Big Skies photoblog is a blog dedicated to sharing to the public some quality images of the sky’s weather formations, sunrises and sunsets, mountain scenery, plants and trees, farm animals, and many other facets of New Zealands unique rural lifestyle.
Hi, I’m the photographer who snaps these pictures. I use the name Thin Smek when I share my work on the internet, so if you think that name is a bit strange, it’s not my everyday name!
I sometimes like to imagine I own a DLSR digital camera worth a thousand bucks, but I only use a low cost Fujifilm FinePix J10. This camera has not got many of the basic setting that photographers often use. I have to be careful about my use of my camera because if you use a point-&-shoot like I do, it is easy be careless composing real photographs.
I started photography as an amateur at the age of ten with an older Sony Cybershot digital point & shoot. My main photography interests were pictures of small aircraft that were often flying over our rural home. It had lots of settings that I never quite learned how to use, but as it got older, it started wasting battery power. We bought a new battery, but the power would only last for about 30 seconds before shutting off. When it broke down, our family bought our current Fujifilm, of which I am the primary user.
Some photos displayed on this blog have been enhanced, watermarked, and downscaled for this blog with Google Picasa. I rely on Picasa for organising and retouching/enhancing all my photos. Others I have done full scale photo manipulation with Paint.NET. I use Paint.NET for all my graphic design needs. I also have lots of links to Wikipedia in my posts. I view Wikipedia as a reliable and up-to-date fountain of knowledge for every query under the sun.
I don’t usually enjoy taking formal pictures of people, but I like taking pictures of my relatives when they least expect it! I mainly use my camera to snap thunderclouds, high cloud formations, unusual clouds, sunrises, sunsets, and other visual beauties of the sky and weather. I also enjoy photographing scenery of New Zealand, plants and flowers, animals, vehicles, computers, and many other interesting subjects.
Click here to go to my Personal Blog
I hope you enjoy these perspectives of New Zealand from my viewfinder!
