Tuesday, July 24, 2012

More Than A Bad Hair Day

We've been having near daily thunderstorms.  I'm not complaining since we are still trying to recover from drought conditions, but it hasn't left me with much opportunity to practice with the camera.

A couple of days ago, a storm rolled in.  I grabbed the camera and took a few shots of the clouds.
 This one concerned me, but it passed without incident.

After the rain stopped, I stepped outside and tried to snap some shots of the water drops.  Normally I get something like this...


The minute I stepped outside, my camera lens, screen and viewfinder, fogged up something fierce.  I didn't think too much about it, I wiped it off and tried to shoot anyway, even though I was still having a tough time seeing.  I thought once I got them on the computer, they would be fine.  I was wrong!  This is how they turned out...




 I could tell by reviewing them, they were hazy, but it never seemed to clear.  I thought after a few minutes it would be okay.  I stepped inside, into the AC and without changing the setting I had it on, snapped a couple of shots.  It was fine!
Stepped back outside, BACK TO HAZY!
 Guess my camera prefers the AC as much as I do!

Okay all you fantastic, experienced photographers, is there a secret I haven't figured out?  Let me hear from you.  Was it just the extremely thick moisture and steamy conditions that caused this?  What can I do to keep it from happening again?  I would have stayed out there longer to see if it would clear up, but the skeeters were biting me all over!  

43 comments:

Karen thisoldhouse2.com said...

It is what it is, Ms. A. When you have those type of weather conditions, moisture happens. :-)

Great shots!

ZielonaMila said...

Beautiful photographs, drops on plants are fascinating. I am greeting

Alexandra said...

Oh, the raindrops are tempting enough to lick off the leaves.

I love rain.

We haven't had rain in almost a month... except for two small showers and our lawns are hay. Our farmers are doing rain dances, and my flowers are dying.

Beautiful rain, how well you've captured it here.

Mark said...

Well I don't know enough about photography but I think that kind of thing is inevitable thanks to the moisture. You can still see the water droplets though, so they aren't too bad. Maybe with some photoshop skills you could remove the haze, but I don't really know anything about that either. Boy I suck. I do love thunderstorms though :)

Peggy K said...

Personally, I think the hazy pictures have a bit of a romantic look to them. Looks intentional to me, so go with it.
I LOVE pics of clouds/sky, by the way.
I love this site for my digi photography questions. Found this: http://digital-photography-school.com/embrace-the-weather-part-2. Not exactly your answer, but a start.

TexWisGirl said...

hazy but ethereal and beautiful, nonetheless!

Liz Mays said...

I'm not sure there is anything you could do to prevent that! But all the same, the effect is still kinda cool.

Deborah said...

Maybe I'm weird (hey!), but I like the hazy quality of those shots.

Powdered Toast Man said...

I thought the hazy pics looked cool like you took them in a fog.

Lisa said...

I loved the photos - even the hazy ones. I don't know a lot about photography, but down here it is so humid that I almost always have a problem with the lens steaming up whenever I walk outside from the a/c. No matter how often I wipe off the lens it will keep fogging up. Eventually, once the lens temp adjusts, it's OK - but it sure is challenging.

momto8 said...

I think it happened to give the hazy dimension to the photos.

mamahasspoken said...

Can't help you with the camera question thing, but I think your pictures are beautiful in that the mist/foggy appearance adds to the photo.
Wish it would rain every day here, I'm getting tired of watering my garden every day :o(

Sally said...

Well, the good news is you had much needed rain! The other good news? Even the ones that are hazy are much better than I get on a clear day! :)

xoxo

Choleesa said...

your rain drops are fabulous!!

Katie said...

I actually really like those hazy photos. Like someone mentioned above, the haze gives the flora a dreamy look.

My only suggestion would be to step outside with your camera and let it acclimate to the weather before you start shooting. Also, try wrapping it in a plastic bag for protection, leaving an opening for the lens to see through. Otherwise, good job Ms. A! : )

Katie said...

P.S. I envy your daily thunderstorms. I'm convinced that the color green will cease to exist around here, and that it will be brown and yellow year round, with a side of crunch! I think the last "real" rain we had was back in May. : (

Megan Adamson said...

I love the hazy, misty ones, they look so romantic...and who says that rain-drops can't be beautiful!

I'm loving your photo's! ;)

Outcast said...

These photos are amazing Miss A, especially from a viewpoint that these photos are of the more archaic style of nature. I hope that the weather stops being so bad though.

Barbara said...

I have the same problem when I go to the coast. It's just the glass fogging up with the change from a/c to steamy heat. After a few minutes it will clear up. But your photos are gorgeous!!

Help! Mama Remote... said...

Oh these pics are gorgeous! I love seeing them in large view too. I do have my screen magnified to about 150% too. The water on the plants look so refreshing. You're pics are amazing.

Margaret (Peggy or Peg too) said...

I know nothing about anything....not that has stopped me from giving my opinions on most things but this I can not help you with. I love the photo's though.:-)

Kathleen said...

Love them all----I would have thought that you planned the outcome.

Those clouds are pretty dramatic too!

Look forward to your posts---keep up the great photography!!!

Katherines Corner said...

The photos are all terrific. Even the hazy ones have a wonderful spooky quality. When I take photos in low temps I just let me camera acclimate to the lower temperature by putting the camera inside the camera bag and then putting it outside a little while before you plan to start shooting. xo

Sarah said...

Foggy shots are pretty. That's my way of saying 'sorry, I can't figure out what's wrong with the lens.' But they are nice shots.

Chana Meddin said...

First off, your hazy photographs are aesthetically more pleasing to me from an artistic point of view and something many photographer buy "filters" for their lenses to create artificially! So, you got it for free. Yes, probably some moisture condensed on your lens, but that's nature photography and I think it makes images beautiful in their own way. Perhaps your expectations of "what is beautiful" need to catch up with the immense talent just starting to peep out because rarely do I see a "newbie" GET A CAMERA AND START CREATING PICTURES LIKE YOU ARE!!! forget "needing things to be all sharp and in focus" because life isn't and you are photographing Life! Beauty varies in tones, hues, color, light, time of day, warm and cool, (reds and blues) humidity, dry, rain, cold...nature photography IS BEAUTIFUL BECAUSE NATURE PAINTS INFINITE POSSIBILITIES ON THE CANVAS OF MOTHER EARTH, so I expect that all of your photographs will show the rest of us life from YOUR own perspective and that will broaden our own lives as you share yours with us! That's what personal creative expression is all about! Love your pics...p.s. that second cloud shot spooked me too...I was scared a funnel cloud would drop out of it and am glad it DIDN'T!

Carrie Lynne said...

The one of the scary looking cloud is really scary..something wicked this way comes.

Lori G said...

I think they are All Spectacular. The "misty" ones provoke a soft, quiet, dreaminess. I Love Them.
Don't fix it, keep clicking!

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Don't go out from an AC room/house to a hot/steamy/muggy/humid/wet situation.... That's my best advice...

It doesn't hurt the camera ---but the best advice is to avoid extreme weather changes like that... Good Luck...

Good photos --even if they are 'foggy'.
Hugs,
Betsy

Jimmy said...

Not sure what the answer is other than keep up the good work, the pictures I think are Great.

Ms. G said...

I wish I had an answer to humidity in general! My eyeglasses do the same thing. Can you blow some of that rain my way though? If I see another day of unrelenting sunshine I might just hide under the bed until fall.

George said...

First of all, I think your photos are excellent. I really like your sky photo with the clouds, blue sky and sun rays. Your water drop macros are wonderful as well.

I'm pretty sure the 'haze' in your outdoor pictures is caused by going from a cool, dry environment to a hot, moist one. The condensation will occur until the temperature of the camera itself reaches that of the new environment. If you could set the camera outside for a few minutes before you go out to take pictures the problem should go away.

Pat Tillett said...

Yep! Humidity sucks! Even your camera agrees! all the rest of the photos are great! I think you have a good eye and there are lots of fantastic photos in your future!

Saara said...

Hello from Finland and thank You for commenting my blog in Finnish (!) with the help of translator. I added the translation gadget to my blog, so now You can TRY to follow it. I actually had a lot of fun when I read it translated into English. The translator works amazingly well! No perfect, anyway.

I really like your blog and style! Luckily I found it through Karens This Old House2! Man says hello to You too!

it´s a rainy night here in our summer cottage in the middle of Finland. But warm.

Lynn Proctor said...

still very lovely shots!!

lotta joy said...

I know everyone says they love the foggy photos, but I love sharp and clear photos. Your camera must be a super uber one, but the foggy lense is something that affects all of us. COULD have a wee bit to do with the temperature in your house versus outside. Not just the humidity.

You could TRY exiting the house via a slow trip through the garage or some other less shocking way.

Anonymous said...

The heat and humidity are fierce this year but your photos are splendid.

ain't for city gals said...

Have you ever opened the oven door with glasses on?...that is kind of what happens....I don't know why I am say that...I have no idea but I love the shots!! Do a new post and say these are the best shots ever!!

CiCi said...

Your growth as a photographer are putting some of us to shame. When you got your new camera you were serious about learning as much as you can to get some good photos. And you are doing that.

troutbirder said...

I like them all... especially the storm cloud shots...

Nancy said...

It's best to avoid extreme temperature changes with your camera -- as everyone else here has said, let it acclimate to the outdoor comditions for a few minutes before using it. Great shots dear! :)

Vicki Lane said...

Wonderful shots, all of them. You probably need to give the camera time to adjust to the outside temp . . .

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

I like the hazy quality too, especially in contrast with the much more vivid images. It's hard to believe you took those pictures at about the same time.

xoRobyn

Kathleen said...

I've nominated you for an award!!! Check my blog for details!!

Cheers ;O)