Watch Shot

My other hobby, watch collecting, has taken a back seat to photography since I got my new camera. Here's a quickie shot of my custom Doxa which I bead blasted this spring. Don't mind the dust...taken with the 24-105 with the Canon 500D closeup lens screwed on.

Bats!

Man oh man, are these ever hard little guys to shoot! I took about 100 pictures of them swooping over our yard this evening and these were the three best shots. Taken with the 70-200 f2.8L IS on the 5DMKII. These are 100% crops and I fooled with the brightness and contrast just a little bit in Photoshop. Maybe I ought to try fill flash next time to see if I can catch more detail.

Antique Fire Engine

This 1930's beauty has been parked outside an auto repair shop every day for a few weeks. I stopped today and snapped some quick shots with the Lensbaby.

Happy Sunset Baby

Had some nice colors in the yard tonight. I wasn't going to go out tonight because I really worked my butt off today but when I saw the colors from my office window I had to grab the camera and a few lenses. Notice the bat flying around in the second pic.

North Leverett Sawmill

This is a well known landmark in North Leverett on the road to the Leverett Coop and further on, Shutesbury. The sawmill which I'm sure dates to the early 1800's had been falling apart but in recent years there was a big effort to repair it and I believe it may be operational again although I think it is electrically powered now.

Pics shot with a Lensbaby Composer but with a normal aperture this time so the blurs are kept to a minimum. I'll go back there and shoot this spot one evening when I have better light and use my best wide angle lenses and a tripod.

And Just in Case....

...you hadn't had enough. :D

Few More Shots

A few more from Roaring Falls and the surrounding woods with the Lensbaby.

More Waterfall Action

Went up to Mt Toby Reservation today which is not far from where I live. I had heard about this place some years ago but this was the first time I had hiked up to it. The terrain is extremely rugged, steep and slippery. There are gigantic boulders strewn about the hillsides and dramatic chasms in between. The forest is mixed with hardwoods and evergreens and owing to the wet summer the air was stifling and muggy. The bugs were relentless. It's kind of hard to get a sense of scale but the falls are probably a good 30-35 feet high.

The first few shots were all done straight up with 24-105 f4L zoom shooting about 400 ISO I think it was...then there are some wild Lensbaby Composer shots as well.

Lensbaby Versions

Same place but I tried a couple of Lensbaby shots with a custom aperture. Kinda gives it a dreamy primordial forest feel.

Waterfall at Gunn Brook

Well there is one bright spot to all the rain we have had this summer after all. What would normally be small brooks running low this time of year are instead raging torrents with spring-like run off. So all the ingredients are in place to make this a special year for waterfall photography.

Anyway, I did not know this place existed until I got a book on the waterfalls of MA. The pics in the book show a somewhat modest stream but I thought I'd better check it out anyway. I visited Gunn Brook Falls in Sunderland for a short time this morning and was quite amazed at the size of the thing. The falls occur over some large rock ledges and are split into two parts, an upper step and a lower step, each about 15 feet high. I will certainly have to go back and shoot the scene again when I have a little more time. I would imagine winter will make for some spectacular effects as well.

Southworth Papermill

It was worth braving the hungry mosquitoes last night to catch this scene. :)

Dream State

Just got a Lensbaby Muse. This is a really neat little piece of kit that is a flexible lens basically. It allows you to make images that are partially in focus and partially distorted which results in trippy, almost surreal scenes. Very fun stuff and I'm having a blast with it. :)

Surveying His Domain

Experimental

One experimental shot and one black and white. That's Brian hanging out in my shop having a beer today and talking knives.

Quickie Shot with 5D MKII

I'll have to revisit this spot when I have better light. 10AM is just way too bright however I am flabbergasted with the image quality and potential of this machine.

Barton's Cove

Misty morning view from the point at Barton's Cove.

The Old Gristmill in Gill

This fast running sluiceway is all that remains at the site of what was once the gristmill in Gill, MA.

One More

Sun Going Down over Turners

Few More Rafters

The looks on some of their faces are just priceless. :)