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

Sunday 17 March 2013

SUNDAY SURPRISE. (17/03/13)

I woke before dawn and could hear hail lashing down, I thought….Not again!

Got up had a shower and struggled into my customary ten layers. By the time we were ready to go out things were looking good. The sun was trying to make itself felt through the cloud and the precipitation had ceased.IMG_9694_5_6_tonemapped_edited-1 Not a bad morning……plenty of new snow on the fell.

IMG_9691_2_3_tonemapped_edited-1  This and the previous image are both HDR. I downloaded a couple of years worth of Photomatix updates and am very pleased with the new algorithms. The Canon 5D II is back with a new shutter and a firmware update so is acting a little strangely. All my cameras act oddly so nothing to worry about there.

IMG_9725_edited-1      Alf found this mooring pickup buoy and was convinced it was a ball. Took him a few minutes to realize that he had bitten off more than he could chew.

IMG_9737        This excitement promoted a five minute rough and tumble……..I just hope that there was no one wanting a lie in. The barking, snapping and snarling is deafening.

The dogs are asleep now so with a bit of luck I’ll get a peaceful day.

The van axles haven’t arrived yet but I’ll rattle a couple of cages tomorrow.

Have a good week whatever you are up to.

36 comments:

  1. At least it was dry for your morning walk Adrian!!
    ...it's dull and grey here with a rotation of drizzle, rain, hail and the odd light snow flurry...nice!!

    I like the subdued colours in your first shot.

    It's good to see the dogs 'playing nicely' together!

    Good luck with the cage rattling!!...[;o)

    Oooo! things are looking up!... the sun is making a feeble attempt to break through the grey cloud!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Trevor, warm and dry. It's spoilt itself since but then it doesn't matter cos it's GP day.
      I should update software more often. Photomatix has got very good. I remember revelling in the pavement pizza HDR effect when it was first introduced....Iz growed up now!
      The dogs are wee buggers...on a par with the axle man.

      Delete
  2. Nice beach pictures... hey, I could have sworn the dogs in that last image moved... ooops, they actually did! Clever.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Monica, Yes it is a cunning stunt. I don't know what software you use for editing but in most it's a matter of selecting the images compressing them to within an inch of their lives then click save for Web and save as a Giff file. I save to desk top as it's easy to find. Much quicker than video. I can't be doing with video.

      Delete
    2. I can do a SEEING TO PICTURES on my other blog if you can't find a tutorial on Google.

      Delete
    3. Not much moving around here at the moment (including myself)... I learn best when I have actual need to, so for now I hope to just store somewhere at the back of my brain that it involves gif... Thanks.

      Delete
  3. That Gif file is so sweet, thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Maria. Sweet is not the first word that I associate with that pair.

      Delete
  4. Lucky you, woke to find snow falling and settling but now in that horrible transition phase of slush/thaw yuk.
    How did you do that trick with the images of your dogs playing on the beach, seriously cool.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Douglas, you can't as far as I know do it in Cap One. It's a Photoshop thing. Elements can process multiple images but not very well. I select the ones I want and compress them right up to around 72 pixels /inch and about 400 on the longest side. then in elements reverse the stack. Important if you want to have a start and finish. The bottom image is the start.
      Then go to file> save for web> pick GIFF. It will preview in any web browser. Once you are happy then save it to anywhere you can find it again.
      I'm still trying to master mouse roll overs and those funny before and after images that split down the middle. They require code.
      A blog is just a web page so anything that Tesco can do on theirs you can do on yours.
      Keep files small. That's why I use a simple template. I can use the download time to provide bigger pictures.
      If you have trouble then let me know by e-mail and I'll do a How To on my other blog 'SEEING TO PICTURES'

      Delete
  5. Ah wat heerlijk om de honden zo lekker te zien dollen dat houd je jong Adriaan.!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ik moet anders lachen zou ik huilen Nik

      Delete
  6. The slush phase is annoying. Please do a how to of the images. Whatever cameras you use, your picture are excellent.
    Thanks for the comments on the song, my friend was happy and grateful. I love Rubies even more than diamonds, hence the name although it does seem daft :)Maybe Opal??

    ReplyDelete
  7. For you Ruby Anything! The GP will not play on IPlayer so I'll start this minute. It takes ages to do the screen grabs and all that palaver so I expect you to post a GIFF sequence in return for the instruction.

    I liked the song. I like your ranting equally. Rant again and soon. There must be someone who has got up your nose or on your tits.

    The How To Do It will be on my other blog 'SEEING TO PICTURES.'

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Adrian, Love the Gif sequence. Great job. Glad to here the Canon 5D is back, and with a new shutter no less. Have yourself a good week my friend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cheers Horst.....I tried a new workflow....posh for hitting and clicking.

      Delete
  9. Which program did you use to make the animated GIF?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John,
      Elements 9.
      I can select all but not by Copy & paste. I drag them and drop them into the editor window. Then I work out the order which for some reason is upside down. so I shuffle bottom to top so file numbers run in the right order. Then click the top one select all or shift click the bottom one and compress them. Elements is limited like this but this is quick enough. I can't sharpen though. Then I just select save for web and giff and I get a posh window that lets me have frame delay and jitter/god knows what else...don't bother with the latter lots cos I don't know what they is.
      I tend to find PS is forgiving of an idiot. One just has to work around ADOBE think.

      Delete
  10. It's always a treat when a day turns out to be great when it started out so lousy. We started to day at minus 17 C with high wind snow and blowing snow. It was very much like January. so when it warms up here it will be a big shock to the system.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Red, I like winter but I have just about had enough now.

      Delete
  11. Love the light on that first landscape shots. Ten layers here, too; in fact, it's three or four in bed!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Adrian, you should have put a warning before that last shot. I didn't know whether to blame my eyesight or the wine! Decided on a combination of both, then realized you were being clever (and proving my own stupidity!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry Pauline....I am just thoughtless.

      Delete
  13. Well the cunning stunt has really got everyone going. And well it might. It's a good one.

    ReplyDelete
  14. That puppy slideshow is just adorable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hilary tey are noisy little devils but I love them.

      Delete
  15. The seascapes are amazing and the two dogs prancing around was extravagant.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bob, it's a good job the ducks and waders were already miles away.

      Delete
  16. Hi there - that first image is a nice landscape - where is it?

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

    ReplyDelete
  17. Stewart, Ravenglass. The snow covered fell is Corney Fell. I hope

    ReplyDelete
  18. omg the dogs are so cute! Adrian I love your pics, really you have such a nice place there, amazing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Laura, The dogs make me smile. It is a good place to be.

      Delete
  19. Loving the composition and angles of the boat shot. I spent a good hour on Conwy beach last year trying to achieve something similar. The weather was horrid though although it looks like you have hidden it !

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cheers Jay, I could have done with getting down a bit lower.

      Delete