abstract – Dutch goes the Photo!

Silent Sunday

Universal energies are captured within…

Quiet contemplation on the structure of rock in Valley of Fire State Park…

As we take in the wondrous structure of the rock around us, we cannot help but realize the universal energies captured within.

Over the past week, I enjoyed the pleasure of a photo tour of Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, which was led by Joseph Rossbach; it was a great way to learn more about this park, as well as picking up some new (for me) processing techniques.

Of course, being in this part of the country, there are the majestic landscape photo opportunities, some of which I will definitely share with you. One of the fun things to also explore are some of the details of the rock structures and formations.

The structure of this rock gives a sense of an almost living entity or possibly the remains of what once was a living being, possibly a skull fragment of an ancient and wise dragon; or our mind might take us further, as if we’re looking at the landscape of a distant, alien planet.

One of the aspects of this rock is that the color appears to be there in myriad micro-dots, creating a fuzzy, almost unfocused feeling to the image.

This image was captured using a Canon EOS R5 and EOS RF 24-105mm F4/L lens. I used focus bracketing to increases the fine focus on this fuzzy-looking image.

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Fall

Soft light comes to us

Welcome to week 176 of the Tuesday Photo Challenge!

After a week of living the City life, I think it’s time to go back to Nature for this week’s theme. As Autumn approaches in the Norther Hemisphere, I thought it might be interesting to go for a theme that riffs on that concept with Fall. In the American version of the English language the season of Autumn is often called Fall. What I like about this theme is that the word fall can be taken into other directions, from trip and fall to Victoria Falls and many stops in between.

So, I’m leaving the choice of direction squarely in your hands and create minds and eyes! Mostly, just go out and have fun with this one!! Can’t wait to see where you take this!

Here’s a more abstract approach to the lovely colors…

As many of you are aware, I like to experiment in my photography and, from time to time, will try something different to get more of a sense of the moment and surroundings, rather than a purely representational capture. By taking the aperture down to f/22 and going out of focus, there appears this rather soft sense of color over structure…

The full rules of this challenge are in TPC Guidelines, but here’s the tl;dr:

Write a post with an image for this week’s topic
Please tag your post with fpj-photo-challenge (if you’re not sure about how tags work, please check out this WordPress article about tagging posts)
Create a pingback link to this post, so that I can create a post showing all of the submissions over the week (note: pingbacks may not appear immediately, as my site is set up to require approval for linking to it; helps against previous bad experiences with spamming)
Have fun creating something new (or sharing something old)!!

Be careful not to fall and have everything fall into place for your photo!!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 166

From the fires of perdition…

Welcome to the 166th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge!

Okay, so I got blown away by the volume of your responses to this week’s theme of Radiant! Your posts were stunning in their creative approaches to the theme and the directions, in which you went to find radiance. All of you did a fantastic job, and it’s clear what level of effort you put into each and every post!! Thank you for a great series of posts that were a pleasure to read.

Please enjoy these links and share you appreciation with each other!

Here is a rather radiant image…

This image was an early part of my exploration of abstract techniques, which was started sitting around a campfire with a camera nearby. Using a bit of zoom blur, the intensity of the fire became more primordial in nature.

Please enjoy the following blog posts:

Sarah starts things this week in her post in By Sarah with an incredible radiance that glows in the morning frost; wonderful photo!
Maria brings us two kinds of radiance in another awesome post in Kamerapromenader; both are stunning!
In a very cool post in Syncwithdeep we get to experience the true sense of irony that can lie under a tree…
Irene takes us to a wonderful beach her post in Heaven’s Sunshine, where the radiance shines upon us! Irene brings us a second entry in Heaven’s Sunshine, where the sunrise shines through! In her third entry in Heaven’s Sunshine, we find a radiant flower!
This week’s entry in Une Photo, Un Poéme shows us what verdant radiance Nicole encountered during a Spring walk; it’s gorgeous!
Kammie shows us some amazing radiance in her post in Nut House Central, with color and shine being featured brightly!
Jackie brings us to radiant heights in her post in Junk Boat Travels, with a stunning view of the Sagrada Familia!
In another great contribution in The Liggett Adventures, we go for a morning walk in Devon to see the sun light our way.
An absolutely gorgeous shot features in theonlyD800inthehameau, as we go for a sunset cruise in Abu Dhabi!
The amazing post in pensivity101 positively radiates, not only with the photo, but even more with the memory that is held for over 35 years!
The radiance in the post in A Day In The Life shines through in each and every gorgeous image!
Prasath shares an incredible amount of brilliance in MyTravelCSP, which radiates to light up the sky!
Eliza features the radiance of poppies in her post in Albatz Adventures with stunning photography!
In another great post in For the Love of …, the question of spiders’ flight is asked along with their radiant webs!
Danny’s post in Danny James Photography features radiance, not only in the sunlight, but also the shining white of the church!
Xenia’s amazing post in WhippetWisdom brings us the galloping of whippets through the radiant landscape!
Na’ama provides us with true radiance in her post in Na’ama Yehuda; the words shine through the page!
With another wonderful post in Don’t Hold Your Breath, we get filled with the radiance of Turkish coffee!
In a brilliant post in Chateaux des Fleurs, we get to experience the radiance of the sky in a truly beautiful set of photos!
Ken found some true radiance at the beach, as we can see in his post in Pictures without Film!
Robert’s photos in Photo Robert Blog dazzles us with their radiance in both a simple and glorious manner!
Ann-Christine shares the most amazing tree in her post in To See a World in a Grain of Sand…; the Sun coming through the frozen branches creates a stunning effect!
In a lovely post in the59club, we find that radiance can be just off the path that we follow!
Jase may be onto something truly brilliant in Proscenium: with enough red, red wine, the entire world radiates!
In a great entry in Willowsoul, we get to see that radiance can be found on land, in the sea and in the air!
With a wonderful contribution in nowathome, we get to experience radiance both in flowers and the wonderful light!
Marie capture a truly radiant image in the New 3Rs: Retire, Recharge, Reconnect; that’s a stunning photo!
Hammad takes us to the clouds in his contribution in the Blog of Hammad Rais, where there’s some true radiance!
Sandy shares a photo that positively radiates in her post in Out of My Write Mind; it’s royalty in black and white!
Teressa has some amazing photos in her post in Another LQQK; those windows are simply gorgeous!
Anjum scores another great post in the blog The Unsaid Words of Untold Stories, where radiance is found with gorgeous photos!
In a wonderful entry in Still Thinking…, Eric brings us a sunset that does make you feel like going out there for a run!
Susan makes me want to get a lens ball, which she used to create the photo in her post in Musin’ with Susan; it’s a beautiful vista!
In a stunning post in Geriatri’x’ Fotogallery, we get a gorgeous treatment of the radiance of a lighthouse!
Brian brings a great variety of radiance in another great post in Bushboy’s World; that bit of lens flare adds to the brilliance!
In another awesome post in sgeoil, the radiance shines through and is paired well with the quote!
Woolly finds radiance in great places in his post in WoollyMuses, of which I find the fog image incredibly compelling!
Sometimes radiance comes right off the stage at you, as we see in a great post in One Letter Up – Diary 2.0, where a star shines brightly!
Deb shares a truly stunning image of a gorgeous flower in her post in Twenty-Four; no doubt that it radiates!
David brings us a gorgeous series of images in his post in David M’s Photoblog, where radiance comes across in every shot!
One of the advantages of running a challenge, such as this, is that I get to travel through these contributions. Donna’s post in Wind Kisses takes us to Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone, which is now on my bucket list!
Amy proves that three cameras are better than one in her post in Photography Journal Blog; each bring their own unique capabilities!
A stunning photo in the post in Land of Images features an absolutely gorgeous flower, which radiates with color!
Olga captured some fantastic brilliance in her images in Stuff and What If…; looking through those leaves is intriguing!
The image in Thief Images Photography Blog just draws the viewer into the brilliant landscape!
Miriam put together another stunning post in Out an’ About! This blog is an amazing read and view, and the message in this post is also uplifting!
Debbie shares a stunning post in Travel with Intent, where we get a gorgeous inside view in the Sagrada Familia!

Please let all of these great bloggers know your thoughts about their posts!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 165

Trails from one dimension to another…

Welcome to the 165th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge! A bit later with this post than usual, as I was catching up…

Your interpretations of this week’s theme of Trail have been simply amazing! Your creative minds must have been in top gear, as your posts ranged from the overhead views and gorgeous trails to those putting a smile on my face with warm appreciation. Thank you all for doing such an awesome job on these!

I very much enjoyed reading your posts, and I hope that you do as well!

Here are some very different trails…

This is an image that I captured a number of years ago during a group night shoot. The lighting in a pair of white columns inspired me to get them captured in a different manner than the usual; additionally, the taillights of the cars going away from me created an opportunity to play with zoom blur and generate a sense of transition, which was in touch with what was happening more than 3000 miles away.

Please enjoy the following blog posts:

Sarah starts things this week in her post in By Sarah with a pair of lovely trails that she captured splendidly!
Kammie takes us down some cool trails in Nut House Central, although some of them might need a bit of maintenance…
Xenia’s post for this week in Tranature is a lovely walk along the trails at Leitir Easaidh. In a second post in WhippetWisdom, we are on the trail with some of my favorite whippets and a great haiku!
In another wonderful post from theonlyD800inthehameau we get to see the trail in Beecraigs Country Park in Central Scotland, which is stunning!
We go on an island trail in an awesome post in Geriatri’x’ Fotogallery with some great photos!
This week’s entry in Une Photo, Un Poéme has Nicole taking us to Derbyshire with a view that makes me want to go down the trail and find out where it leads…
Ken takes us on the trail to find some mystical stones in Pictures without Film; the Druid’s Circle in Penmaenmawr must be inspiring!
Na’ama has us traversing an ethereal trail in her post in Na’ama Yehuda; in her poem you can feel yourself moving along the trail.
In this week’s fantastic entry in pensivity101, we follow some beautiful trails and find some shade along the way!
Jackie has a great cross-section of famous trails in her post in Junk Boat Travels: which one would you like to follow?
In a fantastic contribution in The Liggett Adventures we follow a trail on the South English coast that leads to place that I would love to see!
Cee clearly has been hitting the good trails, as we can see in her post in Cee’s Photography; those all look worth exploring!
In another awesome post in Field Notes from over the Hill, Gwen takes us on the trail in Lone Elk Park, where we encounter quite a few elk!
Ann-Christine takes us for a hike in Switzerland in her post in To See a World in a Grain of Sand…; the trail and scenery are magnificent!
Eliza presents us with a very interesting walk in her post in Albatz Adventures; she takes us right to the precipice…
Leave it to Brian to come up with some different trails in his post in Bushboy’s World; clearly, he has spent some time looking up!
In photo #6957 in OneMillionPhotographs, the trail is absolutely gorgeous and beautifully photographed!
David shares a series of trails in his post in David M’s Photoblog that are simply amazing!
Jase is on the trail of some wild mountain honey as we can see in Proscenium; those bees are pretty busy!
Debbie finds an interesting twosome playing in her post in Travel with Intent; in a second post in Travel with Intent, she leads us to the Plaça de Espanya, where once the trail ended for many bulls.
Maria found some interesting trails in her post in Kamerapromenader, but I’m doubtful that those rails are fit for duty!
A fun post in Still Thinking shows one of the incentives of trail running: you can keep up with your children!
This week we get to enjoy some gorgeous trails in Life Amazing, all of which are in Northern Ireland.
Danny’s post in Danny James Photography brings us to Japan for a stunning trail in Koyoto, which leads ever higher among the trees.
Aletta brings us amazing trails in her post in Nowathome, which beckons exploration!
Sandy challenges us to blaze a trail in her post in Out of My Write Mind; let’s accept the challenge!
Woolly takes us into a playa lake in his post in WoollyMuses; this looks like an amazing place to explore trails!
Robert’s photo in Photo Robert Blog is another stunning example of his fine work, as it draws us into the trail…
There’s nothing like having to follow the trail of a grandchild in One Letter Up – Diary 2.0… this photo put a smile on my face!
In another lovely post in A Day In The Life, we find a tremendous variety of trails!
Deb is on the trail of something interesting in her post in Twenty-Four; makes me wonder what we will find at the end of the trail…
In Land of Images the trail takes us further into Nature in the beautiful Lancashire countryside.
Amy created another wonderful post in Photography Journal Blog, where she shares what lies a few feet off the trail…
Anjum’s wonderful post in the blog The Unsaid Words of Untold Stories takes us up the trail to Murree Hills close to Islamabad in Pakistan.
Teressa shares some of the trails in Central Iowa in her post in Another LQQK; it looks like they would be fun to traverse!
Donna goes on a trail ride in her post in Wind Kisses, which looks like a great way to explore Cave Creek!
Len has a truly wonderful post in Len Journeys that provides us with not only a stunning set of trail images, but also a classic quote!
In another excellent post in sgeoil, there is a very interesting trail and I wonder what created it…
We go off the trail in a great post in Heart to Heart, as it looks like that is where the fun will be!
Susan brings out another stunning photo in her post in Musin’ with Susan; it’s inviting to follow the trail!
Thanks for another great post in Thief Images Photography Blog, which highlights the trails never followed…
Irene takes us onto a comfortable trail in her post in Heaven’s Sunshine, where we can find some shade.
Khürt presents us with a magnificent photo reportage in his blog Island in the Net of the Stonebridge Trails; the weather must have been to Khürt’s liking, as the images radiate!

Please let all of these great bloggers know your thoughts about their posts!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Rose

A rose is a rose…

Welcome to week 145 of the Tuesday Photo Challenge.

You nearly broke the bank with all your fantastic entries on the theme of Bank! Time for something a little different for this week, as all of you Rose to the occasion, I thought I’d present you with a Rose for your effort! Yes, I can hear your groans…the puns won’t stop 🙂

Of course, you expected something that would go into the direction of your choosing, and give you the opportunity to release your creative minds to come up with your fantastic posts! Have fun with it and don’t let the color fool you!

Here’s a rose that unleashed mighty energies…

This photo goes back a number of years, as an experiment creating more abstract images. Through use of zoom blur, I got the rose to create an explosion of energies, as an expression of the power that resides within each particle of the universe!

The full rules of this challenge are in TPC Guidelines, but here’s the tl;dr:

Write a post with an image for this week’s topic
Please tag your post with fpj-photo-challenge (if you’re not sure about how tags work, please check out this WordPress article about tagging posts)
Create a pingback link to this post, so that I can create a post showing all of the submissions over the week (note: pingbacks may not appear immediately, as my site is set up to require approval for linking to it; helps against previous bad experiences with spamming)
Have fun creating something new (or sharing something old)!!

I look forward to seeing what rose in your minds!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 137

A quiet moment is worth much!

Welcome to the 137th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge!

Tranquil moments abound in the amazing array of photos that you shared in response to this week’s theme. Many of you echoed the sentiment that it’s important to take a deep breath and step back from the chaos, particularly during this holiday season. Your posts truly captured this sense of serenity that we often lack in our daily lives. Thank you for all the work you put into them and the creativity that you brought to bear!

I hope that you enjoy these wonderful posts, as much as I did.

Here’s another bit of quietude…

This image is one that draws me into a meditative state, reaching inner tranquility, as my mind’s eye floats among the leaves…

The following were this week’s participants in the challenge with links to their posts:

Shelley’s post in Quaint Revival shows that she’s truly elf-taught: and she has great tips on photographing holiday lights!
In Charles’ entry in his blog, charlesewaugh, we visit Skyline drive and get a tranquil vista of Shenandoah National Park; this is an area that I certainly want to visit!
Irene shares the hush of the morning with a wonderful photo in Heaven’s Sunshine.
In Jordy’s Streamings we encounter a hypnotic view of rose spirals, beautifully photographed!
In this week’s entry from Don’t Hold Your Breath, we visit Shamian Island, an unhurried oasis amidst a bustling city.
This week, pensivity101 takes us out on the water, where tranquil moments abound, as we glide along its surface.
No shortage of tranquil location in the Limousin area, as we find out in theonlyD800inthehameau; this image certainly showcases that!
Alice takes us to lovely locations in her post in the 59 Club; water brings out the tranquil moments here!
In another great post in WhippetWisdom, Xenia brings the tranquility of the beaches and a wonderful haiku. In a second post in Tranature, we enjoy tranquil moments along forest paths.
The post by Na’ama Yehuda brings us in touch with Nature’s tranquil presence through a fantastic poem.
In another awesome post in Junk Boat Travels, we find out about those tranquil moments on a tour bus, thanks to WiFi!
In Life Amazing, we not only get to see some tranquil locations, but find out that real tranquility is achieved when the youngest children sleep!
Ulli’s post in the interesting blog Banactee takes us back to a simpler time in a wonderful wooden still life!
In a lovely post in A Pause for Nature, we learn to appreciate the tranquil moments of the river, as that means that it is not flooding its surrounding areas.
Sarah’s posts in By Sarah and By Sarah show us two different views of tranquility.
Danny’s post in Danny James Photography features a location that is known for its tranquil nature: a Japanese garden.
Anita’s post in for the Love of has all sorts of tranquility, as even the birds are quiet this morning.
In a great post in Roaming Urban Gypsy, we get treated to a number of sites in Brooklyn that are very tranquil.
Tatiana shares a lovely post TravelArtPix of the foggy views in Nova Scotia. in Giftsmart, we get to enjoy the color purple in tranquil landscapes.
Brian captured some wonderful quiet moments in Bushboys World with stunning photos!
In this week’s post in To See a World in a Grain of Sand… Ann-Christine captures a true moment of tranquility in a gorgeous photo!
Jase brings a different post in Proscenium that is all about snow business and its impact!
In Heart to Heart‘s post it’s all about me time, as it’s a great time to relax!
In this week’s post from MyTravelCSP, we can see ourselves sitting and being mesmerized by the water rushing by…
In her post in Finding My Own Way, Laura shares a stunning photo of tranquil times in the landscape.
Cee shares some wonderful shots in Cee’s Photography, where water and sky feature to quiet our mood.
Woolly has several tranquil photos in his Woolly Muses post, one of which really stands out for me! Which one really speaks to you?
In a lovely post in Fleeting Muse, we are treated to two different times of tranquility: evening and morning.
In Nut House Central, Kammie features several great photos and can rest easy, as Wednesday is just fine for TPC entries 🙂
Maria’s photo in her post in KameraPromenader is simply stunning and wraps us in a cloak of tranquility.
Deb’s photo in Twenty Four is one of those landscape images that you can simply look at for hours!
This week’s post in One letter UP – diary 2.0 talks about the serenity of sunsets and demonstrates it beautifully!
In Photo Roberts Blog, we can feel ourselves drawn into the photos and feel the tranquil moments.
Hammad showcases the silence of the blues in his photos in his wonderful Blog of Hammad Rais!
In another great photo, Susan truly captures tranquility in her post in Musin’ with Susan!
With another stunning photo in Land of Imag es, we cherish a rare moment…
In her awesome blog, This is Another Story, Yinglan features some stunning photos that really talk to this week’s theme.
In another wonderful post in ForgivingConnects, Debbie reviews the year and really captures the tranquility that she has achieved!
In a lovely post in A Young Retirement, Bud and Jane definitely found some tranquil spots!
In Sgeoil‘s post we go into Nature for a generous helping of tranquility.
Olga certainly captured a beautifully seren scene in her post in Stuff and what if…, and the poem is icing on the cake!
Ilka’s wonderful post in A Thousand Miles reminisces of her sons’ favorite hiding places when they were little, and their being extra quiet in hopes to not be discovered…
Marie shares a gorgeous photo of a very tranquil kitchen in Aarhus in her post in the New 3R’s: Retire, Recharge, Reconnect!
In a great post in Pictures without Film, we escape the maelstrom of the daily grind in Cornwall with a photo of the engine house at Carn Galver.

I hope that you enjoy these posts and let the authors know!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Round Up 119

Whispering breezes

Welcome to the 119th round up of the Tuesday Photo Challenge! Another wonderful week of responses!

All of your posts were a delight to read both because of their creativity and the thought that you put into them. Their were numerous interpretations of the theme Wind, each one of them interesting and beautiful. Thank you for a great set of entries, and I hope that you’ll enjoy reading each one as much as I did!

Here’s another view of the wind…

This image also came from a nice walk through Tower Hill Botanic Garden, as Autumn was in full swing with its rich color palette! The breeze through the leaves gave me an idea for a slightly different technique to capture the wind…

The following were this week’s participants in the challenge with links to their posts:

In pensivity101‘s very creative post, she covered just about every version of wind that I can think of; go check to see, if she missed one!
Xenia’s post in whippetwisdom provides a wonderful haiku that sings of the wind, as Eivor and Pearl run like the wind. Xenia’s second post in her blog, Tranature, takes a more relaxed view, as things wind down.
Another wonderful post in the Blog of Hammad Rais looks at those wondeful structures that are carried by the wind…
The day is really rather windy in the awesome photo in Land of Images‘ contribution to this week’s challenge.
Another fantastic post in CitySonnet, who clearly has a penchant for waves, as is evident in the great photos!
The windsock gives us a good indication of the weather conditions in another great post in theOnlyD800intheHameau! The drone braves the weather just fine!
Olga shares an awesome event in Stuff and what if…, which is a truly epic celebration!
In Geriatri’X’ Fotogallery, there is evidence of the benefit of the wind and how we can use it!
Another great photo in Chateaux des Fleurs, as we get to see the wind carrying out one of its missions!
Petra’s post in Photoworld vol. 3 laments the lack of wind in serene images, but she did find wind in one of her images!
In Don’t Hold Your Breath, we get to see the clouds from above, as the wind carries them forward!
In a lovely post in MVobsession we get to see wonderful displays of the wind and how we use it.
Kammie’s post in The Nut House shows off the pride of Texas as the breeze is much appreciated!
Jason is taking an anti-rain stance in his post in Proscenium: too much wind and rain has caused such flooding that he’s considering building an ark!
Candace features a rather lovely, winding path in her post in Netdancer’s Musings, which looks very inviting!
Ron knows which way the wind is blowing in his post in Progressing into Solitude, as the vane will tell him!
Sonia finds strength in the wind in her post in Sonia’s Musings, as the wind in her hair gives her the courage to face her fear of heights!
With a wonderful poem in Sync with Deep, we get in touch with the deep universal meaning of the wind’s breath!
In another fantastic post in One letter UP – diary 2.0, we see part of the wind’s effect that we may not appreciate, as the snowdrifts are pretty high!
Cee’s has more wonderful photos on this week’s theme in Cee’s Photography, where we get to see classic, as well as modern!
Stella captures some wonderful sights in Giggles & Tales; a gorgeous windmill and that Danish flag looks stunning!
Carol has a wonderful photo in her post in Light Words, where she talks about the impact of the wind on the flowers she put on her deck…
Tatiana shows off some of the beauty of Cape Bonavista, Newfoundland, in a great post in TravelArtPix; even on a windy day, it looks stunning!
Nicole created both a beautiful poem and photo in her post in Doar Nicole, where she describes a winding breeze!
In Q’s Place we get to experience a classic Dutch windmill in an unusual location: San Francisco!
In her blog Out of my Write Mind, Sandy shows us the tree damage that can occur due to the wind in beautiful photos!
In Na’ama Yehuda‘s post, she shows us the true nature of the wind’s blessing, as sailing is just amazing!
A great post in Wanderlust and Wonderment shows us Glacier Bay and its windy roads on a windy day!
Emily’s post in her blog, Zombie Flamingoes, shares the fun of the wind with us, particularly the kite-boarding!
Susan’s post in Musin’ with Susan shares a great photo of the flags on Pier 39, which looks fantastic!
In a lovely post in Sharing Thoughts, Indira shows us some balloons floating on the wind, as well as an amazing winding road!
With great photos in KameraPromenader, Maria captured the wind in all its glorious detail!
In another great post in WoollyMuses, there’s lots of fun play thanks to the wind! Kitesurfing looks like a lot of fun!
Jessica Marie shares a wonderful photo of her mom and herself on a windy day in Ireland in Once a Day Photos.
Debbie wrote another wonderful post in ForgivingConnects, which focuses on a 3-step tool to help with fogirivng oneself!
Robert shares another amazing photo in his blog Photo Roberts Blog, where he captures the effect of the wind with subtle understatement!
With a great photo in sgeoil, we get to experience the beauty of the wind, echoing the words of Khalil Gibran.
Sonya’s photo in Middleton Road of the sunset with wind turbines is simply stunning in its serene beauty!
Khürt provides a truly stunning set of images in Island in the Net; he documents the Quickchek balloon festival in all its stunning colorful beauty!
In a lovely drawing in Cactus Dreams, we get to see a magnificent bird who is an expert at using the wind!
Ilka describes the winds of change in a beautiful post in A Thousand Miles, as children grow under our eyes.

I hope that you enjoy these posts and let the authors know!

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Heat

Hot days provide hot images!

Welcome to Week 116 of the Tuesday Photo Challenge! The round up from last week’s challenge is queued up for publication later today. There were some amazing colors in those posts!

After a week of color, I’m going for something that is rather topical for this week in New England: Heat! It has been hot and humid here for the past four days and it’s not about to let up. As I have been preparing for a 5K race (race is a relative concept) for today, I’m very familiar with my body’s reaction to these temperatures in the mid-90s (33-35C during this period).

When you think of Heat, what comes to mind? What images do you see and how would you portray it? I’m looking forward to seeing your interpretation of Heat, and, as usual, take it in any direction that you may like! Let your creative ideas flow freely!

Here’s a bit of the warmth for inspiration…

This image came about from a bit of experimentation with my zoom lens, while sitting around a campfire; I had taken some interesting burning wood details shots and decided to try out a zoom blur (I found that there was a name for this technique after taking this set of shots).

The full rules of this challenge are in TPC Guidelines, but here’s the tl;dr:

Write a post with an image for this week’s topic
Please tag your post with fpj-photo-challenge (if you’re not sure about how tags work, please check out this WordPress article about tagging posts)
Create a pingback link to this post, so that I can create a post showing all of the submissions over the week (note: pingbacks may not appear immediately, as my site is set up to require approval for linking to it; helps against previous bad experiences with spamming)
Have fun creating something new (or sharing something old)!!

I’m looking forward to seeing what might ring true in your posts!

Heavy Glow

Through the fog of time

The WordPress Daily Prompt provides the theme of Encrusted, which is a rather interesting theme to find.

Not surprisingly, my first thoughts went to those famous jewel-encrusted crowns and swords of the fantasies of the Middle Ages. This brought me on the path that I usually take, when looking at thematic images: go for a browse through my somewhat extensive image library.

This search led me to encounter the image that I feature here…

Heavy-Glow-in-Leaves_DSF2317 — *Heavy Glow*

Of course, you are right to question what this has to do with the theme! When I think of jewel-encrusted objects, I see the light that creates specular highlights across the various gems, creating a sea of beauty! This image immediately connected me to that across the fog of time….

Have a wonderful day!