The Author – Bart Busschots
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Jul
18
Photo of the Week 126 – Female Common Blue Butterfly
Filed Under Photography on July 18, 2010 | 2 Comments
I have quite a few good butterfly shots in reserve for future Photo of the Week posts, but I want to keep things nice and varied, so I’m only going to be posting one every few weeks. Since it’s been over a month since I shared a butterfly shot, I figure it might be time to share another.
This is a shot that I had been chasing for over a year when I finally managed to captured it last month. The Common Blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus) is very small, and very camera shy, but also very beautiful. The male’s back is plain electric blue, which is pretty spectacular, but the female takes things to a whole new level, having a beautiful mix of browns, blues, and oranges on her back. The patterns at the tips of her wings are both intricate and beautiful. Many people consider this the most colourful Irish butterfly, though I disagree, I think that honour should go to the Peacock Butterfly. Regardless of whether or not it’s the most colourful butterfly, it’s certainly one of the most beautiful.
The best chance you’ll get to capture the back of these fine lady’s wings is in the evening time. As the wind falls and the sun gets low in the sky, you’ll sometimes find them sun-bathing on top of tall stalks of grass or wild flowers like thistles with their wings open. If you approach very slowly and very carefully with a long enough lens you have a chance of getting off a good shot. I took this one on a beautiful still and clear summer evening along the banks of the Royal Canal near Deey Bridge and the 13th lock with my 55-200mm zoom zoomed in all the way to 200mm.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: -0.7ev
- Processing: This shot was tweaked a little using Aperture’s Dodge & Burn plugin to selectively add brightness, contrast, and saturation to the butterly
Jul
11
Photo of the Week 125 – Soccer on the Playing Fields
Filed Under Photography on July 11, 2010 | Leave a Comment
I’m not even the smallest bit of a football fan, but given that it’s World Cup final weekend, I figured this would be a good time to share one of my few football photos. As well as being beautiful, the grounds of St. Patrick’s College provide a great amenity for the people of Maynooth. Here we see some local lads enjoying a kick-around on one of the pitches on the so-called Playing Fields a fantastic summer afternoon. In the background you can see the spire of the Gunne Chapel (the college chapel).
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/1000 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: -0.7ev
- Processing: This shot was edit using both the Topaz Adjust and Topaz Detail Photoshop plugins.
Jul
4
Photo of the Week 124 – Grey Heron
Filed Under Photography on July 4, 2010 | 2 Comments
In my mind the most beautiful bird we have in Ireland is the Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea). Others may disagree, but I’ve always loved these big, elegant, but rather skittish birds. Because they’re so easily frightened even a 200mm zoom often isn’t enough to get a great shot, but sometimes you get lucky, and you run into one that’s a little braver than most, and you can get a good shot without the cannon-sized lenses the Scott Bournes of this world use.
In Leixlip there’s a massive viaduct that takes the Royal Canal, its towpath and the Dublin to Sligo railway line across the river Rye and its rather large valley. This heron was sitting on the wall separating the railway from the canal on the viaduct, and he didn’t fly away even when I got right to the edge of the canal on the towpath. I was still a good 5 meters away, but I don’t usually manage to get even nearly this close.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/800 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Jun
27
Photo of the Week 122 & 123 – Summer in Rathcoffey
Filed Under Photography on June 27, 2010 | 5 Comments
Last weekend the weather was just too good to sit inside working on a computer, so I didn’t find the time to post a photo of the week. This means we’re playing catch-up today with a double posting. As usual for a multiple post, I’ve chosen a theme to link the shots, in this case, both were generated from the same original RAW image from the camera!
Both shots show a wonderful view taken from a back road near Maynooth in Co. Kildare Ireland. The road is at the bottom of a sweeping hill at the top of which stand the ruins of Rathcoffey Castle. The farmer grows Rape Seed on the hill, so when that crop is in bloom, you get this amazing scene where the whole field is bright yellow, truly spectacular!
The fist shot I’m posting is the colour version, this is a panoramic crop, and was generated from a single RAW file by first tonemapping it with Photomatix Pro, and then tweaking the resulting image a little using the Topaz Adjust 4 plugin in Photoshop Elements. You might ask why the image needed to be tonemapped? The simple answer is that the difference in brightness between the land and sky were just too great to properly expose both in a single traditional exposure. Exposing either correctly would result in the other being badly under or over exposed. Tonemapping allows both to be properly exposed at the same time.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/800 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
The second shot was generating by using the first as a starting point, and then using the channel mixer to generate a monochrome version. The channel mixer allows you to choose how much of each colour goes into the black & white version of the image. By turning down the blue channel you can get stunning black skies which make for really dramatic photos.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/800 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Jun
13
Photo of the Week 121 – Speeding to Dublin
Filed Under Photography on June 13, 2010 | 2 Comments
For some strange reason I got an urge to post one of my winter shots today, even if it is June. In photography there are only ever guidelines, there are no hard and fast rules. Every guideline can be broken if you do it right.
A guideline I always follow is never to shoot trains as they move away from you, but to catch them coming towards you. I simply hate seeing a shot perfectly composed to imply motion towards you, only to notice the red tail lights on the ‘front’ of the train. Perhaps I’m being a bit too much of a perfectionist, but it really bothers me. This shot however proves that rule are made to be broken. Here we see an Irish Rail InterCity service making it’s way from Sligo to Dublin moving away from up in the frame towards the bridge in the background. To try to imply the motion even for those not pedantic to notice the tail lights, I composed the shot with the back of the train deliberately close to the right edge of the frame.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/500 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Jun
7
Photo of the Week 120 – Inside Magnolia
Filed Under Photography on June 7, 2010 | 2 Comments
I’ve always loved the great photographer Imogen Cunningham’s take on Magnolia flowers, particularly this shot. So, earlier this year, when I noticed that the Magnolia trees in St. Patrick’s College were in bloom, I set out to have a go myself. Obviously I’m no Imogen Cunningham, but I’m quite pleased with this shot all the same.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/320 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
May
30
Photo of the Week 119 – The Sliabh Beagh Way
Filed Under Photography on May 30, 2010 | Leave a Comment
A few weeks ago I went for a hike with my parents along a stretch of the Sliabh Beagh Way in Co. Monaghan. This route runs through a range of rolling mountains on the border with Northern Ireland. I got a few shots along the way, but this one is my favourite.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/640 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro
May
23
Photo of the Week 116, 117 & 118 – April in Belgium
Filed Under Photography on May 23, 2010 | Leave a Comment
With being sick for the last two weeks I’ve ended up with a triple post this week. I’ve chosen my three favourite shots from my recent trip to Belgium for this instalment’s theme.
The first shot I’ve chosen is of a lovely medeival castle in my home town of Duffel that is locally known as “Kasteel Ter Elst”. It remained intact right up until the first world war when it was unfortunately destroyed. You can read more about the castle here.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/7.1
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the second shot I’ve chosen is a train shot. In this case showing the work-horse combination of the NMBS/SNCB’s intercity services. Here we see a rake of M6 double-decker coaches (with an M6 DVT in front) being pushed by NMBS/SNCB Class 27 electric locomotive number 2725.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/640 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing Used Topaz Adjust 4 plugin to give the shot a little more ‘pop’.
The final image I’ve chosen is a butterfly shot, specifically a Green-veined White (Pieris napi) feeding on a Dandelion flower (Taraxacum officinale agg.).
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/1600 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing: Selectively applied the Topaz Adjust 4 plugin to the butterfly and the flower.
May
4
Photo of the Week 114 & 115 – Sunsets
Filed Under Photography on May 4, 2010 | 2 Comments
Since I was away in Belgium the previous weekend, this is yet another double post to get caught up. Again, double post means a single theme for both images. Inspired by all the talk of ash clouds leading to nice sunsets, I’ve picked two of my recent favorite sunset/dusk shots for this post.
The first shot was indeed taken while the recent volcanic ash cloud was making a nuisance of itself over Ireland. It was taken from Jackson’s Bridge (located between Maynooth and Kilcock) looking west along the Royal Canal. In the foreground you can see the 14th lock. 13 Locks to the east of here the Royal Canal starts at the old docks in Dublin, and 32 locks to the west it enters the river Shannon.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/500 sec
- Focal Length: 38mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro, and then tweaking the resulting image with Topaz Adjust 4
The second shot I’ve chosen is a little older, and pre-dates all the ash-cloud excitement. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it’s of a train, in this case an evening Commuter service from Maynooth to Dublin looming into shot out of a spectacular sunset.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 120mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5
- ISO: 800
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file (first converted to 16bit TIFF) with Topaz Adjust 4, and then tweaking the resulting image with Aperture’s Dodge & Burn plugin
Apr
18
Photo of the Week 112 & 113 – Remembering Autumn
Filed Under Photography on April 18, 2010 | 2 Comments
I’m playing catch-up again this week with another double post – I’m not doing too well the last while to keep these on schedule. Anyhow, as usual for a double post, I’ve chosen two photos that share a theme – last Autumn in this case.
The first shot is taken along one of my favorite sections of the Royal Canal, between Deey and Pike Bridges on the stretch from Leixlip to Maynooth. This is one of the sections where the towpath hasn’t been surfaced, even with gravel, and where the canal is lined with trees. It’s a really lovely stretch of nature for walking or cycling along.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/160 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: +0.3ev.
The second shot was taken on the grounds of St. Patrick’s College in Maynooth as Autumn was just starting.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/200 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/11
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: +0.7ev.