Debbie’s One Word Sunday: Red
For this photo challenge, I randomly picked a folder until one of them held a red photo. After about 4 folders I found a Zygote cactus flower
A bit of music history. The start of Neil Finns career. From there to Crowded House, solo shows and now singing with Fleetwood Mac
Last month things seemed to have cooled off a bit but there were a couple of new bloggers who discovered Last on the Card from others posts and posted their photos. Sometimes I wonder if this photo challenge has run it’s time? Oh well lets get on with your wonderful and perhaps not so wonderful photos. As you can see from mine that this May I managed to get a few crap photos for my Last Photos. I am not precious about showing my duds and hope you can do the same.
So let’s see what you have for May 2022
The rules are simple:
1. Post the last photo on your SD card or last photo on your phone for the 31st May.
2. No editing – who cares if it is out of focus, not framed as you would like or the subject matter didn’t cooperate.
3. You don’t have to have any explanations, just the photo will do
4. Create a Pingback to this post or link in the comments
5. Tag “The Last Photo”
Here’s mine.
From my Samsung Galaxy S9
From my Canon PowerShot A1200
From my Canon PowerShot SX70HS
Well another wet and rainy month. Not as much rain as the previous three months but enough to keep the ground sodden. I didn’t take a lot of photos and some I did take just weren’t all that good as the light was quite poor.
Some of these photos have been enhanced using my photo editing program. Some people have asked what I use to edit my photos. I use Corel PaintShop Pro Ultimate 2022. I used to use Corel when I was working so it made sense to use the same program only a better version. I have used it since 2009 and upgraded every year as some of the function change and improve.
Trying to think of a May song for you to scroll to. Arcade Fire’s Month of May is a bit fast and you might get scrolling in a rapid fashion but I really like Arcade Fire. ACDC’s Stormy May Day seems appropriate being Aussie and the weather but not all enjoy ACDC. So I went for something a bit gentler and also a band who started their career in Australia with one of their lesser know songs which I love. Enjoy your scroll while having a listen.
I managed to get away for a few days to visit a mate at Port Stephens. I started my drive in rain and after a while the skies cleared and I was lucky enough to have a couple of days in sunshine.
This is sunrise from his place. So as the sun is up, lets go.
We went for a picnic and saw a White-bellied Sea Eagle cruising the shore line.
Meanwhile back at home the rains continued and again the Clarence Valley experienced a minor flood. Previous floods in March, the water went over the pylons but under the Grafton Bridge.
The Pacific Black Ducks didn’t seem to mind the high water.
I had fungi popping up around the place but not as much or as many as I thought. Possibly as it was wet and not much sunshine or heat in the soil.
I love the colour and frills on this little fungus
When I went to clean out the leaves from my water tank strainers, this big fat Green Tree Frog was sitting on the tank. It was not a good idea as a bird would have loved to make a meal of it. This photo was taken in my green house where I relocated the frog so it may have some insects to snack on as well be safe.
While in the shade house I took a few photos of the Begonias and the flowers. This is one is the better photos of Wax Begonia flowers with some water drops.
Water drops were everywhere and it was hard not to try and get a few photos despite the dismal overcast days. This orange Hibiscus has loved all the rain and has flowered better than ever.
I saw sparkles when one evening the sunset looked spectacular through the trees
This year the Zygote Cactus are flowering so well. I love this apricot coloured one which is a new one in the shade house getting started. Also has water drops all over.
I had this Zygote on the verandah and it wasn’t happy so I put the pot in the garden. It certainly enjoyed a change of scenery.
The Satin Bowerbird didn’t seem to mind when the rain started to fall. He was more intent on enjoying lunch.
Christine – Stine Writing – said she didn’t know that birds, other than parrots, could be green when I posted a photo of a Green Catbird Well here you go Christine here’s another one. A female Satin Bowerbird in the tree outside of my office.
The Satin Bowerbirds liked the fruit of the Benjamina Fig Tree
The Benjamina Fig Tree had a fantastic fruiting this year as well. The fruits are around 10mm and when they fall the Peaceful Doves walk around under the tree eating the fallen fruits
The little Silvereyes liked eating the figs too and then pop over to the Grevilleas for a bit of a sweet drink.
The bees enjoyed the sweet nectar too. Here a couple of bees shooting are the breeze over a few drinks.
The Chinese Lanterns looked good in May and continue to flower.
The Cats Whiskers are having a full on flowering too. After this flowering I will have to get some cuttings as I love Cats Whiskers as do insects. Unfortunately the Red-necked Wallabies like them as well so I have to fence the plants.
Through the bush the Egg and Bacon plants are flowering. Some are covered in these tiny 10-12mm flowers other plants have less numbers of flowers but are showy nevertheless.
At this time of year, the Eastern Spinebills turn up at my place. This Spinebill enjoyed the Pentas flowers in the garden.
One exciting thing to happen was that the Eastern Whipbirds that live in the gullies around my house have started to come into the garden. They are quite allusive and move rapidly through the undergrowth occasionally giving off their whip cracking call in the bushes. I managed to get this photo from my verandah.
The Golden Whistlers are in the garden too. This female was quite happy to pose for a few photos before flying off into the bush.
Sometimes the birds come to me. This Blue-faced Honeyeater flew onto the verandah to come to see what I was doing in my office.
What has been lacking for a lot of this year has been Red-necked Wallabies around the house. I was pleased to see a small mob turn up for a couple of days and one female had a joey. I grabbed a photo from the verandah down toward the end of the garden just as they were hopping away.
I was so glad that they turned up the next day and were in the garden for quite a while. The little Joey was quite adventurous and hopped away from Mum but not too far. Yes another verandah shot.
I did get out a couple of times and again I had a sunny day when I left the rain at my place and went to see a mate who was holidaying at Woolgoolga. On the way home I stopped at the lookout and there was a pair of Australasian Pipits hopping around the car park.
Another car park stroller. This time at the riverbank in Grafton while I was checking out the floodwaters a Crested Pigeon just walked past.
Another bit of excitement was when I was driving home from town one afternoon and I saw a Black-necked Stork in a flooded paddock that has turned into a quasi wetland. That is where I took the photos of the Black Swans recently. This time she was close to the road so I managed to get quite a number of good photos.
The Black-necked Stork is the only species of stork that occurs in Australia. Its name is a little misleading, as the bird’s neck is not black, but an iridescent green-and-blue sheen. I only just found out that the female has a yellow eye.
Another bit of excitement was hearing a sound in the garden late one afternoon and seeing a shape moving around the garden. I realised it wasn’t a Wallaby and saw a Northern Bandicoot looking for dinner in the garden. I rarely see Bandicoots but know they are around by the holes that are dug around the garden looking for worms and grubs.
The only other time I have taken a video of a Bandicoot in the chook house in 2014. You can see that this one is a female as there is movement in her pouch.
I think this could be a male but it moved quickly and I didn’t get a good look at it. When it stood on it’s back legs to see what it heard in the garden, it had its back to me. Males can weigh up to 3kg
As I mentioned before, one evening there was a spectacular sunset. I don’t get to see sunsets and sunrises living among the trees in the bush or forest, so when I do they are spectacular.
The Changing Seasons is a monthly project where bloggers around the world share their thoughts and feelings about the month just gone. We all approach this slightly differently — though generally with an emphasis on the photos we’ve taken during the month.
For many of us, looking back over these photos provides the structure and narrative of our post, so each month is different. Some focus on documenting the changes in a particular project — such as a garden, an art or craft project, or a photographic diary of a familiar landscape.
But in the end, it is your changing season, and you should approach it however works for you.
There are no fixed rules around post length or photo number — just a request that you respect your readers’ time and engagement.
Tag your photos with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them
Create a ping-back to Ju-lyn at Touring My Backyard or this post, so that we can update it with links to all of yours.
…..Jez getting better and back onto our screens with his challenges and fabulous photos
Flowering Cacti – Fan of….. # 84
It has taken me ages to sort through the photos that I took in June. Luckily I took out the photos of birds that I encountered and put them in this blog. I was surprised at some of the subjects that I managed to capture as it is Winter here which is normally a bit dry but we have had a rather wet Autumn. I am wondering where to start as I have quite a number of photos so maybe I will get going with some of the old bits and pieces I came across in June. The photos are at my place unless otherwise stated.
When I visited a neighbour, I had to stop and photograph the old farm stuff they have near their front gate. I think this is a horse drawn stick rake.
The old cart has seen better days. My Grandfather was a Wheel Wright and I reckon he would love to have a go at restoring this cart.
As you know, I love rust, the colours and the shapes that make the metal into an art work.
The chains and hook are a wonderful knot of rust.
This old pulley is hanging on the besties verandah. It may have been part of the old dairy that used to be on her place years ago.
I love the tiny water drops in the spiders webs from the misty rain.
The rain has put water drops on the flowers in pots on her verandah.
The Zygote Cactus water drops seem to be able to defy gravity
Even the spiders web caught a water drop or two.
The spiders web in the Red Ironbark had a golden glow. The Red Ironbarks are majestic trees on my place.
The rain drops on the spiders web in the grass looked like jewels.
Moss and lichen are other favourites of mine to photograph. A lovely green on the Bloodwood tree.
The wonderful coloured red sap from the Red Ironbark oozes from fissures in the bark.
The Tuckeroos are in flower and the trees are full of these tiny flowers.
The trees were abuzz with the sounds of bees and insects.
I am not sure if this is a bee or a wasp.
The bees certainly have to scrunch to get to the pollen and nectar.
I didn’t notice the red eye on this insect until I down loaded the photos.
The Blue-banded Bees were still hanging around the Pentas. I love their blue bums.
They hardly sit still and this bee looks like he hasn’t any wings.
Down on the forest floor, I was trying to get the right angle for a photo of the fungi when along came this fellow. I love the colours of the fungi. The reds are very striking to see. just little red dots on the ground.
I found this bunch of fungi during a Landcare visit to a site in Tucabia emerging from the mulch.
In the rainforest on my besties place I always come across fungi growing on the fallen trees. This is the first time I have seen this wood fungi which went the length of the log. Amazing colour isn’t it?
This wood fungi was on the end of a log nearby. Such a contrast in colour from the fungi above.
I found this little Stink Horn Fungus walking down the driveway at her place. I think I was stalking the Brush Turkey trying to get a photo of him on the mound he built.
Isn’t the yellow of this fungi just lovely? And it even curled its edge to show me its frill.
The Gold Top mushrooms are everywhere at the moment on my place.
I love looking under the fungi to see the frills which have a fascinating shape and texture.
Growing on a log in the forest, the mix of moss with its seed pods and the fungi looked like a tiny elfin garden.
The Bromiliads in my besties garden are flowering but mine haven’t as yet. The mix of colours on this flower is just right.
The Matchstick Bromiliad flower is different.
This is me being a bit artistic with the hanging Hibiscus flower.
I can’t remember what this vine flower is called but it certainly caught my eye in my besties garden. I love the curly tendril as well.
Looking deep inside the flower, it almost looks like it is exploding outwards.
The Banksia flower in the afternoon sun.
My neighbour has a wheelbarrow full of these Pancake cactus. They are becoming one of my favourite cacti.
When I was watering some pot plants on the front verandah, out popped the little Broad-palmed Frog.
Isn’t it one of the cutest frogs you have ever seen?
At the Landcare walk at Tucabia you know I couldn’t resist chasing a butterfly. The Large Grass Yellow was feeding on a Farmers Friend or Cobblers Peg plant.
The Orange Palm Dart butterfly just happened to sit on a leaf while I was stalking a bird in my besties garden. What wonderful colours
The Orange Palm Dart was very co-operative in getting its photo taken.
In Winter, you have to be careful when you go to the wood pile. You never know who is getting the warmth of the afternoon sun. Luckily I saw this small Red-bellied Black Snake
Well the sun is setting so I better get off and do stuff. Hope you enjoyed the things I found in June.
Ever so late doing my “this is what I found in May.”
So many things have needed doing and my time has been spent doing the many Photo Challenges, which I seem to be obsessed with as they give the opportunity to showcase your photos and techniques and at the same time see what other bloggers from around the world are doing. I love showing my part of this world or some photos of my travels. I hope you have enjoyed these Photo Challenges as much as I have.
OK……….on to my May. May is show time in my town. What I love (as many of you know) are chooks so I always go to the poultry pavilion when I go to the Grafton Show. Here are my favourites from the show.
“Do you like my new hair do?”
“I find the bun at the back is what the fashionable ducks are wearing this season.”
This is the Champion Pair of the Show – I think they are Wyandottes – a classy pair
Even the excitement of the Show doesn’t stop the need to lay an egg.
“Are you talking to me?” “Are you talking to me?”
“Is lunch coming or what?”
One of the Photo Challenges I did was Frames and the Currawong was the first image. This Currawong found the water well in the Poinsettia tree and was enjoying a drink.
The Lewins Honeyeater has been a constant visitor in May to the verandah looking for insects and gathering spiders webs for the nest. I think I was spotted as he looked in the door from the Zygote Cactus.
Another visitor to the garden at this time of year is the lovely little Rose Robin.
The Zygote Cactus have wonderful blooms this year
Some of my besties Pansys
I love this dark purple variety.
Just sitting in a wheelbarrow garden looking fabulous.
Some flowers look lovely at the end of Autumn don’t they?
Sitting in a cafe in Brunswick Heads I spotted the Native Stingless Bees in the garden bed on the street.
The spiders web have a certain magic in the morning light.
One night, there was a banging on the window. We went outside to see what was making all that racket. We found an Emperor Gum Moth sitting on the window sill. Aren’t the antennae wonderful?
You know when Winter approaches when the insects wear their fur coats.
The evening walk had wonderful lighting. I love this old fence with the air ferns and other plant life growing.
The grass seed heads looked spectacular in the late afternoon light. I didn’t do any photo manipulation this is what they actually looked like.
The Moon is almost setting the same time as the sun.
The Sun is setting so I better say good evening and hope you have enjoyed a little bit of May in my part of Australia.
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