Posts Tagged ‘photography’
Busy Image
Cyndie is a frequent contributor of images for my use, to which I am forever grateful. Most of the time, she offers them without my asking. I’m probably too quick to turn down as many as I do but it feels a bit like cheating sometimes to rely on her efforts too often in place of my own.
I’ve gladly accepted this crazy image she captured of a wolf spider in a bucket of water.
There is so much going on here that catches my eye. The spider is the least mysterious, except for the three bubbles on the feet, however that is happening. Light does interesting things.
The alien-looking creature at the bottom is wonderful. I wouldn’t think to draw that if I needed to come up with a strange-looking alien, but that hint of a face and the outstretched arm are perfect.
It’s hard to tell what is providing the shadows that are the darker blue shapes. I believe the lighter blue is a reflection of the sky.
The hairy-looking sock puppet of a rat’s face on the right appears to be looking at the ripples in the shadow above it. What is making those ripples, anyway?
Cyndie suggested I create a “Words on Images” feature from the picture but there is already so much going on in that photo that I think words would do it a disservice.
The best thing about this picture for me is that I wish I had taken it. That is often what crosses my mind when I see a photo that I thoroughly admire. I wish I had been there to see that.
I’m glad Cyndie captured it and has shared it for all to see. I think it’s a fabulous photo.
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Immutable
[I found this in a post from 2018 when I was looking for something else and decided I wanted to post it again.]
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Words on Images
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Look Down
More often than not, my photographic experiments involve looking straight up at unexpected moments. Looking down rarely offers much in the way of surprises. We are more inclined to look down at where we are about to step than to suddenly tilt our heads to look directly above us.
Still, there are plenty of times when I point my camera lens down to fill the frame with something that captures my attention. Here are some from our visit to the lake place earlier this week…
I have been on limited duty after Cyndie did some research about the symptoms I am still experiencing since my epic “no-brakes” spill down the hill of our backyard a couple of weeks ago. I had been trying to carry on as if I’d suffered nothing more than a bruised shoulder, but my pain and arm weakness were not fading away as I’d hoped they would.
The new plan is to limit my range of motion and get on a regimen of an anti-inflammatory for a while. I’ve started wearing a sling to help me in two ways: to give my shoulder a rest from the weight of my arm and to remind me not to raise that arm to the point I feel pain.
Doctor Internet Research suggests my healing will be well served by avoiding any motion that triggers pain. That idea is the opposite of what I had been doing up to this point. I wasn’t doing myself any favors by repeatedly testing the limits of what I could do by working past a little pain or discomfort in my shoulder.
Hopefully, I can milk this to get out of throwing hay bales around when the next delivery comes. That reminds me, we should probably find out when the next delivery will be coming.
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Cracking Cones
With spring-like weather showing up way too soon, we have changes going on that are very un-February-like.
The moisture of the melting snow rises in the morning to create a mystical haze in front of the pines in the distance.
The remains of the melting plowed snow on the edge of the driveway are smeared with the dirt that got scraped up by the blade.
Most uncharacteristic of February is the clicking sounds of pine cones popping open in the warm sunshine.
My poor brain is wrestling over reveling in the luxury of the gentle weather at the same time as fretting over the complications this odd warmth could bring about.
In the moments between mental wrangling, the craziness offers plenty of opportunities for me to busy myself taking pictures of scenes that catch my eye.
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Honorable Mention
There were many, many pictures taken over the weekend, most of which didn’t even make it into the photo contest. Some that were entered into the contest were overshadowed by those the panel of judges selected as winners. Today, I’d like to feature one such image from the most enthusiastic photographer in the contest.
Honorable Mention, Category: Nature by Abby S. (12yrs)
I’m a little partial toward it because I also submitted a view of the same frozen lake for the Nature category. Abby and I share a similar perspective when it comes to photography.
Even though the saying holds true that what happens at the lake stays at the lake, there are a few tidbits that are bound to leak. I figure that if I get out front of any rumors that may spring up, I have a better chance of controlling the narrative.
No one can blame me for drinking all the orange juice. And those cheese puff balls that only lasted a short time never once passed my lips.
One particularly noteworthy situation that I adored sprung up when Elysa showed off the fraying thumbs of her fancy knitted mittens. We’d hardly returned indoors when I found my sister, Mary, hand-spinning some yarn for use to repair those knitted thumbs. Faster than made sense to me, Elysa was showing off that her mittens looked as good as new. Way to go, Mary!
For four days, it seemed as though there was constant activity but it never once seemed like too much. With very little pre-planning, wildly entertaining games seemed to blossom out of nowhere.
I had never seen most of the games and found them to be equally enjoyable whether I was in the middle of the actions or calmly observing from a safe distance. Off the top of my head, here are a few wonderfully descriptive titles:
Ouisi- Trash Pandas
- Tripoley
- Sushi Go Party
- Happy Salmon
- Cribbage
- Code Names
- Pokemon
- Twister (outdoors)
- Golf (with playing cards)
If we weren’t playing games or editing photos, we were eating. Smoked bbq meatballs, white chicken chili with cornbread, breakfasts with gooey caramel rolls, spicy biscuits and gravy, fruit salad, pizza from Coops, scrumptious salads, and dessert treats that shall not be named so no one has to think about those calories.
Additional honorable mentions go to Tim for his seamless ability to light pilot lights that inexplicably needed lighting, for tightening a loose toilet seat, cleaning the kitchen to exceptional levels, and for helping Nick on a run to the liquor store that included a stop at a hardware store for a wing nut I needed.
To top off all that fun, conversations flowed amiably in a wide variety of directions that included precious memories, humorous stories, and thoughtful considerations.
Now I miss everyone almost more than I can stand. Stopping all that brilliant sweet family fun so abruptly is not an easy thing to do. It’s really hard to explain to Asher where everyone disappeared to now that we are home where it’s just me, Cyndie, and him.
Hey, family… let’s not wait so long to plan another sleep-over gathering event next time!
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Contest Winners
Hays Hayward Weekend Photo Contest Winners!
First Place, Category: Laughter by John H. (adult)
Second Place, Category: Laughter by Heidi S. (14yrs)
First Place, Category: Food by Kolten M. (14yrs)
Second Place, Category: Food by Henry S. (12yrs)
First Place, Category: Still Life by Kolten M. (14yrs)
Second Place, Category: Still Life by Henry S. (12yrs)
First Place, Category: Wildwood by Elysa H. (adult)
Second Place, Category: Wildwood by Latisha M. (adult)
First Place-Tie, Category: Nature by Heidi S. (14yrs)
First Place-Tie, Category: Nature by Julian H. (adult)
Second Place, Category: Nature by Henry S. (12yrs)
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Snowscape Again!
I got what I wanted! I’ve pared down the photos to seven from the many more pictures we couldn’t resist taking of the glorious snowy scenes that greeted us yesterday morning. What a difference a day makes.
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The snow won’t be around for long. By the end of the day yesterday, I bet we lost half of what fell. The driveway was clear and dry just a few hours after I plowed. Even though the air temperature never rose above freezing, the mid-February sun was at a high enough angle to have a big impact on surfaces.
We expect to be on the road before noon today on our way to Hayward for the weekend. Our newest horse volunteer will tend to the herd while we are gone. Here’s hoping they don’t give her a hard time. The mares were unusually rambunctious yesterday at feeding times.
Thankfully, they understand our routine enough to calm down quickly after a few mouthfuls of feed. The hanging buckets have been a good change in almost entirely eliminating their tendency to chase each other around like a game of musical chairs.
Tomorrow, I post from the lake place! Maybe I’ll take a picture or two.
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Relative Something 