Light and Lighting Outdoors and "The Moment"

         I am posting these links for my Aunt Marie who is a talented artist. I know she is a Rembrandt fan and might enjoy this special about him. It's in 4 parts and offers an insight to the artist and his work. I wasn't a big fan of his work until I saw this well done documentary about him. I don't know if she is a fan of the Impressionists but the mini series linked in the next paragraph is also well done. You have to wonder where art would be now had it not been for the perseverance of artists like them and Van Gogh.
         In this great mini series about the French Impressionists, it is obvious that Claude Monet was obsessed with light. Some years back I was at the National Gallery in London and saw Water Lillies there and thought to myself I saw this in New York at The Metropolitan Museum of Art too. I later learned he painted that 30 some odd times. Each time it appeared different to him. In this series at one point in time he was painting on 4 canvasses at one time shifting from one to the other as the light would change. I am learning this lesson with my photography the hard way.
         After leaving for work the other day with my camera and tripod in hand I drove east around dawn and saw the sky lit up in spectacular pink and blue ribbons glimmering in the sunlight which was still below the horizon. So I did what any other kook would do. I pulled of the road at a nearby farm field and jumped out with the camera. Without sacrificing image quality I went with an ISO setting of 400. I didn't want a grainy image but the shutter speed was only 1/8 of a second. Too slow for a hand held shot but I took it anyway as I have seen great lighting slip away in the blink of an eye too many times before. This is what I got.

Then this

I was afraid the images would be blurred (and they are) from being hand held at such a slow shutter speed. I reached in the truck and set up the tripod which was no more than 2 minutes of elapsed time and this is what I saw when I looked up.

Not quite the same, is it? My fiery sunrise, "the moment" was gone almost in the blink of an eye. It goes that fast and not just with sunrises. That bird on a branch that you hope will turn for a better view and flies away instead or the cloud that moves in front of the sun and kills your nice warm golden sunlight in the setting or rising sun. All in all though, I am glad I captured what I did. Words could never do it justice.

Photoshop and photography

I have been playing with a 30 day trial of Photoshop from Adobe. It has come a long way from when I last used it which was more than 10 years ago. 10 years in the computer world is like in eon in real time. They offer this 30 day trial in the hopes that you will buy the software of course but what the did which in my opinion is brilliant, they now offer a monthly subscription which makes this affordable to the casual user. It allows the saving of what would otherwise have been a disappointing photo. The first 2 photos are untouched but I liked parts of each so I darkened the sky a bit which is shown in the 3rd.
       Back in the prehistoric days of film photography you got whatever the person running the developer thought it should look like. I remember getting several rolls with a green, red or blue bias to the entire roll. It was very frustrating. I tried to develop a relationship with developers who did the processing on site so they would understand what I was looking for especially with the astro photography I had done. Sadly these places are mostly all gone now. Here are the results.

Underexposed

Overexposed

Somewhere in between which I like

It also allows you to make changes from this

To this

And from this

To this



I am having fun with this program and will probably become a subscriber which allows you to get the latest updates as the are released. It is so easy to use now as compared to the past it's a pleasure to use. Bravo Adobe



Some odds and ends

These are some odds and ends photos I took out in Water Mill and Bridgehampton. This first one is of a Downy Woodpecker. This one is a male as distinguished by the red on the back of his head. It is very similar to the hairy woodpecker but is smaller and has more white on the wing. I stopped at the Sagg Swamp Nature Preserve this day and when I got out of the truck, I heard what I thought was the tree above me creaking. It sounded similar to two trees when the make contact. I looked up and didn't see any trees making contact with the one hanging over me and then I saw him move from one limb to another not more than 20 feet away. I snapped several shots of him and liked this one the best. He wasn't hammering away but rather like he was testing the wood. Looking for soft spots and listening for insects within. I did have to lighten him in photoshop just a bit.

This first one was an Osprey perched over its nest in Bridgehampton. I also lightened him a little to show more detail. Check out those talons. Several years ago I was fishing with my brother on a local lake and we heard a tremendous splash behind us. As we turned around, we saw one of these magnificent birds taking off from the water with a fairly good size Large Mouth Bass in its talons. It was an awesome sight. The second shot is one in flight over the pond at The Old Mill in Water Mill. He was actually hunting and watching the water below. I also had to lighten it as the sun was above it and wanted to show the color pattern on the underside of its wings.

This one is of a Great Egret just taking off from the water. It has been cropped and lightened just a smidge. A smidge is just less than a bit in case you were wondering.

And this is the scene looking south over Mecox Bay in Water Mill as seen from the main road just accross the road from where the above photo was taken. I might photoshop the sky from the fist shot and put on the seond shot as I like the railing in the view but the sky is better in the first one. Judge for yourself.

After seeing the two side by side I would lean towards the first shot being slightly underexposed. I was playing around with it and can darken the shy a little to make the clouds pop a little more. Will post when I do it.
        It's such a serene setting and full of wildlife but with the beauty of the place comes people, and lots of them. With them, they bring ignorance and lazyness. I know it sounds condescending but how else can you explain this 

and this

and this

Need I say or show more? Is it any wonder the Heron I called to have resued got trapped by garbage on this very lake? This makes me sick. We only have one planet. It sustains our existence. Once it's destroyed, so are we. It's that simple. Please respect our planet and don't be a slob. Think about what kind of world you want to leave for your future generations to inherit. The "precious" vehicles that were so important to keep clean will have been long gone to the shredder before these plastic bottles decompose.

"My bird" made facebook

Call me crazy. I really don't care and it wouldn't be the first time, but I have gone to visit the bird I helped get rescued and have been in contact with the rescue center about it's progress. It is doing well and I hope it gets released soon. The rescue center put up a great picture of it on their facebook page. You can see it here. It may be a bit deceiving as to its size. It actually stands about a foot tall. I knew he was in good hands. This center is outstanding in it's response and care of these injured animals.

Angels of Mercy

That is the only way I can describe them. I am talking about the people at the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center. Yesterday  I decided to stop again at the pond by The Old Mill at Watermill in the Hamptons hoping to spot more Ospreys or an Egret or Blue Heron. I almost didn't go but at the last minute I decided what the heck, it's a nice morning. To my surprise there were 4 Egrets which I will post pictures of in a later post. I also spotted what I thought was a Blue Heron further away. After taking some shots of the Egrets I noticed that something didn't look right with the Heron. Then as if to point out the bird was in trouble one of the Egrets flew over to where he was and perched.

I kept watching through the zoom lens and realized the bird had a tangled wing and was caught in the branches above the water and away from the shoreline. Sadly, my eyes are not what they used to be and to the unaided eye, this bird could have easily been mistaken for a plastic bag caught on the branch. I started observing him through the zoom lens to get a better perspective.

When he tried to free himself however there was no doubt that this was a bird in distress. I put down the camera and picked up my smart phone and did a search for wildlife rescue and it brought me to the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center which had a 24 hour hotline. I made the call and was called back literally within 2 minutes. That was at 7:10 am. When I broke for lunch at 12:45 I called to check on the status of the bird. It turns out it was a Black Crowned Night Heron. A nocturnal bird that I had never seen before or heard of. I thought it may have been an Osprey as it was too small to be a Blue Heron. It was not only rescued but treated and being cared for by these angels of mercy. It turns out the bird got tangled in some fishing line which got it snared on the branches. He had to be suchered and was thin. He was listed as stable but in critical condition. I hope this little guy makes a full recovery.

WHY? Why do people act like slobs in public places? I did some metal detecting at local beaches last year and could not believe the garbage left on our beaches. It absolutely disgusted me and reminded me why I stopped going to the beach. There is a load of garbage on the opposite side of this lake by the roadway. Is it really that important to keep your car clean that you think it's okay to trash a pristine and beautiful ecosystem like this? PEOPLE, THINK ABOUT YOUR ACTIONS!!! If you want to be an irresponsible slob, do it at home. I don't enjoy looking at your refuse and I really don't enjoy seeing birds and other wildlife pay the price for your laziness. Oh yeah, I fish too (catch and release only) but don't leave garbage and tangles of fishing line behind.

I can't praise the people at this wildlife center enough. It was not an easy resue to execute. GREAT JOB!!!!

Update 4/5/13 I stopped by center to see the bird and got an impromptu tour of the small yet impressive facility. The bird was not eating and seamed angry about his temporary captivity. That was in the afternoon on 4/3/13. I called today (4/5/13) and the bird was eating and gaining weight and doing well. They are doing some great work at this center. I can't praise them enough.

Another trip to Bridgehampton

Decided to go back to Bridgehampton again and try 1 more time lapse. This will do it for a while now until it gets warmer and some humidity and clouds to make it more interesting. Here is the result.

I left the beach and spied an Egret in the marsh stalking it's breakfast. By the time I stopped the truck and got out with the camera it was gone. Bummer! So I decided to head back to the Sagg Swamp Preserve again and on the way what do I see but a Red Fox. You don't see many of these on Long Island I snapped these from inside the truck at a stop sign. I'm sure there was a little heat distortion going on from the open window.

He was real skeptical of me and kept watching me as he made his way closer to the woods. I made it to the preserve hoping to see the Great Blue Heron I saw there during the week.

It wasn't there, but I did manage to scare off some ducks and miss a pic (again) of deer crossing the road. I walked the preserve and checked again for some ducks or whatever may be there and snuck up on this guy.

From what I can gather this is a Red Breasted Merganser.

I really love the beauty of the Hampton's and the diversity of its wildlife. I hope these people that are flocking out there don't destroy the charm and quaintness of the area with over development and overpopulation. I watched it happen in western Suffolk County and hope that doesn't happen here.

And now, a moment of Zen.

Bridgehampton and Sagg Swamp Nature Preserve

I decided to skip the time lapse work and take a trip to the  Sagg Swamp Nature Preserve. I heard about it on a local radio show and wanted to check it out. On the way I saw this gnarly old tree on Ocean Ave. I think it's an Elm. It's huge in diameter and probably predates the town of Bridgehampton itself. Compare it to the sidewalk to the left in the photo.

I continued on to the preserve and as I was pulling up, 3 deer ran across the road into the preserve. I saw 2 more in the woods waiting to come across and were checking me out. I had the camera in hand but wanted the zoom lense. As I was fumbling with the lens they scampered across the road. I could swear one of them flipped me the bird. I tried to track them only for a picture but they were too sharp for me and the brush was extremely thick off the trail which I would not venture from. I did get some interesting shots though and want to return when it's a little warmer.

This is outside the preserve where it empties out into a bay.

This is the other side inside the preserve. I didn't even see the duck until I blew up the picture to full size on the monitor.

This is part of a greenbelt that extends all the way to Sag Harbor. According to the radio broadcast, it's one of several swamps formed by the glaciers in the ice age when they receded. It's a beautiful place, I cant wait to see it in the spring when there are leaves on the trees and the birds are back to nest.
       This next shot is of a huge Rodedendrun hedge that is at least 15 feet high. I was lucky enough to see this in the height of it's bloom last summer. I want to capture it with the camera this year.