05-10-12 Singled Out

09-02-09 Amazing Art 02

Here's another one from my trip several years ago to the Sertoma Butterfly House in Sioux Falls. I wish I knew more about butterflies. Perhaps someone looking at this knows the name of this species?

One thing a remember about my trip to the Butterfly House is that the volunteer docent who followed me around was careful to point out butterflies that were fairly young, since older butterflies often have damaged wings. This is another example of the word "ephemeral," which I used in an earlier post to talk about sunlight. Canon 1D 1/800s f/3.5 ISO500 70mm Some rights reserved under Creative Commons Copyright

09-01-09 Amazing Art 01

By Scott Shephard

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What humans create often pales compared to what Nature creates. Consider the butterfly, for example. The threatening eye's on this butterfly's wing appear to have been painted there. But, of course, they weren't. Pretty amazing, if you ask me.

This photo was taken at the Sertoma Butterfly House in Sioux Falls. If you have a chance to visit, you should. It might be worth going at the time reserved for photographers. The day I visited, there was a 5th grade class there - it wasn't exactly relaxing for me or the butterflies.

Canon 1D 1/160s f/3.5 ISO500 200mm Some rights reserved under Creative Commons Copyright

08-24-09 Purple & Gold

My wife tells me the purple flowers are called umbrella flowers, though when I do a search, I find that there are many types of flowers called the "umbrella flower." I would never challenge the authority of my wife. Nor would I challenge the authority of Nature - who provides such photo opportunities as this one.

Yes, there is a slight blur applied to this photo. Before digital, I could get the softening effect by putting cellophane over the lens or by just using a really dirty lens. Now I have photoshop. Yes, it's a manipulation of reality. But, if you ask me, all perception involves some kind of manipulation of reality. And photography is highly manipulative. The photographer picks what you see and how you see it. Can you get your eyes to blur the background like my 70-200mm lens does in this photo?

08-03-09 Flocking Behavior 01

I went to the Redlin Art Center in Watertown to get some exterior shots and instead I got geese. Everyone probably knows that when geese fly together in their "V" formation, they get better mileage. In NASCAR terms, it is called "drafting."

08-01-09 Morning Dew

Nature does a pretty good job of providing worthy subjects, doesn't it? Photoshop does the rest.

Canon 5D 1/60s f/11.0 ISO400 100mm

07-13-09 Mysterious Symmetry

Our hens and chicks have decided to bloom this year and this is what the flower looks like. It measures 3/4" from tip to tip. Each of the round ball-like structures ringing the center of the flower will be a smaller bloom. Without a macro lens, all of this would be easy for the camera and the eye to miss.

But here's something interesting: I am struck by symmetry in nature and so I counted the two most obvious elements in this flower. And I discovered 11 petals and 22 little balls. I also discovered that if you count the red and black dots in the center of the flower, there are 11. And now I'm wondering where else the number "11" and its multiples occur in nature. . . .

Canon 5DII 1/50s f/8.0 ISO800 100mm

07-12-09 Golden Fields

The wheat is a not yet ready to harvest in our state but I noticed that it is getting close. This photo was taken a few years ago north of Watertown on a dewy morning just as the sun was coming up.

Canon 1DII 1/125s f/5.0 ISO400 70mm

07-09-09 Towering, Textured Tree

This is a tree that lives in the park in front of the Colorado state capitol building. I like the apparently random nature of the lines and angles in a tree. But in this photo, I also like the texture of the bark.

1/125s f/7.1 ISO400 60mm

07-08-09 Morning Reflection

I was done taking pictures on this particular morning and was heading back to our cabin. As I drove down the road along a small lake, I noticed a single deer along a path that paralleled the road. I thought, "I may have my next 'Picture of the Day.'" My concern was that if I got out of the car and started taking photos, the deer would run off. Instead, he/she struck a pose.

1/60s f/5.6 ISO320 105mm

07-02-09 Stringy Palm Leaf - Corfu, Greece

There is nothing in this palm leaf that identifies with the Greek island of Corfu. But that's where I took the photo. I like the random stringy threads that seem to contrast with the regular fan of the palm fronds.

06-10-09 Serenity - Plitvice Lakes, Croatia