I left Granite Gap this morning. I have been spending the nights photographing some galaxies and hiking and birding during the day. The weather has been far too windy most of the time and it makes astrophotography hard. I put all that gear away and now I am focusing on birds. I’m at Bosque del Apache NWR near Socorro, New Mexico. After spending the last 7 months in the Sonoran Desert, it is sure nice to see lots of water again! The refuge is full of birds, lots of shorebirds, ibis, herons, ducks, warblers and others. I didn’t do much birding today but tomorrow will be a full day.
One of the galaxies I’ve been working on is M63, the Sunflower Galaxy. I haven’t tried this one for several years. Despite losing a lot of my subs to wind, I managed to get 102 good 90 second subs for stacking. This galaxy is found near the Big Dipper. M100, a galaxy in the Virgo galaxy cluster. The smaller galaxy in the upper right is NGC 4312. I used the MP-65 super macro lens and a MR14-EX II ring flash for these ants. The lens does not autofocus, one has to achieve focus by moving the lens back and forth. The lens must be just a couple of inches from the subject being photographed. A ring flash is pretty much necessary. So, I was on the ground following the movements of the ants trying to do just that. Out of 65 shots I got 4 pretty good ones. I don’t use this lens very much, but it does get good results on very small things. A Lesser Earless Lizard at Granite Gap.
