Yesterday my new camera arrived and I have been practising with it, taking first photos around The Holler. (Click to enlarge the bees to see the details).
It is getting detail and is super fast, but will require more practice.
I was planning to use the camera mostly for landscapes, so I was pleasantly surprised with these first-attempt macros.
You can see some of the detail capability in this Datura or Moonflower. Moonflowers are night-blooming and belong to the nightshade family. They are poisonous and are pollinated at night by Sphinx and Hawk Moths. Native Americans used Moonflowers in sacred ceremonies as a hallucinogen.
These Night Blooming Cereus flowers were taken with my older, trusty HX400, which is still my go to bird and wildlife camera. The flowers grow on the tallest cactus in the world, Cereus Peruvians. Ours is over 30 feet tall! It’s flowers are as big as plates and open only at night. The tree generates tons of fruit called Peruvian Apples that are crunchy, sweet, and delicious!
Cheers to you from Sony’s views~
These are so beautiful. I love the Cereus. 🌼
Thank you. I love it too. It is like a dinosaur cactus!
These multi-colored flowers are awesome, Cindy!
They grow everywhere and people treat them like weeds, but I love them. So happy you do too Ranu ! <3
Great captures Cindy, congratulations on your new camera!
Thanks, I am just learning it’s new capabilities and quirks and so far I am impressed with it~
Great colors! Love new cameras ❤️
It is so much fun to play around with a new camera!
I need a new camera too! Hopefully soon. Looking forward to seeing more of your pictures 😊
Let me know what you decide to get!
Nice clear shots. Really long zoom range, and it has a 1″ sensor, which is a real plus for an all in one camera. You will have a lot of fun with your new RX 10.
I think so. I can’t meet the zoom of the 400, but it’s refinements are quite evident.
Reblogged this on Musings on Life & Experience and commented:
Some gorgeous photos from Cindy Knoke. She has a new camera.
Thank you Patricia. I wish I could take a portrait of you! <3
oh wow – how exciting to get a new baby!! These shots are marvellous as usual, Cindy – bravo and keep up the good work! cheers to you for a great weekend x
Back 2UX2 & <3 2!
Congratulations, Cindy. Great pictures for a start <3
It will be a very fun learning curve~
I know 🙂 Love that challenge too 🙂
🏵️ <3
Hopefully you can use some of your old lenses with the new body. Nice details in those shots.
One of the things I enjoy about the 400 is there is no need to change lens. The 400 zooms from 24mm -1200 and the 10 from 24-600!
These are fabulous Cindy, this is something my simple camera can not do. have fun!
Thank you. You and your simple camera do beautiful work. Now I have one somewhat expensive camera and one non-expensive one. Each has it’s own unique merits.
Proof that Sony and Cindy take great pictures! I grew up with film long ago, in an age when the name Sony was unknown to me, even for radios and television sets. I used many good cameras, now all gone, two favorites being (having been?) a Rolleiflex TLR and a simple 35 mm Canon QL 17. I think I got that model number right, both fixed lenses, single length.
I wasn’t taking photos then, but my family was. I was just watching and I remember the technology well.
Congrats, Cindy! Looks great. I really must get on with my plans for a new camera as well. My Nikon is too heavy – otherwise I love it.
It is nice to have two cameras that can do different things. I carry each with a shoulder strap so they are ready to shoot.
Sounds great – and so are the results!
Thank you sweet friend 🏵️
Great photos! And a new camera, always a fun time.
Indeed. A new camera gets you out and about with much enthusiasm!
These are beautiful Cindy, I love all the detail in the moonflower and Cereus flower images especially :o) xxx
Thanks much! I was really surprised by the details in the moonflower shot.
Looks like a great camera Cindy! But it still needs a photographer to make pictures does it 🙂 I like the green flowers an awful lot. Wonderful. They look like fruits themselves.
I find cactus flowers difficult to photograph when their coloring is subtle like these Cereus. I was photographing at night and that did the trick!
Very sharp and very fast… congrats on a fine new camera!
Thanks much. I am practising for our trip!
I want to ask where you’re going next – but it’s probably better to let you surprise us with your photos!
Only once, on our last trip, did I talk about where we going next, and a family emergency ensued compelling us to cancel, so now I am staying quiet which is what I usually should do anyway!!!
Looking good! <3
Sony with the Zeiss lens thrown in cannot really be bad 😉
I have a small brother of yours, the DSC RX100 – my "you-never-know" camera that's always with me, in the side pocket of my bag or in my pocket or hanging on to my belt. And though it looks a lot like a point-an'-shooter, it even does RAW with its 20MP. You really have to enlarge extensively to see the difference with the Nikon… So, happy hunting with your new 'toy' <3
It is smart of you to have such a compact camera you can carry around like, well……a compact! You are never without a camera. My first camera about five years ago when I started getting serious was a compact Sony. They make amazing cameras!
I was indeed amazed when I looked at the first photos I took with mine 🙂
Yes! I know the feeling, exactly!
😀
Brilliant shots, you must have bought a brilliant camera. <3
Grazie! Sony does make brilliant cameras and they are not paying me to say this, darn them! 😉
Cindy, first of all your photos are already brilliant, but now your new camera is just taking you to a whole new level. Awesome “practice shots! Have fun with your new camera and look forward to more jaw-dropping images!
I was happy to see the details of the hairs on the bee’s legs. I think some of the pixels are lost when WP posts them, but at least they can be seen. I’m going to take the camera to the Wild Animal Park and just shoot my head off! This should really help me get familiar fast.
Your images are, as always, a delight. I shared them with my husband who has a new (two-day-old) camera and he is in awe.
Thank you so much, both of you. What camera did your hubby get?
Those are incredible photos! The detail is outstanding. Nice to have a new camera, but beautiful pictures require a talented photographer… which you most definitely are.
Such a kind and thoughtful comment and so appreciated too! Thank you <3
Incredible photos, Cindy. Nature in all its glory 🙂
She is the best of the best <3
I thought I took some good pictures of bees but your pictures are outstanding – the colors and details!
We can thank Sony for putting the technology in our hands. Thank you too my friend & have an awesome weekend!
The moonflower is gorgeous!
I was so surprised with what the camera showed me, so thank you for noticing! <3
You’re welcome! 😊
🏵️
When my son gets here next week I’m going to show him your photos. I think I’ve mentioned them to him before. Those are so crisp and clear, even this blind woman can see the detail. Wow!
I am still a neophyte with the camera, but I do have some idea now what it is capable of and it is pretty exciting. It is just a question of the human catching up to the technology! Thank you for your very kind words & Happy Weekend!
‘Pleasantly surprised’!! Cindy, I hope that is your understatement, these are stunning; the moon flower could be part of a fantasty novel…wondrous. Congratulations on your new camera and Happy Clicking!!😃
Your very kind comment made me smile. Thank you so much Annika. It is so wonderful to share with thoughtful people like you! <3
Breath taken sharpness and quality! Awesome pictures!
Ahhhh, honored & humbled. Thank you Alexander and thank you Sony!
Cindy, for sure Sony is a good brand and its cameras are sophisticated, intelligent and have a lot of capabilities, but as many professionals said, the most important thing who is behind of the camera. You have a really sharp photographer eyes and flair. Looking forward to see your new projects.
Thank you. the respect is most definitely returned. I love blogging because I get access to talented photographers like you!
Thank you, Cindy!
🏵️ <3
Just when I thought your photos couldn’t be more amazing…
You are the sweetest friend <3
You are amazing. The photographs are so incredible. Absolutely stunning.
What I am is very lucky, to have amazing friends like you! <3
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Your photos are gorgeous no matter what camera you use, Cindy. The Moon Flowers are amazing, not only the photos but the whole “being” of them – straight out of a fantasy world. 🙂
I love moonflowers. They bloom at night which is when you can catch the most purple. They grow like weeds in patches and people hate them, but I love them. So glad you do too! 🏵️
I am so very very excited for you. But I’m even more excited for the rest of us who will be able to see the beauty that you see through the lens of your new camera. You continue to inspire me….
I am so lucky to have friends like you Rebecca. Hugs my friend <3 🏵️
Spectacular photos! <3
Merci beaucoup mon ami!
Really beautiful photos, Cindy 🙂
Thank you Irene & Happy Friday!
Cindy, it looks like you’re doing an outstanding job learning your new camera — best wishes for much success with it! I’ve seen moonflowers but had no idea they were used in sacred ceremonies. The ones I’ve seen are just kind of growing!
Yes, they just grow, with no care and no help, and if you leave them alone they will multiply which they have done and are growing all over The Holler! 🏵️
Beautiful photography!
Honored, thank you & cheers too!
Cindy these are breathtaking.
You just made me smile! Thank you for your kindness 🏵️
You’re welcome 🙂
All of them awesome, as always. I can’t tell a real difference between pics with the older camera verses your new one, but am sure it takes a more trained, experienced eye and photographer to tell the exact difference which you have. If you were wanting to sell or market your photos, enlarged and framed and advertised you would have a lot of customers, and make a handsome profit. 🙂
So considerate and kind of you Joyce, but then these words describe you. I appreciate the encouragement and the confidence. Hugs to you & happy Friday! <3
Hugs back to you. 🙂 Have a good weekend.
STUNNIING!!! You keep outdoing yourself!
Sphinx Moths…… echk. We had a Pandora Spinx Moth caterpillar in our yard. I looked it up to see what it would turn into. Yikes! Looks like the air force used its image to design stealth planes. Anyway, thanks for the tip that it is a night pollinator. There is no way I’m going out to the garden at night.
Although, if I had your beauteous night blooming flowers, I would probably venture out in a hazmat suit. LOL!
Cracking up! Scared of moths….. I know why, they might eat your dresses! Eeeeek! I had a sphinx moth and a ceonothus moth here, each as big as my hand. I took lots of photos! I am even used to black widows now, but I don’t like them, I got photos of a big one on a web in the guest room shower, and a couple nights ago I got photos of a really BIG scorpion, at least 5 inches. The Holler is Hellstrom Chronicle heaven (insect heaven).
LOL! (strained laughter) A moth as big as a hand, sounds like a job for a hardhat and safety goggles. A Black Widow in the guest room shower? Hmm, well that will cut back on visitors, or get rid of them altogether! 😀
Nope, laughing, people love The Holler and always say we should have a B & B, which there is no way I would ever do. We do bug reconnaissance before guests occupy the guest rooms though. I just read that 100 different species of bugs live in the “average” home, cluttered homes have more. I don’t like clutter, but homes with lots of windows and doors have more bugs. We have lots of windows and doors. Check out the article:
http://beta.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-bugs-in-homes-20160805-snap-story.html
Amazing! The bees look like they could fly right out of the photo.
I compared photos of bees taken with both cameras and the 10 got much more detail so it has lots of potential with lots of practice!
Absolutely lovely! Every one of them. ☺️
So kind and so appreciated! Cheers to you~ 🏵️
You too my friend. Just saw this. ❤️
<3 <3
Oh beautiful! I’m excited to see lots more photos with this new camera!
How lovely & how encouraging. I will aim to make that happen!!!
It must be a great camera, Cindy because you took some great photos. The detail is amazing.
Leslie
Yes much more detail, I am going to take it to the wild animal park and see what she can do! Thank you for the encouragement!
Can’t wait to see what you do next, Cindy.
Leslie
Amazing detail!
Is your new Sony camera a mirrorless one? The photographer at the archaeological camp I stayed at this summer had just purchased a mirrorless camera from Sony, and he was very happy with it.
No not mirrorless. I have to go with the ease of not changing lenses, both my cameras have built in zoom from 24 to 1200mm equivalent. This way I carry two cameras, one on each shoulder, each ready to adapt to every shooting condition. I lose the DSLR quality though, but gain not using a camera because the lenses are too much of a pain to lug around. Sony mirrorless with lenses are also very pricey especially when you factor in the lenses, but mirrorless cameras are incredible and I can see why your friend loved them.
Ah yes, I wondered how people find the money for all of the DSLR lenses. It always made more sense to me to have one camera with a wider zoom range…but I honestly know very little about cameras or photography. Do DSLRs typically produce better images than fixed-lens cameras?
I am no camera expert either. For me it comes down to ease of use and cost. I don’t want to be stuck behind a tripod or lug around super cumbersome lenses. The type of image people prefer is subjective, as it should be. I love DSLR and mirrorless images, but I am not a huge fan of hyper-artistic-realism that makes things look quite different than what they are. I don’t much like feathered water for instance, although I very much respect people who do. It is just up to individual preference.
Congratulations with your new camera. The pictures came out fantastic!
Thank you. I am still remembering your last shot, so truly beautiful! <3
Beautiful photos. But I think it’s more down to the photographer than the camera!
That is so lovely of you to say. Thank you! 🏵️
I’ve been wanting one, but undecided between it and the Canon 70D. Yours takes stunning photos!
I can’t advise you. My camera before the Sony’s was a Canon and I loved it. But I am now Sony loyal. Thankfully there are a lot of people who will do comparisons for you online to help you make your decision and it is a fun decision to make, so enjoy!
I found a good place online that rents equipment. I think I found my Spring fun project 🙂
Really, please post about it if it is legit. My daughter rents her formal wear, so why not!
It’s http://www.borrowlenses.com
Wow!!! Wonderful. Thank you~
Amazing macros – that datura is phenomenal. Of course you’d have a 30′ cereus – it must be heavenly when it blooms!
It is and it is odd looking the rest of the year, but The Holler is an odd place, you can tell by the people who choose to live here!!! 😉
What a treat for my eyes Cindy! It’s amazing how detailed the pictures are getting. The first two pictures…the shine in the bees eyes…you captured that! Amazing. Thank you!
Thank you for noticing. I need more practice, but the first shots were encouraging because they were picking up a lot more fine detail!
Breathtaking photos! Your pictures were beautiful before, but now… I can’t wait.
Awww, I love my blogging friends! <3 🏵️
Wow awesome photos! So crisp! Happy weekend wishes sweetie! Hugz Lisa and Lucy Goosey
Hugs back to you & Lucy! I know this is a difficult anniversary for you and my thoughts & prayers are with you 🏵️<3
Thank you sweetie! I’m working my day off tomorrow making extra money! I want to buy a new tv! I will be thinking of all the wonderful memories of my life with hubby!
I am so proud of you. You are a strong person. <3
Thank you so much! Have a super day on the Holler
<3 🌸
Delightful detailed macros,dear Cindy!Happy clicks my friend 🙂
Thank you for the thoughtful encouragement <3
Wonderful pictures. Like a mini story of nature.
She writes, paints and creates and the earth and her creatures is the result <3
Oooh, Cindy is out playing. Good things are promised. 🙂 –Curt
Tee hee! Ain’t it the truth! I love techno leaps! <3
🙂
Oh my!! My mind is blown away with the wonderful light filled detail … and your capacity to capture some amazing moments. I look forward to more shares Cindy 💕
It brings lots of joy sharing with lovely friends like you! <3
Nice! All of the flowers are stunning! Obviously a good camera choice!
Sony occasionally makes these leaps in technology and it is a treat when they do!
Lovely photographs!
Thanks Kendall and Happy Friday~
Welcome! You, too!
🌸🌸
WOW!
Love that word! <3
😀
Wonderful photos Cindy. Your new toy looks like a winner. Love all the bees, and the datura, and the cerius. Oh heck I guess I just love all of them. Looking forward to seeing some landscapes from the Sony. My dream camera is a Panasonic mirrorless – coming soon I hope.
Alison
Thanks my friend. There are so many options with panasonic and the mirrorless are awesome. Happy picking!
The photos of the night-blooming flowers are gorgeous!
They are so subtle, but at night, well they rule the dark!
Enjoy the new equipment…it is in good hands !
Thank you, much appreciated!
Looks like you’re off to a good start with your new toy. It’s always nice when others have fun too when you’re the one playing.
Sharing with such kind people who appreciate is just such an amazing gift. Bloggers are amazing people!
Sweet macros, Cindy! That camera is a keeper! 🙂
It is indeed! You know the feeling, after the first series of photos, when you look at them at go, “YES!!!” You know! It’s a keeper. 🏵️
Don’t you think it’s slightly demoralizing for the rest of us when you call these “practice photos”, Cindy?! 🙂
I hope not! I am not a professional photographer. It is just a hobby I picked up a few years after I retired, I think about 5 years ago now. I started blogging about the same time I started taking photos. What I don’t know, is much greater than what I do, and I am not arrogant, just amazed and happy with this awesome new hobby. My hubby was always the photographer. When we were in The Amazon, I was frustrated because I was seeing things he wasn’t photographing, so I asked to borrow his camera. He was the life-long photographer. He saw my photos, said they “special,” and gave me his camera, showing me how some of the functions worked. He left all future trip photography to me. His confidence more than anything encouraged me, and that is the extent of my expertise. So, grab a camera and click what draws your eye. Have fun and don’t compare yourself to anyone else. There is only one you! <3
I’m convinced you could take stellar photos with ANY camera on the market, missy!!!! And these are just more convincing truth that I am right. Just face it, you have an extraordinary photo taking mojo working for you!!! It is a gift, a talent and extraordinary ones at that!!!! Love, N 🙂 <3
You and I both know exactly where a gift comes from. I know. You know. So grateful and so humbled by it. Thank you my dear friend and have a blessed weekend~ <3
Indeed I do know where our gifts come from and you honor Him well with yours!!!❤️❤️❤️xoxoxo xoxoxo
<3 🌸
These are absolutely wonderful!
Creative people, and bloggers are creative people, are just the kindest, most supportive people that I know. Thank you Charles and be well my friend 🏵️
Your new camera takes magnificent pictures! Such awesome beauty you captured Cindy!
Hugs to you sweet friend and have a wonderful weekend! 🏵️ <3
You too Cindy! ❤
💐
Your new camera is so good, but I think the operator has a lot to do with the superb images including lots of patience. I have a smaller version of your cactus flower and it is flowering at the moment. Do you ever enter photographic competitions Cindy? your photos are certainly good enough
Grazie Pauline. I love your photos too! So the regard is mutual. I haven’t entered competitions. I do post on nat’l geo your shot but don’t enter their contest because they charge per photo which I think is unsportsmanlike. I will be sending you the OZ dates soon and am looking forward to actually meeting you!
I’m looking forward to March too. Have you seen my posts about the outback I am doing on my new blog?
No. I will go look. You are brave to have two blogs!
I’m just keeping the new one going now I’m no longer travelling around so much. I had a long break with no blogging. I meant to just have a couple of months, but a year rushed by….
Time does that doesn’t it. It speeds up on us. Heading over to your other blog now…..
Breathtaking! Regardless what cam, your eyes, the way you see things—it’s what brings the beauty in all these things. And we’re but privileged spectators.Enjoy your new cam, Cindy!
Such a kind comment and so very appreciated! Thank you & cheers too~
I’m happy to see new Sony and you just clicked purrfecty. ♡Ｕ・ｪ・Ｕ人(^･x･^=) ◎～♡
💐💐 ♡Ｕ・ｪ・Ｕ人(^･x･^=) ◎～♡ 💐
Wow beautiful pics… Loved them
Merci beaucoup mon ami! 🌸
Wonderful
Grazie mille! 🌸
I admit I love the last 2 images with the dark background as they really show the flower details, but the new Sony is really impressive with close-ups – those bee details really show up as very sharp.
Thank you Vicki. Yes, it definitely has increased capability and I am still learning what it can do!
ok you got me with the bees but the two other pictures that really drew me, were the two before the end one.. the Datura, would you send it to me please, I’d like to use it for one of my blogs.. beautiful…thank you for sharing your wonderful gift. And thank you hubby for giving you his camera.. special…
You are such a lovely friend <3 I will be happy to send you the photos and am honored you like them. Cheers to you & Happy Weekend 🌸
Superb photos, Cindy, and how wonderful to have two superb cameras to work with. The night flowering cactus looks exquisite. And I think I would like its fruit, the Peruvian apples.
Thank you Mandy and yes you would like the apple. It tastes like a shaved ice with a crunch texture and you eat it with a spoon. I wish you could beam over and we could share some! <3
Me too!
beautiful pictures. I have never used a sony camera before, but your pictures are pretty!
Thank you & I am very pleased you enjoyed them! 🌸
Wonderful shots with your new camera, but I know it takes a great photographer too to get those shots!
Very kind & most appreciated! 🌸
Superb shots Cindy but then again, when arent they? 😀
Awww, you are so nice!!! Muchas gracias 🌸
Not nice at all – terribly envious 🙁 😉
http://www.animatedimages.org/data/media/550/animated-hummingbird-image-0054.gif
😇 🙏
Wonderful
Thank you! 🌸
Oooooooo! Upgrade!! Looking forward to see how you do. So far, very well!
Thanks John, it’s a lot of fun! 🌸
The photos look great Cindy! Of course, they always do. 🙂 It would be nice to have a great camera to capture these details. And I’m pretty happy with the quality of my new LG cellphone.
Gracias. The technology is remarkable isn’t it and I love your captures!
Yes, and thank you Cindy.
🌸
That is an amazing camera. I see why you bought it.
It is such a leap forward for the RX10. Sony does this occasionally and it is wonderful to ride their wave!
Wonderful Photos Cindy- new camera worth every penny! The one that especially stood out for me was the datura. I have grown these and its perennial cousin brugmansia. They are truly stunning flowers full of magic and you have caught it in those splendid first moments of opening- beautiful!
Thank you. The Datura photo showed me what this camera can do and like you, I love Datura too. They are so unusual, so spontaneous in growth, and so indestructible. They are a metaphor for oddity and survival.
Your new camera and you do great work! Love the details. Cheers for the weekend!
Back 2UX2! 🌸
Beautiful! Congratulations on your new camera! I just got a Sony also, but it’s an old one that I got on sale. So far I’m satisfied with the results.
I have never had a Sony camera that I didn’t love, so congrats! 🌸
beautiful camera
endorsement 🙂
Merci beaucoup mon ami! 🌸
einfach toll !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(*L*)just great !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (* L *)
Vielen Dank, lieber Freund und gut sein! <3
sehr gerne!!!!!!!!!!!
Amazing, Cindy! Enjoy it! We will as well.
So nice of you & cheers too! 🌸
Wow Cindy, these are incredibly brilliant! The detail is exquisite. You must be thrilled 💚
Thank you Tina. Still just learning the capabilities, but tomorrow I should give it a good workout if the sun stays up!
Shall I have a word with Father Sun for you? 🙂 ❤
Yes please, thank you, and hugs too, dear Tina. <3
Done! Hope he obliged, my friend. Hugs ❤
http://www.animatedimages.org/data/media/466/animated-thank-you-image-0161.gif
The brilliance of those blooms, the depth of color, the photography seems to radiant true to life depictions. Awesome and incredible. You are most fantastic photographer, it’s a gift,an art, and great creative ability. Thank you so much for sharing all of your art photographer. 🙂
Oh gosh, so humbled by you.
Photos prove that we are all connected to beauty that is so much bigger than ourselves, and that we all are an intrinsic part of this beauty.
Stunning pics, Cuz. The new camera really likes you! : )
Laughing…. it does sweet thing, and I really like you cuz~
Pawsome! That new camera is amazing, Cindy, but I think the woman behind it does make it amazing 🙂 Pawkisses for a wonderful day 🙂 <3
Thank you. So very kind of you & much appreciated too! 🌸
What detailed pictures. That is one amazing camera. Wow, I can imagine even more fun to take pictures, and you have so many motives around you. Your pictures have always been super, now they are super dooper 🙂
Thanks much! Technological advances are so much fun to experiment with! Happy Sunday 🌸
Liebe Cindy jetzt ist es schon 4 Monate und 2 Tage her wo Gislinde nicht mehr bei mit ist ,am Freitag kam der Grabstein und alles andere führt auch zum guten Ende jetzt kann ich wenigsten Nacht einiger maßen gut durchschlafen es war eine anstrengende Woche darum kam ich nicht zum schreiben sei ganz lieb gegrüßt Klaus in Freundschaft
Es tut mir so leid. Eine sehr schwierige Zeit für dich. Ich bin froh, dass Sie endlich einen verdienten Schlaf haben. Bitte nehmen Sie mein tiefstes Mitgefühl und meine Freundschaft an. Gedanken und Gebete fliegen über das Meer ……. <3
Interesting post Cindy – always such sharp images and well composed
Thank you Diana and Happy Sunday my friend 🌸
The images from both cameras are gorgeous and wonderfully detailed. Having the same eye and mind behind the camera in both cases is surely a help.
Photography is interesting because it helps us see the world through other people’s eyes~
Breathtaking shots, Cindy. I almost missed this one, glad I clicked you gravatar. 🙂 Love the flower images, the Night Blooming Cereus flower was beautifully captured, and the clarity is incredible. 🙂
I was just thinking about how I love photography because it allows us to see the world through other’s eyes which is why I said what I did about Raj’s suggestions about your photos. I love seeing the way you see the world through your photographs Amy.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Cindy. I remember you liked my years old posts and photos which were taken with my cheap pocket camera and no straightening and cropping. 🙂 I appreciate your support, it means so much to me. <3
Good. Because it’s true. The expense of the camera, all the blather about technique, all that really matters to me is showing me what you see, and you have always done this very well.
Boy, you got right to work with that camera. I love the bees. They’re hard to capture as they never sit still. They earn their industrious reputation, don’t they? That moonflower! What an incredible flower.
Yes, the bees. well, they are difficult, aren’t they? Who knew? Not me. I set my first task as photo taker with capturing them. To say it takes patience is a ridiculous understatement. I learned you have to watch closely and pick a lethargic bee. Laughing….but it’s true.
Yes, sony showed her stuff with the moonflower and I was super grateful. I love the camera showing me all the things I cannot see.
That’s a great way to put it, Cindy, “All the things we can’t see.” I’ve followed bees around my garden many a time. I think finding them on sunflowers is the best, as they have more things to collect at one time. I also learned that the buzzing happens immediately before and after they light. Somehow I never realized that. Another fun thing that happens behind a camera. Hurray for your Sony!
Oh, I agree with everything you say, especially the sunflower! I hadn’t thought of it, but it is so true. Look for big flowers, if you want to capture bees! Photography allows one to be in the moment, as a matter of fact it most directly requires it, which is why it is so Zen for many of us. Hugs to you~ <3
Hugs to you, too, Cindy. It’s such a pleasure to follow along.
Oh my goodness, Cindy! Even more fabulous than any before this!
I like bees and have some saved pictures of them.
The moonflowers are amazing and thanks for the story of how they are pollinated at night by moths. The macros are amazing and hope someday to hear you are famous and doing cards or magazines, but my favorites would be from “in the Holler!” xo 💖
I feel so released from the wish to be anything. Ambition has gone from me, which is so good. Now I can be like the kid I always was, and do what I always loved to do: Birds. Nature. Running around, watching it all.
In my life, I did what I wanted as a clinical social worker.
The only fame I want now is friends like you, and that is true. Be well sweet Robin.
The flowers look exotic.☺You’ve done a great job !
I am so lucky to meet people like you.
Oh boy, oh boy! You already knock it out of the park, Cindy. I’m fastening my seatbelt cause I can only imagine where your new camera will take us. Such impeccable detail. WOW!
It’s just a question of me keeping up with the camera! Thank you so much for such incredibly kind and motivating words Ruth <3
Outstanding collection! Awed by the skills you possess! Cheers!
Honored and humbled my friend. Thank you!
I knew it. I just knew it. It’s not the camera, it’s you! These are absolutely gorgeous as always! 😀
You are a very sweet friend and I am so lucky you are my friend Linda <3
Aw, shucks! Right back at ya! 😀 <3
Lookin’ good! RH
It’s a big brute of a camera too……I like it’s size, not too big.
I feel like I could reach out and touch the bees! Your camera is sharp and you have an amazing eye!
So encouraging and so kind. It does catch the details, but it is a bit tricky, and requires me to practice as I am still learning how it works. Hugs to you <3
Absolutely great professional photographs Cindy, your new Camera really brings out the color and detail of your subject, both of which I don’t think could be achieved without your artistic eye for detail.
Beautiful post.
Bloggers are the best friends in the world and they come from all over the world! I am so blessed to be part of this amazing community. Thank you so much!
Wow! The new camera makes those bees look like airplanes. The detail you got. Very inspiring. I’m so happy I got to drop by and catch up. I feel like I travel when I see your photos.
It is always a joy to hear from you and your fairy gown from Resa looks so incredibly perfect for you and so beautiful!
She is amazing! I love the dress. I feel lucky if I inspired her in any way at all.
You and Resa are two examples of why the blogging community is so remarkable. Each from different parts of the world, each with so much talent and creativity, and kindness too. I am so lucky to be part of this and believe me I know it! I love your dress. I love you and Resa~ <3
Aww, you are the sweetest. I feel lucky to be part of this community, too.
Cindy, just when we thought you couldn’t amaze us more than you usually do, you up your game! What many of us are waiting to hear is when do your photography books roll out? xx
One of the better things about my getting older is losing ambition and being content with with where I am. Appreciation from people like you, who I admire is all the recognition I want. <3
For many years, all too many, for some, the ambition was just to survive. However, I do understand and appreciate what you say. Someday, I shall get the chance to tell you just how much your encouragement has meant… When are you coming back? <3
Soon I hope. We have a definite rendezvous on the books when I do! <3
Looking forward to it my friend! <3
Beauty and the bees…love it! Have fun with that new camera and exploring.
Thank you for the kind encouragement & cheers to you!
Absolutely stunning Cindy!! the fuzz, the wings of those bees– so beautiful and something we could never see with our eyes alone! You are an artist. Congrats on your new camera!! I know you’ll make good use of it! xox
Have a blessed Thanksgiving Rhonda and thank you for being so very kind <3
Truly a great camera but in the hands of an expert produces such quality images. I’ve been looking at a new camera and tried a friends too and it does take quite a time to get to know a new camera these days! I got bewildered by the 4 k mode.
Yes, I tend to google one function at a time, and take it slowly, learning one thing at a time. My senior cerebellum seems to appreciate this approach!!
That’s a good idea. I was stuck trying to use a friends camera that was already on some settings for close ups for birds and I was really confused! Also on Spanish but we finally reset it!
That is like my travel computer that I bought in Germany. It does help me practice my German though!
Well done! 🙂
Merci beaucoup mon ami~
I hope you enjoy your new camera to the fullest. These are all lovely! From your blogger friend and neighbor to the north, Pam 😊.
Hugs to you Pam & cheers & thank you too! <3
Happy learning-curve. -Oscar
<3
Congratulations on your new camera… The pictures are awesome. Specially the bees, they look outstanding.
Ps. I never knew the Brahmkamal is known as Cereus Flower and that it’s apples can be eaten? Wow.. When I go back to my city I will surely visit that cactus again.
Thank you. They must be in the same family of night blooming cacti. I read there is a 100 foot tall cereus in India. Check out: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night-blooming_cereus
Wow.. Thanks for the link Cindy 🙂
<3 <3
Have fun with your new camera these photos are amazing. 🐝
You are a most appreciated & very sweet friend Charlotte!
Congratulations on your new camera, Cindy. Your photos look fabulous, the macros are stunning! Have fun and enjoy learning more, photography is a great adventure. Like Rebecca Budd said when we met; it’s like going down a rabbit hole! 🙂
Best regards from the Cotswolds,
The Fab Four of Cley xox
Thank you! You are in the beautiful Cotswolds. I wonder if I told you I spent a summer there when I finished graduate school. We stayed in a 450 year old gardener’s cottage with massive overgrown bushes of ancient roses that I filled the cottage with. It had a Dutch door painted blue and a private chapel on the estate.
nice shots
Grazie!
Cindy, I didn’t think that your photos could get any more fabulous, but they have! That first photo was incredible!!! Cheers to your new camera and your talent!
Awww, you are very sweet! Thank you for encouraging and motivating me all the past years and I so look forward to sharing in your adventures in 2018! <3
Likewise, my friend! We leave for our first adventure of the New Year on Tuesday! 😀
Can’t wait to read all about it! Safe travels <3