“Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it.” – Rumi I have always enjoyed walking through botanical gardens in various cities, enjoying the interesting collection of plants, trees and artwork on display. When in southwest Florida, Naples Botanical was one of my favorite places to visit, with my camera of course! Naples Botanical Gardens is one the youngest gardens in history to receive the American Public Gardens Association’s prestigious Award for Garden Excellence. They have 170-acres featuring a Preserve and a Water Garden in addition to showcasing a few gardens from around the world – Asian, Brazilian, Caribbean plus a Florida Garden,…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #146 Focusing on Details
“Photography is an art of observation. It has little to do with the things we see and everything to do with the way you see them.” – Elliott Erwitt This week Patti suggests we feature photos Focusing on Details. I found a few images showing details that really seem to make the picture more interesting. This first one was taken a few years ago in Ernest Hemingway’s house in Key West, Florida. This room is his writing studio where, it is said, he used the typewriter on the right to produce seventy percent of his works during the nine years he was in residence, 1931 – 1939. Notice that there…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #144 Taking Flight
“No bird soars too high if he soars with his own wings.” William Blake The phrase, Taking Flight, made me think of birds although it can easily describe other things flying like butterflies, bees and balloons. Looking through my photo archives, I found pictures showing several species of birds Taking Flight that I’d like to share. (Double clicking each image shows a larger version). These two pictures are of the Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) as he gracefully glides through the air, so quietly he can hardly be heard in spite of his size. These owls are the largest common owl in the eastern United States with a wing…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #145 My Choice – A Morning Shoot
With such beautiful weather on Kiawah Island now, I was compelled to grab my camera and head out to photograph a few interesting birds for this week’s challenge. Too bad the birds were not aware of this. The location I chose was around Cinder Creek. A rustic clubhouse is beside the marsh along with a lovely gazebo out over the Creek. Directly across the road is a large swamp area and a ghost forest. This is where birds had been spotted several days earlier. Although, unfortunately there was only one White Egret to be seen. Since I was already there, to make the best of the situation, I decided…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #141 Geometry
The world is full of squares, circles, triangles which can be seen most everywhere. Boston Massachusetts is one of many cities filled with beautiful geometric, architectural designs both old and new. For this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, Patti wants us to focus on geometry—shapes that are visually interesting and form a pattern or rhythm. She suggests we think about geometry and the many examples seen everyday that we might not notice. Be sure to check out her post here. Once one understands what each geometric shape symbolizes it is easier to understand why certain shapes are associated with certain buildings. Rectangles or Squares represent Balance and Tradition; Circles –…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #139 Special Moments
“It’s the special moments that keep you going and smiling, make you the person you are and give you a lifetime of memories.” – unknown With so many special moments over the years it was hard to limit it to a few pictures. The birth of my children and marriage to my husband is at the top of the list. ‘Aha moments’ also count as special moments; they capture my full attention, causing me to pause and savor the moment! A few of these memorable moments are shown below. Could not resist showing this special moment as one son sorted through his easter basket and the other one waited patiently for…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #138 Natural Light
“Light makes photography. Embrace light. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography.” – George Eastman Light from the sun is constantly changing throughout the day. Clouds play a big part in this and also shadows which are created as the sun reflects off another object. Natural sunlight can shine directly on an object, it can also be seen as back light, the golden light just before sunset plus the beautiful colors seen in sunrises and sunsets. Here are a few images showing examples of natural light. This first one was taken after a heavy rain…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: #137 SOFT
So many things can fit the description of soft. For example: soft foods, soft to the touch, visually soft colors, soft movement, soft sounds. Ann-Christine would like for us to show examples of a few soft things. Remember walking in soft mud or sand and having it squish through your toes, and how good it felt? Swans and other water fowl can softly glide over the water without making a sound even when paddling frantically underneath. And speaking of soft, what could taste better than a soft, delicious donut! Unless it is ice cream or banana pudding…. Yummy! Flower petals, animal fur and Spanish Moss are a few things of…
Lens-Artist Photo Challenge: #136 The Letter S
The challenge this week is showing subjects that begin with the Letter S. For the fun of it, I also decided to use multiple words starting with “S” to describe each photograph. Interestingly, the common thread surrounding these pictures is the ocean. This was not planned ahead, it just happened – Humm. Silhouettes showing people waiting for the sunset over the Gulf of Mexico. The sun’s rays streaming through the clouds created a beautiful display. Shadows, silhouettes, and a sunset as several men fish and watch the soaring seagulls overhead. Swirly S shape carved in the beach sand the ocean tide advanced onto the shore. Sun and clouds casted shimming…
Lens-Artist Photo Challenge: #134 From Forgettable to Favorite
There are many Forgettable pictures in my archive files due to camera shake, wrong exposure, etc. So, they end up being either deleted or ignored. This week Tina wants us to revisit the Forgotten ones to see if it is possible to make them into a Favorite. (Not an easy task in some cases.😊) Thank goodness for editing software programs like Photoshop, Lightroom, Nik, Topaz and Luminar to name a few. Plus, some of these programs even have AI capabilities (artificial intelligence). They do a remarkable job of analysing an image and suggesting ways to improve it. In my editing workflow, Adobe Photoshop (PS) is the go to software program. Initial…