Noticed a couple of pairs of windows (or are those doors at the top of the silo?) at the farms near us. Thought I would record them for this week's theme. Decided the simplicity of black and white set them off best.
0 Comments
We are still on the "Windows and Doors" theme, so I thought I would use the outside of the same window I used earlier this week. So I waited for dusk and head out. I took this one on the left, which is a WINDOW with flowers. Next I took a flashlight to handhold and highlight the flowers, and snapped the bottom one which I see as a shot of FLOWERS with a window! On a wander around the yard, I noticed these "doors". I am not sure who's abode they are, for sure, but I think the above is where our resident opossum lives when he is not checking out the droppings from the bird feeders. To the right is one of the many large tree stumps. these holes could be homes to many different birds or small mammals... and maybe several sequentially! It wouldn't be right to try to fulfill our latest challenge of "Doors and Windows" without revisited the best building in Wisconsin; the State Capital. So I headed down yesterday and looked at it just from the viewpoint of doors and windows. What fun and what details.
Another new theme this week... windows and doors. This should be fun!
So lets start with some close-ups of the garage door. Killing two birds with one stone here. Recording some artifacts of our lives and practicing some low-light photos. We are cleaning the garages for the next sale, and going in there at the end of the day, there was a museum quality to the low natural light, so I snapped some quick ones. One night driving around, I came upon this herd of cattle. I absolutely love them. There seems to be one of every possible coloring and they are so sweet. Today I went to check on them, and they were all laying down in the field. I stopped my car and got our, and they all immediately got up to check out who was visiting. SO they gently posed for many portraits...
I had an hour to kill between errands and appointments yesterday. Fortunately that put me right outside the zoo! Madison, WI is one of the few places that has free admission to their zoo, so it is possible to just stop in for a quick peek. Henry Vilas Park Zoo is a real treasure. I have always loved the tortoise, and yesterday he was right up against the fence eating some of the new grass that was sprouting there. It took laying on the ground to get eye to eye with him, but it was worth it. While I was clicking away, I a little girl laid down and joined me on the ground to see what I was doing! The otters were in rare form. They were flying through the water to the rocks then summersalting backwards into the water. Much to the joy of all the school kids watching who would scream with glee at each stunt! But no visit to the zoo is complete without the big cats. This "kitty" was just taking a moment to "smell the roses" and enjoying the springtime weather!
Rainy day today, so here are some images inspired by that. Caught in my care during a torrent too strong to drive in - both rain and hail. Here is the view out my car window, while I hope it lets up soon! (taken with phone camera) Our Tamarack tree has sported its new needles for the year, and the raindrops christened them and made them even greener and more beautiful! If there is an embodiment of "hope" (our theme this week) it has to be the farmer. Yesterday I was just going to take some pretty picture of farmland like the one above, but got derailed watching this guy on the left. When I first spotted him, he was plowing new acreage from this field. I stopped to take a pic, and about that time he got out of his cab (upper right) then went to the front of the implement (lower left). I couldn't tell what was going on, but continued to watch. He returned to the cab and suddenly the entire front of the machine rose up and turned over (much like a transformer!) It wasn't until I opened the shots on my computer that I realized that he was removing a stone with his crow bar. (lower right) Not only hope, but strength too. There is a new theme in our photographers' group this week: Hope. An abstraction that some in our group were having a hard time concepting how to photograph. This morning at the Farmers Market, I couldn't help but see 'hope' all around.
Not photoed was the hope of the new father kissing his child's head, the two year old running to catch the ball he had thrown into the air, the elderly woman hoping to make it through the crowd with her walker, and all of us hoping to find the perfect foods for dinner tonight! And remember...
Every day begins with an act of courage and hope: getting out of bed. Mason Cooley Just before we left on a 1400 mile road trip I read this article on "Intentional blurring" of photos. Something in that really resonated with me. And the timing couldn't have been better. So now my arm is sore from three days of almost continuous shooting!
Non-theme today; just snaps of Mrs. (top) and Mr. (bottom) Oriole tho have returned like clockwork. He came right to our window and knocked with his beak to let us know it was time to put out the syrup feeder (top right). Today we have been watching two males fight over both the food and the females! Then a misguided Grosbeak joined in. (bottom right)
Today must have been the day to get out in the fields! Driving home I saw several tractors and the farmers working hard. I love the spray of dust that catches the sun behind them. In the above photo I also like the opportunistic hawk up in the tree waiting for the tractor to flush out a bunny or mousey for him. The cows were enjoying being back in the green grass again, as the woman on the left worked her field. A beautiful day, that can almost make me understand why some people love farming. Thankfully there are still small farms around to remind us of where our food comes from and the hard work that goes into growing it. So for the theme this week "were do you like to be?" I say Wisconsin farm country. Continuing with the "where do you like to be" theme, I have returned to the Military Ridge Bike trail. My dad was a highway engineer for the State of Wisconsin during the development of the interstates and major highways. We took many a weekend car ride out to see an interchange, bridge or road being built. One of those highways is just to the south of me, and our road is the "old highway". Across the street is an old wayside. During the time we have lived here I have watched the fight for nature to reclaim it. I have been on the bike trail many times, but the old railroad runs parallel to it in areas, so today I bushwhacked down to that area Below is the bridge I usually take as viewed from the old railroad bridge. Here are a couple of the spring nature activities happening by the trail. On the left are the May Apples that are lining the ground right now, and on the right is evidence of a murder on the trail. A robin met his demise, and I hope it was by a hawk or other non-domestic prey animal, but it was right by a sub-division, so someone's cat may be to blame... And then there are the hazards of nature photography in Southwestern Wisconsin... Deer ticks. Found one on my wrist and this one on my foot. hopefully those were the only two who found me. But my skin feels them all over right now! Creepy guys. A new theme: 'Where do you like to be'. I thought I would take the opportunity to say "where I have loved being!". My studio is almost empty and my tent is now doing garage sales instead of art fairs, but I loved being in them both. It has been wonderful walking down to the studio to make garments, and fun to sell them around the country. so it is with mixed emotions that I move to the next phase of life! We have not had sun for almost a week here in Blue Mounds. I have quite enjoyed the fog, but this morning it is crystal clear and beautiful. I was outside early, and this lark was singing his little heart out as he watched the rising sun. It was truly magical. I am so sorry for those of you who sleep in and never see this potential and peacefulness that abounds at this time of day. (Hope you are not tired of my little finches or porch!) Enumerating the comforts and joys of life (this week's group theme) would not be complete without acknowledging the comfort that art has given me through my life. I can't remember not making art. I can still remember a moose I drew in kindergarten. I would love to see it again and see how it matches my mind's eye version of it. Above is "Lily". She was the Cocker spaniel that lived next to me when I was very young. I made this sculpture of her and her bone in fourth grade, and they have been with me ever since. This wire sculpture was made during my high school years. He has been dancing now for some 45 years! I am sure I would not have completed high school successfully if it were not for Don Hunt and Evelyn Bauman (AKA "Bauey"), my art teachers. They provided a refuge for those of us who didn't quite fit anywhere else - but they didn't provide a hide-out; they expected the hard work and investment of any science or math teacher, but also provided understanding and experience and joy. I learned a lot from those two people. Since then, there has been Graphic Design, Painting, fiber art Garment design, and other forays, and now some photography, but whatever the medium, it is the making that is the joy and comfort. Lots of photos for you today.... I have decided that I love taking photos in fog more than any other light. There is a softness to the light that is so comforting and allows for details the harsh sun does not. The low chroma colors become even more subdued and the bright high chroma colors vibrate. Vistas become layers rather than one continuous field, and then there are the droplets. What more do I need to say; each drop is a world unto itself. On the left is a shot with two iconic visions of spring: the robin and the daffodil both made brighter by the fog. And lastly, I love how the fog delays the evaporation of the the dew and drops of the morning (these are on the chive plants).
I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, a knowledgeable birder. I just love watching my birds out our window. Today was very dreary and gloomy, so in keeping with the "what makes you happy" theme, I decided to look for the bright colors in our birds. The finches were wonderful in their now vibrant yellows, and then the cardinals came by. They are here often, so that was not surprising, but then they did something I had never seen before - he fed her! She stayed in the tree while he went to the feeder and brought her back a seed and placed it in her mouth. According the 'Nature's Crusaders' blog site "This beautiful male bird also courts his future mate by feeding her seeds. When the female agrees to become his mate they sing to each other." They only did it the one time, then flew off, so I was so surprised, that the photo isn't the greatest, but it made me very happy to have seen them courting and to have captured it at all! It also makes me happy to know I am not the only female in the world to have been courted through feeding! And here is the goldfinch feeding them self! |