It is spring in Livermore and the neighborhoods are alive with flowers and fruit trees in bloom and with birds and bees attracted by the blossoms. Warm, sunny days make for good opportunities to photograph the birds and the bees, and here are some of my favorite photos:
Rufous Hummingbird and Anna’s Hummingbird at our feeder. Anna’s Hummingbirds are here year-round, but Rufous Hummingbirds show up for only a couple weeks per year as they migrate to and from the Pacific Northwest.Hummingbirds contesting access to the feeder. The Anna’s in particular can be kind of turfy.Anna’s Hummingbird near feeder. Bird shots are difficult because they move quickly and in unexpected directions, but at least hummingbirds hover for short lengths of time.Anna’s Hummingbird perched on a twig in our orange tree.Rufous Hummingbird perched in orange tree.Rufous Hummingbird at feeder. Shutter speed was 1/1000 sec or faster, but not fast enough to keep the wings in focus.Bush tit eating aphids from rose buds. These small, quick birds came in flocks to clean up the aphids, and they move around so abruptly in the rose bushes that I was lucky to get a clear shot.Honeybee on an orange blossom. The whole tree is in bloom, and honeybees, wild bees, and even hummingbirds serve as pollinators.Black and yellow wild bee (some kind of bumblebee?) on orange blossom.Honeybee on lavender in our front yard.
Semi-technical details: I shot all of these photos from about 8-12 feet away with a handheld Canon R7 and Canon 100-500mm zoom lens. Post-processing consisted of cropping each photo by up to 80% of the original image size. The original image resolution allowed for a reasonably good picture even after severe cropping and enlargement.
The “Christian Photographers on Facebook:” contest theme last week was “Church and Chapel.” Contest entries included photos of chapels, churches, and cathedrals. Some of them were interior views and some were exterior. The first three photos below were my contest entries; the other three are some of my favorites as well. Enjoy!
Chapel of Saint Timothy and Saint Titus at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. This chapel is larger than first appearances might suggest. I have enjoyed worshiping here several times during installation services for servants of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod.Sanctuary at Our Savior Lutheran Ministries in Livermore, decorated for Easter festival worship service. As you might guess from the handbells, the worship service included a lot of wonderful music.Bell tower at the old San Diego Mission, built with adobe construction. Maybe not the best for earthquake country, but it has survived for a long, long time, and the bells still sound great!Altar area inside the Sagradra Familia cathedral in Barcelona, Spain. The stained glass windows and vaulted ceilings are amazing! Note the man standing near the lower right center of the photo for scale.Pipe organ and choir loft in the Evangelical Lutheran City and Parish Church of St. Mary’s in Wittenberg, Germany. Luther preached here! Altarpiece created by Lucas Cranach the Elder and his son Lucas Cranach the Younger for the Evangelical Lutheran City and Parish Church of St. Mary’s in Wittenberg, Germany. A replica stands in the chapel in the International Center of The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod in St. Louis.
