Today marks the end of Year 8 for this photography website with 1,237 articles having been published since 2015, and 127 added this year. It certainly has been an interesting ride to be here with all of you again this year.
NOTE: Click on images to enlarge. Photographs have been added to serve as visual breaks.
With the on again off again nature of COVID-19 it was a challenging year in terms of content. While I have an interest in a wide range of photographic subjects I ended up spending a lot of time with birds this year.
Even after capturing hundreds of thousands of images of birds over the years I still find them fascinating. I often spend much of my time simply observing their behaviour and learning to better anticipate what they may do.
Like all living things, birds follow strong instincts to procreate to continue the species. They build nests and feed young.
There is aggression from time to time. Sometimes caused by squabbles over territory, mating rights, or food.
When I witness such behaviour I think about humankind’s proclivity towards self-harm and needless greed.
We all do have basic needs like food and shelter. It is sobering to think of the millions of people around the world who lack even the most basic of life’s necessities.
I spent some time during Year 8 exploring with my camera gear. Pushing it… and myself… to learn more about what is possible.
Experimentation always pays dividends in terms of learning how to use the technology in our hands in perhaps slightly different ways, to capture the world around us.
I became a bit more focused on particular species of birds this year and spent more time photographing swallows in flight.
I love these little ‘pocket rockets’ and had hours of fun photographing them in our local area. It reminded me that we don’t have to travel to foreign lands to photograph nature.
Year 8 was one during which I spent more time photographing flowers… mainly using handheld in-camera focus stacking.
I gained a new appreciation for this technology. It is now my preferred way to photograph individual blossoms handheld with a macro lens.
Looking for light is something that we should do as photographers. Light creates mood and can communicate emotions.
Sometimes the simplest of subjects have a majesty about them if we can find the right light.
Year 8 found me spending time photographing dragonflies, mainly at the Royal Botanical Gardens. Like many photographers I love capturing images of things in flight. Precise moment captures provide an added challenge that I find invigorating.
Often nature will present ‘one of’ opportunities to us. We must be ready to respond immediately as that precise moment will never happen again.
Year 8 brought some changes. We decided to close portions of our client business that no longer made sense for us. That resulted in us selling some related equipment like business presentation gear, a laminator, and some camera supports used for video productions.
We also found some good, new homes for some of our older camera gear. There was a feeling of loss as that gear had many wonderful memories attached to it. But new memories are waiting to be made by extending the life and enjoyment of that camera equipment in the hands of new owners.
We published our Images of Ireland eBook in Year 8, and spent time working in earnest on a handheld bird photography eBook. We anticipate this eBook will be published in the first half of 2023.
It is sometimes hard to look into the future. There is one thing that is an absolute certainty. We will continue to use our Olympus kit and have no plans to change out any components. I anticipate shooting with my E-M1X bodies and complement of M.Zuiko lenses for many years to come. My E-M1X love grows with each passing year.
We’d like to thank each and every one of you for your support and patronage in Year 8. We look forward to continuing our relationship in 2023 and beyond.
Technical Note:
Photographs were captured handheld using camera gear as noted in the EXIF data. Images were produced from RAW files or from in-camera jpegs, using my standard approach in post. This is the 1,237 article published on this website since its original inception in 2015.
How you can help keep this site advertising free
My intent is to keep this photography blog advertising free. If you enjoyed this article and/or my website and would like to support my work, you can purchase an eBook, or make a donation through PayPal. Both are most appreciated.
Our eBooks include Images of Ireland, New Zealand Tip-to-Tip, Nikon 1: The Little Camera That Could, Desert & Mountain Memories, Images of Greece, Nova Scotia Photography Tour, and a business leadership parable… Balancing Eggs.
If you click on the Donate button below you will find that there are three donation options: $7.50, $10.00 and $20.00. All are in Canadian funds. Plus, you can choose a different amount if you want. You can also increase your donation amount to help offset our costs associated with accepting your donation through PayPal. An ongoing, monthly contribution to support our work can also be done through the PayPal Donate button below.
You can make your donation through your PayPal account, or by using a number of credit card options.
 Word of mouth is the best form of endorsement. If you like our website please let your friends and associates know about our work. Linking to this site or to specific articles is allowed with proper acknowledgement. Reproducing articles, or any of the images contained in them, on another website or in any social media posting is a Copyright infringement.
Article and images are Copyright 2022 Thomas Stirr. Images are Copyright 2016-2022 Thomas Stirr. All rights reserved. No use, duplication or adaptation of any kind is allowed without written consent. If you see this article reproduced anywhere else it is an unauthorized and illegal use. Posting comments on offending websites and calling out individuals who steal intellectual property is always appreciated!
Thomas, I also look forward to your articles. As others may say, the articles can be grounding influence during yet another crazy year. And I have learned some great techniques. Keep up the good work. Happy Year to you and your family. Please stay healthy and safe!
Thanks for the supportive comment Robert… much appreciated! As your comment noted we may be in for ‘yet another crazy year’. We can’t control what happens, but we can do our best to determine how we react to it.
Tom
An excellent summary, Tom. I think I’ve read every article of yours this year and have found them to be both interesting and helpful. I very much look forward to your handheld bird eBook and wish you and yours a very happy, productive and satisfying 2023. Warm regards, Bill
Hi Bill,
I’m glad that the articles were interesting and helpful for you. Best of the New Year to you and your family as well.
Tom
And we wish you a very Happy New Year and 2023 and look forward to your always interesting articles.
Joel
Thanks Joel… all the best in the New Year to you and those you love.
Tom
Hi Thomas,
I am an ardent reader of this website.
You are solely responsible for my holding on to Nikon 1 V series.
By imitating your post processing technology, I bought DxO PhotoLab and Topaz DeNoize AI software, and they have been working wonderfully.
You are my mentor and guide for my photographic life.
Thank you very much indeed.
Regards
Yoshi
Thank you very much for your supportive comment Yoshi… much appreciated! Being able to help readers makes this photography site a rewarding experience.
Tom