Draconid Meteor Shower

Yeah right! So last night about 8:30PM Kelly and I drove a 1/4 mile up the lane to park up on a track between 2 cornfields to photograph the predicted 9PM peak Draconid Meteor Shower. After about an hour not a single meteor did we see. Loads of planes, Satelites and the Life Lion chopper from Hershey Med. In the photo you can easily make out Ursa Major (the Plough) and the pointers to Polaris (Pole Star) with the Draco constellation in the top left of the shot.

I've been a bit busy the last few weeks doing 'stuff' but I did find time earlier in the evening to capture fluffy little aloof Juno perched on my chair.

A few from Middle Creek

I called into Middle Creek in passing and bumped into a couple of notorious photographers I haven't seen for a while, it was fun catching up with them though I could have done without the tales of kidney stones and pissing razorblades. 😜

Eastern-tiger Swallowtail on Phlox

Black-eyed Susan and Wild Bergamot

Wild Bergamot

Black-eyed Susan

Black-eyed Susan

Feline Models

After a bit of reading and watching a few videos on using flash for a portrait image I took a few of the available subject models this morning.

Kit Kat

Willow

Willow

Four

Oliver

 I've been playing around with using flash in a portrait type scenario and Oliver was the only available model.

Oliver

Ruddy Turnstone

 I came across these from a couple of years ago and added them to my Shorebirds page along with a load of others then realized I didn’t have either of the Yellowlegs in there 🙄. Shorebirds

Dohhhh! Just saw that I don’t have Semipalmated Sandpipers in there, I’ll have to fix that sometime  

Ruddy Turnstone

Ruddy Turnstone

Ruddy Turnstone

Gray Catbird

 Started the morning by firing up the chainsaw and clearing a path through fallen trees and branches, the aftermath of the July 4th Storm. I did just enough to be able to drive my tractor through to the compost heap and the field should I get the inclination to do a bit of Astro photography. The trees were covered in ivy and I had the idea of using a bit as a perch. Here's the result.

Gray Catbird

Gray Catbird

Gray Catbird 

Path to the compost heap.

Sunflowers in the Smoke

Several days of Air Quality Alerts this week due the wildfire smoke coming down from Canada. The last couple of days I've limited my time outdoors and in the car I've had it on recirculating air rather than bringing it in from outside. I did pop out just a 1/4 mile up the lane to photograph the sunflowers in the murky sky this evening. One morning I might even pop out at dawn and get them illuminated by the rising sun.

Sunflower

Sunflower in smoky skies