I managed the first of what I hope to be many trips to the coast this year. It was warm and sunny in Brookings, unlike the Rogue Valley. Shot with the Lensbaby Sweet 50.
Category: Landscape
Mt McLaughlin
This week’s adventure took us to the mountains to check out the status of the Lakes. Sadly, in spite of all the rain, the reservoirs still look a bit like mud puddles and the marina at Howard Prairie is still high and dry and the boat ramps all end up on dry ground. But, with the clouds it was difficult to get a decent picture so I decided to make lemonade and let the clouds be the star, with a little help from our local snowcap which still has a little snow to contribute to the water supply.
Unfortunately, when I upgraded Photoshop so that it could recognize the images from my new camera it messed up my plug-in software that helps make the clouds stand out. Two and a half hours later I still don’t have it working right but I did find a work around so I could use the software. (This is why I never update Photoshop unless I absolutely have to). I am also sad that the purple and yellow flowers in the foreground don’t show up too well in this image.
Clearwater Falls
Last week’s photo adventure took me to the North Umpqua River which boasts an impressive array of waterfalls along it’s tributaries. My favorite of the four easily accessible falls I visited was Clearwater Falls. I may have to go back and explore some segments of the trail that follows the river for 69 miles.
Day 98 – Waterfall
Well, I don’t have much to show for yesterday. I ate something that disagreed with me and was down for the count with only 4 images and none of them very good. Had I been up to par I would have switched to a longer lens and zoomed in on some parts of these falls. Our instructor has been cursing the sun as that does not make for the best light to shoot waterfalls.
Today’s quote is from Erich Fromm:
Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.
Day 93 – Tree with Moon and Clouds
As we are nearing the end of the project I decided to go back through the files and see what I might have that is not a flower that was worthy of sharing. I came across this one from a March 20 early morning walk on the greenway with Cody.
Today’s quotes is from one of my favorite books, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig. Might be time to read it again:
To live only for some future goal is shallow. It’s the sides of the mountains which sustain life, not the top.
Day 89 – Misty Mountain
I was enchanted by the mist along the mountains this morning so I grabbed a camera going out the door for Cody’s first walk. Of course, he expects me to stop every two feet while he sniffs every bush but he does not understand the need for him to stand still while I take a photograph. I did mange to get one or two in focus.
Our quote today is from Andrew Wyeth:
One’s art goes as far and as deep as one’s love goes, and there is no reason for painting than that.
Day 83 – Lithia Park
Here’s another one from the trip to the park yesterday. I didn’t take many wide shots and this one I had to crop out some ugly dead branches on the right. I also had to adjust the color because the green light bouncing around in the vegetation was just overwhelming.
Turning back to Julia Cameron today:
We are all artists – some of us are declared, accomplished, and publicly esteemed artists. Others of us are the private kind, making artful homes and artul lives and shying away from the public practice or pursuit of our art.
Day 82 – Ashland Creek
Something I have been meaning to do since I started this project is head down to Lithia Park and practice my flowing stream technique. I finally had a day when I didn’t have 10 other things pressing on me and headed out with the Canon 7D and 70-200mm zoom on the tripod. Two take home messages. 1) There is always a stick. I edited the stick out in photoshop. 2) This might work better on a cloudy day due to the dappled light sifting through the trees. I do like the colors created by the sun on the upper part of the creek though.
Today’s quote is from Pablo Picasso:
We are all born children. The trick is how to remain one.
Day 77- Shore Acres Pond
My office was being taken over by watercolor stuff so I decided I needed to carve out a dedicated space for painting. Since I never dine at the dining room table and it has become a catch all for Cody’s junk I decided it was time to rearrange a bit to create a painting nook instead of an eating nook. Consequently, I am going to skate on the coast photos (at least) one more time. My first trip around shore acres I was carrying only the camera and Velvet 85. I quickly realized I was going to need a wider angle to capture the beauty of the variety of rhododendrons and the reflections in the pond. So, I went back to the car and got the Velvet 56 and 28. The 28 turned out to be too wide for this scene but the 56 was just right. I do wish I had taken a step to the right to get a little more separation between the cranes. Always something.
Once more from Matthew Fox:
There is art everywhere in the universe; there is wisdom everywhere in the universe. One more reason for psyche and cosmos to come together again — to bring art and wisdom alive once more.
Day 29 – Pear Blossom Time
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.