Welcome To The Daily View

Today is the last day of February and we are one day closer to Spring. So keeping with the flowers and blooms theme I am sharing another one of our house plants with you. This is my first and only African Violet. Another flower that I have been told time and again is hard to care for.

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We have had this violet for about a year now and though the flowers do eventually wilt we seem to see new ones every few months. And all I do is water it twice a week and vary the amount of sun it gets.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F22
- Shutter Speed 1 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 800
- Spot Metering

I shot this at close range with my lens fully extended and naturally my camera was tripod mounted. I used the camera's self timer to avoid camera shake.

Post processing was done in Photoshop with the help of Google's NIK Collection of filters.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Monday February 27, 2017

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For at least the last three years I have been sharing photos of the beautiful orchid that was given to Kim and me by my sister Elaine. It was probably more like four years. I had never cared for an orchid before but have always admired them. And I had heard many a horror story about how difficult they can be. Well maybe they are not as delicate as rumored or maybe I have been blessed with a green thumb but this one is doing very well.

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Elaine gave us another orchid this past Christmas but it has yet to bloom. But I do see a few buds so I'll be sure o share it with you when it has flowers. Oh, and the amaryllis? I have some cool stuff to share real soon. Look for a special post coming your way.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F7.10
- Shutter Speed 1/15 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 200
- Partial Metering Mode

Cropping and color adjustment was completed in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Sunday February 26, 2017

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While out and about today running a couple of quick errands I decide to take a little time to walk around the Norristown Farm Park. So braving the cold winds I parked my car, grabbed one of my cameras and off I went. And it sure was windy! But I did shoot a little. And for today's photo I would like to share this black and white with you.

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Not too bad I guess. Being this trip was an afterthought I did not have my 80D with me. I did however have my walk around camera . My Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50. While the Panasonic certainly does not produce the quality of an SLR it does meet my minimal standards for a dedicated camera ( a camera that is no also a phone). It has a viewfinder and it shoots in RAW.

As for today's subject, well it's a grain dryer. Now I am far from being a farmer but if I had to guess I would say this antique contraption was once used to dry grain. Pretty smart huh?

Post processing was done in Photoshop with the help of Google's NIK Collection of filters.

Technical Info

- Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS50
- Built in Lens at 4.30mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F8
- Shutter Speed 1/125 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 100
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

Yesterday I shared a "Cafe" video with you. Today I would like to share Part 2 of that video.

I know I always say this but this is best viewed at Full Screen in 1080p.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Saturday February 25, 2017

And that's all for now folks. But I'll be back real soon with more photos and even some more video. I hope to see you here at the blog.

Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

Today's photo is a bit different. Last night, or rather very early this morning, I was putting some recycling in our outside bin and thought that since the weather was unusually warm for a February day that I would set up my camera and do some long exposure shots. And I think it worked out pretty good. Have a look.

Click For Full Size Image

This was shot in almost total darkness somewhere between 12:30 and 1 am. I did no post processing aside from converting from a RAW image to a PNG. What you see is what the camera produced.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 18mm
- Manual Control and Manual Focus
- Aperture F14
- Shutter Speed 30 Seconds (Tripod Mounted)
- ISO (Film Speed) 2000
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Like I said there was no post processing so there is no "Before" image to share.

I do however have some video I would like you to see. I finally got a tripod for my GoPro and was able to set up in the Cafe. And it was busy!

As always this is best viewed at Full Screen at 1080p.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Friday February 24, 2017

And that will do it for now. But be sure to come back soon for some more photos and Part 2 of this morning's video.

Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

Tonight's post is a simple one. I was in our backyard this afternoon filling the feeders at the Cafe and assessing some possible expansions when I looked up and saw this.

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My view as I stood under one of our trees. I shot this with my camera phone in full auto so there is no need to share any technical info. And since processing was at a bare minimum I'm also not including the "before' image.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Thursday February 23, 2017

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For the past couple of years I have been posting what I call the "Amaryllis Watch". It all started three or four years ago when I purchased an Amaryllis kit from a local stare at the end of the growing season. In fact it was on clearance. Of course it got "put away" somewhere and I completely forgot about it, until the end of the next growing season. So then comes Spring and I find the kit and decide to give it a try. I opened the sealed wrapper containing the bulb and the other package that contained the soil and placed both into the included pot. And after several weeks to my surprise the thing grew. So to make a long story short I now do a series of photographs every year when it booms. And now to keep the tradition going here is my first installment.

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Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F9
- Shutter Speed 3 Seconds
- ISO (Film Speed)100
- Center Weighted Average Metering

White balance and color adjustments were done in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Wednesday February 22, 2017

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Today's photo is another shot I made during a recent trip to the Elwood Park Zoo. This time I share with you an American Bald Eagle.

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Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F11
- Shutter Speed 1/50 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 400
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Once again there was minimal cropping and I did some minor adjustments in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Tuesday February 21, 2017

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Welcome To The Daily View

I was going over some RAW images this afternoon and I came across a few shots from Elmwood Park Zoo that I would like process and share with you. And to start off here is one of the many eagles that call Elmwood home.

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Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 128mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F11
- Shutter Speed 1/50 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 400
- Center Weighted Average Metering

No cropping was done but I did do some adjustments in Photoshop with the help of Google's NIK Collection of filters.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Monday February 20, 2017

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Until next time...

Welcome to The Daily View

About a week or so ago I shared with you a view of the sunrise from our back yard. Today I would like to share another view also from our yard. This is what I saw as I was filling the feeders at the Cafe this morning.

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Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 18mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F18
- Shutter Speed 1/10 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 200
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Post processing was completed in Photoshop along with the wonderful NIK Collection of filters from Google.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Sunday February 19, 2017

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Today I am sharing another "straight out of camera" shot with you. Except unlike yesterday I did absolutely no post processing.

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This was my view earlier this afternoon as I sat on our deck. Just some sky and trees. I'd take this any day of the year.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Saturday February 18, 2017

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Today was a very busy day for me and Kim. But among all of the errands we ran we did manage to take off a couple hours to head into the city and visit Penn's Landing. And while there you know I had to shoot at least a couple of snapshots. So for today's photo I am sharing a Panorama I made with my camera phone.

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This is made up of five separate frames and was created by Google Photos. I did some very minor adjustments in Photoshop but for the most part it is straight out of camera. It was also shot in Full Auto. As such there really is no need to share Technical Info or even a "Before" image.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Friday February 17, 2017

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Until next time...

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Circling back to our trip to the zoo last weekend I came across this photo of the same squirrel I shared a few days ago. This time from a different angle.

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Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Shutter Priority
- Aperture F7.10
- Shutter Speed 1/640 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 400
- Center Weighted Average Metering 

Post processing was completed in Photoshop. I did a lot of cropping and in addition to the normal color adjustments I used the NIK Collection from Google to bring out some extra detail.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Thursday February 16, 2017

And that will do it for now. Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

While shooting at the Cafe yesterday I captured this guy who had just come in for a landing. One of our many satisfied customers.

Click For Full Size Image

I was having a hard time adjusting the colors of this scene so I decided to go with black and white. I like it.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 183mm
- Shutter Priority
- Aperture F6.30
- Shutter Speed 1/1000 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 200
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Cropped and converted to black and white in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Wednesday February 15, 2017

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Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

Today's post is going to be a little different. I am not sharing any Technical Info or a "Before" image. But to make up for the lack of those I am giving you eight photos. Why? To tell you the truth it's because I lucked out and shot what I think is a pretty cool sequence while I was set up in the Cafe to shoot birds at one of the feeders. Here is what I got.

 

I didn't crop any of these but I did brighten them and adjusted the color.

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Tuesday February 14, 2017

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Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

After the snow ended last Thursday and the night fell I was in our back yard admiring the crisp, clear night sky. And the Moon was full. At this point in the long day I had just had I really didn't want to pull out my tripod and remote. So I simply grabbed my camera and shot several handheld shots. And I think this is the best of the crop.

Click For Full Size Image

This was heavily cropped and there was a good amount of color adjustments made in Photoshop. I am pretty happy with the results.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Shutter Priority
- Aperture F6.30
- Shutter Speed 1/500 Second
- ISO (Film Speed)  200
- Multi Segment Metering

The Metering was quite by accident but I have to say it turned out well.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Monday February 13, 2017

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While not exactly your typical zoo attraction there is something that fascinates me about the Turkey Vultures that call Elmwood home. I really don't know what it is but I have found myself shooting them as much as I would any other animal. Here is an example from our recent trip this past weekend.

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Imagine what a vulture might look like with a full head of feathers. I think they would appear like any other bird of prey.

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 18-250mm Lens at 212mm
- Aperture Priority
- Aperture F8.0
- Shutter Speed 1/1000 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 400
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Cropping and minor adjustments made in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Sunday February 12, 2017

As a side note I made a 16" x 20" print of this guy and I am very happy with how it came out on paper. And it is proudly displayed above our fireplace mantle.

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Until next time...

Welcome To The Daily View

Yesterday I told you how active the animals at the Elmwood Park Zoo were during our visit there. And they were too. Some of them however apparently decided not to come out at all. I guess it wasn't quite warm enough for them. The porcupines are a good example of these fair weather creatures. But that doesn't mean their exhibits were empty. Nope. This squirrel decided it was a great place for a snack.

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I actually see squirrels there a lot. I guess the porcupines are friendly with them :)

Technical Info

- Canon 80D
- Sigma DC 158-250mm Lens at 250mm
- Manual Control
- Aperture F11.31
- Shutter Speed 1/664 Second
- ISO (Film Speed) 400
- Center Weighted Average Metering

Standard cropping and color correction was done in Photoshop.

Here is the "Before" image.

Click For Full Size Image

And now...

Yesterday's View...

Saturday February 11, 2017

I would also like to share this video I shot the other morning during our quick snow storm. It didn't amount to much in the end but it did look nice.

As always this is best viewed at Full Screen and 1080p resolution.

Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time...