spring is the bees knees!

It's the first day of spring in the southern hemisphere, so I was out in my garden this morning watching the bees buzz in and around the plum tree ...

Have a great weekend everyone!

salamanca, spain

Salamanca is a small city in the north western part of Spain ~ about 2 hours drive from Madrid. It was the first place we lived when we came here and holds a special place in our hearts. It is a magnificent, historic place, and if you're ever visiting Spain, don't miss it. We spent a couple of days there this past week, so I thought I'd share a few of the pics I took (macro lens) ...

I also took lots of pics on my phone and put them on instagram if you're interested in seeing more. You can find me on instagram via @yardagedesign.

Cheers!

taking a walk with my macro ...

One of the wonderful things about where we live in central Madrid, is the ability to walk almost anywhere. Today (Spain time), I walked to the Royal Botanic Gardens with my camera and only a 105mm macro lens ...

It was a lovely morning in the sunshine watching the emergence of spring in the gardens, but my favourite shot of the day was the one above ... a busker in the street on my way to the gardens. The guy is playing lovely jazz tunes on his sax, and is accompanied by his "singing" dog. Priceless!

I am always surprised by how versatile a macro lens can be, and how using this lens makes me have to think about where I am in relation to the thing I want to photograph. I love it. I'm all about the detail.

Have a lovely day!

back in the saddle ...

This afternoon I picked up my DSLR for the first time in two months, before walking to the park ...

I reminded myself how much I love using a big camera ~ the weight, the control, the sound of the shutter.

Spring seems imminent here ... the weather this past week could almost be considered warm and trees are covered in buds ready to burst. I can't wait. I miss the colour. On my windowsill ...

Wishing you a creative week ahead!

wordless wednesday ...

Joining in here today.

blossoming

Enjoying sunny afternoons in the garden with my camera ...

I hope you're enjoying a lovely weekend!

bee

Chuffed with this one - taken with the macro lens in the garden yesterday. Have a lovely weekend!

sunday

It's quiet here today after the festivities of yesterday (thanks to everyone who left lovely words). I've been in the garden with my camera ...

Can you tell that I love flowers? The geranium buds are so beautiful, as is the first camellia in my garden this autumn. Still learning how to get the best out of my new camera. I need to brush up on getting the depth of field right - any good tips or links would be appreciated.

I hope your Sunday is lovely, relaxing and restorative ... ready for the new week ahead.

printing + shooting

I'm printing for myself today - a rare treat. I'm printing some placemats for a dinner party tomorrow night. At the same time, I'm shooting pics with my new macro lens ...

Have a great day!