Photo 365 - Day 212 (Shadow Bridge)

Day 212 (January 31st, 2011)
Title: Shadow Bridge


Going along with yesterday's "boring" photo of the tennis court, I found this picture of a bridge I took and, at first glance it was really dull and flat.  I decided, ala tennis court, that I would try and fix it up.  I played with contrast, lighting and some other photoshop tricks and I really like how this one came out.  It has some "pop" but still easy to identify.


Hope you like it.


Enjoy

Photo 365 - Day 202 (Head Brad)

Day 202 (January 21st, 2011)
Title: Head Brad

Secret's of Scrapbooking: Brads!

Brads are small metal embellishments that are great for linking two (or more) layers together or adding a nice 3D (aka: depth) aspect to your work, or both!  Brads have two thin, pointed, metal shanks that are bent at 45 degree angles after inserting into the object(s), to secure them.  No glue or tape is required, the metal shanks are stiff enough to hold the objects together.  If the brad needs to be removed, you just "un-bend" the shanks and release the items.

There are a LOT of creative (and simple) brads out there, including (really): cocktail glasses, trout, sock monkeys, and of course, rhinestones, just to name a few.  

As soon in this photo, a simple yellow brad is used to enhance the flower in the woman's hair by giving it a color element and a depth element.

Enjoy

 Card by: Theresa A. of Our Results My Vary

Random Note: Back in my school days, these were called Fasteners and were used to hold paper projects together.

Photo 365 - Day 164 (Light Intersection)

Day 164 (December 14th, 2010)
Title: Light Intersection


We are coming up to the end of the "Fun with little plastic things" experiment, but I still have a few more!  I took some more shots today, but I changed the layout considerably, to try and give it a less "busy" look.  More just straight lines and monochromatic feel.  I'm still playing with both shadows and highlights, but now I'm also playing around a bit with negative space (space on the photo where there is nothing - in this case the top-left section is just white).  I'm not sure exactly what I'm learning from this, but I'm sure it will be awe-inspiring and deeply emotional.  Perhaps...


Enjoy!

Photo 365 - Day 136 (Geek #5)

Day 136 (November 15th, 2010)
Title: Geek #5


Well, we are nearly to the end of the Name That Thing 2 adventure, and I have to say its been a lot of fun!  Yesterday's photo certainly confused a few folks, but at the same time I think a lot more people got it right than I was expecting!  I blame those darn Intel commercials!  Yesterday's photo was of: CPU (Microprocessor) Chip! (AMD CPU in this case).  The following answers were also deemed correct: "Computer's Brain!" and "Master Control Program Chip" (bonus Tron reference points were awarded!). 


Congrats on all the correct guesses!


Today's picture is just mean.  Its a Geek Level 5 photo, but the good news is its not the last of the photos - I have one more tomorrow that's really neat and not too hard to get!  But today's is tricky.  Its also a bit abstract, so that makes it a bit more difficult.  But, I like the photo, so it gets a chance to trick you all!  And if there was ever a shot that had a "Alien Probe"-esq look to it...


Enjoy! 

Photo 365 - Day 124 (Self Portrait ala Bush)

Day 124 (November 4th, 2010)
Title: Self Portrait ala Bush

Sometimes no matter how hard you try and setup a shot, how much planning you put into a project, or dedicating hours to a task, you just don't get what you want.  That's how it is with pictures sometimes.  I was planning out a night-time shoot where I wanted to get pictures of the stars and night sky (uber-long exposure at f/32), but no matter what I did I just couldn't seem to get it right.  I tried all kinds of different combination's of setting on the camera and still, nothing but either black or random blurry splotches.  So, after about 2 hours of trying, I decided that it just wasn't going to happen tonight and I'd pack everything up.  After putting all the cables, tripod, timers, notebooks, memory cards and other miscellaneous junk away and I though: Hey, I have this large lamp out (I had a large light out so I could see everything while I was working - and YES I turned it off before shooting!) and there was a neat shrub/bush thing next to where I was.  I thought I'd just take a quick shot of it before leaving (I was darn well going to get SOMETHING out of this experience).  After the test picture, I noticed my shadow fell across the shrub in a cool way.

Two shots later, I got this nifty self-portrait.

Enjoy!

Photo 365 - Day 112 (Kiddie Van)

Day 112 (October 23rd, 2010)
Title: Kiddie Van


I saw a lot of strange things during the Halloween festivities in Tahoe (lets just say, in a casino they really don't care what you wear - or don't wear for that matter, as long as you are gambling!), but nothing comes close to the icky/disturbed feeling I got seeing this van.  Now, I want to preface this by saying I'm sure all the observations that I noted are completely coincidental and I'm sure the owner of said van is a nice, kind person who feeds ducks and squirrels and would in no way be a psychopathic killer... I hope.


First of all, this van is the quintessential "kids, stay AWAY from that!" vehicle.  Lets break-down the "joy" that is this Kiddie Van: Matte black finish, perfect for hiding in the dark alleyways.  An "Ice Cream Truck" look, because all kids love ice cream.  High windows, so small folks can't see out, but light still gets in.  Cute pink window shades for that friendly "I-have-candy" look.  The small hand-prints of other children decorating the outside.  And, and a lovely little phrase: "We've got our eyes on you.", just to cause that extra bit of trauma. 


Yeah, that just screams "friendly" all over it.  Why this thing wasn't followed by 12 police cars and a helicopter I'll never know. 


Enjoy (ish). 

Photo 365 - Day 107 (Stained Window)

Day 107 (October 18th, 2010)
Title: Stained Window

We stayed in this little, run down, hotel for one night and the room was basically as bland as you could get it.  Beige walls, white sheets and blankets, gray counters, white shower-curtain, etc.  Drab.  Blech.  But, I thought for one night, its no big deal.  Cheap rooms don't need art or any sort of expression.  I was pleasantly surprised when I went to take a shower - upon moving the curtain, there was this amazing stained-glass window staring at me.  The sun was shining through it, giving it a great "glowing" effect.  That one little thing changed the whole room, quashing the drabness!  (That's right, it was so neat that I actually used the word "quashed" to describe it!)

I hope the next time you are in a situation that seems, bland or gray, you take a moment to search for that one tiny thing that adds a spark of beauty and light.  And if you can't find one, perhaps you can add your own!

Enjoy!