Sometimes the familiar just catches your eye. I see these things everyday of my life and something about the contrasting reds and greens always catches my eye. I can never do them justice in a photograph – probably a failing on my part rather than that of the subject. They probably only appeal to me as they are so familiar but maybe someone else will like them too....
Borth and Ynyslas are supposed to be getting some new sea defences soon. In fact they should have started work on them already and the plan is to create a couple of offshore reefs at the south end of the beach and some large rock groynes on the beach. I don’t think too many people are that keen on the look of them or the impact they will have on the beach aesthetics. Some of us aren’t convinced about the effectiveness of them as coastal defences either but if they work I’ll guess we’ll get used to the look of them.
Afterall, when the existing groynes were installed it must have completely changed the look of the beach but now we couldn’t imagine Borth and Ynyslas without them....
I’ve just been out for a stroll on the beach to check the surf. There wasn’t much surf but it was a gorgeous autumnal morning. Cold with a light easterly wind and clear blue skies. I couldn’t resist taking some photos of the patterns in the sand....
Have you run out of things to do with the children during the school holidays yet? The weather might not be great, but that shouldn’t stop you getting out into the great outdoors and doing things with them.
Blueberry Picking
How about heading to the hills for some blueberry picking – You can then spend some time in the kitchen cooking blueberry muffins with them. It’s getting a little late for blueberries now, but there were plenty there last weekend.
Blackberry Picking
Blackberry season is just about upon us as well. There are pockets of ripe blackberries all over the place and there should be more on their way over the next few weeks, so whatever the weather put on some suitable clothing (long sleeves and legs to protect you from the thorns and nettles and things you...
Love this aerial shot of my favourite city,......
I love this photo of a camel on the dunes of Socotra island, Yemen that was featured on National Geographic......
A stunning 360° panorama of Grotto Falls in Payson Canyon,......
Just some flowers from the garden. The Agapanthus have started flowering, and a stand of sunflowers have appeared from nowhere. We didn’t plant them so we can only assume that the seeds came either from the compost bin or the bird feeders. They seem to be doing well though and are now in flower.
Sunflower...
f stoppers does an entire fashion shoot using an iPhone 3GS as the camera. As with any shoot there is pro lighting, a pro model and some post processing, but the results are impressive. You can view shots from the shoot on the f stoppers......
A stunning shot of Atlantis shortly after launch on May 14th, 2010. The photo was taken from one of two F-15E Strike Eagles patrolling the area.......
One of the new species from last nights moth catch was an Elephant Hawkmoth (Deilephila elpenor). It is quite an iconic species, and rightly so with its stunning pink and tan colours. My earlier photos of it just didn’t do it justice, so here are a few more of a slightly fresher specimen now that I’ve had some time to take some shots in the sunshine.
Hope you like them.
Elephant Hawkmoth
Elephant Hawkmoth
Elephant......
Following on from the early spring garden flowers which were mainly yellow – Daffodils, Marsh Marigold, Celandine and of course dandelions, the garden turned a shade of blue in May with Bluebells, Forget-me-Nots and Periwinkles and now the garden seems to be moving into a purple mood with Irises, Geraniums, Lilacs and others....
I’ve just had a stroll around the garden. Everything is coming along nicely and there are quite a few new flowers out today as well, so I took some snaps of them with my little compact camera....
It may take a while to load but this 360° virtual tour of the Sistine Chapel is extremely......
I haven’t done much photography lately, other than recording things such as moths and progress in the garden. It was therefore nice to sell one of my photos of Lake Vyrnwy as a Canvas print last week.
I hadn’t been trying to sell the photos, they had simply been posted on this weblog which then prompted an enquiry from someone asking if I was selling them as canvas prints. Luckily, I have had canvas prints made for myself before now and they do look really nice. This meant that I not only had a suitable way of producing a canvas print but knew that the quality and customer service was excellent. I wouldn’t have wanted to sell something without knowing this first.
A few phone calls later and an order had been placed, cheques sent and the canvas print of my photo was in...
Chives
Forget-me-Nots
Things are coming on well in the garden. The spring flowers are still out but are fading. The Marsh Marigolds have almost finished, the Bluebells will soon follow them. The Forget-me-Nots are still in full bloom though and providing a lovely haze of blue around the garden..
Everything else seems to be doing well though Irises on about to flower as are some of the Geraniums. The Clematis – which has been struggling to get established – is now in flower. The new beds are filling out will and the lack of wind has seen things growing well. Phlox, Goldenrod and other perennials are all coming on well. All of the new plants are settling in well too.
Even the new raised vegetable bed is coming on well. I’m not sure about the happiness of the tomato...
The Big Picture has some amazing animal related photos from recent news......
Panoramas of New York City from 1876, 1932, 1988 and......
Mike, the warden of the local Nature Reserve has called around a couple of time this week with little challenges for me in the form of Micro Moths to photograph and identify. I’m only just getting to grips with the Macro Moths so the micros are pretty difficult.
The first was this which I think is Eriocrania subpurpurella.
Eriocrania subpurpurella
The second one was a little more lively and therefore difficult to photograph but I got there in the end. I think it could be Phyllonorcyter kleemannella.
Phyllonorcyter kleemannella
Of course, if anyone knows better then please let me......
Ben Heine is a Belgian artist/photographer who combines mixture of photography and illustration for an ongoing experimental series, Pencil Vs. Camera. You can view more here....
Stunning photos of the Eyjafjallajokul volcano from both the Big Picture, the NY Times and this......
Amazing photos of the Sakurajima volcano in......
I wonder what the Likes of Monet would have done if Megapixles and digital cameras had been around in the 1800’s? Something like this maybe which is a photo of a Lily Pads on a lake that I shot at Llanerchaeron House.
Photography by......
A dramatic photo of Earth taken from the Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-125) on May 22nd, 2009. View a larger version......
My first full year moth-trapping is going to be an exciting one. Not only does it coincide with the formation of the new Ceredigion Moth Group which should keep me busy, but there is the chance of seeing new species almost every time I put the trap out.
I starting writing this post about a week or so ago after a fairly successful nights catch but forgot to publish it. Seeing as it had a photo of a new moth for me I thought I’d add it now.
The Double-striped Pug may only be small, but looks lovely up close and was a new garden record for me.
Double-striped Pug
There were 13 moths in total that night:
Shoulder Stripe x8
Early Grey x1
Mottled Grey x1
Double-striped Pug x1
Red Chestnut x1
A micr0 – A yet unidentified....
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