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1

Landscape / Around Inari, Finland

« on: February 13, 2013, 02:53:41 PM »

Last week, I was lucky enough to visit Northern Finland. It started off fairly mild at -5 C with snow, but then got progressively colder to -28.5 C on the last night. While I was there, there was a good display of the Northern Lights and I even managed to get a few landscapes.

Lake Inari Signpost by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Lake Inari at Dawn by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Auroral Spike by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Auroral Arc over Trees by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

2

Video & Movie / Timelapse of the Aurora in Finland

« on: February 13, 2013, 02:44:29 PM »

I thought I'd post my first real attempt at a timelapse video (apart from the first test version). Some of the sequences are a bit short, but I hope it gives some sense of the beauty of the Northern Lights.


Inari Aurora	Small \| Large

3

Landscape / Somerset Levels in Flood

« on: December 09, 2012, 12:53:57 PM »

A couple of weeks ago, the southwest of England had a huge amount of rain in a few days, leading to widespread flooding. The Somerset Levels were particularly badly hit and some roads are still closed. While the Levels have been greatly modified by humans over the centuries and are designed to flood to protect the surrounding towns and villages, the flood defences were overwhelmed. Yesterday, I decided to venture out, having worked out which roads were still closed (and therefore unpassable for mere mortals in cars). The floods have receded (although you wouldn't think so from these photos), but are still extensive. In fact they are so extensive, it's difficult to convey the full extent in photographs.

Southlake Moor Floods by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

New Spillway by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Saltmoor Flooding by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Southlake Moor at Dusk by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

4

Landscape / Aurora and Milky Way in Scotland

« on: October 28, 2012, 06:56:00 AM »

During my last trip to Scotland, I was lucky enough to see the Northern Lights. They weren't as bright as in Norway last year, but for so far south, it was a good viewing. I then had to try my hand at some astrophotography of the Milky Way. Not perfect by any means, but probably the best I could get with standard equipment.

Scottish Aurora by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Aurora Frame by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

The Milky Way by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

5

Animal Kingdom / Red Squirrels and other Scottish Wildlife

« on: October 28, 2012, 06:51:28 AM »

I've spent well over four years trying to get a half decent shot of a red squirrel, but after my last trip to Scotland, I have more than I know what to do with. I also managed to photogarph another iconic species, the mountain hare, as well as a treecreeper.

Red Squirrel Eating Hazlenut by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Red Squirrel Ambush by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Red Squirrel Peek a Boo by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Resting Mountain Hare by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Roosting Treecreeper by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

6

Landscape / Loch Leven

« on: October 19, 2012, 06:06:13 PM »

On the return trip from Scotland, I stopped over at Loch Leven for a couple of nights, with some mostly dry, but slightly unsetteld weather. At breakfast on the day I was due to leave, I had to dash out to get the mist as it rolled in.

Rainbow over the Pap by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Ardgour Range by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Mist over Loch Leven by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

7

Landscape / Glencoe

« on: October 19, 2012, 06:02:57 PM »

Last week, I made one of my regular trips to Scotland, near Inverness. One of my stopovers on the way up was at the spectacular Glencoe and for once, the weather was favourable, although it was overcast at dawn when for my planned trip to Buachaille Etive Mor, so I waited until later, when it had started to clear.

Sunlit River Coe by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

Rowan by the Coe by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

The Bog and Stob Dearg by Kernuak (avalonlightphotoart.co.uk), on Flickr

8

5D MK III Sample Images / Illumina at Hestercombe Gardens

« on: September 09, 2012, 04:16:48 PM »

During the nights of 7-10th and 14-16th September, Ulf Pedersen is displaying his Illumina Project at Hestercombe Gardens, near Taunton, the county town of Somerset, in the UK. The project involves a series of illuminations and projections and I was lucky enough to be invited to the press event on the 6th to get a chance to photograph the event. Further information about what the event involves on the link below.

http://www.hestercombe.com/events-and-activities/21-september/75-illumina-hestercombes-night-of-light.html

Hestercombe Projection by Kernuak, on Flickr

Chinese Seat by Kernuak, on Flickr

Illuminated Cascade by Kernuak, on Flickr

9

Portrait / West Somerset Railway

« on: August 21, 2012, 06:31:06 PM »

A few portraits from the shoot on Sunday.

Hattie on Bogie by Kernuak, on Flickr

Hattie Closeup by Kernuak, on Flickr

Lucy in a Carriage by Kernuak, on Flickr

10

EOS Bodies - For Stills / AF Point Selection Oddity on 5D MkIII with 100mm Macro

« on: August 18, 2012, 09:14:40 AM »

I've found an oddity with the AF on the 5D MkIII. For a couple of weeks, I've been scratching my head over how I would select the outer points when using single point focus. After playing around this afternoon, I have found that if I select only the 41 most sensitive points, I can only select the central 21 points when using single point, single spot, or expanded, but if I switch to zone, I can select the outer zones. Switching to all 61 points or 9/14 points allows me to choose any point. Trying it out with other lenses (all in group A as opposed to group C for the 100mm macro), I can select any point I wish in any selection mode, including 61 points. I then tried another group C combination, the 300mm L IS iwth 1.4x extender. Again, I didn't have any problems with selecting any point I wished, so it isn't as simple as applying only to certain lens groups. From all of my lenses that are f/2.8 or wider maximimum aperture (I didn't try either the 24-105 or 17-40), it is only with the 100mm macro in 41 point mode where I can't select the outer 20 points and doesn't affect zone AF. I may have mised it, but I couldn't find any reference to the phenomenom in either the 5D MkIII manual or the 1D X AF guide. It isn't really a major issue, as most of the time, I would be using manual focus for macro work and I would be inclined to use the 135mm for the little portrait work I do.

11

5D MK III Sample Images / Macro Images with 5D MkIII

« on: July 21, 2012, 05:29:31 PM »

I've seen a few macro images taken with the 5D MkIII and a few lens specific topics, but I haven't seen a general macro topic purely with the MkIII, so I thought I'd start one.
I'm finding manual focus easier than I expected and I can manage at least as well as with the MkII and much better than the 7D. I am also getting clean images as high as ISO 6400 with correct exposure. After some initial test shots, I'm now beginning to experiment with different compositions, despite the windy weather.

Cinnabar Moth Caterpillar on Ragwort Bud by Kernuak, on Flickr

Cinnabar Moth Caterpillar in the Evening by Kernuak, on Flickr

Cinnabar Moth Caterpillar Mass by Kernuak, on Flickr

12

Street & City / Wells Cathedral

« on: July 06, 2012, 05:57:58 PM »

Probably among the smallest of the world's cities, Wells, Somerset, in the southwest of England has quite a spectacular cathedral.

Wells Cathedral by Kernuak, on Flickr

Clouds over Wells Cathedral by Kernuak, on Flickr

13

Portrait / Outside my Comfort Zone

« on: February 14, 2012, 03:48:48 PM »

I don't often do portrait photography, but I had a couple of attempts last year. I also don't go in for a lot of post processing work either, but I spent a bit more time than usual on these.

Brooding_lo-res by Kernuak, on Flickr

Looking up at You by Kernuak, on Flickr

14

Landscape / Northern Lights and Northern Norway

« on: December 31, 2011, 11:12:07 AM »

A few weeks ago, I had a trip to Northern Norway to see and try to photograph the Northern Lights. Of course, that meant I "had" to buy a new lens, as I didn't have a fast wideangle. Since its release, I'd been looking at the 24mm L f/1.4 II, but I couldn't decide whether to get that lens or the Zeiss 21mm or TS/E 24mm. The need for a wide aperture finally decided it and pushed me into the purchase. I was a little over-ambitious, as I tried to get a bit of foreground in focus, using hyperfocal focusing, which is slightly awkward, when the DoF scale goes from 3m to infinity. As a result, I missed focus on quite a few, but I did manage to get some shots of the Aurora, even though activity was pretty quiet.