Interlude

It was really beautiful here yesterday.

I've been going on drives in the evenings.

The moon's not quite full.

When summer days in the upper Midwest are nice, they're really nice.

The second and third of these were taken a few miles west of where I live, at a place called Bryn Road. The first one's off Maple Road. I think there was a hawk chasing the crows—notice him?

Back in town again on the way home. I guess I'm a lunatic. Always trying snaps of the moon.

Mike

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Original contents copyright 2011 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved.

Featured Comment by Ray Hudson: "Very nice, the first in particular. Wyeth landscapes come to mind. However, if that hawk is chasing crows, that's a first. Crows chase hawks. In fact, it's one of their favorite things. Along with owls if they can find one. They call out and bring in crows from all over to harass the hawk. I've watched it many times, usually end up feeling sorry for the poor hawk, who is invariably driven off."

Comments

[Richard Parkin]

"I think there was a hawk chasing the crows—notice him?". Yes, but in the centre of the crow flock it looks as though there is a hawk killing a crow. Of course it is all too pixellated to be sure at this size, maybe on the original?

[Hans Muus]

A pleasant surprise this morning. Very nice to read your pictures for once - much as I like your writing. I must confess to a weakness for short series of photos connected in time & place - a series creates a certain attentiveness in me that in turn deepens the perception of each individual image.
Although they remain monitor images, I like the details that present themselves in these pictures upon enlarging them: the glowing curving line at the left side of the road in the third picture, the hint of a railway crossing and the one headlight repeating the moon in the last one (that photo has a very European atmosphere - save for the diamond shaped traffic sign in the shade at the left, it could have been Belgium or Germany).
And the metal-grey barn (don't know the right word in English) in the first picture. I like it that you have not tried to exclude it. To me one of the graces of photography is the acceptance of all that happens within an image. The raptor looks like a hawk to me too, by the way.

[Paulo Bizarro]

The lunatic is on the grass...

[KSH]

I really, really like those pictures. They feel at ease and at rest with themselves. And I find them very satisfying when I start paying more attention to compositional details. Thanks for posting them.

Karsten

[Tom McNamara]

That page title took me back to my childhood in the late 60's, when short films such as "The Potters Wheel" were broadcast between main BBC programmes.

A bit of info here http://www.bbctv-ap.co.uk/interlud.htm

Tom

[John Roberts]

The top photo has a real late summer "feel" to it. It makes me even more ready for Fall!

[Ed]

Great shots Mike...........I like the third one the best, but all convey the mood perfectly! And it's not the scenery that created the shot, you were the one!

Greetings, Ed

[Jim Bullard]

I like that first photo with the flock of birds Mike. Very good.

[Ken White]

I hear you guys got a nice display of the Aurora sometime in the last week or so. The only time I was ever far enough north to even get a glimpse was when I lived in Wisconsin. What a sight.
On the other hand the coldest summer day of my life was July 12th, 1968 in Superior. Rode all night in the rain from Madison. By the time I got to the bridge in Superior I was so cold I couldn't get off the bike. To be young and stupid.

[Richard Howe]

Mike,
Bravo! — I love photographs that have a real "snapshot" quality to them, catch their subjects at "indecisive moments," and are neither arty nor artless nor even artily artless nor artlessly arty.
What I mean is photographs in which the subject is more important than the photographer, except — and this is, of course, a big "except" — for the sense they convey of the photographer's joy in simply taking/making pictures.
It ain't easy to do: I've maybe succeeded — or so I like to think — perhaps ten times out several hundred thousand frames.
And here you've achieved this several times in a single outing! (I especially like the top one.) Thanks for showing these.
Beautiful. Encore! Encore!

Richard Howe

[Paddy C]

Those first three are quite lovely, Mike.

[CharlieH]

I like no. 1. Print sale perhaps?

[Kenneth Tanaka]

These are really lovely images of your area, Mike. Some of my fondest memories are of long weekends camping and hiking in Wisconsin amidst scenes like this. Your images evoke my full sensory memory of such moments.

Very well done, Mike. I assume with your Ricoh?

[HT]

Nice photos! Since I live in the Midwest as well, I must ask how many coats of mosquito repellent you were wearing for these shots.

[Bernard Scharp]

What's this? Photographs? Do you still make those?

[Carl Blesch]

Indeed, late summer evenings are magic where you live and where I once lived. I have been meaning to tell you - I drove by the Manitowoc Crane with the "for sale" sign that you posted on TOP sometime back. My cousin and I were heading to the I-94 freeway entrance at Goerke's Corners, and the crane visually jumped out at me - "I've seen that before!" Didn't take me long to remember where I had seen it.

[Mike Johnston]

"I assume with your Ricoh?"

Ken,
These were taken with the Panasonic GF1 and 20mm f/1.7, my favorite lens o' the moment. I'm considering getting an E-P3 for it, and if Oly ever does a "pro" Micro 4/3, I'll buy one to go with that lens.

I should add that 40mm-equivalent is too short for pictures of the moon. I've determined that around 60mm-e is perfect for moon pics--with that f.l. it looks large enough but small enough. I dislike "supersized moons" but it needs to be a little bigger than the bright dot in these, especially when it's not full and you need to get a sense of its shape.

Mike

[Mike Johnston]

"Photographs? Do you still make those?"

All the time. But I never wanted this blog to be about glorifying my particular individual snaps, which are nothing special compared to many other people's particular individual snaps. I know exactly how good a photographer I am and am not.

I really don't have much ego as a photographer.

Mike

[John Krumm]

Gorgeous set, and love that first one especially. Usually is seems like the crows are doing the chasing, but perhaps the hawk was pestered enough, turned around, and showed them who has the sharpest beak.

[Chris]

That first one is a fabulous picture.....

[Roger Bradbury]

My sister in law has been most kindly ferrying me about recently. I keep seeing these kinds of shot through the car windows but it's impractical until I get off the crutches, in about three more weeks. All I can do for the mo. is look at these and sigh. Oh well, not long now.

The shot of the lane at dusk I really like, it could've been taken round here (Buckinghamshire, England)

Oh yeh... I used to be a werewolf but I'm all right now-oooooh!

[Mike Johnston]

Thanks everybody for all the kindness.

Mike

[Paris]

Have to say that I strongly disagree with Richard; these are simply loaded with artlessly arty-ness.

We've had three beautiful, non-95 degree days in Detroit, too. Not sure what's going on.

[Nick]

Ah, these made me miss late summer in Wisconsin. This summer has been particularly miserable in DC (a city not known for its pleasant summers, as Mike well knows), so the memories of what this time of year could be like in Madison are very appealing; these pictures really took me back to that.

[erlik]

There is something... English in the first one. From this distance you can't see it's probably a redtail hawk, so it could be a goshawk. :)

And it makes me miss being in Zagreb and going to the plains near the Sava river.

Nice!

[Fernando]

That first photo is stunning

[Robert Howell]

< I really don't have much ego as a photographer. >

That's what makes your blog such a come-back read.

Nice pix btw.

[Richard Newman]

Mike,
Good shot. However, it may be that the crows were chasing the hawk. Crows are known to (and I've seen it) 'mob' hawks and owls when they find them, to chase them away, particularly from roosting areas. Or are our Eastern crows meaner than your Midwestern ones??
Richard Newman

[Jeffrey Goggin]

Hmmm. I captured this photo with my 20mm/f1.7 on an E-P1 and IMO, the moon is just about the perfect size:

[Leland Davis]

I very much like #1, but I think it is improved by cropping off a bit of the bottom shadow area.