Micro forest

Can you look at a photo you've made and know where you were, what you were doing, and perhaps even what you were thinking when you made it ? I can't claim that I can do it for all photos I've made and I certainly couldn't answer all 3 questions, but surprisingly I can for quite a number of them. Is that another definition of a photographic memory ?

I was on a hike in the fall with other family members up what is locally known as Blue Mountain (which is actually a tree-covered hill several hundred feet high - but when all the land around you is fairly flat you'd call a prominent bump on the landscape a mountain too). We were on our way down when I saw this patch of mossy greenery. I got right down on the ground and stuck my macro lens into the moss - these plants are actually only 3-5 cm/1-2 in tall, but they reminded me of a little forest. I suppose if you were an ant, this might be the forest you'd have to find your way through.

(60mm  f2.8  1/250 sec  ISO100)

Cordaline in bloom

The subtropics are playing havoc with my sense of timing in the plant world. Back home (Canada) I know that absolutely nothing flowers outdoors in the winter time. Flowering time is confined to spring, summer, and fall. Plants have to race against the calendar to grow, flower, get pollinated, and produce seed. But down here I have no idea what to expect. Hibiscus seem to bloom whenever they feel like it, and I've already shown you all the little 'weed' flowers in the lawn. We bought a couple of jasmine plants before Christmas and one of them bloomed just after we returned. Our neighbours have all sorts of flowering plants, but there are lots of other plants that aren't flowering. yet.

I noticed that some of the cordaline plants out front had 'flowers' in them. Now I must confess that I had to go look that name up again from last June when I had posted a photo of its foliage (thanks to Katherine who came up with the name then). It's much more famous for its bright pink/red leaves than its 'blooms'. I'll keep an eye on other plants growing around here and reset my (very limited) knowledge base.

(60mm  f4.5  1/8 sec  ISO100)

(Day 350) A closer look

One of the benefits of photography is that it allows us to see things and events that our eyes otherwise wouldn't be able to see. That can include freezing action such as a droplet of water at the instant it lands in a puddle, or seeing an object in great detail such as an insect.

I've accumulated a few lenses over the past year and one of my favourites is a 60mm macro lens (since the sensor on my camera has a 1.6 crop factor, it acts like a 100mm lens). It's opened up an entirely new world for me and I'm still learning how to use it properly. I'm also still learning more about using my camera and its many functions. I vaguely recalled reading in the manual some time ago about a function that could be set to help produce sharper macro images - mirror lockup. So I followed the steps to enable it and went out in the backyard to get some practice (it's amazing how disruptive even the slightest whiff of wind is when trying to capture macro shots outdoors !).

(60mm  f2.8  1/320 sec  ISO200)

(60mm  f4.0  1/60 sec  ISO200)

(60mm  f9.0  1/125 sec  ISO200)