One of my joys in my photographic journey is to visit small towns and stroll their streets. This is when I look for details that I may not find in Sacramento. In fact, I’m seldom in downtown Sacramento. One-way streets drive me crazy. So, I’m happy that Ritva chose this subject for her challenge.
Doors always catch my eye. Here are three that caught my eye while on photo outings.
And where there are doors, there must be windows!
Sacramento used to be known as the City of Trees until it became The Farm to Fork Capital.
Now for some street scenes from my wanderings.
Thank you Ritva for encouraging us to see as our cameras do and to pay attention to details. When you respond to her post, please link to Ritva’s post and use the Lens-Artist tag.
I’m sorry to have missed Ann-Christine’s and Sofia’s challenges, but I did have an enjoyable time cruising the Panama Canal. And it’s great to be back. Next week Tina will be leading the challenge, so stay tuned.
Once again I’m finding I’m following a compositional rule without knowing it! Hopefully, that’s a good sign 😎. This week Egidio of Through Brazilian Eyes, challenges us to show how we use rectangles in our photographs and how they help our composition.
I’ve chosen to look through my 2018 archives to discover rectangles in my images and how they enhanced my composition. I found some and I’ve also found that one rectangle can lead to more–another rabbit hole! Not my challenge this time.
A stand out for me is architecture. I love photographing buildings because of the leading lines. Little did I know that would mean rectangles. The empty barn is built from rectangles more or less in formation. The modern building is showing rectangles in its windows and concrete supports going across the glass structures that are, indeed, rectangles within a larger rectangle. The old bank building is a rectangle structure with rectangle windows and doors. It even has a rectangular truck parked in front!
Now let’s go to nature. Landscapes are best for seeing rectangles. The horizon line separates land from sky, creating two rectangles. Sometimes shore and water create the rectangles and a reflection makes it a definite unit. Eye catching sunsets, especially over water, help create two symmetrical rectangles.
Now for my last three images. Square boxes stacked upon each other become rectangular towers. A fence made from individual rectangular skis become an attractive rectangular unit. Fabric sewn together can yield many rectangles.
I had fun finding rectangles and it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be. How about you? When you create your post, please remember to use the Lens-Artists tag and link to Egidio’s post. He does request that you also put your link in the comments section of his post.
I also enjoyed seeing how backgrounds affected your compositions as asked by Ritva last week. Tina is up next with an exciting challenge, so be sure to look for her post.
As those who follow her know, Lens-Artists team member Donna of Wind Kisses is taking a break from blogging for personal reasons. She will be very much missed but, hopefully be with us again before too long. We wish Donna and her family only the best, as our thoughts are with all of them.
What makes a photo dramatic? Is it the scene? The subject? The color or lack of it? In this week’s challenge, Patti asked us to show what we consider dramatic and her wonderful images gave us examples. I believe it is the feeling that an image invokes in us. So here are some examples of what I consider dramatic.
Black and White: I love black and white because it helps create drama with certain subjects. My two examples are of Lake Waterton, Waterton NP, Canada and a lotus. In both these examples, it was the editing that brought out the drama for me. The lake brought me serenity. The lotus was a striking monochrome of a flower of colorful beauty that brought me excitement.
Wildlife: The American Bald Eagle reigns supreme over the wetlands, sending smaller birds into flight. They even look regal as they sit on branches. Even his gaze demands respect. To catch a hawk in flight is difficult, especially when your maximum range is 300 mm. When you do capture one through your lens, it is a dramatic result. Both images got excited.
Architecture: When I visited Melbourne Australia, I was in awe of the buildings. They were dramatic in design. I was excited and eager to photograph them. My examples are close ups of two buildings showing what I thought were the unique features of each.
Skies: From sunsets to clouds, skies help us create drama in our photographs. They also accent our subjects. Peacefulness and excitement describe my feelings for the next two photographs.
An environmental act: A tree falling down certainly creates drama especially for the homeowner! What more can I say except YIKES for this. Maybe gratefulness that my property wasn’t involved!
Shadows: Shadows accent structures, especially bridges. I remember being on the other side of the Fair Oaks Bridge and walking down to see what I could photograph from this side. It was then I saw the shadows bringing the bike rider toward me. I was happy that I walked to capture this image.
These images spoke to me and brought me into the photo. That’s why I love photography!
Thank you Patti for having us go deeper into our photographs. When you respond to this challenge please link to her original post and tag Lens-Artists. I enjoyed seeing all your favorites from last year. I remembered a lot of them. Ann-Christine will be presenting next week’s challenge.
If you would like to participate weekly in our Lens-Artists Challenge, click here for more info.
Experiencing something for the first time can be exhilarating, exhausting, and engaging. Looking forward to that experience can create feelings like anxiousness, happiness, and anxiety. It’s even more exaggerated when the experience is something you wished for but thought would never happen.
My recent trip to Australia falls into that last category. My wish: to go to Australia and photograph with Leanne Cole in Melbourne. You see, when she was in the U.S. in 2015, I had the great opportunity to take her to Santa Cruz and go down to Monterey for a day. She was visiting a friend in Saratoga. We both remember that day. I was amazed at how at ease she was with her camera. And the thought of visiting with her in Australia was a dream come true.
This exciting trip was with my friends Sandy and Peg who are sisters. They invited me along as their adopted sister. Peg was detained a day so Sandy and I flew the long trip together.
I had a day alone with Leanne, walking Melbourne, when Sandy went to pick up Peg at the airport. We had breakfast, lunch and met Sandy and Peg for dinner. What a wonderful day that was. Melbourne is an exciting city with amazing architecture and the Yarra river running through it. Here is a sample of images from that day.
Convention CenterWebb BridgeEvan Walker BridgeFlinders StationThe Manchester Building
The next morning Leanne picked us up and took us to Port Campbell where we spent 2 full days photographing iconic scenes—places I have seen in Leanne’s blog many times.
On the way to Port Campbell
Whaler’s Bluff Lighthouse
Leanne had arranged a wonderful rental house for us at Port Campbell where we enjoyed our 2-night stay. We explored the beaches and sights.
The Twelve ApostlesLoch Ard Gorge from aboveLoch Ard Gorge belowLondon BridgeLondon Bridge
On our way back to Melbourne, Leanne took us to a rainforest, Maist’s Rest.
I had never been in a rainforest before, and this was outstanding. The ferns (which I love) were huge. Here’s a peak.
We had a wonderful time and experienced new things. This was the highlight of my almost 1-month vacation. Thank you, Leanne, for driving and being our very own tour guide. I totally enjoyed our girl friend time and the fun with all four of us. We all appreciated your time. And I’ll admit that Australia has great coffee!
There will be future posts on my blog about this trip. From Melbourne we journeyed to Sydney and then cruised for 11 days. Maybe I can fit some into an LAPC post.
But today, your challenge is to show and tell us about a new experience you had. It could be a trip, the birth of a child or grandchild, a road trip to a new place, the possibilities are endless. As you respond, please link to this post and use the Lens-Artists tag.
We all enjoyed your responses to Sofia’s challenge of Spring. Your narratives and images were imaginative and beautiful. Some of you even got in the Spring mood while walking in snow! Next week, April 1, Donna Holland will be challenging you and she’s not fooling around! Be sure to look for her post.
If you would like to participate weekly in our Lens-Artists Challenge, click here for more info.
This is a great morning here in the Sacramento California area. It’s raining and it’s a steady rain. And, I’m also excited about Patti’s challenge on diagonals this morning. She compared diagonals to leading lines that lead to the focal point of a photograph.
Here are some of my images showing leading lines.
Paths always show us the way.Fence and shadows provide leading lines.The Amtrak station.Leading lines for a decorative touch.Leading lines get you to the other side of the bridge.The outside of the bridge has leading lines also.Architecturaldesigns also incorporate leading lines.
I also enjoy photographing objects on a diagonal just for the fun of it, and was recently to the California Museum where I found great diagonals.
Sometimes shooting a picture on a diagonal adds interest. This clown’s face is more interesting on the diagonal rather than straight on.
And when we compose a picture, we may end up with a visual diagonal, leaving some negative space.
Here’s my last fun photograph on a diagonal.
Patti, I hope I didn’t take your great challenge too far from your original intent. This was fun and thank you for brightening up a wonderful rainy morning. Please remember to link your reply post to Patti’s and use the Lens Artists tag. It’s supposed to rain off and on through Monday. Yay!!
We enjoyed all your responses to last week’s challenge. I got to see many places I’ll never be able to get to. Next week is Ann-Christine’s turn to lead this challenge. I can’t wait to see what she has in store for us.
If you would like to participate weekly in our Lens-Artists Challenge, click here for more info.
Slow Shutter Speed 