One of my indoor cacti started blooming last night. The flower is bright red. It looks like there will be four more flowers. I am going to try to do a time-lapsed video as they open. I will also put the plant outside in the sun tomorrow to see if the local bees find it. Otherwise, I will need to try to manually pollinate the flower.
Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)Cactus in Bloom. Indoor spring nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/16, 1/30 sec) and SB-900 flash. (David J Mathre)
An early spring dandelion bloom. This one is staying close to the ground. After many days of rain and local flooding, the sun returned.
Early spring dandelion bloom. Backyard nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon Df camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 100, 105 mm, f/4, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
The Drake Hotel and John Hancock Tower. I was in Chicago for the American Chemical Society spring national meeting and had some free time to walk around a take some pictures. It was grey and foggy out.
The Drake and John Hancock Tower in the Fog. Spring in Chicago. Image taken with a Nikon D200 and 18-200 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 18 mm, f/7.1, 1/200 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 7. (David J Mathre)
Three LBJ’s (litte-brown jobs) in my backyard on a cold late-winter day. Two of the birds are white-throated sparrows. The other one, I am not sure about its ID.
White-throated sparrow getting some sun. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 400 mm, f/8, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)White-throated sparrow singing in the vines. Late winter backyard wildlife in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 400 mm, f/12, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)Sparrow hiding in the bushes. Late winter backyard wildlife in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 400 mm, f/12, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)Icicles on the vines. Late winter backyard nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 400 mm, f/9.5, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
A late-winter walkabout in my backyard. Fresh snow on the ground. Tracks from a neighbor’s cat in the front yard, and tracks from many deer in the backyard. Based on the droppings, there was not much for the deer to eat. There were birds out. A turkey vulture soaring, a white-throated sparrow, a male house finch. I am not sure if the one with the crossed bill is a female house finch or something else.
Cat tracks in my front yard. Late winter snow in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 80 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
Deer tracks in my back yard. Late winter snow in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 80 mm, f/12, 1/640 sec). (David J Mathre)Based on theses remains, not much for a deer to eat at this time of the year. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 400, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec). (David J Mathre)Turkey Vulture in flight. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/9, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)White-throated sparrow on a vine. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/7.6, 1/250 sec). (David J Mathre)Male house finch on a vine. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec). (David J Mathre)Crossed-bill/beak finch or female house finch (?) on a vine. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/11, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)Crossed-bill/beak finch or female house finch (?) on a vine. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/9, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)Crossed-bill/beak finch or female house finch (?) on a vine. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 400 mm, f/10, 1/400 sec). (David J Mathre)Pine cones in the afternoon sun. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 100, 220 mm, f/8, 1/250 sec). (David J Mathre)
