Invader

I was just about to sit on the bench in the churchyard when I spotted:



I thought it might be a Harlequin ladybird but wasn't sure until I had done some checking. The markings and colouring, including the orange legs, looks right.

Monday Mystery

Last wek's close view



was part of





a harness as spotted by Adrian and Ellen D, and correctly identified as Penny's harness by Kev Scott. Well done.

On to the new close view



which is part of ..... what?

Please leave any guesses in the comments.
They will be revealed, along with the answer, next Monday.

Changed Layout

Had a dabble with a new layout.

For a while, while I was trying things out, I could alter the basic text size.

When I changed the background colour the text option disappeared which was annoying as I wanted to make it slightly larger. At least it appears to be easier to read on small screens.

P.S. Found the text change facility again. Just a question of clicking the correct drop down menu under Advanced.

Hairy Minibeast

Penny spotted something hairy creeping past the back door. I managed to capture it in a small plastic petri dish. Unfortunately it then refused to do anything but curl up.

LCD microscope photo:



I let it go again and waited for it to start moving. Unfortunately for a small beast it can really move fast. The best I could get as it rushed for cover:





It turned out to be a Ruby Tiger Moth caterpillar. Hair in tufts, about 25mm long. Right time of year for a second brood. Have seen the adult moths from time to time in the longer parts of the lawn.

Ribbit

Whenever I get round to mowing the longer areas of grass I have to watch out for:





Yesterday was no different.

Frame and background added using Mac app Poster Maker Pro - Collage.

Monday Mystery

Not too many problems for most in identifying



as part of



a wooden bench. One I take a breather on every time we walk through the churchyard. Well done to Thelma, Adrian, Kev Scott, Dave and Kris.
I see where you were coming from Ellen D. but in general we don't have personal post boxes outdoors, just letter boxes (rectangular hole cover by a hinged flap) in our front doors.

Another close view of something for you to identify:

which is part of what?

Please leave any guesses in the comments. They will be revealed, along with the answer, next Monday.

P.S. I loathe this new Blogger interface.

Red Admiral Feeding on Ivy

Automatic Time Lapse Video

The Canon G5X mk2 can not only make panorama photographs in real time but it can also make time lapse videos, in camera, in real time. Just a few menu settings needed. Take a still to set focus and exposure for the video. Start the sequence. Transfer finished video to laptop.



A vast improvement on the days when I had to use a camera with external time lapse trigger. Take hundreds of individual still shots. Transfer them to my laptop. Run a program to add the photos together to make a video.
Title sequence added using Wondershare Filmora 9.

Five Heads Better Than One?

 

Monday Mystery

Not often I defeat everyone.
Last week's close view:



was part of:



a perforated lid for frying pans.
Very useful for keeping splatter from bacon under control.
I also use it when I sear meat and then pour in an OXO, Bisto gravy granules mix to simmer the meat. It slows down the evaporation.

Maybe you will have an easier job identifying this close view



of what?

Please leave any guesses in the comments.
They will be revealed, along with the answer, next Monday.

The Sport of Greyhounds

They say horse racing is the sport of kings.
I reckon rabbit spotting and chasing is the sport of greyhounds.

It really makes Penny's day when she spots one or two when we walk through the churchyard.





They usually disappear as soon as they spot us but this time I was able to stay reasonably hidden while I took a couple of shots. Once they spotted Penny they hurtled back to the safety of waste land next to the churchyard.

Harrowing

On reaching the end of our lane I could see that the next stage in preparing the land for its next crop was well under way. This time with a harrow to break up the large clods of earth left after ploughing.

Wider and Wider

While out for our morning walk I found the panorama setting on the Canon G5X MkII so gave it a whirl. I soon found out that I needed to focus on the main part of the panorama area I was about to shoot. Then move the camera to the start position. Once the shutter button is fully pressed it rapidly keeps taking and stitching photos as the camera is moved round until the button is released. The panorama is produced almost instantly for review.

These are uncropped, as taken apart from a bit of added clarity.
Unfortunately panoramas are shot in jpg so not as amenable to tweaking as RAW photos.

 



 

Monday Mystery

Most people were correct identifying



as a close up of my freezer being de-iced.



Notice the standard fan blowing warm room air in to speed things up.

Well done Ragged Robin, the Veg Artist and Wilma. Close were Adrian and Kris.
Thanks to all who had a go.

I wonder what this is and what it is used for:



If you would like to have a guess please leave it in the comments.
They will be revealed, along with the answer, next Monday.

Manby Park

Don't go getting the wrong impression here. Manby Park isn't a wildlife park or part of the open countryside. It's the cuddly name for what used to be RAF Manby, now basically an area for small businesses many of which are housed in the old RAF buildings. I had to take a package to Manby Post Office to return to Amazon after they managed to send the wrong item. As the P.O. is opposite Manby Park I thought I would have a look round. Years ago, when my hip joints would let me walk that far, I frequently took my dog for a walk there, as many people do now. I thought it would be interesting to see how much it may have changed since then.



Going past what used to be the guard room at the main entrance:



As it was a Saturday the main car park was deserted:



The buildings which are occupied are, on the whole, well maintained.
The largest, Tedder Hall, is the headquarters of East Lindsey District Council:








Some need a bit of TLC on the grounds outside, though good for wild life::



All the main buildings have RAF related names. This one will be recognised by many of us:



Pity the owners don't give it a bit of a wash now and then:



Some of the unoccupied buildings have suffered at the hands of the local IQ 0's:



It's not all stark buildings. There are the occasional areas which give a more countryside feel:



Lastly, can you guess what this building was for?



Before it became a convenient place to put mobile phone aerials it was the station's water tower.

Viewing RAW Files

One of the frustration of working with RAW files, on my MacBook anyway, has been finding a fast viewer to show them as they should really look while deciding which ones are worth processing. Some applications can handle them but show a somewhat inferior jpg interpretation of the picture. Also they tend to be ponderous or one has to drag each file separately to the app. I have Canon's own software but is is so s-l-o-w and drives the CPU fan crazy while it chugs away.

I went searching for a suitable app and came across FastRawViewer and installed the 30 day fully working trial.  Superb. Point it at a folder of RAW files and they are loaded in a flash. Thumbnails at the bottom and you can jump from photo to photo in an instant.



The main purpose of FastRawViewer is to help in deciding which photos are worth keeping. Unwanted photos can be sent to a _Rejected folder in the same folder as the photos. From there they can be sent to the trash as normal at a later time.

The app can work with a vast range of RAW files from a whole host of cameras. Another useful attribute is its ability to link to a RAW processing app. In my case I linked it to Affinity Photo so when I have chosen a photo to work on it is loaded in Affinity Photo without having to exit FastRawViewer. There is more to the app than I have detailed here. Have a look at their web site HERE if you are interested. It is not expensive to purchase and is available in Windows and Mac variations. Normally £18.99 but with 25% off for a few more days.

Ploughing

It didn't take me long to make my mind up - for a change.
My new pocket / compact camera is the Canon G5 X MkII.
After patiently waiting for the battery to charge I took it with us on our after tea walk down the lane. Took quite a few test shots and a couple of pieces of video.



This was taken at 1080p FHD 25 fps., hand held. The camera can take 4K resolution but that will have to wait for another day.  The strip of b/w down the right on the thumbnail appears to be a YouTube artefact as it doesn't exist on the actual video.  Hopefully some still photos tomorrow once I have processed them as they were all taken in RAW.

All is Safely Gathered in

Not quite the same harvesting machinery as that used in the Dad's Army episode with the same title.



Considering the weather we have had recently the crop seems to be in reasonable condition.
One day last week, along with very gusty wind, we had 1.4 inches of rain in a three hour downpour.





Unlike the last time I filmed a combine at work this time the dust was blowing away from me.



As is usual this time of year I could hear them still at work at 10 p.m. last night.
Farming is definitely not a 9 - 4, 5 days a week occupation.
Whenever work needs doing they set to and get on with it.

...............................

It looks as though I am going to have to look out for a replacemet pocket size camera.
The Nikon seems to be reaching the end of its useful life.
Many times the shutter doesn't fire even though I get a beep to say it is in focus.
I had thought of buying another Nikon but I've seen several bad reviews / comments on the poor reliability of newer models. Any suggestions would be gratefully received. It needs to be a camera small enough to go in a shirt pocket with a lens which sinks back level with the front of the body, has a good zoom range and will take HD video. Fussy aren't I?