I took this shot from my backyard. A local pack outfit was driving mules and horses behind our house (that's our backyard fence in the photo). These days, it seems that the old cowboy days are relics from a long forgotten past, but it's alive and well here in Bishop, California. Snapped this the morning of Father's Day, 2024 (June 16, 2024).

My first time attempting a photo likes this. I didn't quite get it as perfect as I wanted but I think it looks good enough to share.

Is there a decent lightweight pic viewer for Mac? Preferably open source. I have quite a lot of photos, and using finder/preview to show people my images is pretty clunky, and using darktable isn’t really ideal either. I’m just after something that allows for a quick and simple skimming through folders, and a nice clean display of the chosen image.

As winter continues, I think more and more about how nice it was to sit outside, drink coffee, and take pictures of birds that came by.

This is one of my favorite ones.

As a former Aperture fan, who switched to Adobe Lightroom when Apple abandoned Aperture, I was curious to try out Photomator.

It's a similar product to Lightroom. The big differences?

1. It uses Photos (the Apple app) for the library. So, if you import your RAW files, it'll import them into Photos first, and you go from there.
2. No "Dehaze" slider. It's on the roadmap, though, so I suppose we'll see. Dehaze is a great tool in Lightroom, so it's missed in Photomator.
3. Lifetime license available. I happen to be in a place where I was able to pay for the "Lifetime" license for $99.98, so I did. You can subscribe annually for $29.98, as well. Adobe Lightroom requires a monthly subscription (with an annual option as well). Adobe did away with a "permanent" license way back in version 6 (before the "Dehaze" feature).

It does have AI-powered automatic photo adjustments. Supposedly it's been trained on a library of professional photos, so I suppose we'll see.

The interface is pretty granular, and allows for manual correction for just about anything you'll run into. The spot-repair feature works as advertised, as well.

I suppose we'll see if it pans out, and doesn't get abandoned by the developer.

Anyone else giving it a try yet?

I thought I’d use some of the tips from an article I posted earlier in the sub, and used a smaller aperture to bring out the star-rays. That worked pretty well. This was shot with a 15-35mm lens, widest angle, and f/22, the smallest aperture available. It did come out darker, so I had to bring up the shadows in Lightroom. Not too bad for handheld, I thought.

Now, let’s see yours!

I was traveling (for our 30th anniversary) on the East Coast recently, and realized I had the opportunity to take sunrise photos from the ocean, which I could never do at home, in California.

If you'd like some simple ways to make your sunrise photography better, this is a pretty great article. Share and enjoy!

Good news for your Sony shooters - the A9 specs have been announced, and they're impressive. The only disappointment might be the 24.6 megapixel display. No actual photos available for analysis, yet, either. But, check out the article for the full spec sheet. It's pretty impressive, albeit at $6,000 for the body, it better be!

I posted about two other lenses, the RF-S10-18mm F4.5-6.3 IS STM, the RF200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM, and the last is the RF-24-105mm F2.9L IS USM Z.

The RF 24-105mm F2.8 is a new option. I've used the older EF-mount 24-105 f4 L lens, and it was a great walkaround lens. This new one is a bit larger and heavier, since there is no physical zoom (the lens is self-contained with internal zoom, so it won't get longer/shorter when you're zooming), much like the old EF 70-200mm F2.8 L lens. The new F2.8 version allows for consistent f/2.8 aperture throughout the zoom range.

Here's what the article says:

Still and video professionals who want a single lens that can handle most tasks with low-light capabilities will find what they’re looking for with the RF24-105mm F2.8 L IS USM Z. This is the world’s first 24-105mm focal length lens combined with consistent f/2.8 maximum aperture,1 offering true portrait-length telephoto coverage resulting in sharp images. High-end photographers, photojournalists, and video content creators can utilize this lens’ other features that include:

• Constant overall length when zooming.
• Manual aperture ring for video use.
• Optimized optics for high-level video.
• Image stabilization.

A new Power Zoom Adapter will also be available for the RF24-105mm F2.8 L IS USM Z lens, an optional accessory for super-smooth zooming during video operation. This detachable device allows for more natural movement when zooming in and out, and easier control for solo camera operators. A standard version of the Power Zoom Adapter will be available, as well as a 20-pin port version to support zoom and focus demands. The firmware updates that will be available in early December for the EOS C70 and EOS R5 C cameras will add support for the RF24-105mm F2.8 L IS USM Z lens.

For you wildlife photographers, there's a new, more affordable (that's relative, of course) non-L lens coming for the RF mount bodies. Not really my thing, but we'll see once it's fully out and in distribution. It's supposed to run around $2,000 usd.

Looking for an RF ultra-wide lens? Canon announces a new RF mount 10-20mm F/4 L lens.

It's harder than it looks to see the whole of Sky Rock. It's on a relatively flat rock, facing up toward the sky (hence the name), rather than on a vertical wall, as most petroglyphs are, so it's impossible to see from below. It's also large, easily over 20 x 20 feet. It's carved on a very large rock, which is perched against another vertical rock below it, forming a sort of cave/tunnel below it.

Especially challenging is that you cannot climb on the petroglyph rock itself, in order to protect it. The only way is to climb on a large rock above it, which I'm sure younger, more agile folks can manage, but I barely made it. The location is undisclosed, so you sort of have to know someone who's been there in order to find it. I can say it's located on the volcanic tablelands near Bishop, California. Hope you enjoy the ancient art. Cheers.

I didn't even notice this li'l guy until I had walked past it, and heard it rattle at me. It's getting late in the season to see them much, since it's getting pretty chilly overnight. Soon they'll all be hibernating, anyway. I'm just glad I didn't really disturb it too much. They do keep the rodents down...

The basic element of any good photograph is composition. What guides YOUR composition decisions? Let us know what you think...

A really good article on how to amp up your lighting game...