Daily Photo - March 16-31
For 2020, I am photographing every day, and posting the best of each day in half-month increments.
2020 March 16, Monday
Aside from Earth, Venus is my favourite planet. I even have a very, very long-term plan for how it could be terraformed to become a much better place to set up a colony than Mars. For the rest of my lifetime, however, I'll just have to be content with Venus being a bright and familiar orb in the night sky. Fun fact: On moonless nights, the light reflecting from Venus can cast shadows.
Olympus E-PL1: f5.6, 2 secs, ISO 400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 17, Tuesday
Lately there's been a lot of eagle activity from a bough in a tree just beyond my yard. If I happen to be ready with my camera at the right moment, I can even capture the start of a flight!
Olympus E-PL1: f5.4, 1/160 sec, ISO 250
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 18, Wednesday
With several months of the Covid-19 lockdown on the docket, I prepared a fitness programme that I call Lean In The Quarantine. I posted on my neighbourhood Facebook group, asking if anyone had an incline bench they'd be willing to sell me. Within an hour or two an awesome couple from up the street was delivering a bench, barbell, and some weights, which they were happy to give me. Since then I've been working out every other evening. It's too early to see any physical results, but I can feel some surprise in my underloved muscles. Here's hoping I can keep it up and look a little more trim when the lockdown is lifted.
Olympus E-PL1: f4.1, 1/30 sec, ISO 1600
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 19, Thursday
Aside from the occasional smartphone picture (Like this one), this is the photographic apparatus I use. It's an Olympus Pen E-PL1 camera with a 14-150mm 1:4-5.6 zoom lens. This is the first (and only!) "big" camera I've owned; I've had it for about a decade. It suits my needs very well, and I'd recommend a similar setup to anyone looking to explore the wonderful world of photography.
Sony Xperia Z3c: f2, 1/32 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 20, Friday
It's unusual to see a train come by during the day; they usually pass later in the evening. Fridays seem to run on an earlier schedule, at least for the moment.
Olympus E-PL1: f7.1, 1/160 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 21, Saturday
In the latter half of March the snow seemed to be in retreat. The bare ground didn't last too long; we got two more days of snow in the next week.
Olympus E-PL1: f9, 1/400 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 22, Sunday
My turtle collection... At least, some of it!
Olympus E-PL1: f5.3, 1/80 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 23, Monday
I find it hard to argue with the beauty of the dusky sunlight glittering on the water. Even the train tracks caught a bit of the lightbeam!
Olympus E-PL1: f11, 1/400 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 24, Tuesday
These just may be the largest clumps of falling snow I have yet seen. It was like the sky was raining snowballs. The scene was quite pretty, like something out of a Christmas card... But three months late for that!
Olympus E-PL1: f10, 1/250 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 25, Wednesday
When the tide is low it reveals a mysterious object out in the estuary. It looks manmade to me, likely a piece of pollution. As an ardent environmentalist I think it ought to be removed. Still, even I must admit that there's an air of beauty to it.
Olympus E-PL1: f10, 1/640 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 26, Thursday
These birds clearly didn't get the memo on reducing air travel, nor do most of them seem to be physically distancing themselves from each other.
Olympus E-PL1: f5.6, 1/160 sec, ISO 250
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 27, Friday
I expected life under lockdown to be boring. Instead, there's been a significant increase in family e-mail, calling, and video chats, plus an online D&D campaign, and my every-other-day workout regime. I haven't made the time to paint any of my waiting D&D miniatures. Here's hoping I get around to that soon.
Olympus E-PL1: f4.7, 1/50 sec, ISO 1600
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 28, Saturday
With good weather and melting snow, I went for a walk. The dictates of Covid-19 prevention insist that people stay well clear of each other and refrain from public gatherings, but taking strolls is still permitted. I found lots to photograph during my little outing. It was tricky selecting which image to post here. I sent my best ones to my family and asked for their opinion. The picture with the most votes was this shot of a robin. One of my sisters described it as "like the bridge between winter and spring with the bird mediating the transition". My other sister is a painter, and said she'd like to try painting a version of it one day. I am quite happy that I caught it.
Olympus E-PL1: f7.1, 1/250 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 29, Sunday
Since the virus-preventing lockdown began people have tended to stay close to home. That doesn't necessarily mean inside the home. I have seen more people out walking than ever before. A bit of solitary or family-only fresh air can go a long way to keeping people's spirits up. There's definitely physical distancing to be found in the middle of the harbour!
Olympus E-PL1: f8, 1/320 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 30, Monday
For a long time the estuary has been choppy; it's a usual springtime condition. In the rare moments that it is (relatively) still, I love capturing the reflections in the water.
Olympus E-PL1: f6.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
2020 March 31, Tuesday
The year that The Phantom Menace came out my family went camping on PEI. I still remember scampering around the campground, asking people if I could examine their recycling so I could complete my set of the twenty movie-themed sodapop cans. Some were rarer than others, and I was very proud that eventually I collected each one.
Olympus E-PL1: f4.5, 1/50 sec, ISO 1600
IrfanView: Crop, Colour Balance
BONUS PICTURE
I was so pleased with my photography on Saturday the 28th, I couldn't bear to post only one shot!
