Spammerfied!

Two major events have occurred for this blog in the past few days:

1. This blog received it's 3,000th visitor on Jul 26 at 10:12:18 pm
2. This blog was classified as a spam site!

Yes, Google officially prevented me from posting anything to my blog, as I was though to be a "link spammer" and my blog was classified as spam. I quickly submitted a request for revision, and just got notified today that my blog was "fair dinkum" and that I am now allowed to post again.

Well, now that I'm able to post, I'll assemble a few statistics about this blog's visitors for the past few months. You're welcome to submit you favourite photos for inclusion in the upcoming best bits as well, I'll officially launch the "survey" soon.

That's all for now,

David

The Sunflower that's really a sunflower [Close-up of a Sunflower]

Close-up of a Sunflower

Sunflower Close-up

Since I posted the photo of a pumpkin flower under the title of "The Sunflower that's not a sunflower", I've had people ask whether I have any real sunflower photos. So I had a look through my archives and found this photo. I took this shot a few years ago, when I had just got a new 4.2MP digital camera (the Kodak C330). The level of detail is amazing - try viewing this photo full-size and you can even see the fine hairs on the leafy part. This would definitely do well as a desktop background.

This photo really seems to draw you into it with a sense of depth and perspective, even though it has a relatively "flat" subject. The circular center section with the stamen in it seems to bulge out, while the petals radiating from the center appear to bend inwards. The eye is particularly drawn to the center section, but this image has to be viewed as a whole to be fully appreciated.

An interesting thing to note is the fact that this photo does not actually portray the whole of the flower. The edge of the petals are cut of by the framing of the photo. This is another important photographic technique which is used often and does not, as one might think, detract from the photo's beauty.

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
The Sunflower that's not a sunflower (Pumpkin Flower)
The Modest Blossom (Violet flower)
Balloon vine flower with water droplets
Balloon vine Flower

Cumulonimbus Thunder-storm Cloud at Sunset

Huge Cumulonimbus Thunder-head and Storm Front at Sunset

Storm Clouds at Sunset

I've been browsing through my old photos lately, and this is one of the shots that turned up. This photo depicts a cumulonimbus cloud heading a storm front, with the main thunder-head rendered in a pinkish hue due to the late evening sun reflecting off it. The storm clouds themselves are a threatening deep blue, and the black silhouette formed by the treeline and rooftops at the bottom of the image only serves to intensify the general atmosphere of foreboding. This photo, I think, truly imparts a sense of awe at the great power of creation.

Moving on to a lighter note, this photo again uses a rough approach to the "rule of thirds". The silhouette forms the lower one-third of the image, the blue clouds another third, and the pink "anvil" of the cumulonimbus cloud rises toward the top of the frame.
The focus seems to be divided between two areas of this picture - the pink thunder-head is the primary subject, and the blue clouds below it form the secondary subject.
The main "breaking-up" devices in this picture are the two thin aerials rising toward the center of the photo - they direct the eye again from the lower section of the picture back up to the top again.

But don't let the composition of this photo distract you from enjoying it's awe-inspiring effect. Just remember, the interpretation of art is always up to the viewer: Take this picture, think whatever you like about it, just make sure you have fun!

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
The Glory of the Morning (Sun breaking over Vine Stem)

Green is God's Favourite Colour [Green Weeds]

Green Weeds contrast in Shade and Sunlight

Green Weeds

"Oh no!", I hear you say. "Not another contrast picture!" Yes, this is yet again a photo which has two contrasting sections of colour. I found this photo when I was walking around the yard, everything is so lush and beautiful right now after the recent rain - just the right time to get a close-up of what seems to be the Creator's favourite colour - Green.

This photo could be said to use a diagonal variation of the "rule of thirds," as the illuminated, lighter weeds occupy about two thirds of the picture, and the darker, shaded weeds the other third. Notice how the sharp distinction between light and dark even within the lighter section itself helps to break up the monotony of an all-green picture.

Note: For the Americans out there, this title would be spelt "Green is God's Favorite Color"

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
The Glory of the Morning (Sun breaking over vine stem)
A Sign of Contradiction 2 (Dead Leaves with Clover)
Odd One Out - Camphor-laurel leaves in contrast

The Glory of the Morning [Sun Breaking over Vine Stem]

The Glory of the Morning - The rising Sun shines it's rays over a Vine Stem

Sun shining over balloon vine stem

This indeed is a glorious shot. The rising sun is just peeking it's rays past the shining edge of a Balloon Vine stem, highlighting the fine hairs running along the side of the stem. The rainbow shower of light falling from the contact point shines out over the lavender flowers in the background, and the green leaves at the sides of this magnificent photo complete the image. This image has to be seen to be fully appreciated.

The structure of this image roughly follows the popular "rule of thirds" approach, placing an imaginary grid over the picture to determine the placement of the primary features. The contact point between sun and stem occurs about two-thirds of the way up the picture, and the green leafy frame occupies about a third of the horizontal space on either side. The weighting of this photo is obviously toward the top, with the bright contact point in the center of that region being the main feature of the photo.

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
Balloon Vine Flower with Water Droplets
Prickle Resting on a Leaf - A sign of Contradiction

A creature from below... [Earth Worm]

Earth worm with grains

Earth Worm

Here's some variety - an animal is featured as the subject of this photo. This earth worm is shown lying on the dirt beside some chicken-feed: various grains including cord and sorghum. We found him under a tarp we had out in the yard, and after the photo he died a noble death - he was fed to the Chooks!

The natural structure of this photo draws the eye firstly toward the worm, which occupies the greater portion of the image, and secondly to the grains in the lower-right corner. The picture itself is not designed with a specific composition in mind, the only notable aspects are the main focus-points where the eye rests. It is interesting, though, how the eye follows a rough "zig-zag" course along the curves of the worm, and doesn't follow the smooth line of the worm's body.

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
The Modest Blossom
Close-up of a hen-pecked chook's feathers

The sunflower that's not a Sunflower [Pumpkin Flower]

Bright yellow Pumpkin vine flower

Yellow Pumpkin Flower

Whenever I look at this flower I'm reminded of the sun. The vibrant yellow color and the flower's ray-like petals are like an ancient Greek portrayal of the sun, with it's flares of yellow shining out from the center orb. However, this flower is really only a humble Pumpkin flower, shown here in front of the Pumpkin vine's leaves.

This is very much a "standard" type of shot from a compositional standpoint - the main object of the photo is centered in the frame, and the background is very plain so as not to attract attention. This photo is an example of how you don't really need any fancy framing or exposure modes and settings to take a good photo - this photo was taken in point-and-shoot mode!

This photo taken with the Sony DSC-H1 camera.

Related Photos:
Balloon Vine flower with water droplets
The Egg Plant shows it's true colors... [Purple Egg Plant Flower]
The Modest Blossom [Violet Flower]

A Sign of Contradiction 2 [Dead Leaves with Clover]

A Sign of Contradiction 2 - Dead Leaves with Clover

Dead Leaves with Clover

Here is another contrast-themed photo for today. I've found a lot of these lately, starting with A Sign of Contradiction - Prickle Resting on a Leaf. I found this close-up out on the back lawn after the gutters had been cleaned - this is certainly an unusual subject for a photo!

The dead, broken Camphor-Laurel leaves in the foreground of this picture stand out both in color and meaning from the bright green, healthy Clover in the background. The dead leaves give a dull, mundane feeling; the sprouting clover conveys an expression of life and joy.

In terms of composition, this picture is pretty simple. The dull brown leaves comprise the lower half of the image, while the upper portion is dominated by the green clover. The pile of leaves has no special arrangement, however the irregular shape, size, and position of each leaf does help to break up an otherwise monotonous subject.

This photo taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
Prickle Resting on a Leaf - A Sign of Contradiction
Odd One Out - Camphor-Laurel Leaves in Contrast
Clover

The Modest Blossom

The "modest" Violet Blossom

A Violet Flower

For this picture of a Violet Flower, I think I've found a poem which pretty much describes it:

The Violet
by Jane Taylor

Down in a green and shady bed
A modest violet grew,
It's stalk was bent, it hung it's head,
As if to hide from view.

And yet it was a lovely flower,
It's color bright and fair;
It might have graced a rosy bower
Instead of hiding there.

Yet there it was content to bloom,
In modest tints arrayed;
And there diffused it's sweet perfume,
Withing the silent shade.

Then let me to the valley go,
This pretty flower to see;
That I may also learn to grow
In sweet humility.

The Autumn Spirit [Maple Leaves]

Maple Leaves on Grass

Maple Leaves on Grass - The Autumn Spirit

We're midway through Winter here in Australia, so most of our trees have lost their leaves. But one of the Maple Trees we have on our 1.5 acre property was planted out of season, so it's only dropping it's leaves now, at the start of July. This is a photo of one of the Maple tree's leaves, with an array of other leaves on the grass in the background. This particular picture looks quite impressive when viewed full-screen - you can click on the picture or the text below it to view the full-size photo.

This picture, like the popular "She sells Sea Shells" photo, makes effective use of the tilting method. In this method, a photo is deliberately taken at an angle to the ground or horizon, usually about 45 degrees. This creates an interesting effect which is used a lot in modern graphics work.

The other striking feature of this photo is the way the single leaf in the foreground stands out in vibrant simplicity from the background of grass and leaves. Again, this mix of repetition & contrast combined with the emphatic regions of shadow, creates a harmonious whole with a uniquely undefinable flavour.

This photo was taken with the Kodak C330 camera.

Related Photos:
She sells Sea Shells (Sea Shell on the beach)
To Stand Out from the Crowd [Red and Green Asparagus vine berries]