Just park in the Park . . .

 . . . take out your camera and stay awhile. =)

The last time I was in this park with a camera, it was just my Kodak point-and- shoot, now, armed with my Nikon D5100 and 18-55mm lens, I was able to take actual photographs; not just snapshots.

Some of you might have caught that middle part of the sentence,  "armed with my Nikon D5100 and 18-55mm lens..." didn't she just tell us she LOVES the 1.8-50mm? 

While that's true, on the other hand, I knew I'd want a wide angle lens for specific shots like this:

So, sadly, I left my Precious at home and did the best with what I had, and got some rather good shots. Still, a lot of the time I was frustrated because that lens doesn't have a low enough aperture to isolate, say, a particularly interesting tree from all of it's crowding neighbors. I would have liked to focus on a tree near the path, then gradually blur the background to a gentle curve with still recognizable trunks and leaves fading into the distance . . . but that' will just have to wait till another time. =)

I also found that the Posterize effect works pretty well on leafy subjects, so I scattered a few throughout this post; let me know what you think! 

Posterize

Posterize

Posterize

Posterize

Posterize

        God Bless!

                                        ~Jenny  ♥

     

In a Green Woodland // Part two

 They say to write what you know.
That applies to pictures too, take pictures of what you know.
I know these trees; I've grown up by them, under them and in the branches.

                                                                     God Bless!

                                        ~Jenny  ♥

     

In a Green Woodland // Part one

   While our backyard has more trees and bushes than the average suburban home, it's still not quite a forest. (unless you see it from the perspective of a 7 year old! *memories*)

However, the great thing about my 1.8-50mm lens, is that you can shoot at 1.8, from any distance. (As opposed to my 3.5 lens, which only goes down to 5.6 when fully zoomed in)

The reason I love that little fact,  is that I prefer to shoot large trees with  big aperture; that way the  leaves fore and aft of the focus point are blurred, into bokeh or nice abstract leaf shapes, instead of all being in focus at once, which to me, isn't very restful on the eyes.

      So tell me, if these photos aren't peaceful and relaxing . . .

(Except this shot was taken at f16 or higher)

  When the bed of Lemon balm is saturated with light like this . . . I just get all starry eyed, drinking in the scene, and clicking; clicking happily away.

WARNING: in some humid states, flocks of mosquitoes may be prevalent. Wear spray or be prepared to defend yourself. Many mosquitoes were killed in the taking of this photo.

 You have to admit, Fungus is pretty cool; with all it's neat texture and colors...

  I learned the advantages of using fill in flash . . .

    Without Flash:

      With Flash:

   This last photo, well, it lacks leaves. I'm aware of that. ;)     It's just so cool I HAD to post it!

                                                              God Bless!

                                        ~Jenny  ♥