These are handsome creatures, well caught. It's always nice to see unfamiliar birds (and other wildlife/plant life) from the other side of the planet which I'm unlikely to ever see for myself.
These are handsome creatures, well caught. It's always nice to see unfamiliar birds (and other wildlife/plant life) from the other side of the planet which I'm unlikely to ever see for myself.
Interesting structure. I like the shadow patterns.
I like the first two here best. The moor has such lush greens and yellows and are nicely complemented with those white and pink flower colours.
The cotton grass is blowing gently in the wind.
You have a wonderful subject to work with here, and have produced some great results ! Well done!!!!
You have a nice collection of pretty birds where you live!
Those barn swallows are really small and fast. I tried once myself, very difficult to get a good shot!
A dark and moody shot! Even looks a bit claustrophobic :-)
I always need some time to enjoy your posts. A great set of pictures as usual.
I am interested on your commentary on the Z8 during long exposures, as I am still considering updating one of my Z7 Mk1 bodies, as HDR bracketing might be a bit more user friendly, as I see it has a bracket button like my D850.
Yes, those bl**dy information panels that local authorities and National Trust like bodies love to desecrate the landscape and historic buildings with. I hate them too. But usually they rot and fade quite quickly and after a few years they can be seen collapsed and rotting in the grass.
Seen full screen this is a pretty cool shot, that sums up the rush hour.
The picture you posted in this weeks completion is fantastic.
Sorry! Despite the excellent concept, the camera movement spoils this for me: the moving people would have been just as interesting without it. I usually enjoy looking at the detail in your photos, but am unable to do so in this one!
David
Yes, the "pro" control layout with the buttons is much quicker than the approach on the Z7. I can switch into autobracketing very quickly with this rather than the additional menu diving I had to do on the Z7 to activate both bracketing and continuous shooting.
What you do need to be aware of is that the bracketing on the Z8 is more limited than the Z7 was. Whereas the Z7 could do positive + negative, positive only and negative only bracketing, the latter being my preferred mode for sunsets, the Z8 can only do positive + negative bracketing, which is surprisingly restrictive for such a powerful camera and something I hope they will fix in a firmware update at some point.
The long exposure artifacts thing is interesting and not something I've seen on other cameras I own, so I can only assume it's a side effect of how the sensor is read out. It definitely looks like a long exposure is being sampled at discrete time intervals rather than performing a continuous accumulation of charge. More experimentation is required here, although for the most part, it's a non issue.
Northern Tuscany
Italy is not always blessed with sunshine. After a job in Florence, I took the long way home via Lucca and the Garfagnana, stopping off in Barga and another couple of places. The weather was grey with occasional breaks in the cloud to let the sun shine through. Crossing the mountain ridge to go home to Emila was "interesting" as I finished amongst the clouds as I drove over the mountain pass. I wanted some material for my Romanesque project.
The Duomo in Barga is quite unusual for a Romanesque church. It is a rectangular box shaped structure. It dates from the 12 Century, and is in a commanding position above the small town.
San Cassiano is a little hamlet high above the valley, reached after navigating an seemingly endless country lane. The church was closed, but I wanted to see the primitive carvings on the façade. I really enjoy this almost abstract Medieval art. The rain held off for a while and I even had a few seconds of sun.
Brancoli is another hamlet, reached by climbing high above the main valley, again along twisty turny country lanes, among the olive groves. A notice on the door gives the telephone numbers of the local volunteers who will open the church and let you have twenty minutes to enjoy the church. I was a bit rushed to make the pictures here, and the details I made hand held at high ISO.
I was in Florence, but I was in no mood for the crowds. If you have a car, exploring the more obscure areas of Tuscany, like the Lunigiana, or Garfagnana, can be a pleasurable and rewarding experience. With a bit of internet research, some wonderful little gems can be seen, and eating out is a more genuine and less costly experience. I had the Duomo in Barga to myself for most of my visit.
I mostly used my Nikon 24PC, 45PC, Laowa 15 shift as well as my new 28-400. The first frame below is a 28-400 shot, as are all the details.
The first shot is a good example of what the AI features in Capture One can achive. With one click the software chose the church as the subject mask, and let me lighten and brighten a little the stonework, caught briefly by some weak sunshine. Another few clicks let me render a little less obvious the people in front of the church, using some darkening and desaturation. Otherwise this is pretty much an out of camera shot.
Thre is still some sniffy snobbery about these superzoom like my new 28-400 lens (Reviews and Photo forums). But I would have probably missed the first shot, and the shot of San Cassiano briefly illuminated by the sun, as I could quickly zoom to make the shot. I was also able to work quickly in Brancoli, to make the details, when I was running out of time on my 20 minute slot.
Barga
My pick is the 1st one and the rest of the set has very nice details .
The Nockalmstrasse road in Carinthia
DPRevived has now returned to it’s former pleasant and friendly state; time for me to start posting again 😊
Last week we spent a week hiking in the Nockberge in Kärnten (Carinthia)
It’s a beautiful area with natural parks and fairly gentle, often grass covered, round shaped mountains, more like hills than the more rocky Alps.
There’s one 34km long curvy road here, that’s loved by motorcycles and sport cars, it snakes it’s way through the area up to a height of 2042m. I searched the map for a good place to get a photo. Then we hiked to that spot, it’s off the beaten track but we found it !
Took a few shots, I prefer this wide angle shot best. (taken with the Z 14-30, F4)
We will refresh all the photos in our local open air gallery in 3 weeks time , this shot has earned a place in that round :-)
Very nice atmospheric capture. I am not surprised to hear that it is a popular road for thrill seekers.
I use too the street view time to time to scout locations 😎
Went on a walk around a reservoir last week and took a few pictures (as you do).
This is my pick, but I would crop top part from the bridge. It is very good capture.
This is my pick, I like the sense of movement, subtle colours and use of out of focus areas.
Fire
You definitely brought the heat of the flames to your captures. Good set.
I hope you don't mind some variation on the scenery and architecture. There are no worthwhile buildings around here and I don't have a lens for scenery...
Who does not like birds? Bee-eater shot is colourful, you caught it while munching 😂