Posted on by Anne Sandler · 48 Comments

Lens Artists Challenge #317: Walking the Neighborhood

I walk my neighborhood every day with a dog at the end of a leash. It’s really too early to take photos, so I’ve enlarged my stomping grounds and take my camera on photo outings. But, last week, I found a new neighborhood: Rollins Lake in the Sierra Foothills.

I don’t think Tina will mind if I show you the small campground I walked Gem through several times a day. We camped, or should I say glamped, with another couple. Both of us have RVs. The season just ended and we had the campground to ourselves.

Although mostly overcast, the weather was great. We were even treated to a pre-rain rainbow.

We did climb into the truck to see the boat launch and lake.

I hope my temporary neighborhood qualifies for Tina’s wonderful challenge. I’m excited to see your neighborhoods. Please remember to link to Tina’s post when you respond and use the Lens-Artist tag. Last week Egidio prompted us to show how we have fun. It was a delight to see all your posts.

I’ll be in San Jose for two weeks caring for a dear friend. I’m sure I will be able to enjoy your posts, but I’m not sure about generating my own. My laptop doesn’t have enough memory to handle processing programs. Take care everyone!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 2 Comments

Slow September: The Foothills and River Bend Park

Confession: I haven’t been shooting much this month, except for real estate. I’ll admit that my abilities have grown in that niche, and I enjoy the challenge. Otherwise, I think I need something different to shoot. Tomorrow may just give me that chance. We’re going down to the Ironstone Vineyards, in Murphys to take pictures of their annual Concours d’Elegance, featuring old vehicles and their owners in period costumes. I’m hoping that will perk me up.

On a good note, I’ve taken the time to prioritize watching Matt Kloskowski’s Lightroom course that I purchased a couple of years ago. I do like his teaching style. But, Matt, I need help on re-organizing my folders! I didn’t know what I was doing when I started Lightroom, and now I’m paying for it. The years are all mixed up and it’s difficult to find stuff. Marlene helped me, and we got it into months and then years. However, the new additions are not following any sequence! It’s just frustrating. I’d like to start over, but that would be worse. But I’m glad that I spent the time on the course. Next is Photoshop!

The small amount of time I’ve spent shooting hasn’t yielded any amazing photography, just some interesting pieces that I’m showing you in this post.

In this first set, Jean and I just wandered around the Sierra Foothills for interesting things. We didn’t find too much. Here are some:

  • Unique mail box holder!
  • Metal horse sculptures.
  • They were in someone’s front yard.
  • Another front yard!
  • The Penryn Post Office.

The next pictures were taken at River Bend Park. I was amazed at how glassy the American River was.

  • Beautiful reflection.
  • The water is as smooth as glass.
  • Meet the major stars of our kayak adventure.
  • They are coming to the bridge.
  • They’ve passed me by now.
  • This is where two forks of the river meet, but the river is still calm.
  • Lines!
  • This woman is dragging her kayak home.
  • She noticed me taking her picture.

Tomorrow should be more exciting if it doesn’t rain. Yes, they are predicting rain for the morning. Light rain, but…..

Have a great weekend everyone!

Posted on by Anne Sandler · 4 Comments

Didn’t you want to go there again? Nevada City, California

Challenges, I love them–most of the time. Visiting Nevada City in the Sierra foothills, was like that. If you’ve been following this blog, you have seen images of this quaint town and its neighbor, Grass Valley. We stopped there on our way to Downieville, walked and took photos and then went on to the city of no pizza!

I didn’t mind because it’s challenging to find something different to shoot, or maybe to shoot from a different angle which can give you different results. Exercises like these help improve your compositions and photographic abilities.

So here I am in Nevada City finding inspiration, seeing new opportunities and learning.

I was drawn to this flower pot attached to a window.
This picture belongs with the cover photo. Next time I’ll go inside.
This crystal was in a store. It was totally white; I worked with the color a bit.
Benches are occupied!
This tented crepe shop was opening for business.
Flower pots with character.
Window treatment!
I can’t resist a flower macro.
A very photo-graphical home.
The church on the top of the hill.
A home rental hiding from on-lookers.
A better view.
If I remember correctly, the end building is an entertainment venue.
I also can’t resist something old and rusty!
A cannon located in a small park.