Westward Ho! beach

WISH I WAS THERE

Was a nice day then Jenny.

Oh it was in September John, mind you today if I'd been able to get out, would have been great because we had gorgeous sunny day but bitterly cold

The structure of this beach is amazing !

Yes it's a gorgeous beach and it goes for almost 3 miles (around 5Km)

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!!! JENNY THIS IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!! The bright colors, perfect focus, fantastic composition with awesome foreground subject to seat the image...the pretty rocks up front, the people in the background, the ocean...also the rivulets running down in a straight line with the blue reflections...the puffy clouds...the whole picture is OUTSTANDING. What a NICE picture. One to be proud of!!!

Re: my droplet pictures, I'm so happy you liked them so much! :D The truck is actually RED, but the main image is a picture of droplets on the windshield wipers. The green is the glass, if you look from the side, the color shows a green tint. I had zero idea I'd get that result so when I saw the images on my computer I just about fell over! :) That's one of the coolest things about macro photography...the big surprises!

I love that you appreciate bokeh so much, Jenny. It is precisely why I forced myself to change from a point and shoot camera to a full DSLR. The thing is...you just CAN'T get that quality of bokeh from a point and shoot. You can get bokeh, yes, but it's not the kind that we love! Trust me, I have TRIED. I spent a YEAR working with my super-zoom camera, practicing, fooling with ideas, and after countless thousands of pictures I finally had to admit defeat. Blur in the background is not the same as artistic bokeh. You know it. I know it. And when you become a fiend for that look, you'll never be happy unless you can get it. This sucks because artistic bokeh means getting a camera that isn't cheap and a lens that is expensive. ON TOP OF THAT, the learning curve to using the lens, let alone the camera, is very steep. I can't tell you how many countless pictures get tossed--and I constantly get garbage pictures, even after YEARS of practice. My ratio of garbage to keepers is MUCH BETTER now, but when I started...*wince*... it takes time and so much practice to learn.

That being said. You are passionate, Jenny. If you can get your hands on a DSLR and a nice macro lens (you can't really get away with a garbage macro lens unless you want garbage pictures), you would be successful! I see me in your passion...when I got my setup, I was like a terrier with a bone...I would not give up until I started getting good pictures! :) So...if it's really want you want, keep saving your pennies, Jenny. You should really try to get a camera and lens for macro photography because you love it so much! I know that feeling...it just doesn't go away, and the frustration of trying to make a point and shoot deliver bokeh that you see from DSLRs...oh boy...I know too well how that feels!!

*big hugs* THAT BEING SAID, your photography improves and improves, so feel proud of yourself for that!!! You are sucking up what you see in others' photography and it shows. I love it!! :)

Thank you so much for your amazing comments and your encouragement. Yes I do feel passionate for macro photography and I know I have to get a DSLR camera with a designated macro lens. I had a camera like that but it was a 35mm camera and so I couldn't practice with it, way too expensive getting the films developed, at least I can go ballistic with digital and practice as much as I want.

Thank you again for helping me like this. I do love your photos so much, that it's made me realise that I want to attain the level you have already reached. It's going to take me a long time, and unfortunately I don't have as much time as I did have - I'm 71 on Friday!!!! Still when I can afford to get the camera - I'll certainly get one. I have to have the outside of the house painted first!!!!!

By the way. The camera that I use, a Canon 5D Mk II, has come down in price SO MUCH since the newer cameras have been released. You could maybe find a used one for a reasonable price. (I have seen them for $700 for the body) The lens though, it's expensive (though not as expensive as the camera). The price for the correct lens is $700 when it's on sale. (100mm 2.8L) (has to be the L version...the other one is a lot less expensive but it's MANUAL and the quality isn't as good either...anyone who gets it ends up being very unhappy and selling it...what a waste of money). Anyway, I know your money situation is tough. :( It's just not cheap. I keep waiting and hoping for an economical camera that features awesome bokeh...but *sigh*...I haven't found a good solution yet. :(

I'm going to keep an eye out for a second-hand camera just like you advise.

Super shot, Jenny
Also read Janet's comments with interest too! I have got used to 'point and shoot' now but 30-40 years ago I had fund with an excellent SLR (Pentax ME) and some great lenses. If I had the money I would invest in something much better than my smart phone and pocket digital.

Yes I've got a point and shoot camera and really it's a great little camera for taking usual photos, it's just that I'm such a fan of macro, that I'm going to have to find a camera that'll suit my needs.

Today's picture I visited:
www.ipernity.com/doc/jenny-mcintyre/47956528

(I enjoyed reading the comments from both you and Andy! Keep saving those pennies my dear! You'll make that dream come true!)

Don't you worry, I've already been looking up the prices on-line and I will certainly have to save a lot of pennies believe me!!! I'll do just that too. When I actually start looking seriously, I'll be asking you for what I should be looking for

I'll be happy to help whenever the time comes! *hugs*

Today's picture is this one!
www.ipernity.com/doc/jenny-mcintyre/47956526

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNY!!!!! *big hugs* I hope you had a WONDERFUL DAY!!! :)

Thank you so much Janet. 71 - that's a lot of years isn't it? I'm just so thankful that I've survived this long. Nowadays though - it's still considered youngish. When I'm sitting down I feel about 30 but when I try to get up and move - add 100 to that!!!!

Today I visited this picture:
www.ipernity.com/doc/jenny-mcintyre/47948208

Ça me fait rêver.....Merci !!!!

Merci beaucoup Annabelle.