The colors of fall are beginning to show in New England and are especially brilliant when the rain is falling. It has been a long time since we had a good rain and it looks like we are in for a few days of soaking. Even I was getting a bit bored with the cloudless beautiful weather. I'll have to remember my desire for variety when I next visit San Diego. This is a five-shot panorama taken under umbrella at Dunn State Park in Gardner, Massachusetts. Nikon D610, 1/30 second at f/13, ISO 100, 17mm (17-300mm) - 8365
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Fall always comes early to the swamps and bogs of New England. In spring, this is a bustling waterway with clear waters and birds a plenty. In fall, it is a sedentary swill of algae with a solitary frog dashing to find cover before winter and an occasional duck taking a drink before heading yet further south. Otherwise, it is quietly preparing for the grip of winter to come. Nikon D610, 1/30 second at f/13, ISO 100, 17mm (17-300mm) - 8350
This is what golf in the clouds would be like. The Gardner Municipal Golf Course is an elevation of about 300 meters and where other low lands farther east were in sun, here we were in the clouds, damp and cold, but somehow beautiful none the less. I wasn't lucky enough to be playing, but would have enjoyed it very much. That would have been an entirely different Monday morning. Nikon D610, 1/45 second at f/5.6, ISO 10036mm (28-300mm) - 8319
Of course I had to post the picture of the full eclipse tonight. It was spectacular. When the eclipse began, the moon was as white as always, but as the earth shaded the sun and the shadow fell upon the moon, that moon turned red. I learned that it is because the light from the sun bends around the edges of the earth like a sunrise, but around the entire perimeter of the earth and casts a red orange glow onto the moon. The coincidence of this alignment boggles my mind. Nikon D610, 2 seconds at f/5.6, ISO 100, 300mm (28-300mm) - 8315
Cobweb is an interesting word. In Old English, coppe meant spider, shortened to cob, Thus Cobweb. It was not my eye that caught this odd scene, but I did frame the shot. You would think just 24 hours before a super full moon, this is obviously a cob web shielding the the light of the moon? Not really. At 300mm with the focus on the web, the background light is nothing more than a mere street light. I love photography! 1/10 second at f/5.6, ISO 800, 300mm (28-300mm) - 7920
Spend a little time with a ten year old and all your cares seem to drift away as if meaningless. Spend a few minutes with this little girl (Granddaughter Katie Elizabeth Jones) and you can't help but walk away feeling almost as care-free. Truth be told, happiness is contagious and changes you whether you like it or not. I suppose the opposite is true but lucky me, I get to count my blessings and enjoy this! Nikon D610, 1/3000 second at f/4.0, ISO 100, 28mm (28-300mm) - 7900
It was a lovely morning at Sterling Greenery Community Park and were it not for the droppings of the migrating geese, the walk around the park would have been wonderful. Side stepping their leave-behinds takes the tranquility out of it, but I guess I needn't have shared that with you. You would have never known. Please, forget I said anything. Nikon D610, 1/125 second at f/6.7, ISO 100, 17mm (17-35mm) - 7847
You may have noticed that many of my pictures are of water, green trees and blue skies. I guess subconsciously, I am preparing for winter when the scenes will be grey skies, frozen water and lifeless trees. I remember vividly last winter my longing for moving water because none was to be found. I am filling my tank and still I know, it will not be enough to last the winter. Nikon D610, 1/125 second at f/11, ISO 100, 17mm (17-35mm) - 7832
Getting ready! This weekend, we will not only witness a super moon, but a lunar eclipse as well. I am finding my spot which will not be my yard which provides only ten minutes of unobstructed viewing. For those interested and on the east cost of the United States and most of South America and Europe, on Sunday night, the moon will rise at 6:28 pm, the sun will set 8 minutes later, the earth will begin blocking the sun and shadowing the moon at 8:11 pm and fully shadow the moon at 10:47 pm. Coincidentally, the moon will be at its fullest at 10:50 pm. All times Easter Daylight Time. Nikon D610, 1/350 second at f/2.8, ISO 400, 105mm - 7779
There is very little information about this body of water. This picture was taken from Mine Hill Road facing east. It is Wachusett Lake Reservoir and lies at the foot of Wachusett Mountain at about 890 feet above sea level. It sits in both Westminster and Princeton but it is owned by the City of Fitchburg as is the surrounding bog area. It is part of the Fitchburgh fresh water supply. I could find no development around the lake nor access to the shore line. Nikon D610, 1/250 second at f/16, ISO 71, 17mm (17-35mm) - 7619
I love how my wife has bought into my daily project of taking photographs. Now, even she looks at the light differently and often inspires me to try and capture what she sees with her minds eye. I often agree and this is an example. It was mere happenstance that the sun fell through the trees and into line with this glass butterfly which decorates a hanger on a deck post. The sun moves so quickly that I had only a minute to get the shot. 1/45 second at f/5.6, ISO 400, 230mm (28-300mm) - 7603
A great place for a beautiful evening walk along the shores of the reservoir. The sun is setting behind us coloring the clouds as it does when it falls below the horizon. Not bad for the last half of September in New England, not bad at all. Nikon D610, 1/1000 second at f/3.8, ISO 100, 34mm (28-300mm) - 7457
Even when back-lit, the White Birch stands out in a crowd of young maples and oaks, but without their protection, this birch would have surely fallen years ago. No wonder it is the State Tree of New Hampshire, it is truly beautiful. To think the Native Americans used the inner bark to eat in harsh times. The trees can be tapped like a maple and the sap is said to be the sweetest of all. Nikon D610, 1/30 second at f/3.5, ISO 100, 28mm (28-300mm) - 7442
OK, granted we need more rain, but we have had one of the most beautiful Septembers I can remember. You can see more yellows in the trees these days and the lilies are showing their age. This is South Meadow Pond in Clinton, Massachusetts, not far from the Wachusett Reservoir. Your canoes and kayaks are welcome here. You can hear kids playing in the distance and a canoe is just about to be launched. A wonderful spot. Nikon D610, 1/125 seconds at f/11, ISO 71, 28mm (28-300mm) - 7373
This was an exercise. First, I wanted to photograph in my studio. Second, I wanted the object to float. Third, I wanted to develop the photograph in Photoshop on my MAC which I have never used for photo-editing since I bought it in 2008. It was slow and painful. This is a picture of one of the most useless technology purchases I have ever made. I am embarrassed. What were they thinking when they created Google Glass. Hell, what was I thinking. Nikon D610, 1/125 second at f/3.0, ISO 100, 105mm with Flash & Strobes - 7328
Could it be that billions of years ago, the water on red planet looked like this? Water, it is very pleasant to look at in all its grace yet at the same time full of action. It is the contrasting force to stay connected with that of gravity. Gravity always wins, but watching the battle dance is spellbinding. I never tire of it. Nikon D610, 1/125 second at f/38, ISO 100, 105mm - 7320
It seemed a fitting metaphor for where our country is right now. A definite chance of storms. I find it very frustrating that the republican clown show is getting more press and air time than the 12 million people forced from their homes (more than half the population) and the 4 million refugees trying desperately to escape Syria and find safety in another land. I can't imagine. I know there is an ocean between us, but it seems to me that we should be doing more. We should be doing something. Nikon D610, 1/60 second at f.27, ISO 100, 40mm (28-300mm) - 7285
From my limited experience, photographing children is little more than giving them something fun to do. Ask them to make a face contrary to their experience and you can get the best faces. That's what we have here. Braylon, four years old, is having the time of his life in a tub with suds far higher than his head. Look scared, I said. Click! iPhone 6 Plus, 1/15 second at f/2.2, ISO 100, 4.15mm - 2619
If I am going to go to a football game, let me watch from the field and not in the stands. NFL or Wachusett vs. Tantasqua, it's all football to me. The great thing about the game is the team, how they work together towards a common goal. And seeing the respect for others and cooperation to achieve the mission. Great life lessons. My grandson (73) helped make this tackle. Nikon D610, 1/1500 second at f/6.7, ISO 400, 300mm (28-300mm) - 7196
Sometimes a picture is as powerful as a song. Today, above all other days, it seems fitting to listen to the music of nature, shed a tear or two and think about how life could be and should be and would be if only love were the primary directive. I hugged a couple of people today, longer than usual. I imagine that I wasn't alone... by a long shot. Nikon D610, 1/500 Second at F/22, ISO 100, 17mm (17-35mm) -6973
This is the view from a cemetery not far from home. I have always thought it important to permanently mark the site of those who leave us but I never understood bestowing upon the dead hilltop vista's with breathtaking panorama's. Heaven is said to be a vision so beautiful, we cannot imagine, so why do we not have faith in that and save these hilltop visions for the living? Nikon D610, 1/60 second at f/16, ISO 100, 35mm (17-35mm) - 6878
Fall is about to hit us with a vengeance and I thought I would use this shot as a point of reference. This is a panorama of five images and it shows the beginning of color changes. We have had very little rain and it has been unseasonably hot, so we shall see what that brings us. This is taken just north of the Gardner Correctional Facility in a wildlife refuge. Click on this image for a full screen image. Nikon D610, 1/180 at f/19, ISO 100, 56mm (28-300mm) with Teleconverter 5-shot Panorama - 6854
Even when I remove all the color, this flower has grace and elegance. Nature is like that, full of beauty in all different shapes, sizes and designs. Somehow being color blind just brings a different perspective. It is not at all unpleasant. On the contrary, it is somehow peaceful, almost dreamy. Nikon D610, 1/125 second at f/11, ISO 100, 400mm (28-300mm) teleconverter - 6710
This is Topaz, one of the dozens of frogs we have in our pond. His coloring is very different than all the other frogs that call our pond home. I have not played with the color, this is how he looks. I did play with my new Tamron teleconverter today which turns my 300mm into a 600mm lens. Boy, I thought I shook before.... But it will be great fun for not a lot of money. Nikon D610, /60 second at f/11, ISO 100, 460mm (28-300mm) - 6678
Looking East-Northeast on a crystal clear night in September, Saturn is about to rise, but before it does, if I am reading my star gazing App correctly we are looking at Perseus, the First Hero in Greek Mythology. You see, Perseus beheaded Medusa. He would one day wed Andromeda, daughter of Cassiopeia (who you can clearly see above Perseus. All that said, it was a beautiful clear evening in New England. Nikon D610, 30 seconds at f/2.8, ISO 71, 17mm (17-35mm) - 6660
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I am Robert McKay Jones, a photographer from Sterling, Massachusetts and North Fort Myers, FL. I take photographs almost every day. I post my favorites here. |