Random/Not Categorised Pics

This will likely be the last update post of old stuff, unless I discover some really cool shots (unlikely!)

These are all utterly random pictures which wouldn't be worth blogging separately.

Shrooms.

So, let's start with a picture of some mushrooms. Yes, really, mushrooms.  I just saw this outcrop of bright orange mushrooms bursting out amongst some newly seeded fresh green grass shoots.  Oh, and it just happened to be at sunset, so the lighting was gorgeous.

This was actually taken in the grounds at work, as was the next picture.  Which is of a tree.  Yep, I'm that kind of photographer, I suppose!

Golden Branches.

This was one of those weird moments when I saw this old tree in the grounds at work, with its autumn leaves all shades of green, yellow & orange, and the deep blue morning sky in the background, and I actually tried to frame an image.  I failed completely because I was still about 200 yards away from the tree and there was all sorts of other rubbish cluttering it up.  Then I found myself standing under the tree and looking up.  Click.  No edit required.

Sepia Snow.

After autumn comes winter.  This crumbling farm gate is a short stroll from my house.  I went for a walk one day with the express intention of taking some pictures of Stratford in the snow.  Not many of them came out, and even this one was a bit of a waste of time, so I just started messing around with a few filters.  Nothing really worked until I was demonstrating the temperature setting in the G+ photo editing software to my housemate and dragged the slider all the way up.  Sepia.  So tacky, but it somehow worked for this one.  Well, I thought so anyway!

Thawing Thistle.

On the same expedition, I saw this thistle with a cap of snow.  The macro focus on the Xperia S seemed to work pretty well and I ended up with a well focused subject and completely defocused backdrop.  Just a vignette to frame it and job done.

Burning Branches.

After winter comes spring, and we're back to the grounds at work for another picture of a tree.

I caught this one at sunset on my way out of the office.  Again, I just really liked the contrast of the orange sunlit tree against the cool blue sky.  It did come out a bit noisy, which is why I've added the blur.

I'm not 100% happy with it, but it's a compromise.

Moving on, the next snap is of a very fine spring blossom.  I'd noticed the buds coming out a few days earlier, but by the time I got around to snapping this one, the petals had already started falling.

Again, the macro worked really well and gave me a decently focused subject with a nicely blurred backdrop.

Tweaked for atmosphere and framed with a simple vignette.

Blushing Blossom.

Perky in Pink.

Another flower up next.  This one is actually a weed growing in my lawn, but the tiny pink petals caught my eye against the green lawn.

Once again, macro working a treat.  Sony phones always seem to perform really well at close quarters.  You can see just how tiny this flower is by comparing it with the blade of grass right next to it.

Rusty Rope.

And I'll leave you with possibly the most random image of the whole bunch.  In some pathetic attempt at trying to continue a vague theme of seasons, this one was taken on a summer camping trip to the Lake District.

On a walk up the Old Man of Coniston, we went past the ruins of the old mine.  There's lots of derelict buildings made of slate and lots of old rusty rails and pulley systems.  Something of a photographer's dream, really.  I couldn't do any of it justice, but I kind of like this one.  It's an old winch line which would have moved the rail carts up & down the mountain side.  You're looking down the mountain, back towards Coniston Water where our campsite was.

A bit of a mixed bag, this lot.  I hope you like some of them.  The images are free to use for any purpose, but please do link back to this blog if you use them.  Thanks.