Sunny Character

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This one's probably going to be my submission for this week's @52frames #52frames_lowkey challenge.
As I used a single flash, this one's eligible for the EC this week.

Fragrant Orchid (And Friend)

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A backup photo again today, taken a few weeks ago.
Never got round to sharing this one, and I was slow sharing it with the wildlife group leader who organised the walk, so it didn't get shared there either.

Special Screws, And Quickly!

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At work today we found ourselves rather urgently requiring some special M3 screws with a specific length of plain shank before the threaded portion. We had nothing even remotely suitable, so I found some larger screws and spent some time on my lathe this evening turning them down and re-threading them to the correct size.
After all this effort, this project better be a success...

On Track

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This one's my submission for this week's 52Frames challenge, "Something New".
I recently bought this GPS unit to help with geotagging my photos, because I'd got very used to my old camera having an internal GPS receiver, and my current camera only supports geotagging via a phone connection, which is a faff. I often forget to connect and babysit the slightly unreliable connection.
This challenge was a good opportunity for me to revisit product photography, which I've not done for ages.
I thought it was fun to sneak the week number in as the compass bearing, even if it was awkward to line up!
I contemplated shooting this out in the field, but I eventually went for shooting it indoors under a big softbox because of the weather.
I should have cleaned the screen more thoroughly before shooting, as I had to erase rather a lot of fluff and dust in post!

Expand

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Robin's Pincushion

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AKA the Bedeguar Gall. This oddity is home to the larvae of a gall wasp.
I spotted this one on a guided walk with Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust this morning.
I find these types of hijackers quite fascinating. They are so highly evolved to target just one specific type of plant, and make it produce the most bizarre growths.
One more after the jump.

Jasmine

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I had no idea what this bush actually was until fairly recently. It grows like wildfire every year, completely taking over my garden path, so I've always referred to it as the triffid.
It seems to have a particularly potent scent this year, particularly in the evenings. It's a shame I can't post the smell online!

This is a focus stack of 20 shots, fairly crudely done by turning the focus ring carefully by hand between shots. Stacked in Helicon Focus.
I tried using Helicon Remote initially to control the camera, but the minimum step size seemed to be massive for some reason, so I abandoned that because I wasn't enjoying the process.

Not A Worm

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But certainly glowing.
I went on a glow worm hunt with a local wildlife group this evening. I'm not unhappy with the results 😊
A few more after the jump.

Eleventh Of June; 26°, Sunny

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Lucy would have been 40 today.
The messages I've had today remind me again of how special she was to so many people.
I was very lucky to be part of her story.

Thanks to @countryside_joy for the behind-the-scenes photo! (after the jump).

Green Alkanet

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A backup photo again today - another shot from last night's walk.

Walking In The Evening Sun

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I went on a guided walk this evening with my parents, organised by a local nature trust.
I have driven and walked past this place hundreds of times, and never knew it existed.
This scene caught my eye.

Scars

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Oxidised echoes of a steel strap that once held this branch back.
It's interesting to see how the branch has probably doubled in diameter since the strap was taken off, but the marks are still so clear.

Hydrophobic, In Part

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A backup photo, shot earlier this week as I was loading my stuff into the car to go to work.
I thought the beads of water on these leaves were interesting, and I wanted to capture something that marked a change in the weather.

A Fistful Of Orchids

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Lucy's orchids have been out for about three months now, and they're still looking lovely.
It's silly things like this that hit you sometimes; she never got to see her plant looking as pretty as this.

Built To Live In

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If I can't wear my jeans, I'm not going!
Not that I'm set in my ways or anything...

Arboreal Tunnel, Solo Biped

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No work for me tomorrow!
It turns out I've been labouring under a misapprehension for some time. I always thought "bipede" was the British English term, and "biped" was the US English version. It turns out I was incorrect, "biped" is correct English on either side of the pond, "bipede" is Italian.
The more you know...

Make A Wish

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I went for a long walk this evening. There were lots of dandelion seed heads about, which feels find of early to me, but maybe I'm just bemused (as usual)!
This might be my 52Frames submission this week, for the negative space challenge, but I will probably give it another couple of days to see what else I can come up with.
An interesting thing has occurred on Instagram today - they have finally (!!) added cross-posting from the desktop interface, so Facebook is going to get spammed with more of my photos now.

Bluebell And Friends

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I went bluebell hunting in a local woodland this afternoon.
I'm pretty happy with this one. I like the simplicity and contrasting colours of the bluebells and celandines

The Spider That Lives In The Overflow

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This is a shot (or at least a subject) I've been meaning to take for quite a while now. This spider has taken up residence in my boiler's pressure relief vent tube, and I regularly see a couple of legs sticking out as I unlock my door.
This evening, I set up the camera and flashes, and waited patiently to catch the rest of the beastie.
Sorry to any arachnophobes in the audience!
I used three diffused Godox MF12 flashes; two on the lens ring, at the top and bottom, plus a third on a stand to the left, filling the shadows and background.

Alfresco Dining

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Enjoy your worms!
A lovely day today - it was actually even a bit too warm at work, particularly when we were cleaning our high voltage lab after months of hard graft and in preparation for a customer visit tomorrow.