Thunder and Lightning from around the World
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Cradle Mountain is a mountain in the Central Highlands region of the Australian state of Tasmania. The mountain is situated in the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. Cradle Mountain sits between the Big River and Northern Tasmanian Aboriginal nations. Aboriginal Tasmanians were persecuted by the European settlers upon their arrival, and the last free Aboriginals in the area were seen just south of Cradle Mountain in 1836. The area around the mountain has a large number of day walks, as well as being one terminus of the Overland Track. The Overland Track winds through a variety of landscapes to its opposite end—80.8 kilometres to the south—at Lake St Clair, Australia's deepest lake. The mountain is climbed by walkers virtually year round. It is a strenuous return hike from the Dove Lake car park with a recommended allotted time of six-and-a-half hours. The climb up the rocky part of the mountain involves scrambling over large boulders for several hundred metres. The entire climb is exposed to any bad weather that may arrive quickly, while climbing the upper slopes in winter can be dangerous due to slick ice on the rocks and heavy snow covering holes and other hazards. From the summit, there are views of Dove Lake, Barn Bluff and Mount Ossa. 29487
For a showcat grooming often involves a bath. This was shot before Bastian's first show, so he did not really understand what it was good for...
Posted for the "Happy Caturday" theme "Styling".
Bastian (mixed breed) 04.12.2015.
Olympus OMD EM5 Digital Camera
No question, the Italians have got style and the Tuscans invented it.
Quoting www.invitationtotuscany.com/guide/italy/tuscany/why-and-h...:
In the 13th century, towns such as San Gimignano were often run by feuding noble families, whose towers would show off their economic power. The building process, involving digging the materials, carting them to the site and building the tower, was neither simple nor cheap. The towers were, and still are, owned by private families.
In San Gimignano today, only 14 towers remain of the 72 which stood in the 14th century. This still makes it the "city of beautiful towers" and guaranteed its UNESCO World Heritage Site recognition.
AMSTERDAM - Circus director and entrepreneur Oscar Carré opened his majestic theatre on the banks of the Amstel in 1887. Before that he had a travelling circus which was famous for its acts involving horses. Oscar Carré was familiar with the glitter and glamour, and the applause, but was no stranger either to the business side of theatre life. After many triumphs throughout Europe, he settled in Amsterdam. The Carré family lived in the company house which now houses the grand Loge Foyer.
In front the Globe of the Light Festival!
Swallowing a meal for the great egret (Ardea alba) involves flicking its food into the air followed by a gulp.
The two egret images are taken in the same location (a small pond at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge) but on different days. It is possible it is the same bird, but not guaranteed because we have seen as many as 8 great egrets at once in this location.
I went with two images because they tell different parts of the same story. I think I like the "kerplunk" one better because of the fat water droplets frozen in time and the mirror like reflection, but I also do like the action shot "bottoms up". Let me know if you have an opinion!
Glamping: A form of camping involving accommodation and facilities more luxurious than those associated with traditional camping. :)
Mini Airstream catching some evening, summer rays.
Campers on the Fraser River
BC
Canada
A special thanks to you all, for taking the time to view and acknowledge my photography.
I appreciate your visits & kind words of support.
Happy clicks....
~Christie by the River
**Best experienced in full screen
*** No part of this image may be copied, reproduced, or distributed outside Flickr, without my express written permission. Thank-you
Quote: Be different, be unique .... why be a copy, when you were born an original.
"Movember is an annual event involving the growing of mustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as depression in men, prostate cancer and other male cancers, and associated charities. The Movember Foundation runs the Movember charity event, housed at www.Movember.com. The goal of Movember is to "change the face of men's health."
Beyonce - If I Were A Boy
“Amb l’esclat de la festa floreixen els capgrossos”, Girona, España.
“Girona, Temps de Flors” arranca hoy la 70 edición con 146 proyectos repartidos en 114 espacios que se pueden visitar hasta el 18 de mayo. El Ayuntamiento de Girona ha dado el pistoletazo de salida a la muestra floral esta mañana con un recorrido por algunos de los espacios de la muestra, así como la visita a la exposición "Maestros del arte catalán del siglo XX. Colección Bassat" del Museo de Arte de Girona.
Uno de los espacios que se ha visitado es el patio del Ayuntamiento, donde existe un proyecto conmemorativo de los 40 años de hermanamiento con la ciudad de Albi.
" Esta edición de Tiempo de Flores quiere ser más inclusiva y accesible, pensada especialmente para los gerundenses y las gerundenses. Se han hecho mejoras para personas con movilidad reducida y se ha creado un Espacio Calma para personas neurodivergentes. También se han ampliado los horarios para favorecer una visita más tranquila y adaptada a los ritmos. invitar a todo el mundo a disfrutar de la muestra ”, ha destacado el alcalde Lluc Salellas i Vilar.
“Girona, Temps de Flors” kicks off its 70th edition today with 146 projects spread across 114 spaces that can be visited until May 18. Girona City Council kicked off the floral exhibition this morning with a tour of some of the spaces in the exhibition, as well as a visit to the exhibition “Masters of 20th-century Catalan art. Bassat Collection” at the Girona Art Museum.
One of the spaces visited is the City Council courtyard, where there is a commemorative project for the 40 years of twinning with the city of Albi.
“ This edition of Temps de Flors aims to be more inclusive and accessible, especially designed for Girona residents. Improvements have been made for people with reduced mobility and a Calma Space has been created for neurodivergent people. Opening hours have also been extended to encourage a more peaceful visit adapted to local rhythms. Finally, I would like to thank the public for their involvement and invite everyone to enjoy the exhibition ”, highlighted Mayor Lluc Salellas i Vilar.
The Indian eagle-owl, also called the rock eagle-owl or Bengal eagle-owl (Bubo bengalensis), is a species of large horned owl restricted to the Indian Subcontinent. They were earlier treated as a subspecies of the Eurasian eagle-owl. They are found in hilly and rocky scrub forests, and are usually seen in pairs. They have a deep resonant booming call that may be heard at dawn and dusk. They are typically large owls, and have "tufts" on their heads. They are splashed with brown and grey, and have a white throat patch with black small stripes.
This large owl with the distinctive face, large forward-facing eyes, horns and deep resonant call is associated with a number of superstitions. Like many other large owls, these are considered birds of ill omen. Their deep haunting calls if delivered from atop a house are considered to forebode the death of an occupant. A number of rituals involving the capture and killing of these birds have been recorded. Salim Ali notes a wide range of superstitions related to them but notes two as being particularly widespread. One is that if the bird is starved for a few days and beaten, it would speak like a human, predicting the future of the tormentor or bringing them wealth while the other involves the killing of the bird to find a lucky bone that moved against the current like a snake when dropped into a stream.Belief in these superstitions has led to the persecution of the species in many areas by tribal hunters. The capture of these birds is illegal under Indian law but an underground market continues to drive poaching.
Plan de la Besurta, La Ribagorza, Huesca, Aragón, España.
Ruta cuyo itinerario discurre en el entorno de las pistas de esquí nórdico de Llanos del Hospital en el Valle de Benasque. La ruta tiene su inicio en el Plan del Hospital atravesando en su recorrido bellos parajes como el Plan de Estan y el Plan de la Besurta para llegar finalmente hasta el espectacular Plan d´Aiguallut con magnificas vistas al pico Aneto. Se trata de recorrer una parte del conocido como Camino dels Aranesos que originalmente unía el Plan del Hospital con el Valle de Arán.
El recorrido se divide en tres tramos, un primer tramo muy corto y sencillo hasta el Plan de l'Estan, un segundo tramo tambien muy sencillo hasta la Besurta y un tramo final algo más exigente aunque accesible a cualquier senderista acostumbrado a la montaña hasta el Forau d´Aiguallut.
Route whose itinerary runs around the Nordic ski slopes of Llanos del Hospital in the Benasque Valley. The route begins in the Pllan del Hospital, passing through beautiful places such as the Plan de Estan and the Plan de la Besurta to finally reach the spectacular Plan d'Aiguallut with magnificent views of the Aneto peak. It involves walking through a part of what is known as the Camino dels Aranesos, which originally linked the Hospital Plan with the Aran Valley.
The route is divided into three sections, a first very short and easy section to Plan de l'Estan, a second section that is also very simple to Besurta and a final section that is somewhat more demanding although accessible to any hiker accustomed to the mountains until the Forau d'Aiguallut.
AMSTERDAM LIGHT FESTIVAL - Three figures sit next to each other on a bench, displaying the typical characteristics of smartphone users: their heads are bent, fingers typing and swiping, and their faces lit up by their phone screens. While their bodies are physically present, their minds are elsewhere.
The phone and computer screens that, literally and figuratively, light up our lives are irresistable. We read new messages immediately and want easy access to our social media, useful apps, and browser. Our smartphones are with us all the time – in bed, on the toilet, in the train, at our desk. They are an extension of our contact with our families, friends, and even people on the other side of the world. And as a result, we engage ourselves more with the virtual and superficial reality than with each other and the real world around us, something Lucas makes painfully clear. Actively involving the audience in the ‘story’ is a recurring feature in the work of the British artist, who works in Amsterdam as a graphic designer.
This was a first for us. We saw a Gallinule with all his white tail feathers splayed out. This is an early mating ritual. In courtship, male chases female on land; both stop, bow deeply, preen each other's feathers. Other displays involve lowering head and raising tail, exposing white patches under tail. We were not sure if this was courtship but it sure got our attention.
Another restoration of a slide from about 1959 to 1962. This was in a pile of fluff and dust, and although the first part of restoration involves film cleaner, where it has been stored it has got hot and cold over the years and some of the dust is baked into the film emulsion.
Aside from that, the cardboard mount had got mouldy and had to be cut away and I've just been able to work out from the writing that it was Sidmouth; there was more on the mount but too far gone to read.
I may spend some more time on this and put it up on my own website (under construction).
Thanks to 'Sidmouth Ian' (see his most helpful comments below) this is not Sidmouth, but Lyme Regis on what is now the A3052 approaching Broad Street.
NC, April 2020
Courtship for the Least Tern involves the male finding a female that will accept his fish! If she takes his gift, he has his mate for the season.
I recently did a 4-day camping trip in the Eastern Sierras. We camped out at the Big Pine Creek Campground.
On one of the days, we hiked the Big Pine Creek North Fork trail. We went as far as Second Lake. This photo is of First Lake (not very imaginative names)!
First Lake is at 9,900 feet and Second Lake is at 10,000 feet. We gained 2,250 feet in elevation and the round trip hike was 9.6 miles. My Steps App reported 31,054 steps and claimed I walked 11.97 miles. Either the App is wrong or I walked around in circles at some point!
My future plan is to hike all the way to to Palisade Glacier. That will involve an overnight backpack which I have never done. The Sierras are so gorgeous and the turquoise lakes slayed me! I really can't wait to get back out there!
The church of the Cordeliers convent.
From the ruins of the ancient theatre
Towards the end of the 40s BC, shortly after the foundation of the Roman colony, a monumental programme was started, involving the development of vast public spaces and the construction, at the end of the 18th century, of three major buildings: the forum, the Rhone arch and the theatre, the latter dominating the Hauture hill
The theatre was completed around 12 B.C. It was used for a long time for numerous shows, tragedies, comedies, mimes and pantomimes, which the public attended for free.
Its southern part (on the Summer Garden side) must have been fortified as early as the 5th century, to which we owe the "Roland Tower" integrated into the enclosure, and the only evidence of the initial elevation of the building.
Its plundering over the centuries to supply materials to neighbouring building sites eventually led to its ancient function being forgotten, and it was only rediscovered at the end of the 17th century.
Various occupants followed, including the Jesuit College, a convent of the Sisters of Mercy and one of the first public open-air archaeological museums.
¤ tomorrow, I will take you to Marseille
A Very Victorian Scandal
There is quite a story involving Thomas Reibey III of Entally House and this historic church in Hadspen. As I pointed out yesterday, in the early days of Hadspen, Christian townsfolk met at the Entally House chapel for worship. In order to build the church, Reibey who held the lay position of Archdeacon, provided a good deal of money and the foundation stone was laid in 1868. Incredibly it took over 100 years to complete the building.
Clearly, something went terribly wrong, as Duncan Grant tells us:
"When the structure was only partly complete a scandal erupted around Reibey. He was alleged to have indecently dealt with a married woman. In 1868 he was accused openly in the synod with attempts to seduce Margaret Blomfield with whose husband he previously had a property dispute. Bishop Charles Bromby refused to accept Reibey's ‘tainted’ money for the building of the church. Reibey subsequently took legal action but his complaint was dismissed and the jury largely held that the allegations against him were true. As a consequence of the scandal all work on the church had ceased by 1870. At this time the walls were unfinished and it was without a roof; a condition which remained unchanged for nearly 100 years. However Reibey’s career was far from ruined and he went on to become Premier of Tasmania in 1876. Reibey died in 1912 and is remembered with a relatively modest grave stone in the cemetery of the Church of the Good Shepherd.
The church remained in a 'ruined' state and became an attraction resembling a Gothic folly. Anglican services were held in St Stephens, a timber church next to the spectacle of Reibey’s church. In 1957 interest in completing the church was rekindled due to the approaching centenary of the start of its construction. The original architects' plans had been preserved and were closely followed in completing the project. The church was finally finished on 20 May 1961, with the first service held the following day. Some furnishings in the church came from the private chapel at Reibey’s home, Entally House. These included the altar and coverings, a wooden cross, paintings, a stained glass window and a bell that hangs in the church's porch. The Church of the Good Shepherd was consecrated in February 1973 and continues to serve the people of Hadspen."
www.churchesoftasmania.com/2018/03/hadspen-church-of-good...
Thanks to Duncan Grant for this valuable historic record.
Jaganath Rai Temple is a large Hindu temple in the middle of Udaipur in Rajasthan, just outside the royal palace. It has been in continuous worship since 1651.
It was built by Maharana Jagat Singh in 1651. Jagdish Temple is a splendid example of either Māha Māru or Māru-Gurjara architecture, decorated by beautiful and ornate carvings.
CAPTURED IN SPAIN, where the Spanish put on the most amazing parades. These involve thousands of participants, with amazing costumes, and often last for four hours or more. Unforgettable.
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THANK YOU for your visit and friendship, keep warm and safe,
God bless you...........Tomx
. . . involves preparing three square meals a day, even though I'd rather be behind my camera. As I was preparing BLT sandwiches for lunch today - the Macro Mondays theme "My Daily Routine" popped into my head, so I stopped everything to take a few shots.
HMM everyone.
One of the sadnesses of the lockdown measures during the COVID-19 pandemic is that there is so little movement from place to place. Having spent the last year in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, I anticipated seeing very much more of the area. Instead, I have remained largely in one place, my contribution to not spreading the virus; that, and a heavy workload have meant that I have seen less of the world than I intended this year.
The silver lining to that cloud is that one sees so very many shades of one place. One sees things anew, even as they seem to pall. It reminds me of a photographer I read of once, I forget the name, who had spent much of his life photographing a nearby beach in numerous seasons, finding subtleties that others might miss. There is a venerability and wisdom in it which is appealing in a world that normally moves far too much.
Here is a bridge, seen most days for the last nine months, half shrouded in mist one recent morning. I am not sure that I matched the medium and the subject. Rollei Superpan 200 is, I discovered belatedly, effectively an aerial photography film; developed in stock ID-11 (around 9'30, with frequent agitation, as I could find no precise information on this pairing), the film is one of very strong contrasts and precise detail. My initial excitement at such stark negatives wavered when I realised how many images had been rather marred by camera shake - a combination of shorter days, a slower film speed, the near-weightlessness of the Zeiss Ikon Nettar, and a deep press of the shutter button had conspired to defeat me.
This one, however, was salvageable. Originally 6x6, the unbroken grey of the sky and the less than interesting grass have been cropped out to give a greater prominence to the lake, bridge, and reflections.
Zeiss Ikon Nettar, Rollei Superpan 200, ID-11 stock. Cropping and reduction of contrast in Photoshop.
If you like my photographs, why not consider buying a print at captures.life? I haven't yet finished building the site and putting in all of the terms and conditions and policies, but the bits that involve buying a print, having it delivered, and contacting me if anything isn't working or goes wrong are functioning just fine...
A Green Anole peeks over the edge of a leaf, looking for insects to eat. I spent about two hours with these little lizards in my sister's back yard in Jacksonville, Florida when visiting last year (2019). Very happy with some of my captures :)
Green Anoles average about 4 inches in body size, with their tails extending another 4 inches. While the lizard above appears quite large, it is due to the perspective of my macro lens magnification, and the close proximity of the lens to the animal.
In order to get this close without spooking it and having it scurry away, it required a very patient stalking technique involving slow movement, quiet presence, and muscles in my arms and hands that often quivered uncontrollably due to holding my heavy gear for such extended handheld sessions! Actually surprising that ANY of my images were sharp, lol.
Robin - Erithacus rubecula
Double click to view
Our ever reliable Little Robin...
The European robin (Erithacus rubecula), known simply as the robin or robin redbreast in the British Isles, is a small insectivorous passerine bird, specifically a chat, that was formerly classified as a member of the thrush family (Turdidae) but is now considered to be an Old World flycatcher.
The robin occurs in Eurasia east to Western Siberia, south to Algeria and on the Atlantic islands as far west as the Azores and Madeira. It is a vagrant in Iceland. In the south-east, it reaches the Caucasus range. Irish and British robins are largely resident but a small minority, usually female, migrate to southern Europe during winter, a few as far as Spain. Scandinavian and Russian robins migrate to Britain and western Europe to escape the harsher winters. These migrants can be recognised by the greyer tone of the upper parts of their bodies and duller orange breast. The European robin prefers spruce woods in northern Europe, contrasting with its preference for parks and gardens in Ireland and Britain.
Attempts to introduce the European robin into Australia and New Zealand in the latter part of the 19th century were unsuccessful. Birds were released around Melbourne, Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington and Dunedin by various local acclimatisation societies, with none becoming established. There was a similar outcome in North America as birds failed to establish after being released in Long Island, New York in 1852, Oregon in 1889–1892, and the Saanich Peninsula in British Columbia in 1908–1910.
The robin is diurnal, although has been reported to be active hunting insects on moonlit nights or near artificial light at night. Well known to British and Irish gardeners, it is relatively unafraid of people and drawn to human activities involving the digging of soil, in order to look out for earthworms and other food freshly turned up. Indeed, the robin is considered to be a gardener's friend and for various folklore reasons the robin would never be harmed. In continental Europe on the other hand, robins were hunted and killed as with most other small birds, and are more wary.
Robins also approach large wild animals, such as wild boar and other animals which disturb the ground, to look for any food that might be brought to the surface. In autumn and winter, robins will supplement their usual diet of terrestrial invertebrates, such as spiders, worms and insects, with berries and fruit. They will also eat seed mixtures placed on bird-tables.
The robin features prominently in British folklore, and that of northwestern France, but much less so in other parts of Europe. It was held to be a storm-cloud bird and sacred to Thor, the god of thunder, in Norse mythology. Robins feature in the traditional children's tale, Babes in the Wood; the birds cover the dead bodies of the children.
More recently, the robin has become strongly associated with Christmas, taking a starring role on many Christmas cards since the mid 19th century. The robin has appeared on many Christmas postage stamps. An old British folk tale seeks to explain the robin's distinctive breast. Legend has it that when Jesus was dying on the cross, the robin, then simply brown in colour, flew to his side and sang into his ear in order to comfort him in his pain. The blood from his wounds stained the robin's breast, and thereafter all robins got the mark of Christ's blood upon them.
An alternative legend has it that its breast was scorched fetching water for souls in Purgatory.
The association with Christmas more probably arises from the fact that postmen in Victorian Britain wore red jackets and were nicknamed "Robins"; the robin featured on the Christmas card is an emblem of the postman delivering the card.
In the 1960s, in a vote publicised by The Times, the robin was adopted as the unofficial national bird of the UK.
In 2015, the robin was again voted Britain's national bird in a poll organised by birdwatcher David Lindo, taking 34% of the final vote.
NYR #2 - Organize Closets. I found thimble collection and more sewing supplies than I could ever use. And I don't even sew except for replacing a button And that usually involves bloodshed and colorful language. :)
Cat bonds involve a profound sense of trust, harmony and a silent language that only they understand. Bonded cats tend to share their territory without conflict or aggression finding comfort in each other’s presence, when they feel safe occupying the same spaces.
form of visual communication, usually illegal, involving the unauthorized marking of public space by an individual or group. Although the common image of graffiti is a stylistic symbol or phrase spray-painted on a wall by a member of a street gang, some graffiti is not gang-related.
I have been wanting to photograph a sunrise at Charlestown for some time, this involves an early start and going over to the south coast of Cornwall.
I needed a 04:45 alarm call yet my old steam driven alarm clock is a bit unreliable shall we say, so what could be my back up plan, of course my trusty companions Hoof & Horace who between them could wake me at the appropriate time.
So plan in place, sure to form there was a heck of a rumpus outside in our driveway at said time. When I peered through the curtains there in the drive with mischief written all over their faces were my intrepid menagerie.
I was most impressed they were able to rise so early, I asked the dynamic duo how they were able to achieve this, easy they said we have just got home from a bender at one of our mates parties, so we are just off to bed. I guessed correctly that they would not be accompanying me to Charlestown.
Hope you all have a lovely week, get the snow tyres at the ready☃️
Thank you for viewing my images, the comments and banter are much appreciated. 🐎💨🐷💨🍺🍺🍺😎🍷🍷🍷😂😂😂.
The Short-eared Owl is a specialist predator of small mammals, predominantly voles. They can be seen quartering an area of suitable habitat, listening and looking for signs of prey in the grass below. Quartering flight involves a mixture of flapping and gliding, with the bird sometimes hovering briefly before dropping down onto unsuspecting prey. (BTO).
Another “Shortie” shot. I haven’t been getting out and about as much with the camera recently, so I thought I’d show one or two photos from this rather enjoyable afternoon I had earlier this month.
My thanks to anyone who views, faves or comments on any of my photos. It is much appreciated.
Just out of Deramus Yard, CP 2816 brings the Final Spike Steam Tour into downtown Shreveport, passing a proper KCS-looking local at Harriet Street Yard.
Thus began one of the most fun days I've had in this hobby, as I and several others gave chase on the day-long 300+ mile run back to the Houston area. The train departed Shreveport on schedule at 0700, but thanks to multiple delays involving PTC and navigating the UP in Texas, they didn't make it to Kendleton until after dark!
Easter is now well behind us and I've been back in NYC for nearly a month at this point...
I've managed to unpack my suitcases and get more-or-less caught up with the stuff that accumulated in my absence ... but it was only a couple weeks ago that I was able to get back outside with my camera, to resume the "streets of New York" and "peeps in the 'hood" street-photography projects that I carried out during much of 2013 and 2014.
Because I have a strong desire to let the photos sit untouched for a month before I start editing them (which involves far less discipline than the late Gary Winogrand, who apparently waited a full year before he got any of his film processed!), I won't be able to inspect any of these street-photography shots until early May.
And that means I'll have to spread out my remaining Florida sunrise shots, and probably upload only one or two new ones each day ... unless some other photo project comes along in the next couple of weeks...
Meanwhile, I will continue uploading some photos taken by my grandparents in the 1920s, 30s and 40s, out in the American West.
Note: I chose this as my "photo of the day" for Apr 27, 2015.
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I spent the winter months of 2014-2015 in a warm spot on the beach in Indialantic, FL in order to escape what turned out to be a really brutal winter in the Center of the Universe, as well as most of New England. I'm now back in NYC, but I still have a backlog of Florida shots to edit and upload.
On most of the mornings I was there, I manage to get up about an hour before sunrise every morning, and be out on the beach for a morning walk just as the sun peeked up above the horizon.
On the very first morning, and every morning thereafter, I noticed that I was not the only person on the beach. There were joggers and walkers out getting their exercise, and *lots* of fishermen casting their lines out into the surf. But down by the 5th Avenue boardwalk -- where you can park your car and get a cup of coffee/latte/whatever from the local Starbucks -- there were lots and lots of people who clearly came down here just to watch the sunrise. This was particularly true after the beginning of Daylight Savings Time, for we then "sprang forward" and celebrated the arrival of dawn about 7:30 AM, instead of 6:30-ish.
These are some of the morning scenes that I saw -- the birds, the people, the long empty beaches, and the glorious sunrise...
The Bertol Hut (Cabane de Bertol) is a mountain hut overlooking the Bertol Pass, south of Arolla in the Swiss canton of Valais. It is known for its precarious position on a ridge at 3,311 metres south of the clocher de Bertol and is accessed by a number of fixed ladders and chains from the glacier pass (3,268 m). All accesses to the hut involve glacier crossing. From the refuge you can enjoy a spectacular view of the main peaks of the Pennine Alps (www.flickr.com/photos/134205948@N02/albums/72157686672614834).
madonna & child or re-parenting my inner child, a film by mary bogdan www.lulu.tv/?p=7650
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAkzRXngCbk
The significance of the work lies in the creative process as well as in the final piece itself. It involves recycling, recovery, manipulation, and the alteration of “found” objects.
My works are a personal vision of self-discovery and a recognition of continual reinvention.
It is the shaping of the self through the creation of art and the development of the art through self construction.
Like my personal journey, the “found” objects are brought to life and also transformed.
This ongoing and evolving cycle is the essence of my work.
My happiness always involves Ruffy. And nothing is better than that. Well… maybe Ruffy x 6 is better. ;-) Create your own happiness and Happy Smile on Saturday! Hope this makes you smile. :-)
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I've been working on this pic for about a week and before it gets overdone, I'd better post it. You wouldn't believe how different it looks each day!!
If you don't recognize her, that's my Ruffy. I created this for the Smile on Saturday group, selfie with half a face theme. I know it's not Saturday.. Maybe you'll smile before Saturday. ;-)
I'm still trying to get Ruffy's blood sugar #'s under control. Today I'm testing her blood every 2 hours, doing her 2nd blood glucose curve. Have been giving her insulin shots 2x daily, but for the 1st time, today her sugar # was low! It's usually really high! So no insulin today. Scary stuff!! Have to keep calling the vet & they tell me what to do. OK.. back to create your own happiness...
For the Smile on Saturday group’s theme today I rummaged quite fruitlessly through my vast and, clearly, useless archive of past captures looking for any flowers I have taken in portrait mode. Flowers there were aplenty. Portrait images? Nope, nada, zilch, zero.
I like to try and be a creative photographer thinking of new ideas and trying them out (very trying as my mother used to say) but, evidently, I dwell in various ruts of my own making. I only take images of flowers in landscape format, then. What a surprise!
So what to do for the group? The options were to rotate or crop I guess or even take a new image.
This is a crop of a much bigger image, taken at RHS Wisley as was yesterday’s Friday Flora one, but a much more ordinary flower, quite possibly a marigold. You may think that it is a carefully contrived close-up, but it started out as a boring-but-it’s-the-way-I tend-to-do-it square-on straight-down image. And it’s handheld in ordinary sunlight too, not some carefully controlled lighting set-up (as if I could!). And finally, it’s taken with a vintage lens, manually focused.
I have this hunch that cropping is a long-lost photographer’s art. There’s an itch that continually tickles me to do a project that involves mucking about with cropping images. Why should we be limited to a 3:2 crop that was a whim of a film company when they invented 35mm? Why should it be oblong for that matter - our eyes don’t see things in oblong? Hmmm…
This was developed in Capture One and processed in Affinity Photo, and tweaked in Nik Color Efex. Finally because one of the sides was less than 2000 pixels I doubled it for those with large screens using Topaz Gigapixel, which seems to do quite a credible job.
Getting the crop right in a macro was a real pain. Getting the right petals in a pleasing composition and then trying to get whole petals… I started out with a 1:3 ratio but ended with something shorter, rotated, and probably flipped too. I’ll post a link to the in-camera image in the first comment so you can see the humble beginnings.
This little lens Zeiss works remarkably well if I focus it right. The softness at the bottom of the image was added in processing using a blur vignette.
I like the way the flower petals seem to be unwrapping themselves from the centre…
Thanks for looking. I hope you enjoy the image. Happy Smile on Saturday!
Southern Shorthaul Railroad P classes P16 & P17 haul 3 car Xtrapolis set 17M, 1309T & 18M to a halt at Victoria Park. The 3 car set was being recovered from an earlier incident at Clifton Hill involving another 3 car set that sustained damage from a derailment to the trailer car. 14/7/25
The work of Swedish artist Hilma af Klint is inspiring. I regularly refer to her style in my image generation. On the Screenpunk website an article on Af Klint.