My Graduation Challenge album

My course is over but I'm still feeling my way along because I've switched to using Lightroom and it's taking me twice as long to deal with my photos now. Not to mention the fact I've started shooting them in RAW in the last week! Anyway here are the photos that I shared publically on Google Plus as my Graduation Challenge album. We were given themes and had to share one to two photos for at least three of the following themes: Nature, Silhouette, B&W and Flash (or Creative Lighting). 

I wanted to challenge myself further so decided there and then I would not take any florals or macros! It meant getting out and about as I couldn't take all these pictures at home but luckily the weather changed for the better mid week. All my photos are taken in manual mode which is what the course was all about after all - teaching us how to use our cameras properly!

The photo below was my first attempt at longish exposure with a tripod. I went there late in the day to practice taking photos of the chateau which overlooks this lake but it was overcast which was a bit of a shame. Suddenly the sun peeked out and shone further along the lake, hence this picture which I reckoned I could sneek into the category Nature! Click on the photos to open them up larger by the way, as the landscape ones don't show the details this small.

Combourg Lake (Nature)

You may wonder why I've included a bird photo as a challenge. That's because I wanted to have a go at bird photography using a 75-300mm lens and my dslr in manual mode. It's a lot heavier than my SX50 which I use in shutter priority when shooting birds. Capturing them in a natural setting is hard anyway, particularly the little flitty birds, so I'm quite pleased with this one.

Blue Tit (Nature)

At first I was horrified when I saw one of the themes was B&W. I've never liked B&W at all and didn't have a clue how you are supposed to process it. So I googled and read up a bit about B&W and learned how to process it in Lightroom. It's quite a skill and I have learned to appreciate B&W and monochrome now! I chose the tatty old chicken shed door due to the textures of the peeling paint, rust and lichen covering it.

The Chicken Shed Door (B&W)

I was looking all around for some trees that I could shoot as silhouettes and finally found this nice view late in the day. This one is my favourite.

Breton Countryside at the End of the Day (Silhouette)

We spent a week learning about flash which was nowhere near long enough as it's a huge subject. But I've learned about diffusing light and bouncing it off other surfaces rather than directing it straight at your subject. I could practice this kind of stuff forever and probably still learn new things. We learned straight off in week one how important light is and when you add another dimension, a secondary main light source, it gets all the more complicated!

Tomatoes (Flash)

My OH came in handy during flash week as I needed a model, and other times even when I was trying selfies he came in handy so I could manually focus on him and then get in front of the camera myself. I'd got a nice picture of him at home with a sunset behind but this time I wanted to try night shots in a town with some lights. It was bloody hard and the poor guy posed for me for about 3/4 hour before we gave up and went home. I learned tons about what doesn't work! This was my last shot and thankfully it came out OK as I took a lot that were fit only for the bin!

Portrait of a Husband in Downtown Combourg (Flash)

So here I am, I have come out of the other side after an incredibly intensive six weeks, that were worth every minute, and got out of it every bit of blood, sweat and tears that I put into it! But now the garden beckons and I need to spend time in it as spring has sprung with a vengeance. :-)
 

I'll be back!

I haven't forgotten my blog but this is my final week of my photography course so I've been mega busy working on my 'Graduation Challenge' album. This is taking up all my time so you'll have to take my word for it that I have daffies galore in flower, and amazingly the moorhens have even built a nest already! That's crazily early for them.

But I'll be back next week with more news from the Chateau, and my Graduation photos to share, along with some other outtakes! Take care everyone. :-)

Late February flowers

Amazing changes have happened in the garden during the last week! I felt like I blinked and suddenly spring had arrived. I saw my first butterfly (a male Brimstone) on 20th February and the same morning whilst it was still dark I heard a familiar bird song - yup, the blackbirds have started singing. Outdoors the birds have become very noisy and I can recognise Chaffinches, Song Thrushes and Blackbirds singing. Not long now and I expect our Chiff Chaffs will be back. I also started seeing bumble bees and the occasional buzz was a nice surprise.

Of course I'm still in winter mode and it's hard that spring has arrived so early when those of us who have had a really wet winter are struggling to get our garden jobs done, due to the wetness of the soil (and often, pouring rain!). My OH has thankfully taken over in the veg patch and has already got one of my 5 plots dug over and ready to rock and roll. I'm concentrating on flower beds which are full of dead stalks, moss and weeds. I've also managed to prune all the roses and we've between us pruned the three pear trees and the three best eating apples. I think the other apple trees will get forgotten this year - there is just no time.

I've still got another 10 days of my photography course to go which has also accounted for far less free time to spend in my garden! But yesterday I got my macro lens out (it's not being used very much for my course) and got pics of the flowers that are currently blooming. Daffodils are not quite out yet but another couple of days and they should be.

Japonica or Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles). What's unusual this year is that the one by
the pond is very behind this one in the garden, and it's usually the other way around!

Pulmonaria, commonly known as Lungwort.

I have quite a lot of Pulmonaria around the garden as it self seeds everywhere!

Pulmonaria again - so pretty with both blue and pink flowers together.

Hazel catkins were flowering a month early in January out in
the open areas, but my wiggly Hazel (Corylus avellana 'Contorta')
is in a semi shady frost pocket so is always behind.

Hellebores again. Now this plant is producing
paler coloured flowers as well as the dark ones!

This is another one with a paler pink one in the background.
They also self seed like weeds!

I was totally amazed to discover a Cowslip already flowering.
I thought these flowered much later in the spring!
A neighbour gave them to me so I am not sure of the exact species
but assume they are Primula veris, the common Cowslip.

This is too early, but my bright pink coloured Rhododendron
does have occasional buds early in the year.

And I only noticed that my Pieris japonica was flowering on Monday.
In fact some of the flowers are already going over!

The rest of the pictures are of various Euphorbias. I absolutely adore these plants as they are such good value from late winter through the spring and will give months of interest. Their flowers, or bracts, are such a bright zingy lime green it's just what I need after the gloom of winter. And they self seed too - like crazy!

This is my original Euphorbia Characias subsp. Wulfenii which has
already been looking good for a couple of weeks.

And this is one of its babies which is not as advanced yet.

Euphorbia Characias subsp. Wulfenii already attracting a tiny fly.

And here it is yet again, self seeded in a little gap beween
house wall and the steps up to the garage, with
low growing Euphorbia myrsinities above (also self seeded).

A self seeded wild one, probably Euphorbia amygdaloides, the Wood Spurge.

Another tall one similar to Wulfenii, but seeing those red bits inside the bracts makes me happy as this is most likely originally from my beloved Euphorbia martinii which died.

Next time I post I'll have daffodils blooming and already the forsythia has some flowers on. We now have to eat PSB (Purple Sprouting Broccoli) until we're sick of it as they are all sprouting like crazy, and I've got a load of winter veg to get through, like leeks and parsnips, because it's time to get the veg patch ready for the new growing season!