Amatuer astrophotography
One night after band rehearsal, I noticed the moon was unusually large. I think it was a harvest moon, or any of the other names for a moon that size. Sadly, by the time I made it to a local hill to try to get a picture, the moon was smaller, but still large enough. I messed around with my settings, and came away with a few, surprisingly high quality photos of the moon using one of the stock telephoto lenses.
It wasn't easy, and many early photos were blurry or very bright. I had to make the photo very dark, adjusting aperture and shutter speed until I got it just right. I also had to set the camera on a timer, since any little bump would distort the photo.
It wasn't easy, and many early photos were blurry or very bright. I had to make the photo very dark, adjusting aperture and shutter speed until I got it just right. I also had to set the camera on a timer, since any little bump would distort the photo.
Animals
Animals are pretty challenging to photography. They're skittish, and don't always have the most intriguing poses. Plus, the species I can photography in East Lansing are pretty much limited to the friendly MSU campus squirrels, robins, deer, and some stray cats. If one gets lucky, they might see fascinating creatures like the racoon, possum, or blue jay. That's why I was thrilled to be able to photograph a red tail hawk, even at quite the distance. I heard screeching one day and rustling in a tree, and had the mind to bring my camera outside to investigate. Much to my surprise, I saw a large bird flying from branch to branch, presumably trying to catch an unfortunate squirrel. The hawk stayed still just long enough for me to zoom with my telephoto lense and capture exactly five pictures of it, many of which were underlit.
I also enjoy taking the occasional photo of my cat, using a macro lens. He almost poses for them-- that is, until he gets distracted by a noise outside.
I also enjoy taking the occasional photo of my cat, using a macro lens. He almost poses for them-- that is, until he gets distracted by a noise outside.