October is my favorite month! I look forward to wearing sweaters and jeans and down vests. I love when the temperatures drop and the leaves on the trees turn color. I especially love when pumpkins start appearing in the stores and pumpkin lattes are available again. And I still love Halloween!
In celebration of my favorite month, here is an October still life, edited two ways in Lightroom.
Here is another image from Huntington Beach a while back. This surfer spent a long time watching the waves and the other surfers- and never made it out there during the time I was watching. Was he judging the waves and waiting for better ones? Was he intimidated by the other surfers and hanging back? What was he thinking?
This is part of an unfinished and so far untitled series I’m putting together with the theme of being separate from the crowd.
Spotted along the trail at the nature center in Homer, Alaska
And here is another version of the same wooden boat!
My favorite boat at Kachemak Bay was this one. In fact, it was the one that caught my eye from the road as we headed into Homer. I would love to know its story!
Ornamental kale from my daughter’s garden- it’s huge and so pretty!
Another dahlia image, this time in black and white with some split toning
When we were in Alaska this summer, we went to the street market in Anchorage, and I was captivated by the Japanese fishing floats for sale. I bought just one- this is a shot of a group. The effects are from Topaz Glow.
Dahlias from the Farmer’s Market!
A little multiple exposure abstract for a change of pace. . .
Taken at a hotel in San Francisco
This one’s from the archives- the same San Francisco trip where my last blog photo was taken- but I still may use it for my assignment if I don’t take anything else appropriate. This was a street musician down at Fisherman’s Wharf- and the crowd of oblivious, unappreciative passersby. Just a basic edit and black and white conversion- would love to crop it a little on the right. . .
I’m not sure this qualifies as street photography, because I was standing in the entrance of a building in San Francisco (with my photography buddy, Carol) shooting through the gorgeous lobby and focusing on the Bay Bridge through the windows at the end. It was Carol’s idea to wait for someone in red to come by to make the shot- and she did! I am happy to say that there was no cropping or cloning- just a little work on exposure and then a black and white conversion. The garbage cans (always a no-no) remain for journalistic integrity!
But where is the girl in the red shirt? You have to look at the color version!
A quiet scene from the Anchorage Market
I was thinking of using this shot for one of our photo group assignments, even though it was shot during the summer. The assignment is “editorial” or “street photography.” There are RULES (I hate rules): minimal editing (no trash can removal etc.)- just a black and white conversion. So the color version is my more edited version (straightened and cropped, no cloning- but added tonal contrast etc. in Nik).
My black and white version is the original crop (yuck), edited in Nik Silver Efex, also contrast and with the Ilford film type (not sure if that much editing is allowed). I think I will be heading out to the streets again to try to get it right in camera- but not to Alaska, unfortunately.
Another peaceful morning walking at the beach. . .
Whenever we visit a beach, I always enjoy watching and photographing shorebirds, which are so comfortable amidst the crowds of people. I managed to get this shot as the crowds momentarily seemed to dissipate by the Huntington Beach Pier.
melinda anderson photography 