Killdeer Nest of Eggs, Can You Find It?

May 3, 2017 by Debra

Hi, can you find the Killdeer nest in the image below?

It was last weekend when I was with Kevin while feeding the cows that he asked me if I could see the Killdeer nest. As I was looking everywhere, Kevin just laughed. He said it’s out in plain site. I had to admit that I didn’t know what I was looking for- never seen a Killdeer nest before. Heck, I wasn’t sure what a Killdeer even looked like!

You might see the nest right off the dot. But when you are out in the open pasture the nest isn’t easy to see. This is down by the pond/cabin, Kevin marked the nest with two bigger rocks so he wouldn’t mow over them.

killdeer-eggs — EXP: 1/640 sec; f/5.6; ISO 100

Best Wishes,

Old Barn

March 15, 2017 by Debra 4 Comments

An Old Barn.

Hi, I am cheating a bit. Supposed to be a Wordless Wednesday post- however, I was just so excited with these pictures of old farm buildings. Every day I drive by these and always say to myself, “I want to take pictures of this place.” Well last night was the night. The sun was just beautiful. Now I want to have enlargements made and hang on my wall! Below is the complete set of old farm pictures taken.

Best Wishes,

Freeze | How to Take Sharp Action Pictures

March 6, 2017 by Debra 2 Comments

SHARP ACTION PICTURES

Hi, taking pictures is what I do. Sometimes I just need to play; to remember why I love photography so much. Have you ever wondered how to take sharp action pictures? Here are the simple sure steps to freeze a picture while shooting in manual mode.

FOCUS MODE: AF-C
Select AF-C that continuously maintains focus on a moving subject while the shutter button is held halfway down.

FOCUS AREA: WIDE
Select Wide that automatically focuses on a subject, wherever it is positioned within the frame.

DRIVE MODE: Continuous Shooting- Hi
When shooting a moving subject, select Continuous Shooting that takes continuous shots while the shutter button is held all the way down.

SHUTTER SPEED: 1/500 sec. or faster
Try to select a fast shutter speed, so that the subject doesn’t become blurred.

The family image above settings info:
Focal Length: 70.00 mm (in 35mm: 105 mm)
Exposure: 1/640 sec; f/3.5; ISO 200; Manual

If you are just beginning to shoot out of the Auto mode, set your camera to the Shutter Priority mode (S or TV on camera top dial). Next set your Shutter Speed to 1/1000 or simply 1000. Then continue with the Focus Mode, Focus Area and Drive Mode. Note: With a shutter speed of 1/1000, this is very fast. You will want to be in a very bright area; outdoor action photos. An excellent reference is the camera manual. I keep mine in my camera bag. A pdf copy is on my smart phone as well! In case you have miss placed your manual, simply Google your camera make, model along with the word manual. This is how I saved a pdf copy to my smart phone.

Exciting events: While writing this post, Kevin asked if I would stop for a bit and walk down to the pond with him. Sure– how fun. I grabbed the camera. Good thing I did. Merle went with us and when Kevin cast his line out, Merle would go into the water after it!

Images on this website, I use the Sony Nex-5n and Sony a6000 exclusively. If your camera settings do not match the ones given above, please refer to your camera’s operating manual.

This was a time I wished I grabbed the zoom lens. Post edited the zoom in Photoshop for the images above.

Lens: E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS
Focal Length: 50.00 mm (in 35mm: 75 mm)
Exposure: 1/1000 sec; f/5.6; ISO 200; Shutter priority

Have I inspired you to get out and freeze some photos?

Best Wishes,