# June Photography Challenge Discussion



## Mouse

So there tis.


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## Perpetual Man

And what an interesting one it is, very wide ranging too.

(I could enter the pig again....)

A funny aside (sort of). I decided to try and make up numbers on this little challenge, but not expecting much I figured I'd snap a few shots on my phone.

Then my visiting uncle says that his digital camera is broken. 

As I know my computers would I try and fix it.

I look, look, wonder, ponder, drop it.

It starts working. Technical genius eh?

I hand it back to him. He says thanks, then gives me his spare one, as a thank you.

So in the week I decide to take part in a photo challenge I get given a digital camera. 

Synchronicity. Just got to love it.


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## TheDustyZebra

It must be fate!


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## Mouse

Does sound like fate! 

Loving the ones so far. The dandelion seed is great, who knew they looked like that close up?!


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## Perpetual Man

I'm greatly impressed with some of the close ups, stunning and so well done.

I don't think my little old camera could cope with something like that. (Obviously it's new to me and there is no instruction manual) so a lot of when I take a photo is going to be trial end error...

I think I've taken the first one for the month, and as I nearly killed myself trying to take it, it would be a shame not to use it.

As an aside, this camera I was kindly given seems to have a sticky automatic lens cover. Sometimes it sticks and won't open. I've the suspicion that there might be something stick in there. Any ideas on how to clean it?


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## Wybren

Compressed air might work, over here you can get them in cans with a tubey thing, so I am sure computer shops over there would sell them. If that doesn't work perhaps brushing it with a paint brush.

Out of curiosity what is the make of your camera?


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## AE35Unit

Try stuff called Switch Cleaner or Contact Cleaner. Its used in the electronics field as its inert-  can be used on live circuits.


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## Perpetual Man

Thanks Wyb and AE35 I shall see what I can find.

As to the make of the camera, well with my deep rooted and comprehensive understanding of all things photographic... No, not fooling anyone. 

Knowing my uncle, it's probably a better cheap camera, but then I actually recognised the name of the maker, although not for cameras.

But it's a Panasonic Lumix


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## AE35Unit

Perpetual Man said:


> Thanks Wyb and AE35 I shall see what I can find.
> 
> As to the make of the camera, well with my deep rooted and comprehensive understanding of all things photographic... No, not fooling anyone.
> 
> Knowing my uncle, it's probably a better cheap camera, but then I actually recognised the name of the maker, although not for cameras.
> 
> But it's a Panasonic Lumix



Ah my other camera is a Lumix!


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## AE35Unit

Mouse said:


> Does sound like fate!
> 
> Loving the ones so far. The dandelion seed is great, who knew they looked like that close up?!



Nice Clematis you got!


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## Mouse

It's lovely isn't it? It was at the Chelsea flower show, unfortunately my clematis died!


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## AE35Unit

Mouse said:


> It's lovely isn't it? It was at the Chelsea flower show, unfortunately my clematis died!



A common fate of garden clematis, Clematis Wilt I bet!


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## Mouse

I think it couldn't cope with all the snow we had in winter. It was a really nice dark purple one too. Gutted when it didn't come back to life!


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## AE35Unit

Well it was a hard winter, it killed our Eucalyptus tree! Gutted!


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## Mouse

Stupid winter!


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## Wybren

Perpetual Man said:


> Thanks Wyb and AE35 I shall see what I can find.
> 
> As to the make of the camera, well with my deep rooted and comprehensive understanding of all things photographic... No, not fooling anyone.
> 
> Knowing my uncle, it's probably a better cheap camera, but then I actually recognised the name of the maker, although not for cameras.
> 
> But it's a Panasonic Lumix



Lumix aren't a bad camera. They are the only one of what I sell at work that I actually recommend and they are the only ones that customers will actually come back and say "hey you know that camera you sold me, it works a treat"


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## Perpetual Man

I was looking at some of the pictures I took last night and was pleasantly surprised by some of them


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## Talysia

There are some lovely pics so far!  I've managed to fix my camera, so I'll be able to take part again, too.


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## mosaix

Talysia said:


> There are some lovely pics so far!  I've managed to fix my camera, so I'll be able to take part again, too.



You've just got to love frogs!


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## Mouse

Love the frog.

And Perp, that's a really good shot too, nice camera!! Did you clamber up that tree?!


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## Perpetual Man

Mouse said:


> Love the frog.
> 
> And Perp, that's a really good shot too, nice camera!! Did you clamber up that tree?!



Thankee, I did, and I came down the quick way too. Ouch!


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## Perpetual Man

Alchemist - what a really beautiful woodland scene.


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## alchemist

Thanks Perp. It's not like me to have the light in the right place at the right time.


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## Perpetual Man

Well... that's my second one up for the month, the first time I have actually gone out of my way to take photo's for the challenge - and I quite enjoyed myself doing it.

I was hoping I'd might get another picture, but time and work is against me, so I went with the second one, which I intended but did not come out quite like I imagined.

And penguins???

Some people have the strangest things in their ponds.


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## Mouse

They do. Wasn't my pond. 

Liking Chrispy's tree sprouting like that!


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## chrispenycate

Was a beautiful tree, and produced lots of walnuts.

Now it just refuses to believe it's dead.


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## AE35Unit

Cool Sundew shot Mosaix!


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## mosaix

AE35Unit said:


> Cool Sundew shot Mosaix!



Thanks AE, took ages for the wind to die down so the damn thing would stay still!


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## AE35Unit

Wybren said:


> Lumix aren't a bad camera. They are the only one of what I sell at work that I actually recommend and they are the only ones that customers will actually come back and say "hey you know that camera you sold me, it works a treat"


I would include Fuji and Canon in that list


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## Culhwch

A reminder that I'll close the comp thread in about twenty-four hours time, so if you have a pic, post it!


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## Mouse

Nice bee shot, Talysia. I almost went for a bee pic!


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## StormFeather

Wahooo! Finally got round to posting some pics!

The first was the view from my bedroom window on a sunshiny/rainy afternoon. The second isn't really my best one but I was busy try to snap the goldfinches when I noticed that there was another visitor to the garden, and tried to get them both.


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## Mouse

You get foxes in your garden? Cool!


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## Perpetual Man

*Re: June Photography Challenge -- PLEASE READ FIRST POST!*

Wow! Some absolutely stunning pictures coming in here. Won't  know where to begin when it comes to voting!

You put this in the "Photos" thread, and it took me three tries to get it where it ought to be; don't get much practice in that.

Chrispy


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## StormFeather

Mouse said:


> You get foxes in your garden? Cool!


 
We have a family of them - we sometimes get to see the cubs when they're very young and cute. They come to see what the birds have left them from the day's pickings. 

There are, as ever, some fab pics this month. Voting will be hard


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## StormFeather

Weird double posting - not sure why.  my sanity is being tested tonight!


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## chrispenycate

StormFeather said:


> Weird double posting - not sure why.  my sanity is being tested tonight!



And found wanting, I trust? I would hate to have you going sane on us. I mean, you wouldn't understand half of what was going on…

What do you mean, you don't anyway?


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## StormFeather

chrispenycate said:


> And found wanting, I trust? I would hate to have you going sane on us. I mean, you wouldn't understand half of what was going on…
> 
> What do you mean, you don't anyway?


 

Given the way my day has gone, and is currently going, I'm a long way from Sanity tonight!


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## Perpetual Man

*Re: June Photography Challenge -- PLEASE READ FIRST POST!*



Perpetual Man said:


> Wow! Some absolutely stunning pictures coming in here. Won't  know where to begin when it comes to voting!
> 
> You put this in the "Photos" thread, and it took me three tries to get it where it ought to be; don't get much practice in that.
> 
> Chrispy



Oops sorry Chris, sometimes I deserve to be shot...


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## Culhwch

My apologies for my tardiness, but work more than overcame me today. Will get the poll posted tonight when I get home. In the meantime, any late comers are welcome to post entries...


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## Culhwch

The poll is now up: http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/532393-poll-june-photography-challenge.html


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## mosaix

Leisha gets my vote this month. Two great shots.


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## Perpetual Man

Decisions, decisions...

I thought they were all great shots, but I just love the open large pictures, so Alchemist's woodland scene really stands out, as do Leisha's stunning landscapes, not to mention Stormfeather's Fox incursion. 

The penguins, while not a landscape deserve a mention too for Mouse.

I can't say how impressed I am with every photo, the patience that some of them must have taken in order to get such great pictures is astounding, but something about the woodland scene reminds me of fun days when I was small, so I went for Alchemist...

By a foxes whisker


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## AE35Unit

This was a tough one, Leisha's second landscape was bostin! But i went for Alchemists shot of the trees in the woods!


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## alchemist

That's great guys; thanks for the votes. I haven't had any in months, so it's an excellent fillip.

As for my vote, I find this the toughest month by far to decide. I'll look again tonight as my work PC only shows half the shots.


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## Mouse

Perpetual Man said:


> The penguins, while not a landscape deserve a mention too for Mouse.



Ta. Taken at Paignton Zoo, that was. I just stood there for ages with the camera focused, waiting for them to swim past. That shot was a total fluke! I've a couple others that are nowhere near as good.

I've not voted yet. I actually like all the photos. Even the cat licking its butt! 

I will vote...


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## alchemist

My shortlist is ridiculously long, and even then, I took a couple off it...

AE35Unit’s rapeseed
Mouse’s pingu
Mosaix’s waterfall
Leisha’s lake (lake district?)
Talysia’s bee
Stormfeather’s sky

In the end, I've stumped for Talysia, because I can't even imagine how I would take such a shot.


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## mosaix

I got a vote, from Chris, many thanks.

Just to query Perp's post about Mouse's entry not being a_ landscape_. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding what you meant, Perp but the theme was _nature_.


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## Mouse

Thanks, alchemist!

mosaix, I thought that, but I think Perp meant that he prefers the landscape shots, but likes the penguin one even though it's not a landscape.


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## mosaix

Mouse said:


> Thanks, alchemist!
> 
> mosaix, I thought that, but I think Perp meant that he prefers the landscape shots, but likes the penguin one even though it's not a landscape.



I await with anticipation...


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## Mouse

Ok, ended up choosing between AE35's dandelion seed and SF's fox.

Went with the voxer.


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## AE35Unit

Mouse said:


> Ok, ended up choosing between AE35's dandelion seed and SF's fox.
> 
> Went with the voxer.



Ah,so close to getting a vote this time


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## TheDustyZebra

Mouse said:


> Even the cat licking its butt!



   Well, I couldn't get one of him eating a hummingbird, so that one will have to do. Actually I wouldn't have stood by and let him eat a hummingbird just so I could take a picture -- none of this detached journalism stuff.

I wasn't going to enter at all, since I hadn't had time to get any good pictures, but when I saw it was still open last night I ran out and took a couple just to be included. They are nowhere near the quality of the competition. But don't tell Kitty that.


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## Culhwch

Leisha for me. Good to see you back and competing, Leish!


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## Wybren

I went with Leish's this month. It was a hard month because there were so many good photos.


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## Talysia

Thanks for the vote, alchemist!  That was a nice surprise.

It's been really hard for me to pick a winner this month, as all of the pictures are excellent - they truly are - but in the end I voted for Stormfeather's fox and goldfinch pic.

Well done everyone!:


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## Perpetual Man

mosaix said:


> I got a vote, from Chris, many thanks.
> 
> Just to query Perp's post about Mouse's entry not being a_ landscape_. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding what you meant, Perp but the theme was _nature_.



Sorry about that Mosaix, I think Mouse cleared it up, but it was my bad post - I think it came out wrong, I meant that the landscape pics were the ones that had caught my attention (your waterfall too, if I neglected to mention it, simply stunning)


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## StormFeather

There are some fab shots - and it's been really hard to choose.  Loving the close-ups, especially Wy's caterpillar; the animal shots inc the penguins of Mouse, and the frog from Taly and all the breathtaking landscape pics.

In the end I went with the one that sprang to mind everytime I thought about this comp today, and that was Alchemists trees.  lovely feeling of peace with them.

And thank you to Mouse and Taly for the votes - so happy


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## Boneman

Look, I came here expecting an easier ride than the 75 word challenge, and the usual suspects are up to their old tricks! 

'Twas between: 
AE35 unit,(the seed - incredible close-up)  
Talaysia,(the bee on the flower- how long did you wait for that?  
mosaix (stunning waterfall...) 
alchemist's forest view (couldn't decide if it was sinister or plain beautiful, so I decided it was sinisterly beautiful)  
stormfeather's panorama. ( I doubt that scene will be repeated in a year!) 

In the end, it was Stormfeather's view for me... 

And an honourable mention for Leisha's lake - wow! If I ever get round to buying a digital body for my Olympus OM2N, I'll join in...


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## Erin99

Wow, I'd forgotten the voting was so soon. And now I find I've got votes!  Thank you for all the kind votes and mentions (yes, I live in the Lake District, so my images are a little generic!). I really should try to get back into these challenges (I've just got a lot going on at the moment, but thankfully not as much as Seph).

Thanks for the kinds words, too, Cul. It's nice to enter this time, and I do hope I can do it again. But right now my activity/writing/doing-anything time is limited, and I'm not really allowed to do much for the foreseeable future. Saying that, these last two days I've been sneakily writing a little, cos I haven't for months and it's driving me crazy, being a writer who is not allowed to write!!!

Anyway, there are so many photos I loved this month. There's some gorgeous flower shots, a funny cat pic that made me laugh, and some special mentions for a few contributors:

Taly - Both shots are fantastic and well-timed.
Alchemist - I love the magical feel of that woodland!
Mouse - The penguins are soooo sweet!
Mosaix - I took a waterfall shot for this month too, but discarded it. Now I'm glad I did, cos yours is much more impressive!
Stormfeather - Impressive light rays and no overblown highlights - brilliant!
Hoopy - Two adorable creatures, and that seagull has such a wicked look on its face and in its posture!

My winner is.... Taly's bee! I love the sharpness and closeness of it - and without a dedicated macro lens too!


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## Talysia

Thanks for the honourable mentions, Stormfeather and Boneman, and for the vote, too Leisha!  As for the frog, well, he seemed quite happy to sit there and let me take his picture.  I had to wait for over five minutes for the bee to settle long enough to get a good shot of him, though!


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## alchemist

Interesting polling so far! Thanks for the vote SF, and the mentions, folks.


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## Parson

I liked Leisha's landscape. It made me think of how timeless our planet is on our human scale of time. ---- Duh! I voted for her too.


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## Culhwch

The poll is closed, and Leisha is the winner!!! Congrats, Leish!


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## TheDustyZebra

Congrats, Leisha! Excellent pictures! Hopefully I'll have more time this month to devote to whatever challenge you set for us.


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## Talysia

Congratulations, Leisha!


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## Perpetual Man

Wonderful photos and a great win, congratulations Leisha


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## alchemist

Congrats Leisha! Looking forward to next month's subject.


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## mosaix

Congratulations, Leisha!


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## Parson

Nice to pick a winner! Congrats Leisha!


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## Erin99

Oh, blimey! I log on here to reply to a PM - and wow! Thanks. This has really made my week! There were so many other fantastic entries that deserved to win...

I shall have a think about the next theme and post it up later. An idea's just popped in my head, but it might be too silly/plain/uninspiring, so I'll consider it some more.

Thank you all again, for the votes _and_ mentions!


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## Wybren

Congrats Leish!


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## Mouse

I don't know if we do like we do in the writing challenge and show our other efforts, but here's one of the other photos I got of those penguins. It's a bit poo, as you can see.


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