(no subject)

I've been fantasizing about having a lawn. My fantasy assumes i come into responsibility for a regular old grass lawn. I imagine cutting a spiral in it, and planting out native low growing plants and slowly evolving a non-grass sward. If you've 11 minutes, you can watch a non-grass lawn grow over several years at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwgPrDDwBG4&feature=youtu.be

I'm enjoying -- and profiting, i think -- from the photographic coaching available through the eBooks at http://craftandvision.com/collections/landscapes . I got hooked by acquiring some of the free books (Craft & Vision 1 & 2, Ten, and Ten More at http://craftandvision.com/collections/basics ) which - of course - puts you on their mailing list.

The landscape i posted yesterday was from Monte Bello open space preserve, looking down the San Andreas fault, with Loma Prieta in the distance. (See the not-so remarkably similar first photo from http://geologycafe.com/3Dbayarea/html/MonteBello.htm )

I find myself becoming much more aware of wide angle vs narrow, of the hyperfocal distance of my lenses, of white balance, and dynamic range. This photo of the native bee was shot as close as i could get, and required cropping out most of the photo. Just adding the extension tubes allows me to get so much more close. I'm feeling the beginning of knowing what image i want to take and knowing how to take it.

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Still not adjusted to daylight savings time. I can't get myself to believe its time to go to work or go to bed.

One last photo: not technically good, but one i want to take again with a tripod some time. The night light on the bradford pear (or whatever) is rather interesting, i think.