Photography Tips

Ah, photography. It's an amazing hobby, career, activity. I love to take pictures of anything and everything. I hope to be a professional photographer some day, I'm passionate about it. Autumn is just around the corner, and it's the perfect time to get out there with your camera. The colors, animals, lighting, it makes for great photos! You can get some good shots on your own, but you can make them better if you know how to use your camera, settings, and if you're creative. Here's a few helpful tips...


1. Play around with the camera settings. Aperture, Shutter speed, Micro, etc. Take photos using the different settings and learn what they do.

2. Flash. It exists for a reason. Use the flash if you are in a dark area, your photos will come out lighter. If it's dark outside and it's snowing, use the flash and you'll get some amazing shots!

3.Rule of Thirds. Make sure to have a point of your subject on the rule of thirds. If your subject is a human or animal, it works well to have one of their eyes on a rule of thirds point. Not sure what the Rule of Thirds is? No need to worry, click HERE

4.Perspective. Lay on the ground, crouch down, or tower over objects to change the view points of your pictures. If you always take pictures standing up, they will all be from the same point of view. Laying down could get you covered in dirt, but you'll take amazing photos! You could make a small twig look like a huge tree just by changing perspective.

5.Watch the lighting. Light affects your photos. A lot. When taking a photo of someone, don't face the camera towards the sun, this can cast a shadow over the subject. If you face away from the sun, your picture will come out much better. If you want a picture with spectrum, face the sun and you'll get the light rays.

6. Get closer or farther away from your subject. Don't put your camera in a flower, but also don't stand five feet away. Change the distance between you and your subject to get the picture you want.

7. Background matters. Watch you background, you don't want it to distract from the subject. Sometimes your background will even be in better focus than the subject, so be watchful for that.

8. ISO. Change the ISO according to the lightness or darkness around you. If it's super sunny, don't have your ISO set to 1600! Dark and can't see much, and your ISO is set to 100? Bad idea! You've got to pay attention to that. Need help knowing what to set the ISO to? Click HERE


These simple tips will make your photos SO much better! These photos were taken by me, a few of them were taken today!

Can't wait for Autumn!

Yesterday, August 24th, I went outside and observed the weather. It was around 8:00 PM. Light breeze, dark gray Nimbostratus clouds covered the sky. Sandhill Cranes flew low in the sky, and the Fowler's Toads were quite loud! It still looks like Summer, but the air is cool and crisp like Autumn.
Colourful leaves, pumpkins, apple pie...ah, I can't wait for Fall!
The weather is still rainy, as it was yesterday evening. I love when the weather is like this. It may be gray and gloomy to some people, but I think it's very lovely.

If you'd like to know more about Fowler's Toads, Sandhill Cranes, or Nimbostratus clouds, click a link below.

Fowler's Toad    Sandhill Crane   Nimbostratus

Spring!

Spring is here! Some days it's warm and sunny, other days it's cool and rainy. Flowers are growing, eggs are hatching, lambs are jumping around. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has a contest again! Funky Nests in Funky Places 2015! You can visit them and see beautiful pictures. Funky Nests 2015 Link

What do you like most about spring? I personally, like the warm weather, singing birds, and green grass. I like to see frogs leaping and apples growing. So many lovely things about spring. Get outside and find out what YOU love about spring! There is a lot to see, you just need to observe your surroundings.

SNOW!

Snow, lots and lots of snow. In the northern states, we have quite a bit of snow. At my house, some areas have as much as 2ft of snow! Brrrr. And all this happened overnight! How does this happen?  Well, I can't explain it very well so you can check out THIS LINK. Basically, ice crystals fall from a cloud and if the air is warm, the ice melts, turning into water which we call rain. If the air is cold, the ice crystals just keep falling, which we call snow.
Although snow is cold, it is really cool! (Get it, cool haha) You can sled or snow board in the snow and down hills, you can make an igloo or snow fort, you can make snowballs and have a snowball fight, or just throw it at someone and run away, hehehe. Snow angels, snow people and animals, so much to do! Instead of staying inside to keep warm, get your self a coat,boots, gloves, hat, etc, and head outside!
Sometimes if you lay in the snow, you can see the shapes and designs of snowflakes! They are really beautiful pieces of art. In the right conditions, and with a good camera, you can get magnificent pictures of snowflakes! Ever heard of a man named Wilson Bentley? He is known for his amazing photos of snowflakes. When he was a teenager he would look at snow crystals through a microscope and try to draw what he saw. But since snow melts so soon, it was difficult to draw them accurately. He attached a camera to the microscope and on January 15, 1885, he took his first picture of a snowflake. Pretty cool right? No two snowflakes were the same and he took lots and lots of pictures. You really should learn more about him. Here is a link that will tell you more about him and show you some awesome photos he took. Some people started calling him Snowflake Bentley because of how much he loved snow crystals, and all the amazing pictures he caught.

There is so much to learn and do just by going outside. You can see animal prints, and follow them to see where the animal goes. You can watch birds and other animals behave differently in the cold. Some birds fly south for the winter, and some animals hibernate. But a few stay behind and stay awake! There is a whole world to explore!Go enjoy an adventure! 

Lady Bug!

Ever heard of a Coccinellidae? More commonly known as a Lady Bug. They are the little red/orange beetles that usually have black spots on their backs. They have black legs, antennae, and heads. The Lady bugs are very useful. They eat pests in your house and garden such as aphids, flies, even dead lady bugs. Did you know that they some times bite people? You will sometimes feel the quick pinch, although they don't bite hard enough to break the skin. There are many different species of Coccinellidae, but I am writing about the Coccinella Septempunctata. Lady Bugs are also called Lady Birds, even though they aren't bugs or birds! Want to learn more about the different species of Coccinellidae? Click THIS link.

Southern Flying Squirrel

Have you ever heard of a Southern Flying Squirrel? It's scientific name is Glaucomys Volans. Flying Squirrels are in the squirrel family. They have tails about 3-5" and their bodies are about 5-7". They can live up to 5 years in the wild, in captivity they can live up to 10 years. Flying Squirrels will live in parks,yards, and forests. They have light brown to gray fur above and they a have white underside. They tail is brownish gray on top and white on the underside just like the body. Glaucomys Volans are omnivores and they eat seeds,nuts,baby birds, bird eggs,baby mice,fungi,carrion, and sometimes they eat out of bird feeders. They usually have 3 young per year. Flying Squirrels sometimes live in old woodpecker holes and in nest boxes. They may build a round nest of leaves on a tree branch to live in. They are nocturnal which means they sleep in the day and live at night. Flying Squirrels don't actually fly, they glide. To do this, they will get on top of a tree branch or some other thing to launch themselves from. Then they jump, extend all four legs, and they stretch the patagium making a flat airfoil allowing them to glide to another tree. If you want to see pictures and know more about a Southern Flying Squirrel, CLICK HERE!

Wolves! Foxes! Coyotes!

I visited a place called Wolf Mountain in New York and it was an awesome experience! I got to see Arctic Foxes, Coyotes, and Wolves! At noon the fire department put off a siren. At that moment, all the canines started howling! It was a really cool thing to see! And I have pictures!

                                                  In this shot you can see a wolf howling

                               In this shot you can see the inside of a wolfs mouth! It was yawning.

                                       And look at this sleepy one! It looks like a big domestic dog!

                             And this is definitely my favorite picture. Look how pretty its eyes are.

                             This is a shot of the two Arctic Foxes. these are their summer coats.

                                                            And here's a Coyote!
                                                    

                                                   I hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Ahhh Poison Ivy!

Toxicodendron radicans, more known as Poison Ivy, is a plant everyone try's to avoid. Can you guess why? The name says it all. It's Poison to your skin! When most people touch the leaves or vines or get it on their clothes, they get blisters,rashes, and get itchy all over. But some people are lucky enough to be immune to it. But don't touch it to test! Many plants look similar to Poison Ivy. Poison Ivy has long, brown vines that are hairy looking that climb up trees and other plants. The leaves are green, the top of the leaf is shiny and the bottom is fuzzy. If the leaves are light green, the plant is young. If the leaves are dark green, the plant is mature. In fall the leaves turn bright red. Have you ever heard the saying " Leaves of three, leave it be?" It's good to follow that saying because Poison Ivy has 3 leaves. Poison Ivy also has white berries. If you happen to touch Poison Ivy, wash yourself immediately or as soon as possible. And if you get Poison Ivy and have a rash, Calamine lotion may help with symptoms. If you want to learn more about Poison Ivy or look at the least of similar looking plants, check out THIS LINK

Deer footprint

I was in my swamp and found White-tailed deer footprints. One is a fawns, another is its mothers.

                                                                       fawn prints

                                                                      mother print

Ohio Buckeye

So you've heard of the Ohio Buckeyes, but have you heard of the Ohio Buckeye tree?  It's scientifically called the Aesculus glabra. It grows 20-40 feet tall and can live to be about 125 years. The Ohio Buckeyes flowers are green and its fruit is light brown and round. In autumn, leaves turn yellow and orange. Some call it Stinking Buckeye because when the flowers are crushed they smell bad. It has poisonous seeds that animals avoid eating. The leaves are green during summer and spring

Submission two and three

Here is my second and third submissions for the Funky Nests in Funky Places contest!Submission 2
Submission 3 by the way, sorry they are sideways!

Funky Nests in Funky Places 2014!

Funky Nests in Funky places contest is back again! Last year my drawing of a Western Grebe and chicks was one of the winners! I've just entered another drawing I made and hope you like it! To see it click the link below.
HERE

Spring means birds migrating North!

Spring is coming,the snow is melting,so many birds all over! What could these beautiful birds be!? I saw two Bufflehead ducks just yesterday in a river, I also saw Canada Geese next to the river and flying every hour overhead! I've been hearing many Red-winged blackbirds and Robins,Chickadees and Blue Jays. There is one bird I call the Mystery Bird. That's because I can't figure out what it is! It's about sparrow size,has a completely white underside,brown head,back,and tail,and has a white ring around its eye. IF ANYONE RECOGNIZES THIS BIRD PLEASE TELL ME! Spring is a chance to learn more about birds, plant big native gardens, put up bird baths,and keep filling up bird feeders. If you have or want Hummingbird feeders, DON'T buy sugar water. Make it instead,it's quite easy really. The red stuff in stores may be giving Hummingbirds food, but it's also killing them by the minute. To make sugar water, use 4 parts water,1 part sugar and mix it up real well. DON'T use honey,honey can create bacteria and make the Hummingbirds sick,DON'T use dyes! Dyes are what is killing these beautiful tiny Hummingbirds. The red dye is to attract the hummingbirds. Instead of dyes, get a red feeder,or one painted like flowers. Hummingbirds usually show up at any Hummingbird feeder but are especially attracted to red. When buying suet for other birds, be careful and look at what you are about to buy. Some suet isn't that healthy for birds and includes unneeded ingredients.CLICK HERE to learn more about feeding birds CLICK HERe to learn more about feeding Hummers   Have a great day everyone! :-)

Ash Wednesday

Happy Ash Wednesday! Today is the beginning of Lent. I've given up sugar and television. I can spend time that I would usually watch TV to do something more important. Sugar I gave up because I eat to many sugary thing and not enough veggies. Sweet Peas and carrots taste good. :-) Have a wonderful Lent!

Happy Fat Tuesday!!

Happy Fat Tuesday everyone! Ah, its that time of year to stuff your self full of delicious Polish Paczki's! People used to stuff them selves with food then fast for 40 days. Some people still do. Ash Wednesday (tomorrow) is when Lent begins. I don't know quite yet what I want to give up but I better think fast!! :-) Have a great 41 days everyone!! 

Sea Lamprey

Hey everyone! So sorry  haven't been posting lately!!! Hopefully spring comes soon, can't wait to go fishing again! Speaking of fish, have you ever heard of a Sea Lamprey? They are brownish black on top and white on bottom. They look kinda like eels. Something special about Sea Lampreys is that they have a disk- like mouth with dozens of teeth!  With their mouth, they find a fish (or person!) an they suck the blood out of the creature leaving a big round scar. The longer it stays the harder it is to get off and I'm sure it hurts! But don't worry, they usually choose fish.They reach about 11 to 24 or 25 inches.The Sea Lamprey doesn't have any fins but swims through the water like a snake or eel. If you want to learn more, Click here!!!!!!!! :-) ;-)

Birdspotter week 13!

Its week 13 of Birdspotter!  I have another submission so please view it and vote! :-) Feel free to leave comments as well, Thanks! CLICK HERE!

Week 12!

It's week 12 of Birdspotter 2013-2014! I've entered my submission so please take a minute to stop by and vote which could give me a trip to Portland, Oregon with my dad. Thanks! Click Here!

Week 10!

Week 10 of Birdspotter! Click Here and please vote!

New Year in the USA

Happy 2014! All across North America, we celebrate the new year of 2014! We set off fireworks, light lots of lights, have parties, stay up until 12 at night to watch the ball drop, etc.Some people make New Year Resolutions. We say that we will stop doing one thing or start doing another.What ever you do, it is a celebration and a happy time of a new, fresh chance at life.It is like God giving us second chances. We can choose to be better, or be worse. Happy 2014 everyone!!!!!!!!!!!