What's (in) the Picture?

Chris Breebaart Photography – finding stories

Posts from the ‘Oegstgeest’ category

Heron

A heron standing in green grass near a canal, showcasing its long neck and elegant posture.
The Netherlands , Oegstgeest – October 2025

This Heron is a frequent visitor along the little canal in front of the house.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Rose

A close-up image of a white rose with soft petals, set against a blurred dark background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Having fresh flowers in the house is a blessing.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Windowed Leafs

The sky and fallen leaves on windows.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version

Sky Views

The sky and clouds are a dynamic big display of forms, colors and light. Looking up at times can take your mind off the daily life at moments.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Oegstgeest, The Netherlands

A scenic view of a tree with autumn leaves, surrounded by cloudy skies and a park setting, featuring benches and bicycles in the background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Letting go

Close-up of autumn leaves displaying vibrant red and orange hues, highlighting the ephemeral beauty of the season.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is the time of year were beauty is short and temporarily. Glimpses of moments that pass quickly and are gone fast. The end is the start of the new cycle of growth for the next year.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Autumn Details

Close-up of vibrant autumn leaves in shades of red, orange, and yellow with a blurred background, capturing the beauty of the season.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is there, colors and details of the leaves are beautiful. Glimpses of moments that pass quickly and are gone fast.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Red Autumn

Close-up of vibrant autumn leaves showcasing shades of orange, red, and yellow against a blurred background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is there, colors of leaves are beautiful.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Where Green Goes Red

Close-up of colorful autumn leaves with vibrant red, orange, and green hues, set against a blurred background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is there, colors of leaves are beautiful. A spot of green is all that remains for a short while.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

In the wind

Close-up of autumn leaves with vibrant red and orange colors, against a blurred background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is there, colors of leaves are beautiful. Unfortunately we had a lot of wind, so lots of leaves are off.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Hosta

Close-up of a vibrant yellow leaf among green foliage, showcasing autumn colors and textures.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – October 2025

Autumn is approaching, the rain and gray skies are more and more the new normal. Luckily there is the occasional sun to enjoy, and the beautiful coloring of plants and trees.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Autumn Announced

Autumn is approaching, the rain and grey skies are more and more the new normal. Luckily there is the occasional sun to enjoy.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Writing In The Sky

A dramatic sky featuring abstract cloud formations with a mix of dark and light shades.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

Sometimes the clouds turn into a abstract symbol.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Outstanding

Black and white close-up of a Knautia Arvensis plant, showcasing its leaves and budding flower against a blurred background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

In the front garden, next to the Japanese Anemone, there is a Knautia Arvensis. It is more easily known as Field Scabiosa.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Star

A close-up, black-and-white image of a Knautia Arvensis flower, also known as Field Scabiosa, standing tall in a garden. The flower has a star-like appearance with a slender stem.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

In the front garden, next to the Japanese Anemone, there is a Knautia Arvensis. It is more easily known as Field Scabiosa. It is literally a star.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Japanese Anemone

A close-up photograph of pink and purple Japanese Anemone flowers with delicate petals, set against a dark background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2024

To close the series of the Japanese Anemone, a last one in color.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Monochrome Moods

Monochrome photograph of delicate flowers with soft focus, showcasing their intricate details and textures.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2024

I like monochrome photography for many reasons. One of them is the ability to play with the mood in the photo. Just by adjusting the aperture time or the opening of the lens, the same light delivers a different mood. This one and the photo I published yesterday, were shot on the same day.

Lens- Artist Challenge #364 is ‘Quiet Moment’. Close ups of natural beauty are a wonderful instrument to just be quiet, enjoying the view. And to realize all is connected.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Delicate

Black and white close-up photo of delicate flowers and buds against a blurred background, emphasizing their natural beauty.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

Lens- Artist Challenge #364 is ‘Quiet Moment’. Close ups of natural beauty are a wonderful instrument to just be quiet, enjoying the view. And to realize all is connected.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Growing Up

Black and white photograph of a thin branch with sparse twigs, set against a softly blurred background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

The aim is to get up into the light and find your place among the rest of the garden.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Japanese Anemone

Close-up of a Japanese Anemone flower with light green leaves in the background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

The Japanese Anemone in the front garden at close look.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Final Approach

Aerial view of a black airplane flying against a light blue gradient background.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

Incoming flights can be annoying, on the other hand they offer a dynamic photo subject!

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version

Levels Day

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

During the Summer we see much more incoming traffic to Schiphol Amsterdam. Quite annoying actually, every minute a plane coming in. During day time they approach just over 600 meters, but in the evening they fly in from 1000 meters. When the wind turns West again in Autumn it will be over. However, who enjoys sitting in his garden in Autumn rain?

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version

Morning Rain

Close-up of leaves with raindrops, illuminated by morning sunlight.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

The morning sun reflecting the drops of rain that the night left behind.

Shot with Nikon Zf, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Catch if you can

Close-up of green leaves with water droplets, showcasing the impact of a dry summer on the garden.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

A long dry Summer with a garden begging for rain.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version

On Water

A scenic view of a canal on a warm summer day, featuring traffic jams with vehicles on a nearby bridge and boats navigating the water.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

On a warm Summer’s day, there are traffic jams on the canal.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version.

Hovering

Close-up view of pink flowers surrounded by green leaves in a garden, illuminated by morning sunlight, with a blurred background creating a 'hovering' effect.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

A plant in the front garden offers months of beauty in the sunlight of the morning sun. Using the portrait mode of the iPhone results in ‘hovering’ effects of parts of the plant that seem now unattached.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version

Front Garden Beauty

A close-up of colorful pink flowers amidst vibrant green leaves, illuminated by morning sunlight.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

A plant in the front garden offers months of beauty in the sunlight of the morning sun.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Choices And Preferences 2 (Sky)

I have a fondness for black and white aka monochrome. That grew on me. Mono was cheaper 50 years ago and more ‘easy’ to handle in a dark room. Monochrome gives something extra at times. The sphere, the grain. And over all these years I learned to see objects in monochrome, visualizing what something looks like in grays.

When I bought my first Nikon digital camera (the D70), I naively asked ‘where is the monochrome setting?’. It was not there. Shooting was color only. If I wanted mono I had to create it myself afterwards in Lightroom, Photoshop or an app like Snapseed. But lucky for me, on the iPhone and on the recent Nikon Zf, there are monochrome settings. To be honest, that was one of the reasons to buy a Zf. So now I have a choice: choose a mono or color setting, or turn color afterward turn it into mono.

I know the taste of my ‘audience’ is different than mine. In three days I like to find out more about your taste. What do you fancy more: a photo in mono or in color? 

This second one is about sky. Always there, lots of it. In color it can be blue, white, gray, dark. In mono it delivers whites, grays and dark zones. In mono the image changes it seems. An abstract sky can turn into something mysterious. The photo was shot in color.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Triple

Close-up of green magnolia leaves showcasing varying shades and intricate vein patterns.
The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – August 2025

And another update from the garden: the Magnolia is doing superb this year. Let’s hope the abundance of green in leaves will lead to an abundance of flowers next Spring.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version.

Growing Tomatoes and Cucumbers in Oegstgeest

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

This year we try to grow tomatoes and cucumbers in the garden.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version.

Stunning Sunset Over Oegstgeester Kanaal

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

And yes, another sunset. Well, they come around every day. This one is a golden gem.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version.

And Another Sunset Nudge

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

One can not take enough photos of sunsets.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Drips (And Other Thoughts About Photography)

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

This week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #359 is ‘Tools of Photo Compositions: Lines, Colors and Patterns’. Photography is about seeing. But what do you see? I can only talk for myself. It all starts with an appeal. Something in the real world captures my eyes. Most of the times that is spontaneous. It is about being there in the moment. What I visualize tells me a story, a small whisper, ‘come, shoot me! It’s fun’. And when building the photo lines, patterns, colors (or monochrome tones) are tools to try to bring that story out. And then the shutter clicks. My photo’s are my story of the world. My way of giving ‘voice’ to something that made me press the shutter, that reflects inside me. Yet, my click with the image can be totally different than the click of the observer.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Swift

A swallow, high in the sky. A warm day.

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Genesis Inspiration: Photographing the Moon with iPhone

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

One of my favorite bands is Genesis. In 1976 A Trick of the Tail came out with a beautiful song ‘Mad Man Moon’. Last month I tried to take a shot of the moon using my iPhone. And this is the result.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Golden Summer Morning

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

And the sun also rises in gold on a Summer morning. And when you shoot it in color, it is literally photographer’s gold.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Capturing Summer Mornings in Oegstgeest

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

Summer mornings can sometimes welcome you into a warm, joyful and laid back day. This is one of those days filled with ease. The sun also rises, each day, at more or less the same place. And when you catch it early, it is photographer’s gold.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version.

Summer Morning

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – July 2025

Sun shining through the trees on the start of another warm Summer day.

Shot with iPhone 15 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a larger version,