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When living and traveling in the extreme north, you often see sides of buildings spruced up with art work. I enjoy seeing the talent on display - and try to capture as many as I can before they either burn down or are painted over. This building is located in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada.

*(I chose to process this in HDR, in order to bring out the detail that might have been missed in the original shot.)

Blue symphony,

used: Photoshop, Filter Forge, Pixabay

Brazilian Jasmine

Explored an interesting and gravity-defying place today.

Day 316

Explored. Peaked at #459.

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Don't think many of you know that besides photography, sports cars are definitely my other passion in life :D I have been inspired by automotive photography for a very long time and always admire what other professional photographers can achieve. However it wasn't until last weekend that I decided to give it a go at creating a moving automotive shot & really... what could be better than being able to shoot and create an action image of my very own car! Since this is my first attempt, please feel free to criticise :D I'm sure I will lots more to learn & I can't wait to create more !

For those who are keen to do a similar image like this, there are a few ways to achieve this. The cool way is of coz to shoot it with a specialised rig attached to the car or shoot it from the back of a ute. Unfortunately I do not have the privilege of these so you guess it... the only one for me is through photoshop :P (which many professional photographers did too!)

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About

An moving action shot of Mercedes SLK280 (which I had since 2011)

The Shot

3 exposure shots (+2..0..-2 EV) of static car with background in RAW with tripod

3 exposure shots (+2..0..-2 EV) of only background without car in RAW with tripod

Camera :: Canon 5D Mark II

Lens :: Canon EF 16-35mm F/2.8L

Tripod :: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 498RC2 Head

Photomatix

- Tonemapped generated HDR using detail enhancer option

Photoshop

Background with road image

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- Added 1 layer mask effect of duplicated image with radial blur (zoom) for road action effect

- Added 2 layer mask effect of duplicated image with motion blur for moving trees effect

- Added 2 layer mask effect of 'saturation' (reds & yellows) to tone down selective area

- Added 1 layer mask effect of 'saturation' (cyans & greens) to darken the vegetations

Static car image

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- Added 2 layer mask effect of duplicated image with radial blur (spin) + free transform (warp) for spinning wheels effect

- Added 1 layer mask effect of duplicated image to remove background & just keep the car and shadow

Final image

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- Blended car image onto background image

- Added 2 layer mask effect of duplicated car image with 30% & 50% opacity for shadow on moving road

- Added 1 layer mask effect of 'brightness' to darken the shadow

- Added 3 layer mask effect of 'curves' for selective contrast

- Added 1 layer mask effect of 'photo filter' (warm) to enhance the image

- Cloned off my face at the driver seat (for my own preference & purpose of privacy lol! :P)

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Thank you so much for taking the time to view my work :)

You can follow me on Facebook @ www.facebook.com/Snowenne

Thanks to everyone for visiting , commenting , awards and invitations.

This afternoon the 2021 Iditarod Race will begin. Sadly - due to Covid, it is has been drastically changed this year. (See article below)

In this image I was having a little early morning chat with a neighbor who is participating in this year race.

Sun, March 7, 2021, 2:06 AM•

By Yereth Rosen

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Forty-seven mushers and their teams of huskies were due to begin their trek into the Alaska wilderness on Sunday for the 49th annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, on a course drastically altered by the coronavirus pandemic.

The starting line of the 2021 event has been placed off-limits to the usual crowds of cheering spectators, and none are expected anywhere along the abbreviated route for this year's running of the world's most famous sled-dog race.

Access to the start area - a secluded spot at the edge of a frozen river in Willow, Alaska, about 75 miles north of Anchorage – has been confined to competitors and essential race personnel.

Canceled was the usual Saturday ceremonial kickoff to the race in Anchorage, a day of festivities that traditionally have packed Iditarod fans into the downtown district of Alaska's largest city.

And there will be no finish line in Nome, the Bering Sea town that has long served as the end point for a race course that roughly follows the path of the legendary diphtheria serum run to Nome by dog sled teams in 1925.

Instead, this year's race will run to an uninhabited checkpoint called Iditarod and an abandoned mining settlement named Flat, then turn around for a second leg sending mushers back to the starting line at the Deshka River in Willow.

The total distance is about 860 miles, roughly 100 miles shorter than the traditional route to Nome.

The coronavirus-altered route is designed to minimize contact with residents of the region. Even where the trail nears villages, the checkpoints are isolated with access restricted. The route skips all the native Athabascan villages along the Yukon River and all the Inupiat villages on the Bering Sea coast.

Thanks to everyone for visits , comments , awards and invitations, I appreciate your feedback very much. You are welcome to visit my original Nature and wildlife Photos at:

www.flickr.com/photos/soes_nature_and_art/

Thanks to everyone for visits , comments , awards and invitations, I appreciate your feedback very much

A few years ago, in early spring, Doc and I were travelling in the Yukon, before the campgrounds and RV Parks had opened. When mid-afternoon arrived we decided that we had better grab a motel room for the night. On the outskirts of Whitehorse, we found a well maintained little place, and checked in with the owners. With our key in hand, we arrived at the door and opened it, expecting to see the usual bedroom and bath layout. Instead, it looked like we had entered someone's kitchen! We didn't know whether to go in - or back out. We checked the key number and the door number and they matched - so in we went. To our surprise - (and for the usual low nightly fee) - we had a full bath - complete kitchen, and a full bedroom with two double beds! It was as if we had rented a small apartment, Needless to say, we quickly booked two more nights, and enjoyed all of the sights and sounds of the city of Whitehorse, as well as the surrounding wilderness - while also enjoying all of the comforts of home. HSS!

*(Posted for Sliders Sunday - Processed to the MAX!")

The sculpture (by Zimbabwe sculptor Gregory Mutasa) was on display in one of the still ponds at RBG (Royal Botanical Gardens) and the large urn is part of a ground display. The idea of placing them into a more natural setting was for a want of something to do other than eat during the holidays.

Going up!

For Sliders Sunday

Post Processed to the Max

Traveling in Keystone Canyon along the Richardson Highway here in Alaska, Doc and I stopped to photograph The famous "Bridal Falls". Having done so in the past - I turned my attention to the canyon wall just behind me and discovered a different, and some what tropical, looking vegetation sprouting from the face of the rocky surface. While other's busied their selves with capturing the falls - I was odd girl out, as I clicked away with my back to the main attraction. This is what I saw. . .

Another image inspired from recently reading Michael Crichton's book, "Micro".

Constructive critiques welcome.

Thanks

ODC - Dream

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. . . is another mans treasure.

(Or another woman's abstract.)

I crushed my flimsy water bottle up and threw it in the trash. Before I closed the lid, I noticed it was reflecting the colors of the objects beneath it. Since it caught my attention, I thought I'd grab a quick shot and see what fun I could have with it in Topaz.

Tada!

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Thanks to everyone for visiting , commenting , awards and invitations.

Thanks to everyone for visiting , commenting , awards and invitations.

via Instagram instagr.am/p/Cb5SeinrTWv/

This is a re-worked image of a crepe jasmine that I posted some time ago. I had a bit of fun by adding a twirl and sphere, plus I saturated the colours. After all, it's Sliders Sunday! HSS!

Thank you for looking and for leaving me a comment! Have a wonderful day and week ahead!

I spotted this heron perched up high on a tree branch at Cootes Paradise (RBG) either drying off or cooling off as it was a hot day. I found its stance being quite unusual from that of other birds, which simply stretch out their wings, and thought I would place it on a beach as just another "sun worshiper". Herons are known to frequent both fresh and salt open water and marshes and as such it only adds more credence for not being too far fetched an idea. I hope this image doesn't offend due to the devastation currently incurred in the Caribbean Islands and the coast of the United States but rather to be looked at as a humorous note on an otherwise unusual bird stance. The image of the beach is from a 2009 vacation in Cuba.

The News

Corrientes Street and the Obelisk Monument

Buenos Aires - Argentina

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___ My own photo digitally manipulated and painted

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~~~~~~Enjoy better this image viewing it in large size clicking the letter L

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Uploaded on May 7, 2017

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La Calle Corrientes y el Obelisco.

Buenos Aires - Argentina

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I invite you to visit all my photo-gallery. Thanks

Thanks to everyone for visits , comments , awards and invitations, I appreciate your feedback very much

Model: www.deviantart.com/cathleentarawhiti/art/Alexa-1-jpeg-and...

An older photo when I visited Colorado in 2021.

Have a great weekend dear friends!

Looks better in Large. Hit F11 and then the "L" key or click on

the photo.

Copy Rights Reserved!

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I wonder... if all herons are equally proficient in their catching skills...

This Trumpeter Swan and her mate, found the perfect secluded pond to spend the summer and raise their babies.. The ice was still going off when I snapped this shot - but she was floating serenely in the open water on the opposite shore.

(Explored)

Gallatin History Museum

Bozeman - Montana - USA

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Enjoy better this photo viewing it in large size clicking the letter L

______________________________

~~~My own photo digitally manipulated and painted.

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Uploaded on June 20. 2017

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The clouds roll away and the snow recedes from the banks of the Hudson River, a sign that Sping is arriving soon.

The original, from which this image evolved, is a snapshot of an elderly black man playing his sax sitting on a small chair against the wall of an entrance to the St. Lawrence Market in downtown Toronto, Canada, last summer. The shot isn't much, quality wise, but I remembered why I kept it... it was the sound, the vibe the sax was creating. Totally wrong for two o'clock in the afternoon and more fitting for a late night in a smoky bar where you close your eyes and let the sound of the blues become personal. In this image the eyes set the mood the hands will deliver to create an atmosphere no doubt the player has already reached.

Earthquake!

Made by own photo - pixabay - photoshop - Filter Forge

A photograph of a wonderful Orchid, modified with a variety of digital filters to produce this "artistic" or "impressionistic" image.

I made - and then manipulated - this shot nearly ten years ago, but resisted posting to Flickr because it generally doesn't fit with the body of work here. Most of my work is in focus, with attention paid to detail. Not much detail to be found here!

I think this image is closer to cave paintings than 21st Century photography. Well... that was my intent. For the next week or so I'm going to be posting shots that break the mold, crack the cosmic egg, fly in the face of everything I used to teach when I taught nature and wildlife photography. They'll either work for you or they won't.

I knew that with each of these attempts I was risking failure, and that to fail is a good thing. If we don't shoot a lot of really bad stuff, we probably aren't trying hard enough to push through and past our limitations. When I used to teach photography, sometimes I would insist on seeing bad photos from my students. This was a way of getting them more deeply into process without worrying about trying to be perfect; seeing comes before technique. Let's see what you can see today! And because I always (or usually) take my own advice... here are some results that I do like from all of my shoving and thrashing inside the box over the years. Gathered together so they won't seem out of place. Early in the new year I'll return to my wildlife ways. Promise. For now, a little fun.

Photographed near Val Marie, Saskatchewan (Canada) with a slow shutter to intentionally blur my subject, then heavily manipulated in Photoshop. Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2009 James R. Page - all rights reserved.

The Queen of Lathyrus,

used: Filter Forge, Pixabay, Photoshop, > 12 layers

Thanks to everyone for visits , comments , awards and invitations, I appreciate your feed-back very much. You are welcome to visit my original photos at www.flickr.com/photos/soes_nature_and_art/

An photo of a pink rose, digitally modified to produce this artistic image.