It's an Inside Kind of Day

I awoke this morning to the steady drum of rain on the roof. I was going to create a special hummingbird image today but I can see that's not going to be possible. It's a good time to reclaim my office from a back up of paperwork and mess then work on editing some images. Here is a view of the Madrone tree in our backyard this morning. May you have a beautiful and blessed day, chris This image was photographed with my go to camera set up. I was using a Canon 7D mkII and a Canon 100-400IS v.1 lens. The camera settings used were AV mode,ISO 800, F 16.0 at 1/13th of a sec. The camera was handheld and braced against a a wall.

Random Images From a Rainy Day

On my way to the gym this morning I made a trip around the Little Lake Valley. I stopped on the north end of the valley to photograph the lake that forms what many believe to be the namesake of this valley. Way back in time the lake used to be even bigger until the settlers blew up a natural rock dam that used to block off the end of the valley. Next stop was to photograph a section of Reynolds Highway. It's a funny name because it's not really a highway, it's just a narrow two lane road that goes around the north end of the valley. My last stop was to photograph the small town morning rush hour going by on Highway 101. A much different view than I would get on the southern end of 101 in Los Angeles! The drive was rainy, wet and wonderful. From the weather forecast we are going to get two more days of this. God's love and blessings to all, chris All images created with a Canon 7D anda Canon 50mm 1.8 lens. Exposures varied.

Simple Rainy Day

We really need the rain and the good Lord has been sending it. There has been one storm front after another coming roughly one every twenty four hours. This morning was no different as we awoke to the sound of the rain drumming on the roof. The perfect day to sit by the woodstove and read a book. The need for food eventually drove me out of the house. I haven't been grocery shopping for quite awhile and we needed food. I grabbed my camera as I headed out the door thinking that there must be something to photograph along the way. Sure enough on my drive down I spotted a pair of Red Shouldered Hawks near the Brooktrails Lodge. They were on a wire and I could only photograph one at a time. So here is one of them. Once in town I noticed a guy with a red umbrella. I couldn't miss out on the the iconic image of a guy with a red umbrella could I? After shopping for groceries I stopped to buy gas. As I was filling up two Ravens began to raid the garbage can right behind the gas pump I was using. I slowly grabbed my camera out of the car. One of the Ravens wasn't having any of that and it took off. The other one stayed behind long enough for me to get some nice portraits. Once I arrived home I worked on putting a window blind up in the back bedroom of our house. From the bedroom I managed to get one Chestnut Backed Chickadee image from the backyard while staying warm and dry as the rains came pouring down. God's light and love to all, chris #TeamCanon

Bushel of Acorn Woodpeckers

The weather outside is frightful. The wind is blowing and scattered rain is coming down from light gray skies. I don't mind photographing when it is snowing but pouring rain is another story. Today is a perfect day to sit by the warm fire and work indoors. I always have a lot of indoor work to catch up on! Here are a few more from my bushels of Acorn Woodpeckers. All of these woodpecker images were photographed at either F 5.6 or f 8.0 to allow the background of Bay Laurel trees to blur out into a pleasing background. The rainy image of the Madrone Tree was created with a Canon 28-105 lens with an f stop of F 11.0. The main focus point was the raindrops on the window pane. May you have a blessed day. chris All of the woodpecker images were created with a Canon 7D and a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens. Manfrotto 190 XPROb Tripod with a Bogen 3055 Ballhead. Camera settings used- AV mode, ISO 400,f 8.0 or 5.6. Shutter speed varied .

Great Day for Tea

Today it rained off and on all day long. First thing this morning I did a little grocery shopping came home and stoked the wood stove. Then I went into the kitchen and baked chocolate chip cookies and peppermint toffeee. It was the perfect day to sit by the wood stove and drink tea. It was also pretty exciting to find that my book, "Secrets of Backyard Bird Photography"was the number one book featured by Rainy Day Magazine in a feature called the "Rainy Day Gift Guide". http://www.rainydaymagazine.com/RDM2014/Home/December/Week3/RDMHomeDec1714.htm#RainyDayGiftGuide_Books God bless, chris Image created with a Canon 7D and a Canon 28-105 lens at 45mm. Camera settings used. Program mode, ISO 400,F 4.0 at 1/5th of a sec. Camera was set on a Manfrotto 055PROBX tripod with a Bogen 3055 heavy duty ballhead.

Indoor Pursuits

Yesterday's weather forecast for today was partly cloudy. They got the cloudy part right! It is pretty dreary out. We can praise the Lord for the rain. I got out of bed early made breakfast and then created a new set up for the birds in the yard. It will take them awhile to figure it out as it is a new knothole set up in the mossy piece of bark. Hopefully I'll get a short weather break and give it a try over the next few days. Meanwhile I will just have to keep myself happy with some indoor pursuits. This morning I made some water and oil images with a macro lens which is always fun as the number of color combinations is endless. Here are just a few along with the view to the east this morning from my bedroom window. Have a great day and God bless, chris Image created with a canon 7D and a 100mm macro lens. Camera settings varied, ISO 400, AV mode

Impressionistic Rainy Day

I loved the sound of the rain when I awoke this morning. Every bit that we get now can help relieve the drought and lessen the fire danger for the upcoming summer. When I headed out the door to go work out at the gym I grabbed my camera and stuck in on a tripod in the passenger seat of the pick up. Badger dog wasn't too pleased about having the camera there because that's where he normally gets to ride! He just curled up in a ball in the back seat and looked unhappy. On the drive down town and on the way back home I clicked the shutter at various spots in the road that I thought looked good using a remote. This afternoon I when I got around to processing them I was really pleased with the results. They are very impressionistic and I love the painterly feel to them. I hope that you do too. God's blessings to you, chris Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon 28-105. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV mode, ISO 400, F22.0, Shutter speed varied. Manual focus set to infinity.

Randomness of a Rainy Day

Yesterday and today are rainy days. I just photographed some random objects around the house. Badger because he is handy and such a cute dog and a Lake County Diamond because I thought it might be cool. The last item was a dandelion because I wondered what the seed heads looked like when it rains. Now I need to get to work on my book! A rainy day is perfect for working inside. God's love and blessings to you, chris

Perfect Day for a Bowl of Soup

Today has been gray, blustery and rainy all day long. Perfect for sitting by the woodstove with a bowl of Minestrone Soup. Nuff said. God's love and blessings to all, chris