Posted in Arizona, art, inspiration, Nature

Sedona Mood

Sedona, Arizona is such a beautiful place.  Its beauty is in stark contrast to that of our Oregon home, which is influenced by the maritime climate of the Pacific Coast.  I’m basking in the heat and sunshine, shoring up my reserves for our long, dark PNW winter.

It’s been a wonderful and relaxing few days, spent hanging out with family and taking in the scenery.  The red rocks are stunning and awe-inspiring.  I’d love to share some of my favorite images with you.

Right before sunset
Interesting flora
After sunset – I love the retro look these colors created
At sunrise
Giant black bees
Oak Creek, Sedona
Bikes

Art abounds in Sedona:

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My favorite! Family is everything!

On the knitting front, I have been working away at the next pumpkin pattern.  I completely redesigned the shaping last night and hope to have a completed pumpkin this week.  Pattern soon!

Enjoy the rest of your week and I’ll catch you again soon!!!

xoxo

Carol

Posted in Nature, Oregon, Pacific Northwest, photography

Astoria Mood

Last week I was fortunate to spend some time in Astoria, Oregon.  It’s a small port town on the Columbia River, near the Pacific Ocean.  It’s a great place for great views, and here are a few that caught my eye:

May you enjoy the sights around you this week!

Carol

Posted in Nature, Oregon, Pacific Northwest, sunset, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Sunrise/Sunset

It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to participate in a weekly photo challenge, so I’m happy to have had a few moments today to find these sunset captures to share with you.

In February, I took a few days of quiet retreat in Astoria, Oregon.  Astoria is a fishing port sitting on the mouth of the Columbia River near the Pacific Ocean.  It has a great downtown for shopping as well as a boardwalk right on the river.  These pictures were taken at the end of a peaceful and reflective evening walk – with peace and reflection being the essence of “sunset” to me.

See other entries in this week’s photo challenge here: Weekly Photo Challenge: Rise/Set.

 

Posted in Hawaii, Maui, Nature, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Corner

Cliff Robert Barb at Kaelia Pond (1024x653)

My entry for this week’s photo challenge – taken at Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge. Throughout the entire hike, I dawdled with my camera, and the others were always turning corners before me. It’s a beautiful, breathtaking place, so I was really quite okay with taking it in at my own pace.

Merriam-Webster defines “corner” as, among other things, “the point where converging lines, edges, or sides meet.” I also like looking at it from the opposite direction: corners are where lines, objects, and people go their separate ways. A corner is literally a turning point, full of tension and potential.  ~Ben Huberman, The Daily Post.

See more of this week’s entries here: Weekly Photo Challenge: Corner.

Posted in Nature, Oregon, photography, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Unusual

For this week’s Weekly Photo Challenge, please post a photo that is unusual in some way for you, whether it be through technique, by subject, or in some other unique way. This theme is wide open to interpretation because only you know what is unusual to you.

Fungus. Fungus is definitely an unusual topic for me. But this fungus was so unusual and so compositionally interesting to me that I had to take a series of pictures.

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Thanks for stopping by this week to check out what struck me as unusual.  The other entries for this week’s photo challenge can be found here.

Posted in beach, Hawaii, Maui, Nature, photography, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Collage II

Collage:  An assortment, a collection, a hodgepodge. This week, share one — whether found in the wild or assembled yourself.   The Daily Post ~Michelle Weber

Yesterday I came across this collection of beachy material and snapped a few shots. No changes were made to the composition; this is exactly as the objects appeared in the wild. In the sense that hodgepodge is collage, I believe this fits this week’s challenge.

Hodgepodge 2 (1024x683)

Weekly Photo Challenge: Collage

Posted in Hawaii, Maui, Nature, Summer, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Collage

Here’s my contribution to this week’s Weekly Photo Challenge: Collage. For this challenge, I learned how to create a photo gallery, above. If you click on one photo,  you will be able to view each one at full size.

Posted in Lighthouses, Nature, Oregon, Oregon Coast, The Coast, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Focus

Playing around with depth of focus is always a lot of fun. While I would love to take a fabulous landscape photo with everything clear and in sharp focus, more often I enjoy switching to a more shallow depth of focus, with the foreground being the subject and the expected subject being blurred.

Newport, Sweet peas by the Jetty, 1/320 sec; f/9.0; 55 mm

Yaquina Bay Bridge, from South Jetty, 1/320 sec; f/9.0; 55 mm

Bridge Alcove, 1/400 sec; f/10.0; 55 mm

And a couple with greater depth of field:

Newport, North Side of Jetty, 1/200 sec; f/11.0; 55 mm

Yaquina Head Lighthouse, 1/640 sec; f/6.3, 200 mm

Check out the other responses to this week’s photo challenge here: Weekly Photo Challenge: Out of Focus.

Posted in Nature, Oregon, Oregon Coast, Pacific Northwest, Uncategorized, Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Evanescent II

This challenge really struck a chord with me. The evanescence – fleeting existence – of the tableaus I find on the beach is part of their charm and attraction for me. Here are a few more Oregon Coast still lifes:

See the rest at Weekly Photo Challenge: Evanescent.