Month: December 2024

Tuesday (10-December-2024) — New Jersey.

Eleven-Years Ago Today. Birdbath and statue covered with snow. (10-Dec-2013, New Jersey).

Foggy Fogy Day

The fog persisted into the afternoon, and it remained cloudy overnight. The telescopes had the day off. I took the Leica Q2-monochrome out for a walkabout to capture the dreary mood. The patch of Cattails next to the pond has increased in size now that the pond has been enlarged. They were struggling during the drought but now should be self-seeding for next year. For the individual Cattail, I used the macro/closeup feature on the Leica Q2 camera.

Late Autumn Cattails in the Fog. Image taken with a Leica Q2M camera with a 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 200, f/4, 1/125 sec).
Late Autumn Cattails in the Fog. Image taken with a Leica Q2M camera with a 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 200, f/4, 1/125 sec).
Late Autumn Cattail in the Fog. Image taken with a Leica Q2M camera with a 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 200, f/4, 1/160 sec).
Late Autumn Cattail in the Fog. Image taken with a Leica Q2M camera with a 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 200, f/4, 1/160 sec).

Wildflower Meadow Plan

I recently mowed the back wildflower meadow in preparation for seeding. This year I am going to try seeding in the winter after it snows. I don’t plan to rototill or plow this year. I may put out some slow-release fertilizer. This will allow the wildflower seeds to be exposed to the cold for several months before germinating. The risk will be the birds and mice thinking I put the seed out for them. If it works, I should have a jump on an early flowering season next spring.

Little Planet View of the Late Autumn Backyard on a Foggy Day. Composite of 66 images taken with a Hasselblad 907x camera and 38 mm f/2.5 lens (ISO 64, f/16, 1 sec). Images processed with DxO Pure Raw, Capture One, Photoshop, and PTGui (to create the 360° Little Planet.
Little Planet Foggy View of the Late Autumn Wildflower Meadow after being Mowed. Composite of 66 images taken with a Hasselblad 907x camera and 38 mm f/2.5 lens (ISO 64, f/16, 1 sec). Images processed with DxO Pure Raw, Capture One, Photoshop, and PTGui (to create the 360° Little Planet View).

Sunday (08-December-2024) — New Jersey

Six-Years Ago Today. Pillar of Light at Sunrise. Composite of 6 images taken with a Leica CL camera. (08-Dec-2018, New Jersey).

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS)

The comet is getting fainter and the tail much shorter. The magnitude is now 10.1. The first image is a composite of 31 images (5 min 10 sec) and the second one is a composite of 254 images (42 min 20 sec). In the second image there is some movement of the comet head. Also, the comet is moving into a region of the sky with part of the milky way in the background (many more faint stars).

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS). Composite of 31 10 sec images taken with a Vaonis Vespera-Pro Telescope (250 mm, f/5, 310 sec).
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS). Composite of 31 10 sec images taken with a Vaonis Vespera-Pro Telescope (250 mm, f/5, 310 sec).

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS). Composite of 254 10 sec images taken with a Vaonis Vespera-Pro Telescope (250 mm, f/5, 2540 sec).
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS). Composite of 254 10 sec images taken with a Vaonis Vespera-Pro Telescope (250 mm, f/5, 2540 sec).