Yucca Bloom

100 Days of Macro - Day 17

This image is inspired by a photo Norm K posted a few days ago. If not for that, I wouldn't even know that Joshua trees flowered.

I took the scenic route from Jieun's to my place and stopped by the Red Rock overlook. There was a Joshua tree with varying degrees of bloom. I found this early stage to be the most visually interesting up close.

House of Cards

100 Days of Macro - Day 16

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a House of Cards weekend. In other news, I suck at building houses of cards.

Desert Senna

100 Days of Macro - Day 15

Thanks to some internet sleuthing, I determined that this plant is Senna Nemophila, otherwise known as Desert Senna. I took this during Bawoo's AM walk. As a result, the photo benefits from the soft glow of the morning sun peeking out from behind some clouds. I'm glad I brought my camera along.

Tiny Nemesis

100 Days of Macro - Day 14

My macro lens is "only" 1:1, so I couldn't get a super closeup of this tiny ant, but the texture in the tree bark makes this image interesting enough to post.

p.s. I hate ants.

Cherry Blossom

100 Days of Macro - Day 13

These beautiful trees have been on my list to capture. With the recent snow and temperature dip, I figured I better catch them now while they're looking spectacular. And there just happened to be a few on the way to grabbing lunch today.

Zelda Symphony

100 Days of Macro - Day 12

This photo is inspired by the Zelda Symphony concert that is finally coming to Vegas in June. I happened to check and saw that tickets went on sale today. I nabbed seats right in the middle of the golden circle!

As for the photo, I figured I'd do something with this unofficial ocarina I bought online back when ordering online was still iffy. I struggled to find an interesting way to frame it and had actually given up. Then this idea suddenly came along.

Bottomless Portafilter

100 Days of Macro - Day 11

I had to bust out my old espresso machine for this shot (as in both the espresso shot and the photographic shot). Only my old machine has a bottomless portafilter. As fun as it is to watch the extraction, I'm glad I never went naked on the new machine. As Joey Pants says in The Matrix, ignorance is bliss.

Pine Cone Buds

100 Days of Macro - Day 10

I stopped by Red Ridge Park and captured these pine cone buds. It was a little tough as I was shooting handheld and even the slightest breeze would make them sway in and out of focus and mess with my composition. But I'm happy with the result.

Diamond

100 Days of Macro - Day 9

After failing to capture any worthwhile photos of my friend Jia's turtles, I turned my attention to their cat, Diamond. I admit that this isn't much of a macro image. I have some super closeup images that make her look a little freakier. I erred on the side of cute.

Happy 4713!

100 Days of Macro - Day 8

I guess my year—the year of the horse—is over.

I visited the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens to check out their lunar new year display. The Chrysanthemum apparently signifies a life of ease or long life, depending on whom you ask.

Dim Lights 4 Tark

100 Days of Macro - Day 7

Around 10:30 tonight, after the UNLV "blackout" game, casinos and businesses on the strip and around the valley will dim their lights in honor of the legendary Coach Jerry Tarkanian. I had planned to take this photo at some point anyway and I think today is appropriate timing.

RIP

Mardi Gras

100 Days of Macro - Day 6

I should really plan ahead for these theme days. I wasn't sure what to capture today, but when I looked up "Mardi Gras" on Google Images, it was nothing but beads and masks. Long story short, I ended up at The Orleans Casino. I found their gift shop and saw this mask with beads lying on a table. Done.

Chain Link

100 Days of Macro - Day 5

I stopped by the airport viewing area on the way back from lunch today to capture an abstract of the fence. I suppose this shot could have been taken anywhere. I went black and white since I'm more interested in the patterns than anything else.

Regional Park

100 Days of Macro - Day 4

I'm really enjoying Mountain's Edge Regional Park. I think I like it better than Exploration Peak Park. Nice place to walk the dog, shoot a few hoops, and photograph weeds growing in the grass.

Happy VD

100 Days of Macro - Day 3

I wanted to do something a bit more abstract with this shot while keeping it completely obvious what the subject is. This is a 5-second exposure with a hint of handheld flash that I manually fired from somewhere front left.

Friday the 13th

100 Days of Macro - Day 2

I had trouble trying to think of a suitable photo for today until I realized that Friday the 13th is all about superstition. Not being very superstitious, I had to Google some. This is actually a two-for-one—a tails up penny that you're not supposed to pick up and a crack that will break your mother's back.

100 Days of Macro

It's been a while for a few things. Been a while since I've posted on here. Been a while since I ended my daily photo project—just over four years actually. It's also been a while since I've invested in any new photography equipment.

I recently had the itch to finally get a true macro lens. So I ordered the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM. And in honor of its 100mm prime focal length, I'm jumping right back into another daily project, albeit for only 100 days this time.

Wait. Only? Who am I kidding. This is going to be tough.