The lights of Christmas

This year I found the star filter.  It fit perfectly on my 50mm f1.8 lens. It was fun to try this oldie but goody - it's nice to be able to control the focus on the dSLR.

But even more fun to get this look without having to go with f22 using the star filter.

Here you can see the decorations better because I turned the living room lights on.

A few close ups. 

And a fun angle I've been wanting to try for years but just plain forgot about.

 My favorite Christmas decoration is my nativity.  It's by Willow Tree and wrapping a few white lights down and around added just the right touch.

And my pine cone garland with lights on it this year.

The little entry tree and with the big tree in the background.

Ahhh

 I LOVE my mantle! 

Bright Day Light flower photos

As you can tell I am fascinated with my Nikon D7000 because it handles the highlights better than anything I've ever used.  Digital has been challenged by highlights.  So here it is in bright sun at 1pm.  Can you believe it?

Well and this thing is amazing.  My neighbor dug it out of her yard 2 springs ago and begged me to take it. Its very prolific. We got a few flowers last year.  But this is insane.  I can't wait to see them all in full bloom.  It's going to be spectacular.  Of course because they are so white, I will photograph them at dusk or on a cloudy day to capture more detail.

And here is a peek inside of some of my tulips out back.  Yes, it's June and I have tulips.  It snowed Monday.  What can I say? The thing that makes these tulips really look good is the f2.8.  It's fun to see them and see the background but be able to focus on the tulips.

And the alliums are starting to appear.  This is one from the small grouping.

And this is one of the larger alliums.  His Majesty is its name, I believe. I can't wait to see these in full bloom and I promise to share as long as the wind doesn't tear them off their stems tomorrow.

Again, straight out of the camera only because I forgot to pump up the vibrance with the jpeg raw slider. 

Photographing in the Garden - Horizontal and Vertical

I planted this peach tree last spring and pruned it up just like they told me in Andersons in the garden center.  Now I am going to have to find an expert to tell me what to do now.  I haven't a clue.  I solve this problem by asking questions. Here is one of the last blossoms.  The kids are so excited to grow their own peach I might just let it grow at least one or two this year.  

Nikon D7000, 50mm 1.8,  f1.8, 1/1250, ISO 200 and 6:57 p.m.

I was fighting with the sun on this one so it's not in a third but that's okay.  I like it. That's what matters. The leading lines help to compensate for that.  The branches lead you right to the blossom.

So here is another angle on photographing this blossom.  I love how the depth of field blurs the leaves closest to and furthest from the camera.  To me, depth of field used properly is a sign of a photographer who knows what they are doing or at least has an artistic eye. Depth of field helps you focus on the subject too.   

Nikon D7000, 50mm 1.8,  f1.8, 1/1000, ISO 200 and 6:57 p.m.

And here is the Dragon's Tongue Sedum.  I have two types.  One has red succulent leaves with red blossoms and this one is bright green with bright pink blossoms that remind me of The Dragon Who Liked to Spit Fire. It's extremely drought tolerant and transplants like you'd not believe.  I pulled a few pieces, stick them between some rocks in the backyard, watered them once and forgot about them.  Those 3 pieces are now 50 or more and snuggled right in between the rocks.

Nikon D7000, 50mm 1.8,  f2.8, 1/1250, ISO 200 and 6:54 p.m.

While the straight on shot is great its also nice to photograph from the side and also turn the camera orientation to horizontal. Click on this one to see it in more detail.

Tulips - yep, more tulips

But aren't these gorgeous?  I love the variety of colors.  That's what you get when you buy the bulk bag of red tulips from Lowes. There are even yellow tulips in the bunch.  And very few red actually.  But I love how it turned out.  And I love this photo.  The color and the texture of the flower.  Click on them to see them larger. 

Oh and remember yesterday's post? Those tulips looked better in the brighter side light.  These look better in the sweet light or the light left over after the sun went behind the mountain. These were taken at 7:12 p.m.  f2.8, 1/160, ISO 200 with my Nikon D7000- oh and I used aperture priority. Can I tell you how much I love this camera? It's seriously my favorite so far and I've owned $5,000 cameras.