Shining geranium

Shining geranium (Geranium lucidum), an invasive species. A fully open flower, and I think too much movement caused degradation in the field-stack of 4 shots hand-held, slightly cropped to remove artifacts on the edge of the frame.

ISO-280, 1/250 at f/16, 1:1

Click for detail

Flowers maybe 3/8" across when open

Bumble bee close up.

Just to see if I could do it, I stuck a microscope objective on the end of my 105mm macro lens. I used a $10.00 reducing adapter I got off eBay.

Working distance between the bee & the lens was less than 1cm.

Go ahead, click on it. You know you want to.

Willie & Merle

 When Merle sang “We don’t smoke marijuana in Muskogee,” he didn’t mention that’s why he moved to Nashville!

Willie & Merle  It's All Going to Pot.

Via misscellania.blogspot.com/ and via Tastefully Offensive)   

Another cat photo

Portrait of a caterpillar.
Ranchman's Tiger Moth
Platyprepia virginalis

Much better when viewed large!

click on me.

Declaring farmland 'blighted' would create urban renewal district in north Hillsboro

I don't know what to say. Except that eventually all the cities will swallow up the land between them as they merge together. Like what is happening in central Florida right now. This is progress?

Oregonian photo of 'blighted' land. Borrowed w/o permission.

Crab spiders

Tiny 5mm crab spiders up close & personal on a pear blossom.

Best viewed enlarged, with a click!

Cleaning her paws. Mmmmmm pear pollen!

Macros and Turkey Tails

Turkey Tail or Trametes versicolor, a polypore fungus and one which I currently have a personal interest in, is in the news. 

This is a macro of a very young mushroom. Actually there are two. Both look similar on the top, but very different underneath. The turkey tail is the left in the first photo and on the right in the second. The other polypore has false gills or folds.
Please click on & enlarge

Turkey tail pores. Looks like a coral reef.

Enlarged, it's quite hairy.

Because of the shallow depth of field at this magnification, twelve frames were shot at different focus points and then stacked, or merged together so that the entire subject is in focus.

This is photo #1 with only the foreground in focus

And the last photo with the farthest portion in focus. I'll spare you the ten in between.

The difference is easier to see when you enlarge them.

The Bees

The bees got some flying in after it warmed up to 51* today. The pears are all blooming, apples are starting as are the cherries. They seem to prefer the pear blossoms.

They look better enlarged, so click on one.

Getting some plum sap or just taking a break.

Andreninae (Mining Bees)