Back in the Garden

I hope you had a great Memorial Day's Weekend.  Hopefully you had a relaxing weekend with family and friends, and also got a chance to thank a veteran.

Can you find the toad?  I promise that it's in the picture, right in front of you.

This Memorial Day Weekend, I was able to get back into my garden.  I weeded and gave some loving care to my flowers.  I wasn't able to take pictures because once I started working in the garden, my hands became too dirty.  However, right before I started, I was able to capture a picture of a toad hiding among the tall grass (if you're able to pick him out).  I loved working in the garden and it brought me so much satisfaction.  It was the first time in a long time that I felt like myself again.  I can't wait for the rest of my flowers to bloom.

Did you have a great Memorial Day' Weekend?

Friday's Quote: Bonnie Gallup

Loving one's self is hard.  It was especially hard during my college years.  I really don't think I realized how much I was not in love with myself until several years ago.

Don't misunderstand me.  I liked myself.  I also loved myself too.  Yet, to fall madly in love with myself . . . well, that didn't occur until I was well in my mid-late 30s, and even now, I'm still working on it.

In retrospect, I really would tell my younger self, especially when I was in college, to really really love myself.  I think my lack of self love kept me bound to my boyfriend at the time.  Granted, we both really helped one another grow and we both found support from one another during a time when we both felt that we didn't have too many people to turn to.  At the same time, I can now see that we kept repeating the same mistakes over and over, until I finally left.

Grape

[Taken June 6, 2015.]

Tuesday's Tune: Savior's Shadow

Blake Shelton's newest album came out this past Friday, on the 20th, and this song appears on the album.  Even though he is a well known country singer (and this song is currently garnering him lots of attention), this song was released about month ago and is considered a "gospel" song.  I wanted to share "Savior's Shadow" because I found the creation of this song to be so moving (I'm not sharing this song to share a religious view point).

As someone who considers herself to be a creative person, I love hearing about the creative process from other artists (e.g. song writers, painters, photographers, etc.,). Apparently, this song came to Blake Shelton in a dream when he was going through his divorce from his then wife, Miranda Lambert.  He originally thought that the lyrics meant God was crying for him because he was going through such a horrible time in his life.  Later, he felt that the song's meaning changed to mean that God was with him and on his journey with him as he was going through his divorce.  (Click on the above link to read more about this song's creation.)

Musically, it's a simple song, yet it's also comforting.  It's a good song and I love the backstory of how it came to be.  Let me know what you think of this song.

Three Perspectives

No Garden, Yet

With the birth of my Little One, I haven't had much time to plan or even think about gardening.  Several weeks ago, I picked up some starter plants at a big box store with the hope of planting them that week, but sadly they're still in their containers.  I also have sprouting potato tubers ready to be planted, but I haven't even prepared the soil.  Considering how early spring came this year, I'm soooo behind.

I told myself that I would start my garden this week, but I doubt it's going to happen.  With my Little One, it takes so much planning to just get something done outside of the home, even if it's just in  my backyard.  Maybe I shouldn't give up just yet.  I would like to have a garden this year, even if it's a small one.

Are you gardening this year?

Waterlogue

I'm not much of an app person and I'm really set in my ways with regards to technology.  However, I  do love design and artsy apps.  So, when I learned about Waterlogue, I was quite intrigued how it turns any picture into a watercolor picture.   After checking out the website and sampling the simple product, I downloaded the Waterlogue app.  Other than the fact that I love giving my photos the watercolor effect, what I most appreciate about this app is that it turns any blah-looking picture into something interesting.

I actually like the above picture of the lady slipper flower.  The app turned the picture into something more vibrant and created a different focus in the picture.  I think it looks way artsy.

Now, I really don't think the picture I took of the field across my home is all that great because it's dreary and boring looking.  Yet. the app turned the picture into something much more interesting.  The app also works well with pictures of people too.  Of course, not all pictures turn out great in the app, but it's definitely worth testing and finding out.  Overall, I really like this app a lot.

If you download the Waterlogue app, let me know your thoughts.

Nephews Fishing

[Taken May 2015.]

Adding Blur to Moving Water

I had been practicing how to blur moving water in my photography attempts.  My serious effort started in 2014.  I continued to hone my skill of taking silky/blurry moving water by chasing waterfalls and through my trips.

When I visited my friend in Oregon in Fall 2014, I forced my friends to go to Silver Falls State Park, which boasts ten waterfalls.  I got to see and photograph most of those waterfalls, where I continued to hone my skills.  Apparently, waterfalls are a dime a dozen in Oregon (seriously, the state has A LOT of waterfalls).

Lower South Falls, Silver Falls State Park, Oregon.  Taken August 30, 2014

Of course, I wanted to use the same concepts of photographing waterfalls on other types of moving water.  So, when I was in Puerto Rico, I attempted to photograph the ocean and tried to blur the waves.  (MN lacks in waterfalls and oceans, so why not.)

San Juan , Puerto Rico.  Taken July 2015.

San Juan, Puerto Rico.  Taken July 2015,

As you can see in the two pictures above, my attempts are okay.  The ocean looks smooth and glassy, although in reality, the waves were coming fast and pounding hard against the rocks.

Similar to taking waterfalls, I recommend having a tripod and a neutral density filter.  The best time to attempt are early in the morning or in the evening (even on a cloudy day) because you'll be shooting with a slower shutter speed and need to minimize as much light as possible because the longer shutter speed exposes the photograph for a longer time period.  I also recommend focusing on an object that is not the water. (In the pictures above, I kept the camera focused on the rocks.)  Lastly, try to envision the scene and have fun with it.  (In the pictures above, I was photographing the ocean from other rocks, so I was limited in where I could stand and place my tripod.)  Overall, it was a fun experiment and I'd love to do it again if I'm near a large body of water.  This would also be used to photograph clouds and the sky.

If you'd like to read some more about photographing moving water (or look at pictures for inspiration), check out these websites;

http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/stories/how-to-photograph-water-to-get-that-soft-misty-effect

https://www.ephotozine.com/article/10-tips-on-adding-blur-to-water-for-beginners-13209

https://photofocus.com/2014/08/19/getting-started-with-long-exposure-photography-and-nd-filters/

What have you been photographing lately?

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope that you've had a chance to wish all the mothers in your life a wonderful Mother's Day.  This year is my first Mother's Day and I don't yet really know how to feel about this holiday.  I think it's too soon to tell.  Maybe I'll have more of an opinion next year, when I would have a year's worth of mothering experience.

Hope all is well in your world.

Early Mother's Day Gift

After waking up from a long nap, I woke up to find flowers from my sister.  She sent it as an early Mother's Day gift, although, it might be her way of thanking me for buying her a rice maker. ;P  I often don't like it when people buy me flowers because I often think that they could use the money to buy other things.  Yet, I think I might be changing my mind.  Regardless of my stance on purchasing flowers, it was such a wonderful thing to wake up to and I really thank her for thinking of me.

Did you get an early gift for Mother's Day?  Or, are you going to give flowers to someone for Mother's Day?

Blooms

With the lackluster winter we've had, spring has come early to Minnesota.  Even though I see the same type of blossoms each spring, I never tire seeing the blooming lilacs, crab apple blossoms, and whatever is blooming in people's yards.

What is blooming in your neck of the woods?