Dragonfly

The red dragonfly that spends summers by our pool is back. I stalked him yesterday with my camera and telephoto.

Safari Preparation

Yesterday, my photography instructor and I went to a local safari park so that I could practice taking pics before I actually go on safari. It was an excellent learning experience. Needless to say, I learned a lot about what NOT to do. Like, don't cut off the animal's legs if you're going for a full-body shot. Or, actually focus on the animal and not some random point in the background. Anyway, I did get some decent shots and will post some of the better ones, and some of the more interesting ones, here.

For example, the photo above. I had this great shot of zebras set up and then this waterbuck strolled into my shot. Just like people would do. As my instructor said, "You've got to be a little quicker off the mark." Indeed.

Technical Difficulties

These are the fresias blooming on our patio and making the whole garden smell wonderful!

Photography Stuff
In the past three days, to support my new-found photography habit, I have acquired a 70-200mm Canon f/2.8L telephoto zoom lens, a 1.4 Canon extender, a Kata Digital Rucksack, a very expensive B+W circular polarizer, and a 250 GB portable external hard drive.  Ayeye.  I've also downloaded a trial version of Adope Photoshop Elements, which is so confusing to me that I am really glad I don't have enough money to buy the full Photoshop software right now.  

Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L telephoto zoom lens
Big thanks to MOM who contributed a big chunk toward this fabulous purchase!  It's a very serious-looking lens and I am so proud!  

For camera freaks out there, you might notice that this is NOT the IS version.  Of couse, I wanted the IS version, but right now, I don't exactly have an unlimited supply of money, and I read reviews for this lens (written by poor folks like myself, who only have $1200 to spend on a lens and not $1600) and those who have it are VERY satisfied with its performance.  With the caveat that if they had an extra $500 lying around, the would have gone for the IS version.

Canon 1.4x II extender
Again, the poor man's version (in a sense).  I didn't want to have to pay for a stronger telephoto, so I got this extender instead.  I opted for the 1.4 instead of the 2.0 because the 2.0 apparently degrades image quality noticeably and this is not what I wanted.  Also, it significantly multiples your minimum focal length, which is not good for me because I have the non-IS lens.  I need to maintain wide aperatures so I can keep the shutter speed up to account for any shake.  

B+W Circular Polarizer
This was basically the most expensive polarizer I could find.  But, it got great reviews, so knowing virtually nothing about polarizers, I decided to give it a try.  

Kata Digital Rucksack DR-467
Haven't tried to fit my new acquisitions into this bag yet (ironically, made here in Israel!), but am looking forward to it!

Technical Problem
I got a wonderful TINY external hard drive to support my photo habit, but it is totally slowing down my computer.  I think I made progress today toward getting things back in order (honestly, I think Photoshop was the problem).  Fingers crossed.

Anyway, my Easter weekend will be spent playing with my new toys.  The above photo was taken with the old lens (in full manual mode, and in RAW format -- hurray for me).  However, to upload it, I had to shrink the file size considerably, so it's not as good as the original.  Handy excuse:-)

Photo for Today

It has become clear to me that I need to get a macro lens for my camera.  I am taking lots of flower photos.  Unfortunately, this purchase will have to wait, as I have just shelled out lots of money that I shouldn't really be spending (the past year of unemployment has nearly decimated my savings, but it has been FUN!!) for a telephoto lens, a backpack that can hold my oversized media-verson laptop with my camera equipment, and an extender for my telephoto lens, none of which I have actually received yet, as the shipment is apparently being held in customs at Ben Gurion airport awaiting confirmation (from me, presumably) of what is inside.  Of course, no one has actually tried to contact me about the shipment, so I am just waiting.....

Cosmos

This cosmos in our yard finally bloomed. Hooray. I have been watching the stalk grow for months -- first straight upward, but then it got too tall and collapsed sideways under its weight. Even so, it stayed green and eventually blossoms formed and now it has bloomed.

コスモスです。我が家の庭に咲いています。九州の行橋市の市の花ですね。行橋に住んだときから好きで、ここに引っ越してきたときに庭師に頼んで植えてもらいました。椿も今咲いていますよ。でも椿の花はすぐ落ちますよね。

Flowers

For some reason, I find myself photographing a lot of flowers lately.  'Tis the season, I suppose.

This is from my camellia bush which FINALLY bloomed.  I've only been saying to Sweetie for about 6 months that it's going to bloom "any day," and it finally did.  I sacrificed one bud for my elegant vase (for the tea ceremony) but learned that they wilt quickly!  This was taken after just a half day....

Fruitful Trees

I found this gorgeous tree just outside the same church where I took the previous two photos. It's the time of the year when all the trees and plants start growing again at warp speed here in Israel. The Galilee was literally a different world this weekend as compared to our visit one month ago. Plants that were nowhere to be seen four weeks ago were now several feet tall. Everything was so green that I almost thought I was in Ireland. Apparently, in March there are even more flowers in bloom, so I am determined to return then to see for myself.

Koi and ruins

This was my second visit to the Church of Multiplication of Fishes and Loaves and I always struggle to capture the beauty of the serene koi pond in the courtyard in front of the church. This is one of my attempts.

Bird in the Tree

I took this photo with a Canon Telephoto Zoom 75-300mm L IS lens that I am borrowing from a friend. I'm trying to decide whether I really need the IS or not because it's an extra $500. I'm thinking that for an amateur like me who happens to not be employed right now, it's not really necessary. I'm sure I'll want it later when I get more serious about taking photos and have more funds, but for now, I think I will live without.

Lemons on our tree

We kept a few lemons on our tree for Sweetie's sister to see during her visit. I've been making lots of lemonade now that it is warming up. It's nice to know that they are organic!

A Photo a Day

I've decided I'll post one photo each day, if at all possible. Now that the sun is out again, I can carry my camera around and get some practice.

Yes, the sun. It's glorious. Israel is blessed with lots and lots of sunny weather. And the sea. I'll try to walk there tomorrow for some seaside photos. In the meantime, you'll have to settle for this one of some trees in my friend's garden.

The pic here was taken with my standard 18-55mm Canon lens, which I was told by a serious photographer is "crap." But, for a casual photographer like myself, it's a great multipurpose lens and I think I will use it a lot.

It's a little embarrassing that the more photos I take, the more I realize that my pics are not so great! Anyway, I'm learning, so that's the important thing.