Moonhowl said:Kyla, that is a member of the fungus kingdom, Family Phallaceae , Phallus hadriani ... they all look for the most part like strange alien creatures. Just another member of Ma Nature's cleanup crew. (I do think many of the common names were engineered to make Victorian ladies blush)

http://www.mushroomexpert.com/...

What does that say about me if I guffawed rather than blushed (apart from the fact that I'm clearly devoid of any Victorian Lady sensibilities).

And, practical as ever, I removed it once I knew it was going to smell bad in my garden!

Thanks for the info, MoonHowl.

That you have a healthy sense of humor, an appreciation for the absurd and were probably not a Victorian lady in any past incarnation...

My stand of large bamboo loses its boots at this time of year.

Elaine, I especially like the one on the right, with those wonderful shadows. Nice.

Today's is a twofer:

Through my windows:

Asa, That twofer, strange as it may sound, made me think of the Cheshire "Cat".

Some heliconias still blooming but most are done for the year. Bromeliad bloom is finished.

Nice one, Jennifer! I've seen a lot of that lately

Moonhowl said:Asa, That twofer, strange as it may sound, made me think of the Cheshire "Cat".

"Call it what you like..."

I shot some photos the last few days. The first were on a relatively sunny day and I was wanting to capture the nice grey-blue color of the lichens growing on some Oaks and on our chopped wood. I quickly learned they didn't lend themselves very well to being photographed because their surface was either absorbing the light, or, it was just bouncing off it with not much contrast to show it off; I'm not sure which it was. I'll include an example of a poor composition, one I think is better, then the one I prefer and why. I didn't end up with any amazing shots, in fact they're just so, so...but, you'll be able to see the difference.

I wanted to ask, too, if everyone has a basic editing program to use? Windows comes preloaded with "Windows Live Photo Gallery" and that's what I use to refine my photos. I'm working with Windows 7, but, I'm certain previous editions had it too. To use it you need to open your photos in that program. It's like being in a dark room where you would be able to manipulate the negative in various ways as needed. I'm sure Apple probably has a similar program, but, I don't have first hand knowledge of it. You didn't think all those National Geographic award-winning photos all came out looking perfect every time did you? Of course, the better the camera, the better the photo! The most important element is setting up the composition and being mindful of all the elements that go into it first and you shouldn't need to do much editing at all. I'm thinking most of our photos will require a bit of tweaking here and there. A very light touch is usually all it takes as I'm sure you've all seen some that were clearly over manipulated. The main thing to remember is that it's not "cheating" to use the editing program, it will become your most valued resource absent the dark room! Just remember to go lightly---very lightly, unless you're deliberately exercising your right to be creative!

I'll post the first photo showing a poor composition, then one that's a little better and then the one I would choose to keep.

In the first photograph the main subject isn't distinct enough because of the branch that's about the same size directly behind it. Even though I have repetition of lines (the other branches) their position in the photo isn't ideal. The main subject is just kind of swallowed up and not very interesting.

In the second photo I see a bit of color coming in with some blue and a bit of red in the background. So, I like that element. However, there are now two branches competing for your attention and they're about the same size again as the subject. My eye is pulled to the upper left corner and there's nothing there of interest. I need to make an adjustment and bring your attention back to the branch with the lichen on it.

The last photo is more pleasing because the subject is the center of attention. There's still some of the color that we saw in the last photo and there's still repetition of shapes (the line of the branches), but now the lichen on the center branch takes precedence and the other elements serve to support it rather than detract from it.

They're all great, Sheila. Nice work! Just a suggestion, when I'm taking pictures of subjects like that in bright light, it sometimes helps to shade it with something (like your body or your head or an umbrella) in order to get the colors to show up better.

I also choose to take pictures in the late afternoon or evening light, when it's softer.

Hi Elaine,

I photograph blooms under the conditions you use as it seems to be the best for those. Below are photos with one shaded and the other when the sun popped back out. Which one do you think is better?

Nice comparison shots, Sheila. You are right about composition being center to a good photo. I really like that last crop on the first picture of thelichen. On the shade/no shade comparison, I like the second picture better.

I use Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0 to do any touching up and crops. The latest version of this is 13.0, but mine still does all that I need it to do.