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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.
– Margaret Mead –
Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.
– Desmond Tutu –
Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
– Dale Carnegie –
This song was made to celebrate the power of speaking out in order to promote a more just world.
"Use My Voice"
Cover my ears and close my eyes
Just long enough to stop the noise
Go on take everything and throw it away
But I will use my voice
Drown every truth in an ocean of lies
Label me bitch because I dare to draw my own line
Burn every bridge and build a wall in my way
But I will use my voice
Whether you like it or not, you're gonna take what I got
If we can't talk about it, we'll just keep drowning in it
Give me credit or not, I give a lot, give a lot
But don't you speak for me
No, don't you speak for me
Never mind me, I'm a waste of your time
I'm never gonna fit in the box that you need and I can read between the lines, yeah
Gather your friends and wave your gun in my face
But I will use my voice
Whether you like it or not, you're gonna take what I got
If we can't talk about it, we'll just keep drowning in it
Give me credit or not, I give a lot, give a lot
But don't you speak for me
No, don't you speak for me
Whether you like it or not
Whether you like it or not
Whether you like it or not
Whether you like it or not
One day soon
It's gonna fall back on you
No more lies
We're gonna break right through
Like it or not
If we can't talk about it, we'll just keep drowning in it
Give me credit or not, I give a lot, give a lot
But don't you speak for me
No, don't you speak for me
Don't you speak for me
💖💖 In advance I want to thank you all for your always kindness, support, beautiful awards, favs, and messages. Please Know that I see all of your comments and awards and I appreciate them so much as well as each on of you for taking the time.
💖You all mean a lot to me, you all truly make Flickr a lovely place to be, and i can not thank each one of you enough for your constant encouraging support that you give me. I am grateful.
💖Please forgive me for not being as active here as I used to be, Best wishes and regards to each one of you, Take good care of one another, be kind as well as thoughtful towards others.
💖Huge, huge hugs, Light, peace and love to you all,
Lori 💖
I committed this photocompositing hijack of the great Hokusai's masterpiece "The Wave" in order ro complete my series 36 views of Mont Saint Michel...
I have wanted to do something different for a while, then one gets lost in what can only be described as "Photographers Block", akin to "Writers Block" same thing yet different tool of creativity. I even deleted a photo I put up yesterday as I hated it, simply because experimental change is sometimes difficult, in the enigmatic paradigm of remaining as was, yet contradicted by the yearn for change, albeit lost for choice yet unable to see the forest for the trees! If you catch my convoluted drift?!
I think the criteria of assumed "change" is tethered to the idea of realising that ,change, in one's self cannot therefore be abridged to the same/similar ideas of others, it is a struggle then to remain original. I am still trying to conquer it whilst trying to not to lose my perspective to the idea of absolutes!
So this photo I took along the A100 with the Westhafen Canal running parallel, in which there are three or four barges moored along the walkway, I had been meaning to get to them since the weather has since started to slowly improve. They are basically big floating elongated buckets of either nothing or asphalt, earth and what have you. But they are interesting for the very old mechanical presence, compositional offerings and overall differing of imagery from nature and anything else that has been done to death so far. The clouds were thin and wonderfully striated offering a bokeh contradiction of composition's directional flow. It was tricky getting the angle as I wanted to get the motorway out of the focus completely.
That's all my waffle for today, I hope everyone's' week has gotten off well and so as always, thank you! :)
No changing course at this point. On Armand Bayou.
I will be taking a break from flickr for a week or two. Stay cool out there.
Female Barn Owl (Tyto Alba) ready to strike; I mentioned in a previous post that our extreme drought along the CA Central Coast has affected the vole population. After this dive, the Barn Owl stayed on the ground for awhile--possible catching a Jerusalem cricket or other insect. SLO County; CA; USA; Sony a9; Sony 200-600mm lens at 441mm; ISO 6400; f/6.3; 1/1000 sec; hand held in low light; Topaz AI De Noise
While I may have observed the Rule of Thirds, I confess I've committed mortal photographic sins here in the name of 'art'. Ever take a photo and say to yourself, 'Self, that's nice, but what if...." and before long you end up with an image that is way, way dramatically different than the original, but appeals to you more? (Sure you have.) A tweak here with the colour temp; a tweak there with the contrast; and then the editing drugs kick in and you're slamming those sliders left and right until the pixels quit talking to each other and leave the room. "Sorry," I say, "I don't mean to offend -- it's just that you, my digital friend, look more dramatic if I crop out all but a tenth of the original image," ...Rendering it a blob of noise and blur. "But it's Art," I exclaim, in self-defence. "People will applaud my Vision-thing, and maybe even the Flickr algorithm gods will smile down and decide it is Explore-worthy..." Uh, sure.... Maybe I need rehab; put the S1 on eBay, cancel my Adobe subscription, and shoot film again, leaving it to the kid at the pharmacy to send away my rolls for processing, just as his father did, back in the photographic Stone Age.
She is a paradox, a puzzle...
She is faithful and yet detached, she is committed and yet relaxed...
She loves everybody and yet no one, she is sociable and yet solitary...
She is gentle and yet tough, she is passionate and yet platonic...
In short, she is predictable in her inpredictability...
Details:
My Monday flower greeting is coming a little bit from the wrong path today. What you see here is obviously not a flower, but part of a flower (although I can't say for sure which one). Since I've never officially committed to buds, I'll let this deviation from the rule pass.
In addition, I have had the urgent need to share this picture with you for days. The picture is one of my first attempts with the Pope Shield Macro Diffuser (this is not a paid advertisement) and I have to say I was blown away from the first moment.
Especially when it comes to getting really close to the object, it used to be very difficult (for clarification, the blade is about 1 cm wide). On the one hand, because the object moved, even if only minimally, or because you had hardly any depth of field due to a very open aperture and had to compensate for it with focus stacking, which was very time-consuming. The latter was often not always possible, mainly (see first) because the object was moving.
This shot is the result of a single attempt, freehand.
If I want to have pictures with a soft bokeh, I will of course go back to the previous techniques. However, if it is in the maximum details, then I am convinced.
I took other shots that rainy day. In the end you can form your own opinion.
Mein montäglicher Blumengruß kommt heute ein klein wenig auf Abwegen daher. Das was Ihr hier seht ist ganz offensichtlich keine Blüte, wohl aber ein Teil einer Blume (auch wenn ich nicht mit Gewissheit sagen kann von welcher). Da ich mich nie offiziell auf Blüten festgelegt habe, lass ich diese Abweichung von der Regel hiermit durchgehen.
Außerdem habe ich seit Tagen das dringende Bedürfnis dieses Bild mit Euch zu teilen. Das Bild ist einer meiner ersten Versuche mit dem Makro Diffuser von Pope Shield (das ist keine bezahlte Werbung) und ich muss sagen, ich war vom ersten Moment an von den Socken.
Besonders, wenn es darum geht wirklich nah an das Objekt heran zu gehen, war das bisher sehr mühselig (zur Verdeutlichung, das Blatzt ist ca. 1 cm breit). Zum einen, weil sich das Objekt bewegt hat, und sei es auch nur minimal oder weil man durch eine sehr offene Blende kaum Tiefenschärfe hatte und das mit Fokus Stacking sehr aufwendig wieder ausgleichen musste. Letzteres war auch oft nicht immer möglich und zwar hauptsächlich (siehe erstens) weil sich das Objekt bewegt hat.
Diese Aufnahme ist das Ergebnis von einem einzigen Versuch und zwar freihand.
Wenn ich Bilder mit einem weichen Bokeh haben möchte werde ich natürlich wieder auf die bisherigen Techniken zurück greifen. Wenn es jedoch im maximale Details geht, dann bin ich überzeugt.
Ich habe an diesem Regentag noch andere Aufnahmen gemacht. Am Ende könnt Ihr Euch selbst eine Meinung bilden.
more of this on my website at: www.shoot-to-catch.de
I was followed until I finally pulled out the camera ... someone really wanted to be on the cover :-)))
Committed male Belted Kingfisher (Ceryle alcyon) in the Dive; low light; Sony a9; Sony 200-600mm lens at 600 mm; ISO 4000; 1/1000 sec; f/6.3; handheld; Topaz De Noise and Sharpen; No fish this time
#4880 - 2021 Day 131: We've committed to No Mow May, a scheme to not mow the grass through the month of May, to encourage pollenators in to the wild flowers. We have the ubiquitous daisies and dandelions of course, but already there are signs of other wild plants, such as acquilegia, fox and cubs, and selfheal ... I'll make a few more studies over the month I think.
Committed to Ferrania P30 using a Hasselblad X-Pan and 45 mm lens. Developed using Ars-Imago FD as per the Massive Dev chart and scanned with an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and contrast done with Negative Lab Pro. Dust cleaning and local contrast in Photoshop.
The fella was particularly committed to fishing. We saw him fishing here on several evenings when we walked that way, once with a large barracuda in the sand beside him. So we know he had some success.
We don't know these people, but I like the implied story we get from the positions and directions of their bodies and fishing rods. What do you think the story is?
When a body is found in a whisky barrel buried on Dalintober beach, it appears that a notorious local crime, committed over a century ago, has finally been solved. (Blurb for "Dalintober Moon: A Short Story" by Denzil Meyrick).
Committed to Ferrania P30 using a Hasselblad X-Pan and 45 mm lens. Developed using Ars-Imago FD as per the Massive Dev chart and scanned with an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and contrast done with Negative Lab Pro. Dust cleaning and local contrast in Photoshop.
On the 12th of May, 1943, Szmul Zygielbojm committed suicide. Szmul was a member of the Polish Government in Exile. Being in London, he was aware of the Warsaw Ghetto and also of the Jewish resistance movement there with its tunnels and bunkers. This resistance was crushed by the Nazis and the Ghetto was stripped of its Jewish inmates. Szmul's farewell note contains this paragraph:
"I cannot continue to live and to be silent while the remnants of Polish Jewry, whose representative I am, are being murdered. My comrades in the Warsaw Ghetto fell with arms in their hands in the last heroic battle. I was not permitted to fall like them, together with them, but I belong with them, to their mass grave. By my death, I wish to give expression to my most profound protest against the inaction in which the world watches and permits the destruction of the Jewish people."
Fuji X-Pro1, Helios 44M-7.
Sometimes you can be committed to two images but realise they don't necessarily sit well together. The last two uploads (5220 and the Nodding Donkey) fall in to that category, imho.
As a result I've decided to insert this one between them - a shot of GBRf 'newbie' 69008 approaching Basingstoke station at some speed with the 12.30pm Mountfield Sidings - Southampton Western Docks gypsum empties (4Y19).
Framed to make the best of the sunlight whilst incorporating the signal gantry, this one was running 7 minutes behind schedule and wasn't hanging around either. Even though I was stood well behind the yellow line, it felt prudent to take another couple of steps back as soon as I'd grabbed the shot!
For anyone who's not in the know, 69008 is essentially a fully-rebuilt and re-engined class 56 (56038 in this case), a class that originally saw service in the 1970s. Their conversion was deemed to be a cheaper and less risky option compared to designing and sourcing a completely new locomotive.
Note the old Basingstoke Signal Box in the centre background, now thought to be used as a S&T workshop / canteen facility.
3.46pm, 14th October 2023
"Clancy is an all-or-nothig kinda dog-"
No I'm not!
"For example, he can greet people so enthusiasically
at times that he has to be calmed-"
No I don't!
"And playing with me, whether in the house or outside
chasing a ball, he's so fully activated, I worry about
him hurting himself again-"
No you don't!
"...And, as you might have noticed, he likes having the
last word."
Yes I do!
(This photo is two months old, but illustrates for
our purpose Clancy's commitment to, and for, life)
________________________________________________
Prescott-Russell Trail, Ottawa, Ontario
510 Clancy 9yrs 18wk
Clancy's YEARBOOK 10: www.flickr.com/photos/130722340@N04/albums/72157720201164845
MONOCHROME Clancy: www.flickr.com/photos/130722340@N04/albums/72157655760302498
EXPLORE Clancy: www.flickr.com/photos/130722340@N04/albums/72157656171825332
“A thousand times more crimes have been committed in the name of love than in the name of hate..”
― Sidney Sheldon, The Other Side of Midnight
SLURL: Kintsugi; Spirited Beyond
maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Runaway/71/122/24
[3rd out of 12 Photos]
P.S. I knew where I wanted the Wellspring little world globe but to get the right angle was a challenge. To allow one of the deers to peek through and join the duck and chicken around the well. The source of water for us humans to help sustain us and the environment around us. In the middle of Kintsugi's city just fits so well.
Isn't it everlasting? It will always take over in the end in some way or the other. There will always be a wellspring of nature, or at least, we can only help make it that way. Save animals, plant more trees or tiny plants and take care of your surroundings. If we make it a lifestyle, we can help make the world a better place by loving the very existence it came with. When you love, you automatically learn to care. I dream of a day when all the tall skyscrapers will be slowly overrun by crawling ivy, beautiful flowers and birds just making nests in every nook. I dream of a wellspring of hope and love, always.
Australian Hobby
≠=====================≠
Another from the cricket hunting season.
The bird will launch with enough power to glide down snatch a cricket and pull up on to the next post with barely a wing flap.
Committed to Ilford FP4+ using a Leica M6 and 50 mm Summicron V3 lens. Developed using Ars-Imago FD as per the Massive Dev chart and scanned with an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and contrast done with Negative Lab Pro.
28th March 2018:
Graham committed a crime this morning by forgetting to buy me my breakfast cereal so this afternoon I nipped into town to see what the small supermarket had, not a lot! But, I did find some porridge which will keep me going until he or us both next go to the main supermarket.
On my way down I noticed this ribbon tied to a lamppost. I checked the others nearby and none of them had been decorated, so no idea why this one was. However I did like the light shining on it, so took a photo. To the amusement of the owner of the house nearest to it. They were in their front garden doing some planting!
It's SOOC other than my copyright.
I've caught up as well as Flickr has allowed me to. If I've missed anyone, I'll try and catch up with you tomorrow.
Better viewed large and thank you for your favourites. :O)
John Kennedy's....
I really don’t know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, except I think it’s because in addition to the fact that the sea changes, and the light changes, and ships change, it’s because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have, in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea – whether it is to sail or to watch it – we are going back from whence we came.
Committed to Ferrania P30 using a Hasselblad X-Pan. Developed using Ars-Imago FD as per the suggested times and scanned with an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and contrast done with Negative Lab Pro. Dust removal and further contrast adjustment in Photoshop.
Committed to Ilford HP5+ using a Hasselblad X-Pan and 45 mm lens. Developed using Ars-Imago FD as per the Massive Dev chart and scanned with an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and contrast done with Negative Lab Pro. Dust cleaning in Photoshop.
Dichotomy.
Committed to Ilford HP5+ using a Hasselblad X-pan and 45 mm lens and red filter. Developed with Ars-Imago FD as standard and scanned using an Epson V850 using Silverfast. Positive conversion and levels done with Negative Lab Pro.
“Loveland Foundation is committed to showing up for communities of color in unique and powerful ways, with a particular focus on Black women and girls. Our resources and initiatives are collaborative and they prioritize opportunity, access, validation, and healing. We are becoming the ones we’ve been waiting for.” thelovelandfoundation.org/about/
This was taken by my son and edited by a special angel in my life, Tracie Taylor www.flickr.com/photos/22553353@N00/
I have learned to appreciate the simpliest moments and hold them very close... this was taken on Christmas Day 2008. Bev had just gotten out of the hospital and was touching our new little grandson... as it turned out for the last time.
My journey with Bev has been beautiful and is now very painfully coming to an end. I know that I will always have her in my heart, but I long for this simple touch...
Please remember that tonight when you see someone you love and haven't expressed it enough lately... don't pass on what may be the last touch... blessings my friends.
I was committed to a sunset shot a twenty-minute drive away from this location when I was struck by a desperate need to evacuate my bowels.
Worse still was the fact that I was a one-hour hike away from my vehicle and the nearest toilet was a 10-minute drive to the airport from my car.
If you're not familiar with the Faroe Islands, I can tell you that there are no trees or bushes to crouch behind and there were zero toilets available on the trail.
My options were to attempt an agonizing one-hour hike back to the grossly overpriced rental car or simply bespatter my pantaloons and accept the indignity of a long hike with besmirched breeches.
I chose the agonizingly painful option.
I confess I almost lost control several times as tears rolled down my cheeks and sweat covered my forehead in a war of wills with my own body.
I can't imagine what the passing hikers thought of this lone photographer, moaning and muttering to himself while shuffling along the trail with the smallest steps possible.
I am glad to report that I won the battle. But it was very close.
After an exquisite visit to the airport facilities, I decided to head to this very famous waterfall in the hopes of witnessing a lovely sunset.
Within 15 minutes of my arrival at Múlafossur, the sky lit up and continued to perform pyrotechnics for at least an hour, almost up until midnight.
I don't mind those days of extreme highs and lows when it ends on such a high.
Thanks for looking
Gavin Hardcastle