Photo Friday - Week 39

Four photos today, three from a walk around EWT's Hanningfield Reservoir reserve earlier today, and the last from Fingringhoe Wick last weekend during my workshop.

I managed to get out for a walk just by myself today - no tuition, no wife or child, and I have to admit it was lovely, as I could spend as long as I wanted one each shot.  I'd gone there specifically to look for toadstools, and this was the first nice grouping that I came across.


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/8, 8s, ISO80, tripod, polariser, reflector.

One of the ponds (in Well Wood) was looking nice, and the leaves that has fallen on the water were being gently moved by the wind, so I used a long shutter speed to make a slightly abstract rendition of the view.


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/8, 10s, ISO80, tripod, polariser.

The last toadstool I shot was this one, and I used a flash above and behind the subject to help light to cap, and I was pleased with the result, looking like weak sunlight I think.


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/6.7, 10s, ISO80, tripod, polariser, off-camera flash.

This was taken up at EWT's Fingringhoe Wick reserve last Saturday, from Geedon Hide, overlooking the Colne estuary.  I liked the patterns in the mud in front of the hide, and used the 300mm lens to isolate them, processing as a high contrast black and white image to further abstract them.  We were all amazed at how quickly the tide came in here, within minutes the whole of the muddy foreshore was under water.


Pentax K-5, Pentax DA*300mm f/4 lens @ f/8, 1/125s, +0.5EV, ISO100, handheld.

Photo Friday - Week 38

A couple of recent photos tonight, one from the Close-Up and Macro Nature Photography Workshop I ran at Thorndon Park earlier this month, and the second one that I took when seeing the Red Deer at Bedfords Park.

The first is a Toadstool, growing amongst moss on the side of a log, which I shot by holding the camera against the log, bracing it as best I could, using Liveview to see whether it was in focus or not, as I couldn't get my head down to the viewfinder.  Turned out okay...


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/6.7, 1/3s, ISO400, handheld.

For this one I was just lucky the squirrel paused where it did, allowing me to fire off a few frames before it disappeared up the tree.  It was late in the afternoon, the sun was down behind the trees, and a higher ISO combined with a longer than ideal shutter speed was required.


Pentax K-5, Pentax DA*300mm f/4 lens @ f/4, 1/60s, -1.5EV, ISO800, handheld.

Red Deer Rut (Video)

I don't often 'do' video, but this evening the Red Deer rut over at Bedfords Park was in full swing and still images don't do justice to the sound of the bellowing stags, so I made use of the video capabilities of my DSLR.

Bedfords Park Red Deer Rut from Daniel Bridge on Vimeo.
Pentax K-5, Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 lens @ f/3.5, handheld.

Photo Friday - Week 37

Last Saturday I popped along to Maldon with the family for a walk along the river front, and found lots of gulls and starlings around the cafés by the lake.  I wished I'd taken my 300mm lens along, as I would have got some great portraits of the starlings, which were looking superb in their new plumage, but I just had my 50mm with me, so settled on some shots of the gulls as they flew overhead.


Pentax K-5, Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 lens @ f/6.7, 1/1000s, ISO200, handheld.