Datline: April 10th 2020
High Street, Comber is a traffic jam through the day, well, at least since they changed the sequence of the traffic lights at The Square. So, rarely do you see a clear view of this historic building – at least from a decent angle, so today, on my way hastily back home to resume my lockdown after some pasoral emergency, I paused, and avoided the police long enough to capture this rare scene…
Datline: April 9th 2020
Macro Day! This is a common garden daisy – a weed, just around a centemetre across, but viewed thrugh the Macro 200mm Nikon MF lens, with focus peaking on the Fujifilm X-T30, it looks like a cultivated gem!
Datline: April 8th 2020
I found this bucket tied to a tree! At one time it has been a much-loved bucket, probaby bought in a garden centre or gift shop, for it’s no ordinary bucket! I had a Nikon 300mm lens on the Fujifilm X-T30, with manual focus, and focus peaking. The colours coutesy of Classic Chrome film simulation.
Datline: April 7th 2020 – PM
We’re allowed one single walk / exercise period a day. I take a camera, so at least the wlk can be just a little bit creative!
Datline: April 7th 2020
Up at one of our local cemetaries today for a funeral, and discovered that even the departed are well and truly locked down!
Datline: April 5th 2020
It’s SURREAL! The small Co.Down town of Ballygowan, my home town, is silent and deserted. The usually busy through traffic has stopped and the pavements are forsaken. Even the children’s play park has been placed on Lockdown. Out for a walk with the camera, I’m wondering how I can make an image that will reflect the sureallity of the situation. I have the answer – the Lensbaby DESIGNER PRO with Sweet50 lens attachment, and a bit of distortion on post-capture processing, and a photo of one of the playpark features, and the weird nature of the Lockdown becomes visible!
Datline: March 29th 2020
This cheeky sparrow perched himselfself on our picnic table and posed for the camera. So I shot him! I used the Nikon 300mm MF lens and the Fujifilm X-T30. He survived the ordeal!
Here’s an experiment with an old manual focus 70-300mm zoom Nikon lens on the Fujifilm X-T30 mirrorless camera.
I was given this lens as a gift in 1995, (I think) and although it’s slow (max f/4) it’s quite a good lens. The light was failing when this image was made, around 5.30pm, so the ISO was 6400, making the image grainy. I extended the lens to 300mm and shot a photo of this bush at f/4 – 1/250th sec.
I needed to keep the ISO high and shutter speed short to eliminate lens shake. Overall though, I see possibilities for this combination.
It’s rare to have open roads in Belfast on a Saturday, but today the roads were reasonably free of traffic – with people ‘self-isolating’ and ‘social distancing.’ But there was one traffic jam, and that was caused by the closure of an important route into and out of the city, the Sydenham By-Pass. This closure caused a stand-still traffic jam on the lower section of the Newtownards Road (Ballymacarret) – Just one single snarl up in the whole city and I was stuck in it.
As it happened I had a camera right beside me on the passenger seat of the car, so while the car was stationery, with the handbrake on and the engine stopped, I made a small number of exposures. Random images, of no relevance or importance.
If you’ve entered the 2019 NPA Competitions in aid of our sponsered Charities please check the winners gallery below! If you’ve won a prize, get in touch, and claim it!
LOCAL PRIZES:
1st. large framed print,
2nd. 16×12 inch print.
3rd. 10×8 inch print.
