March 2024 favourite uploads

[spacecadet]

You could try whacking up the blue luminance a bit.

[Steve F]

1 minute ago, spacecadet said:

You could try whacking up the blue luminance a bit.

 

Yeah... The sky was a problem on both images. Looked weird even with the rest of the image in what I judged was the correct white balance. Had to fiddle with the hue. Think I was trying to stick to the original conditions too much rather than using some artistic interpretation. ISO 800 F8.0 for 0.5s on a tripod.

[spacecadet]

1 minute ago, Steve F said:

 

Yeah... The sky was a problem on both images. Looked weird even with the rest of the image in what I judged was the correct white balance. Had to fiddle with the hue. Think I was trying to stick to the original conditions too much rather than using some artistic interpretation. ISO 800 F8.0 for 0.5s on a tripod.

Or the old fashioned way........a long exposure and a bit of light painting on the wings with a torch..........even put an orange Quality Street wrapper on it to get the colour..........just kidding.....mostly.

[Steve F]

15 minutes ago, spacecadet said:

Or the old fashioned way........a long exposure and a bit of light painting on the wings with a torch..........even put an orange Quality Street wrapper on it to get the colour..........just kidding.....mostly.

 

ha ha. Torch might have been good, but statue is high up. Selected the statue with an AI mask (object) in Lightroom, and then subtract with a fine brush because it was also selecting bits of the sky and creating an unintentional halo around it.

 

Don't miss old fashioned techniques like graduated filters, that's for sure!

Edited March 11 by Steve F

[cbimages]

Always love to see these gorgeous shells out feeding when diving, and the eyes and radula (mouth) say it all

 Love these jawfish, so bright. And I saw some new fishy behaviour from this one. I got a couple of shots, he was over me being there, popped out of his hole and picked up a small rock, and used it as a "lid" to hide his hole.

 

Crinoid squat lobster, usually hidden down in the feet of the crinoid, this chap was wandering around and posing nicely. Body size less than 10mm

[gvallee]

1 hour ago, cbimages said:

Always love to see these gorgeous shells out feeding when diving, and the eyes and radula (mouth) say it all

 Love these jawfish, so bright. And I saw some new fishy behaviour from this one. I got a couple of shots, he was over me being there, popped out of his hole and picked up a small rock, and used it as a "lid" to hide his hole.

 

Crinoid squat lobster, usually hidden down in the feet of the crinoid, this chap was wandering around and posing nicely. Body size less than 10mm

 

Beautiful images!

[Allan Bell]

More from me.

 

Voigtlander VITO B 35 mm camera

 

 

Lincolnshire Police car parked on High Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Ladies fashion clothes shop sale now on

 

 

200 degree coffee shop and barista school, Sincil Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Allan

 

[NYCat]

10 hours ago, cbimages said:

Always love to see these gorgeous shells out feeding when diving, and the eyes and radula (mouth) say it all

 Love these jawfish, so bright. And I saw some new fishy behaviour from this one. I got a couple of shots, he was over me being there, popped out of his hole and picked up a small rock, and used it as a "lid" to hide his hole.

 

Crinoid squat lobster, usually hidden down in the feet of the crinoid, this chap was wandering around and posing nicely. Body size less than 10mm

 

Wow. Wonderful that you are enjoying such wonders.

 

Paulette

[cbimages]

21 hours ago, gvallee said:

 

Beautiful images!

Thanks Gen

 

[cbimages]

13 hours ago, NYCat said:

 

Wow. Wonderful that you are enjoying such wonders.

 

Paulette

thanks Paulette

[Sally Robertson]

A Pacific Gull catching dinner.

 

 

A Sooty Oystercatcher standing on one leg with a well worn, blunted bill from foraging.

 

 

 

The channel at dusk where the Blackwood River enters the Southern Ocean at Augusta, Western Australia with a navigation marker and speed limit sign.

 

 

A feral rabbit. 13 rabbits were introduced into Australia in the 19th century and there are now apparently 200 million of them across the continent. So quite an invasive, introduced species! Cute though, but not so good in terms of land degradation and taking over habitat from local species.

 

 

[Allan Bell]

Next lot.

 

Four young ladies making way down Steep Hill, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

mobile stall selling Bonsai trees for Mothers Day, High Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

 

monochrome View down lower Steep Hill in winter sun, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK 

 

 

Young boy looking at hot steaming mixed vegetables, Cornhill Saturday Market, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire

 

 

Red car being given parking ticket by officer, Silver Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Allan

 

Edited March 14 by Allan Bell

[Allan Bell]

Sorry but I have some more to show.

 

GREGGS bakers shop corner Bailgate and Westgate, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Refurbishing empty shop for new occupants, High Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

CHOPSTIX noodle bar opening soon, High Street, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Erecting high level scaffolding outside White Hart Hotel, Bailgate, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Sanctuary in the Bail closed for refurbishment, Bailgate, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

School children crocodile with minders and teachers, Saltergate, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

Scaffold erectors passing planks up to top, Cornhill, Lincoln City, Lincolnshire, England, UK

 

 

That is it for now.

 

Allan

 

[NYCat]

Did you do something special with the first three? They look very crisp. Maybe the light? Nice photos as always, Allan.

 

Paulette

[Allan Bell]

3 hours ago, NYCat said:

Did you do something special with the first three? They look very crisp. Maybe the light? Nice photos as always, Allan.

 

Paulette

 

Hi Paulette,  No they were all processed in my usual way.

 

Thank you for the compliment.

 

I love your Polar bear photos.

 

Allan

 

[NYCat]

 

 

We were incredibly lucky that trip. Lots and lots of bears. Some people go and see nothing. Of course Joe VanOs of photosafaris.com is very very good at making the most of locations. We were in a research ship that could go way into the ice, unlike the big ships that Nat Geo uses. The bear biologist who was with us had never seen so many bears and had never before seen a mom stalk and kill a seal for her cubs. He had seen each part of the event but never before from beginning to end. We even saw them eating... very bloody cubs who liked to play with their food....

 

D71338

 

D71332

 

D7137F

 

Of course, these don't sell like the cute ones. Mother Nature is often not cute at all. The trip was so expensive I will never make it back in sales but it was, indeed, priceless. I am very fortunate to have been able to watch these amazing bears in their wild home.

 

Paulette

Edited March 15 by NYCat

[spacecadet]

1 hour ago, NYCat said:

 

 

 Of course Joe VanOs of photosafaris.com is very very good at making the most of locations.

 

Paulette

Maybe he has a regular troupe of bears...costs him a lot of seal.

[cbimages]

A few more from me.
Orange-Spotted Glassy-Bubble Snail, Lamprohaminoea cymbalum. These can be quite "large".....as "big" as 15mm!

Always hard to shoot, they live under rocks and I only have a second before she leaves her eggs once the rock is turned. Getting the eye is always so difficult. Chinese Cowry or Cowrie, Ovatipsa chinensis, with orange egg mass

It's hard enough to find these tiny crabs, which hide deep in the arms of their coral host. then there is the issue of getting light to them! I visited a coral head 9 times over 9 days to get a few decent shots. Crab about 10-12mm across carapace. Rust Spotted Guard Crab, or Hard Coral Crab or Red-Spotted Coral Crab, Trapezia rufopunctata. Lives on hard corals of genus Stylophora and Pocillopora

Always nice to see a Seahorse moving around, rather than tethered. Thorny Seahorse, also known as Spiny Seahorse, Hippocampus histrix, swimming on the reef underwater, searching for food

[gvallee]

18 minutes ago, cbimages said:

A few more from me.
Orange-Spotted Glassy-Bubble Snail, Lamprohaminoea cymbalum. These can be quite "large".....as "big" as 15mm!

Always hard to shoot, they live under rocks and I only have a second before she leaves her eggs once the rock is turned. Getting the eye is always so difficult. Chinese Cowry or Cowrie, Ovatipsa chinensis, with orange egg mass

It's hard enough to find these tiny crabs, which hide deep in the arms of their coral host. then there is the issue of getting light to them! I visited a coral head 9 times over 9 days to get a few decent shots. Crab about 10-12mm across carapace. Rust Spotted Guard Crab, or Hard Coral Crab or Red-Spotted Coral Crab, Trapezia rufopunctata. Lives on hard corals of genus Stylophora and Pocillopora

Always nice to see a Seahorse moving around, rather than tethered. Thorny Seahorse, also known as Spiny Seahorse, Hippocampus histrix, swimming on the reef underwater, searching for food

 

Fascinating images, as always. I can see the pleasure diving gives you. It's wonderful.

 

 

[cbimages]

47 minutes ago, gvallee said:

 

Fascinating images, as always. I can see the pleasure diving gives you. It's wonderful.

 

 

Many thank Gen, yes diving is keeping me alive, in spite of increasing breast cancer levels, more pain and far less stamina. We're off to Bali again early next month, back early June, then more bloods, more scans and 99% sure new meds needed. Along with their new side effects and 2 months of waiting to see if they are working for me.....always a bad and stressy time. Thank goodness for our wonderful dive porter who works for us in Bali, and now has to do everything for me, even puts on my fins as I can't bend or reach easily. But hey, I can still dive........who cares if I look useless!

[gvallee]

8 minutes ago, cbimages said:

Many thank Gen, yes diving is keeping me alive, in spite of increasing breast cancer levels, more pain and far less stamina. We're off to Bali again early next month, back early June, then more bloods, more scans and 99% sure new meds needed. Along with their new side effects and 2 months of waiting to see if they are working for me.....always a bad and stressy time. Thank goodness for our wonderful dive porter who works for us in Bali, and now has to do everything for me, even puts on my fins as I can't bend or reach easily. But hey, I can still dive........who cares if I look useless!

 

This is the right attitude. Hubby's half-sister tells him, with a not so small dose of sarcasm, 'you have chosen a lifestyle not everybody would choose but it seems to suit you'. She's also surprised that he found a woman equally willing. Ha ha! Let's just enjoy life the way that works for us.

[cbimages]

3 minutes ago, gvallee said:

 

This is the right attitude. Hubby's half-sister tells him, with a not so small dose of sarcasm, 'you have chosen a lifestyle not everybody would choose but it seems to suit you'. She's also surprised that he found a woman equally willing. Ha ha! Let's just enjoy life the way that works for us.

For sure, we all need to learn to enjoy life, and take every day as a gift. My hubby will turn 84 in August, he's overweight, has a metal hip and a metal knee + a mild heart problem. He still dives. We have each other, and are so thankful for each day that we can still spend together and planning to do more of what we love.

I am lucky to have both my GP and oncologist onside. Oncologist took a while to "win over" but now realises I will keep going while hubby and I can dive. GP warned me the  massive amount of radiation could cause lung issues underwater one day and I could die while trying to surface (as my lungs expand). I assured him I was aware, and said if that happens, better than sitting at home and waiting to die from cancer. He nodded and the issue not mentioned further!

[NYCat]

10 hours ago, cbimages said:

A few more from me.
Orange-Spotted Glassy-Bubble Snail, Lamprohaminoea cymbalum. These can be quite "large".....as "big" as 15mm!

Always hard to shoot, they live under rocks and I only have a second before she leaves her eggs once the rock is turned. Getting the eye is always so difficult. Chinese Cowry or Cowrie, Ovatipsa chinensis, with orange egg mass

It's hard enough to find these tiny crabs, which hide deep in the arms of their coral host. then there is the issue of getting light to them! I visited a coral head 9 times over 9 days to get a few decent shots. Crab about 10-12mm across carapace. Rust Spotted Guard Crab, or Hard Coral Crab or Red-Spotted Coral Crab, Trapezia rufopunctata. Lives on hard corals of genus Stylophora and Pocillopora

Always nice to see a Seahorse moving around, rather than tethered. Thorny Seahorse, also known as Spiny Seahorse, Hippocampus histrix, swimming on the reef underwater, searching for food

 

Gorgeous and amazing. Thank you for sharing them.

 

Paulette

[Ed Rooney]

On 15/03/2024 at 15:20, NYCat said:

 

 

We were incredibly lucky that trip. Lots and lots of bears. Some people go and see nothing. Of course Joe VanOs of photosafaris.com is very very good at making the most of locations. We were in a research ship that could go way into the ice, unlike the big ships that Nat Geo uses. The bear biologist who was with us had never seen so many bears and had never before seen a mom stalk and kill a seal for her cubs. He had seen each part of the event but never before from beginning to end. We even saw them eating... very bloody cubs who liked to play with their food....

 

D71338

 

D71332

 

D7137F

 

Mother Nature is often not cute at all. 

 

Paulette

 

Mother Nature? You should see me with some Scouse stew.

[John Richmond]

A few from me, the first four taken at The Garden House, near me in Devon and the charitable trust where I'm a volunteer.  It's looking good at the moment!

 

Magnolia 'Shirazz' and Cornus 'Amy's Winter Orange'

 

Acer palmatum 'Katsura;

 

Magnolia 'Felix Jury'

 

Spring bulbs

 

and a final one taken in my own front garden.  Magnolia 'Raspberry Ice'