Seasonal Suffering......

I'm a mess! I'm drugged up, feeling woozy, have a scratchy palette, watery eyes, runny nose and am itching all over! Not the vision of beauty that most of you may think I am! Yes folks....it's that time of year....ALLERGIES! From now until the first hardy frost I'll be a snotty mess. Some days are not as bad as others; however, if it's humid, breezy and the pollen is flyin' you know it's not a good day. While the main culprit is ragweed, other weeds can trigger reactions. I was in a farmer's field / weed field this evening trying to capture a weather shot. I ended up focusing on my archenemy: a weed field and ended up really liking this gnarly beast. After quite a few shots, I could feel the allergy symptoms kicking in--uncontrollable sneezing, , scratching my leg until it bled and my eyes closing up. I knew it was time to call it a day.......

Mags.

"Oh What A Tangled Web We Weave When First We Practice To Deceive."

Today's challenge was to make a photograph of a plant. I found this weed growing on the side of my neighbour's house and noticed the large webs that the spiders had recently spun. Upon closer observation, I thought it interesting to see how the weeds had been intricately woven into the web. I loved how the water drops reflected the light appearing as glittering crystal in the flower bed.

Mags.

Posted Signs

Today's daily assignment was to find a sign in front of a vista that tells a story.

It was a pretty hot day today so I didn't feel like venturing too far from home. I took a walk in the neighbourhood and came across this pond. In order to get this shot, I had to venture through an obstacle course of animal poo, wild weeds and angry wasps. I often wonder what other photographers have to go through in order to get "THE SHOT" they are looking for?

Mags.

Hidden In Suburbia

After not having a lot of photo opportunities yesterday, I was dying to get out today and shoot pics with some new toys I recently picked up. I wasn't motivated by anything around me so I took a trip to Loafers Lake for a walk around. It's sad that I've never experienced this little gem of a park hidden in the suburban city I live in. Although the weather was hot, hazy and humid, we spent a good hour and a half walking the trails and I managed to capture some great shots. It was hard to decide which one to use. This conservation area was quite green in colour and I've vowed to return in the fall when the leaves are changing colour. This shot was captured in a marshy section of the lake. I was getting eaten by mosquitos (which I'm sure I'll pay for dearly later); however, thought it was a good shot with the reflection of the trees from the other side of the lake.

Mags.

Texture

Texture is perceived surface quality. There are two types of texture: tactile and implied. Tactile texture (real texture) is what we are most familiar with. It is the way the surface of an object actually feels. Examples of this include sandpaper, cotton balls, tree bark, animal fur, etc. Implied texture is the way the surface on an object looks like it feels. The texture may look rough, fizzy, gritty, but cannot actually be felt. This type of texture is commonly used by artists when drawing or painting.

I liked this photo because it depicts a few different textures from the roughness (and smoothness) of some of the river rocks and also shows the prickly leaves of the weeds growing through the rocks.
 
Mags.

The Signs of Spring

May 2, 2010

You know spring is here when:

A) The robins are out and about (BTW did you know that there's a robins nest nestled on the crook of our downspout on the side of our house?)

and

B) The dandelions are out in full "bloom".  (NOTE:  Dandelions are WEEDS people!  Nothing irks me more than when people are too damned lazy to remove them off of their lawn.)

Mags