Filed under: Phoenix, Photography | Tags: Arizona State University, Parks, Phoenix, Photography
I found this cool site today, by way of someone on the Photojojo forum, where you can transform your photos (very quickly) so that they appear to be from very old, faded newspaper clippings. I’m sure one could do some interesting projects using this technique, maybe for someone’s birthday or anniversary, or just for your own amusement.
The old saquaro from my last post:
Old Main at ASU:
Memorial Hall at Steele Indian School Park:
An old gazebo at ASU:
A friend’s door at her older home:
A new building made to look old (except for the security bars):
Pretty entertaining, huh?
What~besides the Grand Canyon~screams “Arizona”? The mighty saguaro, of course! And I realized that I’ve never posted a photo of a saguaro here yet. In fact, I didn’t have any photos of saguaros. So yesterday I went in search of the not-so-elusive cactus.
These photos were taken in Papago Park, the “jewel” of the Phoenix Park system, sort of our version of Central Park. It’s the home of The Phoenix Zoo, the Desert Botanical Garden, Hole-in-the-Rock, Hunt’s Tomb, many lagoons and trails, and covers 1,200 acres.
There’s quite a few on this small mountain and that’s just one little area.
And the classic saguaro in silhouette shot…with a little lens flare as a bonus.
Check out this saguaro; I’ve never seen one with so many arms. A five-armed saguaro is considered to be about 200 years old so I don’t know how old this one might be.
Filed under: Arizona, Music, Photography | Tags: Arizona, Music, Photography
If you live in Cave Creek, Arizona, you really do ride your horse over to the local watering hole. A couple of weeks ago, Tony’s blues band (Cat’s Eye) played at the Buffalo Chip Saloon and toward the end of the gig, 2 women rode in on their horses. I was reluctant to post these photos because they basically suck but here they are anyway. When one doesn’t go out shooting for several days, one’s options are limited.
The white horse is Ellie Mae, she’s the biter, and I didn’t catch the name of the bigger horse, who is the kicker.
Who’d have thought Rubbermaid makes horse troughs?
Someone else took some shots of the band inside (while I was engrossed in the horses) and a few of those are on their MySpace page. None of their music is posted there yet, though. His now defunct bluegrass band, The Roof Rats, do have music on their Myspace page.
Bane or blessing? Accidental or intentional? Photographic gaffe or creative expression?
My favorite time of day to shoot is the late afternoon because of the deep shadows and contrasts. In all of these photos, which I’ve posted before, the lens flare was unintentional. I, of course, know that shooting into the sun may cause a flare but that wasn’t my main objective. The first couple I saw I considered a “mistake,” but I posted them anyway and the more I saw them and those of other photobloggers, the more I began to like them. And now I love them! They add a certain drama and mystery.
I really do like the ones that show the aperture shape best but the glaring ones can be pretty dramatic, too.
Check out this totally awesome lens flare on Georgia’s blog! I’d sure like to get a capture like that. And look at her 2 header images; the bottom one is classic lens flare. And Red or Gray’s pine cone flare (I couldn’t link directly to her photo but it’s in this post) is really nice.
On a related note, did you see the 2009 Star Trek movie? Notice the lens flares? Director J.J. Abrams admits lens flares are ridiculous. Among other things, he says of them,”There is something incredibly unpredictable and gorgeous about them.”
I’d like to see your lens flares, too. Do you use a lens hood to prevent them? Have you ever added one with Photoshop or some other program? If you’d like to link some in the comments section, I’d enjoy seeing them.
Filed under: Photography
Primary colors in the ‘hood.
Red. The pomegranates will be ripe in the fall. Unfortunately, the ones in our yard don’t taste all that good. But the birds seem to enjoy them.
Yellow. The yellow house down the street has been for sale for months. It doesn’t quite fit in the neighborhood as the person who renovated it has questionable skills in that area.
Lemon meringue windows.
Blue. The sheets dry fast outside when it’s around 110.
It’s definitely the dog days of summer here. My shooting is not too inspired. Must be time for a change of scenery, a little vaycay, maybe.
A photograph is a secret about a secret.
The more it tells you the less you know.
Diane Arbus
Slight transition…
Slurp!
Do you ever read the funny, poignant, bizarre secrets at Post Secret?
Filed under: Greater Good, Phoenix, Photography | Tags: Global Community, Phoenix, Photography, Religion, Scottsdale
The sun shines not on us but in us.
John Muir
Since I haven’t taken any photos all week, now is the time to break out a few leftovers from The Casa (Franciscan Renewal Center) which I blogged about on July 31 and August 5.
Some of the rooms used for retreat lodging are in the background.
The dinner bell?
This is the main entrance to The Casa–the church and some chapels are just beyond this.
Well, unfortunately, it is overcast here tonight so no Perseid meteor shower sightings for us. Did you see any meteors?
In every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.
John Muir
Hope you have a good week!
Filed under: Blogging, Greater Good, Photography | Tags: Blogging, Global Community, Photoblogging, Photography
The place God calls you to is the place where
your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.
Frederick Buechner
Hmmmm, I don’t think I’ve found that place yet. Sometimes I think I’m on the verge of it and then it doesn’t quite pan out all the way. How about you, are you in that place? How do you get to that place if you don’t have a job that fulfills you in that way? You just have to do things in your spare time that you feel are significant and meaningful? Is it just a small minority of people that are able to achieve this in their lives?
I’m not unhappy–I just wish I had a “calling.” It would be fun if it involved photography and blogging.
Filed under: Greater Good, Phoenix, Photography | Tags: Global Community, Phoenix, Photography, Religion, Scottsdale
Everybody needs beauty as well as bread,
places to play in and pray in,
where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.
John Muir
A couple of posts ago, I wrote about the labyrinth at the Franciscan Renewal Center. Another lovely place on their grounds is the Healing Garden. I’ve gone there several times in the past and always found it comforting.
Here are a few highlights.
I took a lot of photos that day, enough for another post showing some of the beauty of the grounds there, so stay tuned for more “paz y bien” from The Casa.
