Words & Pictures

Bee Orchid

Bee Orchid, originally uploaded by Roger B.

Bee orchid (Ophrys apifera). Photographed today at Maltby Common Local Nature Reserve, South Yorkshire.

Interview

I was recently interviewed by Elizabeth Edwards for her blog, 1stAngel & Friends. You can read the results here.

Greeting Cards

Greeting Cards, originally uploaded by Roger B.

On 10th March I ordered a selection of greeting cards featuring images from my Imagekind galleries. I wanted to check the quality of the printing before I consider ordering a larger batch.

The cards arrived in the mail this morning, nearly two weeks earlier than Imagekind's estimated delivery date. Securely packaged, they had travelled undamaged all the way from Portland, Oregon.

Each card measures approximately 160mm x 114mm and is packaged in a re-sealable cellophane pocket. The quality of the printing is very good, accurately reproducing the colours and tones of the original image.

I ordered samples on both satin and matte card. Satin seems to give better reproduction of bright colours, whereas matte suits more subtle shades. Both types of card are thick enough to enable the cards to stand up once opened.

The finishing is a lot better than some greeting cards that I've seen. On the back of each card is:

• the Imagekind logo
• a thumbnail version of the image
• the title of the image
• © Roger Butterfield
• http://roger.imagekind.com/
• All rights reserved

Shooting frogs in Rivelin

Rana temporaria, originally uploaded by Roger B..

This common frog (Rana temporaria) was photographed in the Rivelin Valley, Sheffield (UK).

I wasn't 100% happy with the frog shot that I uploaded to Flickr yesterday: the angle of view was a little steep and depth of focus was way too shallow. This morning I went back to the pond and had another go.

I used a 50-200mm zoom lens fitted with an extension tube, which allowed me to get a bit closer to the subject. The main problem with using an extension tube is that the depth of focus becomes extremely shallow, so you have to use a very small aperture (high f number) to get decent results.

After taking numerous experimental shots, I eventually focussed on a frog that was hanging motionless in the water. The only sign of life was the occasional twitch of its nostrils.

Thankfully the frog stayed still long enough for me to take this shot. The camera was mounted on a low tripod, enabling me to get away with an exposure of 1/3 second.

The other essential equipment for taking this shot was a waterproof jacket and trousers - I ended up lying down in the mud at the edge of the pond!

This photo is available as a print and a greeting card from Imagekind. See roger.imagekind.com/wildlife.

New Album

I have set up a new photo album to showcase some of pictures that I am selling via Imagekind.

I will add more pictures to the album soon.

Images for sale

An Lochan Uaine, originally uploaded by Roger B..

Althought it's about a year since I signed up with Imagekind, I haven't been able put much time/effort into selling my photographs.

I've decided to remedy the situation by uploading a new batch of pictures, starting with some of the shots I took in Scotland last May. All the images are available as both prints and greeting cards.

I will be adding more new images over the next few weeks. See http://roger.imagekind.com.

Stunning

Aurora.., originally uploaded by olgeir.

I've just been looking at a superb series of images of the Aurora Borealis by Olgeir Andrésson, one of my favourite photographers on Flickr.

Simply stunning!

Water Power

Yesterday afternoon I went down to the Rivelin Valley to take some photos of the river in spate.

There was nowhere near as much water as there was last June, but it was still a spectacular sight.

Thirty-five years ago...

Mum & Dad, originally uploaded by Roger B..

I took this photograph of my parents 35 years ago in the winter of 1972/73.

This picture is very important to me, partly because it's my first 'proper' photo (rather than just a snap).

The digital image reproduced here is a scan of a Kodachrome transparency, taken with a Kodak Instamatic camera. The original image was in square 126 format, but I haven't been able to get it scanned full frame.

ENFO Poster

Enfo Poster, originally uploaded by Roger B..

Yesterday morning I received a package from the Republic of Ireland. It contained a series of A3 posters produced by ENFO, the environmental information service run by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

One of the posters features my photograph of a red grouse, taken in December 2004.