Hummers!
A Ruby-throated Hummingbird has taken up station in the back yard and is fiercely guarding the lone feeder in the garden.
Even got a few shots of him flashing his ruby throat!
[tags]hummingbirds, birdwatching[/tags]
Flickr Explore
Five of my photos have appeared in Flickr’s Explore
3-5 have been dropped, but 1 and 2 remain.
1. Vanishing Point, 2. Classy Chassis Car Show – Fake Miniature, 3. Shattered (Shadooby), 4. Lizardo, 5. Architecture of the Quilt – MFAH
Lessons Learned
Last night’s photo shoot got me thinking more about portraiture work.
While Thomas Escalante’s antics in front of the camera might have spoiled the shot as a group photo, it demonstrated the fun that can be had when shooting someone as charismatic and animated as he is.
El Orbits – Promo Shots
Went out to 3700 Main to take some shots of The El Orbits for possible use on the upcoming new album as well as other promotional material.
Let me tell you, shooting for fun is one thing, shooting on spec is a different animal entirely. I shoot in my own particular style and “as my mood dictates.” I capitalize on opportune lighting and subject matter and I do it for my own pleasure.
Setting up a shot and trying for a specific effect combined with dealing with various personalities makes me edgy. Of course they’re all friends and that helps. But still, I get stage fright from behind the camera if that makes any sense.
I have a ton of photos to process this week. These two jumped out right off the bat:
We’ll see how they stand up after I’ve had a chance to more fully review what I’ve got.
Portraits of Jim – revisited
When I first got my 50m 1.4 lens for the Sony Alpha 100 about a year ago, I shot a couple of quick, casual shots of my friend Jim while having lunch.
They were very clean and I really liked what I got just off the cuff, as it were.
In looking at them now I decided I could probably coax a little more life out of them with a few tweaks in Photoshop.
The originals can be seen here.
Dragonfly
Click for full size
Click for full size
Shot handheld using the Tamron AF 28-75mm f2.8 XR Di lens. The dragonfly was being VERY cooperative and hanging around as I shot picture after picture.
The auto-focus couldn’t lock in so these were shot using manual focus, which is particularly difficult for me what with the glasses and all…
Family Tradition
We’d been hearing the tell-tale chirp of a baby Cardinal around the yard. This signaled the arrival of another successful hatching for Ricky Handsomepants and his mate, Lucy.
Today we spotted Lucy retrieving food from the feeder and flying down to feed the fledgling.
As we watched her fly back and forth a few times we noticed the young bird hop down into the flower bed. As continued to watch we were surprised and delighted to see that there was not one, but TWO baby cardinals.
This was pretty exciting. We’re used to seeing a baby each summer, but seeing two was a bonus.