Changing Lanes

My Mom screams out to me from the kitchen asking me to get rid of the house flies buzzing around her head as she cooks some fish. I hurry to the kitchen and spot a house fly and manage to somehow make it fly out the door (leading to the balcony). I look around for some more flies but spot none. I walk back to the computer. After some time my Mom tells me there is still a fly buzzing around. I get back to the kitchen look around but can't spot the fly. I looked carefully at the food and spotted a fly walking on some uncooked fish completely wet and unable to fly. I take a dry tissue, managed to get the fly to walk onto it and laid it down outside. Then I stood there and took a few shots while I watched the fly for a good 10mins as it dried it legs, eyes, wings. It was fascinating to watch such a small creature go about drying it self.Shooting Date/Time : 12/31/2008 12:35:23 PM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/60
Av(Aperture Value) : 4.5
Metering Mode : Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed : 200
Lens : 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Focal Length : 50.0 mmShooting Date/Time : 12/31/2008 12:35:54 PM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/100
Av(Aperture Value) : 4.5
Metering Mode : Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed : 200
Lens : 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Focal Length : 50.0 mm

Spotted this guy buzzing around in the front yard of a villa in Jumeirah next to Ijaza cafeteria...Did you know that a Wasp is a social or solitary hymenopterans typically having a slender body with the abdomen attached by a narrow stalk and having a formidable sting (off google search)....'formidable sting'...hmm....Shooting Date/Time : 12/19/2008 8:45:17 AM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/250
Av(Aperture Value) : 6.3
Metering Mode : Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed : 200
Lens : 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Focal Length : 50.0 mm

A shot of shattered glass lying on the ground behind a bunch of schools in Garhoud opposite Lifco supermarket....Shooting Date/Time : 12/23/2008 3:27:07 PM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/640
Av(Aperture Value) : 6.3
Metering Mode : Evaluative Metering
ISO Speed : 200
Lens : 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Focal Length : 50.0 mm

Wrote this poem last night. Don't like it too much apart from the ending I guess.....

Read to understand live...
16/12/2008

Read between the lines
To survive in this world
Understand how it works
Live the normal life

Read between these lines
To see what I feel
Understand my emotions
Live through my eyes

Read between any lines
To just kill time
Understand what it depicts
Live believing it fiction

Read between my lines
To see into my eyes
Understand that I cannot read
Live without seeing the lines

-Stained

This is a shot of the sunset last evening taken from the roof of my building. It's a three shot panorama.Shooting Date/Time : 12/16/2008 5:24:17 PM - 5:24:21 PM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/50
Av(Aperture Value) : 6.3
Metering Mode : Partial Metering
ISO Speed : 100
Lens : 18.0 - 200.0 mm
Focal Length : 18.0 mm

Got my self a new lens. A Sigma 50mm f2.8 Macro. Not the best lens around though optically amazing and it was being sold second hand at a bargain price of AED450/-, so I picked it up.

Here's a picture of a flower growing in my balcony.Shooting Date/Time : 12/14/2008 12:13:44 PM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/125
Av(Aperture Value) 2.8
Metering Mode : Partial Metering
ISO Speed : 200
Lens : 50mm f/2.8 Macro
Focal Length : 50.0 mm

On the 6th of this month I went for an off-road trip with some other local photographers. A trip to see the sunrise from the desert and to visit a mountain/hill called fossil rock. Unfortunately we could only managed to get to Fossil Rock Minor due to inexperience off road drivers though we plan to tackle the tracks to the Large fossil Rock another time.

1) A two shot Panorama of the sunrise over Maliha Mountain.......btw the two dots on the right are hot air balloons and not dirt on my sensor... Shooting Date/Time : 12/6/2008 7:01:39 AM - 7:01:41 AM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/400 - 1/320
Av(Aperture Value) : 5.6
Metering Mode : Center-Weighted Average Metering
ISO Speed 100
Lens 18.0 - 200.0 mm
Focal Length 35.0 mm

2) I tried a different approach to process this pictures. Might look like an HDR but it isn't. Well not completely. I played around with the Exposure and highlights/Shadows option in PS3. Btw the white glow on the right was mist rising as the sun rose....was very cool to watch it....Shooting Date/Time : 12/6/2008 6:58:39 AM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/125
Av(Aperture Value) : 6.3
Metering Mode : Center-Weighted Average Metering
ISO Speed : 100
Lens : 18.0 - 200.0 mm
Focal Length : 24.0 mm

3) 6 shot panorama of Fossil rock minor....I know it doesn't look like much but the view was great...also a bit too much sky for my liking but I wanted to frame that plane into the picture...Shooting Date/Time : 12/6/2008 7:34:46 AM - 7:34:53 AM
Tv(Shutter Speed) : 1/320
Av(Aperture Value) : 6.3
Metering Mode : Center-Weighted Average Metering
ISO Speed : 100
Lens : 18.0 - 200.0 mm
Focal Length : 18.0 mm

Note: Been kinda lazy to make any new posts...so didn't post much over here.