Early Morning Walks and Backyard Macro Photography

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Tamron 90 mm Macro Lens, ISO 1000, f/8 @ 1/180s Manual exposure

Two weekends ago turned out to be a photogenic weekend. I did not get a chance to upload the photographs. On Saturday, I stayed home and took a lot of pictures in my yard. I managed a few good photos. I was mostly trying to photograph using my macro lens, but I was not having to much luck. I did manage one photograph of a weed in the garden that had gone to seed. One seed was sitting atop the plume of other seeds. I just loved the way the photo turned out.  I was pleased with the way the light hit off the curves in the seed, and with the composition of the picture.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Tamron 90 mm Macro Lens, ISO 100, f/2.8 @ 1/400s Manual exposure

After about an hour, I was lurking around our shed, looking for spiders. That is when I looked down and was amazed to find a little jumping spider just hanging out on a plant pot. I did my best to photograph it, and I was delighted with the result. It is the best jumping spider photograph that I have ever taken. There are things that I could improve on. But I was excited when I saw a few of the photos. I could not believe how amazing these little spiders are. I was just stunned to see the beautiful orange colors around his eyes. I also liked the way that the background turned out in the one photograph because the light from my flash made round speckles in the background of the spider when it hit off the plastic of the container. I just really loved this photograph.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Canon 24-105 mm f/3.5 - f/5.6 Lens, ISO 50, f/13 @ 1/10 sec Manual exposure

That Sunday, I decided I would get up before dawn and go out to the nearby reservoir to try and photograph the fall foliage. It was a somewhat foggy day, and I was only happy with one photograph that I took. The colors were stunning, but I did not capture many pictures that I was pleased with. However, when the sun was rising, I saw a patch of high weeds that were shining in the morning light. So I decided I would try and capture it. I laid on my stomach in the tall grass and pointed the camera directly at the sun. I loved the color and the contrast that I was able to capture, and I was quite surprised by the way the photos turned out. It was worth laying in the grass for the shot.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Canon 24-105 mm f/3.5 - f/5.6 Lens, ISO 50, f/13 @ 1/60 sec Manual exposure

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Canon 24-105 mm f/3.5 - f/5.6 Lens, ISO 50, f/13 @ 1/60 sec Manual exposure

Overall the weekend went well. But last weekend, I did not get a chance to photograph anything. I am planning a trip to a friend's farm tomorrow and Saturday. I am hoping that I will get plenty of photographs to share.  I look forward to the next time. I hope everyone enjoys the photos.

Bashakill Wetlands and Mongaup River

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Canon 24-105 mm f/3.5 - f/5.6 Lens, ISO 50, f/32 @ 4 sec Manual exposure

Last weekend I spent Saturday evening on a trail along the Mongaup River. I was trying to photograph the fall scenery as well as anything else in the woodland. I started by taking photographs of the Mongaup River, trying to capture the fall colors and some motion blur. The photo is more of a water motion blur photograph than a typical fall color photograph, but I was happy with it. Towards the end of the evening, I sat on a rock along the river and watched the sun go down behind the trees. The beautiful yellow rays of light were coming in through the trees, but I was unable to capture the true essence of the scene I was seeing.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Canon 24-105 mm f/3.5 - f/5.6 Lens, ISO 1600, f/5.6 @ 1/60 sec. Manual exposure

I was also very fortunate to find one lone mushroom on a log that I was able to photograph. I also liked the way that the photo turned out. I have not done much mushroom photography, but I think that I will try it more in the future.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Sigma 150 - 600mm f/5- f/6.3, ISO 1250, f/6.3 @ 1/400s Manual exposure

Sunday morning, it was a much darker dreary day. It was supposed to rain, and I wanted to get out before it started. So I went out to the Bashakill Wetlands at about 7 am.  I walked the stop sign trail where I had photographed the egrets the week before, hoping that I would see them again. I made it to the place where the egrets were, but they were not there. I decided that I would sit on the raised platform like the previous week, and wait to see what I could find. It was very peaceful because I did not see any other person at the Bashakill that morning. I think the weather kept everyone away. After about an hour sitting in the raised stand, I heard a Great Blue Heron. It came flying in and landed in front of me. I was lucky enough to capture a few photographs of it coming in. Then it actively was fishing in front of me for a while. I was unable to use my 1.4x teleconverter because of the lighting situation. But my Sigma 150-600 did an excellent job without it. It was fun watching the Heron fish for a while. Then I realized that it was getting agitated by something. Then I noticed something else behind the Heron in my viewfinder.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Sigma 150 - 600mm f/5- f/6.3, ISO 1250, f/6.3 @ 1/400s Manual exposure

Initially I thought it was a muskrat or beaver. But after looking closer at the picture, I realized it was some river otters. They seemed to be fishing in the same spot as the Heron. The one photograph shows the Heron staring right at the river otters. I had not seen river otters at the Bashakill before so, it was a great treat. I had sat in the stand for about 3 hours, and mother nature rewarded me for being patient. Even though it was a dark overcast morning, it turned out to be a great day. At around 11 am, it started raining, and I decided to call it a day.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Sigma 150 - 600mm f/5- f/6.3, ISO 1250, f/6.3 @ 1/400s Manual exposure

Overall last weekend turned out great, and I look forward to spending some more fall weekends taking photographs. Until Next Time.

Canon EOS 6D Mark II & Sigma 150 - 600mm f/5- f/6.3, ISO 1250, f/6.3 @ 1/400s Manual exposure