Heat Wave

A Day in the Life

Our photo group met on Tuesday this past week.  In addition to enjoying a great dinner and each other’s company, we showed images from our last assignment, “A Day in the Life.”  A random date had been selected (Thursday, June 13), and each member took photos of whatever he/she happened to be doing on that date.  It was fun viewing the diversity of activities!

Want to see what I was doing on June 13?  If so, continue reading.  If you could care less what I was doing on Thursday, June 13, then you can stop right here.  Still reading?  Well, you can’t say I didn’t warn you!  Here goes...

Thursday, June 13, 2013:

Home from work, I stood in my garage and watched it rain.  

I think it rained every day in June!  We got something like 10 inches of rain last month.  Our yard was filled with puddles!

Now comes the exciting part.  The highlight of that day in my life, was video chatting with my nephew, Mikey!

We live in different parts of the country, so my nephew and I rarely see each other.  Thanks to Apple and our iPads, though, we now get to “see” each other...Face(time) to Face(time)...on a regular basis!

Love you, Mikey!  

Sweet Land of Liberty

Amid the joyous celebrations of barbecues and fireworks, let us not forget the sacrifices in the name of freedom that were made by men and women of this great nation.

Dutch Treat

A couple of weeks ago a friend treated me to lunch at one of my favorite dining establishments in Amsterdam.  Afterwards we spent a lovely afternoon with our cameras.

I found this storefront on Amsterdam’s Main Street:

Before we pounded the pavement, my friend and I hit the hills.  I discovered this scene at an old, rural cemetery we stopped at:

I think a photography class should be a requirement in all educational programs because it makes you see the world rather than just look at it.  ~Author Unknown

Saints Cyril and Method Cemetery

On Tuesday of this past week, my photo group went on a shooting field trip.  Our destination?  Saints Cyril and Method Cemetery in Rotterdam.  

To those non-photographers reading this blog...you make think a cemetery is a funny place to go shooting, but they can be a goldmine of beautiful and interesting sculptures.

Each day is a gift.

Healing

Blessed are the little joys in life.  

They have the power to keep us going 

when we don't think we can. ~Unknown

Scavenger Hunt - Week #33

I shuddered when I saw this week’s Scavenger Hunt assignment:  “Floor.”  Ugh!  Uninspired, I decided to skip it.  As the week progressed, though, I resolved to give it a whirl.  After all, if the assignments aren’t challenging, what would be the point?

“Floor”

This is my “straight” shot, with a twist on the perspective and converted to monochrome to emphasize the graphic design.

Here’s the same image with an artsy filter applied.

About the only thing that comes to us without effort is old age.  ~Gloria Pitzer

Scavenger Hunt - Week #32

“LOOK OUT!”

LOOK OUT...FOR THE ALIEN BEES!

Note:  To see an incredible “LOOK OUT” shot, check out my friend’s image:  Linda's Blog

Scavenger Hunt - Week #31

This week’s assignment was “interesting” to say the least:  

“Create a modern sculpture from the contents of a junk drawer.  NO CHEATING!  All items must come from one drawer.”

Initially, I wasn’t the least bit motivated by this assignment.  It didn’t help that my DSLR is in the camera “hospital” getting its...oh wait...the HIPAA privacy law prevents me from revealing such personal information!  

As I was saying, my DSLR is in the camera hospital, so I had to dig out my old compact PAS.  I didn’t care for the topic and missed my big 60D.  Needless to say, my motivation level was zilch...nada.  But I did it anyway!

JUNK DRAWER ART

I must confess, creating a sculpture out of junk was more fun than I anticipated!

Scavenger Hunt - Week #30

“Leaning”

My son is home for the long weekend, and graciously agreed to help me with this week’s Scavenger Hunt.  I posed him “leaning” against a tree, but at this angle, he was squinting into the sun.  I should have known better...I learned not to do that in “Basic Photography 101!”

Before his patience ran too thin, I posed him leaning against a different tree with his back to the sun.  That was much better!

Thanks, Dave!

A son is...a man, with paths to walk, with bridges to cross, with mountains to climb.  A son is an amazing combination of all of these things, and he’s quietly thanked, every day of his life, for the priceless joy he brings. ~Douglas Pagels

Scavenger Hunt - Week #29

This week’s Scavenger Hunt list:  “One photo of the inside of your house that would be used in advertising your house for sale.”

Our house is a “passive solar” home.  It was built at a specific angle to the sun, with windows across the entire front of the house to capture sunlight.  It really works.  With all of the blinds raised on a sunny day, the thermostat can hit 80 degrees!

If and when I get to the point of advertising my house for sale, I might use a photo like this one to promote its “passive solar” feature:

This image was much too contrasty; when exposed for the outside scene, the inside was in total darkness.  And when exposed for the inside scene, the outside was blown out to total whiteness.  I really needed HDR software to capture a proper exposure! 

Talk about frustration!  I was so annoyed by the whole thing, I've decided to stop procrastinating, take the leap and purchase the HDR software. 

Well...maybe instead of leaping, I’ll just take a baby step and download the free trial version first!

Scavenger Hunt - Week #28

“Bookshelves with books.”

Late last summer, my son moved back home for a few months.  While he was here, he built some “magical” bookshelves for his bedroom.

Where the heck are the shelves?

Scavenger Hunt - Week #27

My son was admitted to the Bar this week, in an impressive admissions ceremony at the Empire State Plaza.  The Honorable William L. Owens, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, administered the Constitutional Oath of Office to over 700 attorneys (including his own son) to a packed audience of family members and loved ones. 

(In case you’re wondering...no, this isn’t my son...he was out of my line of vision!)

For our Scavenger Hunt this week, we were looking for “a funny/unique sign/poster/billboard/visual statement - all using some words (not just emotion).”

In the hallway of the convention center I found a sign, packed with emotion (at least for me) in this visual statement:  

I didn’t think to photograph that sign before the ceremony.  Afterwards, I barely had time to grab one quick shot of it before the sign was whisked away by a member of the clean-up crew!

Scavenger Hunt - Week #26

This week’s “hunt” was to photograph a “stupid” purchase; stupid as in wasteful or something we haven’t gotten the use from.  

I’ve made plenty of “stupid” purchases, so I didn’t have to hunt very long to find one of them!

Over the years, I’ve seen and admired some beautiful memory scrapbooks.  I love taking photos (big surprise, huh?!), so it seemed natural to take the next step into scrapbooking.

Off to the scrapbooking store I went!  $45 later, I came home with a beautiful memory book, various decorating supplies, and a cool pouch to store the craft supplies.  

That was six years ago.  The pages in my memory book are blank, and my decorating supplies are still safely stored in my pretty blue pouch.  

What a “stupid” purchase! 

Scavenger Hunt - Week #25

“An Odd Shape”

Kelly Sue

In loving memory of Kelly Sue

10/26/67 - 12/31/12

“She died as she lived, everyone’s friend.”