Tag Archives: nature

Events

On the evening of the summer solstice

It was the summer solstice a couple of days ago. On that longest day of the year, I thought it might be interesting to take photographs in our garden, just as the day drew to a close. I was especially interested in capturing the evening primroses, because we have so many of them this year, and because I was curious to see whether they’d open up sooner or just as dark fell, as is their custom.

Well, they didn’t open up sooner, I still had to wait until it was almost dark, but I found out something new; having never watched them open up before, I had a wonderful surprise in store for me. As it turns out, the blossoms open at a pace that can be observed live, without the aid of time lapse photography. It’s not as fast as a mimosa pudica’s reaction, but it’s fast enough for a person to stand (or sit) there and watch it open. Nature is wonderful!

I hope you enjoy this set of photographs. I took them with my PEN E-P3, whose IBIS mechanism was recently repaired by Olympus Czechia and is now working so well, it’s tempting to use it as my main camera. I plan to use it a lot more than before, that’s for sure. By the way, my setup included the M.Zuiko 25mm f1.8 lens and the lovely and inexpensive MCON-P02 Macro Adapter. It works with several more lenses from Olympus and it’s small and lightweight, so it even fits in your pocket.

On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
On the evening of the summer solstice, 21st of June 2018
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Places

A foggy autumn morning

One foggy autumn morning, I took some photographs… and here they are 😁. I love fog almost as much as I love thick snowfall, and for the same reasons: the air of mystery, the white shroud enveloping everything, the quiet, the timeless quality and mood… oh, I could go on and on… This particular morning, we were driving to Sibiu and we were atop the hills between Slimnic and Șeica Mare. I have to confess that I don’t typically plan these things out, but when I encounter them, I have a camera with me and I take advantage of the opportunity to capture those beautiful moments. We parked the car and I walked around those hills, taking in the atmosphere. I hope you’ll enjoy the photographs!

In the countryside between Slimnic and Agârbiciu, Transilvania, Romania
Near Slimnic, Transilvania, Romania
Ruși, Transilvania, Romania
Near Șeica Mare, Transilvania, Romania
Shapes recovered from a thick fog using Lightroom’s Dehaze function. The photograph was mostly white beforehand. I love how the background looks, with those barely-visibile sihouettes. I know there’s a lot of noise but I love this image.
Somewhere between Slimnic and Agârbiciu, Transilvania, Romania

I have a surprise for you. It’s going to be a surprise for me, too, because I’m going to try something new. I’m going to use this nifty payment button that WordPress has recently introduced, and I’m going to let you purchase all these images as a pack. There are 24 images here, which I’m going to deliver to you as a download at their original resolution once you purchase them. The terms outlined here will apply to how you use them. Here are a few ideas: make prints at a local lab, use the whole pack as a screensaver, use them as desktop backgrounds, use them in your artwork, use them on your website, etc. The price is $25. That’s a little more than $1 per image. If there’s demand, I may extend this same sort of deal to other photo galleries of mine published in the past or photos I publish in the future. A generous image pack, an affordable price for the whole thing, simple, easy, done.

Image Pack 20180608

You are purchasing the photographs from this post: a set of 24 images of a foggy autumn morning

$25.00

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Places

Springtime in our garden

Spring has arrived and that means it’s time for my annual gallery of photographs from our garden. This is the sixth edition mind you, so it has become somewhat of a tradition for me. I hope you have a cup of tea or coffee ready — if you don’t, go get one — because there are 131 photographs for you to see. There’s also something different from previous years: I’ve taken most of the photos with my Olympus gear, particularly with my PEN E-P5 and the new lenses I bought for it. This equipment is so light and so responsive it feels like I’m almost cheating when I use it. And there’s no compromise in image quality. I love it. Enjoy the photographs!

A focus stack
A focus stack
The petals on the lower daisy have been partially eaten by a snail
In our own garden
I call it fuzzy because of the fine hairs on the leaves of this developing comfrey plant
A growing evening primrose plant
These flowers just love to spring up on the garden path instead of sticking to the tended grounds. Also notice the itsy-bitsy spider hiding behind the shrub in the foreground.
A focus stack
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Places

In the countryside in winter

In the winter of 2010, we drove through the countryside between Luduș and Apahida in Transilvania, in what is known as lake country because of the many natural and man-made lakes in the area. As we traveled through, it began to snow and the drab grey and black landscapes suddenly turned white and beautiful. We stopped the car in several places to take in that serene quiet and fresh air that you can only feel and smell when it’s snowing. Enjoy the photographs!

The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
Somewhere between Ludus and Apahida, Romania.
Somewhere between Ludus and Apahida, Romania.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
In the countryside, somewhere in the lake and hill region between Ludus and Apahida, Transilvania, Romania.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
Somewhere between Ludus and Apahida, Romania.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
Somewhere between Ludus and Apahida, Romania.
Somewhere between Ludus and Apahida, Romania.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
The countryside of Transilvania, Romania, in the lake and hill region somewhere between the cities of Ludus and Apahida.
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Places

The Mihaileni Canyon

There’s a small canyon in the countryside between Medias and Sibiu called Canionul Mihăileni. A river split open a hill right down the middle, creating a rift where some fossils were found. The river’s no longer around. It’s an interesting site and one which we tried to find one day but couldn’t, because there are no signs and no guides in the area. We drove around till it got dark and then we figured we’d best stop and turn back, or else we might find ourselves stranded in a field overnight. There are only dirt roads there, with deep ruts in places and rocks sticking out of the mud — just the kind of a situation that can gift you with a broken oil pan and a seized engined. At the time we had a VW Golf, which is infamous for the low placement of its oil pan. It’s like a short-legged horse with low-hanging you-know-whats. One hit and it’s going legs-up… It happened to us more than once.

Long story short, the photos you’ll see here are “not exactly” from the Mihăileni Canyon. They’re from the approximate area. But it was autumn, there were rolling hills all around and the foliage was beautiful, so photography-wise, it wasn’t a disappointment. Maybe someday we’ll make it to the actual canyon. Enjoy the photographs!

Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
Somewhere near Canionul Mihaileni, Transilvania, Romania
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