Happy, Snowy New Year!!!

Yes- S N O W Y ! ! !  It started snowing early Wednesday morning.  We awoke to a beautiful blanket of snow, totally transforming the landscape,  and it snowed HARD until early afternoon. We decided to drive downtown- and oh my!- the roads were covered, the snowplows were out, and many motorists were stuck in drifts.  We were out for a little over an hour, and during that time, the snowflakes fell thick and fast, covering our roads, including the road up our hill.  We had no problems, however, and I managed to take lots of photos (mostly through the windshield) with my Lensbaby Edge 80.  Here are a few of my favorites.

20141231-DSC_9606_melinda_anderson 20141231-DSC_9539_melinda_anderson 20141231-DSC_9534_melinda_andersonAs 2014 was drawing to a close, I started thinking about 2015 and what my intentions are for the year.  I used to make resolutions, which often seemed to set me up for failure. I like the idea of choosing just one word to aim for and use as a sort of mantra, so I’m doing that again this year.

This year my word is . . .

20141229-DSC_9121_melinda_andersonJoy within myself.

Joy with my family.

Joy in all my relationships.

Joy in my creative life.

Joy in as many moments each day as I can fit in!

By the way, I am starting year FIVE of my blog.  I had no idea I would be posting to it for this long, but it has become part of my life.  And I will continue it, as long as it brings me JOY!

Thank you for being a big part of my 2014!  I appreciate your kind comments on my photography (on my blog and in REAL life too)!

Best wishes to you for a Happy and JOYFUL 2015!

Melinda7 Comments

Lensbaby Lights

Happy New Year!!!

I took my camera with my Lensbaby Sweet 35 down to the square last night to see what the Christmas lights looked like when shot Lensbaby-style.  Be prepared to get a little dizzy! The exploding Christmas tree look is not my favorite Lensbaby style, but it was fascinating to see what the different tilts did to the lights.

20141230-DSC_9405_melinda_anderson 20141230-DSC_9403_melinda_anderson 20141230-DSC_9399_melinda_andersonAnd check out the shape of some of the bokeh below- whoa!

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My biggest Lensbaby challenge is removing the optics. I kept thinking I was doing it incorrectly- but no. The problem is with hand strength. My husband can remove them easily; I cannot. So I guess his photo assistant role has just grown- good thing he’s retiring! Despite this issue, I am REALLY enjoying the Lensbaby! I have played with all the optics and haven’t picked a favorite yet.  Each has its strengths and challenges. I think my favorite might be the Edge 80, except that the focal length makes it so “tight” on my crop sensor camera. I have taken a zillion photos with each optic and know I have a lot to learn. An instant hit with me though is the macro converters- I love them! Easy to use with creamy bokeh- LOVE!

Best wishes for a Happy 2015!!!

Melinda3 Comments

Winter Dreams

20141225-DSC_7992_melinda_anderson-EditThis is one of my first images using my brand new (drum roll, please!) Lensbaby for my Nikon!!!  Santa was very good to me this year- he brought me the Lensbaby Composer Pro System kit, which includes the Sweet 35, the Sweet 50, and the Edge 80 optics- and a couple macro converters. The Sweet 35 was attached to the Composer Pro, so that’s what I used for all my photos (I actually haven’t learned how to swap optics as yet).  There is quite a learning curve with Lensbaby- more than a few of the photos I shot were completely out of focus- but I knew to expect that.

The above image DOES have a sweet spot of focus in the tree, blurring off into the clouds. I decided to convert it to black and white and texture it in Photoshop.

I am beyond excited to have these new toys to play with on my camera!

BTW, I’m taking a bit of a blog break- more of a long weekend, actually- to play with my Lensbaby and, more importantly, spend time with my family. I’ll be back Tuesday or Wednesday. See you then!

 

 

Melinda5 Comments

Acker Night

Friday night was Acker Night in Prescott,  when most of the downtown businesses- restaurants, bars, shops, banks etc.- host musical acts to benefit music programs in town.  It went on for blocks, and I have never seen such huge crowds downtown.  We only managed to see a few blocks worth of entertainment during our walk around town with our friends, Debbie and Dale, but it made for a fun evening. Below are a few of the acts we enjoyed.

acker2The group below was probably the most fun performance, and this photo is the only one I have of these guys not looking straight into the camera. I discovered that, in a small space, it is just about impossible to be unobtrusive with a camera- even though I was surrounded by iPhoneographers. I only brought my 50mm lens, which was a mistake. I chose it because of its sharpness and low-light capabilities, but found that the focal length on my crop sensor camera made it difficult in tight quarters (next year, I’ll use my 35mm).

20141212-DSC_7682_melinda_anderson-Edit-EditI couldn’t resist taking a shot of Dale in his hat- it really suits him!

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I loved this old truck we saw along the way.

20141212-DSC_7722_melinda_anderson-Edit-EditAnd eventually it was time to say good-bye to the lights of downtown Prescott and head home.

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Editing notes for the curious:

The layout of 4 photos in the beginning were all editing experiments in Lightroom using the Fader plug-in I downloaded a month or so ago and promptly forgot about.  If you have a lot of presets like I do, you might enjoy this handy little plug-in. Basically, when you want to use a preset, you choose it from within the Fader and then have the ability to reduce the opacity of the effect, like you would in Photoshop.  I normally tweak presets myself, but this gives me the ability to dial it up or down while looking at the results- very cool. What I don’t like about it is FINDING the plug-in in the menu in Lightroom- it’s not hidden, just inconvenient.  I wish Lightroom gave you the option to assign keystrokes to an item on the menu- or does it?

The photo of the country band was edited using my trial version of Topaz Impression (which unfortunately expired yesterday)- textures added in Photoshop.  The photos of Dale and the truck with the Santa hat also have added textures. The textures were from Kerstin Frank, Shadowhouse Creations, and Kim Klassen.

 

 

Melinda3 Comments

Thumb Butte at Sunset

I love the view of our Thumb Butte from downtown.  There was a beautiful, fleeting moment of color at sunset the other night while I was downtown photographing the Christmas lights.  I think my favorite image is this (intentionally) out of focus one with traffic coming toward me (yikes!).

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Melinda3 Comments

Bright Lights, Little City

Prescott (AKA Arizona’s Christmas City, as well as Everyone’s Hometown) held its annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the courthouse square last weekend.  This year they lit up a record 109 trees in the square, and it seemed as if everyone in town was there.  It was all dark, except for the lights on the courthouse itself, and then all of a sudden, all the lights went on- amazing! I had to hold my camera way over my head in order to see over the crowd.

20141206-DSC_7509_melinda_andersonWe were downtown again Monday night, so I took the opportunity to take some more photos without the crowds.

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Melinda3 Comments

Me and Google

20141206-IMG_0067_melinda_andersonA year ago last summer, when we were looking for houses to buy, my friend, Debbie, noticed a listing on the internet for the perfect house (which we did end up buying), but the Google map for the neighborhood was confusing- there were two consecutive streets with the same name.  Which street was the one with the house for sale?  From time to time, I noticed that Google glitch on the map- and last week decided to let them know their map was wrong.

I guess it’s not an uncommon thing for Google to make mistakes, because there is actually a form to fill out when you spot an error.  I compared their map with the satellite image and discovered that several little streets off the thru street were labelled incorrectly. The error started when they misidentified a driveway as a street- and then got off for the next four streets ending up with an extra street, which they named the same as ours. I filled out the form, and they responded that they would look into it.

Less than a week later, they wrote me an email saying “You were right!”, and that they had corrected the problem. I checked the map and discovered that they had now correctly named the street before ours with its correct name- but had left that name on the street before that one and continued the incorrect sequence (including labeling the driveway as a street).  Aaack!

So, on Saturday I walked the neighborhood taking photos of houses, streets, and signs to make sure I was accurate- and wrote them again.  I haven’t heard anything back yet.

I took my husband’s new Canon Powershot SX50 with me on the walk. I’m trying to learn it, because its zoom has a fantastic reach (and it shoots RAW!), and I plan to use it for wildlife photography.  I’ve already customized 3 buttons on it with my settings, so I won’t interfere with his AUTO settings.  All of today’s photos were taken with this nifty camera. For me, the most difficult part is controlling the zoom- so I need to practice on some backyard birds.

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Melinda2 Comments

Awkward Airport Moments

20141121-DSC_7104_melinda_andersonAs I’ve mentioned before, I truly love my Going Abstract class from Kim Manley-Ort.  It is definitely getting me out of my photography rut- and WAY out of my comfort zone.  One of last week’s readings was on reflections, including a section on window reflections. When we went to pick our son up at the airport Friday, I brought my camera along, hoping to find some cool reflections.  I was immediately drawn to a window display of large copper portraits of Lady Gaga and Hercules right next to where were waiting for Matt.  In my mind, I was picturing an elderly woman or a child reflected in or by Gaga, kind of an ironic statement. Hah! This never happened.  And, as always when I do “street” photography, I felt incredibly awkward and sneaky and ridiculous!

I learned right away that position and correct light helps. The lighting wasn’t the best for closeup reflections- and focus is challenging.  But it was a learning experience, which I might actually try again.

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And here’s Matt!

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Melinda5 Comments

Neighborhood Walk

Our weather has turned chilly, the leaves have mostly all turned gold and are starting to be blown off the trees, so I decided to take a short walk in the neighborhood to capture leaves on the trees while they were still attached.  I did take a few tree photos, but, inspired by my abstract photography class,  I also found myself attracted to the shapes and patterns around me.

Berries in the sidewalk cracks:

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Leaves in the rocks:

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I’ll post trees tomorrow!

Melinda1 Comment

W i d e

When I uploaded and did  a few quick edits on some of my photos from yesterday’s walk at Willow Lake, I found that I had cropped a few into a wide-ish ratio. I was also thinking a bit outside the box due to the influence of my abstract photography class. I’m not sure what is going on here, but it looks like a theme, so. . .I’m going with it for today.20141111-trail_melinda_andersonFrom top to bottom: fall leaves, weeds, liesegang bands on the boulders, and an ICM shot of trees

Melinda2 Comments

By the Lake

My friend, Verle, and I had a lovely walk at Willow Lake this week.  We spent most of our time walking by the water, watching the birds and water fowl.

20141103-DSC_6398_melinda_andersonI always enjoy the reflections in the water itself.

20141103-DSC_6376_melinda_anderson-Edit 20141103-DSC_6377_melinda_andersonBut, I have to say that the highlight of our day was spotting two bald eagles at the top of this bare tree. As we climbed the boulders, trying to get close enough to get good photos, I noticed to my dismay that I had AGAIN lost my prescription sunglasses.  However, they were quickly spotted by friendly hikers, so all is well!

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Melinda2 Comments

Spoooooooky

There is one street in our town that has Halloween decorations that are over the top! And needless to say, that is where most of the trick or treating takes place. I finally made it over there with my camera this morning- here are some of the spoooookiest sights I saw:

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Have a fun Halloween!Linking up with Friday Finds.

Melinda6 Comments

Trunk

My friend, Debbie, has so much cool stuff at her house! Last week I photographed some of her art work and managed to sneak in a few shots of some of her garage sale treasures. So far. there has been not much time for photography during our Kansas trip, so here are three I took last week of Debbie’s antique trunk..

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