Rain Birds

Thank you Lord for the rain today. With the rain came the Varied Thrush. They always seem to come out when it rains. Early this afternoon the thrushes came two and three at a time to the bird feeders. Unfortunately for me I really wasn't set up for photographing them so I ended up photographing them through the window which isn't the optimum method for photographing birds. Still I like the end result. it shows the thrushes pretty well in the damp environment in which they live. God's love and blessings to all, chris Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon 100-400 at 340 mm. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV mode, ISO 800, F5.6, Shutter speed 1/30th of a sec.

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.

Rambling on Small Town Life

Living in a small town has advantages and disadvantages. Traffic is great the majority of the time. In summer it gets a bit crowded from all the tourists coming through on vacation. Even then it's a minor inconvenience when compared to a daily commute in a major city. The schools are pretty short funded and a little run down. But you can name every one of your child's teachers and can say hi to them when you see them in the grocery store. There are some fantastic teachers here despite the lower pay. A lot of students move on to four year schools after high school. Shopping for certain items can be a real problem as there just aren't many stores that carry them. Pretty easily solved by buying on the internet or driving to the nearest larger town. We have a couple of great book stores. A wonderful art gallery and the best public library you could ever ask for. There are some nice restaurants and one Art Deco movie theater. It plays first run movies! We also have two drama theaters in town that put on some fantastic plays. In one of them there is not a bad seat in the house! Just a little change in diet is sometimes needed and that can easily be solved with a short road trip to the big city. I like living in a small town where I know most everyone. Even if I don't know there name their face is familiar to me. Today's image is of the "Willits Arch" that spans Highway 101 as you come into town from the south. It's the only arch that crosses over Highway 101 in its whole length from Mexico to northern Washington.This is a little small town claim to fame. God bless my small town, chris

Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon 28-105 lens at 105mm. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- Manual Mode, ISO 100, F22.0, Shutter speed of 8 seconds .

What's that Down There?

I was looking over my chickadee images this afternoon and I realized that even though I had deliberately over exposed them for that snowy look there was still a bit of a gray cast to them. Thank you Tim Hale for steering me in the right direction. Here is a square cropped Chestnut Backed Chickadee from yesterday for a little closer view. I like how the chickadee is looking down at the feeder. God's love, chris

Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon EF 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 IS USM at 275mm. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV Mode + 2 E.V.,ISO 400,F5.6.0, Shutter speed 1/400th of a sec.

Brrr! It Was Cold This Morning.

It looks like winter is making it's return to the North Coast of California with some colder temperatures. Snow is in the forecast over the next week. None here yet so I had to create some. I spent about an hour in the photoblind this morning and I really needed my coat, hat and gloves. Of all of the images created this one of a Chestnut Backed Chickadee was my favorite. God's love and blessings to everyone, chris

Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon EF 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 IS USM at 275mm. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV Mode + 2 E.V.,ISO 400,F5.6.0, Shutter speed 1/400th of a sec.

Pastel Sunset Over Red Hill

Today was another work day. This evening Lenore and I went for a walk just before sundown. By the time we got back home the clouds over the mountains to the east of us had turned beautiful shades of pastel. Such a wonderful way to end the day. God's light and love to all, chris Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Canon 28-105 lens at 44mm. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Settings- AV Mode,ISO 6,400 oops!,F16.0, 1/60th Shutter speed .

Stars Come Out At night

This evening we drove down to Redwood Valley in celebration of Lenore's birthday.( Happy Birthday Lenore my Love!) We went to Marios for some Italian food. It was delicious. On the trip home we pulled off the highway onto one of the really wide pull outs so I could photograph the night sky. It was really hard to time my images between cars. Luckily we are far enough north on 101 that we don't get a horrendous amount of traffic and I was able to get a few thirty second long exposures in. My favorite one is this one with an oak tree in silhouette. God's light and love to all, chris

Camera Equipment Used- Canon 7D, Bower 8 mm lens. Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod with a 3055 Ballhead. Camera Setting- Manual Mode,ISO 6,400,F3.5, Shutter speed 30 sec.