And Some Flowers for Her.....

Before I started to "conjure" up this image tonight, I had all sorts of possible ideas rattling around inside the old cranium. While I very much enjoy shooting flowers, I was getting rather tired of the same old flowers in a vase images. Then there was this light bulb moment where I thought it might be nice to portray them in a bit of a different setting, that might also suggest a story of sorts. So I took a quick dive into the clothes closet and dug out a jacket, shirt and tie, and did a little arranging of the items, and set up my LED lights before I went for the flowers to include them in the overall scene. This was the result, and it was a bit of fun to deviate from the usual methods of presentation....it also adds a bit of a masculine element, if I am allowed to suggest that these days....it is what it is....enjoy life while we can.....Cheers!
 

Light Amongst Rose Petals

The first thing you learn on your photographic journey, is that Photography is all about lighting. It took me a very long time to realize this, but as they say, the first 10,000 photos are throw aways. On the surface, what is so wonderful about a pile of dead rose petals?....Nothing actually. However, when you apply some backlighting, and some fill lighting, suddenly these dead petals come to life, and the lovely colours hidden within them is brought to the fore, and when the light infiltrates the various surfaces of the petals, it seems to do a little dance that for me is somewhat pleasing to my eye. This is AKA Textured Lighting, and hopefully some of you will enjoy it as well.....Cheers!

PS Lighting by 2 Aperture Light storm LED lights

     Camera ~ SONY a7ll mirrorless on Tripod

     Lens ~ SONY 90mm Macro OSS @ f16, 1/6 sec. ASA (ISO) 100

Three Roses Abstract.....

This image tonight, or I should say this morning, is a variation of the same 3 dead roses as show in my posting below. Sometimes, it is fun to try for a totally different or unusual presentation of the same subject matter. My preference for this one was a more abstract treatment, as I stuck the roses in amongst a vase of tall branches that sits by the fireplace. At first, I thought it was kind of silly to do this, but the more I looked at it, the more it grew on me. So I got brave, and decided to put it on here for you to love or hate....it's all good. Hope it provides a little kick of sorts for some of you....Cheers!
 

Withered Roses.....

About a week ago, my neighbour Terri, gifted me with these 3 badly withered roses. Apparently, I had mentioned to her in passing, that I enjoyed photographing things that were well past their best before date. She has recently been trying her hand at floral arranging, and I guess she decided that instead of throwing these into the garbage, she would pass that on to me. Anyway, this little shot is one that I took while I was watching a hockey game out of my other eye. The lighting is supplied by 2 Metz 400M flashes, one mounted on the camera, and one as a remote slave unit which was triggered by the camera mounted one. It was a simple set up, and the purpose behind it was to test the sharpness of my 28 ~ 70 mm kit lens, that had received some rather bad reviews online.....My conclusion is that it is best to ignore the self appointed, so called experts' opinions. Most of them are biased toward other makes of photo equipment. It seems that as far as I am concerned, the lens is as sharp as it needs to be for a general purpose walk around lens. It is a joy to use, and for me, that is all that matters. Thanks a lot Terri, you do beautiful flower arranging, and maybe someday I will learn to do justice to more of your "withered" gifts. Hope some of you will enjoy this little image.....it was a fun diversion from a boring game. Cheers!
 

Of Orchids and Earrings.....

It may be a bit late, but here's wishing all the best to everyone in this New Year of 2024 that is upon us. Today, we had the first snowfall of the season here in Windsor, Ont., and my computer tells me that it is +3C outside right now, so most of it will likely be melted off before sunrise. The less I have to shovel the better. The snowblower hasn't been fired up for about 3 years now, and I am hoping to make it through another. When you retire, who wants to spend their time behind a snowblower anyway. However, this afternoon when we looked out the front window, and saw the trees and bushes covered with snow, it did bring back a slight tinge of fond memories of when we lived in Northern Ontario, and some of the very cold Winters we had up there. Anyway, since I am spending most of my time about the house these days, I get the itch to photograph something....anything to keep the old mind active. This little image is of an Orchid plant that someone gave to my wife, and I found an old pair of her earrings in a drawer, and decided to try something a bit different. It is fun to find something quite ordinary, and present it in an unusual fashion, which was my intent here. It helped pass the time for a few hours a couple of evenings ago. I was using my 90mm macro lens on my Sony a7ll body, and lit the whole thing up with my LED lights. Afterwards it was processed with Affinity 2, and Corel photo editing software to get it to this point. It isn't a wall hanger, but fun nonetheless. Hope you enjoy it.....Cheers!

Peace on Earth.....

Another year is winding down, and it went by rather quickly. We get so busy with the many medical appointments that goes with the territory of getting older, that we hardly notice the passage of time. It took a while for it to hit me that I am now in my 80's, and learning to accept is a large part of coping with things now. As the song says, I hurt now in places I used to play, pretty much sums it all up.....anyway, it is what it is. Tonight, I thought I would do a little image for the Christmas and New Year, but for obvious reasons, the wishing of a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year seems somewhat trite, given that there are two major wars going on at present. Added to that, there are homeless folks living in tents, in communities large and small, from coast to coast in the country. Sooner or later the piper must be paid, and it is usually someone else who foots the bill, instead of the ones responsible.....but I won't go there, except to say that in 1981, I found myself having to renew a mortgage at 23.5%, up from 4.75%, and guess what.....as the sole income wage earner for the family, the same thing happened to me....it ain't fun! So this year, my heart goes out to folks who through no fault of their own, find that they are caught up in the machinations of life that are beyond their control, and having to visit the local food banks for something resembling a Christmas Dinner for their families. I cannot bring myself to wish folks a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year this year, but instead would offer wishes for Hope and Peace on Earth....Cheers!
 

Back Yard Abstract.....

Autumn arrived rather abruptly this year here in Windsor. One day it was +28 C., and the next it was +12 C., and it has stayed there since the Thanksgiving Weekend. However, for me at least, it was welcomed, as I do not do well when it is unbearably humid, which is often the case here. So I have no problem breaking out the sweaters and warmer clothing. Back home, there is a saying that goes...."there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad choice of clothing." Anyway, this little image is one that I grabbed while the roses are still in bloom, and I used the Illustration mode of my camera to give it a more painterly impression. We might still get a few more warmer days yet, but my guess is that we are in for a rather cold, snowy Winter this year. Get out the snow tires for the truck, and tune up the snow blower! Hope the NHL hockey games are great this year.....Canada has 2 seasons, Summer and Hockey! Cheers!