Showing posts with label red. Show all posts
Showing posts with label red. Show all posts

Oh to the Rose

The Rose

The rose is a rose,
And was always a rose.
But the theory now goes
That the apple's a rose,
And the pear is, and so's
The plum, I suppose.
The dear only knows
What will next prove a rose.
You, of course, are a rose -
But were always a rose.

Robert Frost


Highlighter

Some say love, it is a river that drowns the tender reed
Some say love, it is a razor that leaves your soul to bleed
Some say love, it is a hunger an endless aching need
I say love, it is a flower and you, it's only seed
It's the heart, afraid of breaking that never learns to dance
It's the dream, afraid of waking that never takes the chance
It's the one who won't be taken who cannot seem to give
And the soul, afraid of dying that never learns to live
When the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long
And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong
Just remember in the winter far beneath the winter snow
Lies the seed that with the sun's love, in the spring becomes the rose

Bette Midler


Oh the red rose, what a pain you are to photograph properly.
The blown out, saturated red, the funky chromatic aberration.
Not what I saw through my viewfinder.
I played with your hue, saturation and luminosity levels and I'm still not sure it looks right.
But your velvet, curved petals, forever spiraling from the center,
Exudes graces and all that is beautiful.

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Like Christmas in March

Fortunately, the title of this post is NOT referring to snow on the ground [in fact, all of the snow is gone - and I hope it stays that way]. Two of the three amaryllis buds have finally bloomed. The flowers' velvet petals and rich color remind me of Christmas - which is the normal bloom time for this bulb.

Christmas in March

In Bloom

Outside, I haven't seen any evidence of Spring Flowers - I'm sure that will change over the next weeks, but for now, a Christmas flower will have to do.

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Frost On the Red Carpet

I couldn't resist the fresh coat of frost on the grass and leaves this morning. The recent rains and wind have stripped the trees of their pretty leaves, but they are almost as lovely on the ground as they are on the branches.

Magic Carpet Ride

The Red Carpet

Even devoid of color, I love the lines and texture.
Lines and Vines

There's even a bit of green still around.
Edged

Frost is fleeting - once the sun hits, it's gone.

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That Extra Hour

Last Sunday, we "fell back" from Daylight Savings time to Standard Time, gaining an hour.

What did I "do" with that extra hour? My kids slept it away, but I spent part of that hour outside, in my bathrobe, taking photos. Because that's what I do and the neighbors have grown accustomed to it....

I was really into it because of the frost and even broke out the macro lens.
Preserved

Peace

Decorated

It would be nice to have more "extra hours" every now and then, but I am happy to have it once a year. If only we didn't have to lose it in the spring.....

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Like A Crimson Rain

Most of the trees have shed their leaves now and the last three days have been cloudy, windy and downright gloomy. There's a dampness in the air that almost smells like that "s" word. You know, "snow". Fortunately, it's physically too warm for snow right now. But I can tell that white stuff is just around the corner....

Even with the gloom, I was able to find pretty crimson leaves, still holding on to the dogwood tree.

Soft Crimson Rain

I added Kim Klassen's Pheobe texture, in the soft light blending mode.
kimklassencafe




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Fall in Full Glory

After Thursday's all day rain, it's back to another crisp fall day - chilly in the morning, but bright sun and temperate in the afternoon.

The red maple in the backyard has completely turned, well, red.

Leaves on Fire

I don't ever recall it turning so completely red in previous years. Maybe it did and I never noticed. It certainly caught my eye late Friday afternoon.

And this is the best time of year for prairie sunsets. I normally prefer the sunsets with some clouds because they add lots of interest, but there was something so simple about last night's sunset.

At the End of the Day

Even caught on my iPhone, it's beautiful:

Friday Finale #Prairie #sunset


Go out and enjoy your day!

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Texture Tuesday - Bubbler

A cool, refreshing bubble of water - if you can imagine it, you can hear the delicate sound of the water flowing on this spherical fountain.
Textured Bubbler
I used Kim Klassen's Golden texture. It is one of my favorite textures.

Here's the original version:
Bubbler
And another version of the fountain:
Ruby

Linked to Texture Tuesday at Kim Klassen's Cafe.
kimklassencafe

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Team Up Thursday - Favorites

With our two favorite colors featured, it looks like Christmas in late March (but really, we don't want any more snow!).

Team Up Thursday - Favorites
Lee's picture features her favorite group of boys goofing off and checking out the Lego site (could be expensive, too!).

My predominantly green picture shows off my new travel coffee mug next to another green mug in my office. I love my new travel mug!

On Thursday, Lee Curie and I create a diptych based on a theme. You can view the other great diptychs at the Team Up Thursday Flickr group.

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Racing Stripes

We are having the convertible re-painted and checked out its progress at the garage.

They essentially disassemble the car, sand down the pieces, paint them, apply two coats of clear coat before reassembling. When it is done, it will look better than it did when it was new.

With Stripes of Light

I like the stripes of created by the lights running along the ceiling.

DSC_9448.jpg

When we get this car back, I pity the person who makes the first ding or scratch. I'm going to stay far away from it!

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50-50-50 Challenge and Mosaic Monday

Yesterday, I participated in a 50-50-50 Challenge.
The premise of the challenge - 50 Pictures, using a 50mm lens, on Day 50 of the year.
You guessed it - yesterday was Day 50 of this year.

I had been using my 50mm lens pretty exclusively until two weeks ago when I needed a lens with a little more reach. You know what happens when a lens goes on the camera - it tends to stay on the camera! So I pulled out the 50mm lens again.

As a matter of full disclosure, I actually only yielded 34 "decent" pictures yesterday. I actually grew a little weary of trying to figure out "what I would take a picture of next". I figure 34 pictures is fine.

For Mosaic Monday, I picked five pictures from the collection:
Mosiac Monday - Transitions
What started out as a chilly morning warmed up to a very nice, almost spring like day. Most of the snow that covered the area just a week ago has melted and small signs of spring are in the air.

To see the entire collection of photos I took for the 50-50-50 Challenge, here is the link to the Set on Flickr: To get a glimpse of the other participant's photos, you can also check out the 50-50-50 Flickr Group.


Mosaic Monday is Hosted by Mary at this Little Red House. You can check out the other mosaics there.

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Roses

A Pair

The rose speaks of love silently, in a language known only to the heart.

Happy Valentine's Day

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Amaryllis

The annual blooming of the red amaryllis:

Ready to Bloom

Trumpet

I would love to photograph the inside of the trumpet, but I am generally disappointed by the results. Just more reason to finally buy that macro lens....

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Starting the New Year

I think I started the New Year right - with this antioxidant filled pomegranate.

Start The New Year Right

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2010 Reflections

Reflected in Red

Another year’s end is upon us – and like previous years, now is the time to reflect upon the past year and to set forth goals for the upcoming year. Like the end of year performance appraisal at work, I generally don’t like these exercises. I prefer to keep looking ahead or just keep plodding forward.

[Sometimes life gets like that – a little bit of forward inertia means you move forward, but perhaps without purpose – simply plodding forward. I guess that is why we reflect and make plans – because moving along with purpose feels better than just plodding forward]


So, looking back at the past year, what did I accomplish?

  • Over 5500 shutter accuations. That’s about the same pace as last year.
  • 2000 Uploads to flickr. 700 more than last year. Maybe I’m getting more “keepers”. Or maybe I’m not as picky!
  • I’ve become so much more proficient with PSE - I learned how to install and use Actions in PSE. That has opened up a lot of post processing options for me.
  • I also learned how to create and use clipping masks, layer masks and other techniques. Now I’m learning Lightroom.
  • I’ve made new friends in the blogosphere – and they inspire me on a daily basis.

So what didn’t I do in 2010 that I originally planned?
  • I didn’t apply any HDR techniques like I had hoped to, but hopefully that will happen in the coming year.
  • I didn’t participate in some of the photo challenges I set out to do in 2010, but added new challenges instead.
  • I didn’t purchase any “major” photographic equipment – probably a first for me! I added a fun fisheye adapter and a used 50mm lens to my bag. I would like to add that 105mm Nikon Micro lens and buy a bigger bag in 2011.

What might be in store for 2011?

For the month of January, I will be posting less frequently. After two straight years of posting to two blogs almost daily, I’m somewhat burned out. I’m thinking once a week over the next several weeks might give me enough of a break from things. One of my goals in 2011 is to create several photobooks of my images, like the Blurb Book I created of my trip to London. I should be able to make a good start if I take a break in January.

What else?
  • I plan to start posting older pictures, taken before 2008.
  • I still plan to participate in Team Up Thursday with my partner, Lee.
  • I still plan to participate in iffles.com Monthly Theme Challenge.
  • I’ll still carry my camera in my purse and take pictures - probably not daily, but probably frequently enough to slip in some fresh material now and then.
I thank you for taking the time to visit and read, to comment and inspire me. I wish you all the best in the coming year.

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November Evenings

The angle of the sun in November casts a beautiful glow, don't you think?

Glowing
Straight Out of the Camera (SOOC) today, because I'm running around, getting ready for our next adventure. Where I get to wear these:

10.11.03 - Harbinger
The last time I wore these sandals, I was walking along the banks of the Italian Riviera.

While we aren't going back to Italy this weekend, we are going somewhere fun....

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SOOC Saturday - Red Seating

Our neighbor's new patio is now newly adorned with beautiful red and brown furniture. Looks very comfy!

Patio Seating

Our Siamese cat, Sam, has been hanging out on the new patio, like he owns the place! Fortunately, we have very cool neighbors.

It's an unseasonably warm 85DegF today! Looks like we'll be spending time outside while we still can.

Today's capture is SOOC (straight out of the camera - well, after a conversion from RAW to .jpg). I hope you enjoy your Saturday, regardless of the weather outside.

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Bowl of Strawberries

Pretty simple, but still lovely.

Bowl of Strawberries

Things might get a little scarce here over the next several days as I am traveling to visit my sister, but may get a chance to post something interesting during my trip.

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Stormy Start, Beautiful Finish

An inch of rain overnight, several thunderstorms and grey clouds this morning.

But it all cleared away this afternoon for a spectacular finish.

These caught my eye as I pulled into the driveway at 7pm. I forget what they are, and please excuse the growth of weeds in the background (you would think I would take better care of the landscaping right in front of the house!).
Wisps

My friend, Lisa, has the most abundant (ie, gorgeous) collection of iris in her backyard. I started to take pictures from the street, but she saw me and welcomed me into the backyard. I realized it is really hard to take pictures of masses of flowers, so I tried to isolate them instead.
Highlighted

Tuesdays are quite crazy for me from a schedule standpoint - lots of activities to take kids to, so I only got these two pictures processed. I plan to get caught up later in the week.

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OMG - Featured on PW!

One of my photos has been featured on Pioneer Woman.

Petals

I'm still pinching myself.

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Red and Green

In the spirit of Spring, some "Christmas Colors":

Red:
Faded Redbud

Green:
Glorious Green

I applied PW's 70s action to the Redbud branches to give it a little faded look.
So there you go - Christmas in Spring!

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