Lynton's 52 for 2010 - Week 29 "Grace"

@Digitall (allan) - yep fair point, however arsing around lying on wet grass, I was quite surprised that I could get her that close (bribery works with ducks!) and got a bit trigger happy instead of thinking about a bit more DOF.....:bang: however I am playing the "Her beak was so close to the lens (pecking it I tell you, pecking it!! :lol:) that the AF went wappy!!" card! :lol::shrug:

@ladysue..... many thanks. I did get a few weird looks from other visitors, and my wife took a sudden interest in ladybirds n nettles about 100 yds away, whilst I was trying to encourage the duck to look at the lens!!! :lol::lol::lol::thinking:
 
Close - that is REALLY! close :eek: It's hard to find an unusual shot of a duck but you've pulled it off brilliantly :thumbs:

Netto had some camping mats in the other week at about 3 quid. I got one to avoid lying on damp grass but haven't had reason to use it yet.

Indulgence - very nicely done. Dust adds to the shot for me. I do get drawn to the reflections in the top of the bottle though.

Andy
 
Andy - thanks for the comments.. yep V close.

Unfortunately no netto's this way but a thin camping mat is a great idea........:lol:


hmm reflections........ yep fair cop.......... another "d'oh"

bloody 4ft aquarium.......
 
Close is simply brilliant :) I've never seen a duck with 'quite' such an excellent expression before!

Indulgence is nice....it is a point about the reflections....so many things to think about ! I always forget 'something'...interesting whiskey bottle!
 
I've never seen a duck with 'quite' such an excellent expression before!

I often find in that situation that threats work......"If you do not pose for the camera, I shall wring your neck, pluck you, butcher you and gently flambe you in a brandy and apricot 'reduction', before serving you on a bed of mash".......:lol::lol::lol:
 
I should think that's abaout as close as you could get without getting your camera fed to the babies! :lol: Excellent shot, Lynton - it leaps out of the screen, and I hope you've dried off after lying on the wet grass! :lol:

Indulgence: Very nicely done, if I may say so! I hope you rewarded yourself with the contents of the glass afterwards. Dust? What dust? I'm far too busy admiring the contents of the bottle to worry about dust on the outside of it. :lol:

Jean
 
:lol: :lol: :lol:
Love, love, love that duck !!!!
I don't think you could have got any closer and absolutely brilliant detail in his beak.:thumbs:

. . . nice border too! ;) :p

Indulgence : Beautiful colours, well composed and I like the dust on the bottle. It gives it a feeling of age.
I'm finding the reflections a bit distracting though. Is that a fish tank on the LHS?
 
Loving the close shot, god knows how you managed to get straight onto the duck without it moving slightly to the left or right.... good patience.

Indulgence is a well thought out image but close as a photograph is leagues ahead.
 
that's a funny shot for close and definitely worthy of a caption competition thread

Nice shot for Indulgence, although im not keen on the glass, it looks a bit modern for the whisky. Its a great bottle and i love the three monkeys. How does it fair as a drink?
 
The bottle is excellent, and the image fits the theme nicely. Love the monkeys on the bottle
 
OK,

Ingredients......:gag:

Wanted something a bit different for this theme, as I think there will be several similar type images this week.

What goes with Ingredients? A recipe usually.

So here is my Royal Doulton Wizard Figure, complete with spellbook and some rather unusual Ingredients!

Spell 177
Take 2 Newts tails, crushed
Add the ground whislers of white mice.
Stir with a bat's claw
Simmer during the fullness of the moon.
Add the distilled essence of deadly nightshade
and one single drop of the frozen breath of a fair maiden



wizard.jpg


C&C Welcome as always........ I really need to build me a lightbox so I can control reflections better!
 
That is a really unusual angle to take this figure from Lynton. It works perfectly :thumbs: The sharpness of the spellbook is spot on.

You've already mentioned the reflections but they aren't too distracting.

Andy
 
I like the angle/perspeective you have gone for on this.

It is such a shiny subject you would have to work pretty hard to get rid off reflections, but it would be a good test/challenge to see if you could.

The reflections themsleves bother me less than what seems to be 2 different light sources, which I think can be seen in the top of the owls head. There are some very orangey/yellow refletions and some white ones, which is a bit distracting and disconcerting.

Would give perhaps a more natural result to use just one light source and a reflector if necessary.
 
Andy...:thumbs: yep its crowbarred in there as I have turned ingredients into a spell book......... but hey spells need ingredients.........

Ian...... light sources were the light bulb in the front room (orange bit)... other half insists on these energy saving halogen things, whereas I want to buy "natural light" bulbs.... and the other one is a reflection from the front room window......

To be honest, this week, I struggled for any inspiration...was a :gag: moment when I saw the theme, and came up with the idea whilst knocking a small white ball round a manicured field!
 
I like your ingredients image Lynton, I also think that its an interpretation of the theme rather than crowbarred.
You have managed to get the detail in the spellbook.
Good composition from a different angle.
See, hitting a white ball around manicured grass is inspirational, I'm all for it :thumbs:
iain
 
Cheers Ian,

I like the interpretation idea as opposed to crowbarred, though did feel it was maybe a little bit too off topic....... however in my defence, crushed newt tails, white mice whiskers and all the other stuff are ingredients.

(Don't even talk to me about white balls and fields.... Yesterday different course 36 points stableford, good enough to take the money... can't complain.

Today at Bawburgh in "The Masters" off whites........ someone must have seriously peed off the greenkeepers, 116 entrants in the competition, 8 shot below nett par, in what were ideal conditions......... greens shaved, not cut! pin positions...:gag:, nett 87 :gag::cuckoo::gag::cuckoo: :lol::lol: - well at least a lie in tomorrow and "camera time")
 
I don't think it needs the crowbar.

Many thanks.


I wonder what spell 117 does !

No idea, but clearly anyone taking a picture of Spell 177 and then posting on the intranet has their golfing ability severely affected. (See post #258) :lol:
 
Yeah this is cheating and I don't care.

The only thing I could think of is doing something with my 10 Stop filter.

Now I could go to Southwold for 4.20am tomorrow morning (actually no i could not!) , and try to reshoot the image below, but the sun will be in totally the wrong position, so I am using a pic from December last year.

Tough!

Pick something interesting out of the bag this week. Let's have something good. Please.

splitRAWpieratdawn800.jpg
 
OOO, you naughty little monkey! Put those toys away. ;)

I don't give a sod about the rules - who makes them? Oh, we do! Lovely shot, fella.

Really dig your ingredients shot too. The angle makes it. How did you light it?
 
Nice take on a ghastly theme. The last two weeks themes have been awful so you did well to get anything up. I think the picture could be improved by having whoever put stop into the hat thrown off the end of the pier.
 
I love this image, the beautiful colours in the sky really do make you STOP and think.
 
Ingredients works really well Lynton. I like it a lot.. As for Stop a good take on the theme, and I like it a lot.
 
ISOLATION.

A much better topic out of the hat this week.

Here's my effort, taken up on Blakeney Spit this morning. The Old Watch House is pretty isolated and I imagine quite bleak in Winter.

isolation2800.jpg



C&C welcomed from all.
 
Brilliant shot, and works really well in B & W.
I think i would have liked it slightly more if the house was slightly closer.
 
Definitely a better theme this week - and it didn't help me that ingredients and stop fell in 2 weeks when I was really busy and unmotivated about photography anyway.

Ingredients : A really unique take on the theme and one that I really like. The reflections don't bother me too much - I think because my eye is drawn straight to the book and trying to read what's written there.

Stop : OK it's a little bit of a cheat, but I don't care. And if you hadn't cheated I would never have got to see this. It's a gorgeous shot. Love the tone of the light, love the sky and that starburst on the corner of the building sets it off perfectly.

Isolation : Definitely isolated :thumbs:
Good timing with the storm coming in and the B&W conversion works well with it.
At this size the house looks a little bit lost in the distance, but I think it probably works well in the full size version.
 
Darren,

Fair point, though in my defence it was a 1.6 mile walk from the car to the house along a shingle bank into a force 8 wind with the storm coming towards us........ (and I got soaked 2 mins from the car! :clap::shrug:)

I wanted to get a bit closer as well, but was in shorts and golf top, no wet gear, so bottled it......... maybe should have had the 120-400 bolted on....:lol::lol:

Chris,

thanks.... :thumbs::thumbs:

Sarah,

yeah STOP was a bit of a crowbar, but was totally uninspired with the theme....... thanks for comments on the pic, am tempted to get it printed quite big.......... :)
 
Ooh that does feel isolated especially when there power goes off ( previous experience of living in the country side )

nice agressive and lonely feel
 
I think it's a great shot of the storm rolling in, but it lacks a focal point and could use a touch more contrast, fella.
 
David,

It's unoccupied and pretty much derelict........


Dean,

Yeah the plan was to get quite a bit closer (past the boat) and then somehow make the house on the right (that is obscured by the horizon :bang:) .... a bit more of a focal point..... but with that storm in the background.......:nono: :cuckoo: should have took a longer lens.......

Good points about the contrast, I've given it a boost and the storm looks a lot more menacing now.......

isolation28002.jpg



Sue,

Many thanks.......


Now off to visit some more 52's...........
 
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The image really looks isolated and that storm is really menacing, but I have to agree on the focal point...
 
The treatment you have now done makes the foreground a little false, perhaps combining the the BG with the foreground of the original shot might make it more natural.
I like the distance to the buildings as it does give the impression of Isolation. However as has been said there is no focal point and my eye just wanders around the image.
Great storm though.

Allan
 
Ok, maybe a bit controversial, but I can assure you no Grade A substances were used in the making of this picture. (If they were, I'd have a Range Rover with big shiny wheels, "privacy" glass and a loud sound system... not to stereotype in the slightest.)

Quality Tested Bolivian Marching Powder....

Colour:

marchinggear800.jpg


B&W:

marchinggearbw800.jpg



Hopefully, I will be able to capture the subject I really wanted to do for QUALITY by the end of the week. All depends on wife's friend's father and his whereabouts of him and his car.....;) (oops may have let the cat slighty out of the bag there......)

C&C welcome as ever......

By the way built my own darkbox using a cardboard box and black card and a piece of glass. Couldn't work out flash lighting so tripod 30s and something like F13.....
 
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