stubbed toes and mud pies

[Trish Stretton]

Yes I had but it looks much bigger from ground level for some reason.
I have a bit over a 1/4 acre which I find big, sometimes too big, but just have to keep chipping away at it to knock it back in shape.

 

[flowerbug]

Yes I had but it looks much bigger from ground level for some reason.
I have a bit over a 1/4 acre which I find big, sometimes too big, but just have to keep chipping away at it to knock it back in shape.

i think that is just the camera lens making it look bigger, but 200x400ft is plenty of room i think it comes out to about 1.84acres.

 

[flowerbug]

getting there at last. still a ways to go, but always fun anyways.


Rig for holding camera - Think Adult Erector Set

Camera Mount

Bean Pic - Still need to work on lighting, but we're making progress... Wheeeeeee!

Photography | Anthive

What I sort of try to do or am working on or...

www.anthive.com

ok, now i gotta get another camera so i can take a pic of the camera on the rig right, Right, RIGHT?!!! lololol

 

[Trish Stretton]

lol, the man scientist meets 'Bean lady'.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yep, your next challenge is lighting. No shadows, no glare. Also you'll need to find what background looks best. Or will you just go with a standard white? You may have more fun tinkering with lights and background in the future.

 

[flowerbug]

lol, the man scientist meets 'Bean lady'.

bean lady? Mom is the lady of the house - i just work here. haha!

 

[flowerbug]

Yep, your next challenge is lighting. No shadows, no glare. Also you'll need to find what background looks best. Or will you just go with a standard white? You may have more fun tinkering with lights and background in the future.

at the moment i'm ok with the darker pattern i've used in the above photo as it cuts down on glare coming back which i think was causing me some problems when i used the white board i have already. but that is what experimenting is going to be all about, i've done some already.

trying to figure out how to do things quickly enough too. the trays i can make up a handful at a time and do the arranging so that all i have to do is put them in the spot and get the picture taken and then swap out for the next, etc.

i might not be able to do much about actual new devices for lighting because if everyone has to stay put and the stores are closed, or if the mail order stuff doesn't work anymore for a while due to them shipping groceries or whatever. we'll see, i have to consult with people who know more.

one thing i know so far is that i can't bounce light off the ceiling as i'd hoped, the camera is in the way as i want to get even closer than the above picture is showing. i'm also trying to find a bug in something that is bothering me so until i get that nailed down i don't want to do a lot of picture taking.

i won't be in full production until i do get the lighting figured out because i do want the pictures to be uniform enough in lighting/color that it will be consistent enough between sessions/batches of pictures that it isn't jarringly different.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I've had a limited number of colors to work with but have had the best results with a dull green or dull yellow cloth. Not typical dried bean colors and not the glare you can get with bright white.

The light can be a challenge, shadows and glare. Maybe experiment with reflective light from the sides? That might soften it some, especially if you use light colors but not a bright shiny white. Just thinking out loud.

 

[flowerbug]

I've had a limited number of colors to work with but have had the best results with a dull green or dull yellow cloth. Not typical dried bean colors and not the glare you can get with bright white.

The light can be a challenge, shadows and glare. Maybe experiment with reflective light from the sides? That might soften it some, especially if you use light colors but not a bright shiny white. Just thinking out loud.

i already have a nice box i am using to cut out the light that comes in from the sides so i just have to figure out how to get enough of the light on the beans to pick up the colors and textures and it has to be uniform enough. it is getting there. i just have to be patient and keep working on what i can get done here.

right now fixing up some issues with pictures i've already posted that bothered me. nobody will notice but me, but i'm one of those people who does things to the nth detail with computers because, well, that's what i used to do for a living and i like the process. it gives my brain something to do when i'm not busy with something else. then i don't have to pester Mom by telling her things she doesn't really want to know or care about.

i have to add a bit more, when i used to work the requirement for production was a lot more than what i do here, so if i make a mistake it doesn't hurt anyone, when i had an entire university at stake there was a lot different level of care i had to take.

 

[flowerbug]

making some progress.

onions divided and replanted in time for rains. some weeding and scraping done in the North garden.

but most of my efforts this past week when the weather and my body have cooperated has been to get this mess is cleaned up:

which i finished yesterday. the wood pile is now all buried and some of the weeds have been skimmed off the surface and also buried with the wood. the worms will enjoy that for years to come. whatever gets planted on top (likely beans) will also do better having some extra elevation and drainage.

next time i get the camera outside i'll get a pic as it does look so much nicer already.

with the rains of last night and the coming days i won't be doing much in this garden for a while. when i can get back to it i have to skim the weeds from the surface and get it ready for planting. i let it go fallow last year so all those weeds are now prime worm food when i can get them skimmed and buried deeply enough. i hope to get that entire garden back to the fence in the distance ready but i'm not sure i will be able to do that - always a challenge this time of the year between getting ready and trying to finish up whatever other projects that have been sticking around from the previous season. ahem. which i've got...

on the picture taking front of things, i worked on a few aspects and came up with a small added gadget using some small mirrors, foam and a piece of plastic from a milk bottle which holds the gadget in front of the flash and so the light gets scattered to the sides and reducing the glare to a much more acceptable amount. i can be happy with this for the moment, but as usual i am fiddling with other things as i'm trying all of this out. since i can't get mail-order stuff or go out for a while this might have to do. will keep working at it.

i have gotten comments about the background being "too busy" and while i understand that i also like it. so hard to change or find something else but i have someone doing a lot of quilting here it won't be too hard to come up with other fabric to use instead. we'll see how that goes when i test it out next.

rainy days are good for this sort of project and any other indoor projects (except cleaning which i won't be doing )...

have some scraps to get into the worm buckets. i'm not sure if i should start with that or not. flip a coin?