Squirrel-proof, huh?

GRAY SQUIRREL, EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 29, 2009

Pentax K20D
Sigma 135-400 at 160mm
1/30 sec. f6.7
ISO 1600

"No such thing as a squirrel-proof feeder, Henry," said my neighbor with that infuriating tone born of superior knowledge as I hoisted the new bird feeder onto its pole. At least it takes this squirrel a lot of time and work to get each precious seed out through the bars. I'm hoping he'll just get tired of it. The photo was taken near dusk on a rainy day, hence the high ISO.

El Gordo

GRAY SQUIRREL, EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 27, 2009

Pentax K20D
Sigma 135-400 at 190mm
1/500 sec. f8
ISO 400

It's the day after Thanksgiving, and here's a fat boy indeed. He had just spent the previous hour hogging bird seed scattered on the deck railing in the morning in hopes of attracting finches, cardinals and sparrows, none of which deigned to drop by. I shot the photo through a double-pane glass window.

Squirrel from hell

GRAY SQUIRREL, EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 26, 2009

Pentax K20D
Sigma 135-400 at 400mm
1/180 sec. f8 with on-board flash
ISO 400

Of course the red eye is caused by the electronic flash on the camera, and Photoshop Elements has a suitable tool to deal with it, but it gives the squirrel a certain devilish air and so I decided to let it be. This photo would have been most appropriate for posting at Halloween, when the beasts vastly outnumber the trick-or-treaters at my house.

Geep

EMD GP7 (ATLAS N SCALE), EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 21, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
Tamron 90mm f2.8 DI macro
1/4 sec. f27
ISO 400

Another locomotive from my old N scale model railroad that served as a model for learning tabletop macrophotography, this is a replica of the 1,500 horsepower Electro-Motive Division GP7, a pioneer road switcher built from 1949 to 1954. A few "Geeps" of this vintage, rebuilt many times over the years, still can be seen at work on short lines around the country.

Yard goats

EMD SW900/SW1600 (LIFE-LIKE TRAINS N SCALE), EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 21, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
Tamron 90mm f2.8 DI macro
Both 1/6 sec. f16
ISO 400

Two more from the tabletop photo studio: A pair of locomotives from my old model railroad, both N scale replicas of Electro-Motive Division 1200 horsepower SW9/SW1200 yard switchers, the first built from 1950 to 1953 and the second 1954 to 1966. As is obvious, I ran out of canned air before blasting the dust off the Burlington engine.

2,000 horses on the hoof

EMD GP20 (LIFE-LIKE TRAINS N SCALE), EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 21, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
Tamron 90mm f2.8 DI macro
1/10 sec. f16
ISO 400

Another locomotive from my old model railroad brought out of storage for a self-guided course in tabletop photography, this is a 1:160 scale replica of the GP20, a 2,000-horsepower road switcher built between 1959 and 1962 by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors. It is painted for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (now Burlington Northern Santa Fe).

Red rocket

ALCO RS-3 (LIFE-LIKE TRAINS N SCALE), EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 21, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
Tamron 90mm f2.8 DI macro
1/6 sec. f16
ISO 400

Here's the first fruit of my new tabletop photography outfit: a 90mm macro lens, a collapsible light tent and two photo lamps to illuminate the subject. That is a 2 3/4-inch-long N scale model of the Alco RS-3, a 1,600-horsepower diesel locomotive built between 1950 and 1956. It's a leftover from a model railroad I built into a coffee table many years ago.

More stitchcraft

QUILT DETAIL, CHICAGO BOTANIC GARDEN, GLENCOE, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 8, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
SMC Pentax-DA 18-55 at 33mm
1/30 sec. f4.5
ISO 800

Another closeup shot of a quilt at the show we visited the other day, this one of a leaf applique. Many if not most of the quilts in the show were hand-designed, then their schematics transferred to a computer program and machine-stitched, a good example of an old art brought up to date with the latest technology. Deborah Abbott took the hand-held photograph.

Stitchcraft

QUILT DETAIL, CHICAGO BOTANIC GARDEN, GLENCOE, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 8, 2009

Pentax *ist DS
SMC Pentax-DA 18-55 at 45mm
1/15 sec. f4.5
ISO 800

One of the unexpected pleasures of our trip to the Botanic Gardens yesterday was the last day of the "Fine Art of Fiber" exhibition of quilting and other needle arts at the gardens' Regenstein Center. Deborah Abbott captured this sharp detail of a colorful quilt at a slow shutter speed with the camera's "kit lens" wide open -- and without a tripod. Now that's a steady hand.

Today's mallards

MALLARDS, CHICAGO BOTANIC GARDEN, GLENCOE, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 8, 2009

Pentax K20D
SMC Pentax-F* 300mm f4.5 ED (IF)
Top: 1/350 sec. f8
Bottom: 1/750 sec. f8
Both ISO 400

Today's trip to the Botanic Garden early in the morning, at about 8:30 a.m., resulted in better mallard photos than usual because the sun was low in the hazy sky, yielding gentle illumination, rather than being high at noon and casting a harsh light. The softer light picked up the iridescence in the males without blowing out the highlights.

Squirrel No. 9

GRAY SQUIRREL, EVANSTON, ILLINOIS, NOVEMBER 7, 2009

Pentax K20D
SMC Pentax-F* 300mm f4.5 ED (IF)
1/350 sec. f4.5
ISO 400

Its detractors may call it a "tree rat," but the American gray squirrel, like the ring-billed gull, is a favorite photographic subject of mine largely because it's so ubiquitous -- all you have to do is sit and wait until it comes within range, and capture its image. One of these days I will get close enough for the perfect head-and-shoulders portrait.