Nature – Juridicious

The Fens

The Fens are ancient marshlands in the east of England that comprise of land that is low lying (usually no more than a few metres above mean sea level). Over the years the Fens were drained to make way for long tracts of peat-rich soils crisscrossed by man-made drainage channels and canals. The photo below is of one such man made channel known as the Reach ford near the Wicken Fen Nature reserve that is managed by the National Trust. Wicken Fen is one the oldest of National Trusts nature reserve and is at the forefront in the preservation and maintenance of this ancient landscape.

Shot as a 3-exposure bracketed at -2, 0 and +2. Post processed in Photomatix Pro and Lightroom Classic. Nikon D750 with a 28-300mm Nikon Lens.

Dahlia-cious

A fire like glow on this deep yellow and orange dahlia photographed at Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire.

Check out more sizes on Flickr by clicking on the photo.

McWay Falls, Big Sur

I happened to be in California the last two weeks on work related business. Over the weekend my cousin drove me down the scenic pacific coast on the scenic Route 101 from San Francisco to the Big Sur and back. Sadly the day was overcast but we managed to take in some pretty sights along the way, including the famous McWay Falls in the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Sadly in the absence of a wide-angle lens, I had to resort to taking overlapping photos with my 50mm and then stitching them in Adobe Lightroom.

DSC_7359-Pano-Edit — Composite of 5 stiched photos. See in large size on Flickr by clicking on the photo!

Here is another close-up of the McWay Falls, this time in HDR.

DSC_7367_8_9-Edit — See in large size on Flickr by clicking on the photo above.

Death of a flower

Flowers are beautiful even in death. As the petals fade and die, they take on a beauty of their own.

Focus stacking of 8 photos.
Nikon D7000
105mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lens

Camelia sp.

I believe this is a flower and bud from the ericaceous soil loving Camelia or a related genus like Rhododendron or Azalea. This photo was shot at the mediterranean biome of the Eden Project in Cornwall.

Nikon D7000
105mm, f/2.8 Sigma Macro Lens
1/1000, f/4.5
ISO100

Seeds and Spider

A new job has meant that I have not been able to devote as much time as I’d like towards photography and maintaining my blog. Nevertheless, I’m determined to make a new beginning starting with this post!

This was shot at the Eden Project in Cornwall earlier this year. See the photo in large size to appreciate the detail on the seed head. Also can you spot a tiny spider photobombing this composition? 🙂

Pink hibiscus..

I’m just starting to experiment with focus stacking to get maximum detail while doing macrophotography. The following is one of my first marginally successful attempts! Comments and criticisms welcome.

Click on the photo for more viewing options!

A tulip in detail

Shot at home on a bright red tulip. Converted to black-and-white for clarity. Can you spot a teeny-tiny aphid in the picture? You may wish to see this picture in a larger size on Flickr by clicking on the photo.

Camera Settings: ISO100, f/10, 1/125
Lens: 105mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lens

Red Anemone – backlit

Spring is finally here in Cambridge, and sunny days with blue skies open up a new vista for photography!

DSC_6477-Edit — Red anemone – see more on my Flickr page!

Camera Settings: ISO100, f/5.6, 1/250
Camera: Nikon D7000
Lens: Sigma 105mm f/2.8

Proud as a peacock!

On that particular day in Barcelona at the zoo, there were a few proud peacocks (Pavo cristatus) strutting their stuff to very disinterested peahens! Growing up in India, the peacock was a relatively common sight, and their plaintive calls at sunset time during summers usually heralded possible rain!