Desert varnish forms only on physically stable rock surfaces that are no longer subject to frequent precipitation, fracturing or wind abrasion. The varnish is primarily composed of particles of clay along with iron and manganese oxides. There is also a host of trace elements and almost always some organic matter. The color of the varnish varies from shades of brown to black. (Wikipedia)

My beautiful and sweet Johnny. He is a Ragdoll breed, rescued cat. My companion and joy. He followed me around the house and play fetch with different toys. He is over a year old, very active, playful and also curious.

The Ragdoll is a cat breed with blue eyes and a distinct colorpoint coat. It is a large and muscular semi-longhair cat with a soft and silky coat. Developed by American breeder Ann Baker, it is best known for its docile and placid temperament and affectionate nature. The name "Ragdoll" is derived from the tendency of individuals from the original breeding stock to go limp and relaxed when picked up. Particularly popular in both the United Kingdom and the breed's native United States, ragdoll cats often are known as "dog-like cats" or "puppy-like cats" due to behaviors such as their tendency to follow people around, their ease at being physically handled, and their relative lack of aggression toward other pets.

Ragdoll cats tend to be more interested in humans than some breeds of cats. They are known to run to greet you at the door, follow you from room to room, flop on you, sleep with you, and generally choose to be where you are. Many Ragdolls have been taught to come when called and play fetch. They are gentle cats, and usually play without extending their claws. Ragdolls tend to be floor cats, not jumpers. The Ragdoll’s semi long coat is plush and silky, and requires minimal grooming to keep it looking its best.

Los Angeles. California.

Reproducibility of an image. Ika assignment where we are asked to physically alter a photo (no photoshop etc!) in order to create a new image.

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About

There is nothing more exciting than the night sky, and nothing more rewarding when you learn something new about it.

I love being out with nature, at dawn, dusk, or during the middle of the night. I find it amazing (in terms of photography more so) that the stars we see at night are emit light that has traveled millions 'light years' to reach us. When you pause for a moment and think about the light in a studio/strobe its instant, its right there, but when we look at the stars, we are looking at the past, something that took place millions of years ago, amazing!

So what did I learn?

Well, as previously mentioned, there is more than one way to find the celestial pole (the spot the stars spin around), all you need to do is find the 'Magellanic Clouds'

What the?

The Magellanic Clouds are two dwarf galaxies, and you can see them clearly here. Make an equilateral triangle, using the two clouds, the third point of which is the south celestial pole.

I'd love a 5D for Christmas, and a 16-35L, so I can shoot these with next to no noise ;P

Enjoy.

- Canon 50D.

- ISO 200, f5.6, 20 minutes, 10mm

- Sigma 10-20mm lens.

- Tripod.

Processing

- NR in Lightroom 2.2.

- Soft light layer in Photoshop 6.0.

- Colour dodge in Photoshop 6.0.

About the Magellanic Clouds.

The two Magellanic Clouds (or Nubeculae Magellani) are irregular dwarf galaxies, which are members of our Local Group of galaxies. Once they were thought to be orbiting our Milky Way galaxy. However, new research seems to indicate that this is not the case. The two galaxies are, Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) and Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC).

The Magellanic Clouds were certainly known since the earliest times by the ancient Middle Eastern peoples. The first preserved mention of the Large Magellanic Cloud was by Persian astronomer Al Sufi, who in 964, in his Book of Fixed Stars, calls it al-Bakr, meaning "the White Ox", of the southern Arabs, and points out that while invisible from Northern Arabia and Baghdad, this object is visible from the strait of Bab el Mandeb, at 12°15' Northern latitude.

In Europe, they were first observed by Italian Peter Martyr and Andreas Corsali in the end of 15 century. Subsequently, it was reported by Antonio Pigafetta for the expedition of Ferdinand Magellan during the circumnavigation in 1519–1522. However, naming the clouds after Magellan did not become widespread until much later. In Bayer's Uranometria they are designated as 'NVBECVLA MAIOR' and 'NVBECVLA MINOR'; even in a 1756 French astronomer Lacaille's star map, they are designated as 'le Grand Nuage' and 'le Petit Nuage', (in both cases this means simply the "Large Cloud" and the "Small Cloud", in Latin or French).

The Large Magellanic Cloud and its neighbor and relative, the Small Magellanic Cloud, are conspicuous objects in the southern hemisphere, looking like separated pieces of the Milky Way to the naked eye. Roughly 21° apart in the night sky, the true distance between them is roughly 75,000 light-years. Until the discovery of the Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy in 1994, they were the closest known galaxies to our own.

Observation and theoretical evidence suggest that the Magellanic Clouds have both been greatly distorted by tidal interaction with the Milky Way as they travel close to it.

In memory of all our fallen servicemen and women down through time and also those that came back either physically or mentally impaired

Last Friday, I found Joey hiding underneath a furniture which was not his usual routine. Cats that start to hide can mean two things: they are either physically ill or they have been stressed and are avoiding their usual spots out of fear.

The last time when Joey drove me into panic mode was back in April, when I found him catatonic and depressed. I rushed him to the nearest vet (iVet Clinic) the following morning for a checkup and treatment. He was treated for superficial bite marks, underwent a blood test and subcutaneous fluids.

That vet was more interested in checking his blood (she made more money from blood tests than treating bite wounds) and I gave in after some persuasion.

The good news was Joey's creatinine and urea levels were lower than in 2019-2020. He was classified as in Stage 2, which was a remarkable improvement over his Stage 4 condition. However I was confused when the vet commented that Joey was "overweight" at just 5.33 kilograms. Her vet technician who later briefed me was trying to sweet talk me into buying prescription weight loss kibble for Joey.

That's odd, because Joey had never been diagnosed as overweight in his entire life.

This was taken at the Gasing Veterinary Hospital, not the iVet Clinic.

I didn't send Joey to iVet because they refused to accept "emergency cases" after 6:00pm as the clinic closes by 7 o'clock. They asked me to send him to the Gasing Veterinary Hospital instead, much to my dismay.

More to come.

Barney finds the long grass in this meadow physically quite tough to walk through but when we approach the place where the path diverges, he usually pulls to come down here, instead of heading the other way - even though the alternative route, which goes through the woods is nice & flat! He likes the warmth of the sunshine & sniffing all the interesting scents which must drift up on the breeze - the wind is nearly always in your face in this spot. He also likes to have a bit of a lounge on the soft grass... haha, when I join him for a rest, I always seem to find that one spiky thistle to sit on!!

Poor old lad has been having a fight with a rather stubborn UTI for the past few weeks. I got quite worried that his kidneys weren't working well, as Barney had starting drinking more & more water & wasn't wanting breakfast but a blood test showed his kidney function is mostly ok (not 100% but not as bad as I thought & alright for a dog his age). However, the urine sample came back showing signs of infection. Since then, he's been on & off antibiotics - they definitely help but once he's stopped taking them, Barney begins showing signs of feeling a bit unwell again. Hopefully this last, slightly longer course he's been on will do the trick, if not, we'll have try something else! Still, in between getting mildly annoyed at me, because I've been shoving multiple tablets down his throat every day, Barney's been fairly happy - enjoying the good weather - he is always a fan of summer. (I cannot believe we're halfway through 2022 already... this year is flying by).

To physically undress a woman, you must first know how to dress her mind with emotion. …

The Heart Of The Ocean,

Episode 6: "Men on a mission."

Pic 24

Ricky is wearing:

- ::DS:: Reilly Glasses

- Cold Ash Laguna Necklace

- Cold Ash Men's Mesh BURLESON Necklace

- Cold Ash Men's MESH REECE Henley Shirt (Olive)

-Cold Ash LARKHAM Jeans DarkBLue

-Cold ASh VALKYRIE Sneakers (White)

Benson is wearing:

- ORKRONT - ROVOSC C//GGIVENCHY x Xenov Lines Sweater

- *SHAI* Men's Relaxed Jeans, light\-

- (HR) Classic Sneakers (Hoorenbeek)

We all make footprints in life. Both physically and metaphorically. Sometimes those footprints last for a lifetime, and sometimes they get wiped away by the next strong breeze.

I want to dedicate this picture to my wonderful and amazing younger daughter. She's now 16 and entering the stage in life where she gets to choose her own path and take steps independently. It is hellishly hard as a parent to let go and let her walk alone, not knowing where those steps might lead, or what unknown terrors or wonders lurk behind the next sand dune. I'd like my most lasting footprints to be not mine at all, but hers (and her sister's). It doesn't matter at all to me how big, or how small, those prints are. Only that they are hers, of her own choosing, not feeling as if she is forced to follow anyone else's path. And I hope more than anything that they may lead to more joy than sadness along the way.

Teenage life in the 21st century is way more difficult than I think mine was, and I didn't think mine was easy at all. The competition is much tougher, the pressure seems higher, the outside influences are unquestionably more constant and more magnetic. At that age it's almost impossible to see life as anything but a straight line competition, first to this or that achievement, fastest to that milestone or another. The pressure to excel, to stand out and to achieve success seems overwhelming. Only once we get older do we realize that life's path is *never* straight, and that what looks like the top of the hill from one's younger perspective, turns out to be just one shifting sand dune among thousands. With the benefit of hindsight we see there was no "best" or "fastest" path. Each one of has to slog through their own quicksand at one point or another and ultimately find our own measure of success. Hopefully we find out along the way which of the multitude of hills has meaning to us. And we discover that the things that end up imprinted on our mental film turn out largely to have nothing to do with achievement and accomplishment, but rather who we met and what songs we sang together along the way, and how we responded when the going got tough.

I enjoy photos and captions that have multiple levels of meaning, and this one has a whole other level of meaning to me as well. The lone figure at the top of the dune is my esteemed friend and fellow photographer Kevin Benedict. We had walked together in to Mesquite Dunes in Death Valley National Park, and were hoping for a spectacular sunrise. As you can tell by the clouds above, that looked increasingly unlikely, but there was still a hope that the sun would break below and light all this cloud cover up in a glorious sheet of fire. Kevin had determinedly picked out his spot and had a vision for that sunrise shot over the dunes. I didn't want to just copy Kevin's vision, and I also had some teleconference with colleagues in Europe and China to deal with and didn't want to annoy Kevin with the chatter so I decided to walk off on my own and find something else to shoot. So the footprints are mine and as I turned around to take a look at the sky I saw the surreal cloud texture along with the sand texture and the line of fresh prints and decided that was kind of cool so I took the shot not thinking too much of it. Of course, the sunrise did not pan out as hoped (or I would probably have posted some other big sunrise-over-dunes shot), and the conference call kinda got in the way of my ability to get more shots.

EDIT: I originally posted a monochrome version of the shot, but then decided I liked the color version better so I swapped it out.

Summit day is D Day on Kilimanjaro. The toughest mentally and the most demanding physically. From waking in the early hours in pitch black and sub-freezing temperatures to collapsing exhausted at camp at the end of the day, there is no respite. But what a reward. Here is what to expect.

Whichever route you choose, you’ll be spending the night before summit at an altitude of around 4,600 – 4,700m. At this altitude there are three serious impediments to sleep, (1) Cold overnight temperatures (well below freezing) (2) Altitude Sickness (mild head-aches and mild nausea if you are lucky) and (3) anxiety about the climb ahead. Still, sleep you will and for those attempting a sun-rise summit, you’ll be setting off in the very early hours (after midnight).

The climb can be divided into two, the first ascent to the rim and then the traverse around the rim to Uhuru Peak. Machame reaches the rim at Stella Point (5,685m) whilst Marangu reaches the rim at Gillman’s Point (5,681m). You’re looking at a climb of around 1,000m in altitude gain from camp to the rim. This section involves a slow tack up the scree that, in the dark at least, affords little views other than the countless head torches of your fellow climbers snaking up the mountain.

Reaching the crater rim offers the most visceral sense of having summited Kili. Many climbers, having hauled their unwilling bodies to this point, would quite happily call it a day here. It is not an unusual site to see trekkers flat out on their backs, whilst their guides try to cajole them back on their feet. It is a very bad idea to lie down at this point. A quick photograph, a snack and up is the safest approach.

Depending on your route, the crater rim traverse can take 1 – 2 hours. If it weren’t for the prior exertions and extreme altitude this would be little worse than a walk in a City park. Unfortunately at this stage, legs are heavy, oxygen is scarce and temperatures are low. The view can be incredible, with the lunar landscape of the crater itself to one side, the dramatic glaciers and if you are lucky, far reaching views over the plains of Africa.

Uhuru Peak is the highest point on the rim and at an altitude of 5,895m, the highest point in all Africa. Depending on when you summit you may have to queue to get your de riguer summit photo in front of the jauntily angled summit sign. There are several poignant memorials at the summit, but a surprisingly scarce sense of drama. The emotion experienced by most is one of pure intense relief at having made it

I wanted to go out and do something with the wonderfully misty day. I have not been doing very well lately, physically and emotionally (doing a face-down today didn't really help with the physical part, but oh well) but as long as FDT can get me out of the house and smiling, that's something.

So, I guess this means no pun for me this month.

If you're into themes - please have a look at the discussion page (topic: 'updated list of possible future monthly themes') to let us know which one is your favorite. So far, it's the 10 second dash.

Explored!

It's so odd that of all my photos, it's mostly the Face-down Tuesday shots that get explored. I really wonder how that algorithm (if it is that) works.

Kambala Dance

The Nuba people for many years have been known in the West for their distinctive culture, and they are culturally vivid and physically diverse ethnic group inhabiting central Sudan. Among the many cultural activities which the Nuba have, is 'Kambala Dance'.

The Kambala is a spiritual dance originating in Sabori village near Kadugli, which perhaps was founded in the early eighteenth century during the reign of Mek Andu of Kadugli. This traditional and ceremonial dance has been passed on from one generation to another up to today. Now Kambala is a popular dance and it is one of the main national dances which are performed on special occasions and it had been performed outside the Sudan as well.

A Kambala dancer traditionally wears Buffalo horns which are tied to his head with a long white turban and on the top of each horn is attached a colourful piece of cloth, and sometimes he wears a nickel or beads on his neck put by either his sister or his mother. The dancer also wears around his waist a thin rope or leather belt encircled by long thin strips up to his knees, which are usually made from branches of palm trees. Around his arms and legs, he ties bundles of small balls made also from the branches of palm trees and containing small beads (stones) to make rhythmic sounds. In his hand he holds a horsetail attached to small piece of wood which he swings across his face while dancing. Read more:

www.nubasurvival.com/Nuba Culture/3. Kambala Dance.htm

Addiction (noun)

1. The state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.

2. The condition of being habitually or compulsively occupied with or or involved in something.

It's about my addiction, addiction to collecting antiques. As any other addiction it takes you all, you don't see anything around except antiques. You live in your own world and recognize only your treasures or things you need.

Like a mollusk you live in your shell, getting out just for short time, to catch something and get back to your habitation. When you, shell-fish, staying alone, you as The Merchant of Venice, Shylock can look at your treasures again and again, count them through the hours. So... addiction to collecting is a sickness, some kind of disease... but so pleasant disease.

Thanks to:

skydancer_stock from deviantart.com for the "collector"

pacsaman from deviantart.com for the beautiful female image;

Lorivintage55stock from deviantart.com for the "jeweled elephant";

Created for The Dictionary of Image

Better viewed large

Chicago. 2016

© All rights reserved. All my images are copyrighted. Any unauthorized use is strictly prohibited. No image can be copied, reproduced, shared, altered or used in any way, both physically or electronically, without my prior written permission.

Kambala Dance

The Nuba people for many years have been known in the West for their distinctive culture, and they are culturally vivid and physically diverse ethnic group inhabiting central Sudan. Among the many cultural activities which the Nuba have, is 'Kambala Dance'.

The Kambala is a spiritual dance originating in Sabori village near Kadugli, which perhaps was founded in the early eighteenth century during the reign of Mek Andu of Kadugli. This traditional and ceremonial dance has been passed on from one generation to another up to today. Now Kambala is a popular dance and it is one of the main national dances which are performed on special occasions and it had been performed outside the Sudan as well.

A Kambala dancer traditionally wears Buffalo horns which are tied to his head with a long white turban and on the top of each horn is attached a colourful piece of cloth, and sometimes he wears a nickel or beads on his neck put by either his sister or his mother. The dancer also wears around his waist a thin rope or leather belt encircled by long thin strips up to his knees, which are usually made from branches of palm trees. Around his arms and legs, he ties bundles of small balls made also from the branches of palm trees and containing small beads (stones) to make rhythmic sounds. In his hand he holds a horsetail attached to small piece of wood which he swings across his face while dancing. Read more:

www.nubasurvival.com/Nuba Culture/3. Kambala Dance.htm

I called this dragon mountains because as I was approaching they felt as they could suddenly raise and chase me down the valley. Curiously as I was getting closer they became less intimidating. In photographic terms this is the closest I got to them www.flickr.com/photos/115385189@N08/14787174807/, although physically I got closer but could not find a safe way to get as close to them as I would have wanted.

The Lovers Earrings

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Physically Based Rendering + Blinn-Phong Materials

Fits Andore LEX miHD Human + Pixie + Elf And LeLutka EvoX Human + Elf

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Solar Gauges

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Physically Based Rendering + Blinn-Phong Materials

Fits Swallow Male + Female Gauged Small, Pixie Gauged Small, and Gauged XL

Texture HUD With Two Gauges + Four Metals

Tintable Neons

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The Eggs & Bunnies Typer is a fun and interactive accessory for Second Life. When you type in local chat, the basket attached to your avatar will release adorable Easter bunnies! The basket also contains colorful Easter eggs and includes an animation for holding it. You can resize and modify it to fit your avatar perfectly. Spread Easter joy with this charming typer!

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The Rose family (Robert Frost)

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:)

Thought this to be a smiler for you.....thank you for your visit, wishing you well this weekend!.....Pat...xo

****

I'll be leaving for Florida on Monday with camera in tow....and strategies on physically traveling well:)

It will be so much fun to see It's a Keeper....and if you don't know her photostream, I'd suggest you stop by for a real treat.

I'll return Saturday night in time for #2 son hosting Mother's Day luncheon for the Two Mothers, my daughter Jody and me:)....there is always a family game of soccer afterwards....I'm ready to take on the two g.sons!....

Carefully built physically temporary-photo-permanent pile of discarded timber from an office renovation project.

Hatfield, Hertfordshire.

" My name is Mike St.Mark and I stack my pictures together" :-)

Introvert Rant -

Often times, I feel withdrawn and disconnected to reality.

I am here physically, but mentally I am not. I want to exist without being noticed, but the side-walk superintends won’t let me. They scrutinized with judging eyes and asked me what monkey business I’m doing at the oddest hour. My mouth mumbles, searching for the right thing to say. Silence is all they want to hear. Eventually I nodded and listened to all their grilling, but my mind wanders somewhere else. You know I am aloof, but not antisocial? After the meddlers leave, I close my eyes and slowly recede into the bushes once more. Nobody must know I’m here again. They are such a nuisance and disrupt my serenity. I don’t like people. In fact, I’d rather be in the company of ghosts than be among humankind. I am a brooder. I am a spider throbbing in my sunset recluse.

(21 of 24 - This week have been exhausting for me. I’m supposed to finish everything, but I uploaded two pictures only. Rest well and have fun on your Saturday and Sunday…)

Photographed in Botswana, Africa from a safari vehicle

Please click on the image to view at the largest size

Thanks for your visits and comments!

======================

From Wikipedia: The fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis), also called the common drongo or African drongo, is a small bird found from the Sahel to South Africa, excepting dense forest, that lives in wooded habitats, particularly woodlands and savannas.

Physically this species is characterized with a narrow fork-shaped tail, red-brownish eyes, and black plumage throughout all of his body. As an omnivorous species, its diet consists of small insects, composing of butterflies, grasshoppers and beetles, besides fruit, including those of Azadirachta indica and Moringa oleifera.

The fork-tailed drongo is known for his ability to deceptively mimic other bird alarm calls in order for a certain animal to flee the scene so he can steal their food (kleptoparasitism). They are also notorious for displaying an aggressive and fearless behaviour by attacking and chasing off much larges animals, including birds of prey.

Behavior:

They are usually solitary and form monogamous breeding pairs. They are aggressive and fearless, regularly mobbing or attacking much larger species, including birds of prey, if their nest or young are threatened or their territory is compromised. They also join mixed foraging bird parties, and will initiate mobbing of common enemies. To maintain their plumage condition they may rain-bathe, foliage-bathe or plunge-dive into water. Terrestrial foragers like babblers may use the drongo as a sentry.

Feeding:

This specie is mostly insectivorous and occasionally eats fishes and other birds, furthermore they may take nectar and eat plants when available too. Predominant preyed animals are butterflies, beetles, caterpillars, grasshoppers, honey bees, moths, termites and weevils, especially common species |being the angola white lady, macrotermes natalensis, cyrtacanthacris aeruginosa, and the desert locust. Sometimes they might also eat small fishes by swooping down from a perch hovering over water and dipping, it has been observed small birds being captured with their claws or bills, namely the bronze mannikin. Plants take around 15% of their diet, usually eaten are the moringa oleifera, azadirachta indica and the dialium guineense. This bird is solidarity in its hunting.

Usually, the fork-tailed drongo perches, from a height of 5 m (16 ft 5 in) to 7 m (22 ft 11+1⁄2 in), in an erect pose from which they rapidly charge insects flycatching, plunge diving or grabbing it on the ground and then return to the same branch. They utilize disturbance caused by other animals in their hunting. The specie can hold large items with their claws and tear them with their bills; removes wings of butterflies. In the Kalahari the fork-tailed is famous for their kleptoparasitism, they mimic other birds or use their own alarms to make other animals think that there're predators nearby and thus make them flee and leave their food behind so the fork-tailed can steal it. They frequent savanna fires, where they catch fleeing insects and other prey running from the flames.

Afr-0I7A5533fFlkrDs

Skelly Cakes

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MyStory RP Scripts

Fulfills Hunger + Energy Needs

Coming to FLF-O-Ween on Friday October 11th, discounted to L$50!

Don't forget to drop by the booth for your free gift!

"Anyone who has grown mentally, physically or spiritually knows that growth is not found in comfort." -Brooke Castillo

Remember how I was whining about trying this and that and failing so many times (with my photos) last few months? Oh well, if I didn't persevere I might not be able to do something like this! I did this image like it's the easiest thing. Sigh. To experience growth is painful but it's definitely all worth it. Be thankful that you're growing.

Bear is from unsplash

Facebook

Dear Mother,

I hate this war, the whole thing is pointless, so many have fallen victim to death, both physically and emotionally, and for what? I do not care to fight here any longer, our officer commanded us to charge at the enemy defenses today, I was running alongside cousin Max and saw him fall as he screamed in agony, I called for help but nobody looked back, I was alone trying to save Max, as he lay in the mud, groaning in agony. I bandaged him up and helped him back to our trench, God protected us as we stumbled through the chaos of battle. I found a surgeon tending to a man with the Flu, he and another man assisted us in locating the field hospital behind the lines. The doctors said he will live, but he will not be able to fight for a while. I am very happy with that, I would not be able to fight on if Max died.

I must return to our trench once I have completed this letter, please tell Papa that I am doing fine.

-Ernst

Wow, Lincoln writes a story to go with his scene for once.

The story is pretty crappy in my opinion, I may revise it later. I've had this little WW1 vig sitting around for the longest time, (Which is why it's so flipping dusty) so I decided to put some of my MRU torsos to use before everyone else gets them ;)

God bless!

-Lincoln

Whatever you are physically...male or female, strong or weak, ill or healthy--all those things matter less than what your heart contains. If you have the soul of a warrior, you are a warrior. All those other things, they are the glass that contains the lamp, but you are the light inside.

D850, 14-24@14, f11, ISO100, 44s, Settings M, Filter: Neutral Night

Sometimes you have to push yourself past that point when you feel like giving up. Often, when you think "It's over," "I'm finished," "There's no way," “It won’t work,” but you decide to hang in there anyway and give every last drop of your full potential, you are rewarded.

www.naturephotographymastery.com/

One fine day in April, I got up before sunrise and went out with a specific plan to create an image of a certain subject. After many hours of hard work and effort, I did not succeed. I took a break during the harsh midday sun, and then went out again, at a different location, when the light got better. Again, after much trying, it seemed that I would not succeed.

Still, I refused to give up until I had given 110% effort on every possible opportunity. As the last minutes of light approached, and all seemed hopeless, a sudden turn of events resulted in "the stars aligning.” The light, the subject, and everything else, came together just right, and I gave my final push, physically and mentally, to obtain the image you see here.

I'd like to point out that, after 12 hours of physically and mentally exhausting effort, at two locations, when all seemed hopeless, I used my last reserves of patience and physical energy to push myself to 110% effort, at which point I was finally rewarded with a few awesome images.

Editing disclosure: minor adjustments made to background to reduce distractions

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Thank you, Sincerely, Matthew

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MRS_20160417_097_LM_web_v1_800w_iwm - ©Matthew Schwartz, All Rights Reserved.

This image is protected by Copyright, and is not available for ANY use without the explicit written permission of the photographer. Thank you for being respectful of the years of learning, thousands of hours of practice, thousands of dollars, and extremely hard work and time I put into creating my fine art images.

Chove. Há silêncio, porque a mesma chuva

Não faz ruído senão com sossego.

Chove. O céu dorme. Quando a alma é viúva

Do que não sabe, o sentimento é cego.

Chove. Meu ser (quem sou) renego…

Tão calma é a chuva que se solta no ar

(Nem parece de nuvens) que parece

Que não é chuva, mas um sussurrar

Que de si mesmo, ao sussurrar, se esquece.

Chove. Nada apetece…

Não paira vento, não há céu que eu sinta.

Chove longínqua e indistintamente,

Como uma coisa certa que nos minta,

Como um grande desejo que nos mente.

Chove. Nada em mim sente…

Fernando Pessoa

Not apparently physically injured, but not flying on all feathers, if you get my drift. Sent on to a rehabber after a physical exam and radiographs.

The Pinwheel (Messier 101) is a large spiral galaxy that appears in the constellation Ursa Major (a.k.a. "The Big Dipper"). Physically, it is significantly larger than our own Milky Way galaxy while its apparent visual diameter is about the same size as the full moon. This wide-field image covers nearly two and one-half degrees on the diagonal and includes many smaller background galaxies (most notably NGC 5474 on the lower right and the edge-on spiral galaxy NGC 5422 on the upper left).

Image capture was done over three evenings in January 2015 using an unmodified Sony NEX-5R digital camera (ISO 800, 99 seconds x 329, producing a total exposure integration time of just over 9 hours). The imaging telescope was a 5” refractor working at an effective focal length of 528mm at f/4.2. The setup also included the use of a light-pollution filter that causes about a two-thirds f-stop loss in broadband light transmission (a necessary "evil" given my significantly light-polluted, red-zone skies).

Image processing was done with PixInsight v1.8, Photoshop and Lightroom CC2014.

This photo is best viewed against a dark background and at full size (1920 x 1280 pixels, press the "L" key to enter the Flickr light box and then click to enlarge the image).

All rights reserved.

This is T plus 30 minutes.

Physically the problem was keeping the ice cube stationary - after a minute or two it was disappearing stage right.

Fading and almost erased, disappeared but still physically there...

Branne - France

#Darblanc #DarblancPhotography #XavDarblanc #XavDarblancPhotography #ColoursShapesAndMoods

Pennhurst Asylum was built in 1908 as a state school for the mentally and physically disabled. The Spring City, Chester County, Pennsylvania property covered 120 acres with many different buildings, many connected through a series of underground tunnels. The original name was "Pennhurst Home for the Feeble Minded and Epileptic" before it became known as the "Pennhurst State School". A 1968 report by NBC television entitled "Suffer The Little Children" brought forth evidence of abuse, neglect, and overcrowding at the institution. After many lawsuits, including the landmark May 1974 case "Halderman v. Pennhurst State School ", Pennhurst was finally forced to close its doors in 1986. Pennhurst fell into complete disarray and ruin with scrappers looting buildings for what they could sell and vandals spray painting just about every surface they could find.

There have been attempts to stabilize some of the buildings, primarily the roofs, to keep the buildings in a state of "arrested decay" so they don't become more ruined by the elements, and several of the more dangerous buildings have been demolished. There is a movement to build a museum that features the history of not only Pennhurst but also mental care in the United States, so that we never return to that state of affairs again. The property owners now offer a haunted house during the Halloween season, Paranormal tours, and Photography tours. Tour money goes towards the stabilization of the buildings and the formation of the museum.

Nikon ZF with Nikkor Z 14-30mm F4.5 lens @ 18mm. F13, ISO 100. Oben tripod with an Arca-Swiss C1 cube 3-way geared head.

these are street portraits taken of strangers ask to physically interact wit each other in the same frame

The most physically demanding hike I ever attempted. A storm rolled in minutes after I captured this image.

"E depois de uma tarde de quem sou eu

E de acordar a uma hora da madrugada em desespero...

Eis que as três horas da madrugada eu me acordei

E me encontrei

Simplesmente isso:

Eu me encontrei calmo, alegre

Plenitude sem fulminação

Simplesmente isso

Eu sou eu

E você é você

É lindo, é vasto

Vai durar

Eu sei mais ou menos

O que vou fazer em seguida

Mas por enquanto

Olha pra mim e me ama

Não

Tu olhas pra ti e te amas

É o que está certo."

Clarisse Lispector

And after an afternoon of who I am

And waking up to an hour in the morning in desperation ...

Behold, the three in the morning I woke up

And I found myself

Simply this:

I found myself calm, cheerful

Fullness without fulmination

this simply

I am me

And you're you

It's beautiful, is VAST

will last

I know more or less

What will the next I

But for now

Look at me and loves me

not

You look to you and you will love

It is the right thing. "

Clarice Lispector

Child labour refers to work done by children that harms them or exploits them either physically or mentally. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) defines a ‘child’ as anyone below the age of 18, and ‘child labour’ as any form of work performed by children below age 18.

According to the UNICEF, up to 10 million children are estimated to be working in Pakistan

Article 25a in the Constitution of Pakistan reads:

The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to 16 years in such manner as may be determined by law

blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/11393/child-labour-in-pakistan...

I'm just exhausted... mentally, emotionally, physically... and really that's all it is: exhaustion, due to absolutely no recharge time whatsoever, for the last two+ weeks!

[could've been Day 425]

this was one of the most physically challenging and exhausting things i have ever done,

i fell flat on my back twice while trying to get my feet in and out of the rings, which didn't hurt, but it absolutely crushed my confidence. and when i fell, i bent the cover of the book, which by the way is falling up by shel silverstein, and is absolutely precious and sentimental to me and my sisters. and on top of ruining the book i had to climb the tree to put the rings back up. i ended up taking only six photos before deciding i was absolutely done (and falling out of the rings yet again) and when i ran back to the camera i realized these were composed like absolute crap and my shirt was falling down (or is it falling up? i have no idea)

so then i ran back in the house and right when i got inside, i realized no one had heard the oven timer and the cookies i'd been baking were burnt to a crisp

so i threw my tripod on the floor and kind of started crying. then i ate all the cookies.

anyway

sorry this was so long,

+another and an alternate edit in comments

view large for my troubles, please and listen(it's a classic)

This would've been so different if my flash batteries hadn't failed me after one shot. So no flash fun for me today.

And yeah I know, same wall different week. The twist is: I didn't use the flash. But only because I physically couldn't get it to work. Annoying. So I may change this if I get a better idea through the week but if I'm honest the chances of that happening are remoter than me waking up one day and realising that I really like the last Scouting For Girls album.

In case you're interested, this reminds me of my favourite 365 shot (from my own 365), Day 351. Absolutely my favouritest of my own 365 set.

That's how this could've turned out if the flash had worked. But it didn't, and now I feel slightly empty inside, or like I cheated at a maths exam or something.

I think I'm getting way too reliant on that little light-maker . . .

Strobist info: Didn't you read my rant?! Ha ha! Nothing to see here.

I may rely on my little light-maker too much but they do make photos look so much cooler

Aruba is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about 29 kilometers (18 mi) north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná and 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Curaçao. It measures 32 kilometres (20 mi) long from its northwestern to its southeastern end and 10 kilometres (6 mi) across at its widest point. Together with Bonaire and Curaçao, Aruba forms a group referred to as the ABC islands. Collectively, these and the other three Dutch substantial islands in the Caribbean are often called the Dutch Caribbean, of which Aruba has about one-third of the population. In 1986, it became a constituent country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and acquired the formal name the Country of Aruba.

France. 2016

© All rights reserved. All my images are copyrighted. Any unauthorized use is strictly prohibited. No image can be copied, reproduced, shared, altered or used in any way, both physically or electronically, without my prior written permission.

Soul sister, physically they are different person but was connected by one soul.

FOCUS POSE-FRIENDS I MAITREYA I CATWA I Blueberry I DOUX l Backdrop City

Last year I missed out on Mike Berenson 's epic hike up to Cupid Mountain due to work and not being physically able to do it at the time (I'm in much better shape now) thankfully I mentioned to Mike that I would like to go for the next trip, which inspired him to set up our amazing trip on Tuesday night.

The temperature was a balmy 10 degrees and thankfully the winds were light (we estimated 40 mph at times) if we were correct with that estimate the wind chill was -15 deg. As we were summiting the 13,000 ft mountain I was hiking in 2 layers of down, a fleece, windstopper and down pants. I stayed quite warm except for my toes going numb/pain a few times.

I finally had the pleasure of meeting Dan Ballard who is one of the most genuinely nice guys I've ever met and extremely intelligent, if you've been debating taking one of his workshops, stop debating; you will not regret it.

So Dan; this is how the big pano turned out, I don't think it has as much impact as it could, if I would have done another row to capture the entire arc of the milky I believe it would be much more complete. I played around with some cropping but could not find a happy place to stop so I left it as is. I have some other shots that are much tighter and probably better, I just think the huge pano is cool :)

Thanks again Mike for setting this up, you know how to pick the epic spots and I'm glad you got the shot I wanted ;) Well done sir, you kept your composure better than I did in the ridiculous cold.