We don’t get a full view sunrise from our house but sometimes we get some good colour! When I saw this I quickly set up my tri-pod and took a few shots. My settings were IS0100, f10, 1/10s. It was over almost by the time I got back into the house!

For this week’s shade: purple.

Linking up to Look Whoo’s Snapping at Life as This Mommy Knows It

For Texture Tuesday at Kim Klassen Cafe

I used two layers of “and ThenSome” by Kim Klassen. One on soft light and one on multiply. I also used a gradient map and a layers adjustment.

I took this photo in early spring but being that it is now November, I guess I’m in a grey kind of mood.

Linking up to World Bird Wednesday at The Pine River Review

Don’t you just love that little ‘chickadee-dee-dee’ song? As the weather changes and all the summer birds have gone south, who is left but our faithful little chickadees? I don’t think they make any less or any more noise than they do all summer – it’s just that they are about the only birds at the feeder right now.

Hubby is the bird man around here. He makes sure they have seeds and suet all winter long and I think they love him for it. I know I do.

Linking up to World Bird Wednesday at the Pine River Review

I captured this early one morning when the sun was just rising. The light hit these trees and they seemed to be on fire – it was beautiful. This is SOOC – absolutely no editing.

To all my friends out there – I’ve been snowed under with ‘stuff’ and haven’t been around to see you but I will get there – I appreciate you all so much!

I’m participating in “The Shades of Autumn” at Project Alicia where the colour today is ‘orange’.

What would this dusty miller and these rolls of burlap have in common?

Well, they are the beginnings of some craft projects which I’m currently devising in my head (for an event/holiday which will remain unnamed this morning). I’m just so in love with their inherent beauty I simply had to share.

Linking up to Barn Charm at “Bluff Area Daily“

I had just stepped outside to water some flowers and noticed this little fella standing in the grass, frozen like a statue. I slipped back into the house, grabbed my camera and silently crept back outside and started to take some shots. It wasn’t long before he made a dash for the bushes and I felt quite lucky to have captured this. I wonder if he is related to this “Proud Bird“.

World Bird Wednesday at The Pine River Review

Digital supplies from Katie Pertiet


Linking up to Wordless Wednesday at Project Alicia

Today the theme over at Kim Klassen Cafe is ‘red’. I used Kim Klassen’s textures ‘thursday’ at soft light and ‘love’ at multiply

wordart – Anna Aspnes

Linking up to The Simple Things at ‘simple as that’

If you get a minute and feel like it, could you vote for my photo ‘Pollen Party’? Just go here and have a look.

taken from our deck in 2008

I took this photo a few years ago and right around that time I ran across a tutorial on how to achieve the Orton Effect, so of course everything I did had the Orton Effect! but this was my favourite.

Photo Art Friday at Pixel Dust Photo Art

The theme this week at Kim Klassen’s Texture Tuesday is ‘Love’. I had almost forgotten about this photo – it was just floating around in the depths of my hard drive . . . What made me remember is that I took a walk down to the dock yesterday late in the afternoon and was sitting there thinking about how all the geese were leaving . . . and it came to me! I should use that photo of the geese . . . It took me quite a while to dig it up (for shame, since I am taking a class on organizing my digi stuff). Anyway, the good news is that I did find it, and it is now tagged, re-named, backed up (twice) etc. etc. etc.

I wanted to keep the early spring feel to it so I used textures that made me think ‘icy’.

My recipe:

You should head on over to Kim Klassen Cafe to see all the textured works of art!

World Bird Wednesday at The Pine River Review

A walk this morning brought me to these highbush cranberries that grow quite profusely in the dappled sunlight of our yard. They delight me all year long – white flowers in spring, berries turning to orange in midsummer, then to bright red in the autumn which carries right through the winter.

I thought a few textures from Kim Klassen were in order so I added ‘gratitude scratched’ ‘graduation day’ and ‘antiques’. Magic – works every time!

Because we have snow on the ground and cold temperatures Autumn seems soooo far away! Therefore I’m linking up these photos that I took in September to the ‘Shades of Autumn’ finale.

Here’s a little glimpse of our early morning tour around the lake. It’s the end of September and all the big boats and skiers have gone home (yay) so we get it all to ourselves! at least for a while, anyway. As you can see it was clear, calm and quiet. What you can’t see is that it was 6 degrees celcius . . . no worries – fleece coats and hot coffee took care of all that. I threw in two bananas and half a loaf of homemade zucchini loaf and we were off! What a way to start the day!

. . . good morning . . .

. . . could it be any calmer ?

. . . golden reflections . . .

. . . our ripples . . .

. . . glorious . . .

. . . a little rainbow . . .

. . . am I seeing straight?

. . . actually, I think I’m getting a little dizzy . . .

. . . the beavers have been busy but are sleeping in this morning . . .

. . . how much clearer can we make this? summer is over and we are outta here . . .

. . . time to head in . . .

All of these shots are SOOC, however, I do straighten horizons (and you can thank me for that)!

SOOC at Murrietta 365
Weekend Reflections at Weekend Reflections

Yesterday, I was sitting on our deck luxuriating in the last summer day and gazing out at the lake. I was marvelling at how absolutely beautiful our September has been. So far, no frost, no rain, and my flowers are as gorgeous as they were a month ago – unheard of! This weekend hubby and I plan to take the boat out as much as possible –  for morning coffee, lunch, and sunset. The colours should be at their very best and if the lake stays as glassy as it has been all week – well, you can imagine how that could stir the soul of any photographer! a glorious weekend ahead – there is absolutely “a harmony in autumn, and a lustre in the sky”.

Flowers on Saturday at Blueberry Craft and Hobby Time

Note to self:

My recipe:

Last week someone asked me why I used gradients. The reason is that when a texture is square and the photo is not and if I don’t want to stretch the texture I duplicate it and blend it in the middle with gradients. Easy peasy!

Well, today I’m off to the September Town-Wide Garage Sale! Wish me luck!

Yesterday I went out and about looking to see what I could find. The weather has been very nice here this September and it was just one of those very peaceful, warm days. It was a bit overcast which just made everything seem softer.

I am still loving my canola fields

fluffy

tidy

After cruising around the countryside (and stopping at my favourite country store) I came home and took a look in my garden. It still looks beautiful with lots of flowers still blooming. This autumn sedum is just starting to open, but the frenzied bees weren’t waiting for anything – they were all over the place.

this somewhat strange (rudbeckia?) has been blooming profusely all summer and is showing no signs of stopping

up close and personal

Oh, and the other thing I did was scrounge around some abandoned buildings and you wouldn’t believe what I came home with . . . (a door). I have it hidden under the deck. I didn’t take any photos of me dragging it to the car and hefting it into the back of my vehicle – I was too anxious and it was not easy navigating through the wheat field with Canada Thistle outnumbering the wheat (ouch!). I’m seriously too old to be doing such things – but then I guess you are only as old as you feel and my passion for old weathered things simply cannot be denied.

Our assignment today (if we chose to accept it) was to create something with the word ‘Do’ and/or the new ‘Autumn Burst’ texture. I based my creation on both – the word ‘Do’ and the new texture as well as two other textures. Brushes are from Kim Klassen’s ‘Affirmation’ set.

My recipe:

In autumn I get what some other people get during spring and summer. I can’t seem to sit at the computer very long. My attention is being drawn outside. I don’t want to miss that last hurrah, I guess. I just want to be out watching the leaves turn and taking in the familiar sights and sounds and smells. All of a sudden I feel like going for walks. I collect leaves, bunches of dried grasses or grains, and . . . photos. I’m watching and waiting and hoping to capture the essence of autumn and trying to hold on to it. The very fact that I can’t is what makes it so precious. I’ve been unable to create at the computer the last few days so when I saw this quote by Nathaniel Hawthorne, it really spoke to me.

At a nearby farm there is a huge collection of tractors lined up in a pasture.  I couldn’t get close and I would never trespass (unless I thought I wouldn’t get caught) so I had to really zoom in on this fella. You can’t see it here but it has a 55 on the front so I’m assuming it is a Massey Harris 55.

When Massey Harris released the M-H 55 in 1946 it was the biggest wheel tractor on the market. The tractor delivered nearly 60 horse power.. options included the choice of Gasoline or Diesel however in the nine years of production it was only offered in standard tread form.

I’m joining the fun over at Kim Klassen Cafe. She graciously gave us this fab new texture ‘Cracker Jack’ which I have used on my creation.

Sorry – I had to re-post this because my linky didn’t work over at the Cafe the first time . . . it seems that when I have Kim’s Texture Tuesdays button already in my post when I post it – something goes haywire . . .

My recipe:

Tansy, now this is a wildflower that I absolutely adore. I can’t explain why, I just do. Pair it with a chipped pot that I found at a garage sale this past spring (I just knew some yellow/orange flower was going to look fab in it) and, well, what can I say . . .

Texture: ‘Chamomile’ by Kim Klassen

My recipe:

Be sure to  check out all the works of art at Kim Klassen’s Texture Tuesday for the orange eDition

This week Nancy at ‘A Rural Journal’ challenged us to photograph three images related to ‘mail’. I have picked up mail at this mailbox for ten years but since we get most of our mail via e-post, the volume has dwindled to the point where I even forget to check for it. Today when I went there to get these shots I came home and realized that hadn’t even looked in the box to see if there was anything in it!

I started playing with bokeh last Christmas – did I have fun or what! Christmas lights are the perfect subject for bokeh so what was I going to do to capture it in the summer? Well, at first it was mostly accidental but when I would see it in my photos I would try to recreate the settings.

f5.6, 320s

f6.3, 320s

f5.6, 1/320s

OK, I had to slip this one in again . . .

f6.3, 1/320s

get a load of that giant bokeh!

my favourite summer bokeh shot, f5.6, 1/320s

sun and water droplets

lovely

f5.6, 1/20s

f8, 1/80s

splish splash!

a good rain on the lake

big bokeh

so pretty

a subtle example, f8, 1/50s

I just loooove bokeh so I’m joining in on the fun over at Live Every Moment where Friday’s theme is . . . you guessed it . . . yum bokeh! I can’t wait to see what everyone else has done.

Just one more . . . I’m a scrapbooker at heart so here’s the layout I created about my favourite bokeh shot this year.

Scrapbook supplies:
Katie Pertiet
Anna Aspnes

I found a good tutorial at Kevin and Amanda‘s blog if you are interested. Have a great weekend everyone!