Owner: David's Nature Photography Gallery URL:http://davids-pics.blogspot.com Join Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 06:16:08 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: An extensive and regularly updated gallery featuring all kinds of nature photography - flora, fauna, landscapes, macro, wildlife and more. An essential resource for nature and photo lovers alike. Site statistics:Click here
Question: Have you ever Ego-Googled? 2007-10-25 04:40:00 David McMahon posts an interesting question on his blog: Have you ever Googled yourself?My answer to this: Certainly. I think that just about everyone who uses the internet frequently is overcome by the desire to find themselves in the vast realms of cyberspace. But for most people, the answer to the following question will be the same as mine:Did you find anything?: NoOf course not all of us are famous, so we may not be within the first 30,000 odd pages of a Google search for our name. This really depends on how obscure your name is. When I Google my fake name which I sometimes use for dubious registration forms, I am at the top of the list. That is because nobody famous has that name. However, in a search for "David Webb", I'm nowhere.What about you? Have you ever Googled yourself? If you want to answer this question, I encourage you to vote using the poll on the right hand side of this page. Next week we'll see how the votes fall - so keep posted!Other blogs:
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New Life - Green Leaves with Sun Shining 2007-10-23 23:30:00 Wordless WednesdayGreen
Leaves with Sun Shining
Through - New Life
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Dainty Birdwing Butterfly 2007-10-27 00:17:00 Dainty Birdwing Butterfly
- Close UpWhen I was walking down the street at Boreen Point (near Noosa) I spotted this butterfly resting in the Sun. It didn't seem to be moving, and presented the perfect opportunity for a photo. Butterflies are normally very hard to get on camera, as they fly all over the place only stopping for about 5 seconds at a time. This butterfly proved the exception however, and stayed still calmly while I got some close-up shots.This photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed 1/149, F3.7, ISO 100Other blogs:
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Purple Agapantha Flower (Agapanthus africanus) 2007-11-12 01:18:00 Purple Agapantha Flower BloomingAs it's Spring time here in Australia, all the flowers are blossoming and the trees are growing fruit. One of the variety of flowers blooming here at the moment is the Agapantha flower, properly called the Agapanthus africanus. These purple flowers are just starting to bud - when they have opened they will turn into a loosely hanging bunch of bright purple blossoms.The photo shown above depicts an agapantha flower that is just beginning to blossom - the left half has started to unfold while the right section is still a bud. The green of the flower blend in with the green grass in the background, and contrasts nicely with the purple blossoms just beginning to peek out of the flower. A this photo was taken with an aperture of F4.9, the background remains out of focus, thus keeping the attention drawn to the flower itself.It was overcast when I took this photo, so the picture has a very soft look to it. There was still enough sunlight available for me to a Read more:Purple
Lighting Striking Dead Tree 2007-11-09 21:26:00 Lightning Striking
at Night - Dead Tree SilhouetteThe other night we had a big thunderstorm over here, so naturally I was out with the camera in the cold and wet while others were inside snug and warm. Actually, I wasn't so foolish as to bring the camera outside during the rain, but after the storm passed over I went out looking for lightning shots. I took a few 30-second exposures, but the noise even at ISO 80 was disappointing. Decreasing the shutter speed by increments, eventually I got down to a 2-second exposure at ISO 80. Now for lightning, there's not much chance of getting a good shot with only a 2-second exposure. But I tried anyway. And what turned out was amazing...It was a one in a million chance. During the second exposure, a huge bolt of lightning split the sky - directly in the middle of the frame. And this is how it turned out. I find it amazing that I was able to get such a good shot on just the second try. The lightning is streaking through the darkened sky, ending Read more:Lighting
Urban Landcape - Sunset, Sun-rays, and Clouds 2007-11-16 20:23:00 Sunset over Urban
RooftopsLast night I was outside during twilight, and noticed this amazing sunset. The Sun has already disappeared behind the clouds, but rays of light are still shining out and covering the sky. Although the photo above might look touched-up, I have not digitally manipulated this picture. The duotone effect (where the sun and it's rays are black-and-white while the sky near the top of the picture is blue) simply occurred naturally. This is a capture which is not likely to be seen again soon, I was lucky to be out at the right time to see it.The photo below is of the same scene taken a few minutes later - you can see the huge difference between the pictures. In the photo below, the sun has set and the rays of light from the first picture are entirely gone, replaced instead by a reddish glow near the horizon.Sunsets are always very beautiful to watch, and each one is different. As you can see from these photos, the scene changes even from minute to minute, giving you Read more:Sunset
, Clouds
Daisy Flower Close Up - Wordless Wednesday 2007-11-21 04:57:00 Wordless WednesdayClose
up photo of a Daisy
Flower's CenterThis photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed 1/30, F8.0, ISO 200Other blogs:
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Thistle Spikes - Wordless Wednesday 2007-11-27 22:07:00 Wordless Wednesday
Thistle Spikes - an Unopened FlowerThis photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed: 1/56, F8.0, ISO 100Other blogs:
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Australian Kookaburra - Wordless Wednesday 2007-12-05 04:48:00 Wordless WednesdayAustralian
Kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae) after the RainThis photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed: 1/350, F7.2, ISO 100Other blogs:
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Agapantha Flower - Purple Sunday 2007-12-01 18:53:00 Agapantha Flower - PurpleSunday
Purple is the colour of royalty. As we approach Christmas, we enter the 4 week period traditionally known as "Advent" (from the Latin "to come"). The colour purple, or violet, is used to symbolize joy and expectant hope as we wait for the royal King to come at Christmas.In keeping with this tradition, I have chosen the purple Agapantha (agapanthus africanus) flower for today's post. Last month you saw an unopened bud, but today the flower is fully open and blooming. The stamen are clearly visible, and the small yellow bunches of pollen at their tip are sharply in focus. The green stems in the background also provide a contrasting relief from the soft purple and white of the petals.As we enter Summer here in Australia, and America enters Winter, everyone is preparing for Christmas. But I hope that amongst your shopping and decorating, you can also take time to experience the "joy" of the season, and have a look at the wonder of nature around you.This pho
Lettuce Leaf - Fractals in Nature 2007-11-30 04:27:00 Lettuce Leaf - God's Fractals in NatureYesterday I was out in the garden checking the lettuce plants we have growing, and I happened to look down from directly above a plant to see this pattern. The lettuce leaves formed a complicated pattern resembling the precise mathematical form of a fractal. The very fine edges of each leaf are curled in a delicate pattern which imitates the fractal's recursive spirals. This is an example of how creation is so complete - the forms which our best mathematicians struggle with are reproduced in nature without any human intervention!This photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed: 1/28, F3.9, ISO 100Other blogs:
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Purple Weed (Wildflower) - Purple Sunday 2007-12-08 20:20:00 Purple Wild Flower - Purple Sunday
Well, it's come round to Sunday again, only 2 Sundays to go until Christmas. As some of you will remember I have started a "Purple Sunday" series of posts, where I choose a purple subject for each Sunday until Christmas (although I'll have a surprise for you next Sunday, check out the wikipedia article for a hint!) Today I've got a photo of some purple wildflowers. I spotted these as I was getting a photo of an Agapantha flower, and snapped a few quick shots as I was passing. I used a low aperture to get the flowers in focus, while blurring the background.This picture has an interesting pattern of drawing your eyes between the flowers themselves, and the base of the stem. The radiating stems then send your eyes back to the top of the picture again. Try it - it's amazing how much these little things affect the composition of the picture.This photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed: 1/450, F3.7, ISO 100Other blogs:
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Purple Garden Flowers - Purple Sunday 2007-12-22 04:21:00 Purple GardenFlowers
Here we are at the last Purple Sunday
in Advent. It's now only two days until Christmas, and the celebrations are already beginning. These next few days are an exciting time, especially for children, and we reach a culmination point on Christmas day, when gifts are exchanged and presents unwrapped, and everyone can feel the joy of the season. Although we don't get to see Santa riding through the snow here in Australia, we do get to enjoy all the colours and life of Summer in full bloom.The flowers in this picture are a garden variety grown in the Spring to add a bit of colour to the area. Right now they are flowering profusely, probably helped by the recent rain, allowing me to capture this shot of a group of them growing together. As always, I would greatly appreciate it if anyone can identify the flowers, as I bought these in a "colour mix" packet of seeds and therfore don't know what they're called.And now, I would like to set a question to you:What would yo Read more:Purple
Sun shining through leaves at Sunset - Wordless Wednesday 2007-12-19 02:00:00 Wordless WednesdaySunset
with silhouette of May Bush leaves
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Pink Tulip Flower - "Purple" Sunday 2007-12-15 14:38:00 Pink "Purple
Prince" Tulip Flower - "Purple" Sunday
Now for the surprise.......Yes, you read it right. Pink Tulip flower. Not Purple. Well, I said I had a surprise in store for this Sunday. This Sunday is not actually Purple! As the wikipedia article about Advent says: "On the 3rd Sunday of Advent, Gaudete Sunday, a rose [colour] is used since this Sunday takes on a more joyous tone." So, this being the 3rd "Purple" Sunday, I have a pink, or rose coloured picture for you today.I got this photo of a pink Tulip blossom at a flower festival earlier this year. We were just entering Spring at the time, and you can see many other brightly coloured flowers in the background of this picture. I used a low aperture (F4.3) while taking this photo to ensure that the flower remained in focus while the background was blurred. I think this is actually a "Tulipa Purple Prince" flower, but it looks pink to me! Please tell me if you know the proper name of this flower, it would be a great help.This photo
Merry Christmas! 2007-12-24 00:51:00 Merry Christmas
!In my last post I asked you all what photo you would like as a Christmas gift. I have received quite a few varied responses, so thank you all for your feedback. In this post I've included two of the requests. A Merry Christmas
to you all, and may you have a fruitful and happy New Year in 2008!Nature Nut / JJ Loch asked for a photo of the interior of a church decorated for Christmas. Tom and Anna asked for an "Aussie Christmas Tree" (Most of them are the same as he American ones!) Submit Photos to Shutterstock and make $$$!
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Reaching out - Pumpkin vine feeler 2008-03-12 01:00:00 "Reaching
Out"Pumpkin
vine feeler climbing along an Apricot twigWordless WednesdayThis photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.
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Sunset in the Australian Bush - Sky Watch Friday 2008-03-07 15:22:00 Sunset in the Australian
BushSky Watch Friday
I've got another Aussie Bush Sunset for you today. This photo is actually quite interesting, as it converges from a wide spanning vista to a single point - the Sun. But the way in which this happens in what really makes this photo unique. Most sunset photos will place the sun in or near the centre of the picture. In this image, however, the sun is thrown to the far right of the landscape, leaving room for the clouds and sky to fill most of the frame.How do you like it?This photo taken with the Kodak C330 digital camera.
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Sunset at the end of Summer - Sky Watch Friday 2008-02-28 16:40:00 Sunset at the End of Summer
Sky Watch Friday
Today is the last day of Summer here in Australia. This sunset is saying "Goodbye" to the Summer, and welcoming the start of Autumn. We've had a very cold Summer this year - only three days got above 30 degrees Celsius - so I'm curious to see what Autumn and Winter turn out to be! Here's wishing you all a great start to the new season, whether you're in Australia entering Autumn, or in America entering Spring.Update: Apparently the U.S. doesn't enter Spring until the 21st. This'll be an early welcome for some of you!This photo taken with the Kodak C330 digital camera.
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Sea Shell on the Beach Sand 2008-02-26 01:21:00 Sea shell in sandShell
in Sand at the Beach
I was browsing through some of my old photos the other day, and found this beautiful shot of a Sea Shell. I took this at Moonee Beach, near Coffs Harbour, NSW some years ago. This photo really reminds me of the "early morning at the beach" experience, with the seaweed and waves just visible in the background. I can almost feel the gentle grit of the cool sand underfoot (or actually under-nose, as I was lying down on the sand when I took this photo!)Do you have any memories of the beach that you would like to share? Post a comment with your memories of your favourite beach holiday.Original Post: She Sells Sea Shells.... [Sea Shell in the Sand at the Beach]
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Dramatic Sunset in Australian Bush - Sky Watch Friday 2008-02-21 14:00:00 Dramatic Sunset
in the Australian
Bush (Outback)Sky Watch Friday
You probably haven't noticed, but there's something different about today's Sky Watch Friday Sunset. This post has been published automatically by blogger. Last week blogger got a new feature enabling you to schedule posts to be published automatically at a later date, and so I am taking advantage of this new functionality today. This Friday, I haven't actually got on the computer at all. I prepared the sunset photo and post on Thursday, and it has been automatically published for you today. Now, I know this is old stuff for you Wordpress users, but for anyone using Blogger, this is a very handy new tool. Has anyone else used it yet?This sunset is very "dramatic" - the multi-layered clouds and irregular tint give the photo a t
E for Excellent Blog Award 2008-02-17 23:16:00 Angie from photosforthefunofit.blogspot.com just awarded me the "E for Excellent" blog award. This is a new award to me, and I am very honoured to receive it. Angie, although humbly classifying herself as an amateur, posts some really excellent photos over on her blog, and I suggest that you check it out whenever you have time. Thanks, Angie!Update: I am passing on this award to Anna, from My Only Photo. Anna maintains a top quality photo blog with lot's of great nature photos.
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Brilliant Red Sunrise - Sky Watch Friday 2008-02-15 01:53:00 Brilliant Red Sunrise
- Sky Watch Friday
For my second Sky Watch Friday, I'm posting a sunrise. This is one of the most popular landscapes for photographers and painters alike, but this does not seem to detract from the impressiveness of the scene in every new photo I see. Somehow each sunrise has a unique "flavour" to it which gives it a renewed meaning each time it is interpreted by a different artist.One of the unique aspects of this sunrise is the silhouette formed by the gum trees in the foreground. This is a typical Australian scene, and anyone who's lived in the country for long gets to know and love this early morning symbol.This photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.
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Bearded Dragon Lizard from Australia 2008-02-14 00:48:00 Australian BeardedDragonLizard
Bearded Dragons have broad triangular heads and flattened bodies, with adults reaching approximately 18 to 24 inches head-to-tail. When threatened, the lizards will expand a spiny pouch under their jaw and turn it black, as well as inhale air and puff up to make them appear larger. The pouch resembles a beard, lending the animal their name.Bearded Dragons have a distinctive series of spines radiating horizontally from the head to the tail. Their color ranges from light tan to dark brown, depending on their native soil, often with highlights of black, brilliant red, or gold, and can change somewhat depending upon their internal condition. Bearded Dragons can occupy a large range of habitats from the desert to dry forests and scrublands.All species are from Au Read more:Australia
The Glory of the Heavens - Clouds and Tree - Sky Watch Friday 2008-02-07 04:13:00 Clouds and a Tree in Shadow - Sky Watch Friday
I got this shot purely by chance one day. I was outside with the camera getting some nature photos, when I happened to glance up and see this stunning cloud formation aligned perfectly with the top of a gum tree. Had I gone a few steps further in any direction, this scene wouldn't have been as exceptional, as the tree needed to be in just the right position relative to the clouds for this shot to work. As it turned out, I was able to quickly snap this picture.The composition of this shot is almost the inverse of Rembrandt's famous style, where he uses small areas of bright light to draw attention to important areas of the painting. In this photo, the large dark area occupied by the tree draws your attention, and then you notice the bright white Read more:Heavens
, Clouds
Storm Clouds - Wordless Wednesday 2008-01-30 04:03:00 Wordless WednesdayStormClouds
This photo taken with the Fujifilm S9600 digital camera.Shutter speed: 1/220, f/3.6, ISO 100
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How to live without batteries 2008-01-27 17:50:00 David McMahon posts another interesting question on his blog this weekend:How efficiently (or inefficiently) would your household function without batteries
?For me, the first thing which came to mind was that my camera wouldn't work without batteries. So if I had no batteries in the house, I'd have to go back to the "old-fashioned" film method (some film cameras don't need batteries). But this is more inconvenient than it would seem. If I wanted to change to film, here are some of the costs that would be involved:I'd have to buy a new SLR. Cost: AUD$700+Since September (four months ago), I've taken approximately 9,000 photos. If I were to take these on film, I would need about 375 rolls of film. These would cost over AUD$1,800.To develop the 375 rolls of film would cost about AUD$6,000This
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