Emerald Boa

Emerald Boa

ATLA12D-143

March 18, 2012

Yes, during Aquarium Week, this is a land critter.  I debated posting him to finish off the week, but he was at the Georgia Aquarium, so technically he fits the theme, and emerald boas are such pretty animals that who can resist taking a picture and posting it?  So for today we have a non-aquatic aquarium dweller, a beautiful snake that would love to give you a hug.  Enjoy.
Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 mm f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: 1/40 @ f/3.2  ISO 640

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

Sarah's Photography

Sarah's Photography

ATLA12D-XXX

March 18, 2012

Today is a special posting.  It has been six months since a wonderful young lady decided to take a chance on a nerdy graduate student who lived an hour plus away and go to dinner with him.  In that seemingly short time, we've shared a good number of adventures together, and being engaged are looking at the prospect of many more to come.  She is endlessly curious, inquisitive, delighted at experiencing new things, going new places, enriching her (and anyone with her) life.  She is a wondrous person, generous, sharp ... too many adjectives to fit on this page.  At the aquarium she was a photography fiend, snapping at everything that caught her creative eye, and produced the wonderful images that you see here today, along with many more.  I love her dearly, and every day consider myself the luckiest man alive.  Enjoy.


 

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 mm f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: var.  ISO 640

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

A Whale of a Fish

A Whale of a Fish

ATLA12D-96_pan

March 18, 2012

The grandest fish of them all.  The whale shark is one of the largest fish in the ocean, quite possibly the biggest, and the Georgia Aquarium, to my knowledge, is the only place in the world where these gentle giants are found in captivity.  They can grow up to 45', and weigh in at several (up to 20) tons.  That being said, they are gentle giants; eating plankton rather that most of their sharky cousins who devour license plates, seals, and surfers.  And there are reports of divers holding onto the dorsal or pectoral fins of these guys and just floating along with them through the ocean, without a care in the world.  At the aquarium, these sharks seemed more like playful puppies, following the small dinghies that were pumping out the plankton during mealtime.  Apparently they also knew exactly which boat 'belonged' to them, which makes me think these sharks are pretty smart.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 mm f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: 1/30 @ f/2.8   ISO 640

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

Dangling Tentacles

Dangling Tentacles

ATLA12D-27

March 18, 2012

Aquarium Week continues, with this lovely jellyfish again from the Georgia Aquarium.  They float so serenely, just cruising up and down in the tank or the ocean, yet they are filled with powerful toxic punches.  I liked seeing the little flecks in the water, probably food for the hungry jelly.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 mm f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: 1/40 @ f/3.2   ISO 640

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

King of the Aquatic Jungle

King of the Aquatic Jungle

ATLA12D-212

March 18, 2012

I do like themed weeks; it gives some structure to the week, helps introduce topics, and allows me to sort through the 9000+ images held here.  So, with a look back to my recent visit to the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta with my fiancée Sarah, this is Aquarium Week 2012!  This lionfish was strutting his stuff across the tank (obviously, all of this week's images will be of captive animals.  Please keep that in mind, I didn't dive to get these images... yet), and apparently is quite the invasive species in the southeastern United States.  Despite finding him in a tank, they are quite incredible creatures to watch; I don't think I've seen so many fins on an fish.  And knowing that each of the spines on his dorsal fin and anal fins is basically a hypodermic needle with a powerful neurotoxin makes him seem a bit less cuddly.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 50 mm f/1.4

Focal length:  50 mm

Exposure: 1/60 @ f/4   ISO 640

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

Taste of Spring

Taste of Spring

NCAR10D-172

March 27, 2010

With yesterday's image marking the final bit of winter here at Wandering Lens, today we usher spring in full force!  The blossoms are ripe among the trees all through North Carolina, fragrant and wonderful.  It is a delight to have warm(er) weather once more, and sunlight sticking around till the evening hours.  Welcome spring, and enjoy on this Friday.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 80-200 mm f/2.8

Focal length:  200 mm

Exposure: 1/4000 @ f/2.8   ISO 100

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.

Frozen Cascade

Frozen Cascade

COLO09D-132

December 31, 2009

Though this was a very mild winter by any standards (even the lax ones of North Carolina), this week winter officially ended, and we heralded in spring post-equinox.  So, to send winter off for another term, this image commemorates some really cold weather.  In Colorado, at the end of 2009 we were hiking along the Horsetooth Falls trail, and found the eponymous waterfall there, but it was frozen over for the season.  It was graceful and beautiful, suspended animation waiting for the spring thaw to let the water carry on its tumultuous course, splashing down to the canyon below.  And now, spring has come.  Enjoy.

Technical notes:

Camera: Nikon D80

Lens: Nikon 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6

Focal length:  31 mm

Exposure: 1/400 @ f/8   ISO 400

Post-processing: Minor tone adjusted with PS 4 and LR 1.4.