常盤平さくらまつり2017年 Tokiwadaira Sakura Festival – Japan
Posted on April 2, 2017
Really enjoyed this weekend’s Cherry Blossom Festival in Tokiwadaira, Chiba. Here are some photos. Hopefully they would provide an idea about the spirit of this festivity attended by thousands of people over the last two days. There was ample amount of food of any kind. Children got their share playing games and winning small plastic toys. It was a happy Saturday and Sunday for all, away from daily choirs and duties.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Preparing for the parade.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Carrying this heavy Omikoshi requires strength and coordination. It also requires a healthy amount of sake.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Let’s get this Omikoshi moving. Many are there to help, even if only through mental support.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – fitting such a parade through all these people and narrow sakura dori is a work of art.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Ayu, a trout like fish seems to be the focus of attention even from the neighboring stand owner.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Colorful plastic things.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Barbecued Soba Noodles
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Hard work results in great food.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – All these choices…
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Air, sweet tasting trout like fish, is on the menu here.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – These guys for sure have the right matsuri spirit.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Cotton Candy !!!
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – These whistles were the same ages ago. The only difference is the built in blinking lights.
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Even Philadelphia Cheesesteaks are available
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – Don’t mess with the music!!!
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017
©Hans Nagl 2017 – 常盤平さくらまつり2017年 ーTokiwadaira Sakura Matsuri 2017 – One more round up-, and down the street. Beautiful sunny Sunday at the Matsuri.
Blizzard Forest Walk
Posted on March 15, 2017
Living in Bethel, Connecticut for the last year or so offered several chances to experience nature from various angles. Just today, I had the opportunity to explore my backyard forest during a blizzard.
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Walking through about one foot of snow, the wind in the trees sounded like a large ocean liner passing by. Branches squeaked and squealed, and occasionally, a tree fell with a loud crack. Later, the snow turned into ice, mixing its sound, generated by thousands of ice crystals, into the ongoing fortissimo of the forest blizzard symphony.
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – No sounds, very peaceful, looking into an endless forest, March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
The only signs of life were a small squirrel, as well as a variety of animal tracks.
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – Many others seem to travel this highway – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
This time, I used my Nikon 1 V3 with a variable wide-angle lens (Manual mode, f/9, 1/500 sec, 400 ISO). It is a mirrorless camera that is relatively small, offering reduced target size to the unforgiving elements.
Here are some photos describing a few hours of peace in a blizzard wonderland.
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, – On the top, somewhat obscured by snow is a boulder sometimes looking like a gigantic turtle. CT – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – March 2017. Named this boulder Turtlehead Rock because it looks like a gigantic turtle head © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – It is hollow inside, and one can enter on one side and exit on the other – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – The backside of Turtlehead Rock -It’s a great place to overlook parts of this forest – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – A river, wind, or the sea must have carved out this passage many unthinkable years ago – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – Lost in a beautiful forest – March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Blizzard Outing in Bethel, CT – I name this tree the Queen Tree, as it looks truly majestic with its branches reaching towards the sky in almost a spiraling way. It also seems that most forest pathways pass this tree. I always had the impression that this tree was watching this section of the forest. Walking past it many times, it just felt like it. March 2017. © Hans Nagl – HansNagl.com
Photographing Red Clover Mites
Posted on June 21, 2014
A couple of days ago I had the opportunity to watch red clover mites, less than a millimeter large spider like creatures. They appeared as tiny red dots restlessly moving on top of a concrete wall close to our vegetable garden. Needless to say they immediately became targets for a photo session.
Every time I look at the results of recently taken macro type photos on a larger screen it feels like being transported into a different world. Creatures very small and many times not noticeable become giants on a computer screen, a window into a world far removed from our usual areas of attention. As much as it is exciting to see large animals in their natural habitats it is very interesting, at least to me, to visit this tiny world occasionally and watch these amazing creatures for a while. Thank you for visiting my blog.
Comparing the size of an ant to the tiny clover mites
Clover Mites in action.
Clover Mites in action.
Beetle found a new friend to follow…it seems. Following a clover mite.
This beetle is looking concerned about the outcome of my photo. Looking really good!
Clover Mites in action.
Clover Mites in action.
Clover Mites in action.
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My most favorite time of the day
Posted on June 12, 2014
Franklin, located in Massachusetts, is a place close to many lakes, forests and incredible wildlife. This allows me to occasionally take my camera and go for a walk in search of something great, unexpected and photogenic. On one of my most recent strolls through the neighboring forests late one afternoon in May I became aware that I was leaving the world of regulated and coordinated life to join a different rhythm.
When the day slowly comes to an end and gives way to night colors change by the minute, animals and insects, some invisible during the entire day, show up to grab a bite and disappear again into the foggy twilight of the lake. Every minute something else grabs my attention.
What is moving there? Is it really moving? At the same time clinging to my camera mounted on a tripod thoughts arise. Right lens? ISO settings OK? Shutter speed long or short? I really hope to become better in adjusting camera settings quickly to capture something which might be gone seconds later.
On my way home, when the world turned dark, at the sounds of bullfrogs and occasionally something plunging into the lake escaping my steps, I feel completely overwhelmed by this performance. The beaver who swam close to me to check out why I was sitting there, fish jumping, water snakes swimming through the black pollen covered lake, turtles sticking their heads out of the water, small, and, of sizes I never experienced before. Not one minute passes without something interesting happening, something unpredictable, fast and amazing.
Sitting and watching I usually forget that it grew dark. There is still something left to be seen, something to be extracted out of the last remnant of daylight and preserved inside my camera. One more minute and then I will go home for sure. One more minute,,, One more minute is never enough.
What a show…
Need to watch again
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