March Featured Photo

My featured photo this month is an old, white barn that sits alongside the highway about 30 miles south of where I live.  I remember seeing it when I passed through on vacation many years ago, before I lived here.  It's image is forever in my mind; not for its grandeur or breathtaking beauty, but as a simple and peaceful scene.  

I've photographed this barn many times, but today the lighting was beautiful and the snow capped peak behind it made this shot almost perfect for me.  The old barn had definitely seen better days, and the back side of it is breaking down.  Before long it will be gone - a historic treasure lost to time and the elements.  I would love to find out who owns it so I can learn its history before it's gone.

UPDATE 3/14/16: One week later I drove down this same road, and the barn was GONE!  Torn down to a pile of rubble. The first time I had seen this barn was in 1978, driving up from Idaho on my way to my new home in Montana. Every time I pass it, it makes me smile. Don't ask me why because I truly don't know. Most likely because of the perfect location it sat in, with the beautiful Bitterroot Mountains towering in the background. The small pasture it perched in seems so terribly empty now. This spot now makes me feel somewhat sad... it was like losing an old friend.  

New Toy!

The new 150-600mm lens arrived last Friday, and it was all I could do to wait until today to be able to get out and give it a try!  But the wait was well worth it because not only did I have the entire day to "play", but the weather could not have been better.  Sunny and mid 40s and a perfect day for a road trip.  I headed down to Lee Metcalf Wildlife Refuge to try this baby out on some waterfowl.  Most of the birds at the refuge migrate south for the winter but there are always a reliable few that tough out the cold weather and ice, and those were the ones I was after for my lens' maiden voyage.  I was not disappointed.

Nine swans wintered over this year, more than ever before and even though they stay toward the middle of the open water, my lens pulled them in close enough for some nice photos.  Mallards galore, Gadwals, Teals, a few Hooded Mergansers and a nice number of Northern Pintails.  

I spent a few hours taking photos and just watching the birds, and enjoying the warmer weather and sunshine. But as often happens here in Montana, the afternoons can be breezy, and true to nature, the warm temps were overshadowed by a cold breeze and I packed up my gear.  

I cannot wait until the migrants return - bring on those tiny little Marsh Wrens and see what kind of shots I can get.  As I sat in my truck viewing photos on the LED screen, I was not only very pleased but ecstatic with the results of this lens.  Was it worth the price?  Oh yeah!!

From top to bottom:  Northern Pintails, Hooded Merganser,  Swans (sorry, can't tell if they are Trumpeter or Tundra, we have both here), Northern Pintail, Bald Eagle.

New Addition

When I purchased my digital SLR six years ago, I opted for an 18-135 zoom lens, and a 75-300 zoom; figuring that at the time these would be sufficient for general shooting and learning just what this camera would do.  And it did - until I decided that I needed something more for shooting birds and other wildlife.  

Between my photo note cards and selling photos I've shot at dog and horse events, I squirreled away every dime to get just the lens I wanted and today I ordered a Sigma 100-600 zoom lens from Adorama Camera in New York City.  Ok, so the Sigma wasn't exactly the lens I wanted - what I really wanted was a Canon professional 100-600 zoom, but that was just a little out of my budget, costing almost twice as much as my (used) SUV...  But Sigma has been around the photography world for quite a long time, and this particular lens had great revues.  I've also purchased a couple of smaller lenses from Adorama and have received not only good quality products, but great customer service. 

I held my breath as I clicked on the "check out" button on Adorama's website - that was a lot of money to drop down all at once, but it's what I've wanted and what I've been saving for, so - click away!   I should have it within the week and even though it's the dead of winter, there just may be a day long road trip in my very near future to try this baby out!

February Featured Photo

This month's featured photo is "Strike", a handsome 16 hand black Percheron I had the pleasure to work with at a guest ranch last summer. Horses have such beautiful liquid eyes, and I found myself taking many close-up photos of him, along with his half brother "Lightning", and a pair of Percheron/Fjord crosses named "Pete" and "Repete" (not a misspelling, he's a full brother to Pete and born one year to the day later).  

Once I get photos edited, I usually take the ones that really need to be deleted (for any number of reasons), and play with the filters on Photoshop.  As I'd stated in an earlier post, this almost always gives me something so off the wall that I really like it, as was the case here. I used the "stylize" link from the drop down menu, and then "solarize".  I love the neon blue highlights, along with the fact that his eye stayed its original soft brown, so that he still looks like a horse and not an alien zombie.  

Don't delete "bad" photos until you've tried this.  Oh, and just one warning - it's addicting! 

Life Is Like A Camera

                                                             

Not sure who this is credited to, 
but it pretty much says it all!

2016 Photo Challenge

The 2016 Photo Challenge begins in ONE week!  Are you ready?  All challenges will be posted on the Montana Magic Photo Challenge page on Face Book.  One new challenge will be posted each week, usually on Saturday (although that may vary slightly, depending on my schedule).  This challenge is open to anyone, regardless of photographic skills or abilities.  You do not have to have a fancy camera or lenses to participate - any camera (including those on cell phones), will do. There are some rules however, please read on:  

This is open to anyone interested in taking photos, whether you’re a beginner or have been taking photos for a long time. Each week I will post a challenge subject to shoot for the next seven days. 

You are not required to post every week – this is not a contest and there are not prizes; it’s just something fun for anyone who wants to stretch their creativity. Your photos will not be used for any purpose other than this page. If you know of anyone who might enjoy participating, please feel free to invite them, and please “like” and share. Most of all , be creative – be wacky – be off the wall – and HAVE FUN!

•You must be the photographer of any photo(s) you post
•Post only ONE photo per person per challenge (unless otherwise stated in the challenge)
•Photos must not be larger than 600x800
•Try to take new photos for each challenge, instead of posting old photos you’ve already taken. Remember – this is to stretch your creativity!
•You may post challenge photos at any time but if you are posting late, please tell us which challenge your photo is for.
•A few challenges will have specific rules, but other than that you may interpret the challenges any way you like.
•No manufactured photos. Some creative or fun manipulation is fine, but you must actually take the photos with a camera (including cell phones), for this challenge.
•KEEP IT G-RATED! I cannot stress this enough. There may be young people participating; anything deemed inappropriate will be deleted.
•POSITIVE FEEDBACK ONLY! If you don’t like it – don’t post comments. Negative or rude comments will be deleted. Anyone who continually posts negative feedback will be blocked from the page.
•This is not a debate page. if you must "argue" about something via your posts, please do so on your own pages. Offensive posts will be deleted.

Get your cameras ready and your creativity warmed up! 

December Featured Photo

The featured photo pictured here is one I took by accident.  While attempting to photograph a newborn calf in a nearby pasture, and all of a sudden there was a face right in front of me.  I had been "photo bombed" by a cow!  The second she heard the shutter however, she was off like a rocket, heading to the far side of the pasture.  

Once I got the photos for that day on the computer I almost deleted this one, but decided to play around with it first, just to see what would happen. Sometimes I turn them into black & white photos and sometimes I push the limits of what the computer can do with them. Adobe Photo Shop has all sorts of filters, some that replicate what you can - or used to - do in a darkroom (such as solarizing, or high contrast), and others that are just fun and funky. This one ended up with "Glowing Edges", and I added some red for color.  As it turned out, this became one of my favorite shots.  It seems that quite a few of my favorite photos are ones that were almost deleted.