Life through a Lens

[Okie Boom]

Wow, very cool!

Great captures!

[dolt45]

Originally Posted by cam62

I like the wildlife photos too. And yes.. I have learned to keep the lens clean

How exactly did you get THAT close to an osprey?
Jeebus!

Originally Posted by BowtieBelle

A couple of pics from my recent cruise. I'll post a ton more when I get them off the camera; these were just shot with my iPhone. Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Jamaica.

Originally Posted by Ladybugsmom

Digging through some old wildlife shots (finally getting around to scanning pics into the computer ).
This was taken about 15 years ago with my old Minolta film camera. I was in Botswana, and I didn't need to switch to the zoom lens for shots of this leopard. Yup, we were THAT close!

No fair! You guys are circumnavigating to get awesome shots. That's cheatin'. (ok, maybe not... nice ones ladies!)

Originally Posted by cam62

Okie..
Somewhere in this thread you tossed around the idea of a weekly assignment.

I'm game!

If you guys want to do weekly assignments why not just sign up on fredmiranda.com ?

While the competion will be stiff they have weekly and monthly assignments. They also used to, and may still, give a prize to first place (it used to be add-ons for Photoshop but that may have changed). There are a lot of very gifted photographers there from very skilled pros to total noobs with their first digital camera and they all share tips and critique each others work (constructively). If you are serious about improving your chops there probably isn’t a better place outside of a school.

I learned a huge portion of what I know about photography there.
Give some serious thought to joing their forum.

[Ladybugsmom]

I scanned a few more in from Botswana.... Maybe part of the quality issue is the scanner I'm using - not a bad one, but it takes FOREVER to load a high resolution scan!!! Here's some of my faves....

[dolt45]

Bird brains...

[Ladybugsmom]

Originally Posted by dolt45

No fair! You guys are circumnavigating to get awesome shots. That's cheatin'. (ok, maybe not... nice ones ladies!)

My goal in life was to visit all seven continents... CHECK! If I had unlimited time and money, I'd love to see every square inch of our beautiful planet, and photograph it all...
I still need to see more of Asia (Nepal, India, and China are on my bucket list), but then, the goal is every US state.
Don't worry, I'll put up pics...

[Ladybugsmom]

Dolt45, you HAVE to go to Africa if you like birds! I never was much into bird-watching until I went there. Amazing...

[Ladybugsmom]

Some landscapes from my seventh continent, Antarctica... (still trying to decide which one to print and hang in my home...)

[Ladybugsmom]

Originally Posted by dolt45

Bird brains...

He's looking at you like he's saying "What is that THING you're pointing at me???" Very cool shot!

[dolt45]

Originally Posted by Ladybugsmom

Dolt45, you HAVE to go to Africa if you like birds! I never was much into bird-watching until I went there. Amazing...

I love birds, sure, but I love pretty much everything else as well. I take pictures of everything. Though I admit that 'critters' are my favorite.

Originally Posted by Ladybugsmom

Some landscapes from my seventh continent, Antarctica... (still trying to decide which one to print and hang in my home...)

I think this one is a bit cooler than the other. Its a bit more dynamic.
Both are pretty cool though! (no pun intended)

Originally Posted by Ladybugsmom

He's looking at you like he's saying "What is that THING you're pointing at me???" Very cool shot!

LOL... The 14 year old that lives in the back of my head had a good time with that one.

[dolt45]

A few non 'critter' pics. These are ones that I submitted for weekly assignments a long time ago at fredmiranda.com
The weekly theme of each is listed with the pic:

Action:


The passage of time:


Musical instruments:



Hot:

[cam62]

Originally Posted by dolt45

How exactly did you get THAT close to an osprey?
Jeebus!

Zoom is against the rules ? Here in Florida many Ospreys' have lost some of their natural fear of humans. This one was in a tree about 30 feet above me and just sat there posing for me

Originally Posted by dolt45

If you guys want to do weekly assignments why not just sign up on fredmiranda.com ?

While the competion will be stiff they have weekly and monthly assignments. They also used to, and may still, give a prize to first place (it used to be add-ons for Photoshop but that may have changed). There are a lot of very gifted photographers there from very skilled pros to total noobs with their first digital camera and they all share tips and critique each others work (constructively). If you are serious about improving your chops there probably isn’t a better place outside of a school.

I learned a huge portion of what I know about photography there.
Give some serious thought to joing their forum.

I'm sure I will but Okie suggested that since we all share a couple of common interests (camaros and photography) it might be fun to start one here.

Time is precious and I'm afraid if I join fredmiranda I'll end up spending more time there than here. Not sure if I am ready to go that route just yet

But as you said everyone from noobs to pros use that site so I'm sure it's worth some time for me.

What processing software do you all like the most. When I purchased my dslr last fall I decided it was high time to start. I couldn't make up my mind so I found GIMP and am using that.

I have a nikkon and I guess it's time to find a plugin to read NEF files. I'm considering Nikons capture NX program.

Any thoughts?

[dolt45]

Originally Posted by cam62

Zoom is against the rules ? Here in Florida many Ospreys' have lost some of their natural fear of humans. This one was in a tree about 30 feet above me and just sat there posing for me

Rules? What rules? BTW, I hate you now.
I love shooting birds of prey and have never gotten within 50 yards of an Osprey. I did get this shot, too bad she was WAY too far away for anything decent. This shot is heavily cropped:

Originally Posted by cam62

I'm sure I will but Okie suggested that since we all share a couple of common interests (camaros and photography) it might be fun to start one here.

Time is precious and I'm afraid if I join fredmiranda I'll end up spending more time there than here. Not sure if I am ready to go that route just yet

But as you said everyone from noobs to pros use that site so I'm sure it's worth some time for me.

What processing software do you all like the most. When I purchased my dslr last fall I decided it was high time to start. I couldn't make up my mind so I found GIMP and am using that.

I have a nikkon and I guess it's time to find a plugin to read NEF files. I'm considering Nikons capture NX program.

Any thoughts?

[SIZE=3][FONT=Times New Roman] I was just offering up fredmiranda.com for those who might want to spend some time building up their photo skillset. I spent a lot of time there back in the early days of the forum, way more than I spend here, so I understand your concerns of plugging into another time vacuum.

As far as processing software I use Photoshop CS5 but it’s quite pricey for a casual user ($600+).

I also have Adobe’s “Lightroom” but I almost never use it. I’ve spent so much time in Photoshop that I’m just more comfortable there. Having said that, I know a lot of folks swear by it and its a good deal cheaper than the full blown Photoshop (The current version “4” is $150 or you can a new copy of the older version “3” for $100).

Something you might consider is Photoshop Elements. It is a stripped down (cheaper) version of Photoshop that only has the basics but it is made by the best in the business and doesn’t suck. I have played around with it and found it quite useful but I’m spoiled on the full version. Elements goes for about $75.

I have never used Nikon gear so I can’t help you there. If you ever have questions on Canon gear, I’m your man. (I’m a serious fanboy)

[cam62]

I love capturing birds of prey too. Here's another one
I have to learn to carry my camera at all times. I have missed several wonderful shot's of Bald Eagles. :(

[cam62]

Florida has a huge variety of birds