Autumn Sun

Photography, for me, fits around my normal life and occasionally I see a shot which I need to try to capture but there's no time to stop the car.  Earlier this week I saw such an image and hoped that the weather/conditions were favourable at the weekend and I'd be able to capture some of the elements.

Saturday morning came and there was a bit of cloud about, but there were some small patches of blue, maybe I'd get something.  Quick breakfast and a cup of tea in a traveller had me getting into the car at 6.30.  There was already a little colour to the sky and I thought I may have taken a little to long to get out.  Would I miss the shot?

No, but it wasn't quite as I pictured, the light wasn't as direct due to the clouds.

The ice reference in the title if the first image is because (for those that may not know) the structure in it is referred to as an "igloo" and there are many of these in this area.

Within minutes the golden hues had expanded to pinks and blues

The sunlight on these leaves made them glow

And in a paddock was this forgotten beauty 

The Fallen

I haven't attended a full ANZAC service before I attend the march because my family is involved and then I quietly leave.  This year was different, because of my photography I was "invited" to take photographs of the marching band.  This year they were laying a wreath, I had to capture that moment so I had to be there.

Next year I will be there.

Those close to me know what it takes to move me to verse...

Red, Gold and Green

Autumn, arguably the best time of year with the change in season comes a variety colour that no other season can deliver.

The fungus blooms, the fruit ripens, the leaves fall and still the flowers grow.

Three of these shots are without leaving the garden, the other from a local arboretum.

Sermon from the Pulpit

Stormy clouds, hard rock and enough white in the waves to suggest a little movement.  There are 4 images making up this panorama.  I processed the main image (the one with the rock) and synchronised these settings on the others before stitching.  There was a small amount of further processing on the final image.

It's important to maintain a constant focus and exposure when taking the images for a panorama so best to use manual settings, daunting for a novice photographer but have faith in your ability.

I also re configured my camera to have the focus on a separate button, this saves recomposing before each shot as you would if the focus was completed by using the shutter button (alternatively use the manual focus).

Here endeth today's sermon...

A Wider Perspective

For some time my "go to" stitching software has struggled blending skies.  I didn't know whether it was the software struggling to blend 4+ images, the camera or the operator.

I have access to a few sources of photoshop but that meant transferring to a USB and then working on a Mac.  That wasn't going to work for me.

So I've downloaded Photoshop elements as a free trial to see if I can get better results.  Elements interfaces with Lightroom seamlessly (pun intended).

The image below is made up of 14 images and is approximately 270 degrees of view.  The blending is much improved and "minimal" post processing has been applied after the panorama was stitched.

This was another sunrise from the final day at Point Leo, those clouds to the right held the promise of some heavy rain.  Fortunately Mother Nature broke her promise and the tents came down dry.

Need to get some more practice in and there are plenty of sets waiting for treatment.

The initial file was 60Mb so I've lost some bytes somewhere, I'll need to find those but unless you're looking at this on a 4K, 60 inch screen I'll probably get away with it this time...

Mornings on the beach

When you're faced with multiple glorious sunrises, like your children, it's hard to pick a favourite so we just showcase all of them.

Early mornings are so much better with a good sunrise

The last day of March

The week before Easter we spent camping on the Mornington Peninsula.  There are some moments where crawling out into a cold morning provide rewards and photographs can only catch part of the experience.  The are a few picture to go over and I still don't have a great solution for my panoramas, here are a few to get things going.

The first image looks so vivid that I was tempted to dial back some of the colour saturation but this was as just as I experienced, the only thing missing is the chill breeze and the sound of the breaking waves.

Finding a foreground with interest can be difficult when you right on the beach, fortunately the sea was out, exposing a number of rocks and pools

A little later in the day I found the opportunity for Photogrofaffy, Almost monochrome.