Sunshine on My Shoulders

This morning I was up with the sun.  I'm not sure why, but there was no going back to sleep, even though I was dog tired!

So with the house dark and quiet, I nudged the dogs, grabbed my camera, and off we went down to the dock.  It wasn't a spectacular sunrise, no real bells or whistles.

But theoretically speaking isn't every day that we get to see the sun rise a special day?  My dogs think so!  Mr. Quinn gazed upon the flickering rays of light as they streamed through the trees.

And I marveled at the fact that no matter how young or old, how rich or poor, how sick or well, we almost all feel better when the sun touches our skin or when we get a glimpse of its powerful rays.

Now I know the sun can damage, it can be harsh and unyielding, even deadly, but there is just something about it that draws me in.

Maybe it's the way it illuminates people, places, animals (like Miss Kylee here), even things that makes it so special.  Everything takes on a different look when it is gently kissed by its light.

Or maybe it's the life giving properties it possesses to make things grow and blossom.

Whatever it is, the sun has me greatly enamored, beholden, and truly devoted to it.

No matter how many times I see the sunrise, walk outside at high noon, or watch the sun melt out of sight in a kaleidoscope of color, I am happy it continues to shine down upon me!

I hope each of you found your own little ray of sunshine today! :-)

In case you haven't noticed, I'm having WAY too much fun with new watermark fonts!  You can go here to find your own great fonts to use!

1001 Free Fonts

or here...

Moorstation

What's On The Agenda

Hello bloggy friends!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

This morning and afternoon I will be helping my two sisters clean out my parent's house and start getting it ready to put up for sale.  That means sorting through kitchen wares, books, dishes, you name it.  And then, we'll be ripping down lots of wallpaper!

Not exciting enough for ya?  Well here is a little run down of my weekend and the week ahead.

Saturday evening - House photo shoot for the blog (you guys will love this house!).

Sunday - 3 house photo shoots...yes 3!!! 

Monday - House interview for magazine.

Tuesday - House photo shoot.

Wednesday - Breathe...maybe!

Thursday - Bed and Breakfast photo shoot 2 1/2 hours away!

Friday - Store photo shoot, and two scouting photo shoots of houses, 2 hours away in the opposite direction of Thursday's shoot!

Saturday - Barn show...I hope!

Sunday - Breakfast in bed, back rub, some hammock time, and NOTHING on the agenda!

What do you have planned for this weekend and next week?!

Scott Kelby Is My Hero, A Giveaway, and A Winner

Photo:  Scott Kelby Training

When I started my blog a few months ago I was a photography noob, someone who knew how to remove the lens cap and push the button to take a picture, but little else!  We had purchased a nice Canon Rebel XTI SLR camera a few years ago when I went to visit our daughter in Europe, and I even thought I took pretty good pictures until I started visiting some blogs and realized I didn't know my head from a hole in the ground when it came to taking great pictures.

Then in true "Kat" fashion I began messing around with Photoshop Elements, also not really knowing what I was doing and refusing to read any instructions or manuals, but I wanted to grow and learn.  Thankfully, I married a man who reads ALL of the instructions, even when I make fun of him, and he slowly began telling me how I could use different settings and actually using some of the millions of buttons on the camera to get even better photos.

This resulted in some better photos, and some that were worse, yup... again, with the not reading instructions thing!  Apparently the camera's white balance got set to something wacky and so some of my photos ended up looking like I was Picasso and going through my very own "blue" period!   Remember the shots from my seaside tablescape?  See the picture below...yikes!

 Taken before Scott Kelby came in to my life!

Taken using full zoom with 17 - 70 macro lens

So, after realizing that I wasn't going to become a better photographer by simply looking at other people's work, and also realizing that I couldn't keep calling Mr. Tide and saying things like "hey look at this picture on this blog, how did they get the pale pinks to pop out like that?!"  To which he would calmly try and walk me through it over the phone and I would end up saying oh forget it, and go right back to the automatic settings!

Taken using 17 - 70 Sigma lens

Finally, after a few months of asking other people whose photographic skills I admired and envied about what resources they used, I kept hearing one name over and over again.  They all said "Get Scott Kelby's digital photography book!"

So who was this Scott Kelby guy anyway, and why were his books any better than the rest of the plethora of books available on the market about how to take better pictures?!  Couldn't I just go online and find this info, did I really need a book?!  After my "cheap" side was done talking, my "need to take better pictures" side piped up and said order the dang book!  And I did!

Ok, I know that I'm a writer and all, but let's just say that I'm not much of a reader.  If a house in a magazine really strikes my fancy I might read the whole article, but I'm more of a captions kind of gal!  Shhh, don't tell anyone though!  So I wondered if I would even read this book once it arrived.

Taken using 17 - 70 Sigma lens

But when Scott Kelby's book, simply titled The Digital Photography Book, Volume 1, came in the mail, it was like an alien entered my body and I couldn't put the thing down!  I was reading it constantly, and if I could have figured out a way to read and drive, trust me I would have, it was that good!

Not only is Scott hilarious, but he presents the information in his book so that anyone can understand it.  He has taken all the technical jargon and put it into a format where even I could understand it!  And I spent the first few days after I got the book in the mail running around and trying everything he suggested and reciting passages to Mr. Tide like I had just joined some sort of photography cult where Scott Kelby was the guru!

Taken using full zoom with 17 -70  macro lens 

It turns out that Scott Kelby is to digital photography what Paula Deen is to cooking!  He doesn't fancy up his book with a bunch of terms that boggle the mind, and instead serves up good common sense advice that helps you create amazing photographs!  Even if you don't have a fancy schmancy $5,000 camera (which I don't!) with every piece of available equipment (and who does, besides the pros?!) you can benefit from his practical advice and be taking better pictures within hours of receiving his book.

Taken using full zoom with Canon image stabilized 70 -300 lens

Now you might think that Scott is secretly paying me to say such nice things about him, but I swear he isn't.  It's just that I have been so completely impressed by how his advice has helped me in such a short time, that I know it will help you too if you're interested in taking better pictures.

So I have a little something for you my bloggy friends!  Scott Kelby has given me a signed copy of his book, The Digital Photography Book, Volume 1, to give away to one lucky winner!!!  He has other volumes, but this one will help get you started and make you want to become a member of the Scott Kelby fan club...I'm the new president! ;-)

 Taken using full zoom 17 - 70 macro lens

I have a long way to go and lots to learn about taking photos, but all of the photos above (except the yucky "blue" one) are examples of how Scott's book has helped me to take better photos.  And the most amazing part is that I've only had his book for a little over 2 weeks!  Do I sound like the Sham Wow guy yet?!  You see, Scott Kelby is my new hero and he will be yours too if you get his book!

 Taken using full zoom 17 - 70 macro lens

So in order to be entered to win the autographed copy of Scott Kelby's amazing and informative book all you need to do is.

1.  Leave a comment telling me what you want to improve about your own photos.

2.  For a second chance to win Tweet, Facebook, or post about the giveaway on your blog and be sure to come back and let me know by leaving a second comment.

I would like to give a special thanks to Scott Kelby and Kathy, his assistant, for providing me with a signed copy of his wonderful book!

The contest will be open until Monday, April 19th at Midnight PST!   



And I also want to announce the winner of last week's giveaway, the beautiful earrings from Scarborough Seashells!

The winner is Linda from Itsy Bits and Pieces!  Congrats Linda!  Please email me your address!

Happy Easter

Have faith in yourself.

Find blessings in all that you have.

Learn to love unconditionally.

And be all that you were intended to be today and every day.

Religion is not the stick by which to measure others, but one which should be used to measure oneself.

Happy Easter

Kat :)

Belles Fleurs and a Winner

Today was cold and rainy, like late March and early April can be in our area.  Yesterday Mr. Tide and I stopped by to visit an old friend of my mother's.  She is in her 80s and is slowly trying to become a retired florist.  The problem is that she does such beautiful arrangements that no one will let her completely retire.  Truth be told, she still enjoys doing flowers for people and it really keeps her young.

After visiting with her for awhile and talking about everything flower, family, and yard related, she insisted that we go downstairs and get some Ranunculus from her big walk in cooler.  She had ordered some for a funeral arrangement she was asked to do this week and then decided not to use them.  I love Ranunculus and think they are one of the most beautiful flowers going so I was more than happy to take them off her hands.

When I got up this morning I transferred the flowers into a large glass vase and didn't really even bother to arrange them.  Sometimes I think that flowers just need to find their own place in a vase and not be told exactly which spot to occupy or how straight to stand.

As always, I played around with the settings on my camera and used different backgrounds to highlight the flowers.  I recently purchased a digital photography book by Scott Kelby and he recommends shooting flowers with a white or black background so I tried both.

It's amazing the variations in colors and textures you get by just using different settings on the camera.

Although the white background pictures are lovely, it's the ones with the black backdrop that I think really highlight how beautiful the Ranunculus are.

Nothing adds color and beauty to a house quite like a fresh bouquet of flowers.  This weekend I will be running around taking our son to look at different colleges and universities so that he can decide where he wants to attend next Fall.

I hope each of you find a little color and beauty for yourselves this weekend.

It's time for Mellow Yellow Monday.

And before I leave you, I wanted to thank everyone who entered to win my latest giveaway and to announce the winner of the napkin holder from Lola Belle Co.

And the winner is...#26 Laura.  Congratulations Laura!!!

Laura said... 26

Hi- My last picnic was eating outside while at a flea market. We had a blast. I love your blog and was a follower before the giveaway- Laura White Spray Paint

Life is a Highway

 

You know me, I'm always using song lyrics as post titles.  These things just pop into my head when I'm thinking up what to call a particular post.

Yesterday, Mr. Tide and I headed up to Washington, D.C. for a doctor's appointment.  It was a beautiful sunny day and so we had the windows down, the radio on, and camera in hand...well my hand anyway since he was driving.

I realized two very important things yesterday.  One, that I am really lousy at taking photos from a moving vehicle, and two, that there is nothing quite like coming home after a long drive on a sunny spring day.  In our busy day to day lives we sometimes are rushing around so much that we forget to slow up the pace and really converse with one another.  So I love it when Mr. Tide, or my kids and I are held captive in a car for a few hours so that we can really talk and get caught up on life.

We saw this handsome statue in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia as we headed down the GW Parkway.  I love the green patina on the beautiful bronze.

Old Town Alexandria is an eclectic area, steeped in history but full of wonderful shops and restaurants that range from traditional to hip and funky.  To see much more of Old Town Alexandria's wonderful architecture and a whole series of great photos of D.C. and Old Town, head over to Punctuation Mark's wonderful blog!

My appointment was actually on the northwest side of D.C. so we skirted the city and had a few glimpses of the monuments as we passed by.  These shots were all taken while Mr. Tide navigated the traffic.  If you've never driven in D.C. at rush hour...well you really haven't lived, because it will get your adrenalin flowing!

I loved how these stones looked at one of the many overpasses you travel under on the GW Parkway.

You can see the Jefferson Memorial above, and the cherry blossoms which are just starting to show some color!

D.C. has some beautiful architecture including the Arlington Memorial Bridge which spans the Potomac River and connects D.C. and Virginia.  You can also see the Lincoln Memorial in the distance.

I sometimes forget that the same river the flows between the District and northern Virginia is what separates Maryland and Virginia down in my neck of the woods.  Up north, the river is a calm relatively narrow river where rocks provide a place for birds to sunbathe.  Down my way, the river is five miles wide from shore to shore and churns with the same strength as an ocean with waves and beautiful white caps depending on the weather and wind direction.

After spending the day "up town" as we like to call it, I was happy to leave the hustle and bustle of city life to come back downstream to the quiet of the country.

Although I could imagine myself owning a city apartment somewhere in the world where I could go for visits, I know that I'm a country girl at heart.

I need fresh air, wide open spaces, and plenty of crickets chirping.  So I'm happy that life is a highway and I get to experience the best of both worlds with only a few hours of travel.  Where has life's highway taken you lately?

I also want to thank the very talented Chania from Razmataz who recently gave me a wonderful Sunshine Award!  Thank you Chania, your blog is truly an inspiration and ray of sunshine in my life!

And for those of you who just love it when I mention a song as my post title, here ya go!...

Signs of Spring

It seems that everywhere I look these days people are writing about, photographing, or talking about Spring, at least if you live in the Northern Hemisphere anyway.  Spring and Summer are my two favorite seasons.  I love being able to throw open the windows, catch lightning bugs, walk barefoot through the grass, or simply sit outside and enjoy the chirping of crickets or the croaking frogs.

Each year, while other people are enjoying winter sports such as ice skating and skiing, I'm surfing the net or the horizon for any sign of springtime and warm weather.  I've always been a warm weather kind of person, the hotter the better.  I don't mind humidity, hot pavement, or having my electric bill go sky high because of  the need to run the air conditioner full blast.

This past weekend was our first real taste of the warm weather to come.  It was nearly 75 degrees with clear sunny skies, and I was loving every minute of it.  I threw open windows in every room of the house, cranked open the sunroof on my car, and put on a short sleeve shirt.   This is my kind of weather, when everything that's been sleepy and hibernating are raring and ready to go again!

I decided to make hay while the sun was shining and went outside to take a few pictures.  Because I know that if there is one thing you can count on about Maryland weather, it's that those first few warms days will not last for long.  The cold winds and rain of springtime will come rushing back, just when you thought it was safe to pack up all of your sweaters and galoshes.  Today it poured down rain and we had thunder and lightning to go along with the wind and water.  So I'm glad I enjoyed the sunshine and took advantage of the picture taking opportunity when I could.

Where we live now the seasons aren't marked so much by the weather or what is in bloom, but more so by what wildlife is here on the property.  The arrival of Canada Geese marks the arrival of Fall each year, the swans mean that Winter is in full swing, and the return of the Osprey is a sure sign that springtime is upon us.

Each year when the osprey return I have mixed feelings.  On the one hand I'm happy to see any sign of spring, but on the other hand I know it means they will be staking their claim to the big dead tree in our backyard.  It's their nest that rests way up high in the branches of the huge old dead tree and so they quickly invite the eagles to find other perches to fish from until the osprey leave in October.  Although the eagles are much larger birds of prey, they are woefully outnumbered by the very pushy osprey and quickly move on to avoid the aggravation.  There have already been a few sparing matches the last few days between these two majestic species, but in the end numbers win out and the eagles move on.

I also saw these on the creek this weekend, another sure sign that warmer weather is on it's way!

While I was out enjoying the weather, I decided to try some of the settings on my camera.  Ever since I've been taking pictures for my blog, I have this strong desire to really play around with my camera and the myriad of settings you can use.  I'm sure to the trained professional's eye these are really bad photos, but even Ansel Adams had to start somewhere!

I may not know anything about shutter speeds or apertures but I do know that I see the world through different eyes now that I've started becoming more interested in photography.

Simple things like an old dead tree

With thousands of woodpecker holes

Or gnarled bark have become art for me.

And grass, sprouting through an old chunk of brick

Part of someone else's pier which has washed ashore

Or the old rusted hinge on a bird feeder have all become things of beauty in my eyes.

Maybe it's just that I'm aging, slowing down ever so gradually and taking the time to savor all that is around me and the changing seasons of my own life in relation to the changing seasons of nature.  Whatever the cause, I'm enjoying the affect.  If it means I can embrace all the beauty that surrounds me, even in the smallest and simplest of things, I like it.  Amidst the chaos of our lives, I hope each of you are able to stop, for just a moment wherever you are right now, to enjoy the simple beauty that surrounds you.

Don't forget, there is still time to enter my current Giveaway...click HERE to find out more! 

It's time for Outdoor Wednesday at A Southern Daydreamer.