Living with Nature
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature -- the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.” ― Rachel Carson, Silent Spring
The wind dropped for a short while earlier this evening so I can give you an update on the previous post.
(Mind you the wind dropped for all of 2 seconds about 3-4 times so I had to be quick – this time with the Sony a6000 ‘mirrorless’, not my Canon DSLR).
Once again, the image was made when the sun dipped below the top of the hill, but while there was still some light. I made a slight increase in exposure via post processing, but nothing else).
Don’t you just love this pretty flower.
Standing on my apartment balcony watching the sun dip behind the hill early last night, I suddenly realised that the young gum tree to the right side of me was coming into flower.
Unfortunately, the wind was very brisk and I couldn’t get a sharply focused image with either of my DSLRs but here it is. With all those tiny buds, I daresay this is going to be stunning when it comes into full flower – a big hit with the birds and bees. I did try with all my lenses, but the light had gone.
I’ve just concluded that my apartment location is in a sort of wind tunnel as one drives down the steep hill to the building. This is the only way I can account for the ongoing wind strength. The hot wind is strong even now – only mid-afternoon.
I’m not 100% sure but I think this is a Marri or Port Gregory Gum (Coymbia calophylla) which I photographed in the Royal Botanic Gardens back in January 2011 (below). It is one of the most beautiful Gum Trees I have ever seen and I’m eagerly waiting for the rest of the buds to open. (note: I’ll replace the shot above if I can shoot a better image on a windless day).
MARRI or PORT GREGORY GUM ?? (Corymbia calophylla)
PS. Don’t quote me on this, but I think the image below is of the tree trunk bark. The image number is near the flower image and I remember being quite fascinated by the colour range at the time of shooting.
From the archives….
When I first bought a little Canon point & shoot camera for $150+ in 2010 and took up Photography, I never realised how much of an obsession it would become.
A very, very expensive obsession. I had already given up most things due to chronic illness and pain over many years (while still working). I just couldn’t afford to have a social life, nice clothes, holidays (and a car), due to escalating medical costs. Then I had to give up working altogether and live on a frugal pension. I did have a small inheritance which paid for most of my DSLR and initial camera lenses (as time went by).
I also never knew how much fun my hobby would become. It was my saviour and taught me many lessons in life – which I carry through to this present day, living my Life in Mindful awareness of each Moment.
It taught me to slow down, the benefit of simple movements (when in constant pain), see the small details in nature, the sounds of the birds and the breeze whispering through the tree tops, and……….. be thankful I wasn’t housebound like many people with similar health conditions. From time to time I do go through periods of debilitating pain which keeps me housebound, but I’ve always got a supply of adventure/travel books, nature DVDs and now, thousands of photos to re-view and play around with. I can listen to the sounds of bird life in the immediate vicinity for hours.
I have a small, but rather delightful potted garden of flowers and herbs on my apartment balcony to admire and care for (which I share online from time to time).
I genuinely take the time to smell the roses (since early retirement).
Flowers were my first photo subjects (despite Melbourne’s constant wind and predictably unpredictable weather with, what is often 4 seasons in one day).
One of the first flowers I photographed were the Arum lilies in the cobbled lane behind my apartment block on the south side of the city. Then, as I ventured further afield and gained a little more energy, the lilies in the Royal Botanic Gardens, through the south-eastern entrance only 5 minutes walk from my (then) home.
I also experimented with DOF (Depth of Field). If you enjoy flower photography, I highly recommend you try out some different depths of field using the Aperture Priority setting on your DLSR.
Which of the 3 images do you like below and why? (assuming you like at least one of them). They range from a very narrow DOF……….. to much deeper.
ARUM LILY (Zantedeschia)
PS. Terry (from Montucky) made an excellent point below.
“Very nice results for flower photography can also be obtained by using single-point auto focus along with various aperture settings. The results (and enjoyment) are endless!”
By changing the (9 on my DSLR) focus points to one, you can make whatever part of the flower you want, be in focus, within the frame. All the above images (from memory) were made using one focal point (or single-point).
Another example is the image below. I changed the 9 focus points to one (on the lower left). I also moved myself slightly to get the white background blurred flowers as evenly between the sharply focused flower bud(s) in the composition as I could. It took me quite a while to remember to look at the background (as well as the foreground) in flower photography 🙂
I’m still learning of course, but I can really notice the difference in my first attempts at flower photography and a few years of practice (later).
