Fresh Start

I can't believe I'm typing a post on St. Patrick's Day while it is snowing outside!  Dear Spring, whatever we have done to upset you, please accept our sincerest apologies and come back, we miss you!

These pictures are almost 2 weeks old, from when we had our last snowstorm.  This snow is even heavier, and as of now we have about 5 inches on the ground and it's still spitting snow.  It is lovely though, I have to admit that much.

The last of the Tundra Swans said goodbye to us late last week, and though I will miss them and the lovely calls they make to one another, it does mean that spring must be just around the corner.

I know this not only because of the swans' departure, but because this guy paid us a visit last Saturday when the weather was nice and balmy. Sorry for the brown lines in the foreground on this image, those are the grasses that line our shore, and I was too lazy to photoshop them out.

We've seen a number of nesting pairs of Osprey high up in their abandoned perches from last summer, a sure sign that warmer temps are on their way.  I'm betting the early arrivals are wondering if perhaps they should have stayed down south just a few days longer since they are now likely huddled up trying to keep warm.

Last week I was huddled up myself, and wondering if a visit to the hospital might not be in order.  I managed to make it through Sunday, and on Monday, first thing, I was at the doctor's office where he diagnosed me with 2 flu bugs and a sinus infection!  Mr. Tide reminded me that my overachiever personality could leave illnesses out of my repertoire...and after feeling like I'd been hit by a truck, or 2, I wholeheartedly agree!

I laid in bed for days and watched almost every movie Netflix has to offer I think.  Some of them were good, others were just a way to kill the time since I wasn't even feeling up to using my laptop.

After a week of being bored to tears, but being smart enough to take it easy, we ventured out to buy groceries and birdseed yesterday.  I really didn't believe we would get much snow, but mother nature proved me wrong and wanted me to take it easy an extra few days I think.  

I think it was her way of giving us one last blast of winter to remind us of how wonderful springtime will be this year...a fresh start of sorts for things to come.

I hope all is well in your world and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Birdsong

There's not much new to report from my neck of the woods.

The weather has warmed up, but the fog and the rain quickly rolled in shortly after I took these images a few days ago, so it's been rather bleak around here.

I'm on deadline for a story, and because procrastination is my middle name, I've been busy surfing websites hunting for end of season deals instead of taking pictures to accompany my story...I blame the lousy weather for not allowing me to take good pics and finish my assignment! ;-)

We filled the bird feeders before the bitter cold and light dusting of snow hit last week, and the birds all seem appreciative of our efforts.  I don't even know what kind of bird this little guy pictured above is, any birders out there that can help me out?

Of course I always know this bird when I see it, and I always smile when a bluebird graces me with his or her presence.  I think they secretly know that just a little flash of their bold blue feathers will help bolster me throughout the day and remind me that the colors of spring must be just around the corner!

I'm off now to do some cleaning, and to talk myself out of a pair of boots I've been eyeing for 2 months now.  Sure, they are on sale, but they aren't dirt cheap yet, and that's the only way I like my after season sales items...so Coach, if you're listening...please take 90% off of all your boots so that I can get my work done...ok?!...and thanks in advance!

Happy Weekend!

Thankful

With Thanksgiving just a few days away I have much to be thankful for.  First off I had yummy food to eat all week including the juicy grapefruit pictured above...sometimes the simple things in life are the best!

On Thursday, I finally found out that someone did in fact choose my artwork at the fundraiser last month.  I was thrilled to hear that someone liked the picture enough to want to hang it in their home or office!

I am thankful that the weather was warm enough last week for me to sit outside with the dogs a bit and capture some bird images...I just never tire of seeing them flit from tree to tree.  The weather has taken a dramatic turn and is now very windy and cold, so I'm grateful for those sun filled warm days we had.

And I was happy that I felt like doing some post processing and playing around with one of the images of a bluebird.  I'm always grateful for the bluebirds, they were one of my mother's favorite birds and always remind me of her.

But more than anything, I am grateful that my husband returned from a trip to Russia safe and sound.  His job is very demanding and he often goes to far flung places with just a few hours notice, so it makes life interesting and sometimes a little stressful.  When he left last weekend we weren't sure he would be home in time for Thanksgiving, but as luck would have it he was able to come home last night, which was earlier than expected, and for that I am so very thankful!

I'm pretty sure that in the photo above taken early last week, Quinn was wishing that Mr. Tide would come home soon...he is thankful to have him home too!

I hope you each have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

All Work and No Play...

Can I just say that I've been busting my hump cleaning my house for the last few days.  We have company coming, so I've been getting to all of the nooks and crannies that we tend to gloss over when we are just cleaning for ourselves.  I won't even tell you how long I spent cleaning my kitchen...you might think I was working backwards or sleeping on my counters with all the time I spent in there.  And I bet that if any one of you popped by, you would still be able to find stuff I missed...I'm blaming failing eyesight on this, not my lack of ability!

But here's the thing with cleaning...the more you do, the more you need to do...know what I mean?!  You clean the fridge, which leads to wiping down all your cabinetry, which leads to oiling your soapstone counters....and on, and on, and on.

I will also add that as I get older, well I find I take a fair number of breaks.  Sometimes it's as simple as checking my email, while other times I escape to my backyard with my camera in hand.  And I will also tell you that a certain husband doesn't help in this "pacing" ie. procrastination, because he does things like send me texts informing me of such things as..."the heron is back!"  Sheesh, as if I didn't already give myself license to avoid cleaning, he's now actively encouraging me to slack off.

But you know what they say about all work and no play...and I have to assure you that I am NOT a dull boy...quite the opposite in fact.

Ok, back to cleaning...or maybe Pinterest...I think he just texted me about something cool on Pinterest...yup, I hear my phone dinging!

P.S. Oh, and in case you are wondering...yes he cleans too...he's very helpful that way, he's just better at finding distractions than I am. ;-)

Follow the Light

A walk through my yard and down our lane, followed by a drive to our farm property today provided me with lots of pretty things to photograph.

One of the greatest gifts photography has bestowed upon me, besides the ability to freeze time, is awareness.  As a freelance magazine writer since the 90s...gulp, has it been that long?!...I had to be aware, observant, etc. in order to visually capture through words written in a notebook what a home's interior looked like so that I could write about it later.

But it wasn't until I picked up a camera that I really became fully aware of my surroundings. 

There is a well known bit of wisdom that photographers quickly learn, and that is to follow the light.  For a photographer, light is everything.  It sets the mood, determines if you can get the shot, and by learning to follow it, you learn to see it everywhere you go.

You become so keenly aware of how important it is to the craft, especially if you are a natural light photographer, that you begin to lament the setting sun each day.  I will sometimes think, "Darn it, I wanted to take a picture of the way the light hits those roses but it's getting too dark now!"

And although there are lots of nifty gadgets and post processing programs out there to help you "create" the light you want in an image, nothing beats the real deal.

I once read that National Geographic won't even consider wildlife images that aren't captured right around sunrise or sunset, also known as the golden hours.  Now, I have no clue if that's true, but it does make sense, because light is truly that important to giving you the right shadows, contrast, and warmth that takes a good photo and makes it spectacular.

I love that following the light has made me slow down and appreciate the subtle nuances of each day and the ebb and flow of light as it plays off everything from flowers to dragonflies.

And I hope to one day figure out how to master it, so that I can capture starlight better and those twinkling lightning bugs.  I don't think I'll ever be so old that I won't giggle at the sight of those magical creatures who light up the night sky each summer, so to be able to capture a whole fairyland of lightning bugs with my camera would totally rock!

Maybe that is why we use light related phrases to denote pleasant things, like

...he is the light of my life

...she had a twinkle in her eye

...my grandchildren are so bright

and so on.  Because light really is that important, and when people lack it they feel sad, lonely, and detached.

Whatever the reason we are drawn to its power, I hope that I never stop following the light...because wherever it goes...surely I must follow!

Because so many of you have requested that I turn my comments back on, I have decided to do that.  Please know that if I don't reply to them, it's not because I don't appreciate each and every one of them, but just as the light fades each day, so do I...and you can only do what you can do, right?! 

xo Kat

Blogger and Other Things that Aren't Working for Me

So if you've been following my blog for any length of time than you already know that email and I are often at odds with one another.  It's a fact I've come to accept, but I've never been happy about it.  Aside from my email woes, I've never had too many problems with other electronic aspects of my life, except for an occasional glitch here or there...and the fact that I can never spell occasional correctly the first time!

Anyway, last night, after having dinner with our kids I was sitting on the couch watching a show when my phone alerted me to some voice-mails.  No biggie, I get voice-mail messages all the time, but when I listened to the 3 on my phone they were all wishing me a Happy Birthday.  Sounds good right...until you factor in the fact that my birthday was almost 5 weeks ago, and the messages were left for me in early December but were just now showing up!  Ugh!

Then today, I was looking at my blog and debating on putting up another bird pic post, when I noticed I had 9 comments on my last post.  I thought it must be a typo since I had only received a few email alerts that I had comments.  Lo and behold I've been missing comments left and right it seems because I'm not being notified by Blogger that they are coming in.  And better still...gmail in its infinite wisdom has decided to throw a bunch of emails into my junk folder for no apparent reason.  Thank goodness I decided to see what else I'd been missing, there were tons of them in there that are NOT junk!

And, I've been pinning a bunch of images I took in France over on pinterest, but I'm not sure that people can see them because I normally get email alerts when people repin stuff.  So maybe Pinterest isn't working for me either?!

Who knows, but aside from the woodpecker above coming to the feeder more regularly, things seem to not be working out around here.  I think the lion above can relate...he looks a little cranky too!

If you want to see more of my France pictures, I'm adding more to Pinterest each day, in my board entitled Paris Perfection.  Feel free to click HERE to repin them or to follow along.

The Weekend

Nothing much to say I'm afraid.  My days are filled with napping, sipping tea, writing, and an occasional walk outside, but not for long since it's too cold!  The sun was shining today though, so I felt compelled to at least get some fresh air and try to capture a few of the birds who are devouring the feed we've been putting out.  I think we may be contributing to avian obesity...they love this new bird seed we found at our local Giant Grocery store!

Wishing you each a very Happy Weekend!

Driving Me to Drink

So creating 350 images with borders and ready to print for the printer is no easy or quick task!  I've had my rear end stuck to this office chair for the past few days/weeks and I'm starting to think that at any moment it might become a permanent fixture the next time I get up!

I have ventured out, I had to or I would have completely lost my sanity.  But it's been to places like the chiropractor's office, to take the dogs out, or to get something to eat when I actually remember to eat.

After so many days of constant interaction with my newest friend Photoshop, I forced myself to pick up the camera and head outside for a much needed mental break.  And as I wandered around our backyard in my too short sweatpants and big bulky coat, I took a moment to decompress and look around for something, anything to shoot. 

My neighbor loves it when I am in the middle of a working frenzy...she can always tell because my hair looks like I haven't brushed it...because I haven't, and you never know what I will be wearing.  If I had to describe my look on these sorts of days, I would say that it's somewhere between crazy cat lady and eccentric millionaire, sadly without the millions.

She never questions it though, but often phones me when I go back inside...maybe to see if she needs to call the loony bin?!  Either way I appreciate the phone calls as they give me another chance to avoid working for a bit.

While out on my adventure this afternoon, I was treated to a visit by a lovely woodpecker.  The original photo is at the top of the post, but I preferred the image with a little texture added.  One of my goals for our upcoming trip is to visit a few flea markets and find some great old French ephemera to use as textures.  I have quite a bit already, but you can never have too much.

For both of these images, I actually used other people's textures, but I prefer to use ones I've sourced myself.  Plus I just love the look of beautiful old documents, postcards, and letters from by gone eras, and hope to frame some of the pieces I have one of these days.

Woodpeckers are often as elusive as good ephemera, and they like sitting high up in the trees, making them difficult to capture without lots of cropping.  Still, I love to hear their distinctive calls and the tap, tap, tapping on the trees as they hunt for insects.  This little guy was happily flitting from treetop to treetop looking for the juiciest worms, ants, or whatever he could find.

It's amazing how stepping outside for just 20 short minutes can give you the oomph you need to come back inside and keep working.  And now that the sun has set and it's too dark for picture taking, I am using a different secret weapon...I'm enjoying a nice cold cider... Strongbow to be exact.

I still have 24 more images to create and although I'm a complete lightweight when it comes to drinking, I decided to grab a hard cider left over from Thanksgiving and sip it slowly while I work.  The crisp apple taste pares well with photo editing I think.  ;-)

Don't forget that there is still time to use the 10% discount I am offering on any gallery wrapped canvas available in my new shop.  And should you prefer something from my photography website that isn't offered yet on Low Tide High Style, you can simply shoot me an email and I will have that created for you instead. 

The code for 10% off is LTHS10

Enjoy your evening!

********************

Looking for Unique Artwork for your Home?

Visit us at Low Tide High Style 

 

Does She or Doesn't She?

Thank you every one for your wonderful comments on my last post, you guys make my day, and for that I am forever grateful!

One of the comments from my last post was from my sweet friend Loi who you all may know from the fabulous blog and shop Tone on Tone.   He asked if the image of bluebirds was a single image, or if I had merged more than one image to incorporate the 2 birds.  It's a great question, and I'm so glad he asked it.

 

                        (same image as the first one but cropped and desaturated except for the bird)                        

Although I do post process nearly all of my images, I have to admit that I've not mastered the craft and real art form of merging different elements from several images without things looking "shopped."  Some photographers cringe at the thought of merging several images to create one finished image, but I don't subscribe to that theory...I'm just not handy enough to be able to do it well.  It is even thought that the renowned photographer Ansel Adams did this in order to get that perfect shot.

So none of the images I post either on my blog, or on my website have elements from one image overlayed into another image...but maybe one day!  Have you ever seen an amazing image with the perfect full moon...it may just be the combination of several images, and I think that's cool! 

Now, the artwork I create with Mary Beth is created using lots of layers....sometimes more than 100, but when it comes to cutting and pasting with more realistic imagery, well I'm a bit of a flop at it so I stick with basic textures and actions to create each picture.

But that's not to say that you can't do plenty with textures and actions, which in its own way is the baby step program into combining images.  As you can see in this post, taking a basic image and "playing" with it in PS or PSE can be very rewarding and it can give your images a whole new look.

So for now I will be content with creating images that rely on all of the elements being in the shot from the get go.  Am I confusing you, because I'm starting to be a little confused myself!

One day I hope to be skilled enough to take a bluebird from one shot, a flower from another, and the moon in another and pull them altogether into one amazing shot.  I just have to wait until I can create something that someone with even the keenest eye would say to themselves...."hmm, does she or doesn't she?!"  Don't hold your breath though, it will be a long time coming! :-)

I hope you all have a very Happy Weekend.  There are lots of cool flea markets in my neck of the woods this weekend so I might just get into a bit of trouble!

Humming Along

Hello there, how is everyone?!  Things here have been crazy around here, some good crazy and some bad...but mostly good.

We bought a hummingbird feeder, and that has been both good and bad.  I love seeing these delicate little creatures as they come to feed at our feeder, but man are they hard to photograph.

They are so darned fast and not keen on humans, so trying to take pictures from afar and in the evening light, when they seem to feed the most, is a bit trying on my patience.  I've decided that in the winter the swans are my photo nemesis' (or is that nemisi?) and in the summer these little buggers will do everything in their power to elude my lens.

Oh well, it gives me something to do, right...and it keeps me out of trouble!

The past few weeks have been filled with all sorts of things, like photo shoots until 3 am, and then right back at it the following morning.  Collaborating with a dear friend on some artwork...something I love doing these days, and working, working, working!

   

 

We also had some bad things happen in the past few weeks, friends and acquaintances who passed, some who had lived very long and interesting lives, and others taken too soon by the ravages of cancer.

Our dear neighbor George was one of those who lived a long and interesting life.  When we moved into this house 5 years ago, George was a spry 95 years young, living completely independently, driving his sweet dog to obedience each week, and tending to his beautiful garden.  I'll never forget that at our Christmas party he showed our son his itouch and told him that when the newest model came out he would sell him his old one for a good price.

Because George was one of the oldest living WWII veterans, I had the opportunity to interview him for a magazine, and what I learned was that George wasn't just any WWII veteran, he was the Forrest Gump of soldiers, having seen action in some of the most hostile and critical arenas of the war, and bearing witness to things most people only see in movies.  From there he ended up in India for a few years, and through all of his experiences he embraced moving forward, choosing not to dwell in the past.

He used to joke that he would make it to 100 or die trying, and it was that great sense of humor I will miss at our neighborhood gatherings.  George did indeed make it to his 100th birthday last December when his family hosted a wonderful celebration of his long and storied life.  In true George fashion, he made it to 100 and a half, passing away on the exact date that he turned that impressive age.

I don't think George ever really knew how much of an impact he had on those around him, how much of an inspiration he was, and what an example he set for embracing life no matter what age it says you are on a piece of paper.

He didn't complain about technology, but instead embraced it.  He didn't let a number dictate what he could or couldn't do, he simply lived life the way he wanted too and I firmly believe that it was that attitude that kept him healthy up until just a few months before his passing.  George lived completely independently until his 100th birthday when he decided to move to an assisted living facility, still tending his garden, driving, and caring for his beloved dachshund, and constant companion Hummel.

We could all learn a little bit from George as we frantically go buzzing through life like a little hummingbird.  He taught me to live the life I have right now instead of wasting time pining for the past or longing for the future.  He taught me to embrace change and to move with the times. But the most important thing he taught me was that no matter what your age, you can do anything you set your mind to, that the limit is not in the number, but in how we perceive the number.

If you don't believe me, that age is just a number, please read the short article linked HERE and watch a bit of the video which was shot at an obedience trial when George was 98 years old!!!  He was so proud of this video and showed it to us on his itouch...RIP George, though you are gone you have inspired so many and your legacy will live on forever, you will be greatly missed!

Yesterday, before I got going for the day I noticed a few visitors down by the water...a lovely Great Egret aka Great White Egret aka Great White Heron.  Apparently this species of egret needs a few aliases, hmm makes you wonder why?! ;)

These lovely birds are so graceful and elegant, and after reading a little about them today I realized that I had accidentally captured something exciting...see that green around his/her eyes?   That is referred to as the Lores...or feathers between the eye and bill, and it is normally yellow in color on the Great Egret, except when it's mating season, then it turns the lovely shade of green you see above!

There were actually 3 Great Egrets just off of our pier yesterday, but I only got close enough to one of them to snap a few pictures.  I kept my distance, but eventually it took off with one of the other egrets and down the creek it went.

I just love where I live and all that it has to offer, I consider myself more than a little lucky and oh so fortunate!

To be able to look out my back door and see such beauty, and learn something new...like what color a Great Egret's Lores are during mating season...wow, how cool is that?!

Of course I never leave well enough alone, and have to play around with my images, but by doing so it makes me discover even more about my subject matter, and I love that too!

I also stumbled across this lovely poem by poet Judith Wright (who it seems was not just a wonderful poet, but a great woman!) while looking up info on Great Egrets.

Once as I travelled through a quiet evening,
I saw a pool, jet-black and mirror-still.
Beyond, the slender paperbarks stood crowding;
each on its own white image looked its fill,
and nothing moved but thirty egrets wading -
thirty egrets in a quiet evening.

Once in a lifetime, lovely past believing,
your lucky eyes may light on such a pool.
As though for many years I had been waiting,
I watched in silence, till my heart was full
of clear dark water, and white trees unmoving,
and, whiter yet, those thirty egrets wading.

Happy Spring

(little birdie texture from French Kiss)

Can you believe it's the first day of Spring?!  All I can say is YAY!  Happy First Day of Spring to those of us in the northern hemisphere!

Thank you everyone for your lovely comments about my macro shots.  It's not that I wasn't happy with them, but when Blogger gets a hold of images, it either samples them or compresses them, I'm not sure which, but the result is that the images are degraded from how they look outside of blogger.  Usually I don't care, but with macro shots, clean crisp images are the name of the game.

Now, get outside and enjoy this first day of Spring...that's what I'm going to do!

Time Marches On

Today was absolutely glorious...70 degrees, clear blue skies, and a lovely breeze all made it as close to a perfect day as anyone could wish for.

Not only is it the 1st of March, but today it just felt like spring had finally arrived.  You could sense the world coming back to life.  There are nests being built...

Lawn chairs are waiting at the ready.

The pups sense it too, and want to be outside all of the time now.

The water seems more blue somehow...

And little birds perch on nearly every branch singing their little hearts out...

Smells that haven't been smelled since last year at this time are emerging and curious noses need to breathe in the promise of renewal...

And branches are unable to hide their new colorful springtime attire.

But better than all of that was seeing the sun still high in the sky even though the clock said it should be getting dark...oh how I love you sunshine and long, light filled days!

Happy March Everyone!!!