Looking up the valley

A less adulterated version of the one that is on my photoblog http://adiemus.aminus3.com/. Enlarge to get the detail that is very clear in this one.

Feeling good - it's just a thought

A wonderful artist Peter Donnelly frequents New Brighton beach. This isn't the most wonderful shot of his work, you can see more images in my photoblog http://adiemus.aminus3.com/ but this is an example of a completed work (well, nearly completed) for those who can't manage the suspense!

A real kiwi bach

Below is a real kiwi bach. Located far from sealed roads (about 20 minutes on winding, hilly, gravel road) out towards the coast on the Banks Peninsula. This is a wee cottage snuggled down in Little Pigeon Bay, on a working farm, on a small bay with chilly waters (and lots of fish).

There are lots of these little places dotted around the more remote parts of the coast. Unfortunately they are being replaced by homes that are more grand than our normal home, so the old 'make-do' attitude of mismatching spoons, and tattered old curtains, and the old wooden loo seat and no sound system is fast disappearing!

But this wee place remains, and hopefully this photo will remind us of the simple pleasures of sitting by the sea, sipping on a beer or a wine and watching the seagulls glide and swoop.

Another pet hate

Just a quick one - RIGHT NOW I HATE the cellophane wrapping around CD's and DVD's!!
end of rant.

I'm bored... the chant of the noncreative

I have a pet hate - well I've got more than one, but today this one is my bugbear.

I do not understand how anyone with free access to books, pen and paper, time and/or music or art or things that make a mark can possibly become bored.

I have two kids, you've met one of them already. The other is 16 and full of testosterone and loves to ride a motorbike and write and do things on the net. I have encountered a couple of other kids at close quarters, about the same age. They all say without a moment's hesitation that they are 'bored'. This is despite free access to all the entertainment of TV, internet, video, DVD, music, plus the Great Outdoors - and all that I have listed above.

Yet, they are B O R E D.

How on EARTH can you be bored when there is all THIS to be engaged with?? I don't understand!

I can remember when I was about 12 my mother said to someone 'I don't know how kids can be bored, my two are never bored' - well apart from the hours we seemed to spend doing housework and going to church, I can't actually remember being bored. There were always things to do - read a book, draw a picture, write a story, listen to music, talk to a friend, dance, play the piano - is there a theme happening here?

What I notice is that all of these things require a sense of curiosity, can be done alone, demand concentration, involve creativity and imagination - and don't involve a computer cable!

Here is my thought for the day: It is impossible to be bored unless you lack the ability to be creative. Or to put it another way, a bored mind is a boring mind.

Chopping

Shot one is exposed for the sky, but underexposes the poppies
Shot two overexposes the sky, but does the poppies OK

This is the chopped image.

I did quite a lot of fiddling with burn and dodge, on a 50% grey overlay.

I also played with shadows and highlights, and colour balance and saturation.

This is the final result of a blended image. First time I've tried it, not entirely happy with it, but that's more about not having the tripod and not having a particularly good image to start with.

It definitely looks better than the original!!

How big???!!!

For those of you who think that ALL fisherfolk exaggerate the size of the one that got away... here's one that didn't! My first ever kahawai catch, and it didn't even fight that much. Take a good look at it the birds behind, and you'll guess why I have about 40 seagull photo's in my portfolio!

Chasing those crayfish critters

Thought you might like to look at what we're chasing tomorrow when we take the new (but rather elderly) boat out for a spin!!

Recuperating in Kaikoura

One of my favourite places in the world is Kaikoura. Tourists flock there to view the seals, dolphins, whales - but I go there to watch the tourists, climb the hill overlooking the seal colony, get seasick on the boat, dive and watch my man catch crayfish...

There are heaps of photo opportunities there - so far I've focused mainly on the natural landscape and wildlife, but soon I'll be ready to find human subjects.

In the meantime, two of my recent shots for enjoyment.