Wounded Girl

August 9, 2011

Chiara had her first real accident at nursery—a fall against a sharp wall edge left her with a cut above her right eye. Not the best look for photos over the next few weeks, but we’re optimistic the scar will heal nicely.

Thankfully, it hasn’t slowed her down one bit! To help her burn off some of that endless energy, we took her to Kew Gardens with her grandparents on Sunday. Fingers crossed it tired her out (at least a little)! 🌿🌸

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – 1/800s f/3.2, ISO 100 – Doesn’t really want to put the hat on – so she tries to see if she can get away with not taking it back and putting it on. It didn’t work, and soon after she reluctantly put it back.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – Having fun walking on a tree – the more dangerous the better, it’s amazing as she can stand on one feet so tiny. What she wants on the right hand side picture is pretty obvious.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – 1/800s f/2.8, ISO 100 – Two hands, two messages. The ice cream was really yummy but the plane very close (this is the issue with Key – you need to like planes) – so just in case we missed Chiara was reminding us there was a plane passing over.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – 1/100s f/3.5, ISO 100 – Hiding with the bamboo.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – f/5, ISO 100 (HDR picture merge of three exposures) – Twisted tree.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100mm – 1/125s f/2.8, ISO 100 – I can’t remember what it was (probably a duck) but for sure Chiara is telling “parti” (gone). When she says so, the arms are always in this exact same position.

Going Wild at Whipsnade Zoo

August 4, 2011

Catching up on pictures from the past few weekends! Two weeks ago, we visited Whipsnade Zoo near Luton. It’s more like a wildlife reserve than a traditional zoo—probably the closest you’ll get to an African safari experience in the UK.

It’s on the pricey side (£20 per adult plus £4 for parking in a field), but compared to a real African safari, it’s a steal! They’ve done a great job with space, and even with hundreds of visitors on the weekend, it never felt crowded. 🦒🐘

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – 1/1000s f/5.0, ISO 400 – Chiara was unimpressed by the elephant show (first time she sees a real elephant – so now she will think they can all lay down when asked) but it was quite nice and distracting.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – Left Chiara keeping warm with Sab. Right a Mara in the park wandering around. The park is huge, we walked and probably covered a quarter of it in an afternoon.

t was cold and overcast—perfect conditions for portraits and animal photography, especially since we weren’t there for the magical early morning or late evening light. We brought out our trusty safari lens, the 100-400mm L IS, which only sees action about twice a year these days. Every shot from the trip was taken with it, and it really shone! The open layout of the park made it easy to capture animals against natural-looking backgrounds, so you’d barely notice they were in enclosures.

We spotted giraffes, a tiger, chimpanzees, and an ostrich, among others. But checking the website later, we realized we didn’t even see half the animals they have there! 🐅🦒🐒

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – 1/800s f/5.6, ISO 400 – Really colourful flamingos, actually the saturation has even been decreased on this picture. This is where 400mm is particularly useful.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – 1/125s f/7.1, ISO 400 – Meeting the cousin. hiara was especially fascinated by the chimpanzees—both the real ones and the statue! She was completely captivated, watching them for a solid 15 minutes (which is a lot for her). Maybe it’s because her dad’s monkey impressions are just so convincing! 🐒🙊

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – The Lemur feed was particularly impressive as the animals came very close (way to close for my long lens !). They are cute and nice, so obviously everyone love them. We had a great time watching them play and eat, their enclosure is very well organised with plenty of nice photo opportunities.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 100-400mm – 1/640s f/7.1, ISO 100 – Nice flowers on our way out of the Zoo.

Royal Gardens, Divine Weather

June 27, 2011

Yesterday, we returned to Kew Gardens for a Sunday picnic with the lads (the ladies joined us later, fresh from the spa). This time, we brought the camera and the memory card—unlike last week, when we forgot the cards and had nothing to share on the blog!

We spent most of the afternoon lounging under a big tree, kids running wild on the grass. Later, we took a short walk to see the Water Lilies and feed the ducks. With plenty of sunshine, a few of us tried to nap on the grass, but the kids had other plans!

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/640s f/4, ISO 100 – Water Lilies flowers on the roof reflection. The light was pretty much diffuse all around the circle pool – but from this angle it’s almost like shooting facing the sun.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/640s f/2.8, ISO 100 – Close-up of a flower. It was there on its own (I didn’t put it there myself – guaranteed). The dark water is very convenient for a nice reflection.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/1600s f/2.8, ISO 100 – Chiara playing football in the park – it was unfortunately underexposed so I had to convert to black and white. She is happy having just let the ball pass under her legs (she doesn’t know football rules yet).

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/200s f/2.8, ISO 100 – Sab calling Chiara with the Bugaboo Bee – very appropriate pram for a walk in Kew Gardens. We spend a large amount of time calling Chiara when we are outside – she rarely listens.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/2000s f/2.8, ISO 100 – From left to right (Chiara, Maxime, Sofia). Chiara is a bit out of focus as the photographer assistant did not sit her on the same line as the two others. Obviously they are all looking in a different directions, none at the camera – but this is the best we could get.

Canon EOS 5D MkII – EF 24-70mm – 1/500s f/2.8, ISO 100 – One of many beautiful trees, slightly de-saturated picture to increase the drama.

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