Floating in Bubbles

FLOATING IN BUBBLES

This morning I took an early morning walk at Thanksgiving Point.  (Part of which includes many acres of beautiful gardens.)  I decided I was just going to soak in all the beautiful summer flowers in full bloom as a result of a very unusually rainy and cool August and not worry about taking photos. So I forced myself to leave my camera at home.  

I was doing great until the end of my walk which usually brings me to an enclosed garden aptly called 'The Secret Garden'.  It is my favorite place to sit on a bench, smell the flowers and enjoy a beautiful little fountain in the middle of the garden.  But I noticed that since my last visit they had changed how the fountain sprays.  And then I noticed it was now creating these beautiful bubbles that I knew would be perfect as a backdrop for a flower photo.  In the little class I taught on flower photography I challenged the group to find different and unique ways of presenting flowers, which I try to do as well, and I knew the bubbles and interesting water patterns would do just that.  

Of course at this point I'm irritated that I didn't bring my camera with me, but I did have my iphone, so that's what I used to take the photos that went into creating this image.  Guess the moral of the story is, not having a big fancy camera is no excuse for not taking photos or creating art!  I hope you like it!

Chalk Art - Street Photography

Street Photography is both challenging and interesting.  I'm not talking about the type of street photography where one is hidden behind a tree and sneaks candids with a telephoto lens.  And, I'm not saying that one can't get some interesting photos and capture great moments when the subjects are unaware that they are being photographed.  But I'm talking about a different kind of street photography that can be very intimidating and uncomfortable for the photographer, especially a beginning photographer.  It can also be intimidating for the subject who has just had a stranger walk up to her/him and wants to start taking photos.  There is a skill involved in not only convincing a stranger that you are not a stalker, but within only a few minutes making that person feel comfortable enough to allow you to photograph them.  Not only that, but to come away with an interesting, natural pose and expression to boot!

I remember my first experience with this kind of street photography was during a fabulous experience my sister-in-law and I had of attending a week long photography workshop taught by National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore some years ago.  One of our assignments I called "Stranger at 20 feet".  He set the group loose in old town Santa Fe, New Mexico with the assignment to engage in conversations with strangers, obtain their permission to photograph them, and then come back and show our best shots to the group.  We only had one evening to work up our courage, figure out an approach, not forget how to use our camera in our nervousness, and return with something worth showing the group for critique.  This was one of the hardest things I had to do at that workshop, but also one of the assignments where I grew the most in my confidence and abilities.  (I'll post my 'keepers' from that assignment in a day or two.)  I still have a few butterflies walking up to total strangers with a camera, but I can tell you that some of my favorite 'people' pictures over the past years are ones of interesting strangers I've met during my travels.

All of the artists and other interesting people at this show knew I was taking their photo. Even the ones who are not looking at the camera or appear to be candid, I previously spoke with them for a few minutes, asked permission, then told them to go back to what they were doing.

Mirror Lake, Utah

MIRROR LAKE, UTAH

Yesterday in the late afternoon, Jeff and I took a drive to Mirror Lake which is about an hour away from our home.  It was a beautiful drive, and the lake was peaceful and lovely.  We took a leisurely stroll along the shore and watched a few people fishing and paddling canoes.  We then headed home by way of Park City for a late dinner.  It was a nice evening! 

Elegant!

My how time goes by so fast!  Just not enough time to fit everything in, and that includes blogging!  Hope I can do better soon!  Here is one I recently took at Thanksgiving Point in preparation for a second flower photography class I'm teaching.

Morning Shower

Jeff was sprinkling the garden while I was taking pictures this morning, so I told him to give the flowers a shower.

LadyBug in My Garden

I love ladybugs, but haven't seen many in my garden this year.

Aging Gracefully.......

..... And Beautifully

(follow up to last post)

In My Garden Today

"We Can Work It Out"

 "We Can Work It Out"

Try to see it my way
Do I have to keep on talking till I can't go on?
While you see it your way
Run the risk of knowing that our love may soon be gone.

Pond Queen

POND QUEEN

The Watchman - Zion National Park

The Watchman

By the time I arrived at this very popular location for landscape photography in Zion National Park, it was dark.  Usually the bridge where this view is seen is packed with photographers and their tripods, as well as a second group waiting for their turn to photograph this iconic scene.  When I arrived, the last photographer was packing up his gear.  It had been a beautiful sunset, and I had missed it.  I sat in my car wondering if I could make it back here while the trees were still adorned with the beautiful, bright green leaves of spring. I didn't know when that would be, so I got out of my car, and decided to shoot a couple of images anyway.  The good news was that I had my pick of anywhere on the bridge to stand as I was the only one there.  The bad news was that it was dark and I couldn't see where I was going or what I was doing.  I knew that to capture any of the remaining light I would have to keep the shutter open a fairly long time, but even so, didn't think I'd get anything worth keeping. I took several shots exposing for different parts of the scene.  I was surprised when I downloaded the images, that by combining parts of each exposure, I was able to bring out much of the detail in the shadows.  I was surprised at how many warm colors were still present even though the sun had set long before.  I often talk about how a camera can't record as much as the human  eye can see.  In this case, the camera saw a lot more than I did!

The Fire Within

The Fire Within

Here is the LINK to the photos I used in the FLOWER POWER class I taught last night.

Here's How I Did it!

Here's the story behind the previous post.  We were with our grandchildren at a butterfly park and I took the first photo.  I was mainly concerned with getting the butterfly in focus and didn't have time to worry about composition.  Later, as we made our way around the park, I noticed this flower with a little water puddle captured in the center.  I loved the texture, the reflections, the swirls and the dots of light so I snapped a shot with the sole purpose of using that photo to create an interesting background for another image.  I enlarged just the center and then cloned parts of it into the first image, overlapping, and making multiple adjustments along the way.  Then I flattened all the layers and cropped out all the distracting stuff I didn't like.  Easy peezy!! 

In a Butterfly's Dream

In a Butterfly's Dream

I'm preparing for a class I'm teaching next week on creating unique flower photos.  Check back tomorrow to see how I combined two images and ended up with this.

Misty Watercolor Memories

Misty Watercolor Memories

(This is what Karen Saw)

(This is what the camera saw)

Splish Splash!

Isn't Spring Wonderful!!!!!

In a Soft Light

In a Soft Light

He Loves Me...........

 'He Loves Me............'

(Do you get it?  I mean the title?)

Sometimes an image is more interesting when the subject is not perfect or it is different than what you'd expect to see,  like a repetitive pattern that is broken.  Imagine a row of blue beach umbrellas, perfectly spaced and lined up along a beautiful beach.  That would be lovely, but it would be more interesting if just one umbrella, maybe a bright yellow one, broke the pattern and stood out in the middle of the blue ones.

 I think that most photographers would be more inclined to take a picture of a 'perfect' flower rather than one that was damaged or had some of the petals missing.   In the above image, I think the flower in focus, the main subject, is more interesting with just one petal missing.  (No I didn't pull it off before taking this shot, but I might have if I'd thought of it!!)  Does it bother you that the flower, as the main subject, is not perfect?

Wild Flowers and Red Rock

Layers of Interest

Lovely wild flowers, craggy red rock cliffs, and a beautiful sky.......doesn't get much better that this for a landscape photographer!

A Peek at Zion

Zion National Park

Actually I don't know if I was in the park or not.  This was taken from a road outside of the park heading to Kolob Reservoir.  It was a beautiful drive and starts at the main road that goes through the tiny town of Rockville, just a few miles from the main entrance into the park.  There were signs along the way that said I was in the park, then out of the park, then in again so I don't know if I was in or out where I was standing to take this photo.  I am positive, however, that the rock formations in the background are in the park.