Be Still 52, Day 4

It's the simple things in life that really do bring the greatest joy.  This rose was full of loveliness when it was fresh and fragrant, but it continues in its beauty at the final stages of its life.  I adore the change in color and the change in textures.

Day 4's extra credit exercise was to download and use one of Kim's presets and one of her textures in a photo in a different way which explored wabi-sabi.  I really enjoyed processing this photo and setting up the still for the shot.

It's the Simple Things...

It's the simple things I am finding to be drawn to these days.   I find the desire to slow down... less hustle bustle and more "stop and smell the roses."  I signed up for KimKlassen's Be Still 52 course, which is focused on still life photography.  It is perfect for slowing down the process and finding joy in the simple things.   I have always been drawn to "simple" or less is more photography, but this course just spoke to me for many reasons and Kim is a wonderful instructor and talented photographer.    Here is just a few shots of recent work inspired by the class.

A Day of Valentine....

I had a great day using my new camera.  After waiting very patiently, and after much research, I bought a new Cannon D6, the new entry level full frame camera.  NO regrets!  The color is amazing and it just feels good in my hands.  I haven't taken it on a full journey that it deserves, but for now, taking photos of flowers fixed my creative urge.   So, I send to you, flowers for this special Valentine week! 

2B - Day 3

This week in 2B, we worked on camera settings, focus tricks & Lightroom layouts.  Good stuff!  I enjoyed this exercise.  Changing the focal point really does have an impact on your photo.  I took a lot of photos today.  I finally created my template for the class, but after I was done, I went outside and took several photos of Gracie, one of our basset hounds.   I loved focusing on her nose.  The bottom photo is my favorite.  She is such a little ham!

Beyond Beyond - Week 2

Time continues to fly by...It seems like it was just yesterday the family was gathered and we were enojoying the beginning of the holiday season.  And now, Valentines Day is upon us...sigh...

Here we are at week two in Beyond, Beyond.  For this week, Kim reviewd some camera tips and specifically, aperture settings.   We were to take photos using different aperture settings to see how changing the aperture affected the overall view of the picture.  This is always a good practice excercise.  The depth of field (DOF) has a great effect of the "feel" you are trying to achieve or towhere the eye is directed.  These photos were all taken at an aperture setting of 4.0, which is the lowest aperture setting for the lens I was using (which happens to a new lens on my new camera!).   These are just random shots from my artroom.  These are all SOOC so I could see the performance of my new camera.  The top photo is my favorite, and in the collage as well:

 

My artroom is my "safe" place in my home...my refuge and my retreat! 

Beyond Beyond and a New Year

My how time flys..I mean REALLY flys.   I set this blog up with the intention of documenting my journey of many facets of my life, but life is full...sometimes too full and not always full of good stuff.  So, once again I make a pact with myself to be good..find BALANCE...Stop and smell the roses, as they say. 

Once again I signed up for Kim Klassen's Beyond, Beyond journey.  I really don't think of it as a class but a year long journey.  If I keep up with the class, I know at the end of the year, I will have been on an incredible creative journey.    So here goes with Week 1.   

The Capture Challenge - for this week's challenge, we were to experiment with shooting a subject, any subject.  We had to photographic it from various angles and points of view.  Only we could not move the subject.  I chose to photograph a succulent plant from the cactus family that has been in bloom for several weeks.  Soon, it will be gone and I will have to wait another year to see this miracle.  It always astounds me when this plant blooms.   Below is a collage of several of the pictures I took.  The center photo is my favorite. 

The blooms are like umbrellas that grow from two large stalks. I have included a photo for better understanding of how it blooms.

Beyond Layers - Day 64

I love a nice quiet weekend.  Dove hunting season opened this weekend, so I am a dove widow.  The bird of peace, but don't fret, we eat all that is brought home and there are plenty more once the season is over.  The quiet afternoon gave me the opportunity to work on another lesson.  This one was about masking.  I love Kim's style of teaching and am looking foward to her next class, Round Trip, which starts soon.  I hope to go out for a photo shoot tomorrow and try new lessons from other online classes I am taking!

Beyond Layers - Day 60

I have been so behind in this class, but at the same time, I know I am right where I should be.  As I mentioned in my previous post, life just sometimes passes us by...oh too quickly.  But this exercise really spoke to me and I wanted to give it a spin. 

This is another picture I took this morning down that unfamiliar road (which will become VERY familiar to me now!).   I didn't mention that I ended up with about an inch of mud on the bottom of my boots.  But I was determined to make the best of it this morning and I was not disappointed, mud and all.

Here is my "shot" at Day 60, which uses scripted text.  I am usually not partial to yellow, but these wild flowers were just so lovely after the fresh rain!

Always Take a New Road...

Life just passes us by if we let it.  I once had a conversation with a woman from Holland who said to me, "you Americans live to work...we work to live."  That has always stuck with me and sometimes I think it is so true.  I think the answer is somewhere in between because we have to work to make a living, but work doesn't have to be the focus of our lives.  The older I get, the more I realize that balance in life is SO important.  

Yesterday my husband and I took a new road in our area that leads to a new school.  The road has just recently opened and is not completely finished.  So we turned around and on the way back discovered a wonderul old stone building with a windmill.  It had just rained and I didnt' have my camera with me, but I thought about in all night.  This morning I put on some hiking boots and drove back.  I was determined to get a picture of the old building and windmill.  I was so glad I did.  It was like major eye-candy.  The kind that makes your heart stop!  As I began shooting, there were three cows that came down another road curious to see who I was.  Our eyes met and we just stared at one another.  Shoot with your camera!  I think they were waiting for me to take their picture! They didn't move until a few minutes after.  The little one just stole my heart.  I have several pictures from this morning, but I am totally in love with these guys.   It will be a picture in my mind and on my heart all week.

As I proceed on this journey of life, I have found such grattitude for the things nature gives to us.  It never ceases to amaze me how a flower can be such an intricate work of art or the color of grass after a fresh rain.  It is moments like these where I find such inspiration and want to capture every little detail.  I fell in love with macro photography for this very reason.  I love to take a fresh flower and shoot angles of it from every different perspective.  Each and every close photo reveals such beauty.  I get lost in these moments...hours beyond hours can pass and I am still filled with awe in the contentment of nature's beauty.    It always reminds me of a beautiful quote.

Money Well Spent

I had the opportunity to attend a workshop this weekend with Doug Box and Randy Kerr from http://worldphotographic.org/.  I will have to say, it was money well spent.  Not only are these two guys talented photographers, but they are funny and are really great instructors.  Before the workshop you have the opportunity to download a manual, which they refer to during the workshop.  I have a much better understanding of ISO, White Balance, Shutter Speed, and understanding exposure.  Right after workshop, I participated in a two hour photo walk with Randy Kerr.  Although I am not really a portrait photographer, he really helped us to understand light and how to use it to take the best picture of any subject.  Randy is very passionate about light and we all walked away with such inspiration.   These are samples straight out of the camera.  They are not perfect and I can see all my mistakes, but photography is a learning experience and I know my pictures can and will improve. 

If you ever get the chance to take a workshop with Doug and Randy, I highly recommend it.  Their workshop schedule can be found on their website.

The Accidental Photo Walk

I have come to realize that my camera should be attached to my hip.  This morning is a perfect example.  I went to the car wash to get the Beetle washed, only to find out the car wash was closed.  It opens at 8:00 and I was there at 7:45 sharp.  So...thought process....take a left on this road up here and see what's around the corner.   Only to my surprise, there was a beautiful vision of a waterfall  flowing over a relief pond.  Dang..where is my camera!   Fire up the Iphone...snap a few pics, back in the beetle and off to the car wash.  Now I find out the car wash doesn't open until 9:00!  So...home to get my camera (don't get me wrong, I love my Iphone, but I LOVE the feel of my camera in my hands), back out and 45 minutes to shoot.  It was pure heaven.  Just enough...oh, and I did get my car washed!  

The Restless Boot

I was working so diligently with a gif animation, not realizing the number of photos would be restricted.  I am not sure if it was the number of photos, or the size of the photos that was the problem, but it was certainly fun planning it out.   Originally both boots did a little "jig", but when I had to reduce the number of photos, I had to make a decision which photos to remove.   So, after removing the second sequence, I was left with one restless boot!  

This was such a fun exercise and I know I will be doing many more!

Five Questions...

1. What makes you happy?  In 5 words or less...

A day with my camera.

2. Which talent would you most like to have?

I wish I could sing like Adele.

3. Which words or phrass do you overuse most?

"Really?", or "Just sayin"

4. What is your favorite movie, book or both?

The Incredible Mr. Limpet with Don Knotts.  

5. If you could go anywhere in the world for a creative retreat, where might it be?

New Zealand, or Ireland



Social Networking

We are all social creatures.  Some of us more so than others.  It is even apperant it in the animal world.  A perfect example would be birds.  I have a fascination with them, especially on telephone lines.  I often take pictures of them while at a stop light on my way to work.  I think they are a fine example of an ORIGINAL social network!  There are so many social networking platforms these days.  I can hardly remember what life was like before they existed.  Here are 5 things I vaguely  remember:
1) My phone was actually used to CALL friends and family
2) My evenings were spent reading books or watching TV for entertainment.
3) Time spent in front of a computer was only at work.
4) I never "stalked" anyone.
5)  I read the paper in the morning.

Now:

1) My phone is a device to connect me to all my social networking sites. (If you are lucky, I may answer the phone.)
2) My evenings are spent reading blogs, taking internet classes, editing photos or cruising my Facebook feeds (heaven forbid I lose internet connection!).
3) When I get home from work, I can't wait to get on my computer or Ipad to wind down at night!
4) I am now an official FB stalker (can't even believe I admit to this).
5) I check my "phone" first thing in the morning for Instagram, FB and Pintrest updates.  Caffine has moved second to my social networking habits.

How has social networking changed your life? 

A Road Less Traveled

I am always fascinated by pictures of a road leading to "somewhere."  No where specific, but up to the viewers imagination.  For some reason, the title to the book, A Road Less Traveled, always comes to mind.  For me, I think it is because we generally take the easiest path instead of taking the path that IS less traveled.  But what if we did take the path that is less traveled?  Less traffic for sure...  No Starbucks for sure, but what else might we encounter?  The sound of wrestling leaves?  The ability to actually hear the birds sing?  Seeing the nature that surrounds us? (Oh and a photo opportunity for sure!  Can't forget that one!)  For some, more negative thoughts might come to mind...but to me, I see peace and solitude as the destination of any lonely road.  What do you see?

Sunday Bliss

This year has been a whirlwind.  I find myself spending more time thinking about what I "should" be doing (work, as in day job) and less time relaxing and taking time for myself.  I bargain with myself every now and then..."if you make time for your self today, you can just work late during the week."  I can be a workaholic.  No interruptions on a weekend means more work done...which just means, more work I can take on.   Not today.  Today is for me.  Time to rejuvinate.  Time to delve into the creative process.   The whirlwind in my head stops when I create.  So today, I explored my photos, choosing those that really speak to me and put them in my inspiration file.  Here are a few and I hope they will inspire you too!

Dreaming of Sunny Beaches

Here I sit...dreaming of beaches and summer vacation.  Reminds me of when I was young and had the whole summer to look forward to.  Funny how at that age, time seemed endless.  Now at this age, time passes to quick...  So, I dream about the summers gone by, family vacations to the beach, sunburns, ice cream, fireflys and bright stars in the sky.  I can still be a kid, in my heart and in my dreams...

What are your summer dreams?

Two More for the day...

I am really hooked on altering photos in Photoshop using RAD!  I find myself being drawn to the desaturated look with a sepia undertone.  Soft and dreamy.

Photo Play Time

Finally had some free time.  Played with photos and RAD.  Love it!  Happy Thanksgiving!