The roads were a little dicey so I worked from home.  In the morning I squeezed off a couple images from the front steps.

When it was time to knock off I could not resist grabbing the camera for a little bit and getting some fresh air. 

I decided to grab the SMC Pentax Soft 1:2.2 / 85mm portrait lens.  This would give me a chance to try it on landscapes to see how it worked out.  The next several images were made with it.

 

I found that the lens does give a great soft, dreamy quality to images.  No matter how stopped down you go (and it only goes to 5.6), the edges remain soft.  I decided to switch back to the 24~105mm

 

We have a number of birds that come to the feeder.  In addition there are two bald eagles on the lake that we often see flying over the house.  Perhaps they're attracted to the birds that come to the feeder.  Then there is a large flock of crows.  Here's one on "guard".  I made a crow-like noise and it turned its head - lucky me - and this image was captured.  It's a small section of the main image cropped in tight.

The entrance to our neighborhood is adjacent to the golf course and provides a great view of the sunset.  I spent some time here looking for and finding subjects.

Time for some mild abstraction...

I wanted to photograph the "sliding hill" but it was a little plain until the sun came down and the grass again put itself in front of the camera...

The view of the other side of the canyon, across the lake really calls for a much longer lens but I can't resist making images anyway.

Almost home.

Guess which vehicle is seeing the most action...?