Friday, December 3, 2010

Beauty is in the eye of the lens holder...

Oh isn't that so true! It's amazing the beauty you can find in random things with a macro lens. Things you never thought were beautiful before all of a sudden come to life! It always amazes me! Almost all of my macro shots come from my yard. We are not green thumb people...not even close. So I do not have an over abundance of gorgeous flowers to shoot. I have weeds, a few wild flowers and random odds and ends. This used to bother me. You see..I hate my yard. It's not pretty and doesn't hold a world of beautiful things to shoot. But I think this has actually helped me see past the traditional macro shots and has forced me to really look. To search to find something that intrigues me. Something that moves me. And gives me a great challenge to find something unique in a yard that lacks beauty. It's sharpened my eye and gave me the option of variety! It's made me more creative in what I shoot and how I edit it. So this reminds me that beauty can be anywhere...if you really look for it!

Today's adventure...

This lone bee had pollen packed legs which I was excited to see when I loaded them...





I think he's had enough of me! Bye bye bee...thank you for the honor...



This is the one thing I have an over abundance of....



Ivy...I actually really hate Ivy. It breeds spiders which I hate the.most! But....on this particular tree the Ivy has started to grow up and wrap around my tree. That I like....



And I also love that if shot at the right angle and crop, they look like hearts...



Dead branches in the Ivy covered tree. I love the tones and slight blue sky in the bokeh...


This is a tiny tree.weed thing. It's quite ugly in person. I knew there was a hidden shot here. I took about 20 shots of this little thing. The vines on these things are angry and stubborn. But it paid off with these two angles! Love the light and the comp....



An ugly rusty old chain link fence. I truly despise my chain link fence. I want a pretty wood gate that looks nice and gives me privacy! I'm a recluse and love my privacy. But even a rusty ugly chain link fence can be made pretty and interesting! The bokeh here is devine! This reminds me of a bunny with it's ears down...



And it's happier twin with it's ears up....


It felt good to get out the macro lens. I was feeling it today. I was wanting to get out there and shoot macro. That's when I always have the most fun and am happiest with my shots. So that is why I don't post here too often. I only shoot macro when the need is so great it fills my heart with the peace I need at that time!

So thanks for looking. I encourage you to get your macro lens out and look at the world in a different way. And if you don't have a macro lens, strap on that kit lens or wide angle lens, zoom out and get close. You'll be amazed at the detail you can get. Before I got my macro I used my little 18-55 kit lens and I still love those shots!

Happy Holidays to you and your family! May it be filled with love, friends, family and photography presents! :)

Friday, October 22, 2010

Macro with my 5D...finally!

Wow, I haven't posted here since June 9th! About a month after my last post, I bought a used Classic 5D! Needless to say, the full frame completes me and I'm over the moon with it! I've been loving is SO much that I've been so busy taking pics of people, my kids and using my new Lensbaby, that my Macro has been neglected once again! Between my 35mm 1.4L & my 85mm 1.8, I can't get enough of the full frame. I tried the Macro lens a couple times, but don't think I was in my "Macro Zen"! So I deleted every macro image I took! Lol! So today, on this once again dreary grey day, I went out determined to get some keepers and really test the macro on the full frame. And I'm proud to say I had success...well I think so! Lol! And the one great thing about shooting while it's drizzling {I covered my camera & lens..lol} or after a storm is that a macro lens & water drops can make just about anything look interesting!

Here are some I took and I thought I'd post my settings too...

ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/400...



ISO 640 ~ F/4.0 ~ 1/1000 {the sun peaked out from the clouds for a second while I shot this on my gate to give almost a spot light where I wanted it! Gotta love nature}...


I finally got my very first true water drop reflection shot! I'm SO excited. In that water drop is the reflection of my neighbors house..... across the street!!!!!! Three different shots, each one taking a step closer. These are all in camera crops, NO cropping down in PS...

ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/800...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/800...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/500... Oh yeah BABY! Sorry...I get excited easily...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/500 ~ I LOVE the tonal range in these edits....YUM...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/320...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/320 ~ 1/160 ~ 1/200 ~ SS's ranged here because some were back in the shadows...
I love the edits and tonal range on these too! Reminds me of Christmas! Must be the colors...


ISO 640 ~ f/4.0 ~ 1/500 on left shot & 1/250! 1/500 was the better exposure. I corrected it after I checked while shooting but was too lazy to reshoot the vertical! I didn't love the shot enough and was ready to go back into my beloved heater and dry off! Lol! And these were the last shots of the day...simple & clean...


Well thanks for looking! I'm really sorry I don't post here more. I always love shooting & editing macro but get so caught up in shooting everything else, that I forget! I shot a bunch of my Halloween decorations with the macro lens, but most are pull backs and not up close detail, so I'll probably put them on my Ziggy Blog instead. Oh...here is one I took for a "Stacked" challenge on 2Peas. It's macro...lol! It will be smaller because I resized it for their board at 600px wide...

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Finally....some macro...

This was much needed as usual. I always say Macro is my happy place and it's still true.
Now I'll let the photographs do the talking...












This one is probably one of my all time favorites. I love the lighting and the effect it has on the image...




Thanks for stoppin by even tho I know I don't post too much! Hope everyone is well! :O)

Friday, January 22, 2010

Beauty & the bees...

I've had these shots sitting on my EHD since Dec 17th and finally got around to editing them. I had a lot of fun shooting and editing them! Macro is always my happy place because I can truly be ME in shooting and editing. It's soothing and I don't have to think...just do!

So here are the pretty shots first.

I found this rather large Dandelion near my hedges in my front yard. It's not big compared to some I've seen online, but it's the biggest one I've ever had in my yard. I first shot it full then ripped it up and shot some more! Lol!















Just some small pretty flowers that the bees love as you'll see further down...



And now to the less pretty...
The insects...



Until you see a fly shot with a Macro lens zoomed in in PS, you don't know just how hairy they are...



Teeny tiny bee of some sort taking flight. I was shooting something else and saw it out of the corner of my eye. I turned quickly and just shot and was happy that I got a decent shot...


Now onto the bees. I'm terrified of bees and have NEVER been stung, so this wasn't a lot of fun. But I was glad I did it after I loaded them!



I call these "Friends". Two bees gathering pollen in harmony...



So that's it for now! Hope all is well and thanks for looking! :O)

Followers

About My Macro Blog

Not much to say. I got my EF 100mm 2.8 Macro lens at the end of June and have been hooked! So I wanted a seperate blog to display my Macro shots for those who appreciate this type of thing and to not bore those who don't! Ha! I hope you like the blog! :O)

  © Blogger template 'Photoblog' by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP