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Tricks of light

Posted by Photonstopper on October 24, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. 4 Comments
Photo: A Canada Goose splashes the water as it enters the lake. Photo by James Guilford.

A Canada Goose sends up splashes of crystalline water as it enters Kendall Lake.

Today we visited the Kendall Lake area of the Cuyahoga National Park. Fall colors have peaked and trees are shedding their fading leaves, preparing for winter’s rages. Canada Geese still frequent the waters here; we watched them sitting in the sun and moved as close as we could to get photographs. I followed one as it plopped into the water to escape my approach. At high speed the camera’s shutter stopped splashes and water droplets in mid-flight.

Photo: Tiny fungi are home to a pair of even tinier bugs. Photo by James Guilford.

Tiny fungi growing on the stump of a long-dead tree play host to a pair of insects the size of caraway seeds.

In the woods surrounding the lake we found colorful leaves, interesting textures, and various fungi. In one case I moved in to capture the patterns and colors of a tree stump hosting very small fungal mounds. As I did, I noticed two tiny dark dots on one of the growths and thought they were dirt. It turns out they were minuscule insects parked on the fungus and they moved towards shelter as we watched.

Photo: Shadows fall across an autumn leaf. Photo by James Guilford.

A trick of the light: Shadows from a nearby twig fall across the top of a leaf as we view the scene from beneath.

Later in our hike, while looking for singular tree leaves to shoot, I spotted an interesting shadow pattern: twigs and petals from a shrub cast their shadow on the top of a tree leaf that I was viewing from below. The spider-like shapes were interesting by themselves but chance aligned the background image of the twig with its shadow seen through the leaf. Just one of several tricks of light seen this fine day.

The road ahead

Posted by Photonstopper on October 22, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, Canon G11, hinckley, metroparks, nature, northeastern ohio, photograph, photography. 9 Comments
Photo: Colorful autumn trees by light of setting sun. Photo by James Guilford.

The light of the setting sun sets colorful trees aglow along State Road in the Hinckley Reservation of the Cleveland Metropark System.

Rewards of the day

Posted by Photonstopper on October 17, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, bicycling, birds, great blue heron, great egret, nature, ohio, photograph, photography, sunday. 6 Comments
Photo: Great Egret near Lake Erie. Photo by James Guilford.

A Great Egret feeds in the shallow waters of Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve.

Too beautiful a day to spend indoors yet not motivated enough to ride our bicycles, we took a trip by car instead. This time we traveled to the Sheldon Marsh wildlife area, just west of Huron, Ohio. It’s a spit of land that juts out into Lake Erie and, as such, is a seasonal way station for migrating birds making north-south lake transits. We saw few birds today but the few we saw offered a big surprise. I was pretty sure the large wading birds native to this area –Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons– had headed south; I’d seen none in weeks. Today we were rewarded with sightings and photo-ops involving likely three Great Blues and two Great Egrets all within a short walk of the roadway. I was a bit disappointed that the majority of my “grab shots” of herons in flight were in poor focus; they looked so good in the viewfinder. A couple of images, however, nearly made up for the bad ones. Many other nature scenes from Sheldon Marsh and nearby Old Woman Creek were also very beautiful. The ODNR’s visitor center at Old Woman Creek, by the way, is quite impressive. Photography aside, simply seeing great Lake Erie again and being out in the fresh air and sunshine of a fine autumn day were wonderful rewards in themselves.

Photo: Great Blue Heron flies directly overhead. Photo by James Guilford.

Surprise! A Great Blue Heron flies directly overhead after rising unexpectedly over a line of trees.

Chair Factory Falls

Posted by Photonstopper on October 16, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, hike, history, Lake Metroparks, nature, northeastern ohio, ohio, photography, river, waterfall, weekend. Leave a comment
Photo: Chair Factory Falls, Lake Metroparks. Photo by James Guilford.

Chair Factory Falls on a beautiful autumn day.

We saw a news item about the Thursday dedication of a new area within the Lake Metroparks: Chair Factory Falls. Today was a beautiful day for a trip there so, after quick shopping for the week’s groceries, we headed out. The Falls turned out to be probably the most beautiful natural water feature I’ve seen in the Northeastern Ohio area and were a short walk from a convenient parking lot. We encountered a couple of people who warned us that the hike back out of the gorge was tough but worth the effort. They underestimated our vigor for while the path out was steep, it was an easy climb for the two of us and more than worth the effort. Of course the cameras came with us and we shot many photos but I’ll show only two here. The parking lot was adjacent to the Metroparks’ Old Stone School landmark. Stone walls, fallen leaves, and an antique water pump made for a rustic scene.

Photo: Water pump near stone wall of an old school. Photo by James Guilford.

A hand-operated water pump stands at the south wall of the Old Stone School, a property of the Lake Metroparks.

Training day

Posted by Photonstopper on October 11, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, morning, nature, northeastern ohio, ohio, photograph, photography, river, work. 3 Comments
Photo: Morning fog burning off in an autumn river scene. Photo by James Guilford.

Morning fog is burning off revealing a colorful autumn scene on the West Branch of the Columbia River in Northeastern Ohio.

It was an all-day, all-staff training day at the office today. {sigh} I spent a few moments during my commute to take in the scenery.

Old paint

Posted by Photonstopper on October 11, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, ohio, photograph, photography. 4 Comments
Photo: The weathered covered landing on a commercial building. Photo by James Guilford.

Paint peels from the siding on the covered landing of an old commercial building.

A stray autumn leaf?

Posted by Photonstopper on October 10, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: astronomy, autumn, insect, jupiter, northeastern ohio, observatory, ohio, photograph. 2 Comments

 

Photo: Moth clings to brick wall. Photo by James Guilford.

Looking like a dead leaf, a moth clings to a brick wall illuminated by an outdoor sconce.

 

Setting up for last night’s observatory Open Night, I noticed what appeared to be a dead leaf stuck to the wall under the sconce by the front door. Looking a bit closer I realized it wasn’t a leaf after all but a little moth in clever disguise! I took a few moments to photograph the little guy before returning to work. Now to identify it… anybody know what type of moth I’ve spotted here?

Open night went well, by the way, with 28 visitors over the course of two hours, which is about average. We were treated to excellent views of Jupiter, the Andromeda Galaxy, and the Perseus Double Cluster. I hate to say, Comet Bentley 2 eluded me… despite its proximity to the Double Cluster, I could not find it to save my life! Jupiter, however, was a crowd pleaser.

 

Photo: Moth clinging to a brick wall. Photo by James Guilford.

Moth poses for pictures under the light of an outdoor sconce.

 

Nothing done, again. Ha-ha!

Posted by Photonstopper on October 9, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, brandywine, hike, metroparks, nature, northeastern ohio, ohio, photograph, photography, river, waterfall, weekend. 3 Comments

Today She Who Must Be Obeyed and I went on a minor grocery shopping trip. She said that, when we returned home, she would get some work done around the place… like cleaning out her car. Exposure to the glorious fall day, however, changed Her mind. She suggested a hike in the Brandywine Falls park, near Peninsula, Ohio.

 

Photo: Visitors pause to view Brandywine Falls. Photo by James Guilford.

A winding wooden walkway leads down to a lovely view of Brandywine Falls.

 

Brandywine is a beautiful place where a natural waterfall flows over a stone bed, carving and smoothing the rock. A deep gorge extends downstream of the falls, shallow and safe for hiking, surrounded by woodland.

 

Photo: Brandywine falls on an autumn morning. Photo by James Guilford.

In the morning shadows, the falls move among autumn colors.

 

We spent a good long time in the woodland downstream of the falls, hiking the hilly earthen trails, and stopping frequently to take photos. There’s a lot to see if you slow down and look around.

 

Photo: Tight crop of colorful autumn leaf. Photo by James Guilford.

A portion of a colorful leaf cropped from a much larger image at 100 percent.

 

Yes, She was seduced as I had been a day earlier. Her noble and ambitious plans were put aside for enjoyment of the day. Nothing done, again. Ha-ha!

Then again, as a philosopher* once said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

*Ferris Bueller, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, 1986.

Nothing got done.

Posted by Photonstopper on October 8, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, hike, hinckley lake, metroparks, morning, nature, northeastern ohio, ohio, photograph, photography, river, weekend. 9 Comments

Photo: The Sun rises over a field of ripening soy. Photo by James Guilford

The Sun rises over a field of ripening soy on a beautiful autumn day in Northeastern Ohio.

 

I’ll blame She Who Must Be Obeyed. I innocently remarked that it was an absolutely beautiful morning. She replied, “Yes, a perfect morning to go to Hinckley Lake.” I had the day off (having worked last Sunday) but I had other activities in mind for the day. I headed to Hinckley anyway. Along the way I noticed how the low sun was setting the ripening soy fields aglow.

 

Photo: Grass seed ripening. Photo by James Guilford.

Grass seeds also ripen in the fall.

 

All of the seed-producing plants are finishing their job for the season. That includes the wild grasses that grow along the roads and streams. I found one grass seed head beautifully isolated against the plain background of a stream.

 

 

Photo: Panorama of Hinckley Lake, Ohio. Photo by James Guilford.

Panorama of the sky, trees, and waters of Hinckley Lake on a beautiful fall day.

 

Hinckley Lake was a wonderland of light and color. Many trees wore yellows and reds. Many a leaf has already fallen to the ground. No large birds (other than buzzards) were to be seen. The greatest wildlife activity was from numerous chipmunks and squirrels scampering about the forest floor, apparently gathering seeds as food.

Too many sights. Too many photographs. Too brief was the magical light present.

Of course I got nothing done I had planned for the day.

Morning Diamonds

Posted by Photonstopper on October 6, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: autumn, dew, garden, leaf, nature, photograph, photography, weather, wet. 8 Comments
Photo: Rain beads on a bent leaf. Photo by James Guilford.

Rain beads on a bent leaf.

It has been cold, and wet, and dark. Sometimes, between rains, the heavy dew, and the rain, and the subdued light bring a beauty of their own to the world. This morning, between showers, I stepped outside to see what diamonds there were to be discovered.

Photo: Beads of moisture on leaf. Photo by James Guilford.

Beads rest on a curved bridge of iris leaf in the garden.

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