Category Archives: Weekly Photo Challenge

Weekly Photo Challenge: Golden

I’ve been noticing light a lot lately…especially when it’s not there. We’ve had an unusual July–thunder and lightening and rain and cloud cover so heavy it feels like a wet towel around your shoulders. (And record rainfall–although we are still deep in a persistent long-term drought!)

As a result, I feel like I’ve taken lots of gray photos, where the sky looks like the ocean that looks like the sand.

So as the sun began to break through this week, I wanted to head out to catch the glow. The beauty of the summer is that the days are longer, making evening walks a treat…and giving me a chance to play around with the golden light that comes as the sun begins to set.

Giant kelp is always amber in color, golden and brownish. But giant kelp has floats about the size of grapes, shaped sort of like teardrops. Now and then I see huge floats–the size of our small playground balls–that I know as bull kelp, a variety of giant kelp. I see these more often in the winter, maybe because it takes rougher seas to pull them up to shore. But yesterday, maybe as a result of the storm earlier this week, there was definitely bull kelp on the beach. The sun brought out the golden qualities of this amber algae.

I watched this boy for a while as he flipped his skim board out in front of him and then ran to step aboard and ride on the slim layer of water. I was pleasantly surprised to catch this action shot…and the warm golden glow of the sun on his skin.

Surfers come in all shapes and sizes and I often see them looking out to sea, watching. I wish I could get inside their heads and know what they are thinking as they stand on the shore. I know that surfing is a physical sport, but I also suspect it is meditative as well. I watched this surfer…and couldn’t resist a shot with her bathed in the warm, golden light of the early evening.

And I the clouds were calling to me…and when I looked up through my lens, they opened up to reveal the golden light treasure inside!

So, what is golden in your life right now? You can be literal of figurative, examine the natural world or the artifacts of civilization.

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 #golden for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Be on the lookout for a golden opportunity to snap a photo! I can’t wait to see golden through your lens.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Group

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Friday marked the end of our 4-week intensive Invitational Summer Institute (SI), a leadership program in the teaching of writing that the SDAWP facilitates each summer. We’ve been together as a group throughout that time, worked in small writing response groups, reading response groups, in pairs and triads all in an effort to stretch our thinking and understanding.

So as I started thinking about a photo challenge for this week, the idea of groups came up for me. And looking over photos I have taken in the last week, I came up with many that fit the bill.

Here’s a group of umbrellas at the beach last week. it was bright and sunny and warm, a lovely San Diego beach day…and the umbrellas were out!

And who can resist a group of sandpipers? These little brown birds are pretty shy, but are such fun to watch. They use their long skinny beaks to poke down into the wet sand for some delicious tidbits. I often see them in pairs, but caught this trio earlier in the week.

As I walk down the beach, I pass some iconic landmarks including Stone Steps and Beacons. I’m always fascinated by the way that people coming down to the beach look like ants as they switchback from top to bottom. Using my zoom lens, I was able to capture a glimpse of this group.

This group of novice surfers appeared to be part of a surf school…and no, they weren’t at Beacons! They seemed to be segregated to a small area, well away from the more experienced surfers.

On Thursday, I snuck out of the SI at lunchtime (with many of our participants) and headed up to the top of the engineering building to get a close look at Fallen Star, a unique installation of the Stuart Collection. Once inside this tilted house, I noticed this group of toy cars on the fireplace.

I had commented to my husband not too long ago that there haven’t been many sand castles on the beach this summer. And then, last night to celebrate the ending of the SI, we decided to take a beach walk after work. And as we walked we noticed this group of castles, a community of sorts near the shore. They weren’t too fancy, but I think they count as a group of sandcastles.

So, what group have you noticed lately? Groups of people? Animals? Cars? Toys? Examine some groups through your lens!

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 #group for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

What group will you find as you focus your lens this week? Be sure to share with the rest of us!

Weekly Photo Challenge: #Make Art

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Some days finding a photo to take and post is a challenge. Most of the photos I take are “found”–meaning that I don’t stage them other than moving around to get a better angle or to change the light. I seldom arrange things or stage a shot. But yesterday was different.

First, I was thinking about the idea of re-mediation, a concept being explored in the second make cycle of the CLMOOC. My photo-a-day prompt was shadow…and I had just gotten home from a full day at the Summer Institute. As a break from working on my #beachpeople documentary, I grabbed my camera and headed outside to look for a shadow opportunity. Nothing was grabbing my attention–the shadows I noticed seemed ordinary.

That’s when I decided to pick a dandelion puff. As I looked at it I wondered how I might photograph it in a different way. I thought about blowing on it…but couldn’t figure out how to hold it, blow on it, and photograph it at the same time…and where would I get shadow from that? Instead, I started holding the dandelion out to see how it cast its shadow. I tried the sidewalk, the side of the house, my car mirror, and the shiny paint of my car. I had to work to get the focal length of my lens right so some portion of the shot would be crisp. I took a number of shots.

When I headed back inside to study my work, I noticed some interesting images…but I wondered if I might re-mediate them in some way. I rejected my go-to apps and started to explore some that I seldom use. PicsArt caught my eye–could I transform this experiment into something that looked like art…rather than a photograph? (I do think photos are art–but I was looking for something that looked less like a photo and more like a painting or some other kind of art.)

Here’s what I started with–the original, unedited photo.

And here’s the art I made as I re-mediated the image.

I love the resulting image–the crispness of the near dandelion and the echo from the shadow. I might need to print this one and hang it in my house somewhere!

So, make some art! That might mean playing with some new editing apps, staging the perfect scene, or maybe even catching someone else making art like I did on today’s beachwalk! (Love catching #beachpeople in action!)

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 #makeart for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

So grab your camera and make some art! You make the rules…and feel free to re-mediate and let your imagination run wild!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Sky

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Sunday marked the summer solstice (along with my anniversary…and this year, Father’s Day) and our gray skies are finally clearing to let the sun shine through.

And it was a beautiful first day of summer, especially as the setting sun gave a golden glow as I looked to the sky.

As the sun dipped low, the sky was painted in pinks with a tiny sliver of sun still shining through.

After a delicious celebratory dinner, we headed out for a walk on the pier. And as we looked to the sky, the moon appeared above the palms, a sliver accompanied by two bring planets nearby.

The nighttime walk was a perfect ending to the day…as the lights of the city reflected on the ocean water.

Earlier in the weekend, a beach walk allowed me to catch the sky’s sun silhouetting these surfers…making this unedited photo look like it was taken in black and white.

As our San Diego Area Writing Project’s Invitational Summer Institute began this week, I found myself not paying as much attention to the outdoors as I focused, instead, on developing this community of educators, writers, and thinkers. And then today, three days in, I had to take a few minutes at lunch to re-discover my surroundings on the UCSD campus. It’s cold inside the building, but outdoors the skies are blue and the scenery spectacular. I focused on this piece in the Stuart Collection (art on our campus). The Fallen Star is perched atop the engineering building–visible from the room where we hold the SI.

And when I turned around, there was the Geisel Library–another favorite subject for my lens, framed by the blue sky and the tall eucalyptus trees.

So, look up. What does the sky have to offer in your place this week? What are you noticing when you look skyward?

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 #sky for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

So look up toward the sky…what does the sky have to offer or what does it draw your attention to? I look forward to seeing what the sky will bring through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Abundance

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There’s nothing like going to the county fair to experience abundance. And when your county fair is the San Diego County Fair…a huge extravaganza, it gets to be a bit over the top.

I’ve noticed that over the years, there seems to be fewer animals on display. But I love to visit the ones that are there and see the young animal exhibitors working with their livestock. There are so many different varieties of goats…and they’re all pretty cute. I love the ways this one peered out to see what was going on beyond the enclosure.

There is also an abundance of food at the fair. Everything from deep fried Starbucks (what?!) to huge turkey legs and corn on the cob dipped in butter, there are plenty of choices (although many are deep-fried or bacon covered).

And sweet treats are also in abundance. We can never resist the cinnamon rolls that have become a family tradition over the years, but there are also options like cotton candy, ice cream, funnel cakes and more.

As we explored the abundance of talent from local artists–from woodworking to photography, graphic arts to textiles, we realized that we never spend time in the fun zone with the wild rides, bright colors, and flashing lights. Looking up we saw people with an abundance of courage dive from a high tower with only a bungee attached to their legs.

And some with an abundance of disposable cash testing their gaming skills to win something from the abundant collection of stuffed animals.

And then there are the rides. Crazy, fast, spinning, dropping, swooping… We even saw one that covers up the riders as it gains speed (ugh!). But they are spectacular to watch and to photograph!

And as the sun began to set, I wanted to capture the differences in light.

As we headed out after a long day having an abundance of fun, we paused to admire the fair in the dark with lights flashing and the sliver of the moon above.

So where is abundance in your life this week? Maybe in your garden, at the beach, in your classroom (if you are still in school), in your community, or somewhere else. It could be an abundance that frustrates you…an abundance of trash, mosquitos, traffic…

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 #abundance for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

So take a look around and notice abundance. I can’t wait to see abundance through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Celebrate

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This last week of the school year has been a whirlwind of activity. An end of the year musical production, complete with cookies made by a beloved member of our community that reflected some of our classroom learning (like making mobiles) and also the unique qualities of our local community–like the Cardiff Kook (a public piece of art in our place),

added to our celebration of learning. Our students sang and danced and described many things we learned this year with their families as appreciative audiences,

Celebration is definitely the word of the week! And in the middle of the all of this end of the school year celebrating came the DML conference in Los Angeles and the opportunity to share insights learned from our Intersections work on field trips. Yet another celebration…and lots of hours on the freeways between here and LA.

From the 19th floor I had an interesting view of the city below…and on Thursday looked up from the ground level and found these folks rappelling down the side of the hotel! (A celebration of conquering addiction)

I celebrated the sunset in the city on Thursday…and then got up before dawn on Friday to share the last day of school with my students back at school.

And then one of my second grade students insisted on a cake “made with love” (not one from Costco) for our class party…staying up until 10pm to pour her love and effort into, a tribute to her passion for learning and appreciation for our learning community.

I headed back to LA Friday afternoon (with way too many others bringing the freeway to a standstill–iconic LA traffic) for two sessions today. I ended the day celebrating the beginning of the CLMOOC next week…a wonderful, creative, provocative, stimulating opportunity for making and learning with folks from all over the world. (I encourage you to sign up…even if you only want to take a peek!) We played a making game with folks from the DML conference, rolling dice to determine words to represent with an image (or a collage in my case).

So what are you celebrating this week? The days lasting longer? Sleeping in? The bounty of your garden? Finishing the book you’ve wanted to read for a while?

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 #celebration for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

What’s worth a bit of celebration in your life this week? I look forward to seeing celebration through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: On the Way

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This week I’m taking my inspiration from the Daily Post weekly photo challenge. One of the things I love most about photography is that it helps me pay attention to all I see…not necessarily at my destination (physical, mental, or emotional), but all along the way.

I happened to be down near Old Town the other day…and stopped for a few minutes at Presidio Park. Apparently it is a destination of choice for prom photos…there were lots of teenagers dressed in fancy attire. It was fun to watch them, but I focused my camera on the historic building and the lighting instead of photographing the kids.

And there is nothing like an old window to inspire an attempt at a window selfie. It’s certainly not spectacular in the selfie category…but the window is interesting.

And anyone who reads my blog knows how much I love a great walk on the beach. In spite of no sunshine in sight, there are always interesting things to see on a beach walk. I’m always trying a new angle on a pier shot…this one tries to get under and over at the same time.

I take lots of photos of seagulls and other seabirds. I love the way the brilliant blue of the pier railing helps focus attention on the seagull…who was quite patient as I took a few shots.

Last night was our annual outing with the third graders in our class. We took them rock climbing–it’s such fun to watch them challenge themselves higher and higher up the walls of the climbing gym. Even the most reticent climbers find their confidence…and beam as they do a little better on each trial. Afterwards we headed to a burger joint nearby for a shared dinner. Our students were fascinated by the pool table as they waited for their burgers…and I couldn’t resist playing around with this shot using the app Waterlogue to capture their curiosity and camaraderie. Learning isn’t confined to the classroom for these kids!

So what do capture with your camera as you’re on the way to somewhere else? What catches your eye before you reach your destination?

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 #ontheway for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Keep your eyes peeled for interesting things to photograph as your are on your way to your destination. I can’t wait to see what you find through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Black and White

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This week we’ve been plagued with the notorious “May gray,” days with a marine layer so thick that it’s as if the world exists only in black and white. And in these days of digital photography, I take all my photos in color…but find myself sometimes wondering if a particular image would look better (or different) in black and white. So since our days have been lacking in color anyway, what better excuse for exploring images in black and white?

I noticed these motorcycles lined up across the street from me when we visited Julian over the weekend. With the gray skies and their headlights on, I wanted a way to focus attention on the motorcycles and their lights.

I loved the light in this photo of the dark red tulip and wondered what would happen if it were in black and white. The light is still the focal point, even with the absence of color.

That had me looking for an image with movement…like this one of the waves breaking under the pier. I miss the beautiful turquoise of the water, but love the vibrance of the splash against the pilings.

And there’s the ever iconic UCSD Geisel Library…this most recent photo was my attempt to capture the clouds behind it. There is something timeless about black and white images…

So this is your week to explore with the absence of color. What images will you capture in black and white? Which work well…which need color to bring out their beauty?

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 #blackandwhite for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Even if you are not immersed in the gloom of “May gray,” experiment with black and white. I look forward to seeing black and white through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Change

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Tonight was Open House at my school, that wonderful evening of celebrating all the learning that has happened all year. The third graders (and their parents and teachers) are feeling a bit melancholy, realizing that the end of three years is in sight and there is change in the air.

In addition to spending time chatting with families we currently teach, we also met many of the students who will be our first graders in the fall. Those shy, unfamiliar faces will soon be a part of our learning community.

Tonight’s Open House featured MACville–our student created community made up of twelve 32 x 32 inch grids. Each grid was planned by a group of four students working within the constraints of a building code. Here’s a peek at our cardboard community.

And when I got in my car to head home after a very long day, the sea and sky called to me. The weather forecasters have been predicting rain, but we often get a chance of rain in the forecast that comes to naught. But with the sun setting into the ocean and storm clouds gathering, I headed toward the beach with my phone in my pocket. As the wind whipped my hair and my jacket billowed around me, I snapped shots of the amazing colors of the sky and sea. No editing was needed, the light and clouds and water did all the work.

So where is the change in your life right now? In the weather? In your classroom? In your personal life? In your art?

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 #change for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

Change is the air for me right now. What change will you capture through your lens?

Weekly Photo Challenge: Delicate

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There’s a storm heading our way (or promised, at least), and clouds have gathered. I’ve caught myself staring up into the sky, noticing the ways the clouds race across the sky, gather in delicate puffs, and capture light. At UCSD today, I was mesmerized by the clouds behind the Geisel Library…a very space ship looking building. I played around with the app Paintereque…I love the way it draws attention to the sky.

I’ve been paying a bit more attention to the ways my surroundings impact the way I feel…and have been picking up flowers now and then and putting them in my dining room. These red tulips were closed buds on Saturday, began to open up on Sunday, and yesterday I noticed them drooping gracefully and casting delicate tulip shadows when I got home from work.

With a late meeting earlier this week I couldn’t resist stealing away for a few minutes at the Torrey Pines Glider Port. This interesting place just a few minutes from the university offers breathtaking views of the ocean and, as an added bonus, opportunities to watch the hang gliders float on the breeze. From a distance they are like delicate birds, surfing the currents. Up close, they are much more ungainly.

Up in the mountains over the weekend, I explored the forest and meadows and noticed forces of nature as they whispered. The quiet was soothing and as I breathed deeply, I noticed this delicate butterfly (or is it a moth?) that settled long enough for me to take its portrait!

I loved all the wildflowers carpeting the forest. I noticed that many of the flowers were small and delicate…and often close to the ground like these tiny beauties.

And there is also a delicacy to these large, old oaks. Looking up I could appreciate the delicate branches reaching into the sky. Some were lush, with brilliant green leaves and others, like this one, seem to be declining. Maybe because of our persistent drought?

So what evokes delicate for you? Is it in the flight of a man-made object or the curve of a tree branch? Maybe you notice delicate in the smile of a child or the whiskers of your pet.

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 #delicate for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

So take a look around, what strikes you as delicate? I’m looking forward to expanding my understanding of delicate by seeing it through your lens!