Photo 150 "2022" - Wetapunga

pegelli wrote: The cat is adorable and from the flowers I like the second best. Both background as well as the slightly deeper dof make it more stand out.

Thanks Pieter, the cat has moved on from the small thing determined he was in grave danger when he first arrived here. I was not his favourite person as early on, I had to take him to the emergency vet. That required a few wound dressings on me too...

The flowers are tricky as the trumpet petals are spread widely, and choosing a focal point is always about tradeeoffs. (Obviously I went old school here and didn't focus stack).

Miranda F wrote: Oh, I absolutely love the second Lily. Wonderful picture!

Thanks Anthony, its interesting how the background to a flower photo can change the way we see the final image. Fwiw, I use the C1 magic brush to create a mask and make the black...blacker.

Agree Takapu about to take off is excellent, action shot, and the tilted hillside adds to the interest.

Ngā mihi @4Paul and Maarten. I did like the way the Takapu was starting its run to begin its takeoff.

I'm afraid Maarten I couldn't take a step back with the flower because of the sudden drop behind me. But I take your point.

Week 6: 7 February to 13 February

Well Cyclone Dovi has arrived, roads are closed including the Auckland Harbour Bridge, lots of power outages and Police advising public to avoid non-essential travel. I may not get out to photograph a seascape today.

Definitely won't be photographing Takapu.
So second pic for this week is a more mundane macro shot.

#2 (Pic 17) Sony a9 (Creative theme- focus stacking)

8 photos at ISO 320, 1/3s, f8 with Sony a7Riii and Voigtlander 110/2 macro lens.

You can see from the image I've added a half-leather case (which has an Arca-Swiss base plate at the bottom). I originally got this for the a7Riii but it fits the a9 perfectly. It gives a bit of extra height to help grip the camera and balances heavier telephotos better.


Edited by Wētāpunga - 12 February 2022 at 23:23

#3 (Pic 18) Granny's Bay (scenic theme)

Well, as the Cyclone passed I hoped there'd still be enough wave and wind action for an interesting picture. But it calmed down too quickly.This is the best of my attempts at Granny's Bay, the smallest bay in the Long BAy Regional Park.

a7Riii and Zeiss Loxia 21/2.8, at ISO50, f8, 0.5s, with 6-stop ND filter



Edited by Wētāpunga - 13 February 2022 at 16:16

Yes, very nice case. I wouldn't mind one for the Rii. Looked for one a while ago but didn't find one.
Nice pictures too

Week 7: 14 to 20 February

Well, I left work a bit earlier yesterday to get some photos of Takapu (gannets) at Muriwai. Some of the motivation was to try out the a9 with Tamron in more testing circumstances.

Biggest mistake I think was my settings. I had widest aperture dialled in and a in shutter speed of 1/1000s in the ISO Auto. That produced far too many shots at ISO50! And left a lot of motion blur in images that could have been eliminated with a higher shutter speed.

The second was having the tracing sensitivity set at 5 (most sensitive). I got a better success rate when I switched to the least sensitive 1 (locked-on). My Youtube advice was wrong...

In terms of the a9, the lack of shutter blackout and its tracking speed certainly helped (better than the a7Riii) but my skill level needs to be worked on.

Anyway, first pic.

#1 (pic 19). Hovering Takapu (Telephoto theme)

a9 with Tamron 15-500mm, at 500mm and f6.7, ISO50, 1/1000s