Category: Southern Oregon

Day 52 McKee Bridge

McKeeBridge

I don’t know about you but I am getting bored with flowers. I almost went off the rails today and dredged up something from France or Japan to treat artistically. I may yet. This one is from my early April trip to the Applegate Valley. When I was a child we used to take a picnic to McKee Bridge and swim in the river. The bridge was painted white then and had only recently been closed to traffic so my Dad loved to tell stories of driving over it. The light was very harsh this day and it took quite a bit of work in Photoshop and a trip through Topaz Impression to make this somewhat presentable.

Today’s quote is from Mary Oliver:

In every heart there is a coward and a procrastinator.
In every hear there is a god of flowers just waiting
to come out of its cud and lift its wings.

Day 29 – Pear Blossom Time

1_Blossoms

The wind machines were hard at work this morning keeping the frost at bay. I could complain about the noise but it’s a far sight better than the sooty black smoke we experienced this time of year when I was growing up. My brother had a job lighting smudge pots when he was in high school and he would come home covered in black from head to foot. I often wonder why they continue to keep the smudge pots in the fields but I suppose it is easier than storing or disposing of them.

It’s Sunday so that means I get to turn to a new source for my quotes. This week I will be relying on Matthew Fox’s book Creativity. Today’s quote make me feel better about the state of my housekeeping:

We have been told by those who have studied the processes of nature that creativity happens at the border between chaos and order.

Day 15 Reflection

Reflection

Here is another one from yesterday’s stroll in the park. Tulip tree reflecting in the lower duck pond.

So, my new strategy on the quotes is to just read the next section in John O’Donohue’s book on Beauty until I find something I like. So from now on just assume the quote is from John O’Donohue unless otherwise noted.

Often it beckons us from afar but hold us off until our hearts become more refined and receptive; then beauty draws us into her mysterious invisible embrace.

Varied Thrush

VariedThrush

I went to the Ashland Cemetery looking for Stellar’s Jays but they were not in residence. However there were lots of robins so I brought out the big lens to see what I could do with them and found this guy hanging out with them. On consulting my bird books I learned that the Varied Thrush is more likely to be found in the mountains. This one apparently came down to the valley to get warm or find food not covered with snow. For me a great subject and new one to check off my life list.  Here is what I did with him in the digital darkroom:

Week3_Thrushw

Catkins

Catkins

Well, this past week was not very conducive to nature photography, unless you like snow, which I don’t. So, I had to reach back to a walk in Lithia Park the week before when I captured this nice image of some catkins hanging over the creek. I’m hoping to get out and find some more birds tomorrow so wish me luck.

And here is the art piece that goes with this one. In all honesty I’m not sure this was such a good idea but maybe if I get some images to work with a little earlier in the week I won’t feel so pressured to get an art piece done AND post the image of the week.

Week2_Catkinw

Harbor Sunset

HarborSunset

I’ve been working on getting caught up with my Coast project book and this one from the November trip came up as a keeper. I was tired from driving all day and decided not to make the trek to Harris Beach for a classic coastal sunset picture but just strolled around the Harbor area as the sun was setting. Most of my pictures were a little too jumbled with boats to be effective but I like this one and the starburst effect just makes it that much better. Had to open the shadows and add some saturation to get the look I was after.

Day 91 – Iron Mike

IronMike

We’re mighty proud of the Pioneer statue that graces the Ashland Plaza. I have to admit that growing up I was more aware of the fountain than the statue, maybe because he was up there so high…. or maybe because it produced pure clear water you could use to rinse out your mouth after sampling the Lithia water fountain nearby.. or maybe because, as far as I know, he hadn’t been named yet. In any case, I took his picture with a background of autumn leaves a couple of weeks ago using the Sweet50. It lacked a certain something so I cropped it quite a bit as I had to stand back away to get the right perspective with that 50 mm lens. I added a high pass filter to give Mike a little more definition and I bumped up the exposure and vibrance and saturation. But it wasn’t until I put the texture on that I decided it would pass as a work of art. Even though the color is a bit off from reality I like the blur in the bottom of the image which is transformed into a grungy look by the texture.