Do not dwell on the past; do not dream of the future. Concentrate the mind on the present moment.  –  Buddha 85mm ISO 2000. 1/10th sec at f5.6. Flash at 10,000 deg K

Through the friendly silence of the soundless moonlight. – Virgil 50mm, ISO 500. 30 seconds at f16. Flash

The love of life is necessary to the vigorous prosecution of any undertaking. – Samuel Johnson 50mm, ISO 2000. 13 seconds at f8. Flash

Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction. –  J.F. Kennedy 28mm, ISO 2000. 30 secs at f8. Flash

There is no duty we so much underestimate as the duty of being happy. Being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world.   –  Robert L. Stevenson 85mm, ISO 2000. 1 sec at f16. Flash

Experience is the comb that nature gives us when we are bald.  –  Anon Another split focus, single frame experiment; the hairdresser’s quote is suggested by the full-frontal flash on the flower stalks. For the rest of the exposure the lens barrel has been swiftly rotated, moving the focus closer to infinity. This gives reasonable […]

  Fern and farm, autumn night. 8.58pm, 19 May 2011 Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance. –  Samuel Johnson Taranaki is so wet that ferns thrive even out on their own, as here on farmland close to town. The extra lighting is from a penlight, and far more subtle than in […]

  Plan for the future because that’s where you are going to spend the rest of your life. –  Mark Twain But why plan for the future when it’s already here? While waiting for a late moonrise I saw this spectacle, looming above the top floor of a parking building. Flash-assisted in deep twilight, the […]

Time is the reef upon which all our frail mystic ships are wrecked. –  Noel Coward Here you see no ships nor port, but a curious effect of some tricky experimentation. Changing the focus manually during exposure gives two planes of focus! For technical reasons this works best on telephoto, using flash before a time […]

Live as long as you may, the first 20 years are the longest half of your life.  – Southey A composition in classic thirds. The quote is personal, referring to my first return to Waikanae Beach since spring 1976, with some ardent memories attached. Youthful impressions can be deepest on the sand! Bright shore means […]

Three lights at Paritutu, New Plymouth. 9.36pm, 10 September 2011 I have memory, which is the idiot’s talent. –  Francisco Umbral The three lights are moonlight (at sea), nearby industrial lighting and flash for the foreground. This shot has a cool feel because the incandescent (tungsten) setting was used to cool the light on the […]

Aging seems to be the only available way to live a long life. –  Daniel F. E. Auber Using the wide angle with flash at twilight is easier than the telephoto because the former has better depth of focus. Aperture selection balances the two light sources, the flash burst with the longer background fill. Flash […]

It is only with the heart that one can see properly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. –  Antoine de St Exupery Although my heart is in this place, in this case I saw by ear, as the swans weren’t visible by moonlight. However they were very audible, and other wetland birdlife also […]

Out with some Scottish friends under a brilliant moon – the best since 1993 – we legged a good stretch of the Waiwhakaiho walkway, on the New Plymouth outskirts. Having noted this viewpoint along the way, it was surprising how long it took to re-locate it on our return. On the wild uplands of Tibet […]

Twilight use of flash; subtlety, instantaneity and their opposites