HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017

Gunlock Reservoir

(Taken a few days before Christmas)

  
HAPPY NEW YEAR FRIENDS! The sun sets on another year. Hopefully it has been one filled with fond memories, personal growth, fun times, and gratitude to have been given the gift of life for one more year and having had the courage and determination to live through the challenges and heartaches many of us have also had to face. May we all look forward to 2017 with renewed hope, faith, fortitude and the desire to be better people, live healthier lives, speak kinder words, and enjoy new experiences to the fullest!

(....oh, and find more great photo ops!!)

Holiness to the LORD

'Holiness to the Lord.  The House of the LORD'

It took the early Mormon pioneers 40 years to built this beautiful temple to worship their God and Savior Jesus Christ.

Salt Lake Temple at Christmas

Salt Lake Temple Framed in Red and Gold

Christmas Greetings!

Christmas on Temple Square (2)

Christmas Lights On Steroids! 

I thought this was an interesting contrast between the simple glow of a lantern trying to compete with what looks like a zillion Christmas tree lights in the background.

Christmas on Temple Square

Salt Lake Temple

Christmas on Temple Square. There is nothing that puts me in the Christmas spirit more that visiting Temple Square at Christmas time....even if I was surrounded by thousands of other people enjoying the experience. It is a beautiful place to remember the reason for the season!

Fall & Winter

I'll Be the One Wearing Yellow Mom!

Sometimes photography is about noticing the details or seeing something common in an unusual way. This effect was created in camera with a specialty lens.

Kauai

Took this on a walk near the Marriott Beach Resort in Lihu'e

Storm's Over!!

Storm's Over!

Good Morning Snow!

Good Morning Snow! 

This was the view outside my bedroom window this morning. Jeff took the screen off the window, and I could take pictures with my pjs on....and keep warm at the same time. My kind of winter photography. haha

Salt Pond Beach, Kauai

Now can we just go back to Kauai to relax on the beach, reflect on a wonderful Thanksgiving, and recuperate from an exhausting Black Friday?? 

 Pretty please with sugar on top!

Happy Thanksgiving!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING FRIENDS! 

I hope you are able to spend the day enjoying the blessings of gathering with family and friends, eating good food, having fun, laughing out loud, watching children play, sharing memories, maybe taking a nap, but especially having a grateful heart for life, liberty, and being able to pursue what makes you happy.... (This might help with the laughing part.  'Still life' taken on my kitchen table in natural light:)

Beautiful Po'ipu Beach, Kauai

Po'ipu Beach, Kauai

A high school friend of mine owns a place near here, right on the beach and gets to see this view!  Lucky man!!!

Napali Coast, Kauai

Napali Coast, Kauai

as seen from Kalalau Lookout

We sailed in a catamaran to go snorkeling and then to view the Napali Coast, but the ocean was so rough and the sun so intense that there was no chance of taking any decent photos. But on another day I was well rewarded to get this view of the coast from Kalalau Lookout. This scene took my breath away! The soft overcast day and a polarizer filter on my camera lens really made the lush green foliage and brilliant aqua ocean pop with color.

Fishing in Paradise - Kauai

Imagine catching your breakfast and being able to experience this beautiful sunrise at the same time! 
Another Kauai morning to enjoy!

Supermoon Over Emery, Utah

Supermoon Over Emery, Utah

I felt guilty standing at my front door to take a shot of this beautiful moon, (last post). TOO lazy! So yesterday afternoon I took a little trip to tiny Emery, Utah, population under 300. My husband's grandparents homesteaded there and Jeff spent his childhood summers down on the farm. This is the old church (now on the historic register I believe), where he went to church on Sundays and watched movies on Wednesdays.

Supermoon

GOOD MORNING big, beautiful MOON!

Thank you for shinning on my front porch. This is the composition of a lazy, doesn't want to go out in the cold, photographer! Taken around 7:00 am this morning.

Kauai Sunrise

Oh what a beautiful morning in Kauai!!  

This was taken a few yards outside our hotel room.

Kauai, Hawaii (2)

KAUAI, Hawaii

THANK YOU VETERANS for keeping us safe, for protecting our freedom to enjoy ALL that is beautiful in this GREAT country!!

Kauai, Hawaii

Kauai

I managed to get out of this beach chair to take a few photos!! We had such an awesome week in Kauai, beautiful weather, great friends, spectacular scenery!!

Aspen Abstract

Aspen Abstract

Sometimes I find interesting compositions when I least expect it. Coming home over the Alpine Loop, most of the beautiful fall leaves had already disappeared and the aspens were barren and boring. But I rounded a bend and spotted this scene just as the late afternoon sun was filtering through this grove, creating beautiful highlights and low lights. The pop of color from the small aspen tree still retaining its leaves added some contrast to the scene. (I call this an abstract, because I did some post editing to give it a unique look.)

Mt. Timpamogos Temple in Fall

Color Coordinated!

Last of the yellow/gold leaves framing Angel Moroni on the Mt. Timpanogos Temple.

Fall Still Life...in my Kitchen!

Fall Still Life.....(in my kitchen!!)

It was rainy and windy yesterday, so I decided to have a little Photoshop fun, and decided to bring the outside in, and do a little photography and creativity without needing to wear a raincoat!!  Can you guess how I did this?  I won't keep you in suspense.......

Cookie tray on kitchen table.  Natural light from window.  Dangling leaves suspended from overhead chandelier.  Camera on tripod, set to timer and multiple bursts while I poured water through a sieve to add water and hint of falling rain.  (This is just one of multiple images I combined to make the final.) 

American Fork Canyon, Utah

A brilliant sunset paints a brown and barren landscape with beautiful golden color.

Deer Creek Reservoir, Utah

Deer Creek Reservoir, Utah

A beautiful fall afternoon at Deer Creek Reservoir in northern Utah. You can see the 'backside' of Mt. Timpanogos dusted with snow, in the background.

You'll be Scratchin' Like a Hound.....

"You're gonna need an ocean...."!!! My friend Rod tells me my last post was poison ivy!!! That post and this post were taken in a very popular little park in the middle of town. If this is so, there will be numerous kids, wedding photographers and family portrait photographers and clients who might be "scratchin' like a hound"!!!!

Behind the Red Bench......

Behind the red bench.....(see last post).....

there were still patches of fall color.

'All the Leaves Are Brown'.....(well almost)

'All the Leaves Are Brown....'  

(well almost!)

This was taken at a beautiful little park close to home.   It was a lovely place to enjoy a peaceful few minutes.....except for all the other photographers roaming around doing exactly what I was doing!

Moose Mistake!

Moose Mistake!

YES, you are seeing a blurry, out of focus picture, and NO, it is not your eyes. I was driving over the Alpine Loop early this evening, (very narrow, curvy, two lane road), and I glimpsed this dark shape out of the passenger side window. It was a huge moose walking several yards away from the road. My camera was on the passenger seat, still set for slow speed, bright sunlight. I slowed down, but had to keep moving because the moose was moving. I held the camera at arms length and shot through the closed window while making sure I didn't run off the road. (I know, stupid!) When I looked at the image on my computer, not even expecting to see the moose in the frame, I was surprised that I kind of liked it. Can you have an animal abstract? I don't know, but I loved the effect on the trees, and I could never duplicate this if I tried, because I don't know how it happened! (Of course I did crop and straighten it.) Which brings me to another point and a little secret that is not really a secret. I am grateful and so appreciative when my friends compliment me on my photography, but what you don't know is that for every photo I post, there are probably 200 that get deleted!! Stands to reason that the more photos I take, the chances are that a few will be good, some times it's just luck, and maybe once in a while, it might be talent or skill!!

Mt. Timpanogos Temple

Mt. Timpanogos Temple

I live about 10 minutes away from the beautiful Mt. Timpanogos temple. Just before sunset the front of the temple and background mountains are bathed in warm light that makes Angel Moroni on top of the spire and the blue stained glass window glow. An extra bonus today was this beautiful sky. NO extra color saturation needed. You'd think I'd have a ton of photos of this temple, living so close, but I don't. Problem is, that unless you are shooting in the winter when there are no leaves, the front on the temple is almost entirely obscured by trees. Many of the leaves have now fallen, so today I was able to find a vantage point that showed a bit more of the temple. (Just below where I've cropped the photo is a parking lot full of cars.)

Mt. Timpanogos - First Snow

Mt. Timpanogos - First Snow

Another photo I took a couple of weeks ago after an unusually early snow storm on Mt. Timpanogos. Fall in Utah doesn't get much better than this!

Evening Kayak Ride - Lake Powell

Halls Bay, Lake Powell

Two of my grandchildren enjoying an evening kayak ride.

Lake Powell Sunrise

Lake Powell Sunrise

I love getting up early, before the family chaos begins, to enjoy the beauty of sunrise at Lake Powell. I love how different each day begins, depending on the weather, the clouds, the time of year and the direction I point my camera. Yesterday my photo, (last post), was taken before sunrise, facing away from the sun, capturing a calm, peaceful scene. Today I turned my camera directly at the sun as it made a spectacular entrance that created vivid colors and contrasts between the sun rays and mottled shadows. (Many normal lenses like the one I used here, will create sunbursts, sunflares, and colorful bokeh when pointed at a bright light source.)

Lake Powell - 2016

Lake Powell Sunrise - 2016

I've just returned from spending ten glorious days 'off the grid', no cell phone, no internet, no email, living on a houseboat at Lake Powell for our annual family vacation. Ten days building family memories....wake boarding, jet skiing, kayaking, spear fishing, reading, relaxing, telling ghost stories around the camp fire, and eating enough junk food to last a year. I am so blessed to have children and grandchildren who all love each other, and enjoy being together. Oh, and did I mention being surrounded by beautiful southwestern scenery. This shot was taken from the houseboat, at sunrise. (And looks better when 'clicked' larger.)

Cascade Springs, Utah

Cascade Springs, Utah

Gold, rust, burnt orange, red, yellow, green.....fall colors are my favorites. I wear these colors, I decorate my house in these colors, I drive a car painted one of these colors. I think this would be my favorite time of year, except that my mood is somewhat dampened when I remember that this beautiful season will eventually turn into a gray, white, colorless winter, at least here in northern Utah! This is another shot of Cascade Springs near Mt. Timpanogos.

Mt. Timpanogos Between Fall and Winter

Mt. Timpanogos Between Fall and Winter

Same place, earlier in the afternoon, and a different spot up the road from my last post. I thought of this quote by John Muir on the day I was taking these photos: "The mountains are calling and I must go."

Mt. Timpanogos, Utah

Mt. Timpanogos, Utah

We've had some wild weather here in Utah for the last few days, but after the rain, the wind, and the tornadoes, (yes, here in Utah), Mother Nature gave us this!

Duck Creek Village, Utah

Duck Creek Village, Utah

Inclement weather and a drizzly, cloudy, foggy, dark day....great for showing off fall yellows and creating moody, misty photos.

Aspen & Sheep, Cedar Breaks, Utah

Aspen & Sheep, Cedar Breaks, Utah

Just got back from a great ATV trip with friends, and drove home by way of Cedar Breaks, hoping to get a few photos of the spectacular fall foliage. Unfortunately it was raining and windy, but the sheep didn't seem to mind! I have seen a lot of aspen trees in fall, and this is about as good as it gets!

Fall in Utah

Mt. Timpanogos 

Fall color is GLORIOUS in Utah mountains right now. This is what I call the 'backside', (north facing view I think), of Mt. Timpanogos. This view is about a half hour drive from home. Lucky me!!! (For you Utah photographers, I just discovered this shooting location and I love it!)

Where's Karen?

Where's Waldo? Or in this case where's Karen??? This front door shot became one of my rare selfies. (It was taken in Santa Fe where we spent a few days celebrating our 46th anniversary.)

Peach Pie

I don't like to cook, but I do. I used to bake bread and make pies, but not so much anymore. But once a year, every year, I make a fresh peach pie from scratch for my husband, with peaches from our own trees. And today was the day. It is truly a time consuming labor of love for me, as I manage to dirty every mixing bowl, every measuring cup, and end up with flour and pie dough on most of the drawer and cupboard knobs and all over the floor! So after all that, I had to treat myself with a taste just to make sure it turned out alright, before serving it to my family for Sunday dinner. (That's my story and I'm sticking with it). And it turned out delish, even if I do say so myself!! And the best part....... left over peach pie for breakfast!!!

A Bird in the Hand......

Nice being out in nature, just me and the birds.....well not exactly. The location where I took this photo might be a bit misleading. This little swampy area sits in between a shopping mall parking lot and an 8 lane freeway. The birds love it!

Tahiti - Moorea

Tahiti - Moorea

This is a weekend where many of us are able to take a break from the everyday routine, and travel away to places far or near, while some of us take 'staycations' and travel to far away places in our minds! I'm completing a photo book of our 18 months in the South Pacific Islands several years ago, and ran across this photo. There is nothing more spectacular than sunsets in the South Pacific. This was taken from our hotel in Tahiti, looking toward the beautiful island of Moorea, my favorite tropical paradise.

Busy Bee!

Look closer to see how busy this little bee really is!

Magnolia

"Softer Than a Summer Night" 

That phrase just popped into my head when I was looking at this image. Who remembers what song this line is from??

Pink Cosmos

The humble cosmos looks lovely when surrounded by a beautiful summer garden.

Salt Lake Temple

Salt Lake Temple

Backlit by Hot August Sun

I'm always looking for unique compositions of the Salt Lake Temple, and if it includes some sun flare, that's icing on the cake. Love how Angel Moroni looks like he's floating. Took this today while I was on Temple Square late this afternoon.

Another Beautiful Summer Garden

Ashton Gardens at Thanksgiving Point

It's hard to get excited about putting in the work and expense of cultivating my own garden when I can drive 5 minutes away and enjoy scenes like this!!!

P.S.  I have had several people ask if I add saturation to this image.  Here is a comment I made on facebook where I have lots more viewers than here on my blog:

Several people have asked if I 'photoshopped' my last post to make the colors so......well, colorful??? This is probably the most common question landscape and nature photographers get asked regularly! Read on to find out my answer..... Many die hard traditionalists feel that anything done to a photograph outside of the camera is cheating, (even though we know that early photographers also regularly manipulated their images, even the great Ansel Adams). But what if the manipulation comes in the camera before the shot is taken, such as using special filters or lenses or camera settings to create unique 'looks' that are not what the eye would normally see?? In the days before digital, even the film a photographer used would change the look of an image. Portrait and wedding photogs would often use Provia film which produced neutral, soft colors that would enhance skin tones, whereas landscape photographers would use Velvia film which produced vivid, saturated, bright colors. My current digital camera love, a mirrorless Fuji xt-1 has settings that simulate the 'look and feel' of those most popular films. So when I shoot colorful scenes, like the one here, I often set my camera to the Velvia setting to bring out the colors. So for you traditionalists out there, is this in-camera selection of a specific setting to achieve a specific look, cheating? Of course photography has always been about combining art and science into personal interpretation, (I'm not talking about journalistic photography in its strictest form). But today, because of modern technology, the lines between photography, graphic art, paintings, drawings, and other art forms continue to blend and overlap, and the traditionalists who try to keep those boundaries separate and apart are in a losing battle. For them, it sometimes becomes more important to base their opinion of the value of an image on how it was created, rather than whether the image itself is beautiful, meaningful, uplifting, informative, evocative, etc. I wonder how many people who love the work of Monet thought to ask what type of brushes he used, or the brand of paint he preferred!! (For those who missed my photo in question, here it is again.) P.S. I do have to say, when I compare my photos on my computer with how they appear here on FB, they often look more saturated. Not sure if this is a FB thing!