looduskalender.ee

These pictures were taken today -- a mostly gray but not rainy day (I have some older images to follow)

A Columbine Cluster from down the street


Lavender Columbine by alice_knitter, on Flickr


"Weed" Geraniums (one of my favourite weeds and I just let them grow)


Wild Weed Geranium by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Some Bees at work today


Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr


Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Alice, such very good photographs! Thanks.
Perfectly clear close-up of bee and flower

Alice, may I ask what camera you use for taking your photos? Do you have a special lense (don't know if it is called "macro" lense in English as well?) for the close shots? Besides animals and clouds I do love to photograph plants and flowers. I have dreams of a specific camera, but right now it's way out of my budget!

I have an old Cannon EO5 Rebel.

I use an 18-55 mm lens, which is lets me get pretty close. Sometimes I get too close and everything is out of focus, but I just try again.

My dad was doing something with the camera -- I think taking pictures for my mom, when the shutter stopped working, he needed a camera immediately so he bought one, sent this one off to be repaired and then he gave it to me.

I had a little insta one before, which I thought did pretty well but I have to admit that this is better.

And recently he gave me his old longer lens (150-300 mm), but so far mostly I just scare the birds.

And Felis macro lens is the word in English -- that is on my wish list for maybe.

That's a very good camera, Alice! I think Canon is in general. During the "olden" times, when there were still film rolls inside, I had a small Canon for snap shots as my reflexcamera (SLR), also with film roll, was way too slow for kids
I have two Sony cameras, a huge one, which was apparently one of the first with a tele, and it is heavy like something, but makes good pictures, and again a smaller one, which fits into a pocket easily and even with this I have made good pictures. My dream would be the Sony Nex-5 as it has interchangable lenses. As most of my equipment is by Sony (my ex-husband seems to love Sony, we've had a lot of things by them) I guess it would be also wise to stay with one company.

More Bees


Poppy and Bees by alice_knitter, on Flickr


Bee (? or something like a bee) on a wild rose at Finely wildlife refuge. The flowers were simply buzzing although I did not see that many bees.


Wild Rose by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Today I went with my dad to Finley Wildlife Refuge -- it is really a winter place, to protect wintering Dusky Canadian Geese, but at this time of year it is possible to walk there and I of course looked at flowers.

I think this is some kind of wild onion or garlic

Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr

I really do not know what this is

Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Wild Cucumber -- you can see the vine going at an angle. The leaves are big. There is also a black berry vine that seems to be growing straight up through the image.


Wild Cucumber by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Some kind of Sunflower? at Finley Wildlife Refuge

Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Alice,your photographs are tops..very good and beautiful..
Those flower ones...magnifique.

Mostly it does not really seem like spring -- cool and WET, but I will call it spring


Pink Carmellia by alice_knitter, on Flickr


White Camellia by alice_knitter, on Flickr

This is the real reason I decreed it spring. New buds on my new apple trees.

This is on the Gravenstein Apple tree


New Bud by alice_knitter, on Flickr


The Liberty Apple tree -- this has fewer and smaller buds -- but I think it is a later apple.


Liberty Apple Bud by alice_knitter, on Flickr

Beautiful pictures Alice, let's hope for delicious apples in the autumn, or are the appletrees to young yet? Here we have had a very warm March, and I heard that they are afraid that the flowers on the appletree will bloom to early so the bees will miss to spread the pollen. (But as the weather is right now it's no danger, it's freezing cold and a lot of wind)

I think this apple tree will be too young for apples, but I ate one off a 2nd year tree in a garden by my parents house so I should not have to wait too long.

Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr


Untitled by alice_knitter, on Flickr

I am going to take a side trip into Squirrel Hill territory, but in Oregon.

These pictures were taken by my dad of a young squirrel in his back yard.

Actually this may be a parent peeking out of the bird box -- my dad made this for flickers, but the squirrels chewed on the opening and made the whole big enough for them, and in they moved.






This is the youngster on the fence below the house.

On the other side of part of the fence are some pretty fierce dogs -- (they smash into the fence attempting to get the squirrel) When the youngster runs along the fence he wobbles and my parents are afraid he will fall off.





He seemed to enjoy running up and down this pole.



At the top of the pole peeking down.