Photography
grrlscientist | May 26, 2010tags: Katusoittaja, busker, travel, culture, Kamppi, Helsinki, Finland, image of the day, photography
Katusoittaja
Photographed in the Kamppi neighborhood of Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
awild | May 26, 2010
Anochetus paripungens trap-jaw ant carrying a cocoon, Australia
photo details:
Canon EOS 50D camera
Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens
ISO 100, f/13, 1/250sec
twin flash heads placed in front and behind the subject.
grrlscientist | May 26, 2010tags: Dickcissel, Townsend's Sparrow, Townsend's Bunting, Spiza americana, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Dickcissel, occasionally (at least historically) known as Townsend's Bunting or Townsend's Sparrow, Spiza americana, photographed at Bolivar Peninsula, Galveston County, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 April 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to…
awild | May 25, 2010You've seen the ISO button on your camera. What does it do, and why does it matter?
ISO- an abbreviation for International Organization for Standardization- refers to a standard measure of the sensitivity of film or digital sensors to incoming light. The higher the ISO rating, the more sensitive the sensor and the less light required to form an image. Wikipedia carries a nice summary of the technical details.
Most digital cameras support a range of ISO ratings from 100 to 3200 or even higher. These ratings are calibrated so that a doubling in number indicates a doubling of sensitivity. ISO…
grrlscientist | May 25, 2010tags: molluscs, Spondylus Imperialis Oyster, travel, Luonnontieteellinen keskusmuseo, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland, image of the day, photography
Spondylus Imperialis Oyster?
Photographed in the Luonnontieteellinen keskusmuseo, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
grrlscientist | May 25, 2010tags: House Finch, Carpodacus mexicanus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] House Finch, Carpodacus mexicanus, photographed in a backyard in Houston, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 28 March 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/640s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This species has an interesting feature that provides insight into its life history -- can you tell me what that feature is and what it reveals about this…
grrlscientist | May 24, 2010tags: flowers, Purppura Päivänkakkaraa, travel, Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland, image of the day, photography
Vaaleanpunainen Päivänkakkara.
Photographed in the Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
Here's a silly thing that you might enjoy. When naming this image, I used Google translate to check my Finnish because, well, we all know why. Anyway, I found something weird (you can check this for yourself if you are so ambitious):
English
Finnish
purple…
grrlscientist | May 24, 2010tags: Blue Grosbeak, Passerina caerulea, Guiraca caerulea, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Female Blue Grosbeak, Passerina (Guiraca) caerulea, photographed at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary, Brazoria County, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours] [For your reference, here's a male of the species in breeding plumage]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 27 April 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery…
grrlscientist | May 23, 2010tags: Shuttle Launch Preparation Choreographed Like Ballet, Space Shuttle, space exploration, space flight, NASA, Scott Andrews, Stan Jirman, Philip Scott Andrews, photography, time-lapse video, streaming video
This video is simply stunning and the photography is masterful. In this video, we are looking at time-lapse photographs by photographers Scott Andrews, Stan Jirman and Philip Scott Andrews, who decided to demonstrate the process of launching a shuttle in a new and innovative way. Using time-lapse photography, they turned the 6 week process of prepping a shuttle into this gorgeous four…
grrlscientist | May 23, 2010tags: flowers, Vaaleanpunainen Päivänkakkara, travel, Suomenlinna, Helsinki, Finland, image of the day, photography
Vaaleanpunainen Päivänkakkara.
Photographed in the Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
awild | May 23, 2010
The Boneyard Bombshells (red) take on The 'Paign (blue) in Champaign-Urbana's first ever roller derby bout
How many rocket scientists does it take to set up a roller derby bout?
Apparently, the answer is two. That's how many were on hand Friday night to help lay the track for Champaign-Urbana roller derby's sold-out exhibition bout. In a university town there's a lot of spare expertise floating around. I'm pretty sure we had the most precise track ever measured out in the history of the sport, and the league is only four months old.
Mrs. Myrmecos (a.k.a. Elle Camino) skates for the…
grrlscientist | May 23, 2010tags: Red-tailed Tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Red-tailed Tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda rothschildi, photographed on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, Midway Island, Hawai'i [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joe Fuhrman, March 2010. I encourage you to purchase images from this professional photographer.
NOTE: Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | May 22, 2010tags: nature, Keväällä Suomenlinnassa, travel, Suomenlinna, Helsinki, Finland, image of the day, photography
Keväällä Suomenlinnassa.
Photographed on the island of Suomenlinna, Helsinki, Finland.
Image: GrrlScientist, 20 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
This is one of the last photographs I snapped in Helsinki -- I chose to spend my last day in Finland on the historical island fortress of Suomenlinna (which is one of my favorite places to go and to photograph). One of my goals is to return to Helsinki and to stay in a hotel on the island of Suomenlinna (preferably in winter)…
grrlscientist | May 22, 2010tags: Kori Bustard, Ardeotis kori, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Kori Bustard, Ardeotis kori, photographed in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 15 January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300, ISO 400, 1/2000 sec, f/8. Exp Comp -1.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This African mystery bird is quite remarkable: if you can identify this recognizable species, then you'll also be able to tell me why this bird is so remarkable. I'm also wondering if it's possible…
laelaps | May 22, 2010A lion cub (Panthera leo) stalking its sibling, photographed at the Bronx Zoo.
grrlscientist | May 21, 2010tags: Razorbill, Ruokki, Alca torda, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Razorbill, known in Finland as the Ruokki, Alca torda, photographed at Luonnontieteellinen keskusmuseo (University of Helsinki Museum of Natural History), Helsinki, Finland. [Fully feathered specimens]
Image: GrrlScientist, 18 May 2010 [larger view]
Canon SX100 IS.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird lacks all plumage hints that might give you clues as to its identity, but it is showing you plenty more hints that will guide you to your ID.
22 May…