Back in February we took a much needed 7-Day Caribbean Cruise (more on that for another time). We started in St. Maarten and concluded in Barbados. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect, and the cruise itself was beyond our wildest dreams.
While we were docking into our next to last port of call in Granada, Michael and I were standing on the bow of the ship checking out the city. The colors and lines of the various buildings peppered the mountainside flowing, as if, into the blue waters of the Caribbean coastline.
As we scanned the landscape, we took note of a tree, standing tall on the highest peak of the horizon. A single tree rising up through the brush like a great conqueror of the mountain. Can you see it?
Fortunately, I had packed “the big lens” and was able to zoom in closer.
With the exception of what looked like new, seasonal growth, it was fairly bare compared to the rest of the landscape growing at its base.
Very quickly, and almost in the same breath, Michael and I both commented that it would make a great black and white photo. And so, I switched up my camera settings and took a few shots using the in-camera monochrome setting.
It isn’t a bad shot, but even with some basic modifications it just seemed flat and a little generic. It wasn’t the dramatic, storytelling shot I had envisioned. The clouds to the left of the tree really irritated me in black and white.
So, I went back to the original color photo and played around with the editing settings. After several edits I finally landed on what feels like the tree took on a whole new dimension. Plus, an added bonus of no more clouds to the left of the tree. What do you think?
There’s a lot to be said for the “picture within a picture.” As photographers we learn that multiple perspectives can be found in a single image. This image started out as a landscape photo of the city of Granada and ended up telling a “story” about a single tree off in the horizon.
“Life is a journey, not a destination….You are the artist, paint what you will.”
For our challenge this week, John fromJourneys with Johnbo encourages us to share images that focus on our journeys, possibly the modes of transportation which took us there. Or to even share images of places we discovered while on our journey.
I think my love for travel started when I was a child. I couldn’t tell you when exactly it started. But if I had to guess it was the trip, we took out west when I was about six (6) years old. It was so exciting because this was my first plane ride. And from what I remember we saw a LOT of the country – everything from The Hoover Dam to The Grand Canyon; San Diego to Disney Land, and lastly to San Franciso. I remember it being so much fun I cried (literally) when we had to come home.
“A photograph is a return ticket to moments already gone.”
Trip out west – Stop at the Grand Canyon Dad’s missing because he was the one taking all the photos (I’m the one in red pants).
Yes, I’ve been very fortunate throughout my life to travel to many places here in the U.S. and to other parts of the world. And I’ve pretty much been on all forms of transportation, too: planes, trains, automobiles, sailboats, cruise ships, helicopters and yes, even The Goodyear Blimp!
But one of my most memorable adventures was another trip out west which Michael and I took Christmas of 2011. We couldn’t decide where we wanted to go, so we narrowed it down to three (3) places. We wrote the names on pieces of paper, folded them up and dropped them into a bowl. I don’t remember which one of us drew the winner, but we landed on a road trip up the Pacific Coast Highway.
Our motto for the trip was “No map, no plans, no place to be.” It’s a line from Toby Keith’s song “South of You.” The only parts of the trip planned were our airline and rental car reservations. And so, on Christmas Day we headed to the airport and boarded a plane to San Diego, CA
Once we landed and picked up our sporty Mustang convertible for the trip, we headed to our first stop just outside of San Diego (Carlsbad, CA) for a quick visit with our nephew and his family.
Our activities for the day included lunch, a walk on the pier, and a visit to Mission San Louis Rey de Francia – Oceanside, CA. You can tell the boys were quite warn out from our day’s outing and scooting around in the convertible!
Mission San Louis Rey de Francia – Oceanside, CA
The real adventure of “no map, no plans, no place to be” started when we left San Diego. Our first stop that day was lunch in Laguna Beach. It’s definitely the artist colony it’s known for.
We didn’t stop much that day because we were too busy enjoying the coastline scenery. But, by the time we reached Los Angeles and navigated our way through the traffic, we decided to call it quits for the day.
We pulled into Malibu, just in time to grab a place for the night. And, since we didn’t have any reservations, we had no idea what we were in for when it came to hotels. We were lucky enough though, to find a wonderful little inn on the ocean and were greeted the next morning by a cute seagull at our balcony door (which was at the foot of our bed).
Good Morning!Malibu Beach
Day 3 – More driving, but we didn’t care, the scenery was amazing. We stopped for the night at Moonstone Beach in Cambria. THIS was the downfall of “no reservations.” We ended up in a dive of a motel. It was one of those places where you wouldn’t dare take your shoes off, let alone get under the covers! But it was a small price to pay for a beautiful sunset.
After that fateful night when we were ready to stop for the day, we would go to the nearest restaurant/bar and ask the locals for their recommendations……they never failed us.
Sunset at Moonstone Beach in Cambria
“Due to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel across country from coast to coast without seeing anything.”
~Charles Kuralt
This is one of Michael’s favorite quotes and it’s so true. We may not have been driving coast to coast, but the quote is still appropriate for our south to north journey on the PCH. Afterall, if we had chosen to take the interstate look at all we would have missed.
Sea Lions bathing in the sunBig SurBirds taking flightPigeons Point LighthouseRoad trip views drivingRoad trip views drivingCool Roadside Art GalleryCool Roadside Art GalleryCool Roadside Art GalleryLucky Motorcycle
Our last stop just in time for New Year’s Eve was San Francisco. We decided to return the rental car and walk or take BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) instead. We wrapped up our trip with a nice dinner catching up with some longtime friends.
Fisherman’s WharfChina TownAlcatrazRosie the Riveter Built ThisFamous Cable Car
Thanks, John for this wonderful challenge. It was fun re-living this road-trip and all the wonderful memories Michael and I enjoyed together.
Next week it’s Sofia’s turn. Be sure to follow her at Photographias so you don’t miss out on her theme.
“When life shuts a door…. open it again. It’s a door, that’s how they work!”
This week Sylvia (My Colorful Expression) encourages us to explore doors/doorways that have drawn your photographic eye. Another fun challenge for me because it gave me a chance to go through my archives and revisit some favorite places.
Like these images of an old house rapidly deteriorating on the side of HWY 341 in South Georgia. Michael and I traveled it most every time we visited St. Simons Island. It was a beautiful stretch of highway lined with farmsteads old and new, pecan groves and cotton fields. We must have passed this particular site about a dozen times before we finally stopped to take these photos.
What really stood out to me on the house was this faded blue door. Can’t you just visualize a cute, white or gray house with a bright blue door?
“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
Luke 11:9 NIV
I love old churches because of the stories they tell about the communities where they were built. Early into my transition to digital photography I became obsessed with taking photos of churches. So much so I had envisioned creating a coffee table book and naming it “Steeples I have Chased.” With the idea in my head, it wasn’t unusual for me to have Michael randomly stop so I could photograph the church. Like this one “Log Cabin Community Church.” It’s very near to where we live and has been around since 1912. Don’t you just love the bright, red doors?
What I did learn about my photography of churches (after searching through three external hard drives and my Shutterfly account) is that I haven’t done a really good job of taking photos of just the doors. Windows and alters, “yes.” But doors not so much.
I did manage to find this one from our trip to London (2010) of the main entrance to Westminster Abby. It’s definitely not my best, but that’s why we work at photography every…. single….day! Right?!?!
“The happiest of people don’t have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything.”
Sometimes a door really isn’t a door. It could be the front porch or simply the doorway to the home. This photo was taken at the Atlanta History Center gardens the summer I began my “re-wirement” journey. I don’t recall where the cabin originated from but what drew me in was the opposite doorway with the colorful, tattered fabric hanging on the railing. I began to imagine what the activity in the cabin was like. I’m sure to us it was a simpler way of life, but to the early settlers it was just life.
In the photo below do you see what I mean about the porch being the doorway to the home in this photo? It’s so welcoming and inviting and draws you further into the cabin.
So that’s my photo journey of doors. Lesson learned; I need to pay more attention to doors. Afterall, you never know which one will be yours to open!
Until next time,
~donna
P. S. Next week, Tina will be our host. She is a wonderful photographer so be sure to visit her site.
P.S.S. If you would like to participate in our weekly Lens-Artists Challenge, just click this link and join us on Saturdays at noon EST: Lens-Artist Challenge
P.S.S.S. If you are interested in purchasing unique notecards, photography or digital artwork please visit my Etsy shop by clicking on the button below.
I remember taking this photo. It was 11 years ago next month on Singer Island, Florida. We were there for my husband’s family reunion.
There was something so picturesque and peaceful about the sailboats in the background, the blue water, and the waves crashing on the beach. I’m glad I took this picture and pushed the “pause button of life” that day. It’s a memory that I will always cherish!
Have you “pushed the pause button of life,” lately and captured that special memory?
Ann-Christine gives us an interesting (and fun) challenge this week with “Three of a Kind.” A great theme for any photographer (at least in my case) because we all see more than one image when we take a photograph. Some may call it perspective and while that may be true, there’s more. It’s a different way of telling a story through your images using “triptych – the art of threes.”
What do I mean? Well, let’s take a look at the photo below. It’s an abandoned passenger car and caboose sitting out in a field in Hartwell, Georgia. A pretty cool image in and of itself. It tells a story of a train no longer in use and that’s pretty much it.
But as I walked up closer to the train other images came into play telling their own story. For instance, there’s the front of the passenger car below. How many cities had it been through? How many miles of railroad tracks had it covered? How old was it?
Then as I moved down along the side of train another image came to mind. As I peered through the window, I saw a tattered passenger seat and wondered who were the people that had traveled in seat? Where did they travel? Did they travel by themselves or with someone else? What did they see as they gazed out the window?
The last photo that came to mind was the “Watch Your Step” sign on the stairs leading into the passenger car. How many feet had carefully climbed the steps? What were the styles of the shoes the passengers were wearing? I tried to image the time period this train was in operation.
Other times when I photograph something, I don’t see the final image until I bring it into photoshop. I know there is more to the photo, and I have a general idea of what could be done with the image, but it isn’t until I sit down at the computer that the possibilities come into play.
Take for instance this image of the “Worth Avenue Clock Tower” located in Palm Beach, Florida. My sister-in-law had invited us to Florida for a weekend, winter getaway and asked me to take the photo for her (a small price to pay for free room and board for the weekend😉).
As you can see, I wasn’t the only one trying to get a photo of the clock tower that day. I knew I had my work cut-out for me! Not to mention it was cloudy, windy and I had to stand in the middle of two busy streets to get a full shot of the tower (the things we’ll do to get the shot, right?!?).
Thanks to the magic of photoshop I was able to make some adjustments and landed on the image below. Was it like the one she had seen in an art gallery? Nope, because I didn’t have the city permits to close off the road. Nor did I have the lighting crew or expensive lights to recreate their image. But I was able to give her something she could proudly display in her home.
In the shot below I focused on the arches inside the tower. It was a last-minute shot (yep, there were people to photoshop out, too). I’m so glad I took it because I love how it draws your eye out to the ocean.
My final “Three of a Kind” is this wild sunflower from a couple of summers ago. I love how the different shapes and textures lend themselves to becoming different images all related to the first.
Thank you, Ann-Christine, for this wonderful exploration into “triptych – the art of threes.” I love learning new techniques in art and how they can be applied to my photography.
Until next time.
-donna
P. S. Next week, Sofia will be our host. Be sure to visit her site.
P.S.S. If you would like to participate in our weekly Lens-Artists Challenge, just click this link and join us on Saturdays at noon EST: Lens-Artist Challenge
P.S.S.S. If you are interested in purchasing unique notecards, photography or digital artwork please visit my Etsy shop by clicking on the button below.
What do you see when you “look into” this photo? Do you see an old worn-out railroad bridge? Or do you see history telling a story of days gone by?
Next time a photograph catches your eye be sure to “look into” it. You never know what you might discover.
~Donna
By the way, this image is available in my Etsy shop as a matted 5″ x 7″ or in Digital Artwork format. (Link in bio or copy and paste 👉👉 https://www.etsy.com/shop/donnarobinsonphoto)
Donna Robinson Photography 