Project 52 Challenge by Geoff F - Third Quarter

[Geoff F]

In the evening I had a go with my moth trap for a couple of hours. About 60 species and I haven't counted the actual number of moths but here are a couple of interesting species.

Beautiful Hook-tip



Leopard Moth



And a couple of little micro moths. Bird-cherry Ermine (or a close relative)



Cydia fagiglandana

[xpatUSA]

Thanks for the reply, Ted. I have tried altering my diopter adjustment but several clicks seem to make no difference then one more is too much. Maybe I need to take more time over the adjustment.

Or maybe not all OVF's are the same, Geoff.

Most of the advice on-line says to adjust so that the marks on the glass become sharp. Some say look at a scene and make it sharp. My old eyes prefer the former method.

One common theme is to support the camera firmly during adjustment.

Fairly credible:

https://contrastly.com/camera-diopter/

Sorta credible:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora...er-your-camera

The adjustment clicks are quite coarse on my DSLR, about seven clicks cover plus-minus 3 dptr. A thought about yours is that possibly the adjustment sticks and then jumps. You might want to work the adjustment over it's range about 10+ times to see if that improves matters ...

[Geoff F]

Useful article, Ted. I have checked my adjustment and found it had accidentally slipped slightly out of focus. All reset now.

One of my eyes is slightly weaker than the other so I tend to try to use the better one, although that can sometimes be tricky when photographing insects etc in difficult positions.

[xpatUSA]

Useful article, Ted. I have checked my adjustment and found it had accidentally slipped slightly out of focus. All reset now.

Glad to be of help, Geoff.

One of my eyes is slightly weaker than the other so I tend to try to use the better one, although that can sometimes be tricky when photographing insects etc in difficult positions.

Indeed. I am a leftie and, because of the way I hold the DSLR, I have to use the left eye which is actually worse than the right one these days.

[Geoff F]

Week 27. A couple of places where I was recording insects last week

Thurlestone Beach - and behind it there is a reedbed valley with lots of wildlife



7D with Canon 24-105 lens. 1/640 F11 Iso 400. Merge of two bracketed exposures.

Tor Woods - a couple of miles along the coast and looking across farmland towards Dartmoor.



1/200 F11 Iso 200 merge of two bracketed exposures

[Geoff F]

And just a few of the insects from those two days.

Geomyza tripunctata



Stilt Bug - Metatropis rufescens



Tachina grossa. Rather like a bluebottle on steroids and twice the size! It was flitting among some Water Mint and not giving me a good chance for a photo but eventually I managed a couple which are sufficient for identification.



A Leafhopper - Eupteryx urticae which requires a view of its darkened hind leg for identification. Almost identical other species have pale legs. About 5 mm in length

[Geoff F]

Week 28. I was at the other end of that reedbed site (featured in Week 27) today and somebody was doing some bird ringing there.



7D with Canon 24-105 lens. 1/250 F9 Iso 400 flash used. This was a hopeless scene with the man in deep shadow and bright sunshine in the foreground and background. However, I had a go anyway.

The nearby farm is having a good crop of campers this year.



1/400 F11 Iso 400

I also tried another shot to show the field edge.



Merge of two bracketed exposures

[Cantab]

An interesting set of photos. In the first one I was curious about the location of the net. Presumably the bird bander was focussing on birds that would fly in and out of the bushes?

So that collection of tents is a campsite. At least in western Canada, campsites are nearly always buried in treed areas so I was initially curious why there was a large collection of closely packed tents. But then there's a lot more space here.

Quite apart from the crop of campers, it looks like the farmer has a good crop of wheat or whatever grain he's growing. To my mind, you've done a good job of managing the focus on the immediate foreground as well as in the distance.

[Geoff F]

Yes, Bruce, they like to put the bird nets between two rows of trees or amongst the reeds to catch birds flitting across the open space. When he untangles a bird he puts it into a cloth bag. Then when there are several bags he takes them to a nearby table to perform the actual leg ringing.

That small field (probably a back garden by your standards) is growing barley with a grass strip along the top for campers; which brings in a bit of instant money during a period when there is little actual income coming in.

For the past few years that field was used to grow pumpkins but they didn't do very well there last year so he is obviously having a change of crop.

[Cantab]

That small field (probably a back garden by your standards) is growing barley with a grass strip along the top for campers; which brings in a bit of instant money during a period when there is little actual income coming in.

The field looks much the same as those in the general area where I live. But I had an uncle who farmed in Saskatchewan and the fields there are truly large!

[Geoff F]

Week 29 - Sometimes you just want to sit under a tree and forget about the world. This is where I was recording insects today.

Initially I shot this scene when I was first passing by in sunshine but I didn't vary my exposure composition so when I was reviewing my shots later in the day I realised I had slightly over exposed some of the sheep. When passing again on the way back I tried again under more cloudy conditions.



7D with Canon 24-105 lens. 1/320 F10 Iso 400. Merge of two conversions from one Raw image.

I also tried to show the full tree; but I'm not really sure about this one.



1/160 F10 Iso 400

[Cantab]

I enjoyed both images. The second one is interesting in part because it clearly shows just how steep the hill is. Almost 45 degrees?

[Geoff F]

Yes, Bruce, too steep for me. The farmer says 'Have a look at the top fields, you can jump over the gates to get in'. But I prefer to keep to the valley bottom.

There is another longer and slightly less steep alternative way which I ought to try sometime but usually by the time I have recorded 50 or more species along the bottom by a stream I have had enough anyway.

[Geoff F]

Week 30. Following on from the camp site image in week 28. They were harvesting the barley today.



7D with Canon 24-105 lens. 1/250 F11 Iso 400. Poor foreground light and shooting towards a bright although greyish sky; so I slightly over exposed then did what I could with some editing tweaks.



1/640 F8 Iso 400

[Geoff F]

Week 31 - A Misty Morning. On my way to do some insect photography and recording I passed this location. The light was from a difficult angle but I had a go anyway.



7D with Canon 24-105 lens 1/500 F11 Iso 200. Merge of two bracketed exposures.

And while looking for insects I found these Highland Cattle near the cliff path.



1/250 F11 Iso 200. A bit of fill flash and a merge of two Raw conversions from a single exposure

[Geoff F]

Week 32 - Enjoying the View. Soar Mill Cove where I was recording insects today.



7D with Canon 24-105 lens 1/400 F11 Iso 200. Merge of three bracketed exposures.

I tried several angles and focal lengths. Showing more of the beach, including more people and more of the rocks on either side but eventually decided these two people looking seawards had to be the centre point and other people were causing distractions. Poor light angle but I decided to have a go anyway.

[Geoff F]

Week 33. After Enjoying the View (Week 32) Here is

Ignoring the View



7D with Canon 24-105 lens 1/200 F11 Iso 200. Merge of two bracketed exposures.

Neither those bullocks nor that group of ramblers showed any interest in the view. They just kept looking straight ahead as they marched onwards.

Nearby, the Mayhem was hauling lobster pots.



Sigma 180 macro lens. 1/500 F11 Iso 400. Shooting towards the light so all I could do was to make some average camera settings and hope to make further adjustments during editing.

And this angler continued to catch absolutely nothing.



Canon 24-105 lens 1/500 F11 Iso 200. Merge of three bracketed exposures. Impossible light angle; but I had a go anyway.

I also tried a closer shot with the 180 macro lens but I thought that didn't really work as well as leaving the angler as just a part of the wider scene.

[Cantab]

I enjoyed all three shots. For me, the first of them works particularly well: its three subects (the view. the cattle and the walkers) are each completely oblivious to each other. That's what makes the image work. I suppose one could philosophize about what kind of statement this image makes but it's simpler just to enjoy it.

As an aside, the cattle seem to be very use to humans walking in their field. As a child I remember walking near a group of dairy cattle on an uncle's farm in Saskatchewan: the cattle did not ignore us and I was glad when we were past them!

[joebranko]

All very nice shots Geoff; as usual your pics are clear and sharp. My favorite of this set is the an angler. If it were mine I would be tempted to crop the top half leaving just the angler and the rocks on which he is standing. I think that that would convey an atmosphere of quiet solitude.

[Geoff F]

That was my original intention, Joe, but because of the difficult light I didn't have good detail on the angler. Which is why I went for a wider more general scene.

I may post the closer shot after I have done a bit of editing.