Tuesday, November 29, 2011

cuniculosus

I am ashamed to admit it, but I have barely looked through my May Day Parade photos.  It was a great light day... all gray and bright.  Many people were wearing black so many of the photos came out all contrasty and sorta high key.  The problem with that day is I HAVE SO MANY PHOTOS!  More to follow...

Friday, November 11, 2011

One last fall picture.

Moose Mountain
This is on the Ice Age Trail right behind our cabin.  I love it when it's just yellow above, yellow below and dark trunks connecting them. You have to find just the right time of year, which I missed this year by, I think, about 10 days.  It's too bad that it takes three hours to get there.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

apology for posting a premature winter photo


if you didn't know what this stuff was...

what would you think
...what would you think. 

It was snowing so hard that the snow flakes covered your eyelashes and obliterated your vision. 

It is beautiful, but I don't think I am ready for this yet.

Monday, November 7, 2011

3.80/lb

fresh fish!
Fish and mushrooms and other things that I can't even identify!  These are all to be found in New York's Chinatown.  I would like to go back and take closer shots of this seafood. What wonderful texture!

Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween!

snort snort,  meow!
Here is hoping that you get lots of treats and maybe a few tricks too.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

figures in the light of the curtain

Your Eyes Here
 I cannot resist color. I have tried many times to work in black and white but I find that my memories of the scene don't allow me to forget the color; too much of the feeling is lost when the color is removed.  This photo, taken at the MOMA, is obviously eye catching.  So much red is rarely seen in one place.  The photo is monochromatic, so one would think that the photo convert well to black and white.













                                                                                                            O.k., but not the same.

In the Spotlight














Monday, September 26, 2011

Cedars and Waxwings

Cedar trees are my favorite type of trees.  You always find them surviving in the most amazing and harsh places.  The harsh climates often warp their shapes and causes them to curve in the most extreme manners.  You can also find them growing absolutely straight.  A single tree can survive when large portions of it have been damaged and they are some of the oldest trees on earth.  Also, they bring my favorite bird - Cedar Waxwings.  I love the waxwing's quiet, high pitched "weeee" call and they look like they were designed in the 20s.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Twin Cities Pride Parade - part 2

Pure Pride.
"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" expired last night at midnight.  It was definitely the right thing for the army to do.  I am happy for all gay Americans. It brings us one very momentous step closer to equal rights for everyone.

I don't know if this guy is gay, but he sure has guts!  He walked the length of the whole Pride Parade in his knickers grinding with anyone who came up and posed for pictures with anyone who was too chicken.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Twin Cities Pride Parade 2011 - part 1

Lots of people were riding on the tops of vehicles.
A really fun day taking pictures of people who are proud of who they are and the people who support them.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

BWCA forest fire


BWCA - before fire
I heard on the news today that the burn area of the fire in the BWCA is now about 80000 acres.  It got really out of control really fast from the high winds that were up there.  I also found out that the fire started on the second to last day that we were there, just a mile or two from where we were camping. The news moved me to post another picture of the area before it was on fire.  This is the Kawishiwi River, which connects to Lake One.  I hope that the showers that are possible tonight lend a little help to putting the fire out.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

a little red ball


Every year or two I take a trip to NYC.  I never tire of this city!  So much to do and see and photograph.  We usually just wander around the city until something catches our interest and we never get bored.  I would have never know known there was bike rugby if I hadn't happened upon this friendly game.   If I remember right, this is Sara Roosevelt Park and I really enjoyed walking along the whole length of it.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Thinking about the end of summer.

twisted arms
The lawns have all turned brown and the thermometer is at 90 degrees, but tomorrow it is going to be 70 and the day after that... 58.  Fall is here and I am thinking about all the things that I wanted to do over the summer.  There is never enough camping getting done; the deck needs staining; and a new path needs to be put in in the back yard...  If I itemize it though, I've done quite a bit.  This photo was taken in Ponce, PR on an early summer trip with a good friend of mine. The weather was much like it is today.  The park has a lovely gazebo, behind the tree in the photo, that has a marble inlaid floor for dancing on.  Walking around this area, you can just imagine an evening dance or a Sunday gathering.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Lake One

BWCA - near Lake One
Just yesterday I heard about the forest fires on Lake One and Lake Two in the BWCA.  We were there just a few short weeks ago with some friends.  That's Pete and Christa about to enter Lake One.  The areas in the Boundary Waters that have burn don't compare to the ones that haven't been touched in a while.  Now, I know that that is just a normal part of a forests cycle, but I hope the burning wasn't too extensive.  Especially since the firefighters have to canoe in and portage - just like everyone else.

Saturday, September 10, 2011

it started...

"Cabin Trip"
Back in 2004, my husband (boyfriend at the time) bought me my first digital camera from a wonderful windfall.  I had been taking pictures for many years, but not that many because film can be expensive for someone with no money.  Obviously, I started taking a whole lot more pictures and got nice encouragement from my friends and family.

Two years later, we took a trip to my husband's family cabin about four hours away with some good friends from another city.  The cabin is a vertical log cabin, located in north central Wisconsin, with no insulation besides the chinking between the logs.  In the area between the kitchen and the dining area, you can lift up the rug and look through to the ground below.  This was in February and it was -20 degrees F during the day and we had arrived around 3pm. The sun was just starting to set.  The cabin is heated with a wood stove and a wood burning cook stove if needed when it gets cold.  We made dinner and waited with just about all of our winter clothing on for it to get a little warmer. The light in the cabin at sunset, and the cabin itself, is just about my favorite thing in the world. We tried for hours, but couldn't get the mercury to go above 40 degrees.  We eventually bailed for the smaller, and easier to heat, bunk house.  I took this picture just before we packed everything up.  I wasn't taking pictures.  I was just sitting at the dining room table, but when I saw the fading sunlight on Eric's arm, I quickly grabbed my camera and snapped this picture.

This picture was a turning point in my photography.  I entered it into a few shows and won a little prize money from it.  I started taking even more photos and entering those into shows.  But, lately, I have been in a slump.  So, this is going to be your standard I'll-start-a-blog-and-post-a-picture-every-day-to-get-my-mojo-back blog.  I don't know if it will work.  I don't know if it works for other people.  But, it sounded fun to a amateur photographer sitting around the house by herself one Saturday.