Clouds over MtLawleyShire – 25th Feb

Last week there were clouds and storm – well, for everywhere but Perth there was storm, but at least we got the clouds.  And they were fantastic, massive this, , almost making up for the lack of any rain or cool because both days have been hot and humid.  Most unpleasant.

These first 3, with their lines of mammutus clouds, are taken over Beaufort Street:

 

Then back home and out with the camera to catch massive thunderheads – cumulus piling up in the east:

 

 

 

To the southeast were all sorts of clouds – these were taken about 15 minutes apart.  I’ve greatly enhanced the contrast to bring out the different shapes and types of clouds.  Despite the colours, it was well before sunset:

 

looking west-ish just prior to sunset:

 

clouds of all types and stripes littered the sunset-waiting sky:

 

 

and then the thunderheads in the east, slowly sinking as they slid further south-east, caught the light of the setting sun:

  

  

finally, when almost all the light had fled, they remained a taunting, ghostly presence over the coming humid night:

I hope you enjoyed the clouds 🙂

Next post – sunset

 

 

 

Stormclouds over MtLawleyShire: Mon 2nd Feb

It was a fantastic storm – the first of many during the week, culminating with a fantastic storm on Wednesday night, though there was another on Thursday but I was working.  Monday’s  storm was a fantastic opportunity for cloud watching – and the rain was delicious.

The sky first filled with mammatus clouds stretching out to form cirrus hooks:

 

Then you could see the storm front approaching – a denser form with darkness beneath it:

 

 

 

a bird flying to safety and details of tossing clouds:

 

It gained more definition

 

It was impossible to get it all in the frame

  

the details were incredible:

 

and as I watched, the left hand leading edge began to swirl:

 

I was watching a storm cell form:

  

Then the right – I watched another storm cell form to my right:

 

 

 

The leading edge of the storm over one of the gracious houses remaining on my street:

It was a tide of storm looming over houses

 

It really did resemble a huge wave about to break over the world:

 

Much as I didn’t want to, there was the camera to think of – and lightning – so I retreated towards my driveway.  The cloud loomed over  the roof of the flats behind my fence:

 

and this is from my courtyard before I went inside:

A while later, I went back outside, clouds moving away:

It moved south-east, rain still pouring down.  I don’t know if it reached the area where the bush fires are:

 

Their purpose spent, the clouds had lost coherence and definition

remnant always look wonderful:

 

and the fleeing remains were great subjects for black and white:

 

Fattee Cattee you ask?  She was sufe inside in one of her alternate dimensions.

I love storms, so hope you enjoyed this post & that I didn’t post too many.  🙂

Next: post storm sunset, followed by flowers after the rain

 

 

 

 

MtLawleyShire sunshine while it lasts

Of course I love winter, but the sunshine this weekend has been a boon in regards to catching honey eaters in the flame trees (& getting the washing dry) although my eyes didn’t help – many a photo on today’s little walk was out of focus.  But not all.

A red wattle bird and a singing honey eater – the only honey eater I managed to catch this afternoon.

 

striped in shadow:

 

 

2 wattle birds in the one frame (one photo more successful than the other):

 

  

 

In the east, clouds were building along with a thick warm wind:

 

 

 

The difference in the sky was notable, but the light on the flame tree flowers was lovely:

 

 

 

As I walked down the street, I took some photos of a bottlebrush bush – it is made of all the spent flower spaces.  They probably have a technical term, but I don’t 🙂  They add a fascinating personality to the tree and wonderful patterns against emptiness.  I will try photographing them again when I have my new glasses.  Focusing was difficult here.

 

 

To trees – a pied lovely on the corner of William Street and a tall tree in the ground of an apartment block.  Not the prettiest photo, but it is a lovely tree:

 

 

 

Down a lane, another flame tree, but it was too windy to try catching teh flighty singing honey eaters who were everywhere, teasing me 🙂

 

 

Over a high brick fence, I saw a bud bigger than my hand and the flower.  The photos don’t really give you an idea of the size, but it’s very large!

 

 

Two galahs in bright sunlight, grazing on a street verge:

 

 

Brilliant colour in a garden in heavy shadow:

 

 

Sweet peas that were teh only grace in a new house for which they tore down something old and graceful with a garden & trees and erected a grey and white box that they will have to make livable with air-conditioning.

 

 

 

The almond tree blossom: this photo was too dark so I made it darker 🙂

 

Pink & white beauty in one photo and a snatched glimpse of a honey eater at dusk in the other – they do love the almond tree:

 

Some black and whites:

  

 

 

Then it was suddenly sunset:

 

 

 

But the aftermath were the best of it, I think:

 

  

 

 

I go for my eye test tomorrow.  I am looking forward to being able to focus when I am trying to take photos!  And to the rain (‘heavy at times’ say the forecasters) that will last a whole working week.  So, there won’t be many photos, which with my eyes, is probably a good thing 🙂

& as I get ready to publish this, the wind is howling outside my windows, making the night restless…

 

MtLawleyshire playing with leaves, light and colour

And, apart from playing with light and colour, I should add – a problem.  I know the solution, but it’ll take time and quite a bit of money.  No, not a camera – glasses!

I was told last year that I needed glasses & fairly urgently, and promptly forgot.  But then – I got my zoom lens and – oh dear.  I got such terrible eye strain that I couldn’t focus the camera properly and even when I switched to my little point and shoot, it remained.  So a few scant photos of honey eaters in the flame tree from yesterday.  At least it makes sense of the strange headaches I’ve had over the last week.  Sigh.

This wattle bird was the only decent photo I got – & as you can see, am still learning apertures and so on.  But at least you can see the bird with his glorious yellow underneath.

These two of a singing honeyeater came out OK

 

 

and this:

 

This one surprised me when I downloaded the photos.

 

But the flowers drenched in sunlight came out OK.

 

The rest are black and whites – all the photos that sort of failed but I think they are redeemed with the black and white:

 

 

 

 

 

This one has come cloud darkness which kinda works.

 

The one with the flying wattle bird works better in black and white than it did in colour!  And the one next to it is the same – there is a honey eater sipping nectar that didn’t come out well in colour (though I think it needs a wee bit more light):

 

 

 

I experimented with flowers

 

And Jacaranda tree:

 

and finally – clouds:

Two photos of the same cloud, but I wanted detail of that lower raggedy edge:

 

Finally, some portraits of the lovely Fat one:

wanting lemon grass – not the camera!

more content in her favourite chair:

a series of portraits in her favourite chair:

 

 

She puts up with the camera in her face 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

& sometimes, there is an affectionate glance:

Next week, I’m finding an optomertrist & then – new glasses instead of the readers I’ve been using for years and years….

 

 

 

MtLawleyShire playing in Black and White

Yes, I’ve been at it again.  The flame trees have such wonderful arrangements and in black and white, there is no distraction of colour.  Just the structure of branches and flowers – & sometimes birds in striking designs against featureless white:

 

 

 

 

But today, I also took other shots that I thought I would play with.

A Jacaranda tree with light pouring through the feathery foliage:

A cape lilac bare of all but sunlight and stark shadows and last summer’s berries:

and a Grevillea flower:

I am enjoying this play – though I really should be writing…

 

Bare Branches in and out of MtLawleyShire

 

And I should have added in the title that mostly they are more black and whites.  The days have been so dull and gloomy with cloud if not actual rain – it is very difficult to get enough light for photos & those I do get?  They are marred with the graininess that I often get in low light.  So I have turned them to black and whites.  I am definitely going to do something with these.

MtLawleyShire’s Flame trees.  Both the flowers & the branches look wonderful in black and white, becoming studies in the complexity of line and shade, the flowers’ balance of gentle grey – in total contrast with their startling and beautiful scarlet which throws even the sky into shade – but in black and white, they assume a different personality:

 

 

 

A flame tree in another street – it is not flowering yet, though it is covered in buds.  This looks wonderfully storm-tossed (& it was just after some wild weather)

These are taken in West Perth tonight.

It is from teh tree that had the lovely coloured leaves and branches that I shot against a cream wall.  All the leaves are gone now, leaving the branches and twigs bare, like haikus of themselves.  They are shot against a heavy sky (it did nothing, just frowned down upon the afternoon and apparently cleared in time for sunset, but I was working so didn’t get to see anything but a brief hint of aftermath):

 

 

 

And these are turned to black and white:

  

 

A street tree in street lights:

and a detail rendered into white against the black of night.

 

I hope you are enjoying my experimentations.

🙂

Quick shots of MtLawleyShire’s flame trees

It was a stormy morning and an afternoon of intermittent wind and grey and sun.  There was no sunset, and no moon.   But there was some sun, so despite teh wind, I went out to see if I could get any shots of the birds in the flame trees.  I hope I’m not boring you with these, but it only happens for a couple of months of the year, and only when teh weather is OK.  I don’t know if there will be flame trees at my new address, wherever that will be….

There were mostly singing honey eaters there today, all thrusting their heads into the flowers to get at the nectar:

 

 

 

 

 

Some are quite acrobatic:

 

these two, while not all that clear, intrigue me – something about the ‘design’ of the flowers and twigs:

 

 

& this one:

 

& this one – upside down and shot in a moment of sunlit stillness:

 

 

& here are some flowers – they are so striking

But, given the weather, there were many that just weren’t right, so I played, although some of those above made for black and white fun too:

 

 

 

I am missing my sunsets and a chance to go and play with the ‘big’ camera with the new lens.  Maybe tomorrow…

& I really do hope you’re not getting bored…

                   

 

MtLawleyShire’s flame tree, birds and Black and White

I have a new lens for the “big” camera.  No – I don’t know how to use it yet (& today was no good at all – storms and rain & wind 7 thunder & working).  But yesterday, I did play a little.  Can’t focus yet properly and, annoyingly, I see better through the viewfinder without my glasses, but it does cause horrendous eye strain. Now what am I going to do about that!

But, as there were both hits and misses, I played with black and white a little again – and sometimes played with those photos that did work.  I will leave it to you to decide which you think is more effective.

Flame tree flowers in scarlet against grey – & the black and white version

 

 

Flame tree and a singing honey eater – & the black and white version:

 

A wattle bird

   

& a wattle bird again, on his own:

 

Now for some black and white.  For various reasons, the colour versions of these just didn’t work.

 

 

 

 

 

I like how the branches turned out in this one:

 

This I added a yellow tinge to:

 

 

This flower worked well-ish…

Some singing honey eaters – more or less buried in the flowers drinking nectar:

 

& these two little guys were quite visible:

 

 

Finally, a gerbera from Amelia’s garden and a wee New Holland honey eater on a wire:

 

I am enjoying this play with black and white.  Not sure what I’ll do with them, though friends suggest wallpaper, prints…

I will have to see what happens…

 

MtLawleyShire’s Black & White Matilda Bay

Well – birds at Matilda Bay, in the flame tree that is now in flower.  But it was a dark, gloomy day, not great for photos, so many of the photos didn’t work (though many did & I’ll include those in another post).  So – I played with them in black & white.

What do you think?

The first three are the honey eaters

 

 

The rest are wattle birds.

 

 

 

 

 

I’d really appreciate some feedback, if you have the time.

🙂

 

Black and White Weekly Photo Challenge: Abstract

I have been tempted by Sonel’s black and white challenges.

 

I think some of these are more abstract than others, but I am trying 🙂

Buildings in Perth:

A sunset:

Flame trees – one with a willy wagtail:

 

white roses:

zygocactus flower & a rose:

 

 

 

Hyde Park’s bewintered plane trees:

 

These w I feel come closer to abstract: a duck in Hyde Park on the ponds, and a spooky seagull at Matilda Bay:

 

I can’t find any others to link back to 😦