Day 35 - Bug's Eye View

I like being creative but I also enjoy the randomness of art. This was a random shot and I really didn't know how it would turn out.

Photo settings are: f/11, 1/25 sec., ISO 200

Day 34 - Flower

These little flowers are growing in my front flower bed. They are about 1 inch across. I took this one and liked the composition but I wanted to play with it a little so I used the "Watercolor" filter. Now it looks like a painting.

Photos settings are: f/3.5, 1/60 sec., ISO 100

Day 33 - Guacamole

I LOVE avocados! They are so yummy, especially with a little salt and lemon juice. Tonight we had Mexican food so I made guacamole with fresh jalapeños, tomatoes and onions. Mmmmmm!

Photo settings are: f/3.5, 1/80 sec., ISO 100, flash fired.

Day 32 - Silhouette

There are so many things blooming and so much color everywhere. I thought I'd do something a little different today. This is a group of maple tree seeds silhouetted against the sky. I bumped up the contrast and turned this into a black and white image.

Photos settings are: f/5.6, 1/200 sec., ISO 100

Day 31 - Pine Pollen

The source of the yellow pollen that is covering everything. We did get a little bit of rain but not quite enough to wash it all away. Maybe we will get more rain in the next few days.

Photo settings are: f/4, 1/100 sec., ISO 100

Day 30 - Inch Worm

I was out in the yard today taking a few photos and when I was putting up my camera I saw this little guy on my shirt. So, I got my camera back out and put him on a railing outside. I thought he might move too much for me to get a shot but he got in the position and just stayed there, a little Inch Worm model! I just left him there when I was finished. I went to check on him about an hour later and he had moved about 3 inches but was being stalked by a spider. I thought about grabbing my camera again but I didn't want to chance it. I did't want the spider to pounce on him before I got back so I just pushed the spider away (he did not like that) and picked up the inch worm and put him back in the tree.

Photo settings are: f/3.5, 1/200 sec., ISO 100

Day 29 - Smoke Day 2

Last night Firefighters got control of the wildfire and opened the roads up at midnight. We took a drive to the school to check things out. It is a good thing they closed school for today too because the smoke was still heavy in the air. This photo is right across the highway from the school. There were many spots still smoking like this and there was even another flare up a couple of miles south of this point. It flared up shortly after we left the area but officials quickly got it back under control. The fire crossed the highway so you could see the burned trees and grass on both sides of the road and even some spots in the highway median. The weather cooperated today, cool, not so windy and a little more humid. No reports of injuries or homes destroyed. This was a close call.

Day 28 - Smoke

We've got a wildfire near us (within 10 miles). There are firefighters from all over the place here to help fight this fire. Thankfully the wind is blowing the smoke away from us. We did get smoke blown in our direction last night and it was not fun. I am hoping and praying they get this fire out soon. It is already threatening some homes as well as my daughter's school. This is view from our street.

Day 27 - Pollen

Everyone in Southeastern NC knows when spring is here. If you don't notice anything else, you will notice all of the yellow Pine pollen that just gets all over the place!  This is a photo of my husband's Harley Davidson Heritage Softail. It's a black motorcycle. All of those specks you see are Pine pollen. It is just every where!

Photo settings are: f/3.5, 1/80 sec., ISO 100 (automatic setting)

Day 26 - Fence

There are many time when I take a photo and just don't quite like it. I took a bunch of flower photos that I thought would turn out well but I just wasn't happy with them. I took a couple of photos of the fence and after looking them all over, this was just my favorite photo of the day.

Photo settings are: f/4.5., 1/400, ISO 200

Day 25 - Dried Tiny Flower

Do you remember those beautiful tiny flowers from my Anniversary bouquet? See Day 4
Well, I put them aside to dry. They are just as beautiful now as they were 20 days ago.

Photo settings are: f/4.5, 1/5 sec., ISO 400, macro lens

Day 24 - Emerging Leaf

I have finally caught up on my photos!

Our Tulip Poplar tree is finally blooming. I really like this tree. It is so tall and has very large leaves. And early in the season it will have orange blossoms. They are usually pretty high up in the tree but I will be trying my best to get a photo of those once they bloom.

Photo settings are: f/6.3, 1/250 sec., ISO 100.

Day 23 - Super Moon

Day 23 - March 19, 2011

Today, the moon was closer to the Earth than it has been in 18 years, a mere 221,565 miles away. I should have gone out to the beach and took the photo as it was rising but I didn't think about it until it was too late. So, I got it as it was rising over the trees across the street. I took many photos as it was hard to judge how much illumination would show up in the photo. Some day I will take a photo of the moon that shows all of the detail of the craters.

Photo settings are: f/8, 1 sec., ISO 200

Day 22 - Yellow Flower

Day 22 - March 18, 2011

Another flower photo. These are blooming in our back yard. They are growing on a vine that has held on to our deck all winter. Very pretty flowers.

Photo settings are: f/5.6, 1/100 sec., ISO 200, macro lens

Day 21 - St. Patrick's Day

Day 21 - March 17, 2011

Jason and I were invited out to the Officer's Club for a St. Patrick's Day Party. His friend is a Karaoke DJ and was set up for the party. Before the singers got brave enough to sing, he was playing some great Irish music. The bar manager handed out stickers. I thought that would be a good photo of the day. The sticker flashes a green light but of course it didn't show up here.

Photo settings are: f/5.6, 1/80 sec., ISO 100

Day 20 - Weed

Day 20 - March 16, 2011

Walking around the yard, I noticed there are so many things in bloom, including the dandelions. I had the macro lens on the camera so I just leaned down and took this shot real quick. I really like it.

Photo settings are: f/4, 1/100 sec., ISO 100

Day 19 - M&M Cup

Day 19 - March 15, 2011

While we were shopping at the HUGE candy shop at Broadway at the Beach, I bought myself an M&M Cup. This thing is great! And I love M&M stuff. I hope this will be my excuse to drink more water.

Photo settings are: f/5.6, 1/15 sec., ISO 200.

Day 18 - Mom

Day 18, March 14, 2011

After spending the night at Broadway at the Beach, we spent a short time in the morning doing a little more shopping. They have a fantastic Candy Store. We didn't spend a whole lot of time shopping, a cold front moved in and we were not really dressed for the cold wind. Before we left, I took a few shots of my Mom. The wind wasn't really cooperating but we still got a nice shot. Love ya Mom!

Settings for this photo: f/7.1, 1/125 sec., ISO 100

Day 17 - Leafy Seadragon

Day 17, March 13, 2011

Today we traveled to Myrtle Beach and spent the evening at Broadway at the Beach. We visited the Aquarium. It is not exactly easy taking photos in an aquarium. Lots of low light and fast moving fish. This one did turn out ok. It is a Leafy Seadragon.

Settings for this photo are: f/5.6, 1/80 sec., ISO 100, flash used (I cropped out the reflection). Also, I rotated the photo by 90 degrees, he was floating on his side.

Day 16 - Kindle

Day 16, March 12, 2011

I am trying to catch up from my vacation. :)

My Mom flew in today for a visit. It was so nice to see her. My brother and I got her a Kindle for her birthday. She was totally surprised and was very happy to get it. I know she will get good use out of it.

Settings for this photo are: f/3.5, 1/80 sec., ISO 100, Black and White

Been on vacation

Yes, Yes, I know I've missed a few days... My Mom came for a visit and I have not had a chance to upload my photos yet. I will catch up tomorrow. :) So, for your viewing pleasure, I'll show off this photo.

I took this photo in Wilmington, NC in October 2010.

Photo settings are: f/11, 1/80 sec., ISO 1600.

Day 15 - Spikes

Took a few more macro shots today. My photography group is having a photo contest with the theme of "macro" and they said the more abstract the better. So, I was trying to be abstract. I didn't really like this shot when I saw it on my camera screen but when I brought it up on the computer, I liked it a lot. I may use this as one of my entries in the contest.

Settings for this photo are: f/6.3, 1/20 sec., ISO 200.

Day 14 - Stamped

Wow! I've been working on this project to 2 weeks. I am having a blast!  Today was a long day (12.5 hours at work) and when I got home I wasn't sure what I was going to photograph. My local photography group is having a contest. The theme is "macro" so I thought I'd get out my macro lens and take photos of things around the house. I got a couple that I like but I am going to retake them with better lighting. So, this shot is of a stamped piece of my handmade paper. The lens is as close to the paper as I can get. I thought it looked pretty neat at this range.

Settings for this photo are: f/8, 1/6 sec., ISO 200

Day 13 - Five String

I tried to take a good photo of the moon tonight. It was very interesting but I just could not get the shot I wanted so I invaded my daughter's room and took some photos of her five string bass. I've been wanting to take a photo like this for a while. Even though I like this one, I am sure I will be trying my hand at this again. There are a lot of options, even for such a singular subject.

Settings for this photo are: f/11, .62 sec., ISO 200

I converted this to black and white.

Day 12 - Hershey

This is our dog, Hershey. He is so spoiled but he is cute anyway. My Hubby brought him home one day when he was just a puppy (even though I said no) and of course this little guy has won my heart. He turned 4 this year.  He and I have been through a lot together, most notably, an attack by another (much bigger) dog almost 2 years ago. I was afraid we were going to lose him but he survived and I can't image our home without him.  He is part Chihuahua. I just love his long hair and curly tail.

Settings for this photo are: f/8, 1/40 sec., ISO 400.

Day 11 - M&Ms

MMMMM! My favorite snack!  This is an M&M dispenser that my Hubby gave to me. It's kinda like a gum ball machine. He and our daughter, Kristina, gave me a LARGE bag of M&Ms a few weeks ago. They know my weakness.

Settings for this photo are: f/8, 1/6 sec., ISO 800.

I thought we could use some color today.

Day 10 - Tree Pods

Well, it is a dreary day out today. The wind blew like crazy and then the rain came. It was nice to have the rain, but it sure does make for a lazy day. I walked around the yard today looking for my photo of the day. The dark skies and wind made it difficult to get a good shot. This is the best one of the bunch. Not everything is in bloom yet.

Settings for this photo are: f/5.6, 1/50 sec., ISO 200

I did lighten it up a little bit.

Day 9 - Aged Flower Pot

The elements have really taken their toll on this flower pot. We've had it for a long time and between all the times we've moved and the sun, rain, cold, etc. that it has been through, it is looking a little beat up. I gave this photo a sepia tone. Also, this is my first try at an HDR image. HDR is High Dynamic Range and when you use this technique, you merge multiple photos of the same composition that have different light levels. I've seen some amazing HDR images. Mine is no where near amazing, but it was fun to see what my software could do.

Settings for this photo are: f/8, ISO 400. The shutter speeds vary.

Day 8 - Ring

This is my Grandmother's ring. She passed away in 1990. I have a few of her rings. She was a big fan of rings with cubic zirconia gems and big colorful pendants. I remember going through her jewelry box as a child and thinking she had the neatest necklaces and rings. I've recently started wearing some of the rings. No need for them to stay hidden away in a jewelry box.

This photo was taken this evening with my macro lens. You can see the small focus area. I was as close to the ring as I could possibly get and I had the aperture all the way open. The settings were: f/3.5, 1/100 sec, ISO 800. I wanted to take this photo outside with direct sunlight but by the time I was ready to take the photo, the sun was behind the trees. Maybe I should try it again in a couple of weeks after the time change.

Day 7 - Daffodil

One of the first signs of Spring for us is the blooming of the daffodils ( I also saw some beautiful tulips this evening that were growing in a highway median). These daffodils are a part of an existing flower bed in our front yard. They are a bright spot after a cold winter!

Settings for this photo are: f/8, 1/40 sec, ISO 400.

These were in shadow by the time I got home, changed clothes and got my camera out. I needed to change because I had to get low to the ground. My neighbors were probably wondering what on Earth I was doing!  Still, I think the lighting was good, no sharp shadows.

Spring is in the air!

Day 6 - Texas Flag

In honor of Texas Independence Day I chose to light paint our Texas Flag. Have I mentioned how much fun it is to light paint? I used blue, red and white lights but the blue really didn't show up well. I am proud to be a Texan and even though the Marine Corps has taken us across the United States, we haven't forgotten our home state. This flag is a comfort for me.

Settings for this photo are: f/5, 60 seconds, ISO 100. I used 60 seconds this time because I knew I'd need more time to paint. This flag is on our wall and it wasn't easy to reach the top (I am a shorty). So I had a step stool on one side and a chair on the other and had to climb up one side and light up the areas that I could reach, then climb down and cross to the other side and climb back up and paint again. A little bit of a work out. :)

Day 5 - Light Painting

This has been such a fun 5 days! I am looking forward to the next 360 days. Everywhere I go I see things that I could photograph. I knew I'd have fun and I wanted to learn. I hoped this project would help me learn more about photography and to get me out of my comfort zone (which is a really small zone!). A couple of weekends ago my friend Heather and I joined our Photography group for a "Long exposure and light painting" photo session. We had a blast playing with light!  We were both inspired to "light paint" a guitar. She used her son's guitar and you can see her photo here. I used my daughter's bass guitar. I have two versions here. My daughter liked the all white photo and I liked the white and blue. 

The settings for this photo are: f/5, 40 seconds, ISO 100.

I will be doing more light painting. It really is a lot of fun!