SKETCHBOOK 86 – A ROSE & 2 BIRDS

FIRST SUCCESSFUL ROSE AND TWO IMPERFECT BIRDS I have had a really hard time drawing a rose that looked like a rose. This annoyed me because I'm pretty good with flowers, even complicated flowers. But for some reason, roses with all that layering came out all wrong. Last night, I looked at a picture of … Continue reading SKETCHBOOK 86 – A ROSE & 2 BIRDS

AND NOW, MORE ORCHIDS

FOTD – July 10 – New Macro Orchids These were the first orchids I got, four years ago. It has been a very long four years. These usually bloom for a few months and then rest until the following spring. This year, because I repotted them at the end of their blooming last year, they … Continue reading AND NOW, MORE ORCHIDS

AT HOME WITH THE RED-BELLIED WOODPECKERS

They are as married as woodpeckers can be. These are our Red-Bellied Woodpeckers. They don't have a red belly except in the most distant way, but there's already a red-headed woodpecker, so they became red-bellied. They have a nest in this tree, and you can see all the woodpecker holes in it. This dying tree … Continue reading AT HOME WITH THE RED-BELLIED WOODPECKERS

SKETCHBOOK 84 – FEAR

AN ILLUSTRATION AND A FIRST It was a new "Provocative" question from Fandango. I was looking for a picture that showed fear. Everywhere I looked, it was someone else's work. Drawings, photographs, posters. None of them seemed any better than my own photographs, which sadly didn't have anything showing fear. But the drawings were not … Continue reading SKETCHBOOK 84 – FEAR

TWO BIRDS, ONE FEEDER

They just won't sit still for me. I pick up the camera, and they vanish. I sometimes wonder if there really were any birds or if I'm just imagining them. Since all the food disappears daily, there must be something eating it, right? Fur and feathers, there's a lot of eating going on. This is … Continue reading TWO BIRDS, ONE FEEDER

Twilight Swan

I went looking for the swans, but they were far away, and I didn't have a long lens on the camera. It was late in the day, and the shadows were long and strangely blue. I played with the image, which I liked but clearly needed help to make it pop. I used several different … Continue reading Twilight Swan

SKETCHBOOK: MY SIX MONTHS

HALF A YEAR OF SKETCHES The best sketches of each month since I started in January. My development has been a bit bumpy and lumpy. Still, six months into the project, I thought it was time for a review to give me a chance to see what I've done. What I like. What I don't … Continue reading SKETCHBOOK: MY SIX MONTHS

CENTERED IN BLACK & WHITE

CBWC: Centered in Black & White Generally, I use some degree of offset for almost all my pictures, but sometimes, I just want that shot right in the middle. It turns out to be harder to accomplish than one might think. Sometimes, your lens isn't the right length, or there are physical constraints -- doors, … Continue reading CENTERED IN BLACK & WHITE

COLLECTIVE NOUNS

FIBBING FRIDAY - July 8, 2022 I actually have a few books about these dating back to my college days when many of you hadn't yet been born. Some of these "real" ones are centuries old, but many are new, made up because people find them fun. If you like wordplay, these are just fun. … Continue reading COLLECTIVE NOUNS

BLACK & WHITE VERSUS COLOR

CFFC: Black and White vs. Color I love photography. Color or black & white, I love it all. I also think there's a best time for each kind. The best black and white photography -- for me -- are pictures with either lots of angles, shadows, and/or texture. In color photos, I want the color to … Continue reading BLACK & WHITE VERSUS COLOR