ABOUT ME

I live in a camper van with a West Highland Terrier for company.
My passion is creating images but it is a work in progress.
I am always willing to share what knowledge I have and can be contacted through the comments on this post or e-mail ADRIAN
ALL IMAGES WILL ENLARGE WITH A LEFT CLICK

Thursday 3 October 2013

WONDERS OF THE WOODS. (03/10/13)

What a night, I’m parked in a wonderful wood but a combination of heavy rain and the trees dropping gallons of it at a time made for a sleepless night. I did get a couple of hours then gave in, got up and decided that a few hours with Blender 3D would pass the hours of darkness on.

As always it was a case of two steps forward and one and three quarters backwards. I should be happy, it is often the other way round. The movie The Christmas Card is a little bit nearer. I was going to have the words Merry Christmas rise from a pool of water in bits and Shards then come together with a fanfare of trumpets and lots of coloured lights. Inspired by my environment I decided it might look a bit tacky….I know Christmas is tacky but decided that the bits of letters creeping gently from a lake would be much posher. I UV wrapped or unwrapped a photograph of Derwentwater onto my backcloth and a second base board thingy. Which is a fluid. I’m not sure that UV mapping works on fluid surfaces. It may if I bake the fluid first. My bottom base board has to be a solid object for if it isn’t when I run the animation the pieces of letters just keep falling. Hopefully the animation I’ll create will run backwards to give the work of art I’m trying to achieve. It’s not looking good at the moment but I’ll keep on being trying. I suspect the job would run smoother with a few Liberty Caps.

The rain stopped so off we toddled fungi hunting….The rain had not done them much good. It has trashed them. They will come back again if we get a dry day or so.

I have grouped them together and identified the ones I could, the rest you can treat as a quiz or art. As always any help is most welcome…Trevor you don’t have to feel obliged to trawl your library for a day. Just guess like I do. The pioneers of Mycology just called stuff anything they felt like….life was easy in the olden days.

_MG_1751

_MG_1750  I don’t know, there are hundreds of them and they all look dead they are 4” to 10” in diameter growing in mixed woodland, oak, beech, pine and birch. For the most part they grow in clearings. I think they may be dead Funnel Caps.

_MG_1753  It’s 2” in diameter and smells of ammonia.

_MG_1754   Not in my book but a pretty mushroom about 3” across.

_MG_1755   This again is 3” diameter. I suspect it is a Rufus Milk Cap. An old one.

_MG_1757

_MG_1760   I am guessing this is a Bolete. It is a giant, it would make a great hat.

_MG_1761    A Common Puffball….all on it’s own and eaten by a slug.

_MG_1763   Freckled Flame Cap. This is only my guess it’s growing on a pine log.

_MG_1764   I have no idea but it is attractive. Again it smells of pis---ammonia.

_MG_1768 I am going for Brain Fungus. I’ve never seen them unfurl the coloured bit before though.

_MG_1759  Jelly Antler Fungus.

That’s by no means all of them but you’ll start thinking I’m a bit Special Needs if I carry on. They will all enlarge with a click and are strobe lit, it has barely got light today.

_MG_1746

_MG_1769 These two images of the Bird/Red Squirrel feeding station were taken at noon today. It has brightened up a bit but not much. The Nuthatches are stealing the Red Squirrels nuts and stuffing them in cracks in tree bark. I’m away to reprimand them.

Have fun.

26 comments:

  1. I sleep better when it is raining unless there's thunder and lightning.

    It sounds like you are doing good in Blender. I'll be expecting a card come Christmas. :)

    The mushrooms are a little like spiders to me. I'm having a hard time warming up to them but I liked all the pictures. The Brain Fungus is the stuff of nightmares but the Jelly Fungus has a pretty color and reminds me of coral reef.

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    1. David, I'm parked under trees. It is a bit noisy.
      I'll be still learning Blender on the day I die.
      The fungi are a source of interest and wet knees and elbows.

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  2. HI Adrian I love all the shots of fungi. The different colours, shapes and textures. I love at this time of the year when they are popping up everywhere. I did not know their names at all but just look seeing and photographing them. We have had rain here also for the past few days also., still is raining!!! Haven't had a camera in my hand in days!!!

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    1. Margaret, I think we have pretty constant rain now. The camera doesn't mind it but the strobe isn't water proof and there are some serious voltages involved with strobe lights.
      I struggle with identification. I don't know of anyone who doesn't.

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  3. I had no idea that fungi were so beautiful! I have no understanding of what you were describing at the beginning. oh, well. Have a wonderful weekend in spite of or because of the rain.

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    1. Norma, It's a similar programme to that used to animate modern films Auto Desk is the professionals choice but Blender 3D is free. It is hard to use.
      The rain is a nuisance but I'll do my best over the weekend. You have a good one.

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  4. zo wat heb je mooie paddestoelen vooral die laatste prachtig .

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  5. Fascinating images, shame the rain stopped play.

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    1. Douglas, I wish I could tell you with any confidence what the images were of.

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  6. Adrian, That card sounds like it's getting a trifle complicated, I hope you don't end up with a massive headache for Christmas?
    You found a great selection of fungi there...it's a shame that the rain got to them.
    You've spurred me on now, I'll have to go out and see what I can find (when the rain stops!!).
    I've got a couple of ID's #5 - Bay Bolete (boletus badius) and the last one is Yellow Stagshorn (calocera viscosa)
    I hope you get to see those Red Squirrels...[;o)

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    Replies
    1. Trevor, even extending a cube or sphere is complicated in Blender.
      Bay Bolete, It is a big one but I'll go with that ID. Thank you. It is edible so I'll look for a fresher one.
      Yellow Stagshorn is the same thing that I know as Jelly Antler fungus. Your name is better, sounds more grown up.
      I've seen a Red Squirrel but the dogs saw it first. They both now walk around gazing at the tree tops.

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  7. They are magnificent specimens, ADRIAN!
    have a good night.
    a hug.

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  8. Fantastic assortment with such close-up detail! I've been wandering about the neighbourhood nearly crashing into things as I have my eyes to the ground! Lots of mushrooms around, for sure.

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    1. Glo, this persisant heavy rain is not doing them any good at all. I was hoping for a display of Fall colour but it is a bit slow arriving this year.

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  9. You got a lot of good photos in between rains. I didn't know there were so many different mushrooms. You've shown us a wide variety and their beauty.

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    1. Red, this is a very small selection, there are thousands of them. They are beautiful and I think look better isolated with a strobe light.

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  10. Great looking selection of fungii, the "brain" and "antler" types are new to me

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    1. Gillian, Brain fungus is not very common. The Antler fungus is only small and can be overlooked. There is a rare white version which I've only seen once.

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  11. Replies
    1. Bob, there are only a couple of these that are yummy. The rest are poorly tummy ones.

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  12. Hi Adrian... I love when you post mushroom photo's !!
    These are the best from a photographic perspective I have seen you do!! I love 3, 4, and 5 they would be great framed and in a grouping on my wall!! lol ; 0

    Can't wait to see this years Christmas card! : )

    Grace

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    1. Grace, I've altered the system. I use flash as the primary light source now.
      All images are free.
      The Christmas card is being a bit naughty. It gives me a headache.

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  13. These are beautiful Adrian: gallery quality images; and so educational

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    1. Maria, thank you. I used a soft box on these. It disintegrated in the damp. I have a proper one arriving this morning. I'll try and get out with a portable backdrop.

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