This past weekend we took one of my Christmas presents out for a spin. Michael got me a new lens for the camera...a 55-210mm lens.
So of course, we headed to the Botanical Gardens...for some ZOOMING!
Here's a shot (unzoomed) of the Chihuly chandelier in the entry atrium, inspired by our collection of pitcher plants.
To use it to take picture of smaller things, I now have to stand farther away and zoom in rather than just getting closer like I did with my 18-55mm lens.
It's also great for taking pictures of flowers that are on, say, a camellia bush that's 15 feet off the path.
Works great for capturing far-away bees as well. =)
Michael took this next one (obviously!) while he was explaining about the tighter depth of field on the lens.
But the real reason we were there? Scouting for wildlife!
I did try to take pictures of some birds as well, but they didn't come out too well. That's OK; I learned a lot while trying, like how to adjust my LCD screen brightness, how to use the movable focus to zero in on the tiny animal I was stalking, and that this lens is less tolerant of backlit conditions (or at least it seems to be). It also take some practice to track flitting birds while you're really zoomed in! I was THISCLOSE to getting a great shot of a male cardinal sitting in a holly tree...then, flit! =) Even with the zoom lens, I would have had to crop it so you could see him, though.
The squirrels were much more cooperative!
I call this one my "squirrel hero" shot.
| JiffNotes |
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| I love my new ZOOM lens!! |
13 comments:
Great photos! DH got me a DSLR for Christmas with both an 18-55mm lens and a 55-300mm lens. The telephoto lens is fantastic, especially for wildlife! I've gotten a few really good photos of birds and a squirrel using that lens.
Have fun with your new toy!!
Very sweet photos x
the Chihuly chandelier is amazing, awesome photo!
Nice shots. One of these days I'm going to steal hubs camera and learn how to take pics with it.
So cool! Zooma. Zooma. Zoom. Zoom. Zoom. Zoom. Zoom. I only take pictures with my phone these days, but I think they make lenses for phones now.
Squirrel! Hehe, I love them too :)
Beautiful closeups. I see what you mean about the focusing. But I like it that way
Silly squirrels. You can buy them for peanuts.
Heather - Your blog is loaded in for my Grow Your Blog party. You will need to prepare a special post for the event - please reference the guidelines. I will be by to meet you soon after the party starts and look forward to reading your post.
I hope you make lots of new friends at the party!
Vicki
You took some great photos. Love the squirrels, but that chandelier is amazing.
Very nice photos.........SQUIRREL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey, nice to see old friends at the party! Great photos too!
Great photo's :)
Those are amazing shots! Love the squirrels. That chandelier kinds eeeks me out though!!
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