Monthly Archives: August 2015

Setting the Mood: September’s Photo-a-Day Challenge

Images can tell stories and set a mood by the way the subject is framed, by the quality of light, the angle of the shot…and more.

I’m guilty of taking many, many photos of my favorite places and subjects…sunsets and waves, seagulls and surfers, dandelions and bumblebees, lavender…and my cats! The beauty of taking multiple photos of similar subjects and places is that I have the opportunity to view them through from different perspectives…and notice the moods they evoke.

Sometimes my shot of a seabird is not just about the bird, but about the energy in the background. This one sets a hurried mood for me as I see the still image but notice the speed of the bird and the force of the ocean.

Other images feel tranquil, washing me with calm and cool with the lack of color and reflected light.

There’s a mood of urgency set by this image of a military chopper hovering low over the shoreline…is there an emergency they are attending to? (And I love the seagulls in the frame!)

This image definitely feels upbeat and energetic with the musicians belting out their songs, bringing the audience to their feet, dancing and tapping their toes!

Sometimes distance can give a sense of isolation…and even seriousness. This photographer creates a mood of isolation…alone in the overcast with only distant surfers visible.

And other times, the selected use of color and a pair of empty chairs creates a feeling of wistfulness, wishing for a sunset, waiting for a couple to fill the chairs…

Perfect light on a sunny afternoon can create a reflective mood as the light creates distance and perspective…perfect for thinking and remembering.

And there is the giddy mood of floating in the wide blue of the sky above and sea below, a bird’s eye view!

So for September take another look at your favorite subjects and places and see what moods those images can set. And to help you vary your shots and stimulate your thinking, here is a list of moods for each day of the month!

lonely
amazed
amused
frustrated
hesitant
energetic
anxious
shocked
inquisitive
powerful
pensive
satisfied
indifferent
confused
courageous
isolated
eager
serious
overwhelmed
jealous
tranquil
happy
excited
peaceful
irritated
distant
apathetic
fulfilled
confident
astonished

And as always, our challenge will allow us to learn from each other as we shoot our own photos and study the photos others shoot. Every day of the month includes a word prompt to inspire and challenge you as you work to set moods through your images. You are welcome to follow them in order, mix them up, or throw in a new word prompt for the rest of us to try. You can post every day, once a week, or even sporadically throughout the month…whatever works in your life.

Be sure to share and tag your photos with #sdawpphotovoices so we can find them! You can share on Twitter (follow me @kd0602), on Instagram (@kd0602), in the CLMOOC community on G+, on Flickr, or even link back to my blog here.

I’m looking forward to seeing how you set September’s moods through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Beginnings and Endings

6 Replies

It turns out that the last days of August mark beginnings and endings for some of us. This week was our first week of school with students, the beginning of the new school year…with sweltering heat (it seems to come only during our first weeks of school) and no air conditioning. And our students were excited to be back…even taking the time to pick a beautiful rose of two from their home garden to set the back to school mood.

And in spite of the heat, our learners dove right in, whether it was a first day team challenge to build the highest tower possible using only large index cards,

or collecting data in small groups to display in graphs to help us get to know each other better (and what student doesn’t love a clipboard?)

And while this new beginning was underway, we were also feeling the full blast of the end of summer. Who can resist the allure of the layers of color from beneath a pier, while dipping your feet in the cool salty water?

And it seems that the fishermen are also squeezing in the last of the summer fishing season…off the piers, in the surf…during the heat of the day or in the cooler evening hours.

And last night, to celebrate the ending of the first week of school and to escape the heat of indoors, we headed to the beach at sunset…which also happened to coincide with the moonrise…and a full moon!

It’s been quite a week of beginnings and endings for me. What is beginning and ending in your life this week? You can represent it literally…by capturing a moment, or use a metaphoric approach and use an image that reflects your feelings of beginnings and/or endings.

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #beginningsandendings for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

How will you capture beginnings and endings this week? I’m looking forward to seeing beginnings and endings through your lens!

Savoring Moments

2 Replies

As much as I love my job, these last few days of summer vacation have flown by much too quickly. I’ll still be in the amazing place that I call home…and have opportunities to walk on the beach, appreciate the natural beauty around me, and watch so many interesting people. What I won’t have though, is the unstructured time with few expectations that allows me to unwind and relax.

But…what I’ve been learning over the last year is the importance of creating mini-adventures on a regular basis–to keep me from working all the time and to make spaces for play and exploration, as well as opportunities to connect and build relationships with the people I love. And I’ve learned that taking time to play prepares me for work…and the focus on learning that I need in the classroom.

School starts tomorrow…and I’m excited to reconnect with our second and third grade students…and meet our new first graders! And I consciously made a choice not to work today. Instead, my husband took the day off work and we headed out on a local adventure.

I’m not sure why I have never visited Balboa Island in Newport Beach before…what a gem! (And a Monday in late August was a great choice–light traffic and beautiful weather!) A scenic drive up the PCH led us to the Balboa Island Ferry. Only three cars can fit on ferry at a time…and when we arrived we were the only car, joined by some boys on bicycles, to cross over to the island. (This picture is the ferry bringing people from the other side as we crossed.) I loved the short ride on this small ferry–it was fun to take pictures, feel the sea breeze, and feel transported back in time on this low tech feeling vehicle.

And then we headed out to walk along the shoreline…and found this gorgeous expanse of beach. Sand and sun and waves–my favorite combination. We walked and walked and walked, soaking in the beauty and the calm that only the ocean can bring.

And I’m ready to head back to work tomorrow, looking forward to the energy and enthusiasm of young students, ready to savor the moments as we live and learn in a community. I’ll be paying attention, keeping my eyes peeled, trying not to miss anything!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Summer Favorites

2 Replies

Summer doesn’t officially end for a month still, and it will seem like summer for longer than that in these parts, but the beginning of the new school year has me thinking about some of my favorite photos of summer.

Exploring Malibu with my son led me to take this photo of seagulls from behind. There is something wonderful and whimsical about this shot of seagull butts!

And there is nothing quite like spending time at the San Diego County Fair–a huge extravaganza of animals, food and light. I never seem to tire of photographing goats.

I’ve also been messing with some night photography this summer. Here a few of my favorites. Nighttime with the moon at the fair,

Oceanside from the pier,

and a Chicago sunset reflected in the windows of the Signature Lounge.

And I love to photograph nature as I find it. Bees at work,

the beauty of a spider’s web in the early morning dew,

and black sage in bloom.

I never tire of sunsets,

or fireworks,

and water seems to be my life-force!

So this is your week to look through your summer pictures and highlight a few favorites…or head out with your camera and capture some new favorites before the summer makes an exit.

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #summerfavorites for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Putting this post together encouraged me to do a bit of photo curating…something I need to be more systematic about…and as I browsed through I also got to reflect on a wonderful summer filled with whimsy, fun, and lots of love. I hope you enjoy a week of thinking about your summer favorites! Can’t wait to see a glimpse of summer-in-review through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Underfoot

2 Replies

As I walk along the shoreline, I can feel the grains of sand under my feet. Along some stretches the sand feels smooth, almost like quicksand where my heels sink in the sponginess of the saturated surface. The sandpipers see this place as their seaside restaurant, poking their long beaks deep into the sand for a meal.

Some places are firm…firm enough for bike riding when the tide is low, with surfboards secured in sidecars to make them easy to transport.

Sometimes that sand underfoot can be scooped up to create magnificent castles, complete with moats and and a seashell flag on top.

Other times what’s under your feet is floating on the surface of the water.

When the tide is high, there’s not much place for feet at all…and even the lifeguards have to be careful that they can get their vehicles through as the tide rises.

And where are the feet that belong to these shoes? Probably out cooling off in the Pacific Ocean…the perfect summer solution for underfoot!

So what is underfoot in your life this week? Capture the surface your feet find themselves walking on this week, or maybe these things–physically or metaphorically–that seem to be tripping you up.

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #underfoot for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

My feet seem drawn to the sand…where are you finding your feet? I look forward to seeing how you interpret underfoot through your lens!

Silent Sunday: August 9, 2015

2 Replies

Weekly Photo Challenge: Endless

2 Replies

There is an endless quality to summer, especially those hot days in August. Endless sunshine, endless heat, endless time…well, not that. Time still seems to run too fast and I already see the end of that rare unstructured time.

But I have some other images of endless…this one from our local beach where I detoured on my way home yesterday after being stuck in what seemed like endless traffic. I love the sun going down behind the lifeguard and his vehicle, with silhouettes of the beachgoers in the background. This seems like a classic image of endless summer.

And there is the endless mirror-like smoothness of the water that when the light is just right, reflects both color and figures like in this photo of the cliffs reflected along the shore along with the sandpiper.

Who can resist the endless sweet and saltiness of Garrett’s popcorn? After trying it while I was in downtown Chicago, I had to seek it out at the O’Hare airport and get “one for the road.” Endless yummy!

There is this quirky little park not far from where I live that once belonged to an old time movie star named Leo Carillo. The park features some historic structures, wide open spaces…and peacocks! Peacocks are endlessly fascinating to me…tall and graceful…and loud! There are tons of them there, all descendants of the peacocks that Leo Carillo loved and nurtured.

I was so surprised when I noticed the peacock in the trees. And as much as I wanted the amazing photo of the peacock in the tree, I love the way this photo captures the range of colors I saw–including the colorful plumage of the peacock.

Bees are in endless motion, seemingly never at rest. I found these guys doing their pollination work on a colorful bird of paradise.

And of course, there is the endless curiosity of cats. Phil and Jack, even in their golden years, never let anything new go unexplored. Here they are camped out on the new printer that arrived to replace the one than gave up the ghost last week (right when we needed it most, of course). This new one even prints from my phone! Endless innovation!

So what seems endless in your life right now? Endless outdoor play? Endless picnics and fresh squeezed lemonade? Endless preparation for the new school year?

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #endless for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

The dog days of summer are upon us…look around for evidence of endless. Endless might be literal or figurative…or maybe a wish for more illusions of endless. Take some shots and share them! I’m looking forward to seeing endless through your lens!