Wordless Wednesday: Clark Lake Park 3.8.12

I love visiting national, state and local parks not only for their scenic beauty, but also for the unexpected places within them that are beautiful in a different way. These shots were taken at Clark Lake Park and were areas I happened upon that caught my attention and pulled me in. I was also able to capture the color for this week at Project 64 in the first and last shots. Clean edits in Lightroom for processing. Do you like to shoot the grand sweeping scenes or the finer details? Or maybe like me both :o)? Happy Wednesday!

Color for this week's Project 64

Settings: ISO 200, 37mm, ss1/250, f/7.1 (full manual, sunlight wb)

Intention: The sun hitting the water amidst the grasses

Settings: ISO 200, 34mm, ss1/500, f/7.1 (full manual, sunlight wb)
Intention: The bright sky and the meandering path

Settings: ISO 200, 36mm, ss1/250, f/7.1 (full manual, sunlight wb)
Intention: The sun and the shadows on the path

“Let your thoughts meander towards a sea of ideas.” - Leo D. Minnigh


     

Project 64: Red Orange and Violet Red

Catching up on Project 64 with last week and this week's colors. I had to go into the archives as I have been working to get back on track with everything I am participating in, but it was a fun walk down memory lane. First last week's color was red orange:

This photo was taken on the Long Beach Peninsula during an amazing sunset! My goal was of course to capture the beautiful colors, but also to capture the sun going down with some definition, which I have not been able to do before. I think I accomplished that here. Other than a slight straightening this photo is SOOC.

Settings: ISO 200, 163mm, ss1/250, f/10 

(full manual, sunlight wb, SOOC with cropping)

And now, this week's color is Violet Red:

This photo was taken at Balloons Over Bend in Bend, Oregon. This was taken before I started my journey into photographing on manual. My goal was to capture all 3 balloons lit up and the beautiful colors. In Lightroom, I did minor work with the tone curve, upped the blacks and the saturation and vibrancy. 

Settings: ISO 1600, 18mm, ss1/15, f/3.5 (full auto)

"It was tremendously satisfying to watch this color parade." - Erno Rubik

  

Project 64: Sky Blue on the Cranberry Coast 2.5.12

A day on the coast driving Highway 101, exploring new beaches and towns, soaking up the natural beauty and capturing it all with my camera..there is no better way to spend the day!

Tokeland Marina

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/640, f/7.1 

(full manual, sunlight wb, clean edit in Lightroom)

Highway 101 on Willapa Bay

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/1000, f/7.1 

(full manual, sunlight wb, clean edit in Lightroom)

"I never get tired of the blue sky." - Vincent van Gogh

      

Project 64: Iced Yellow 1.19.12

The color at Project 64 was yellow. Amidst the ice and snow of recent memory the yellow leaves of this plant stood out beckoning me to take a photo. 

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/125, f/2.8 (full manual, cloudy wb)

"Plant the seed of desire in your mind and it forms a nucleus with power to attract to itself everything needed for its fulfillment." - Robert Collier

     

Project 64: Winter Brown 1.18.12

I am not sure I am recovered from the wild weather of late, but the pictures sure are pretty :o). These are of a grape plant in the snow and in the ice. 

Settings: ISO 400, 50mm, ss1/2000, f/2.8 (full manual)

Settings: ISO 200, 50mm, ss1/500, f/2.8 (full manual)

“Adversity draws men together and produces beauty and harmony in life's relationships, just as the cold of winter produces ice-flowers on the window-panes, which vanish with the warmth.” - Soren Kierkegaard

Linking up with the link ups below! Take a look at the other amazing photos!

       

Project 64: Wild Strawberry Sunset 1.8.12

Lately, I have been working on challenging myself in what I choose to photograph. I have done indoor shooting, custom bokeh, food photography and portraits. At the same time though, I cannot stop shooting what I love - landscapes, nature, macro and especially sunrise and sunsets. I am drawn to them. Today for example, I was doing some cooking and little bit of food photography and taking pictures of my dog niece Cece. I looked outside and saw that the sun was setting. There was no guarantee that it would be a brilliantly colored sunset, but I had to try. We jumped in the car and headed to a ridge a couple miles from my house. And oh my was it worth it! 

I spent about 20 minutes photographing the changing sky and Mount Rainier. I decided to head home and as I was turning around on the dead end street I noticed the sky was a bright pink. It had changed drastically in the space of 5 minutes. As I driving by I decided to stop again and was rewarded with the shot below. My goal was to capture the brilliancy of the colors and the awe it inspired in me. I left the shot SOOC as it was spot on when it came to showing what I saw. I also thought that within the clouds the color for Project 64 this week, Wild Strawberry, was beautifully intermixed with the orange, red, pink and purple. I am so glad I followed my impulse and that I have yet to tire of shooting sunsets. I love that every one is a different experience and a chance to capture something so simply beautiful. I hope you are not tired of seeing sunset photos here, I have a feeling more are in the future :o).

Settings: ISO 400, 50mm, ss1/125, f/9.0 (full manual, daylight wb)

"Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world." - John Milton

Linking up with the link ups below. Find some awe by looking at the photos linked up!

    

Project 64: Silver 12.21.11

I love this new aspect to my Christmas this year - capturing the feel of this time of year in photographs. The sparkle, the lights and the joy are my favorite parts of the season. My goal was to convey that through this photo and to showcase the color of the week at Project 64: silver. I set up a string of lights on the wall covered with batting, set ornaments on a mirrored plate and snapped. In processing, I upped the blacks, fill light, clarity, vibrance and saturation and lowered the contrast to give a bit of softness. Finally, I added a tiny white vignette. I think the effect is a bit of magic, and isn't that what Christmas is about :o)?

Settings: ISO 400, 32mm, ss1/6, f/4.5 (full manual, tungsten wb, tripod)

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer, and more beautiful." - Norman Vincent Peale

Linking up with the link ups below! Take a look at the other amazing photos and enjoy a bit of magic!