide range (18-250mm) and a short minimum focusing distance compared to my other lenses.
Today’s subject is a male Plathemis Lydia, otherwise known as the Common Whitetail. I wasn’t quite sure what he was when he landed near me, but I know I wasn’t thinking dragonfly, but now that I’ve done my research, I can definitely see the family resemblance.
Stopped by my dad’s last night to take him out to dinner for Father’s Day. While there I tried to get some pictures of his cat, Boots. Not as easy as I was expecting as Boots prefers to be right next to you when you are giving him attention. I did finally get a picture I found acceptable.
[Sony A57 with Minolta 28-135mm at 120mm f/4.5 ISO-200 1/200sec]
Finally a morning that wasn’t raining and I wasn’t dead tired. I was going to walk the nearby Canal Park, but I’m waiting for what will hopefully be my new macro lens to arrive in the mail and as I tried to walk out the door my bike glared at me for having not ridden it since the group ride last month. I ended up in a local subdivision, nothing really catching my eye until I was nearly back to a main road and there was a bridge over a swollen creek or maybe a drainage ditch, likely flowing into the nearby Clinton River. Nothing too exciting, though I walked down the hill to the water, I spied these ducks further down. They didn’t take too kindly to my intrusion and retreated rather quickly.
Google says that was the Miller Drain which starts about 4 miles north and does indeed drain into the Clinton. I had no idea there were so many of these Drains. I’ve seen them here and there, but I was not aware they were named. Miller Drain even forms forms the northwest boundary of my apartment complex. I once tried to walk across one night on my way to Subway, stopping only a few feet from the water when I realized the greenery looked more like lily pads then weeds.
[Sony A57 with Sony 75-300mm at 300mm f5.6 ISO-250 1/500sec]
A shot from my balcony as one of the local geese came in for a landing.
[Sony A57 with Minolta 28mm f5.6 ISO-100 1/125sec]
Redbuds in bloom during at Lower Huron Metro Park. Like much of spring it was chilly and overcast, perhaps not the best day for a long bike ride, but that did not deter the group I was with. I wasn’t sure if my legs would hold up for the 20 miles we rode, but they pulled through just fine. However, I did purchase a seat with far more padding afterwords…
Words have never been a strong point of mine and every attempt to keep some sort of journal or blog has inevitably fell into disuse. After several years of dormancy, I finally found some inspiration in the form of a book I noticed while perusing the computer book section of the local library. A photo a day blog. Next to video games, photography is my favorite hobby and any excuse to get out and shoot more pictures is certainly welcome. As evidenced by my personal gallery, my pictures lean heavily towards nature/wildlife, but this gives me opportunity to experiment with new things. While I intend to post mostly new material shot within a few days of each post, I will also be digging through my archive for older material that never made my gallery. Perhaps for those rainy days, I just don’t feel like going out.
The site will likely be in flux for the next few weeks as I settle on a layout and photo sizes that work with the new direction for this blog.
I had planned to begin posting photos later this week, but I found an image suitable for this moment on my camera just now. So here is photo #1.
[Sony A57 with Minolta 28-135mm @ 28mm f/4 ISO-400 1/160sec]
