Vintage Findings

Architectural Details

These images come from walking the grounds at The Inn at Park Winters where William and Jenny have chosen as the venue for their wedding (in 2015).

I think it is the perfect place.

~K

Another Beautiful Day ~

I can't think of anything better than Springtime. That, combined with Lensbaby :-)

"One can get just as much exultation on losing oneself in a little thing as in a big thing. It is nice to think how one can be recklessly lost in a daisy." 

~Anne Morrow Lindbergh

. . . or in a tiny geranium

Best Weekend To You.

~Karen

A Quick Little Tour

Images from our trip to Italy ~ these are from Florence.  We began one evening at dusk at the Piazza Michelangelo above the city, walking and shooting as it got darker.  We walked into the night ending up at the area around The Duomo, the large dome on the right in this first image.

Walking down the path toward the Arno River

Heading towards Ponte Vecchio.  This bridge totally enchanted me with the little shops. In days before, the butchers and fish mongers had their shops here but now each little space is for an artist.

And one view, even closer.  I loved the light coming from the shuttered window.

Please click on images to view them larger.  It was a wonderful night walk in Florence.

Sure, we had to lug our cameras, tripods, and equipment ~ but it was no problem, really, when you had views like this.  I am enjoying processing my images from the trip.

~K

A Lemon

Personal challenge ~ take a photo that is a lemon and try to make something wonderful with it ~ my attempt ~ it may not be wonderful but I am learning a lot about light layers of paint.

The photo is of a leather chair tucked into a corner of the shed at the Inn at Park Winters ~ a lovely chest is next to it with buckets of flowers, shells, and natural findings from the grounds.  What really attracted me was the window behind the buckets and the wonderful light coming into the dark shed.

Many layers later, this was the result.  Needs more practice, but I will start fresh with a different image when I try this again.  

You can click on the image to see it larger. . . 

So much for Experimental Tuesday :-)

Aren't these cooler temps great?  The slight overcast and the few sprinkles are just what we needed.

~Karen

I Need To Make a Mess!

I had the real need for a "messy" day today ~ but it turned out to be all digital. . .

Even making a "digital mess" was good for me. . . 

Happy Weekend 

~K

A Little Lensbaby Fun

I am trying the new aperture disks that fit with the lensbaby lenses.  This one is a sunburst disk:

Pretty cool, huh? 

I kinda like what it does with the bokeh background.

I think I will play around some more and see how the other shapes look.

I do hope you are heading into a wonderful weekend. We hope to have a little "down time" here, since our week was so busy.

~Karen

Happy Birthday, Mom

My mother is 89 years old today :-)

I will be taking this "cookie forest" to her this morning ~ molasses cookies :-)

Have a wonderful Tuesday.

~K

Wash Day

Wash day, which I suppose was everyday since I saw and loved all the laundry hanging from windows throughout the towns we traveled.  Of all the laundry lines I photographed I finally got one with someone actually pegging the laundry.

And the original:

The little town of Riomaggiore.  Still working on the possibilities of Corel.

Happy weekend to you ~ hope your laundry is all caught up.

~K

Pure Fantasy

Welcome to my imaginary place ~ although I'm not sure if it is a hotel, an island, or a treehouse.  All buildings were disassebled and reassembled from photographs taken in Italy, so perhaps it is an Italian Imaginary Place.

Layer after layer, handpainted background, painted trees and shrubs, stars in the sky, gradients, lighting effects, dodge|burn layers, curves adjustments, bevels, drop shadows, and more paintwork.

You can see it a bit larger by clicking on the image.

Created simply because I had the idea.  I would like to try another one of these imaginary places but next time I want to give it more substance, more depth, more dimension.  This one seems a bit flat to me, but it is a beginning. . . 

Enjoy your weekend ~ you are always welcome to come stay in this imaginary place.

~K

Spring is Here ~

Spring is here in all it's glory.  Flowers are poking up and spreading out, but so are the weeds.

These calendula/pot marigolds come up every year, sometimes in unexpected places. But their warm colors are most welcome.  The same for the camomile, it self sows readily.

I'm quite fond of putting things in place and keeping everything neat and tidy, so I enjoyed tucking these into the box frames.

William and Jenny have announced their engagement.  I could not be happier for them. Jenny will be headed to law school in August and it seems that William may be leaving for Galveston for that teaching job he has been hoping for. Plans should firm up over the next few weeks.

Until then, a mini celebration | BBQ with Jenny's family and ours this weekend.

Hope your day is full of good news, too.

~K