algarve Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Craig Rogers Photography

Red Rumped Swallows at the Quinta

16th September 20179th October 2017Craig Rogers

The Red Rump Swallows nest here at our “Quinta” and will be getting ready to leave soon. They arrive later than the other Swallows and Swifts and also leave slightly later too.

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Red Rumped Swallow - D810, AF-S 300mm f/2.8 @ 300mm, f/8, ISO320, 1/2000sec - {Flickr Link}

They are a little larger than the Barn Swallow and as the name suggests have a rusty coloured rump (which gets darker with age). Their nests are different too with a tunnel entrance. This year, they occupied the same nest as last year, but decided to add an extension to the tunnel. You can see the darker colour of the entrance in the photo below;

Milky Way Over The Barragem de Odelouca

16th September 20179th October 2017Craig Rogers

Before the Galactic Core of the Milky way dips below the horizon for the Winter months, I thought I’d get out and grab a photo, continue reading below if you are interested in how I planned for the shot.

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Galaxy Over Lake - D810, AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 14mm, f/2.8, ISO3200, 20sec - {Flickr Link}

Sunset captured on my Samsung Galaxy S8+

14th September 20179th October 2017Craig Rogers

I’m not much of a mobile phone shooter, but tonight’s sunset was stunning due to a few clouds. Rather than run for my DSLR, I thought I’d try out a challenging photo for a mobile phone camera. This scene would be challenging to a mobile camera due to the large differences in very bright and dark areas. This dynamic range is something that a small lens and sensor in a mobile struggles with. As you can see, the result is pretty good considering.

This photo was shot on my Samsung Galaxy S8+. The camera was in “Pro” mode and saved as a RAW (DNG) file. I set the exposure on the bright sunset and also dialled in -1 compensation, I then finished up with some post work in Lightroom.

{Click image for a higher resolution, click Flickr Link in caption to view photo on Flickr}

Sunset on a Galaxy! - Samsung Galaxy S8+ @ 4.2mm, f/1.7, ISO50, 1/60sec - {Flickr Link}

Today We Rescued a Ladder Snake (Video)

28th August 20179th October 2017Craig Rogers

Today myself and partner Emma were walking through our Neighbour’s farmland and we stopped to look in an old well. To my surprise, there was an adult Ladder Snake swimming around trying to find a way out.

The well is at least 20 feet (6 meters), if not a lot more, so there was no way the Snake was going to get out. Emma ran off to pull up a long Bamboo to rescue it.

The Bamboo was just long enough to drop down into the water and the Snake happily climbed on. After a careful raise the snake was free.

I captured some video on my mobile, it’s not great as I was a bit nervous of dropping my phone down the well.

Ladder Snakes are very common here in the hills of the Algarve as it’s the perfect habitat for them. They are non-venomous so completely harmless although if threatened can appear to be aggressive. The juveniles have a ladder pattern on their back, but this disappears with age. They can grow up to around 160cm long.

{Remember to watch in HD if possible}

Perseids Meteor Shower 2017

13th August 201712th August 2018Craig Rogers

The Perseids Meteor Shower is a yearly event in August as the Earth travels through the dust left behind by the Comet Swift-Tuttle as it orbits the Earth.

This year, the peak time was 1am on the 13th August, however, the bright Moon in the sky was going to wash out most of the visible Meteors and make photography a little tricky. Therefore, I decided to set the camera up and point North East towards the Perseus Constellation (where the shower gains it’s name) before Moon rise to capture some of the early starters.

The image below is the best of the bunch. If you look closely, you can actually see 3 Meteors that burnt up within this 20 second exposure. It’s amazing to think that these bright “shooting stars” are dust the size of a grain of sand!

What I love about this shot is not only is the Milky Way clearly evident, but also the Andromeda Galaxy is showing herself off too!

{Click image for a higher resolution, click Flickr Link in caption to view photo on Flickr}

Persieds Meteors - D810, AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 14mm, f/3.2, ISO3200, 20sec - {Flickr Link}

Sunset from the border of the Algarve and Alentejo

4th August 20178th July 2018Craig Rogers

This last week we had a visit from my sister (and family) and whilst I was out giving her a tour around the hills, I spotted an abandoned windmill on the top of a ridge and thought it would make a good foreground for a sunset.

This evening, I returned to the windmill just before sundown.

The sunset wasn’t as good as the Algarve can be gifted with, but enough colours to snap a few shots which you can see below;

{Click image for a higher resolution, click Flickr Link in caption to view photo on Flickr}

Abandonded Windmill Sunset - D810, AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 16mm, f/11, ISO64, 1/60sec - {Flickr Link}