A “wild “Apple tree produces abundant fruit in an old pasture.
Sometimes a tasty treat presents itself for a photograph. These apples are not one of those subjects. The apples are not for munching they are for pies as are most wild apples. This tree grew in an old pasture not an orchard. Several other apple trees grew there also but widely spaced with little order. It is possible, and not unlikely they were planted there on purpose, but I doubt they were purchased stock. Most likely they grew from the discarded fruit that was part of snack or lunch of a farmer working the pasture 60 or more years before this photo was taken. Perhaps an apple was deliberately dug into the ground and its future left to chance. Where ever the tree came from it was a beautiful specimen, and produced lovely apples, even if they were only good for baking.
Shot on Fuji Velvia RVP with a Nikon N6006 and 28-200mm Nikon lens.
On a relatively warm winter morning I headed out with my Toyo 45aii field camera in search of some good photographs. The warm air above the cold snow created a fog, which then froze to just about everything, giving it a light and beautiful coating of frost. The needles of this Scots Pine contrasted nicely with the frost on black and white Ilford Panf 50. I used a Toyo 6×9 roll film back. Proper exposure was taken with a Sekonic L580.
Click: Scots Pine to purchase a print of this photo.
The Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) goes by several common names, Scott’s Pine, Scotch Pine it is a native of northern Eurasia, including Scotland from which its common English name is derived. In North America, it has been planted for lumber, pulp, and ornamental purposes, although as it matures it becomes less pleasing to the eye.
Often overlooked for fall colors, the purples, oranges, reds and browns of wetland grasses, sedges, and flowers of the sedge meadows also make an interesting subject for the camera lens. I took this photo of lake shore wetland in September a few weeks before the leaves of the north woods began to change colors.
Early in the morning at sedge meadow wetland next to a northwoods lake.
This particular wetland is partially the result of years of drought and the encroachment of wetland out over what was lake bed. Since the photo was taken the lake has begun to rise, providing an important refuge for young bluegills, yellow perch, and pumpkinseeds. With climate change threatening the northern areas especially it is unknown whether this will be the new normal. Not noticeable in this photo is the encroachment of the forest on the wetland. Photo taken with a Nikon Coolpix P6000
While stopping at a boat landing a group of young mallard ducks approached me rapidly. These birds were used to being fed by humans, so they showed a little wariness. I had no food, but the ducks stayed interested in me long enough for me to take a few photographs. I like the relatively narrow depth of field that highlight the individual and yet shows it is among many others of its kind.
This was back in the day when I had an inexpensive Tamron 75-300 mm lens fitted to a Nikon N50. Despite their inexpensiveness many zoom lenses such as this produce very good to excellent results. Obviously, a $6,000 300mm f2.8 will produce better results and will be easier to focus, but the vast majority of us don’t have that kind of money. The Tamron was sharp enough for me, but when my girlfriend (now wife) bumped my tripod, and over went the camera and lens, the lens did not survive. The plastic innards had broken and it was a total loss. Eventually, I replaced the Tamron with a Nikon 75-300 which was also sharp enough for me. The tripod I still have, but the Nikon I outgrew long ago.
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Long exposure at rainy Menominee Park, Oshkosh, WI
Mid-day one summer I heard the distant rumble of thunder. I went outside and looked up into the sky and saw a thunderstorm coming over the tops of houses in my neighborhood. This storm was mild, it had no high winds and heavy rain. I decided I might have a good chance of catching some lighting bolts on film. In reality, it was too bright and the storm too mild. No matter I wanted to give it a try so I headed down to the Menominee Park in my town, Oshkosh, WI.
For the best chance of getting a good lightning photo, a photographer needs a tripod, and an aluminum tripod such as mine seemed to be about the worst thing one could have in an electrical storm for reasons that should be obvious. The other trouble with taking lightning photos is rain, and getting the camera and most importantly the lens wet. A lens with water droplets on it will give very poor results. I had solved these problems already by selecting a gazebo at the park for protection. I was able to set up free from the rain and I would not attract lightning bolts with my tripod.
The camera I was using that day was a Toyo 45aii. I knew I was going to need many frames to be lucky enough to get a shot of lightning, so after focusing etc. I installed my Toyo 6×9 120 rollfilm back, loaded with Fuji Velvia 50 (RVP). This would be a much more economical alternative to 4×5 sheet film.
I had, and still don’t have a lightning trigger. These devices sense the bright flash of the lightning bolt and then trip the shutter. Instead, I relied on taking long exposures and hoping a flash would occur. After say thirty seconds to a few minutes, depending on how dark it is, I then stop the exposure and start again if no lightning flashes. However, if lightning did fire at anytime, I stopped the exposure and advanced the film. Using this simple method I have taken a number of good lightning photos over the years. This day however was pretty bright for a thunderstorm, and the lightning flashes were infrequent. I got no photos of bolts. However, I did focus on the scene above of the park and dock. The raindrops softened the landscape and gave a pleasing look in the color transparency, but I prefer the conversion to black and white. Purchase Menominee Park Photo
Tamarack trees are funny trees. Their needles are supper soft, not pokey like most of the needles from pine or spruce trees. Most conifers hold on to their needs for long periods and are never without living, green needles. Not so the deciduous tamarack that drops all of its needles every fall. The light green needles turn a wonderful golden-yellow before carpeting the coniferous swamps where it grows.
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Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors) are very small ducks frequently seen in drainage ditches and slow moving rivers that meander through marshes. Just by chance did I flush the hen keeping her eggs warm among the reed canary grass. Had I been a red fox, I would have had nine tasty eggs for my breakfast. Not being a fox, I was satisfied to take a quick photograph and continue my hike through the marsh. Purchase this Blue-wing Teal nest photo
Fireworks can be tricky things to photograph. With today’s digital cameras, and a lengthy display, one can afford to take hundreds of photos. I have taken dozens with a 35mm, but this photo was taken with a 4×5 inch Toyo Field 45a II. That is an awesome camera by the way and recommend it to anyone interested in trying out large format. At today’s prices it would run about $8 for film and E-6 processing and more if I didn’t already own a scanner. Gone are the days when I bring out my large format camera for tricky exposures my digital camera could do better at. Still I took this one and several other failed images this night in 2001. It was nice to give it a try.
What to do after working in the field all day on wetland plant community survey? Why not head back out into the field for a short photo expedition?
Click to Purchase photo of Seney National Wildlife Refuge
A fern is surrounded my the grass-like leaves of sedges in a Wisconsin, northern hardwood forest.
Original photo on Fuji Velvia 50, Scanned with a Nikon Coolscan 5000 and converted to black and white in Adobe Photoshop. Click to purchase fern photograph
