Black and white newborne..

Took some more of the little fella...





Taken with 50mm F/1.8, which is an awesome little lens!

Processed with DPP and GIMP software.

New Arrival....

Yes, i did get another lens this week. But thats not the big new arrival.....








This little mini-me is going to be featured here regularly! :)


(The lens is the Canon 50mm F/1.8)

Another Peli-Case

I have been on the lookout for a new dividerset for on of my pelican 1510's. The pluckfoam was all but done for. With lenses and body's coming and going, getting one with the foam wasnt the brightest idea ive ever had... (I got it cheap though)

But those dividersets are rather expensive.. So, when i came across a Pelican 1560 with a dividerset for not a too bad price.... BINGO! Its not airline compatible, but hey! I still have 3 1510's for that.



This baby gives me the space to bring everything i need to a shoot.

Now for some nice stickers to personalize it. :)


Still looking for a new dividerset too....

1st result..

With the new Sigma 150mm OS. This flower caught my eye, so i ran out in the rain to shoot it.





I am impressed with the lens. Its sharp, the AF is reasonably fast, and it gets razorsharp results. I took about 7 pics, all with pretty much the same result. Tack sharp.

Here is the image in ultra high res;

The king is dead....

...Long live the king!

I handed off my trusty Sigma 150mm last night to its new owner.. *wipes tear*

And i got me the new version this afternoon! *wipes tear*


First impression;

Solid build, OS works, the lenshoods are neat, just maybe a tad long for my taste..

I cant wait to get it out into the field. (or garden for that matter)






Its a lengthy machine with both the hood and the hood APSC adapter attached... Length almost doubles. Ill have to see how that works.

Last Macro shots...

..With this version of the Sigma 150mm Macro. Ive decided to get the OS version. Since ive completely re-done my garden, i figured i deserved a treat. :)

Since most of the macro's i like to shoot are of little beasty thingies the OS will be a welcome add-on to the best macrolens ive ever owned.

Time for an update!

Finally got around to doing some photography... Been very busy with work, babyrooms etc.. Luckily with a babyroom, comes the opportunity to try new-born photography.. :)

I took these yesterday in the Amsterdam drinking water dunes reservation. De deer are in rut, at the moment. Had a lovely few hours there.



Too bad i had to toss the first 100 or so pics i took... It took me that long to realise the IS on the 300mm was [\] OFF [\]..










Took these today, in my garden. Which im in the process of completely re-doing. There just isnt enough time in the day..

St. Govans Chapel, Wales.

These were taken in Wales, at St. Govans Chapel. An amazing place. We really lucked out with the weather...







Finally, after all this time i was able to put my Sigma 10-20mm to good use. And it performed well!





Its located near (on) the Castlemartin range of the MOD, near the town of Bosherston. Which also houses the beautifull Lilly ponds. (No good pics of that.. Had a lovely walk there though.)

QR codes.

Welcome to the modern world. Just found out how to create these QR code thingies. I see more and more of them each day, directing people to really cool websites... Like this one. :)

Skomer Island 2011

After last years vacation we really wanted to visit Skomer again. Photographing puffins = good times. So, keeping an eye on the weatherwatcher on the I-pad, we decided that the 30th of may was gonna be our day! When we arrived at the harbor, we werent the first, but we sure would be getting tickets!

Immediately after landing on the island the sun broke thru the clouds. It was a great day.. Ill let the pics speak for themselves, enjoy;










The puffins arent shy, they come really close. Humans keep the seagulls away, who are trying to steal the puffins sand-eels. On many occasions the 300mm couldnt focus because they were too close.












All photos taken with the Eos7D with F/2.8 300mm.

I can seriously recommend visiting Skomer Island, if you are in the neighborhood. Be there early, to ensure landing tickets.

Wales 2011, Red Kites

Ive been vacationing in Wales the last two weeks. Offcourse i humped along a big bag of photo-gear. In the first week we visited two places where they feed the Red Kite. A beautifull sight to see.

And a heck of a workout with your camera, those birds move fast!!

I took these first three at the Red Kite feeding center in Llanddeusant. It was a very cloudy day with horrible light. Also the place where they dump the found is some sort of an enclosure with a fence, so no good pics of a Red Kite with its claws out that day...









It also didnt help that when i took my backpack out of the car my 7D with 300mm attached bounced on the ground... Along with two extra lenses i had in there... Scared the crap out of me. Always check if the bag is zipped up!! Luckily no harm was done to the equipment.

The other place was Bwlch Nant yr Arian. (Dont try to pronounce that, you'll break your tongue.)

This is an awesome place. Lovely to walk around, and with good views on the feeding. Before the feeding started i took some pics of a mamma-duck with 4 ducklings.



During the feeding they decided they wanted their share of the goodies too! So, in the middle of the mayhem of about 60 kites feeding, mamma duck brought her younglings on the shore...











Last year we were at the same place, and then we witnessed a Kite snatching a duckling... So we thought this wouldnt end well. But! After all the little ducks had enough to eat they all went back in the water. Still... Bad parenting on mamma ducks part, in my opinion...





All of the above were taken with the 7D with 300 F/2.8 IS USM on a tripod with swinghead. (Yes, i brought it along!)


I also took this landscape with the Sigma 10-20mm;



This is the view from the parking lot. Stunning, eh?

Another update soon!

High-speed, high ISO...

I know, i know...

Havent posted anything lately. But one must work hard in order to play hard. I did manage to take this photo.





Taken at ISO 12800. Its not the most stunning pic ive ever taken, but it shows the capability of the 7D pretty well. Believe me when i say that it was pitch dark.

Taken with 7D / 100-400L at 1/6sec, 200mm, F/5

DIY Bean bag.

I was looking around for a beanbag for some time, but the prices put me off. So, i thought; "How hard can it be to make one myself??".

First, the needed supplies.

[x] one pair of camouflage pants.

[x] one sowing set.

[x] one big bag of polystyrene pellets.


I cut off one of the trouser legs to serve as the beanbag.



I measured it to my longest lens at the time, the 100-400L.



I then proceded to sow the bottom of the trouserleg shut with a double stitch.

No pics of that, you ask? Yes. No pics of that. Needle and thread isnt my thing, i was too busy swearing and trying not to stab myself with the needle.

When that was done i put a plastic bag inside the trouser leg. It serves as a container for the poly-pellets, and it makes swapping the content of the beanbag easier. (I now use poly-pellets, but i could switch to rice, seeds, whatever is available.)



Filling the beanbag with the pellets is what is known as "the fun part". Again, no pics, but believe me when i say that ones livingroom is easily covered in those white plastic stick to anything bastards.

After the filling, i sew the top of the bag shut, again with a double stitch.

The result of all that hard work;





Total costs;

About €5,- to 7,-

Total time spent;

1.5 hours.

Total time spent vacuuming the escaped poly-pellets;

4 hours.