Nasty. You say you were checked out and it wasn't the most serious possibility, but don't say whether your sight is/will be/will remain OK. Fingers crossed that it hasn't done permanent damage.

I'll extend your warning to get checked out ASAP if you get those symptoms: Get checked out ASAP if there is ANY sudden change to eyesight. 15+ years ago, sight in one of my eyes started getting hazy. After a few days it was like looking through thick fog. Checked with an optician friend who told me to see a doctor ASAP. Turned out to be iritis (the first of many, many bouts over several years). Treatable, but that delay in being checked out has left a permanent mark on the iris. Thankfully, it's not big enough to affect vision noticeably (think small mark on front element of camera lens). But it could have been a lot worse.

Steve

I'll go for the bugs. No. 1 is my favourite, good shot of the damselfly and the background actually helps the picture (which as we all know is often not the case). No. 2 is close behind, but would benefit from more space above the butterfly. Then the lacewing (?), the bug is lovely, pity it's partly obscured by the flower.

No. 11 might not be an aesthetically brilliant picture, but I've spent many hours trying to get a shot like that and failed. Yes, it was no doubt more luck than judgement (were you intending to press the shutter button when the bee was on the flower?:wink, but you were there, you created the situation where luck was possible so you deserve credit for it.

And a special mention for No. 10 because it saved me having to look up what the butterfly was that I'd photographed earlier today.

Steve

Agree with all the above thoughts and advice.

An additional thought: Take a zoom when going out to shoot landscape and you tend to gravitate to your favourite angle(s) of view (focal length(s)). Taking a prime (any prime) as your only lens restricts you to a single angle of view which can help you to see even a familiar landscape in different ways (assuming it isn't one of your favourite focal lengths). That's my experience, at least.

As for 35mm = human eye field of view, I'm not convinced that helps with landscape. When we see a stunning landscape we tend to scan whatever angle is needed to take in the view and the brain puts it all together.

Steve

Another remarkable set. Most seem to have a sense of ambiguity or hint that there's something you haven't quite grasped at first sight. Whatever it is, it draws you into looking into and thinking about what the picture is saying in a way that good artists achieve with their work.

Interestingly, at the weekend I visited an exhibition of paintings by contemporary artists who are inspired by JMW Turner and was particularly drawn to those by an artist who specialises in water and light (link ) A different style to yours, but your images wouldn't look out of place in the exhibition.

Still can't get excited by waterfalls with running milk, though.

Steve

Thanks for your comments, folks.

Thanks for the identification, Mike. So it's a wasp, not a fly! There's something new to learn every day.

Probably a combination of uploaded file size and narrow DOF, possibly a bit of motion too - there was a slight breeze and my hands are not as rock solid as a tripod . The high res file of the first has a lot more detail, the hairs sticking up from the back are sharp and there's a lot of detail in the shiny bits, albeit not quite in focus. The point of focus in the second is the 'nose' of the fly. The high res file is sharp enough there, but DOF is very small (f5.6) so even the eyes are losing focus.

Steve

Perfect. What more is there to say?

Steve

A couple of flies showed off their colours for the camera recently. OK, one of them just had a coloured eye, but it was quite striking. Here they are. Enjoy!

Both with K3 + Irix 150mm, + 1.4TC for the coloured eye fly.

Comments (and identification of flies) welcome as usual.

1. Multicoloured fly




2. Coloured eye fly




Steve

Thanks folks. There's a lot of wonderful things out there, just got to keep your eyes open, the camera ready and be (very) patient.

Jumbo48, derek897 - Grateful for the identification. Identification of bugs wasn't part of my education and there are so many of them...

Steve

Beautiful. Love the creative use of OOF highlights in the 'shades of green' shots (1 and 6) and the solitary butterfly in No. 4.

Steve

Gold, green and shiny, this was too beautiful to ignore. Not sure what it is, but it was hanging out with (and being ignored by) red soldier beetles. And its colours remind me of a tie I acquired in the '70s...

Comments (and identity of beetle) welcome.
















Steve