Seeing Beauty

Had I kept my chin tucked and cheeks down searching for shelter,

my hands curled up inside the heart of my gloves,

I wouldn't have seen this.

Nor would I have captured this to see it again

and remember...

...that sometimes we need to go out of our places of comfort to see beauty.

Birds of a Feather

Can't See the Forest for the Trees

Contrast and colour in composition can be necessary to the whole. The yellow burst in between the grey trunks and the deep dark background is necessary to engage viewers.

I went back to this location a week after I shot this. The leaves had fallen. The scene no longer drew me in. Without the yellow, apart from searching for this same spot, I would have just moved on without a second glance.

Moonscape

Safety in Numbers

Though none too sure about my presence, not one of these wee ones was willing to leave the safety of being together.

The sun shone so beautifully on this cute little huddle. It was difficult to improve on that but I was after something a little softer. Taking the image into photoshop I used a soft light layer over top and also removed most of the colour in processing. The result was a gentler scene that better showed the tender vulnerability of these young ones.

I shot at f/2.8 with a shutter speed of 1/400.

Garden's Canvas

Peeling Layers

This morning I took a walk to a small woodland patch not far from my home. I brought my camera and also my thoughts from my Bible reading. How soothing and nurturing this was for me. Hearing from my Heavenly Father from His Word, in the beautiful creation around me and also from inside my heart...there is no greater part of my day.

It has been a grueling and growing time for me spiritually, these past months. Layers have been peeled back to show me what I've needed to see. I have prayed for this. It is not an easy thing to pray. It is a more difficult thing to not pray it back.  But I have not.  There is purpose in the peeling. And it is good.

Silhouette

These tree seeds almost have a halo effect with the sun shining through from behind. New life emerges and is easily found by the sun, silhouetting the recent growth beautifully.

Though the blue sky was lovely on this day, I chose to take out the colour, turning it into a black and white image. I felt that the lines and form of this image were better shown in greyscale. When contrasting light and dark in an image, colour is not often necessary.

Blur is Not Always Bad

Blur is not always bad. Here it invites the viewer to feel the wind and freedom of flight. The delicate etchings of the feathers are not lost to the wind; they are remarkably present. We feel the movement and see what moves, both. Contrasting the solid and still perch with the blur that fills the frame is an effective way to draw attention to the subject.

Attention to Detail

Creation is spectacular. Leaves left to freeze then fall are beautifully coated in icy crystals and remind me of how much attention to detail God gave to his creation. It does me well to take notice of this same detail.

(Don't forget to enter to win a photo block by sharing your Christmas traditions with me on my
Christmas Give-Away post.)

Seeing Bulrushes

There is always more to see.

Have you ever taken a close look at a bulrush? I mean, have you gotten up close, seen it from all angles, and really examined it? I can think that I have and then I go out and see it again, as though for the first time.

Something usually surprises when I look. Sometimes it has everything to do with the light, how it illuminates things I hadn't looked closely at before. Sometimes it has more to do with my mood and what I'm thinking about; our demeanor changes the way we see things. Whatever the catalyst, there is always more to see.

Scarlet's Spread

Winter is coming and she grows tired. No longer able to reach high, she spreads across the rough boards with a sigh. The snow would blanket her soon and she'd find her rest.

Transformed

The thistle, she was ordinary and prickly. The light was extraordinary and perfect.  Reaching the weed with rays of brilliant white, the ordinary was transformed.

Spotlight

Light's Window

I can see it up ahead, through the window.

The curtain is rising, revealing more and more of its splendour.

How beautiful, the light.

Woodland's Starfish

Woodland's Starfish

Spotlight

1. Anticipation

2. Watchful

3. Wondering