Lens-Artists Challenge #281 Favorites of 2023

The first week of 2024 is over. I look at this year with goals in mind, and wonder how to fit everything in everything. Starting with a positive attitude, I will continue to meet each week’s photo challenges. Capturing new images with my photo friends. When the computer screen gets too tiring for my eyes, I switch to my new endeavor – quilting. Back at the computer, my genealogy quest has surprised me. I connected with relatives living near Tel Aviv, Israel, London, England, and New Hampshire, U.S.A.

New York City

I have passed this Banksy many times, but just now I discovered the background history.

Yolo County

A short drive down I 80 brings my photo friends to Yolo County and plenty of picture-taking opportunities. We visited various farms on Yolo Arts & Ag Days. A real treasure we waited for was our visit to Glashoff Sculpture Ranch. Amazing! Certainly will try and revisit it!

Sacramento Zoo and Local Critters

Family Outings

Ogden Alpaca Farm in Orangevale with my four grandsons

Roseville Big Trucks with my youngest grandson

Out and about with my photo friends

Traveling east to Placerville

Store Front reminds me of my librarian days

Some portraits of shopkeepers in Placerville

Just having fun being out with friends in Old Sacramento, Bushnell Nursery, Crocker Art Museum, Folsom Farmer’s Market, and a nighttime

Me and my Moxie Love

Moxie is waiting to see what the new year holds for us.

Lens-Artists Challenge #248 Mood

So, for this week, Sofia challenges me to think of mood, and how to convey and create an emotional reaction to my shot. That can be accomplished by capturing situations or occasions, photography styles, or people and their feelings. Never forgetting how moods can be perceived in different ways by different people.

Loving

Helping

Teaching

Docent at the Sacramento Railroad Museum

Alone

Encouraging

Tired and Broken

Attitude

Scary

Animal Moods

This iguana was out for a walk with its owner. Looks happy!

I imagined a story by watching these gulls on the beach.

Wolf’s Guenon shows affection, protection, and care.

I’ll end here with the hope that everyone’s mood is positive, polite, and caring.

Lens-Artists Challenge #247 Back Lit Photos

Anne-Christine tells me that “backlighting is a great way to create stunning, eye-catching effects. Here are a handful of specific images you can make with backlighting: Street and portrait silhouettes, bird-in-flight silhouettes, portraits, and macros with beautiful background bokeh, landscape silhouettes, and sunset/sunrise landscapes.”

Glass

I always enjoy looking at glass objects. I found some of these images in stores, in windows, and in displays.

I first saw an example of Chihuly glass at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. The first and third photographs are examples displayed at the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento.

The next two stain glass signs are located on my sister-in-law’s property in Indianapolis, Indianna. They are created from images of the property.

Animals

A spider has cast its web at the Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve

Great White Egret found at UC Davis Arboretum

The Oakland Zoo features some interesting exhibits like fruit bats and primates.

Flora

Pets

Here my grandson is holding his pet Love Bird Peaches.

I can’t believe my grandson will be 26 years old this week.

Canine Companions starts training early.

Fun watching dock diving at Petapalooza years ago

Black puppies are particularly hard to photograph. Lighting is key. Libby was an English Black Labrador Retriever and my very first dog. I waited 40 years for her! It has been 4 years ago this month that we parted.

Lots of images benefit from backlit lighting. I hope that you may be inspired to look at the world from a new perspective. Positive, beautiful and peaceful.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #229 Perfect Patterns

This week Ann-Christine challenges me to find perfect patterns and tell us why I think they are perfect.

Animals

An answer to an often-asked question, “Are zebras black with white stripes or white with black stripes?” The answer is, “Black with white stripes!” Shave one and you will find black skin beneath. When exploring this fun fact I learned that scientists still have not discovered the reason for their stripes. Not an easy question to solve so it seems. No matter, I still find them perfect.

Giraffe spots are unique. And by the way, their tongues are long so that they can forage on trees that others can’t eat.

Plants

This cactus flower will bloom once at night. In the morning it will be done. I learned this from my neighbors, Bob and Bea. I received an urgent call one night and was told to come over quickly. Worried, we rushed over. The cactus was blooming, and they didn’t want us to miss it. I was relieved since these neighbors were elderly. They gave us a cactus we named, Bob and Bea, and it bloomed after many years. That is until a neighborhood squirrel thought this cactus was tasty.