Day 46 – Lemon

Lemon2

So, I’m taking a water color class through OLLI and I spent all morning working on my homework for that and Wednesday’s I spend the afternoon at the Genealogy Library working on volunteer projects. So, I decided to just dip into the archives and see what I could find to process in a unique way. This lemon was a little too “real” in it’s natural out of the camera format so I gave it a treatment in Topaz Impressions and like the painterly look.

Today from Julia Cameron:

The act of making art is a direct path to God.

Day 45 – Iris

Iris2

I wore myself out pulling weeds today so it’s a good thing I have another Iris photo to fall back on. I never get tired of doing macro shots of Irises. They are so photogenic.

Today’s quote is again from Julia Cameron:

By listening to our heart’s desires and listening to them closely, we are not only led into making the art we dream of making but also into the dream of that art being realized on a meaningful scale.

Day 44 – Iris Blooming

IrisBlossom

My neighbor’s Irises are a little further along than mine. Mine are just starting to bud but have no color showing yet. I played with this one for quite awhile. I had envisioned it with some French script in the background but ran out of time before I found the look I was going for. Maybe next time.

Today from Julia Cameron:

All human beings are creative. The more we can accept and welcome that fact, the more normal our own creativity can become.

Day 43 – Ranunculus3

Ranunculus3

After a long hard day of genealogy, imagine my dismay when I realized I had to postpone binge watching Downton Abbey to do a post. Fortunately I had some Ranunculus images on had to work with. I added a high pass filter to sharpen up the texture and a texture to fuzz up the edges.

It’s Sunday so it’s time to turn to a different source for my quotes. This week I will be drawing from Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way Every Day so most of the quotes will be from Julia herself:

Humans are complex, creative beings, and when we create something that expresses our own complexity, we arrive at an inner distillate of clarity through our own creative inner process.

Day 42 – Lost Glasses

Glasses

My photography generally trends toward the beautiful and serene but occasionally I come across something too poignant to pass by. Yesterday in my quest for poppies I crossed the street to the Autumn Ridge neighborhood which was devastated by the Almeda fire. In front of one lot which has been cleared but is probably waiting for a permit to begin rebuilding, the poppies and Irises are blooming away. As I worked my way around to try and capture the purple Irises and orange poppies in one shot (I failed) I came across these glasses that someone had gently laid on a rock as a reminder of the depth of personal loss engendered by the fire. I thought a monochrome treatment was appropriate.

Here is another profound thought from Taoist philosopher Chuang-tzu:

If the Way is made clear, it is not the Way.

Day 41 – Poppies

Poppies

Well, the poppies are going to town all around the neighborhood. I went out with the Lensbaby Sweet50 lens, which is designed to have a sweet spot of focus with everything around it in blur. I came back with over 50 images most of which were throwaways due to the difficultly of getting the right spot in focus and the added complication of wind.  This one, however, came pretty close to my vision.

Today’s quote is from photographer Minor White:

The photographer projects himself into everything he sees, identifying himself with everything in order to know it and to feel it better.

 

Day 40 – Another Ranunculus

Rununculus2

Here’s another Ranunculus for you. I have been trying to get my head around the class I’m teaching for the Genealogy Library next month so photography wasn’t at the top of my list for today. So, I was glad I had this image from yesterday to fall back on.

Today’s quote is from photographer Carlos Jurado:

Art allows us to expand the dimensions of our everyday life.

Day 39 – Dogwood

Dogwood

My neighbor’s pink dogwood is just starting to bloom. I always love the flowing lines of dogwood blossoms. The light was a bit harsh this morning so I’m looking forward to trying again when we have some clouds this weekend.

Today’s quote is from photographer Aaron Siskind:

We look at the world and see what we have learned to believe is there. We have been conditioned to expect… But, as photographers, we must learn to relax our beliefs.

Day 38 – Anemone

Anemone

Well, I suppose it had to happen sooner or later. I woke up at 2:00 this morning and realized I had not posted anything yesterday. Not because I never thought of it, I did, about 20 times but it kept getting shoved to the back burner and never got done. Oh, well, I will just post two images today in order to stay on track. This one was shot in a neighbor’s front porch pot the other day. I’m not sure where the yellow came from but I liked the contrast with the purple.

Today’s quote is attributed to Taoist philosopher Chuang-Tzu:

In all things, the Way does not want to be obstructed, for if there is obstruction there is choking; if the choking does not cease, there is disorder; and disorder harms the life of all creatures.

Day 37 – Ranunculus

Ranunculous

One of my favorite photography and texture gurus is a big fan of Ranunculus which is a flower I had never encountered before. So, I ordered some for my once a month flower gift to myself. They arrived today so I took them right up to the studio and started shooting with the Lensbaby Velvet 56. This was my favorite result. I love the variety of colors and the texture of the petals. 

Today’s quote is from Edward Weston, a photographer of bygone days who was famous for his seductive black and white photos of green peppers:

Anything that excites me for any reason, I will photograph; not searching for unusual subject matter, but making the commonplace unusual.