Carquinez

We have just returned from Benicia- our home for so many years (26!). We love where we live now, but miss our little town on the Carquinez Strait and all the friends we left behind in the Bay Area! We were there for a dear friend’s son’s wedding and managed to see many of our friends during the few days spent in Benicia. The water was less than a block from the Air BnB, so we took many walks along the shoreline and downtown. I’ve photographed the Carquinez Bridge many times over the years- here’s a muted impressionistic view- created just by moving my camera.

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Lakeside

Ahhh the lazy days of summer, just hanging out by a lake- in this case, at our daughter’s cabin at Crooked Lake in Alaska. The sunlight shimmering on the water behind the fireweed caught my eye, and I tried to capture the dreamy feeling using multiple exposures and a slow shutter.

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Heron Impressions

Out for a walk last week, we took time to stand quietly and watch birdlife- mallards, Canada geese, coots, a hawk, redwing blackbirds, egrets and one heron. Using multiple exposure camera techniques, I created this impressionistic image of the heron waiting patiently for prey in the waters of Willow Lake.

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Iris Impressions

Our photo group “final” was last week, one of the two topics being “Impressionism”. Since our irises are in bloom, I chose to create an impressionist image. I used intentional camera movement layered with a standard shot and some brushwork and a texture to give it a painterly quality. I’m delighted to have a camera, warm weather, and flowers in bloom as an excuse to sit in the backyard for hours at a time.

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Solstice

Solstice

This is the solstice, the still point

of the sun, its cusp and midnight,

the year’s threshold

and unlocking, where the past

lets go of and becomes the future;

the place of caught breath, the door

of a vanished house left ajar.

~ Margaret Atwood

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The Turning

The Turning

We have just returned from an overnight to Flagstaff, where we visited Aspen Corner in sunshine one day and in snow the next. The image above is from our previous visit; newer images will be posted after I have time to process them. Autumn has fully arrived- and Winter is on its way!

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The Swoop

The Swoop

Today’s image is yet another in my series of gulls captured with intentional camera movement. This gull was photographed “mid-swoop” as it flew over Katsitsna Bay in the early evening. The unpredictability of the result is a big part of the fun of doing this type of photography.

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Night Wings

Night Wings

I just finished reading the deep, dark, soulful Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy for our book group. There is beautiful, evocative writing, an intriguing plot, some romance and tragedy- all within the framework of the last migration of arctic terns in a time when climate change has wreaked havoc on the animal kingdom. I didn’t set out to create this image in response to what I read, but the subconscious is an amazing thing. And I highly recommend the book!

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Mirrored Flight

Mirrored Flight

This was taken during our stay at Between Beaches on the MacDonald Spit on Kachemak Bay in Alaska. We had beaches in front of and behind our cabin- Kachemak Bay in front, Kasitsna Bay behind. Watching the gulls fly low over the dark waters of Kasitsna Bay in the mornings and evenings gave me a perfect opportunity to practice intentional camera movement techniques to create impressionistic images.

I was happy to hear at my camera club’s online meeting last night that this image won second place in this month’s Open Subject competition. It’s always nice to hear when other people like your art.

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