SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 9.1.13 + SONG-OGRAPHY

9.1.13

You know the drill... check in with

ASHLEY @ RAMBLING & PHOTOS

here are the words for SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY

DOWN, SHADOW, FLOW, TIP & BEYOND

Lydia - Looking DOWN to re-button her shirt...

afternoon SHADOW casting some shade on these cheerful fellows...

FLOW(ing) water is relaxing...

tis the season for leaves of a poisonous nature!

Here's a handy TIP...

"take a ride"

just BEYOND the building are U-pick berry orchards... ummm... berry-stained fingers, tshirts & full tummies!

and noooooowwww... Song-ography. This week's song is "If I had a Million Dollars" by the Bare Naked Ladies. The lyrics talk about buying a home, furniture, a car, a fur coat (fake ~ because real fur would be cruel), and building a fort in the backyard tree with a tiny fridge filled with tiny sausages... the lyrics are catchy, the tune is easy to sing (even for someone like me, who can't sing on key)...

BUT ~ If I had a Million Dollars, it would be spent T-R-A-V-E-L-I-N-G.

I'd want to add to my "bank" of traveling memories. I've visited... the Netherlands (Amsterdam), Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovania, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia & Peru... and rented a flat for 3 weeks in London (with JPE)... In the 70's, traveling on a "shoestring budget" (does anyone remember the book, Europe on $5 a Day, by Arthur Frommer?) I also explored Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Spain & Portugal... (in addition to many of the countries already mentioned).

One of my favorite traveling quotes comes from the Dalai Lama,

"Once a year, GO SOMEPLACE you've never been before."

and while I've not been able to identify the author of this quote,
it's T-R-U-E for me!

"TRAVEL is the only thing you BUY that makes you RICHER."

DISCOVERY...

Amsterdam ~ summer of 2005

Do you read horoscopes?

Do you believe in dreams?

Do you throw tarot cards?

Do you plan every moment of the day, week, month & year?

Do you "fly by the seat of your pants" & let the days fall as they evolve?

What SIGNS do you look for when making decisions?

Would LOVE to read your comments!!

 

EXPLORING DIAGONALS...

street along Buckingham Palace ~ London (2010)

I'm participating in Kat Sloma's EXPLORING WITH A CAMERA ~ and this month's theme looks at the use of diagonal lines to suggest motion. Kat explains how our eyes "naturally" follow diagonals, and goes on to explain the various powers of diagonal directions in photography. Her explanation is worth reading and is found HERE!


After looking through my trip files, I've was able to find only a few photos with a true diagonal (meaning - I didn't manipulate the photo by flipping it in another direction or crop it so the diagonal was more pronounced).


The London picture (above) is an example of a "secondary diagonal"... Our eye is reading "uphill" which is not natural, but in this case, the cars are headed downhill. To me, this creates more of a zigzag motion ~ if you think of our eyes following the street "uphill" & back "downhill" with the angle of the cars.

bike riding outside Amsterdam ~ July 2005

I believe this is another example of a "secondary diagonal" but headed in the opposite direction. One reason this photo captures your eye is due to the dynamic angle of the diagonal. I hope it solicits interest by making you wonder what is beyond that red blotch of color in the left-hand edge of the picture!??!

London streets don't run in straight lines!

Compare this photo (taken near the corner of Trafalgar Square) to the bicycling photo... Although cars have the ability to travel much faster than a bicycle, these taxis seem pretty motion-less!!! of course, they are stopped at a red light, but to me, the bike photo seems to imply a "greater sense of motion" ~ due to a more pronounced or dynamic angle in the diagonal line of the bikeway. 

sidewalk artwork ~ Budapest, Hungary (2009)

The diagonal that gives the "greatest sense of motion" is one which moves from the top left to the bottom right. This is called a "primary diagonal" with our eye moving in a downhill motion. You may have thought your eye was drawn to the marble sidewalk art, but it's more likely that your eye was following the direction of the diagonal! 

brick pathway along the Smithsonian Castle ~ Washington DC

Here's another example of a subtle diagonal... I feel the vibrant color of the flowers draw your attention deeper into the photograph! Don't you want to take a walk here?


My greatest ah-ha! Most of my pictures are taken with a "secondary diagonal" ~ I'm wondering if that is due to the fact that I'm right-handed???


This exercise certainly increased my awareness about the "impact" of diagonals to create motion, excitement and energy in photographs.


Fabulous lesson... I'll be taking more photos with a "primary diagonal" ~ I hope this post encouraged you to check out Kat's blog, KAT EYE STUDIO... she shares a wealth of information that can & will impact your photography.

TWO TWO-WHEELERS!

Monterosso ~ Cinque Terre, Italy (summer 2005)

JPE was looking at the gorgeous architecture!

I was looking at the PURPLE bike!

A SEAT + TWO PEDALS...

neighborhood park ~ Amsterdam, Holland ~ June 2005

What blogs do you check every day? Kat's blog, KAT EYE VIEW OF THE WORLD is one of my daily indulgences!

In today's post, Kat was talking about riding her bike... her description about learning to appreciate the "physical-ness" involved in riding a bike & riding with the "guys" brought back --- a flood of memories --- MY times spent riding bikes!

our room ~ middle, 4th window from left

One of my favorite bike riding memories happened during our European trip the summer of 2005. 


JPE & I started a month long European vacation with a brief stay at the Amstel Botel - YES, we stayed in a BOAT hotel for two nights! 

view of Amsterdam from our botel window!

As might be expected, our sleep cycles needed to be adjusted to European time, so we decided to spend our first day in Amsterdam ~ doing what the locals do! 

GOING FOR A BIKE RIDE... 

gingerbread-like home

JPE & I packed our day bags with water, snacks & a light weight shirt... walked a block toward the Amsterdam train station & rented bikes for the day.

no traffic to worry about!

Armed with a map of bike trails, we took a ferry across the channel & headed into the countryside!

IMAGINE... 


riding a bike along narrow roads...
catching a glimpse of life in adorable, gingerbread like homes...
admiring colorful flower boxes which decorated each window...

pontoon crossing

GOSH... we wouldn't been able to cover so many miles if we'd been walking!  


at one point in our journey, we took a small, flat pontoon boat to cross this channel...


AND, the bike trail cut through the pontoon owner's property! but he seemed thrilled to share a section of his farmlands with bike riders! what a treat!

check out the height of the hedge!

On this street, everyone had planted a tree hedge - which we later learned were "privacy hedges" ~ The hedges prevented direct views into the home's bedroom windows! CLEVER idea!


Winters in Amsterdam could be described as dark. long. cold... so during mild weather days, everyone ventures outdoors to enjoy the sun, fresh air & spend time socializing in neighborhood parks, restaurants, & public squares.

typical house along the bike route!

WELL, we had a nice, deep sleep that night! BUT... we made sure to put the sunscreen in our day pack! our sunburns turned into a nice, healthy tan... it took only 2-3 days for the sensitive-ness to go away!

Thanks for the memory jog, Kat! 

ARE YOU BEING FRAMED?

"INSIDE LOOKING OUT" ~ OXFORD, ENGLAND (July 2010)

"Frame Within a Frame" 

is Kat Sloma's current theme 

for her "EXPLORING WITH A CAMERA" series. 

In this participatory exercise, Kat posts a topic, theme or idea & asks you to use a camera to "explore your world" & share the photos on your blog or Flickr account! To get a better understanding of this compositional technique, you can read about it HERE!

LEED'S CASTLE ~ ENGLAND (July 2010)

My intention in taking this picture was to remember the shape of windows... but after reading her explanation, I found details in my photos I hadn't noticed... like the bird sitting on the outside edge of the window & the "knobby-looking" metal panels of the wall!

ST MARTIN'S-in-the-FIELDS, London, England ~ July 2010

JPE & I visited this church numerous times during our three-week stay in London last summer. The church pews were a refuge against a summer rainstorm; we listened to a CONCERT by the BELMONT ORCHESTRA; and more than once, SAT TO REST OUR FEET from the constant walking on our daily adventures. 

Like a famous painting, we'll never forget the "magnetism" of this window... NOR the scrumptious scones & tea they sell in their basement cafe!!

PARIS, FRANCE ~ July 2005

Don't you want to take a peek in this courtyard? walk up the staircase? smell the fragrance of the flowers blooming in the window boxes? look at the architecture & detail of the ironwork up close? AND, LOOK, did you notice the lion's head in the triangle of the staircase? think it's a water fountain? 

I discovered numerous examples of a "Frame Within A Frame" technique in my photo library. Take a peek at the second & third picture in my RECENT POST!

Have you used this technique? what mood or detail were you hoping to capture? what story would your "Frame Within A Frame" picture tell? 

If you find you've used this technique, why not share the picture with others ~ stop by KAT'S and leave a link to your photo!

MY EYE ~ FOUND!!!

Gimmelwald, Switzerland ~ July 2005

For the past several weeks, I've been participating in Kat Sloma's FIND YOUR EYE online photography course (see pink button on right hand). 


Kat's twice weekly lessons have encouraged us to participate in group discussions and share photo responses on our blogs or the FYE Group Flickr account. 

Cinque Terre ~ July 2005

After reviewing over 2000 photos, I THINK I was able to identify what "draws my eye" as I get ready to snap a picture.

Orsay Museum ~ July 2005

While I still have a lot to learn about photo editing (which was not the focus for this course), I was able to see the evolution of my photo composition...   and more importantly, I learned it wasn't about the CAMERA I was using!

As I mentioned in ANOTHER POST, the Kodak camera used in 2005, has been passed along, yet, the COMPOSITION of the three photos is surprisingly similar. 

Oxford, London ~ July 2010

Kew Garden ~ July 2010

The pictures from 2010 were taken with a Canon Rebel (a camera with multiple dials).  I still consider myself at the "fiddling" stage as I try to understand the 'creative mode' settings. Ummm, does another word also come to mind?

How about "Peeping Tom"??

Conclusion: I like "looking into other people's worlds"?!!! 

One fact stills remains ~ my creative eye focuses on... SHAPE + LINE + COLOR

here's more color + TEXTURE

December 2010

color + shape + DETAIL

KEW GARDEN ~ July 2010

color + DETAIL

JPE'S Jamming Day ~ 9.12.10

This is kind of embarrassing, but I'm also known for my "eye for detail" so it shouldn't come as a surprise that many of my photos focus on the "finer elements" of the object I'm capturing. 

View from the front porch ~ March 2011

If you haven't visited Kat's BLOG & you enjoy photography - you're missing out on a lot of photo tips & inspiration!!!

START THE DAY WITH A....

SMILE found ~ Gimmelwald, Switzerland ~ July 2005

MEASURING UP... {GERMANY}

Market Square ~ Rothenburg, Germany ~ 6.28.05

I'm posting some German memories ~~~ Carola, my artistic blogger friend at carola bARTz is German, and about once a week, she posts a picture of something from Germany.  Check out the field of RED POPPIES!

JPE & I took a month long RICK STEVE'S TOUR during the summer of 2005, so I pulled out our travel journal & located a few pictures from our stop in Rothenburg, Germany.

Our tour guide, BEN CAMERON, took the group on an orientation walking tour before cutting us loose for a few hours to explore on our own. The Market Square is the location where all the action starts... great people watching! a central location to meet friends! or catch a tour! amazing architecture ~ most of the buildings were built by 1400; that's not a typo... this is a very medieval town! 

The darker building (above) is the Town Hall & was rebuilt (between 1572-1578) after a fire destroyed a portion of the original building.

See the green arrow (top pic)?? that's where JPE & I were standing for the second pic.

Now, LooK at the picture ~ those two metal strips above my head are the town's MEASURING RODS... Medieval Germany had close to 300 independent little countries, each with its own "weights & measures." Merchants (& shoppers) knew this was the "local" standard measure for this area. The larger mark is the ROD (4.3 yards) and the smaller was the ELL (about the distance from your elbow to fingertips). Another measure (not shown in pic) is the SCHUH ~ or shoe, which was about 12 inches.

Notice the protruding cornerstone at the bottom of the arch? (see the black bag laying there) ~ these were located all over town & originally built to protect the buildings from reckless horse carts... I was forever tripping over them, in fact, I think that's what I was LAUGHING about when this picture was taken.

Another highlight, the Night Watchman's Tour... this "character" leads an evening tour every evening (April-December), starting at 8pm from the Market Square.

It's the best evening activity in Rothenburg! The Night Watchman takes people on a walk, his black lantern swinging wildly, as he spins tales of medieval times in the "walled city" ~ the oldest part of Rothenburg.

My camera was pretty ancient... so the pics could have been better!! But, having our travel journal helped bring all the memories back, as if they happened yesterday. Be sure to check out CAROLA'S poppies... such a vivid, RED!