Autumn leaves

Autumn leaves, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

With all the wind we've had on the fringe of Superstorm Sandy, the autumn display of colors has been transferred to the ground. This leaf drop has been going on for the past month, but the storm finished it off in style.

I've heard from family and friends that were in the heart of the storm, and everyone is ok. My thoughts are with those that have suffered damage to property, loss of loved ones, and are struggling for transportation and the challenge of being without electricity.

Time to harvest Jesse's fruits

Time to harvest Jesse's fruits, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

We've come full circle on the life cycle of our second Titan Arum to bloom at the Ohio State University Biological Sciences greenhouses. Jesse bloomed May 25, 2012. We pollinated with pollen from two different titan arums, and it worked beautifully well. The fruits are ripening, and the uppermost ones are ready for harvesting.


I documented the growth of the inflorescence and the bloom with this time-lapse video:

LeVeque Tower Shadow

LeVeque Tower Shadow, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Downtown Columbus, Ohio. This is from October 11, 2012 - 10/11/12. Pretty cool shadow from the LeVeque Tower on the adjacent building.

Columbus has a lot of cool things in the downtown area, but I'm partial to the historic LeVeque Tower.

Autumn at Highbanks series

Autumn at Highbanks, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

This weekend the weather is cold, windy, rainy and very gloomy. That's a huge contrast to last weekend when the weather was in the 70s and absolutely perfect for showing off the last of the fall colors. Whenever possible, Steve and I walk the trails at Highbanks Metro park - usually covering about 4 or 5 miles of the 12 or so miles of trails there.

During this time of year I really enjoy capturing the beauty of the colorful autumn canopy against a blue sky. This is one of the many beech trees, which are among the last of the forest trees to exhibit a riot of color. When most of the maples have already dropped a significant proportion of their autumn leaves, the beeches are just coming into prime.

The view from Waterman Farm

Waterman Farm, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Last weekend's fall colors were glorious - especially with a bit of stormy weather and the sun peaking out after the storms. This photo is from the western part of Waterman Farm at Ohio State University. The row of houses is along North Star, and represents the eastern edge of Upper Arlington.

UA autumn

UA autumn, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

This is from my neighborhood. Last Saturday Steve and I did a long walk just after the rain stopped and the sun was peeking through holes in the clouds. For just a fleeting moment sunlight illuminated this sugar maple. The stormy clouds in the background were the perfect setting to highlight the fall colors. It lasted for just a couple of seconds, so I'm glad I had the camera out and ready to shoot.

Oak leaf and moss

Oak leaf and moss, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

A cool morning with the dew clinging to all surfaces, leaving trails of drops on windows. The light gently streaming in muted beams, filtered by yellow, orange, and red leaves, making the forest a cathedral of whispers. It's autumn at its best.

Autumn at Highbanks - beech leaves

Autumn at Highbanks, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The colors of the beech canopy were awesome this past weekend. I wish I could capture this spectrum in some of my artwork.

Autumn at Highbanks

Autumn at Highbanks, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The autumn colors are still going strong at Highbanks Metro Park. This was from yesterday morning.

Autumn at Waterman Farm

Autumn at Waterman Farm, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I know I've mentioned how much I like living near an urban farm. Yesterday was one of those days that exemplify why. The morning had been stormy, but as it was clearing Steve and I decided to do a long walk. We have these new fancy pedometers, which give us some incentive to make sure we walk 10,000 or more steps each day.

Given how dramatic the sky appeared with the potential for some sun beams coming through holes in the cloud cover plus the wet foliage and ground, I knew there would be an opportunity to photograph a dramatic autumn scene. We headed to the farm and found the spot I anticipated would yield the shot, and then we waited, waited, and waited some more. We could watch where the sun appeared in patches and then disappeared. When it was tracking the right direction I got my camera set up and ready.

All of a sudden the sun illuminated the autumn colors of the trees behind the first row of houses on the eastern edge of Upper Arlington. Stunning light, stunning colors, dramatic clouds - a winner.

Waterman Farm sunrise

Waterman Farm sunrise, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Yesterday's sunrise was beautiful. Steve and I missed our sunrise walk yesterday because he had an appointment in the early morning. However, he was very sweet to call me to let me know that sunrise might be awesome. So, I grabbed my camera and tripod, donned a jacket and hat, and did a fast walk down to the edge of Waterman Farm. It was, indeed, a lovely sunrise. The cows were so curious that they headed toward the fence straight away. That's why there are some cow backs in the foreground.

UA sunrise

UA sunrise, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

This photo is from my morning walk today. I took my camera to the edge of Waterman Farm to get a sunrise pic, and when I started walking home, the lighting in the neighborhood was stunning.

Autumn at Highbanks

Autumn at Highbanks, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

My Sony RX100 has a built-in panorama setting. One usually does horizontal pans, but last Sunday, at Highbanks, the autumn colors were so beautiful I wanted to capture the essence of the forest from top to bottom. A vertical panorama was needed to do the forest justice....

Gray hairstreak butterfly

Gray hairstreak butterfly, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The scales on the edges of the wings look like small hairs. It's a tiny little butterfly foraging on the flowers of goldenrod. Seen at Glacier Ridge Metro Park September 23, 2012.

Autumn canopy

Autumn canopy, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Sometimes one needs a change in perspective. Some of the trees at Highbanks Metro Park are pretty old and have interesting branching patterns.

A slide show of my ICM photography

ICM: Autumn

ICM: Autumn, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I enjoyed my walk with Steve yesterday at Highbanks. I didn't want to lug my big DSLR for a long walk, so I had my Sony RX100 along. I can use manual settings for this camera and so I decided to try some Intentional Camera Movement techniques to see how it would perform. It did very well, I think. This is a fairly short exposure, but the rapid movement worked to streak the light and colors of autumn.

Autumn at Highbanks

Autumn at Highbanks, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Steve and I went for a long walk at Highbanks this morning. It seemed like the best opportunity to enjoy the fall foliage. It's supposed to thunderstorm later this weekend, so we wanted to see everything before the trees get hammered by a storm.

Dawn on the Gold Coast

Dawn on the Gold Coast, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Back to Australia for this image. From Queensland's Gold Coast.

Lake Somerset in Autumn

Lake Somerset in Autumn, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

My favorite time of year.....

Colors of autumn

Autumn in Pennsylvania, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that the colors of autumn involve more than the changing leaf spectrum. Goldenrod is a prominent component of the autumn color scheme.

Autumn in Pennsylvania

Autumn in Pennsylvania, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Sumac turns such vivid colors during autumn. Last weekend, it was the big winner in terms of color hues.

Autumn on the farm

Autumn on the farm, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Steve and I spent the weekend over in Pennsylvania to go to the Allegheny Front Hawk Watch site. It rained Saturday, so we never made it up there, but we did drive around the country a bit. Near a covered bridge was this beautiful field of hay bales. I like the symmetry of the rotoballes and the color contrast of the lush green field with the brilliant autumn foliage. The soft lighting and wet foliage was a great combination for vivid saturation, too.

Hyrax

Hyrax, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Also known as a Dassie. This one was photographed in Hermanus, South Africa in 2010.

From Plunderbund's blog:

After the First Debate – The Fact Checking Festival (via PlunderBund)

Last night President Obama and Governor Romney had their first debate. Now the fact checking festival begins. My final thought of the night last night on Twitter… My final thought of the night on Facebook…   How does one debate a shape shifter? How does anyone expect our President to be able to…

Australian sunrise

Australian sunrise, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

After watching the presidential debate last night, I need an image to bring me back to a sense of calm. What I found most disturbing was the ease with which Mitt Romney lies to the American public. It worries me that people will swallow his pitch hook, line and sinker.

Please, readers, take the time to read through all the fact check analyses. Romney does not offer us a solution to unemployment, medical insurance, medicare, foreign policy. He won't share with us his real plans because the only thing he supports is the Reaganomics that failed us over the past 30 years. Deregulation is not our collective friend. Having corporations decide public policy is not to our benefit. Continuing the economic inequality policies that have squeezed the middle class and sidetracked the American Dream is not the way forward.

Gray hairstreak butterfly

Gray hairstreak butterfly, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

A very small, but beautiful butterfly that was foraging on goldenrod at Whetstone prairie.

Beetles in the park

Beetles in the park, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Spotted cucumber beetles - one of the common insects easily seen this time of year. If you want to see one, check out the late blooming flowers in the sunflower family.

Pretty Emma

Pretty Emma, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Emma is now eight years old, and is starting to get some white hairs around her muzzle. She's just as sweet as ever, and is still the alpha of the dachshund pack, despite have two youngsters who outweigh her by three or more pounds