B&W Wednesday: Log

We had a tree taken down last fall, and in the process of cleaning up, this log was sitting there soaking up the sun. I noticed it was sparkling, from the sap oozing out, and forming little round balls reflecting the sun. I had to stand in just the right spot to see all the little reflections, but I wanted to use this as my photo for B&W Wed, run by Lisa at The Long Road to China. Check out the great BW shots offered up by the wonderful photogs who have shown their work. Some of Lisa's photos are really nice!



This is as taken, before editing for B&W Wed.


I have to admit that my shot is not that artistic, nor fancy, or worthy of any praise. I just wanted to see how this would fare as a BW shot.

Textures and Actions

Textures and Actions and photos oh my! Amy, over at the Purple-Hippie blog, is always up for new challenges and adventures in blogging and photography. I got her interested in photography, and she turned me on to PSE, and using actions and textures. I was using GIMP to do my photo editing because it is free, but I got my hands on an old version of PS7, so I could learn actions and layers. GIMP does not do actions, but there are filters and many scripts to apply similar functions as in PS and PSE.

Anyway, on her blog was a challenge presented by Lynda at the Daily Window. There is a photo of a rose, and the challenge was to present how we would use actions and textures to improve the photo. The following photo is the original from Lynda:




Now my version, for which I used GIMP: I applied an HDR effect, then tone mapping. I did a slight adjustment using curves. After this I ran the file thru the "Noiseware" program. Next I went into PSE8 and applied the 'Define and Sharpen' actions from Pioneer Woman. Next I ran 'Fresh and C0lorful' action, also from PW. A final run thru Noiseware to produce this:

Good? Bad? so-so? As Amy said , no 2 people will edit the same, apply the same actions, and produce the same result.

Tear-drop raindrop

My entry for Macro Friday, run by Laura at Blogging from Bolivia. She has wonderful stories and interesting pictures. Check it out.




This was taken after we had some long-needed rain the other day. When the rain stopped I went out to the deck and took this. My grass was turning brown and looking ugly. However, my flowers are looking really nice yet. Of course, I water them. I do NOT water my grass, like my neighbor who runs a sprinkler almost not stop. I also water my upside-down tomato plants. I'll post some pics tomorrow.



As usual I welcome comments, which I don't get enough of. I do appreciate the comments I get, though.

It's time for....Black and White Wednesday, run by Lisa at The Long Road to China!!!



I am entering B&W Wednesday with this shot from Lehman College. I took this shot, and had plans for more when a security guard questioned my authority to take pictures on college property. I thought what the hell does he know. But, since I did not know if maybe he was right, I put away the camera.




I have two favorite days for photo uploads, and they are Friday (macro) and Wed (B&W). I would like to try more photo blogs but then I would need to devote more time to photography and Gimp (sometimes I use PSE, and sometimes UFRAW). In any case, I have always loved photography, and in the old days we developed our own pictures with chemicals. We also lost many shots, or whole rolls of 35 mm. Anyone remember film?

Today we can still lose shots with digital, especially when we set the camera wrong, or move while shooting, overexpose, etc. I like to change the settings on my Nikon to see what happens. It is very forgiving in many cases.

Macro Friday July 9

Another Friday is upon us. Time for pretzels and beer, and putting up another photo for Macro Friday! This blog is run by Laura, at Blogging From Bolivia. She has some really great musings and photos. I always love to read what she has been up to.



This shot was taken behind the house, after I was done putting in a new garage door. The rocks looked interesting, but I never planned on using them for a photo shoot. I have bigger plans for them (like around my new Primrose bushes in the front). Phil (my neighbor) says the rocks will hold in the heat and keep the ground from drying out quickly. But, here in the northeast, the heat doesn't need any help...it has been brutal.

Well it's happened. Another week has gone by, but since not posting a photo for BW Wed in 3 weeks ago, I am shamed. If I had my way, I'd be behind the camera every day, and at the PC every night. In any case, here is a nice photo from Harney and Sons Tea in Millerton, NY. I have some good photos from there, without a whole lot of editing. I must have had the camera on Auto, because I find using Manual more challenging. But at the same time, many photos get deleted. I also tend to switch back and forth between RAW and JPG. RAW lets me hold more data for editing. But, are we akin to doing nothing but editing RAW shots? or just be happy with JPG and more of them? RAW photos take longer to save, take up more room on the SD card, and for general work, are a waste of space. So, I would like some feedback here from those who frequent these blog pages, on what they use mostly. I have some really good JPG files, and some good RAW. But at first glance the difference is negligible. For those who care, this shot was a JPG, and un-edited (except for the border, whose idea I stole from Amy (who is very artistic (Artistically Amy)


Anyway, onto the photo for BW Wed, run by Lisa at The Long Road to China