Back to Reality

Saying that, I realize that a bright red bird is still a pretty wonderful thing to see and that I'm lucky to be able to see them pretty much any day of the year.  Still, it's not quite the same as lions and cheetahs and elephants and all the other amazing wildlife of South Africa.  

One of the perks of the trip to SA was that there were workshops almost every day on various aspects of photography and processing.  One of the things I found most interesting was using the histogram while shooting and "pushing the whites" even when it feels counter-intuitive.  I experimented with it on the trip and wanted to try it here at home on cardinals.  Because of all the red, they can be hard to expose properly with the reds frequently looking "muddy" or showing blown highlights.  So, going against all my instincts, I shot this much lighter than I normally would  but when I edited it, the detail remained in the feathers and the noise didn't become unbearable.  Much more playing ahead.

I'm still feeling very knackered from the trip and periodically tsunami waves of tiredness wash over me.  I will probably take a shot nap but I first want to see at least part of the eclipse which should be starting about now and peaking at around 3:25.  I remember the last solar eclipse and how much the temperature outside dropped during the peak.  Hopefully lots of people here on Blip will have the special filters that allow them to photograph it!

Had a great FT chat with my parents this morning - it was so good to see their faces after not being able to talk during the last two weeks.  

And I am happy to report that Phoebe definitely seems to be making at least a partial rally.  She still isn't eating a whole lot, but she's been spending time downstairs, enjoying lap naps and seems to be feeling okay.  I'm trying to just enjoy each day with her, without thinking too much further than today.

Just starting working on Day 2 of my images from Zimanga - what fun it is!

xo
Debbi