Backyard Winter Nature in New Jersey: Nor’easter Winter Storm.
The red clouds at dawn yesterday did turn out the be correct in predicting stormy weather. It rained most of last night with heavy winds. By 09:00 the rain started switching to snow. I found a daffodil that was trying too open too early. Also some Snow Drops with fresh snow in the background. By the afternoon, the snow was getting heavy. Then the power went off. I got a text message from PSE&G saying that power was off, and that it should be restored in 12 hours. The power was back in two hours. The snow switched back to rain, and the winds kept getting stronger. A police car and fire truck showed up across the street. One of the power lines was touching a tree and arcing. With a telephoto lens it appeared that the arcing wire was cutting the tree, and that a large branch would ultimately fall to the ground.
A daffodil flower about to open in the middle of a Nor’easter. Image taken with a Nikon D5 camera and 300 mm f/4 lens (ISO 720, 300 mm, f/4, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)Snow Drops with a bit of snow during a Nor’easter. Image taken with a Nikon D5 camera and 300 mm f/4 lens (ISO 360, 300 mm, f/4, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)
Gone to See Patagonia 2015 Photography Tour with Thom Hogan. Day 0: Buenos Aires, Argentina.
When I planned this trip, I included an extra day for travel to Argentina to account for weather delays. I almost needed it since it was snowing when I arrived in Dallas to change planes for the international leg of the flights. We finally did take off after waiting to have the plane de-iced. I arrived in Buenos Aires a couple of hours later than expected. I had the 10 year visa from the last visit to Argentina in my passport, so didn’t have to pay an extra $100 when going through customs & immigration. It took some time to find the driver to take me to the hotel. Once I got to the hotel, I slept until the next morning. It was a long trip.
The next morning I hooked up with several of the folks that would be on the photography workshop for a pre-workshop tour of Buenos Aires. We spent the morning in the La Boca barrio/district. Lots of street artists, colorful buildings, and street art. Also, lots of tourist — and we were warned about pickpockets and folks that might want to grab our cameras. So we worked the area in pairs, and also had a security guard in addition to our local guide. After lunch we went to the La Recoleta cemetery. Also, a photography rich environment. The sky was grey, and some light rain. I didn’t get as many pictures as I wanted because my Leica T camera stopped working. It just froze after changing the lens. Unfortunately, I only took the one camera with me for the day. (OK, I did take some pictures with a cell phone).
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
Street Art and Atmosphere in the La Boca barrio of Buenos Aires. Image taken with a Leica T camera and 23 mm f/2 lens. (David J Mathre)
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
Backyard Winter Nature in New Jersey — Signs that Spring is Coming.
Fiery red clouds at dawn. The sun is rising earlier every morning, and I had to jump out of bed as I saw the colors starting to develop. It gave me a chance to test a new camera before reading any of the manual. The best way to learn is by doing. Later in the day some images of the bird bath statue and some early purple crocus flowers. Not as early as some years, but still early. The daffodils still have a bit to go. There are threats of a Nor’easter tomorrow night through Saturday. I hope it is just rain.
Individual images from the slide shows can be viewed here.
Gone to See Norway 2013 Chasing the Northern Lights. Day 5: Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp Norwegian Coastal Voyage Northbound (Trondheim and Rørvik).
On the second full day of the northbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship only stops in two ports: Trondheim (06:00-12:00) and Rørvik (20:30-21:15). Having six hours in Trondheim allowed us to spend some time to see the city. Our first stop was at Nidaros Cathedral. The exterior of the cathedral is a target rich environment for religious statues and gargoyles. But it was cold outside. The last time I was here in 2007 I said I would love to go back with a perspective control lens to record all sides of the exterior of the cathedral. Well, I didn’t bring that lens along, so had to do with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and an older 180 mm f/2.8 lens. It was cloudy and still relatively dark in the morning, so the images are noisy. The statues can be identified here. After leaving Trondheim, we passed the Kjeungskjær Lighthouse.
Lonely bench in the snow. Trondheim overlook. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and 10 mm f/2.8 lens (ISO 800, 10 mm, f/2.8, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre)
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
Kjeungskjær Lighthouse in Norway on a Cold Windy Rainy Winter Day from the Deck of the Hurtigruten MS Nordkapp. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 180 mm f/2.8D lens (ISO 400, 180 mm, f/2.8, 1/320 sec).Kjeungskjær Lighthouse (David J Mathre)
Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Winter Vacation. Day 13: Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald Norwegian Coastal Voyage Southbound (Trondheim to Molde).
On the fifth day of the southbound Hurtigruten voyage the ship only made three stops: Trondheim (06:30-10:00); Kristiansund (16:30-17:00); and Molde (21:00-21:30). We were able to spend a couple of early morning hours in Trondheim. I wanted to get more images of the statues and gargoyles at the Nidaros Cathedral.
Individual images in the slide show can be viewed here.
