1808 - orange wisp of cloud

setup: sony nex 7 with sel 50 f1.8 | 50mm | f7.1 | ISO125 | 1/80 | lightroom 4.1

some pics create the impression that they weren't captured by a camera but painted with a brush. today in the evening i have shot an incredible sunset over saxony while we were walking over the fields to view the horses' way to the paddock where they usually stay in the night.

it was already getting darker and we had to turn around and go back the same way to reach the restaurant in time for the dinner of my father's birthday party when the sky bloomed in the most wonderful orange.

cu, trshptr

1508 - vista

setup: sony nex 7 with sigma 30 f2.8 ex dn | 30mm | f5.6 | ISO100 | 1/160 | lightroom 4.1

the hottest weekend of the year is due. its harbingers are already visible and palpable: at 7 o'clock we still had 32 degrees, stuffy air and before the heat wave a heavy thunderstorm will approach, a few cumulus clouds are already visible on the western horizon. today my single aim was to go to the lake after work again and to take to the water.

i met tina at half past six at our favourite lake access and afterwards we chilled there till the sun had set down. many more emulated our deeds and plunged into the water. some others settled for being in the shade and looking at the many yachts that were harbouring in the bay.

cu, trshptr

1308 - pomp and splendour

setup: sony nex 7 with sigma 30 f2.8 ex dn | 30mm | f9.0 | ISO100 | 1/200 | -0.7ev | lightroom 4.1

the intermediate destination of my today's after work cycling tour was the splendid castle of heiligenberg. besides the cloister of birnau and the castle of salem "schloss heiligenberg" is one of the most famous medieval, architectural sights north of the lake constance. it was initially built in 1250 on a plateau more than 700 metres above the sea and almost 250 metres above the lake level and continuously enlarged. in 1559 the castle was rebuilt and remodelled in the renaissance style. with its famous hall of knights it hosts one of the most magnificent renaissance halls north the alps.

unfortunately due to the very misty weather conditions - i told you about the micro climate at lake constance - you can only see the lake and not the alps behind in the background, what would be theoretically possible on a day with foehn or low pressure and temperature.

cu, trshptr

0608 - coming out of the mist

setup: sony nex 7 with sel 50 f1.8 | 50mm | f5.6 | ISO100 | 1/125 | lightroom 4.1

till thursday evening i'm on business trip again, but this time really for a nice purpose: within the scope of the preservation of my certifications as an instructor for general sports i have to participate in at least one course every two years. that's why this week i'm going to improve my skills in climbing and mountain biking, wherefore i'm currently located close to the austrian border in the karwendel mountains next to the town mittenwald.

i know, i already told you, but let me point that out again: i like the mountains very much! if furthermore moody weather conditions attend to hills, rocks and mountains, i'm completely satisfied. in my opinion mountains and mist go very well together.

in today's pic you can see the western karwendel summit, that i can view almost completely without leaving my accommodation.

cu, trshptr

0508 - country portrait

setup: sony nex 7 with sigma 30 f2.8 ex dn | 30mm | f3.2 | ISO100 | 1/800 | lightroom 4.1

customs and traditions are different from country to country, even from state to state. where in bavaria the munich beer festival is feasted, in eastern germany the father's day is well-known and in hamburg the people celebrate each birthday of their huge harbour. however the area at lake constance is far-famed for their wine festivals: in september we are going to celebrate the wine festival of our home village - the venue is located directly next to our courtyard. this festival is quasi coming home to us.

not far from our place - half an hour by car - the area around tettnang constitutes an exception: their cultivations aren't about grapes but hops. today the official hops hiking day was executed. four different beer villages were built to entertain and feed the people with food and beer from more than 20 different breweries. this festival was a welcome change to the otherwise executed (booze-)events. between the villages that were distributed on the hills of tettnang you had to walk and in this way you got around to arouse new thirst.

moreover we met nice and interesting people on the ways between the beer villages. above all i spotted a farmer who enjoyed his beer next to his tractor and shot a - in my opinion - really appropriate image for this rural and rustic area.

cu, trshptr

0308 - late night shopping

setup: sony nex 7 with sel 50 f1.8 | 50mm | f2.5 | ISO200 | 1/20 | lightroom 4.1

like i already said, the area around lake constance is characterised by agriculture, especially fruit and vegetable cultivation and the processing of these products. so you can buy regional products like apples, courgettes, grapes, cherries, cucumbers or homemade juices, vines, liquors and schnapps for little money in every store.

the most of the farms also sell their agricultural products in small self-service kiosks at the streets. of course depending on the time the offer is more or less opulent because their commodity is always fresh. in our case we've stopped at the kiosk at 10pm after we'd have dinner with friends in their favourite balkan restaurant: for that reason the number of products was limited, but you always get anything.

cu, trshptr

2907 - dripping soft

setup: sony nex 7 with sel 50 f1.8 | 50mm | f5.6 | ISO100 | 1/80 | lightroom 4.1

one of my favourite scenes (not only) in the mountains is the wood, especially if it is located at the slope. when we descended back to our car today at noontide heavy fog was gathering in the valley of galtuer.

a fresh coldness is noticeable when the fog blanket overruns you. the contrasts become soft, the air flavours of soil. i'm an absolute fan of sceneries like that. in these cases i think back to the times when nature wasn't disturbed by any handmade environmentally unfriendly points. everytime an original nature feeling expatiates, everything is dripping soft. love it!

cu, trshptr

2807 - schottensee

setup: sony nex 7 with sigma 30 f2.8 ex dn | 30mm | f8.0 | ISO100 | 1/250 | lightroom 4.1

getting up very early at weekends is really difficult, especially if you didn't go to bed before midnight. today in the morning the alarm was ringing at 5am. we still had to prepare the packed lunch and at 6am we would like to depart towards austria together with our friends martin and jule.

after a two hours drive we reached galtuer where we had breakfast picnic in the sun, before we began to ascend to the alpine hut friedrichshafener huette (2.138m), where we are going to spend the night. we were received very courteously, had a warm drink and a soup and waited there for the end of the rain, that had set in at 11am. ongoing our afternoon walk led us to the ridge schafsbicheljoch (2.636m) and the summit vertinespleiskopf (2.706m), from where we had a stunning view over the schottensee into the valley fasultal.

despite the bad forecasts from last week the weather gods were well tempered so that we had a really nice day, almost without wearing our rainjackets.

and the evening in the alpine hut will be even better.

cu, trshptr

2407 - descending branch

setup: sony nex 7 with sel 50 f1.8 | 50mm | f13 | ISO100 | 1/160 | lightroom 4.1

sometimes life is a bunch of contrarieties: tina has a day off, these days the sun appears at 5am on the eastern horizon and sets not before 9pm in the west, the water temperature is absolutely refreshing and normally the work brings more joy than worse. regardless real pleasure isn't raising at the moment. why that?

today the other side of the coin is the outlook to tomorrow: tina is going to undergo a medical examination tomorrow and i won't be able to support her before or afterwards the appointment because at the same time i will be at work in munich for a business trip. unfortunately!

so today was characterised by the preparation of tina's nasty examination. she had to take a bunch of medicine and she isn't allowed to eat anything for the period of 24 hours before the examination. an undesirable side effect of the medicine is the rising probability that you break into shivers. although there are still 28 degrees at 8pm in our yard, she isn't feeling like sitting outside in the setting sun but tucking herself up with a blanket and drinking a pot of hot tea.

this is only one of many contrarieties of our lives, but fortunately anytime everything will be balanced out again. that's why i'm thinking positive and looking forward to thursday evening, when i'll be back home and enjoy the warm summer and the chilly lake, in that case together with tina again.

cu, trshptr

1706 - silhouette of a latecomer

setup: sony nex 7 with fujian 35 f1.7 | 35mm | f1.8 | manual focus | ISO100 | 1/1600 | lightroom 4.1

today a rather usual business day was followed by a great bicycling tour with my mate andi. after that when i'd finished personal care and eating it was already eight o'clock. at the moment i have only little interest in television - the program is simply awful. it's about time that the olympic games start, so that there would be at least one reason to switch the tube on.

because the opening ceremony will be broadcasted not before next friday evening, i used this chance for a photo walk. the sun was already setting when i reached the fields in the south of my village. unbelievable how fast everything changes these days.

only a few creatures are stunted, like the slim sunflower whose illuminated silhouette traces the shape of a young plant that actually had to be a good deal bigger. don't worry, little flower, the sun will assist you with your growth like it had done today evening.

cu, trshptr