flowers – Dutch goes the Photo!

C.P. #5: Something Different

In focus, glowing brightly!

In any creative endeavor, we can find ourselves in a proverbial rut sometimes. This has happened a number of times during all the years that I have dabbled in the photographic arts; across nearly 50 years of photography, one looks to learn and improve. When I struggle to see improvement in my work, I tend to question the why behind my photography, which might lead down a couple of rabbit holes!

Luckily, photography is not a one-dimensional means of expression, as there are lots of choices to make to get that image you might be after. Aperture, shutter speed and composition are starting points. Of course, the equipment we use for a particular shot matters, as it did in this image from 2009…

At first glance, you might ask what is so unusual about an image that is out of focus? The catch is that this image is not out of focus. It was captured with a Lensbaby Composer using a zone plate lens. You may ask what all this means, unless you too have dabbled with this kind of lens.

A zone plate lens is effectively a series of rings surrounding a center hole with each of the clear zones of these rings equalling the area of the center hole; thus each zone gets thinner as you move away from the center of the zone plate. You may still be scratching your head, and I could tell you that the zone plate uses diffraction for focusing rather than refraction, the way a standard lens works. Based on analysis by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, the lens was constructed with the spacing of zones to create constructive interference of the diffracted light, thus producing the image.

This might still sound a bit odd, so let me share that one of the effects is that the detail of the image is given a surrounding glow, as you can see in the above shot. This might be an effect that one tries to achieve in post-processing; for me, it is enjoyable to capture this intent right in camera. The post-processing that I applied consisted mostly of raising contrast and bumping up saturation to create a more vibrant image. There also was a bit of retouching of dust spots on the sensor, as the zone plate has an effective aperture of f/22.

I’m curious to hear what type of photography equipment options you use to boost your creative juices. Let me know.

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 204

Popping up toward the sky!

Welcome to the 204th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge!

I very much hope that all of you and your families are doing well during these trying times; please stay safe and healthy!

The posts that you created for the theme of Spread were definitely a wonderful spread! Not only did you share some gorgeous photos in your posts, but your thoughtful approaches created some surprises for me in your interpretation. Well done!

It was a joy to read all of your posts, and take in the wonderful photography; thank you for the effort that you put into them!

Spring brings us new hope…

These crocuses broke through a tapestry of autumn leaves, reaching out to the nourishing power of the Sun. It’s lovely to see the petals spreading and inviting the occasional passing hungry bee to touch down and pick up some pollen. I found some of these clutches of flowers, as I was wandering around while my wife and our youngest Cardigan were taking a herding lesson.

Please enjoy the following blog posts:

What a great way to kick off this week’s responses in the post in Don’t Hold Your Breath! There’s more than one spread in here, as the wonderful spread of food helps with the spread of our human body. Well done!!
Sarah starts her post in By Sarah with some great wings and then has us looking up to see Nature spreading in front of us! Great post!
Brian certainly made ma laugh with the first photo in his post in Bushboy’s World; that is quite the character. Also, a great looking sky!
Xenia brings us a stunning set of views in her post in whippetwisdom, where she is spreading the light that will help guide us through these times. Beautifully done!
That is quite the spread that has been laid out in theOnlyD800intheHameau; a chance invitation to a wedding can result in a lovely feast!
Maria shares a truly stunning photo in her post in Kamerapromenader, as she captured the eagle-owl at just the right moment with its wings spread!
ackie takes an approach to the theme that had not come to my mind in JunkBoat Travels; although, it stands to reason that you want to spread the nuts to introduce them into fudge! Wonderful post!
Nandini spreads the love in her post in quee n nandini; I particularly like the thought of a smile spreading from one’s mouth to their eyes! Great imagery!
I agree with Diane’s opinion about Marmite in her post in pensivity101; those blankets are much better than spreading marmite on anything!
Tatiana finds a gorgeous spot to go for a walk in her post in TravelWays, getting some fresh air is definitely a great thing to do during these isolating times.
Woolly is going for a bit of controversy in his post in WoollyMuses, as Vegemite is definitely not to everyone’s liking 🙂 Time to compare Vegemite and Marmite?
Ann-Christine really captured the majesty of the young eagle-owl that is being released in her post in To see a world in a grain of sand…! The spread of those wings is truly impressive!
Pat captured the spread of a tree beautifully in her post in Thoughts and Entanglements; it always amazes me how trees can overcome just about any obstacle that we put in their way!
Deb’s photo of the orangutan doing what it does so magnificently in her post in Twenty Four is stunning! It’s truly amazing how much reach these primates have!
David delivers another set of stunning photos in his post in David M’s Photoblog! Those pelicans in flight are simply spectacular!
As the past spreads out behind her in the mirror of life, Sandy’s words in Out of my Write Mind generate a sense of optimism on how to live life fully!
Nicole captures the spread of the river Ouse beautifully in her post in Une Photo, Un Poéme. Gorgeous photo!
The progress of the dandelions that we get to enjoy in Geriatri’X’ Fotogallery is not welcomed by everyone, as they may mar the perfection of one’s lawn. Their spread is a thing of beauty, though!
TiongHan is trying to give us a sense of odors he experienced in a wonderful post in TiongHan’s Blog; I can imagine that the scent of an open-air tannery would be rather pungent to behold!
Robert shows his eye for capturing the right moment, as the wings spread for take-off in his post in Photo Roberts Blog; magnificent photos!
In a lovely post in One letter up ~ diary 2.0, we get to enjoy that blanket of clouds that holds the light at dusk for us to cherish before the onset of dark.
Debbie captures the spreading of the word in Travel with Intent with a great set of photos that tell the story of interesting travels!
Klara shares a nothing short of stunning photo in her blog Sliku svoju ljubim II, which was taken at a location that is on my bucket list! The arches are just gorgeous!
If the Sunday brunch spread in Musin’ with Susan is any indication of her taste in food, I’m ready to partake! Clearly, Susan knows how to enjoy brunch! Also, go check out Susan’s week in review in Musin’ with Susan, as there are more great photos there! Love the shot of the yellow tie, as it’s striking!
Irene is clearly blessed with a wonderful area to visit in the Indiana Dunes National Park; the sunlight spreading across the vast landscape in Heaven’s Sunshine is spectacular!
Teressa shares something rather special with us in Another Lqqk, as Grandma’s quilt is not only beautiful, but also precious through the memories that it invokes!

Please let all these wonderful authors know how much you enjoy their blog posts!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Connections

Welcome to week 157 of the Tuesday Photo Challenge! Yes, this post means that this challenge has been running for 3 years now! Thanks to all the amazing support from the blogosphere!!

Of course, you blew me away with the response to last week’s theme, which I thought might have had special meaning to many of us. This week, I want to make the theme about the most important thing that I can think of in our endeavors here and in many other aspects of life: Connections! Making connections with one another and learning more about the world and the great people, with whom we share it.

Your challenge is to capture any type of connections that you would like to share, as they come in many guises and at many levels. This is a great opportunity to let your creative energies flow freely and see where they take you. I can hardly wait to see what connections you will feature in your posts!!

Here’s a literal set of connections…

These wonderful, bright yellow flowers are all connected to their supporting branches, striving to reach every bit of light that they can! This image comes from a visit to the Botanic Garden of the Technical University in Delft, Netherlands. This is a wonderful place to explore and enjoy the beauty of Nature, reconnecting to all that is special…

The full rules of this challenge are in TPC Guidelines, but here’s the tl;dr:

Write a post with an image for this week’s topic
Please tag your post with fpj-photo-challenge (if you’re not sure about how tags work, please check out this WordPress article about tagging posts)
Create a pingback link to this post, so that I can create a post showing all of the submissions over the week (note: pingbacks may not appear immediately, as my site is set up to require approval for linking to it; helps against previous bad experiences with spamming)
Have fun creating something new (or sharing something old)!!

Let’s all make new connections and enjoy this week!

Happy Easter

Flowers are near in New England!

Easter is one of those fun holidays that brings old and young together, as they are looking for eggs around the yard or queuing up for a picture with the Easter Bunny. Families get together, whether to have an elaborate dinner or enjoy the first great Spring weather outside and admire the flowers and enjoy the gentle breezes.

It’s a time to feel ourselves regenerate from Winter or enjoy the early Autumn, if we’re in the Southern Hemisphere. In New England, we start looking for more flowers to show their beauty, such as this…

20120415-tulip_mg_4268-8x10 — *Simple Beauty*

Have a wonderful weekend!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round-Up 7

Flowers were impressive!

WOW!! we’re in the 7th week of the Tuesday Photo Challenge already, and the response to this week’s theme of Flowers has been outstanding!!

The interpretations of the theme showed some rather cool diversity in approach!!

The following were this week’s participants in the challenge with links to their posts:

iballrtw of the Eyeball Around the World blog, showed the impact of gravity on cherry blossoms, as they lay weeping on the path.
Kim, who writes Do You See What I See??, gave us a beautiful view of flowers in Australia.
Sonya of Middleton Road, posted a stunning capture of a rose that you must go and see.
Miriam of the Out an’ About blog, brought out a cornucopia of flowers, including some rather unusual ones that you have to see.
The mysterious Vaayadi Pennu, who writes Pins & Ashes, shows us a lovely Konnapoo in full bloom.
Nikki, who writes A Kinder Way brought forth a wonderful set of images depicting the life of some of the members of a bouquet of white roses.
Steve, who writes Meandering Maverick, had no shortage of stunning images of irises near the sidewalk at his house.
Monica, whose blog Look Around! Love what you do! Do it Well! is very interesting, linked back to us this week in her exploration of dandelions. I hope we see her again in the future!
Debbie, of ForgivingJournal provided multiple perspectives on some lovely flowers!

Thanks to each and every one of you, as I appreciate your taking the trouble and putting a great effort forth with these images.

Now to start preparing for Tuesday’s new topic…I’m trying to make up my mind on which one to pick 🙂

Full Disclosure Sunday

Do you hear snowbells?

Last week was a bit of a slump on posting, as I started the week on the road to attend New Hire Orientation at headquarters of the company I just joined; it took me most of the week to get my energy, and some of my inspiration, back, as I had spent the prior three weeks working my tail off to get everything finished and my previous job and exhausted myself.

So now it’s time to revitalize and look toward the beauty that will soon return..

Tower-Hill-110320_MG_6948 — *Snowbells Popping Up!*

These cute little snowbells comes from the same day of shooting as yesterday’s post Spring Into Saturday at Tower Hill Botanic Garden. Whereas yesterday’s post was taken indoors, the temperatures on that March day were pretty comfortable, so I checked what might be growing outside (in northern Massachusetts it’s usually not much).

This is where I found these pretty snowbells that had just popped up within the previous couple of days. Getting down low, they provide a nice little grouping.

I think that I might go find some more of these beauties on this fine Easter Sunday.

Technical Details

Shot with a Canon EOS 5D Mk II using an EF 24-105mm f/4 L lens at 98mm. Exposure settings were 1/200 second at f/9 and 400 ISO. As the focal distance was rather short, the depth of field becomes nice and shallow for this image.

Shot of the Week – vol 9

Simple tulips for today

2016-03-02 15.54.23 HDR-1 — *Think Spring!*

Some weeks high-technology work can be soul-devouring to the point of leaving precious little time for any other creative expression. Given that I barely got time to escape the office this past week, I present to you an image of tulips to help us employees lift our spirits.

Please accept this with a promise that soon, not nearly soon enough, I will get additional time available to get some real photography in… Stay tuned for the announcement!

The image is not re-cropped, as I shoot mostly square with my iPhone 6S; it’s an aspect ratio that forces my eye to observe things just a little different.

What do you do when you can’t get away from it all?