Space Shuttle Atlantis launch

ORMOND BEACH, FL - - Today's photo is the result of an experiment. I borrowed a 600mm (Canon) lens and added a 2x doubler to our Canon 30D body. This effectively gave me a 1200mm focal length. I added a lightweight monopod to the mix. The downside was that this f.4 lens weighs about 25 pounds. So, you have a great opportunity to get better shuttle launch photos but you're trying to do so with the equivalent of an unweildy concrete block. I felt I managed to overcome the inherent challenges, but sometime after the first pic I must have hit the focus ring and softened things just a bit. Our cameras, like most recent slr cameras, have auto-focus but to make it work you have to pick up the object of your attention before it will focus. Thus, in situations like this you set the lens focus ring at infinity and bang away...which was a lot harder than it sounds.

More Cedar Key kitties

CEDAR KEY, FL - - There are 5 different cats on the two blog posts, but we saw upwards of 20 although color patterns suggest most belong to a long family tree.

Cedar Key kitties

CEDAR KEY, FL - - Our weekend get-away took us to Cedar Key, on Florida's west (Gulf) coast. If you are a cat lover - - as we are - - this is a great place to go. We quickly noticed the feline presence on our first stroll down the town's short shops/restaurant area. Cats were all over: strolling on the sidewalks; hiding under cars/vans/trucks; climbing on cars; on porches; just about everywhere we looked. This may have something to do with this town/area having being a major fishing area. The cats aren't exactly feral, but they are wary. More suspects on the next post

Red Lemur

SANFORD, FL - - The Red-ruffed Lemur is native to the rain forest in the northeast corner of the island of Madagascar. It is also a close neighbor to the Amur Leopard enclosure at the Central Florida Zoo. This individual and the rest of the crew were resting....and then it was group play time to show how agile they were and that they could do their tricks in the hardest part of their enclosure to photograph.

Siberian Spots

SANFORD, FL - - The Amur Leopard, also known as the Far Eastern Leopard, is an extremely endangered species. Only about 50 live in the wilds of the Amur River Valley in Siberia. There are also 200 in captivity in zoos throughout the world. If you want to see this magnificent creature up close (sort of) you are in luck. The Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Sanford has two.