The edge of the fields and ditches are a beautiful jumble of colors now that the wild flowers are in bloom. The yellows, whites, and purples are prevalent against the backdrop of a midsummer deep green.

I won’t typically be posting too many shots of our boys here, but this is one that I’m really proud of. And it was taken to show Anna how well Jalo can jump from one tread to another.

The parade of weather fronts flying over our house continued today (even if the shot is from yesterday). I can’t get over how fortunate we are to live in a place where we can see the shadows clouds make. Most of the area around us is a bit more forested - or then there aren’t houses in the middle of the fields.

We had several stormfronts pass over and by us today. The clouds looked great and the wind whipped the trees and fields, but other than that we got nothing.

On another note, posting here’s been slow. I really don’t know why. Our 30D was also sent for repairs today - we got the dreaded Err99 during the weekend. So digging out the old 300D had me decide to use the kit lens (18-55 mm) it originally came with instead of the typical longer lenses that I use. A wider angle was refreshing.

Summery countryside in Finland. With a hint to a friend…

I’ve always envied photographers in less forested areas. Areas where you can see for miles at a time. While our current home doesn’t offer quite that expansive views, we do have wider views than most homes in Eastern Finland.

After we’d finished training with the dogs, I was calling them in when I saw this pattern of light and shadow in the fields. This is the first shot I took. By the time I started to chimp, the clouds had moved to cover the light area.

While I got the hang of shooting the larger dogs fairly quickly (they do present a large target, after all ;), the Italian Greyhound were another matter entirely. Imagine shooting a little dog that moves all too fast…

Stepping out of your photographic comfort zone is quite good to do every now and then. Although dog photography is what I mainly do with the camera, taking pictures of retrievers (even flatcoats) is quite different to taking pictures of sighthounds at full speed.

The speed of the dogs is also a real test of your equipment. It’s the first time that our 30D’s focus points were not enough ;). But I did end up with several good shots, so prepare for more dogs.

One of the funny memories of have of American family and friends visiting us in the spring is their reactions to the dandelion fields we have in the countryside. Many hay fields sport a healthy dose of yellow at this time of the year. Even weeds can look magnificent.

These poor flowers didn’t last long after this shot was taken. Our good friend the lawn-mower took care of them…

This is an entry for my 2008challenge project.

One of many dandelions we have in our yard. Yes, a flower macro. But how many take shots of weeds? (And yes, Little boxes is playing in my head right now too.)