The year in pictures (2012)

[cheery_j.]

I love that sunflower picture. Sadly we didn't have any sunflowers at all last year. Maybe this time!

@Bonnie: I like my job, but I wouldn't mind doing less of it later in the day.

[Penfold]

Wonderful photo Bonnie, I would be more than happy to use it in my club competitions if their rules allowed it and I would expect it to score very high! I often get to see the dawn when I'm leaving work (or just getting home from) although in the Summer months it's normally often already daylight.

I love sunflowers as well Aunty and passed a farm growing whole fields of them recently. I was too late to catch them in bloom but I will try to catch them later this year.

I did manage to get to play with my new lens (Christmas prezzy to myself) at the Wetlands Trust and here are some of my efforts;

Check appearance in the 'mirror';


And feel chuffed with the result!


What choo lookin' at!


Punk Duck!

(Actually it's a female "Scaly Sided Merganser", an endangered Asian species brought here for breeding purposes)

Mandarin Duck

[Tonyblack]

Love the pictures, Penners!

[michelanCello]

Cute ducks!

[spideyGirl]

The colours on that Mandarin are just wow! You could use those for the Caption thread too

[jaznbonnie]

Aw, thanks Pen. I love the duck photos! Especially the Mandarin duck.

Jules, I'm with you on the less and later theme.

[meerkat]

Excellent pictures, Penners! You have a steady hand!

[Conforumist]

Looks like everything is just ducky!

[The Mad Collector]

Great shots there Penners, Mandarin ducks are really pretty, even without bright sunlight.

[Joolz]

Excellent pics again Penners

Hmm Mandarin duck with tangerine sauce....

[meerkat]

Plum sauce, surely?

[AuntyVague]

I love sunflowers as well Aunty and passed a farm growing whole fields of them recently. I was too late to catch them in bloom but I will try to catch them later this year.

Oh, a whole field would be just lovely - I look forward to seeing that one Penfold!
I'll have to remember to take another photo of mine when the seeds are mature and the rosellas come visiting. If I get my little camera back from the shop in time

Your duck photos are fabulous My favourite is the first with the reflection. It is so sharp yet the duck looks so relaxed. Were you close by or does the new lens allow you to take such sharp pictures from a distance?

Love both Penfold's and Mad Collector's shots of the Mandarin ducks too. What meticulously attired birds they are!

As for dawn, much as it is pretty I am fortunate neither to see in going to or from work. Do come home in the dark in mid winter though.

[Penfold]

Thanks guys. Just to answer a few questions;

They were taken with my new Canon 300mm L f/4 USM IS telephoto lens. It's a prime (non-zoom) lens so it focuses a lot faster and image quality is meant to be better. However, I am still getting used to it as it requires quite a lot of light to avoid 'noise' from using a high ISO setting when using it hand-held. The alternative would be to use a mono- or tri-pod which allows for a slower shutter speed without introducing camera shake (my hands are quite steady now Meer but that wasn't always the case. During my drinking days I would often get the 'shakes' so bad I couldn't even sign my name).

TIP: To avoid blurring (camera shake) when taking hand held pics, as a rule of thumb, your shutter speed should be equal to or greater than your focal length. (e.g. when using a 500mm lens, your shutter speed should be 500/1 second or higher; when using a 50mm lens, your shutter speed should be 50/1 or higher.) Image Stabilization or bracing on a solid surface will allow you to reduce the shutter speed by a couple of places and a tri-pod will obviously negate this altogether. A steady hand does help as well and can negate some of this but the longer the focal length, the more pronounced the camera shake becomes - and long focal length lenses can be quite heavy to hold for extended periods.

I agree Mandarin Ducks are very impressive with their plumage and are one of my favourites with the American Wood Duck a close second in the "What Duck?" stakes;

(Taken in Sept. 2011 so doesn't really qualify for this thread - sorry)

If memory serves me correctly, the path to the sunflower fields was somewhat off the regular walking routes but well worth the effort. I think they are in full bloom around July or August so I will go back then and hope for the best.

[Batty]

Brilliant photos!

Mad's duck looks like a wooden decoy one to me! My favourite is the reflection one.

Well done!

[Tiffany]

Super photo's from everyone, but I particularly adore ducks & the duck photo's on here are gorgeous.

Tonights sunset.



Which was ruddy amazing seeing as it was dull & cloudy all day & not one glimpse of sun.