What's (in) the Picture?

Chris Breebaart Photography – finding stories

Proud Parents

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – May 2020

We have a family of great tits as guests in our backyard. The parents fly in and out to feed the unseen – but quite vocally present – brethren. The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #96 is ‘cropping the shot’. Show how and why you crop shots, that is the basic question.

Basically I am not an avid cropper. Certainly in the days of film, cropping let always to the loss of quality. In digital times that is somehow different, especially using RAW format and a much better image capture technology. But in general: when taking the photo I try to frame it the way I want the final result to look like. Sometimes (digital is cheap) I take different frames of the same subject. But sometimes that is not possible.

In this photo – to close the series – a lucky shot of the two proud and very busy parents. I was focussing on one of them in the Wisteria, when the other came into the shot as well. The quality is not that great but it closes this series nicely.

 

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Stepping Out

 

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – May 2020

 

We have a family of great tits as guests in our backyard. The parents fly in and out to feed the unseen – but quite vocally present – brethren. The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #96 is ‘cropping the shot’. Show how and why you crop shots, that is the basic question.

Basically I am not an avid cropper. Certainly in the days of film, cropping let always to the loss of quality. In digital times that is somehow different, especially using RAW format and a much better image capture technology. But in general: when taking the photo I try to frame it the way I want the final result to look like. Sometimes (digital is cheap) I take different frames of the same subject. But sometimes that is not possible.

In this photo the nest is on the back of our shed, and I can sit about 10 meters away, more or less hidden. Even using a long lens (300 mm on a not full frame sensor so approximately 450 mm) I can not get ‘close enough’. Because they are quite tiny, a distant shot is not that interesting to look at. Then cropping is a logical step to come up with a presentable result.

Yesterday I published ‘In Coming‘ that shows how one of the parents approaches the nest. Today a take off from the nest. It is relatively easy to record the departure from the nest: when you see the head, start using the burst and all chances are that you have one nice shot in flight.  To show you the amount of crop I added the original frame below.

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

 

 

 

 

In Coming!!

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – May 2020

 

We have a family of great tits as guests in our backyard. The parents fly in and out to feed the unseen – but quite vocally present – brethren. The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #96 is ‘cropping the shot’. Show how and why you crop shots, that is the basic question.

Basically I am not an avid cropper. Certainly in the days of film, cropping let always to the loss of quality. In digital times that is somehow different, especially using RAW format and a much better image capture technology. But in general: when taking the photo I try to frame it the way I want the final result to look like. Sometimes (digital is cheap) I take different frames of the same subject. But sometimes that is not possible.

In this photo the nest is on the back of our shed, and I can sit about 10 meters away, more or less hidden. Even using a long lens (300 mm on a not full frame sensor so approximately 450 mm) I can not get ‘close enough’. Because they are quite tiny, a distant shot is not that interesting to look at. Then cropping is a logical step to come up with a presentable result.

It is relatively easy to record the departure from the nest: when you see the head, start using the burst and all chances are that you have one nice shot in flight (see for an example here). In a shot like that you can zoom in quite close. Taking photos of the arrival to the nest is a bit more tricky. I found out that they come back using a certain pattern. They pause and sit 2 meters out on the wisteria, checking if returning is safe. But to catch them in flight I had to open up the frame a bit more. They are extremely quick and I can not see them take off for the final jump, so when I hear them I start using the burst, hoping it works out well. To show you the amount of crop I added the original frame below. A great tit in full brake.

 

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

 

 

Rose

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – May 2020

As Shakespeare once said: ‘a rose is a rose, is a rose, is a rose, is a rose, is a rose………………’

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Birdhouse

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – May 2020

We have a family of blue tits as guests in our backyard.

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Sunset Canal

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #95 is ‘All Wet’.

You might think seeing this photo ‘this is not all wet, is it?’ And indeed it is not. Some say God created the world and The Dutch created The Netherlands.The first is a question of belief and the latter is a question of opinion. The fact is that a big part of the low lands (Netherlands) are under sea level. This small canal is part of the waterworks that manages to keep Dutch feet dry.  If we could not manage water this way you would be looking at the sea. So it is not all wet, it is managed wet and we prefer it that way.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Sunset Orange

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #95 is ‘All Wet’.

You might think seeing this photo ‘this is not all wet, is it?’ And indeed it is not. Some say God created the world and The Dutch created The Netherlands.The first is a question of belief and the latter is a question of opinion. The fact is that a big part of the low lands (Netherlands) are under sea level. This pond collects water, if there is too much rain the excess water is taking down to the sea. This pond is one of the waterworks that manages to keep Dutch feet dry.  If we could not manage water this way you would be looking at the sea. So it is not all wet, it is managed wet and we prefer it that way.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

At The Waterfront

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #95 is ‘All Wet’.

You might think seeing this photo ‘this is not all wet, is it?’ And indeed it is not. Some say God created the world and The Dutch created The Netherlands.The first is a question of belief and the latter is a question of opinion. The fact is that a big part of the low lands (Netherlands) are under sea level. This canal is one of the waterworks that manages to keep Dutch feet dry. This canal is taking water from ‘polders’ back to the sea. If we could not manage water this way you would be looking at the sea, with the building on the left just above the sea level. So it is not all wet, it is managed wet and we prefer it that way.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Orange Pond

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Full moon

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

 

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Air Cargo

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

The world is small, only go out for walks and necessary shopping. The skies are quiet. Once a while a passenger plane comes in, mostly it is cargo.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

A Rose is a Rose

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Wisteria 2

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

 

During corona lockdown the back garden is a frequented place, especially when the weather is nice.

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Wisteria

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

 

During corona lockdown the back garden is a frequented place, especially when the weather is nice.

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

 

 

Grass

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

During corona lockdown the back garden is a frequented place, especially when the weather is nice.
A few days ago I posted this one in monochrome. Maybe it is fun to spot the differences?

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #94 is ‘At Home’.

Shot with Nikon D500, edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Morning

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – Apri 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #93 is ‘Morning’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Yellow

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Trail

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

Normally the sky would be filled with them on a clear day: the trail lines of aeroplanes on high altitude flying over.
In Corona times hardly any are visible in the sky.  It is much quieter, the skies are much clearer.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Going Back – The Second Time Around (Tibet)

Tibet, near Shigatse – March 2004

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #92 is ‘Going Back – The second time around’.

In March 2004 I visited Tibet. It would be an understatement if I said it was overwhelming.
The backdrop of the Himalaya, the fact that most of the time we were 3500 meters or higher above my normal (sea) level.
The people and close contact with Buddhism. All parts of a puzzle that hopefully will bring me back once more.

About the B4 retouch series:
I browsed my archive for pictures to publish. Some of them are partly retouched but most do have scratches, dust and stains.

Shot with Nikon F90 on Kodak TriX, scanned from film and edited using Snapseed and Marksta. Click the picture for a bigger version

Tulips 6 and a virtual visit to the Keukenhof

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

A series telling the story of a vase of yellow and red tulips. Being lazy basically and trying out a new iPhone 11, I took this series, telling the story of a bunch of tulips in a vase.

Normally we would be out admiring the bulb fields in full bloom. This year we can not.

The Keukenhof (a beautiful garden with 7 million flowers in bloom) is closed as well.
On Facebook they publish videos of the garden. If you enjoy flowers it is a great place to feed on colours and bright, uplifting images of nature.

As flowers open their hearts to us, we need to open up and share our empathy to each other. Stay safe, stay healthy. Whatever the politics is, we are all in this together as mankind. We can only get through this together.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Tulips 5

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

A series telling the story of a vase of yellow and red tulips.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Tulips 4

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

A series telling the story of a vase of yellow and red tulips.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Tulips 3

 

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

A series telling the story of a vase of yellow and red tulips.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Tulips 2

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Tulips

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – April 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

Shot with iPhone 11 Pro Max edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Simplicity

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – March 2020

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #91 is ‘simplicity’.

Shot with iPhoneX edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Lake 4

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – March 2020

Shot with iPhoneX edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger versio

The Lake 3

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – March 2020

Shot with iPhoneX edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

The Lake 2

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – March 2020

Shot with iPhoneX edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

The Lake

The Netherlands, Oegstgeest – March 2020

Shot with iPhoneX edited using Snapseed and Marksta Click the picture for a larger version

Distance

England, Avebury – August 2008

The theme for the weekly Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #90 is ‘distance’.

This is Avebury in August 2008. In times where rules of social distancing are not needed, distances can be there between people.

shot with Nikon D70, edited using Snapseed and Marksta.  Click the picture for a larger version