Project 52 - Week 5/52

We went from fog and frost around here to rain. When I set out to take photographs I was a little disappointed with the weather and the gray overcast sky obscuring the light. After a while though, I realized it was the perfect opportunity to take some macro shots. I love the act of taking macro shots. How it forces you to slow down and look closely. How it changes your perspective and makes things that seemed ordinary extra-ordinary. I still have a long way to go with my macro shots especially when it comes to focusing, but I love the learning. 

Settings: ISO 1600, 100mm, ss1/400, f/3.5

Settings: ISO 1600, 100mm, ss1/800, f/3.5

"The trick to forgetting the big picture is to look at everything close-up." - Chuck Palahniuk

         

Reverse 365: January 2013 Wrap-Up

I cannot believe that I did it, I posted a photo a day for a month! I am doing a Reverse 365 where I edit a photo from last year that I have not edited or posted previously. Each month, I plan to reflect on my progress and showcase the month of photos in a collage. So here goes January 2013...

Number of photos: 31
Locations: Around my house / Tokeland, WA / Long Beach, WA / Siletz Bay, OR / Beverly Beach, OR / Alki, WA / Kirkland, WA / Clark Lake Park, Kent, WA / Seattle Ferry Terminal, Seattle, WA / Seattle - Bremerton Ferry, WA / Bremerton - Seattle Ferry, WA / Mount Vernon, WA / Chuckanut Drive, Mount Vernon, WA
Editing Techniques Focus: Adjustment Brush in Lightroom and Soft Glow in Photoshop
Tutorials Used: Soft Glow in Photoshop and Creating a Collage Template in Lightroom (though I did the text in Photoshop as I could not make it work with the Slideshow mode)

What I Learned: The biggest thing that I learned during this process is that I find many more photos I "like" when I give it a little time. Initially after a shoot I often look at the photos and feel disappointed that I didn't get more "good" ones. I think that is because my goal is to get my shots to be the best they can SOOC (straight out of camera). With this process the goal is to edit photos so they don't necessarily have to be the best SOOC. That coupled with some time away from the images has made this whole thing a truly enjoyable process. I can't wait to see what the next month brings!

*I also learned a lot about the adjustment brush and the soft glow that I will be sharing in a future tips and tricks post.*

I am looking for more Project 365, Reverse Project 365 and Project 52s to follow. If you have one and would be willing to share let me know in the comments or on the Facebook page.

Reverse 365: Soul in Bloom - Day 31/365 1.31.13

For the last photo of this month, I am wrapping up the Chuckanut Drive photos and photos of this lovely pink flower. Be sure to come back later today for a wrap up of my first month of this Reverse 365 Project!

Settings: ISO 200, 250mm, ss1/500, f/5.6

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Chuckanut Drive near Mount Vernon, WA

Day 31/365 - January 31st, 2013

"If you've never been thrilled to the very edges of your soul by a flower in spring bloom, maybe your soul has never been in bloom." - Terri Guillemets

Reverse 365: Little Colorful Beacon - Day 30/365 1.30.13

Apparently these flowers are abundant along Chuckanut Drive as I have quite a few photos of them from different points along the route. 

Settings: ISO 200, 250mm, ss1/100, f/7.1

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Chuckanut Drive near Mount Vernon, WA

Day 30/365 - January 30th, 2013

"Flowers are those little colorful beacons of the sun from which we get sunshine when dark, somber skies blanket our thoughts." - Dodinsky

Reverse 365: Dark and Deep - Day 29/365 1.29.13

Settings: ISO 200, 250mm, ss1/640, f/7.1

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Chuckanut Drive near Mount Vernon, WA

Day 29/365 - January 29th, 2013

"Can ye fathom the ocean, dark and deep, where the mighty waves and the grandeur sweep?" -  Fanny Crosby

Tones on Tuesday #63 1.29.12

Danielle at Unconventional Photography

I love the strength in the black and white tones. This merging of two photos is very impressive! Thank you for sharing with us Danielle.

M. Vane at Compiled Ideas

Gorgeous vibrant colors and a beautiful reminder of summer. Thank you for sharing this amazing beach scene with us!

Jill at This is Life?

Adorable baby, beautiful scene and a tutorial on how to add bokeh to a photo makes for a lovely capture and a great blog post! I love the brightness and softness in this photo. Thank you for linking up Jill!

Danielle, M. Vane and Jill please go HERE to grab your showcase button.

Now it's your turn to share your photo with altered tones. Here are the guidelines for Tones on Tuesday:

• The basic idea is to share one photo where you have altered the tones. Such as a black and white, sepia toned, selective coloring or colored photo. Feel free to share the original and edit, or just the edit.
• Please share a photo that you have taken and edited yourself.
• One photo per photographer please. If you have more than one photo in your post please indicate which one is for Tones on Tuesday. If you link up more than once only the first photo will be considered for showcasing.
• Please link up with your permalink and not your blog address.
• Attach the Tones on Tuesday button or a link back here to your post.
• Leave comments for at least 3 other participants, share the love :o)!
• Have fun!

<center> <a href="http://scatteredhorizons.blogspot.com" target="_self"><img border="0" alt="Scattered Horizons" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH_U2oqLh1UmXZMxfX_WPVaPVWJYh_HuiqvmOJi2frJOmTvsFe8rQPCPuzZfqD9Rm5Lz1E9ijR7i5_09GjPNDZeIcGNOwpU1VlkboGqGPGHxc0q-s28fzb99utdKzU6TvONWyodJtseQ/s1600/tonesontuesday2.jpg"></a> </center>

Disclaimer - By participating you give Scattered Horizons permission to share your photo on this blog. Photographers will be given credit for their work.

This weekend I had report cards to write so I had to go out on a rainy day to photograph. It took quite a while (and some driving) to find something that inspired me. Near a marina at the Port of Tacoma I found this abandoned house and was drawn to the color, texture and unexpected moments inside and out. It is a sort of a departure for me to photograph something that is not "nature-made" but there is something natural to the way that a house falls apart when abandoned. I have been playing with collages in Lightroom in order to make one for my first completed month of my Project Reverse 365 so I decided to make one here too. I feel like it works well. 

Settings: ISO 800, 100mm, ss1/200, f/5.6

Settings: ISO 1600, 100mm, ss1/125, f/5.6

Settings: ISO 1600, 100mm, ss1/640, f/5.0

“Abandonment is a process. There’s nothing static about an abandoned building. Slowly the brickwork crumbles. Windows get broken. Doors get boarded up. Paint cracks and fades. Vandals attack. There comes a critical point – the point of no return – when a decaying building slips inexorably from being empty but useable, to being fit only for demolition.” - Abandoned Britain

Joining the link ups below. Be sure to check out the beautiful shots and join the Tones on Tuesday link up found further down!

    

Reverse 365: Always - Day 28/365 1.28.13

Chuckanut Drive is a scenic byway in Northern Washington. It is one of the most beautiful drives in the state as it hugs the cliffs and ocean as it winds from the Skagit Valley to Bellingham. 

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/1000, f/1.8

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Chuckanut Drive near Mount Vernon, WA

Day 28/365 - January 28th, 2013

“I must have flowers, always, and always.”  ― Claude Monet

Reverse 365: Fluttering in the Breeze - Day 27/365 1.27.13

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/1250, f/3.2

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Daffodil Fields in Mount Vernon, WA

Day 27/365 - January 27th, 2013

“A host of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.” - William Wordsworth

Reverse 365: Daffy-down-dilly - Day 26/365 1.26.13

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/2000, f/2.5

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Daffodil Fields in Mount Vernon, WA

Day 26/365 - January 26th, 2013

“Daffy-down-dilly came up in the cold, Through the brown mould, Although the March breeze blew keen on her face, Although the white snow lay in many a place.”  - Anna B. Warner

Reverse 365: Fields - Day 25/365 1.25.13

I find that there is something naturally beautiful about farms and fields of crops or flowers. Especially when there is a mountain in the background. I feel blessed to live in a place where mountains, fields, forests, beaches, lakes, rivers and the ocean all exist within driving distance. 

Settings: ISO 200, 34mm, ss1/1000, f/7.1

Date: March 24th, 2012

Location: Mount Vernon, WA

Day 25/365 - January 25th, 2013

"I wanted to go out and experience the fields." - Rhona Mitra

Project 52 - Week 4/52

For what seems like forever, actually only the past week or two, fog and freezing temperatures have been a constant where I live. There is something mysterious and beautiful about fog. I don't know if it is the diffused light or the way that it softens everything. This past weekend I drove around near my house and found some beautiful examples of the frost and fog. This is one of my favorites. The frozen pond surrounded by plants and trees and wrapped in fog made for a beautiful yet surreal scene. I could not decide which I liked better, the color or the black and white. What do you think?

Settings: ISO 800, 100mm, ss1/500, f/5.0

 

“The fog was where I wanted to be. Halfway down the path you can’t see this house. You’d never know it was here. Or any of the other places down the avenue. I couldn’t see but a few feet ahead. I didn’t meet a soul. Everything looked and sounded unreal. Nothing was what it is. That’s what I wanted—to be alone with myself in another world where truth is untrue and life can hide from itself. ”  - Eugene O'Neill, Long Day's Journey Into Night

         

Reverse 365: Absolutely Free - Day 24/365 1.24.13

This is the last photo in the series I have been showing from a trip on the ferry to the Kitsap Peninsula. Beaches, ferry rides and sunsets...there is nothing more needed for a perfect day!

Settings: ISO 200, 39mm, ss1/400, f/5.6

Date: March 18th, 2012

Location: Bremerton Ferry to Seattle

Day 24/365 - January 24th, 2013

“There's a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they're absolutely free. Don't miss so many of them.”  ― Jo Walton

Reverse 365: A Grander Spectacle - Day 23/365 1.23.13

Settings: ISO 200, 45mm, ss1/250, f/7.1

Date: March 18th, 2012

Location: On board the ferry from Bremerton to Seattle

Day 23/365 - January 23rd, 2013

“There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.”  ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

Reverse 365: Stormy Perspective - Day 22/365 1.22.13

Settings: ISO 200, 18mm, ss1/125, f/7.1

Date: March 18th, 2012

Location: Leaving the Bremerton Ferry Dock on the way to Seattle

Day 22/365 - January 22nd, 2013

“It’s not a bad lesson to learn in the bleaker months: how you view a storm is a question of perspective; provided you find the right rock to watch it from, it could be the most incredible thing you’ll ever witness.”  ― Dan Stevens

Tones on Tuesday #62 1.23.13

I am loving seeing the new participants from around the world linking up photos! And of course those of you who continue to link up each week, I love seeing your photos too!

Halie at Life's Journey

The black and white beautifully emphasizes the lines and the light in this photo. Lovely! Thank you for sharing Halie.

Martine at Behind the Lens

I love the contrast here and the red tones play that up in such an unexpected way. Plus, this was taken with Hipstamatic, one of my favorite iPhone apps. Thank you for sharing Martine!

Peg at A Kilt and a Camera

Peg says that her daughter got her wish for snow and this photo is making me wish for some right about now. I love the softness of the tones and the perspective. The way you captured the snow falling is lovely as well Peg. Thank you for sharing!

Halie, Martine and Peg please go HERE to grab your showcase button.

Now it's your turn to share your photo with altered tones. Here are the guidelines for Tones on Tuesday:

• The basic idea is to share one photo where you have altered the tones. Such as a black and white, sepia toned, selective coloring or colored photo. Feel free to share the original and edit, or just the edit.
• Please share a photo that you have taken and edited yourself.
• One photo per photographer please. If you have more than one photo in your post please indicate which one is for Tones on Tuesday. If you link up more than once only the first photo will be considered for showcasing.
• Please link up with your permalink and not your blog address.
• Attach the Tones on Tuesday button or a link back here to your post.
• Leave comments for at least 3 other participants, share the love :o)!
• Have fun!

<center> <a href="http://scatteredhorizons.blogspot.com" target="_self"><img border="0" alt="Scattered Horizons" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH_U2oqLh1UmXZMxfX_WPVaPVWJYh_HuiqvmOJi2frJOmTvsFe8rQPCPuzZfqD9Rm5Lz1E9ijR7i5_09GjPNDZeIcGNOwpU1VlkboGqGPGHxc0q-s28fzb99utdKzU6TvONWyodJtseQ/s1600/tonesontuesday2.jpg"></a> </center>

Disclaimer - By participating you give Scattered Horizons permission to share your photo on this blog. Photographers will be given credit for their work.

We have been experiencing freezing temperatures and fog in my neck of the woods. While it can make for some treacherous driving, it also makes for some amazing photos! I was able to capture some plants and trees covered with frost and even found a bit of sun along the way! I am still working on my macro skills. Especially in the cold weather, reducing camera shake can be a challenge. Yet I find the process enjoyable as I get the chance to see things from a different perspective. 

Settings: ISO 800, 100mm, ss1/640, f/5.6

Settings: ISO 800, 100mm, ss1/1250, f/8.0

"That old black magic has me in its spell, That old black magic that you weave so well; Icy fingers up and down my spine, The same old witchcraft when your eyes meet mine." - Johnny Mercer 

Joining the link ups below. Be sure to check out the beautiful shots and join the Tones on Tuesday link up found further down!