Fifteen-Years Ago Today. Rainbow over Maui. (20-Dec-2009, Hawaii).
Trolls Out Celebrating the Winter Solstice.
I set up a camera looking out the backdoor window to take images for a time-lapse video of the snow accumulating on a set of Trolls. The prediction was for 2 inches. By morning there was between 4 and 6 inches of accumulation. The snow was light and fluffy. I didn’t need to start up the snow blower to clear a path to the driveway. I just used a battery powered leaf blower.
Trolls Out Celebrating the Winter Solstice. Images taken with a Hasselblad X2d camera and 55 mm f/2.5 lens (ISO 1600, f/16, 64 sec exposure). One image every 10 minutes.
Apple-Cranberry Crisp
I had some Cranberries and Apples remaining from the last Fairgrown Farm CSA delivery. I used them to make a Crisp using a recipe modified from making an Apple-Pomegranate Crisp.
Apple Cranberry Crisp. Image taken with a Leica CL camera and 23 mm f/2 lens.Apple Cranberry Crisp. Image taken with a Leica CL camera and 23 mm f/2 lens.
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 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 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).
Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, European Starling, American Goldfinch, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Northern Cardinal. Freezing rain brought the birds back to the birdfeeders.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Images of the freezing rain. The first set monochrome taken before sunrise. The second set taken during the day while bird watching.
Freezing rain before sunrise. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Freezing rain during the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Daily Electric Energy Used (98.0 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (19.4kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Freezing rain, and rain in the morning. Deficit of 78.6 kWh.
Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Northern Cardinal. When it snows, the birds come back. First Brown-headed Cowbirds this year.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Walkabout in the Snow. By mid-morning we had ~3 inches of snow. Images of a statue laying on a bench, the troll on top of the mailbox, and helping a neighbor with his annual (first time in a couple of years) Maple syrup boil down.
Walkabout in the Snow. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Walkabout in the Snow. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Daily Electric Energy Used (92.5 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (0.0 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Solar Panels covered with snow. Deficit of 92.5 kWh.
Weekly Electric Energy Used (588 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (211 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Deficit of 377 kWh.
When I woke up 6+ inches of snow already fell during the night. An additional 2 inches fell during the day. The snow finally stopped by 15:00. During the night, a fox was sighted by the infrared video camera off the patio.
Sixteen Trolls Covered with Snow. Image taken with a Leica Q2 monochrome camera and 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 100, 28 mm, f/4, 1/200 sec). (David J Mathre)
Backyard Panorama with 18 Trolls Covered with Snow. Composite of seven images taken with a Leica Q2 monochrome camera and 28 mm f/1.7 lens (ISO 100, 28 mm, f/4.5, 1/200 sec). Raw images processed with Capture One Pro. The new Panorama feature within Capture One Pro didn’t work with this set of images, so the panorama was generated with AutoPano Giga (David J Mathre)
Birds of the day on a snowy day viewed at the birdfeeder and in the backyard: Mourning Dove, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, House Finch, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
Videos using the Snow Blower, and Red Rover to clear snow from the driveway. The tensioning spring for the PTO belt on the Snow Blower was loose. It was pretty hard to get it back on when the temperature was below 20°F. I needed to use a crow bar to push the belt wheel back far enough to attach the spring.
Daily Electric Energy Used (113.6 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (0.0 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. The solar panels were covered with 8+ inches of snow. The suplemental resistance heating kicked on at night as the outdoor temperature dropped below 10°F. Deficit of 113.6 kWh.
