What is it capable of?

I’m not a big fan of swapping lenses. I like to put one on my Nikon and keep using it for as long as possible. I did this with my 50mm 1.8 lens when I bought it. It lived on my Nikon D5100 and I worked within its capabilities until I upgraded to the D750. I then purchased my Tamron 24-70 zoom lens which has been living on the D750 ever since, purely because of the versatility it offers me. I can get good wide-angle/landscape shots and it lets me zoom in that bit closer for portraits.

Then I felt the desire to shoot macro and lashed out on the Nikon 105mm 2.8 macro lens but it only comes out on special occasions. Wednesday and a dragonfly was one such special occasion. I could never have achieved the image I did with a standard zoom lens or even the 50mm prime.

But now I have the bug. I want to play with the 105mm and only the 105mm.

I want to do more macro. I want to see what it can do with portraits. I’m going to challenge myself to see what I can get with this lens. I know that it will mean more work for me because I will be forced to move myself to get the shot I want, but the beauty of a prime lens is the clarity it brings to your images. I love my 50mm for that reason. The images are just………better.

Let’s see how long my dedication to this challenge lasts.

 

Stop what you are doing and get your camera!!

I had a choice tonight. Keep folding the washing or go and grab my Nikon D750, change the lens over to the Nikon 105mm macro and hope that the dragonfly would still be where he had landed after I had unconsciously and unceremoniously flicked him off a dry sock. (I wasn’t wearing my glasses and I thought he was some grass clipping debris.)

Guess what I chose to do?

I think I have lost a bit of my photography mojo because I asked myself the question. There shouldn’t have even been a question. It should have been automatic. But I think the doubt was there. Would the dragonfly still be sitting on the paver when I returned armed with my trusty Nikon and the macro lens?

Thankfully for all concerned, he was still there and he was very patient, even when the dog in his “Ooooo mummy….what are you doing on the ground? Can I help?” mode, walked on him.

Who else understands the trials of photo taking when the animals or children want to ‘help’?  Honestly, don’t you just want to swear a lot?

Then………..because this creature was being so patient (I was thinking that he might have been dying.) I thought I might up the ante and try shooting him on a plain white background. If he behaved.

So back inside I race to grab some white paper from the printer and proceed to manoeuvre the very obliging creature onto said white copy paper which I had placed in the late afternoon sunlight and out of the reach of the bloody ‘helpful’ dogs. All the while praying for two things. One: that the insect would not fly away and Two: that the insect would not fly or jump directly at me because I would very likely scream hysterically and the chance of damage to my beautiful Nikon was high.

As you can probably ascertain from the photo I was able to take a marvellous shot of this delicate creature and the combination of white paper, delicious sunlight and my gorgeous macro lens enabled me to capture the most delectable shadows of the intricate lacework of its wings. (How’s THAT for a sentence?)

I’m very glad that my photography self yelled at my domestic duty self. Sometimes you need to give yourself a stern talking to.

 

 

 

The feather

Feathers.

Such simple things, but when you look at them closely……

There is a unique elegance to them.

Gentle curves.

Strength.

They weigh so little but together can lift a bird into the sky.

And their power when used with ink and thoughts;

Turning the combination into words that have changed the course of history.

 

Another season begins

Dear God it’s March already!

I’m sure I told the universe that I was hoping things would slow down a bit this year, but seems like something wasn’t paying attention to my pleas.

March. The beginning of autumn in the southern hemisphere. It is only day four and leaves have begun to change colour and carpet the ground.

I like autumn. It’s such a blessed relief from the heat of a Melbourne summer.

But I just wish that I could figure out where January and February went.

Seeing red

Being a woman is both a blessing and a curse and right now I am in the midst of a curse.

THE curse.

It has many names. The monthlies. Your rags. Aunty Flo. The painters & decorators. Monthly maintenance crew. Whatever you choose to camouflage it with it is one thing……. your period. It starts when you’re around 10 to 12 years old and it continues on a monthly basis until you are in your mid to late 50’s.

That’s a bloody long time.  (Bloody long time. Hahahaha!!! I didn’t mean for the pun to be there, but hey……….)

From the moment we experience our first period we start calculating the time until we will no longer have to deal with the mess, pain, embarrassment, products and inconvenience of this biological event that is reserved only for the female of the species. We spend hours calculating our cycles so that we can plan beach holidays where we will able to swim because there’s nothing worse than being on a summer holiday and having to paddle on the edge of the water. ‘Sorry. Can’t come swimming. Have my period.’ Awesome!! Now everyone knows and is privately grossed out!!!

Hot date with someone you really want to get intimate with?? ‘Sorry. We can’t have sex, even though I really, really want to. I have my period.’ Great!! His erection……….GONE. Chances of another hot date……….. who knows.

I am now 50 and my body is preparing to wind down on this delightful part of my womanhood. It’s called perimenopause. I didn’t even know there was such a thing. I thought there was only one menopause………..menopause.

And this menopause/perimenopause is when Mother Nature really proves to you what an evil bitch she can be. Mother Nature, in her infinite wisdom, takes it upon herself to create a random schedule for your period. No longer is it gong to occur very three and a half to four weeks, lasting from 4-7 days. NO!!!! Lets mix it up. How about this month you go 5 weeks before getting it and next month 3 weeks? Then maybe a few months of every 21 days and then you can wait 6 weeks BUT the next one will start 4 days after you finish!! And, I’m sorry, but I have decided that one period is going to be 4 days long, the next one 10 days, the one after that will be so heavy for 24 hours that you won’t be able to leave the house and the next three will be just annoyingly inconvenient…….

So much for being able to plan anything.

I’m seeing red because I had plans. Plans I had to cancel because Mother Nature decided to be a bitch.

It’s times like this I no longer wonder why women get hysterectomies.

 

Grass is good

I never thought that I could get so excited by grass. But when said grass is the new back lawn of your besties new home………  You arrive there with your 105mm f2.8 macro lens to capture the magnificence of these tender spikes of green.

I was there when the seeds were thrown with hopeful abandon on the newly delivered and raked soil. I helped give these seeds their first soaking of water. I waited patiently for 3 days before sending the “Is there any green yet?” text. (The green tinge of new growth was not visible till the end of day 4)

We need this grass to grow and grow quickly. There’s a birthday/housewarming event coming soon.

Now if her cats would not use this new soil as their litter box……….

Beware naughty felines. There is a boyfriend who will cause you pain if you make a mess of this new lawn.

There is something special about it.

Not so very long ago I was incredibly ignorant about photography and cameras and lenses.  I had no idea that there was a difference between DSLR’s other than the price. Some were affordable and the others required a massive bank loan. I knew nothing about crop-sensor cameras and full-frame cameras. I didn’t even know that the starting price for cameras referred to just buying the body and that a lens was an extra.

Lenses……..LOL!!! I didn’t even know what a prime lens was! The only lenses I saw advertised were part of the camera purchase price and they all had varying focal lengths. I thought that was how they came. 18-35mm and 55-200mm or 55-300mm.

I was a thick as two bricks.

I’ve come a long way since then. (Thank bloody Christ)

I remember my excitement at the purchase of my first new lens. A prime lens. The Nikon 50mm f1.8. The 50mm is also referred to, in camera circles, as the Nifty 50. And it truly is a nifty little lens. It’s small, lightweight and a really good starting point as a first prime lens purchase. But the best thing about my Nifty 50 is the clarity of the images it produces.

See, that’s the thing with prime lenses, they have one job to do……….. shoot really well at a fixed focal length. They don’t have to worry about the mechanics of changing from on focal distance to another and being good at every step and every f-stop. Prime lenses only need be concerned with being amazing at their chosen distance and at each f-stop.

Once I bought it, my nifty 50 lived on my first camera. When I upgraded to a full-frame body, the Nifty 50 lived on her until I was able to afford my next lens which was the 24-70mm.

Now I do love my 24-70mm. This lens is the one I used while on holiday in New Zealand. It enabled me to shoot landscapes as easily as portraits and it’s is a really good ‘workhorse’ lens. But I’ve recently had cause to put the 50mm back on my camera and she has brought me a special joy. She takes such a glorious photo!! There is a clarity and crispness to the images that I just can’t see in the shots from the 24-70mm. I just ‘know’ the photos that I have taken with her.

And now I have another prime lens. My Nikon 105mm macro. I haven’t taken many shots with her yet, but the feedback from fellow photographers for the couple I have already shared has been very positive. This new baby is showing the potential that can only be achieved with a prime lens.

My my my………… how far I have come in just a few years.

 

and a little something for me………..

This little spider is only a few millimetres long.

I did it!! I went out and purchased my macro lens. The Nikon 105mm f2.8.

I was going to go into the city and test the three lenses on my short-list on my camera body and come home to really look at the images in detail to decide which one. That was the plan.

But they only had 2 of the 3………….

and there is only a couple of hundred dollars between the two I looked at……….

and they had a second-hand Nikon for sale at the same price as the cheaper lens I was testing…………….

and I knew I had the money………….

and…………..

I bought it.

🙂

 

I have risen to the challenge

Today I rose to the challenge. I stood tall or lay low on the grass and took photos of flowers.

An excursion to the Royal Botanical Gardens in my marvellous Melbourne with a small group of fellow photographers had my creative juices pumping. I will admit that I was nervous. Despite the encouraging comments from friends and photographers about my photography skills, I still felt that I was perhaps out of my league, however the results from today’s little adventure have lifted my spirits decidedly.

Today I played. My play was deliberate and experimental but it has paid dividends.

My camera bag was fully stocked, but I decided to stick with one lens……….Nikon 50mm f1.8. That lens and a 20mm macro extension tube worked in divine harmony.  On its own the 50mm was so gorgeous. I had forgotten how much I love it. I really don’t think one can go past a prime lens for clarity, but then to add the macro extension tube………..

I am beyond happy with what I achieved today and will be spending the next week editing my favourites.

 

Happy Happy Happy days.

I need the challenge

There is a fellow photographer, actually there are a few fellow photographers, who are making me a tad envious of their photos. The composition, the clarity, the bokeh, the colour, the final edit…………everything to make a person swoon.

This envy could take me one of two ways. I could fold under  their brilliance and kneel down kissing their feet, forever being awed by their skills OR I could stop and look closely at my images and see where I can improve.

Is my lens too ‘soft’ for the images I see in my head? I don’t see that magnificent clarity I adore in close-up.

Am I rushing my shots? Should I be looking more closely at my surroundings and trying a different position or vantage point from which to shoot? My lack of height has shown to be a disadvantage on more than one occasion.

Should I be employing the use of my tripod and using the live view option to ensure a sharper focus? This can be a little problematic when shooting flowers. Hmmmmm.

I know I am excited about the prospect of purchasing a macro lens and there are three lenses I am considering. I wonder at the possibility of taking my Nikon body into the camera store and trying each prospective lens out with a few test shots on the same subject.  Will I be allowed to do this? I want to take the images home and look at them on my computer to check for sharpness and vignette. I want to make sure that quality of the image is worth the price I’m going to pay for the lens.

I’m not going to take this laying down. I’m stepping up to the plate and giving this challenge my A game. I love your photos, my fellow photographers. I thought mine were pretty good, but I can clearly see that I can do better.

And I’m going to.   🙂