I Lift Up Mine Eyes ...

It had been another one of those changing weather kind of days - alternating sun, gray skies, a threat of rain followed by more blue sky. Then after dinner the wind kicked up and storm clouds gathered. In no time rain was pelting against the north-facing windows. But as suddenly as the storm had come upon us, the wind blew it southward.

The sudden quiet made me glance out the window and I caught the remains of a double rainbow. I figured since I was outside with camera in hand I might as well also capture some of the summer blooms, freshened by the rain. I was absorbed in catching the raindrops hanging from petals and bees scurrying to gather nectar in the golden hour.

I finally lifted my eyes when I came around the west side of the house and was greeted by a sky in turmoil. Another storm further away had roiled the sky in the west while at the same time the sky in the northwest was trying hard to revert to blue. It made for an awesome sight ...

[Have a listen to an oldie goldie below while you relax here for a few minutes]

Fortuitous ?

It was the evening of Good Friday. My wife glanced out of the front window and called me to come see the sky - I couldn't see it from where I had been sitting. On instinct I grabbed the camera since I hadn't captured a sunset for some time. I was stopped in my tracks before I got 10 steps out of the front door (1st photo). After taking in the scene I hurried over to the canal across the street (2nd photo).

There was nothing fortuitous about this moment. I'm not a believer in fate or chance or luck but I believe things happen for a reason - even though that may not be revealed now or in our lifetime. But it was easy for us to join the psalmist: "The Heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky proclaims the work of his hands."  [Psalm 19:1]  If you're inclined, you can make this your prayer today also (click on the link and listen as you look at God's handiwork as captured below):

The Heavens Declare ...

1 Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord from the heavens;
    praise him in the heights above.
2 Praise him, all his angels;
    praise him, all his heavenly hosts.
...

7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
...
    
11 kings of the earth and all nations,
    you princes and all rulers on earth,
12 young men and women,
    old men and children.

13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
    for his name alone is exalted;
    his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.
...

Praise the Lord.

(from Psalm 148)


I was reminded of the awesomeness and majesty of our Creator many times this past week as the heavens declared His glory in our back yard.

Moments in the sun(set)

[perhaps the prayers of many were answered last night - we got some much-needed rain]

The sky looked promising today with what appeared to be moisture-laden clouds. However, other than a bit of verge, they didn't release their contents on us. But they did provide the backdrop for a wonderful sunset - for which we are also thankful.

This cloud was headed east, illuminated by the late afternoon sun

Shadows lengthen as the golden hour approaches

Won't be long before the sun disappears over the horizon

Clouds to the east bask in the last light of the day

While in the west the sun's light has almost been extinguished

However, the best was yet to come

It still had to proclaim its creator's glory before the day was done

And then it bid adieu to us and bonjour to people in the west

As dark clouds started to obscure the last colour to the east

Postcards ...

Thank you to all of you who have visited and left a comment over the past couple of weeks - I thought I'd send you some postcards to say hello and let you know I hadn't completely disappeared.

I hope to 'visit' you this week yet before we make our return home.

Have a lick ...

If I could lick the sunset, I’ll bet it would taste like Neapolitan ice cream. 

(Jarod Kintz)

Sunset Sunday is inspired by Scott Law over at Just Used Pixels.

Wish you were here ...

Maybe it is the memories
the change of pace that brings us there
the sense of vacation
maybe the smell of the place
the sights of the gulls, the dunes, the grasses
but oh it is the feel of it,
the crunch and slide of it
the feeling of beach sand
so different from dirt, soil, loam
no, not earthy, moist, rich,
but oh so granular and gritty
even when wet,
moveable paper spreading under toes
sliding beneath the soles
smoothing my skin
clearing my mind
unburdening me of the rest
drawing me to the tactile, the feel
of beach sand

Beach Sand by Raymond A. Foss

Venice Venture

Pack a lunch, bring some chairs, and settle back on one of the beaches in Venice (Florida, not Italy). It's summertime - the living is easy, the weather is hot and humid, and the tourists are few. You'll almost have the beach to yourself.

We sat in the shade of the Australian pines and did what you can only do when it's 34C/94F - nothing. Well, we did walk out on the jetty to see what the few fishermen were catching - not much, besides plenty of sun. And we took in the beauty of the place.

(10-22mm  f11  1/320 sec  ISO400)

the view from my chair

(70-200mm  f8.0  1/2000 sec  ISO400)

 looking west down the jetty
(10-22mm  f8.0  1/1600 sec  ISO400)

view across the inlet to North Jetty Park
(10-22mm  f8.0  1/1600 sec  ISO400)

in the shade of the Australian pines
(10-22mm  f11  1/250 sec  ISO400)

Storm brewing

We've had a couple of hot, humid days (31C/88F) which exceeded the forecasted highs of 27C/80F and 23C/73F. The sky had become progressively cloudy during the day but nothing that looked threatening. However, during the news after dinner, the weatherman said our area was under a thunderstorm warning. While some thunderheads were visible to the north and south of us, we were still blessed under a patch of blue.

That didn't last long, however, as storm clouds gathered in the west. I grabbed the camera and tripod and shot some of the cloud formations. At one point, large drops of rain started to fall, and you`ll see a few drops on my lens on the last shot. Then, suddenly, the sun burst out of a hole in the clouds, bathed the front yard in brilliant sunshine, and produced a rainbow that lasted less than 30 seconds. As quick as the sun appeared it was covered with dark clouds again, allowing me just enough time to get a few shots.

Shortly thereafter the clouds burst open - but I had already sought shelter indoors. We received a deluge for a good 15 minutes - sans lightning and thunder - and then it was all over.

(first shot made with 70-200mm lens, last 3 shots made with a 10-22mm lens - all at f11 and ISO200, with shutter speeds of 1/500, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/20 sec respectively)

click on photos to enlarge

Mellow Yellow

It's difficult to avoid mentioning the weather since it plays a large role in our lives. Just 2 days ago, we painted the living room during a humid 30C/86F day, livened up a little with a couple of thunderstorms. Yesterday dawned warm again, but by late morning the wind had picked up, and our grandson, Graydon, wasn't too happy going out for a stroll in it. By early afternoon we were experiencing sustained winds over 80 km/50 mi per hour, with gusts up to 120 km/75 mi per hour. Then the power failed.

The high winds continued into the late afternoon, and they gradually decreased by evening. We were spared any wind damage and the power was restored after about 8 hours. I can't imagine what those poor folks in the southern US endured when tornado winds of 320 km/200 mi per hour came roaring through - they surely need our prayers.

The wacky weather blew the heat away - temperatures dipped to 6C/43F overnight and only rose to 12C/54F today - but I was pleasantly surprised to see that our forsythias barely lost a blossom, despite the howling winds. Many utility poles and large trees were snapped like toothpicks and yet these fragile little flowers clung tenaciously to their stems. It defies logic.

(60mm  f5.6  1/80 sec  ISO200)

(10-22mm  f9.0  1/50 sec  ISO200)


My backyard photo shoot was cut a little shorter than planned when this sky moved directly overhead and more blessings rained down upon us.

(18-55mm  f8.0  1/1000 sec  ISO200)

Thwarted

A funny thing happened on the way to the waterfront late this afternoon, where I had hoped to go make some sunset photos. A few clouds had moved in a little earlier and I thought they were taking up their positions to create a beautiful sunset. Then, as though a giant hand was put up in the east, the clouds started to pile up above us and it became obvious that there would be no visible sunset. So I didn't go to the waterfront after all and I captured this view of the sky from our backyard. (I brought out the blue somewhat to accentuate the clouds). I'll see how things shape up tomorrow.

(10-22mm  f8.0  1/125 sec  ISO200)

(Day 307) Looks like we're in for stormy weather

Since I've never been in Florida at this time of year, I'm really not sure what sort of weather to expect. I do expect it to be a little warmer than back in Ontario. The weatherman here had told us to expect rain this afternoon, however, other than some dark clouds passing to the south of us, we were blessed with continuous sunshine. After dinner we decided to head down to the water to a place called Glover Bight. We were hoping to catch the sunset, and I think a lot of people had the same idea.

I'm sure that the sun did set, but we, along with many others, did not witness it at Glover Bight. Clouds covered the western part of the sky. Further over, to the south, were banks of rather ominous-looking clouds. I think we discovered where the rain was waiting that the weatherman had forecast.

(18-55mm  f11  1/20 sec  ISO200)

(18-55mm  f11  1/80 sec  ISO200)

ps - these clouds delivered the weatherman's promise a short while after we got back

(Day 278) In the quiet of the evening

Tuesday Oct. 5, 2010

I will let today's photo speak for itself.

(10-22mm  f22  1/125 sec  ISO200)

(Day 232) Those lazy days of summer

I think everybody has their own definition of what makes for one of those unforgettable summer days - and that likely changes with age. I remember as a kid I could hardly wait for those final school days in June to be over - then the endless summer would begin! Warm days of going down to the creek, building a (rather leaky) dam with rocks that would raise the water from 2 feet to perhaps 3 feet deep, eating lunch outdoors, and some years even going on vacation for a week ! It seemed September and a return to school was eons away !

Now we're happy with a day when it doesn't rain and isn't too hot, and we can find a cool spot in the shade to dig into a book long neglected. Today was a day like that, minus the book part. Sasha was following me around to see if I was up to something interesting (she's the ONLY one who finds going on a photo shoot with me interesting - or at least she doesn't let on otherwise). It's been a while since she's made it on my blog, so I had her lie down and look interested (in case you're wondering what the command for that is, it goes like this - "Sasha, LOOK!", click). I deliberately underexposed a bit so she and the clouds would stand out a little more.

(10-22mm  f8  1/640 sec  ISO200)

(Day 201) Night moves

Tues. July 20, 2010

I decided earlier today that I wanted to do some night shots, since it had been a while. I liberally covered myself in mosquito repellent (I'm not sure what my blood type is but it's grade A as far as mosquitoes are concerned) and took the tripod and remote shutter release out with me. The moon was not quite full but it cast a nice light on the clouds.

You can see the effect of a small aperture on the moon in the first shot. And no, the second shot is not of the northern lights - that's the effect of a long shutter speed on moving clouds.

(18-55mm  f14  20 sec  ISO400)

(18-55mm  f6.3  100 sec  ISO200)

(Day 198) Backyard musings

Sat. July 17, 2010

Coming back from vacation usually means there's lots of work to do around the house. The lawn needed to be cut, and the weeds certainly weren't on vacation either. There was no time to pursue photos, at least not until after dinner. As we were lying on the lounge chairs and enjoying the warmth of the late day sun, I decided that, in keeping with the spirit of relaxation, my shots would have to be taken from where I was parked. Surprisingly there were lots of subjects at hand. I limited myself to posting just these.

(70-200mm  f5.6  1/125 sec  ISO200)

(70-200mm  f5.6  1/1000 sec  ISO200)

Although the weather forecast included the potential for thunderstorms, these skirted our area to the north and did nothing more than show up to have their photo made.

(70-200mm  f11  1/500 sec  ISO200)

(Day 181) A quiet waterfront view

Just a few miles north of us, along the road to Merrickville, there is a small body of water. It looks to me that it might be an abandoned gravel pit or former quarry. Whatever it used to be, it's been recovered by nature, and is home to beaver (yes, I saw one but had no opportunity to 'shoot' it), a variety of birds, and swarms of mosquitoes. I had intended to go there at some point today, and realized towards twilight that I had better hurry if I was to use the remaining light.

The grass surrounding it is of olympic proportions, and is undoubtedly on steroids - I was eyeball to eyeball with it as I made my way from the road to the water's edge. There I was greeted by another type of grassy plant (reeds ?) that towered over me. The beauty of all this was that I was completely out of view from the road, and in my own little world (well, shared with about 8 million mosquitoes!). I spent a very nice, quiet hour there - save for the regular sound of slapping to send deserving mosquitoes to the happy land.

(60mm  f8  1/2 sec  ISO200)

(18-55mm  f22  1/2 sec  ISO200)

(Day 155) Up in the blue yonder

For quite a few of my recent posts the subjects have been terrestrial in nature. Not that I haven't looked upwards at all - it's just that there were plenty of interesting subjects nearby, and less interesting goings on above. As I went to start the lawn mowing today, however, there were patterns of wispy clouds against a blue sky that had to be captured before they were absorbed by the increasing cloud cover from the west, heralding a change in weather.

I'll post 2 images that will show why the lawn cutting duties had to be temporarily put off.

(18-55mm  f11  1/500 sec  ISO200)

looking north

(18-55mm  f11  1/800 sec  ISO200)

looking west 30 minutes later