Collage

So now you have been out taking a lot of pictures this spring.  So what do you do with all these pictures?  One thing I have found that is fun is to use a photo editing program like Picassa to create a collage of several pictures with a theme.  Here is one I just did of flowers and spring plants.

What is the cost of a picture?

It was a beautiful morning albeit somewhat chilly- 37 degrees when I left the house to take pictures at Petrifying Springs and Hawthorn Hollow.   The search to find a piece of spring blooming here or there.  A brisk walk through the woods.  Ahh!  After several hours it is time to get home.  Wait…there is a couple sitting on a bench watching a variety of birds flit in and out from several bird feeders that are set up near a hedge of evergreen trees.  Hmm!  Maybe I should change to my long telephoto lens and get some shots here before I leave.  I go to my trunk and make the switch out.  Whew!  It is a nice sunny day and things have warmed up a bit.  It must be about 60 degrees now.  I certainly don’t need my heavy coat any longer.  I take it off and throw it in the trunk and slam it closed.  So there!  As soon as it was done I realized what I had done.  Oh, nooooo!  My car keys and cell phone are in the pocket of my jacket.  What is the cost to my heart sinking to my feet?  What is the cost to my pride of feeling really stupid?  What is the cost of knowing I have to call my husband and tell him what I just did and beg him to bail me out?  What is the cost of embarrassment in having to run after that couple, complete strangers, that have now left the bench and headed on a hike into the woods and ask them if they have a cell phone I can use?  I don’t feel worth much right now.  Well, at least I have my camera and I can sit and take pictures of the birds while I wait the half hour for Wayne to come.   After the rescue, I get in my car and go home.  Life goes on.  Now I sit here at my computer and look at the pictures I took this morning.  Ah yes, things are looking up.  So what is it worth to look at the pictures and remember the beautiful walk  I took this morning before the silly incident?  As the commercial says….priceless!

Gates and Gardens

Spring is here and I see the differences on the bike trail.  I notice the greenery around the gates and various entry ways onto the path and someone has planted a beautiful garden along the path which makes the ride pleasurable.

Fun with Barns

I like to take pictures of old things like barns.  Here is an example of one.  I learned a new technique of sharpening an image using a mask by duplicating the image, removing the color and using the style of finding the edges and using this to sharpen just the edges of your image.  In practicing this technique, I came up with the second image part way through the process and decided I liked this image of the barn.  So below is what I call my pencil drawing of the barn.