Photography | Change Is Hard

We spent the weekend working on projects around the house, taking care of a neighbor’s cat while they were out of town and taking advantage of unseasonably warm weather to put up outdoor Christmas lights.

It was nice.

Early morning peace.

This weekend was the calm before the holiday storm. Crazy people are camping outside retails stores to be the first shoppers on Black Friday…and some stores are even opening on Thanksgiving night. As usual I will not be in those lines, nor shopping for things no one needs. I’ll be spending next weekend with siblings; goofing off, cooking, taking walks up mountains, pictures and naps.

If you’re spending next Friday shopping for stuff….well…enjoy. To each his own.

And I do appreciate your efforts to turn our economy around. Yes I do.

November 16, 2012
by dawnkinster 24 Comments

November blues

I went out on a cold rainy grey November day to find something for Scott’s color composition challenge. The day before had been warm and sunny but I didn’t venture out with the camera. Too obvious and too sensible.

One of the articles Scott provided for reference talked about the meaning of color, how you can sometimes use color to set a mood for a photo. I guess I’ve been feeling kind of sad that the summer has ended and winter is right around the corner, because every bit of color I found that day was blue. I’m not saying that the blue in each photo set the mood for the photo…just that it was what I noticed on this day. (Click on the picture to see the details.)

My first stop was at a historic church. I pass this church every Tuesday on my to and from band rehearsal and I’ve never noticed it. At our last rehearsal I saw with shock that someone had painted the front door and knew I had to come back with a camera.

The color composition challenge was a perfect excuse to stop and get that shot. I started out focusing on the door itself, then tried to get the steeple and the door in the frame. But as I walked back to the car I looked back and knew the whole church needed to be included – because the transformation of the door only worked when it was shown against the disrepair of the entire building. I placed the door near the intersection of the rule of thirds lines.

Historic Presbyterian Church gets a small facelift.

Continuing on with my errands I passed an old schoolhouse that has been painted many many times. Long after the last schoolchild left it was run as a restaurant and catering business, but that closed years ago and now it sits empty. Through the rain I noticed the bell tower with it’s multiple layers of paint showing a bit of it’s history. Again the blue caught my eye, and I tried to have it take up 2/3rds of the image.

Years of schoolhouse colors.

And as I made my way home I noticed the local ski hill. No snow yet, but there was more blue. I had to climb down a muddy hill and ruined a pair of shoes to get this. But I really enjoyed the way the blue ski lift moves from the lower left and climbs up to the upper right of the shot, reflecting the angle of the hill.

Ready for the ski season.

Yep, it was a blue kind of day. But I can’t say that was all due to fall moving into winter. After all I found this blue last spring at my local nursery.

Blue pots

November 11, 2012
by dawnkinster 11 Comments

Color composition photo challenge.

Scott has issued his latest challenge…to work color into a photo as a composition element. I think back to a summer challenge from Karma that was all about color, but now here it is November in Michigan. Where to find that pop of color that deliberately pulls the eye?

I could go into the archives and see what there is. Surely in the Albuquerque photos there would be something.

Or along our great lakes?

Anything?

But no, this is about challenging us to consciously use color in a composition. I need to look around and see what I can find. The assignment is due Wednesday the 21st of November. Go read more at Scott’s blog right away!

Jump on in…the color’s wonderful!

November 5, 2012
by dawnkinster 13 Comments

Mishmash Monday

I’ve got my cow toy from Reilly.

You can’t have it. Besides your flash isn’t working anyway.

And I’m not going to look at you while I have my toy either.

OK. You got me. But I’m still not sharing MY toy!

October 31, 2012
by dawnkinster 11 Comments

Wordless Wednesday

Sunrise in October

October 24, 2012
by dawnkinster 18 Comments

Wordless Wednesday

October 22, 2012
by dawnkinster 19 Comments

Abstract photography

Remember about a year ago when I was looking for subjects for abstract photography for Scott’s photo challenge? I told you then that I wasn’t happy with any of the photos I submitted, but that it had been fun looking.

And that I’d show you if I ever got a shot I was happy with. Well, this weekend I accidentally got this…

…and I”m happy with it. I have another one that turned out interesting and I might show you that one someday.

But this one I just like.

October 21, 2012
by dawnkinster 12 Comments

It’s rally time

Katie here. Mama says she’s too stressed to write tonight. But I tried to make her feel better. Really I did. It’s not my fault she keeps signing us up for stuff and then gets all freaked out. Not my fault at all.

I guess I should start at the beginning. Mama, signed us up for our first leg of Advanced Rally. Next Friday. When she signed us up it seemed like a really far away date. Lots of time to practice. And stuff. But now here it is. And she just got the latest book with all the new signs and she’s freaking out!

But we went to the park today, my Mama and I. She read the book and we heeled around and around. I sat when she told me to sit. I turned when she told me to turn. I backed up when she told me back. I did MY job. But it’s HER job to read the stupid signs. And all those arrows and halt marks get her going good, that’s for sure. She keeps telling me I need to learn to read real quick, so I can do it right even if she tells me wrong. I think that’s a silly idea; how’s a dog supposed to read AND execute I ask you?

So we did a lot of signs out of the book. I was off leash and everything. I even ignored the chipmunk I heard off in the field. I debated, but I ignored it. I figured….Mama with CHEESE or chipmunk…Mama with CHEESE or chipmunk. Mama won. She said I was a good girl and I got two pieces!

But after about 10 gazillion pages of signs I had enough and wanted to play! After all we were at my park! So Mama put the leash back on me and we went for a walk for awhile. I got to sniff lots of stuff.

But pretty soon Mama wanted to finish the rest of the pages of signs. I thought that was a good idea too, but I let her think it was her idea. She’s so SLOW though, reading the signs, thinking about it. I just want to go Go GO!

By the time she finally got to the last sign I was huffing at her. Enough of all this sitting and downing and sitting and standing and heeling and turning and coming and stopping. GEEZE Mama! Can’t you see that I’m PERFECT?

She says we have to practice all the signs every night (except Tuesday when she’s practicing at band) the rest of the week so that we are all set for Friday.

It’s gonna be a long week.

October 21, 2012
by dawnkinster 15 Comments

Georgetown plus

See the cute stores reflected in the window?

While I was in DC I stayed at a hotel in Georgetown. I’ve never stayed there, and on my many taxi trips back and forth I could see it was really beautiful.