Category: 2019

Photos from 2019

Categories
2019

2019: Leftovers

A small selection of photos from 2019 that I edited for a post but never got used.

In no particular order.

Storm clouds over Colpoy’s Bay and the Niagara Escarpment at sunrise a few days before the summer solstice.

2019: Leftovers

 

Hosta leaves with a 25mm CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera.

2019: Leftovers

 

A giant red butterfly garden ornament in the snow in early December.

2019: Leftovers

 

A monochrome study of a Dandelion clock taken with a 35mm CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera.

2019: Leftovers

 

Colpoy’s Bay and the Niagara Escarpment at sunrise in mid August.

2019: Leftovers

 

Ivy leaves and rocks in the snow in early January.

2019: Leftovers

 

Categories
2019

2019 in Monochrome

A small selection of monochrome shots from 2019.

A seed head in the snow in January.

Minimalist plant remains.

 

A Bracken frond, testing a 35mm CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera in June.

Monochrome Monday: 30th September 2019

 

Hosta leaves with a 25mm CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera in July.

Hosta leaves in monochrome.

 

Clouds over Colpoy’s Bay and the Niagara Escarpment at sunrise in August.

Cee's Black and White Photo Challenge: Take New Photos.

 

Ivy leaves on a tree trunk in November.

2019 in Monochrome

Categories
2019

Viennese Shortcakes

As a follow-up to my recent A Photo a Week Challenge: Christmas Memories post. Nancy that runs the challenge asked for the recipe for the Viennese Shortcakes.

Viennese Shortcakes (also known as Viennese Whirls according to Google).

  • 1 cup of all purpose flour
  • 1 cup of butter (or margarine)
  • 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and half of the flour and beat well. Add the rest of the flour and beat again.

Put the mixture into a piping bag and pipe a swirl into a paper muffin liner leaving a hollow in the center.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes.

When cool dust with icing sugar and fill the center with jam.

Viennese Whirls

Categories
2019

Some interesting clouds yesterday morning

I made a short visit to Colpoy’s Bay yesterday morning.

I saw the interesting clouds to the east and realised that the sun was due to rise in around 35 minutes so thought a quick detour was in order.

Colpoy's Bay at sunrise.

 

Categories
2019

Another walk, another lens test

I managed to get out for a proper walk with the 7artisans 35mm f/1.2 lens attached to the camera recently. The first test was a quick walk around the yard when I had a couple of minutes.

Second impressions are that it’s an interesting lens, I can see it spending a lot of time on the camera. I still think it needs a lens hood so that’s something that needs sorting out before the next test.

A Daylily near the start of the walk. Shot wide open the lens produces some interesting background blur in the leaves behind the flower.

Testing the 7artisans 35mm lens.

 

An Umbellifer flower with the lens wide open at f/1.2 again.

Testing the 7artisans 35mm f/1.2 lens.

 

Categories
2019

Another test of the 25mm CCTV lens

Having fixed the focusing mechanism of the 25mm CCTV lens I was experimenting with I went for another walk with it. The first test/walk is here.

It turned out that while the focusing mechanism now works the lens now focusses well past infinity and no longer focusses as close at it had when the focusing mechanism wasn’t working properly. I haven’t decided if I’m going to dismantle the focusing mechanism again or just leave it as it is.

Old seed pods and new leaves. It seems strange for the old seed pods to be on the plant this time of year. The swirling around the edges of the frame is very obvious in this shot.

Old seed pods and new leaves.

Some interesting variegated leaves. The swirling around the edges and vignetting in the corners is less obvious in this shot.

25mm CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera.

Categories
2019

A walk with a 50mm CCTV lens

A morning walk with the camera, this time testing a 50mm f/1.4 CCTV lens adapted to fit a mirrorless camera.

So far this lens seems optically the best of the three CCTV lenses I am testing. But one of the main reasons for experimenting with these lenses is their strange optical behaviour around the edges of the frame and in the backgrounds of images so this lens is a bit of a disappointment so far. I wasn’t expecting a $41 CAD (including shipping and the adapter) lens to be this good.

A Periwinkle flower after some overnight rain with the lens wide open at f/1.4. The flower seems to be fairly sharp considering it’s close to the edge of the frame and the lens was wide open.

Blue flower photographed with a CCTV lens.

Old seed pods and new leaves. I had photographed these seed pods last winter and was surprised to find that they were still on the plant months later surrounded by new leaves. Again, the seed pod seems fairly sharp even though it’s away from the center of the frame.

Fresh growth and seed pods.