Life: Through the Lens

We make a great Christmas card photo! Oh how time flies, doesn't it?  One minute you're rolling your very straight hair on giant curlers to get a little curl, or you're ironing you're naturally curly hair to make it straighter, and the next you're discussion centers on which color covers the grey and still looks natural.  Some friendships endure because of the collective experiences you have had together, and some endure in spite of those same experiences!  I am fortunate to belong to just such a group - 5 Fabulous Women who have seen the best, and worst, of times and call upon one or another within this group to lend support as needed.  And every few years we gather as a group to celebrate.  Celebrate what, you might ask?  Well, just about anything! This year it was our 60th birthday year and definitely a milestone in all of our lives.   One amongst our number has lost the love of her life, and another has found the love of her life....

For those of you who haven't met Roamin' before, this little elf travels in my camera bag  wherever we go.   He LOVES adventures!     And this adventure turned out to be a wet one.  The best laid plans of mice and men.  We embarked on our annual trip to the beautiful Upper Peninusla for fall color and... ...we happened to choose the only weekend of the month (so far) in which rain ruled each day.  The other outrageous almost-disaster of the weekend was the Washington-induced closure of some of our favorite haunts.  Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  Closed.  Which means the following destinations were unreachable: Miner's Falls, Mosquito Falls, Chapel Falls, Spray Falls, Sable Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Miner's Beach and Falls, White Birch Forest... and more.  You couldn't even drive down some of the roads in the area because they were part of Federal lands. Let's not forget that Se...

Looking for the right  angle and composition. Finally a break in my very busy life, which gives me time to get caught up on my writing and sorting of photographs.  This narrative is Part 2 of a Field Trip adventure I was on a couple of weeks ago with another photo enthusiast. I love how the light plays on this flower, and that though the background is  blurred out, there are still  pops of color for interest. When Viki and I were finished shooting ducks, wildflowers and water, we moved across to a beautiful garden to see what we could find.  The woman who owns the garden was afraid we wouldn't find anything worthwhile to photograph, but gardens are more than the riot of vibrant blooms and color found at its peak.  Doesn't this photo capture a sense of movement?  Love the curves.  Look for the details, patterns, colors and "visitors."  The end of the summer brings a delicious fade, a softening as we change to earth tones an...

Viki works to get a wildflower shot, remembering that it's much better to get down to the level of your subject to get the best angle of view. Now and then it's important to drop everything and go take pictures.  It's also wonderful to share that experience with someone. Decide what our subject is,  then make sure it's obvious to your audience. Yesterday I had the opportunity to work with a talented novice photographer, someone who wanted some pointers.  We had agreed to meet at a local park where we could photograph sunrise on the river, the wildlife in the area, and then a friend's garden.  There was a lot of opportunity to share skills and ideas and get down and dirty as we collected photographs in our own "back yard," so to speak. The sun had technically risen, but had not reached it's beautiful fingers to the park.  As we talked a little about our experiences, and what we each liked to photograph the most, the color on the tree tops...

View of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey from the London Eye. I do wish Kate had given birth while we were in England.  I have been enamored with British heritage since I was a very young girl and how perfect to be there for such a momentous event.  But it was just not to be:). Next to Buckingham Palace - green space for all. We loved London much more than we thought we would.  There were crowds of people, and lots of noise and congestion, but there was also an energy and vitality and pride which shone through.  This is a country proud of its heritage and the British people are generally more than willing to share their pride and knowledge with anyone.  Tower Bridge While waiting for this little prince to be born it's been fun to watch the news and see glimpses of the locations we visited on our adventure last month.  Here are just a few of the highlights.  Though I go back to work in just a week, I still p...