Week 4

f9.5, 1/350 sec., ISO-200, 100 mm

Week 4 March 25-31

This week was much cooler that last.  We went from 15 Celsius to about -2 in a week.  And there was a cold wind blowing from the north.  On the plus side, there is practically no snow left, just bits and pieces here and there.  

I usually shoot a lot of photos on Sunday afternoons but not this week.  The wind was so high that I knew it would affect my macro shots so I waited until Monday.  There was still a light breeze so I had to become more patient and wait for the wind to stop for a few seconds and then snap my shot.  Needless to say that when I got home and downloaded into the computer, there were lots of deletions...wind = blurry shots!  

Started the photo shoot in my front yard with the lilac buds coming to life. Took lots of shots from different angles and ended up choosing this one because I loved how the buds stood out against the soft the brick background. I then continued to my favourite path and found lots more neat stuff to shoot.  Still working on the tree moss!  All in all, it was a successful day.

Week 3

f13, 1/45 sec., ISO-200, 100 mm

Week 3 March 18-24

Sunday, March 18 was a most beautiful day of about 15 Celsius. I wore a light shirt, jeans and vest with pockets (somewhere to put my lens cap!), no hat, scarf or gloves today!  But I still wore my Sorels because it was really wet.  It's funny that now that the snow has melted, the little internal paths are harder to find!  Last week the trails were easy to find as they were packed down from all the dog walkers.  Today, I went down into the trail, thinking it was the same one I was on last week.  I found myself zig-zagging all over the place, trying to find the right trail.  I eventually found it, although it looks completely different without snow.  There was still some snow off the beaten path, so it's good that I had my boots on.  

Today's photo was actually taken before I went off the outside of the trail.  I was walking by and I liked how the new bud was forming, with an old leaf still attached to it.  Took a few shots from the front and back, thinking with excitement that these were the photos that were going to make the cut for this week's edition to the project.  You just never know until you get home and load them up into the computer!  

Week 2

f2.8, 1/500 sec., ISO-200, 100 mm

Week 2 - March 11-17

Today (March 11) was pretty nice outside, still lots of snow on the ground, but it has started to melt.  The breeze was cool so I did wear a winter jacket and had a hat and scarf around my neck to stay warm.  And I wore my shorter Sorels...which was a very good thing.  It appears that as the snow is melting, more and more dog do do is showing up.  Would you believe that there are people out there who walk their dogs and then do not bother to pick up the little treats left behind?  I mean, really!!!  OK, I am digressing, back to photography.

I walked down the well worn paths in my favourite spot, taking many photos.  One thing I am trying really hard to work on is this tree with moss growing on it...the moss is very small and I have tried and tried to get some decent macros.  Since I can't see the camera screen very well outside due to the extreme brightness, I really don't know what I have until I get home and download everything into the computer.  I have some OK shots but they won't be included in this little project until I get what I have an idea of in my head.

Today's photo happened to be taken on my walk back to the house.  I decided to walk back up Whalen St. and came across the great tree that was very close to the sidewalk.  As soon as I took this, I had a good feeling about it, I just liked the way the green and brown worked together.  And I really liked the softness of the background.  It worked out well.

Week 1

f11, 1/180 sec., ISO-200, 100 mm

Week 1 March 4-10, 2012

Sunday, March 4 is the day that I started my newest photography project.  I got this idea into my head that I would take a macro photo a week for 52 weeks.  I have recently completed a 365 project where I took a photo a day for an entire year.  It was a challenge to say the least!  I didn't want to have that kind of stress so that's why I changed it to posting only one pic per week...it's a lot more manageable.

First let me go back and say how thrilled I am to be the proud owner of a real macro lens.  It has been a dream for a long time and I was finally able to make it come true.  I had been looking on line and had a price from Primary Foto here in town.  After a lot of consideration, I got the best deal from Primary, plus I feel it's good to have the local connection.  John was pretty excited when I came into pick up the lens.  We chatted for a while and he gave me some interesting tips about using the lens.

After some practice shots, I was ready to start my project.  Let me say that it's tricky using a macro.  The focus is very fine and a bit of wind can ruin your shot.  I probably will be using a tripod in the not-too-distant future.

My first day out shooting for the project found me on my favourite little walking path near our house.  There was a ton of snow on the ground and luckily for me the path was clear.  The first item I spotted that looked interesting was some grasses off the path.  So I thought I will just step off and do some photos.  As soon as I stepped off the path, I fell into snow up to my knees (one foot).  Then I thought how do I get out of here?  I had to step in with my other foot and then get out.  Crazy stuff!  Once I got out of the deep snow, I thought to myself that I will stick to the path.  Further up, there were some well worn trails into the bush so I went on those.  And that worked out really well as I found a ton of great subjects.  I settled on this photo of some weeds (I don't know what they are really!).