You just had to click didn't you? Well, now you're going to have to read this and see nothing.  That's right.  Nothing. I've been in a slight rut lately when it comes to blogging.  Sure, I've taken some shots.  Some I liked, some, not so much.  My equipment inventory has exploded lately as well, but sadly the weather hasn't cooperated to get something really interesting or eye-pleasing.

Fine, I'll show some pics.  But they're not going to be great.

Normally I like any blog I write to stick to a particular point or story, but I find that my shots have been so sporadic or really didn't have any story behind them that I haven't written a thing.  So I'll break that rule this time and share some random shots and you can either like them or not.

I'm pretty happy that the green space behind me has finally started to bud, bloom and show real, green signs of life.  The maple trees behind me are young and healthy and thanks to running my sprinkler a bit, produced this shot.

This little fella has been a frequent visitor.  Early in the year I picked up a bird feeder at the Royal Botanical Garden (supporting them more than anything).  Thanks to a healthy dose of bird seed, I have frequent visitors including an elusive cardinal who is very skittish.  So much so that he doesn't allow any photos.  But I'll get him.  Oh yes.  He will be mine.

Relaxing in my lawn chair with the t2i in hand with a 500mm lens, I hard a lot of noise in the air.  A sea gull was following a hawk with dinner in his talons and blood on his face.  I suppose he was hoping that there might be some discussion about sharing, or perhaps leftovers, but I didn't get to find out.  They both flew off but not before I managed to get a couple of shots.  Sadly I wasn't quite prepared for it and didn't get a particularly sharp shot.  But it's a start.  Truth be told, I wish I'd had 30 extra seconds to get it right, but.  Oh well.

Visiting my sister, bro in law and the little critters (who are taller than me now (*@$%(*$!!) we took a little walk to the back of the farm and my sister showed me this bed of ferns.  Very prehistoric looking to see them growing wildly.  I do see them occasionally when I'm mountain biking and I love how vibrantly green they are.  Makes me wish I could take my camera with me when I'm on the trails, but sadly, I'm in no hurry to see it smashed to pieces so I take home only memories unless I happen to have packed my Nikon point-and-shoot.

Nearby the ferns are a collection of trilliums (the official flower of the Province of Ontario).  I wish I could pick some and grow them at home, but... something about a law or something that prevents that from happening.  Not that I'm always the most by-the-book kinda guy.  Maybe I'll visit again with a bucket and shovel... Mwahahaha!

Oh, this is probably a good time to mention that I'm playing with Watermarks.  Not that my pics are "all that" or anything, but every now and then, we all come up with that one pic we're proud of and would prefer to not have someone else take credit for it.  I don't know that I've come up with that shot yet, but when I do, I'll have that watermark ready for it!  Nothing huge, just a plug for the site.  I wish I was a bit more creative to come up with a logo but... oh well.  Maybe someone will read this stuff some day and be interested in creating one.  Hint?

What can I say about this cat.  Who could look at Patches' face and not love those markings.  It reminds me a bit of Braveheart.  I wish I'd got it just a bit sharper but, that's the breaks.  I wonder if Parkinson's  is in my future.  I never seem to get that "tack sharp" image I'm looking for.  Frustrating.  Regardless, he's a great cat to work with.  Very calm, doesn't seem to mind a lens in his face and no sudden movements.  Good boy!! (or girl??)

You can't shoot one cat without shooting the other.  This one was pure luck and probably my favourite of this blog.  They say a good photo should be of something interesting.  A cat about to pounce on an offending dandelion hits the mark for me.  It may not be the best shot in the world either.  I think what I like most is the demonstration of how aperture works.  A small patch of grass is crisp and sharp and the rest is blurred.  Cool stuff to a geek like me.

Finally, the moon.

Remember the inventory I mentioned above? The first thing I picked up was a new camera body.  A giant leap forward as it is a full-frame camera which really opens up a new world for me as far as printing goes, so I'm really excited about that.  I need to revisit some places to re-take some shots so I can frame them for myself.  My walls are bare anyway, so it's a good learning thing with a reward for me!

The second thing I picked up was a 2x extender for my sigma 150-500mm lens.  This effectively turns the lens into 1000mm of zoomy goodness.

It does come with some drawbacks though.  Auto focus? No, it's gone now.  Aperture? Nope, lose two stops.  Those might be of  huge importance to anyone else, but fortunately for me, my goal is mostly for shooting the skies.  Perhaps the moon!

The sky was pretty hazy last night but this shot didn't turn out too badly.  Sharpness isn't perfect but I'm hoping that on a clearer sky... Well, we'll see.

If we can get a cloudless night soon, I'm dying to say hello to Saturn and see if it turns out better.  You'll have to stay tuned to a future blog post to find that one out.

Thanks for reading.