It's Your Life - Live It!

I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of. If you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again.  I don't know who wrote this, but I saw it on Facebook today and thought it was worth sharing.

Are you living the life you want?   Are you proud of what you're doing?  Do you wish things were different?  Do you think you can do a better job?   Only you are in control of those things.  Only you can change your life and make it want YOU want.  If you're not living a life you're proud of, only you can make a difference.   If you're not happy with the way things are, why not start making changes today that will give you the life you were meant to live?  Until you do, nothing will change.  So, if you need to make changes, start making them today.  Live the life you want.  Don't settle for anything less! 

I wish these things for you and hope you have a wonderful day.

Into The Light

 "Come forth into the light of things, Let nature be your teacher." ~Wordsworth

Nature can be a wonderful teacher if you just take enough time to let the lessons sink in.   This may require that you go sit in the woods and let the golden rays of the sun shine through the trees until they rest on your head.  The energy of the sun will then soak into you and give you warmth, hope and a new sense of peace.

I wish you a day filled with peace, love and joy.  :-)

Meditation

"An ancient master said.
The mountains, the rivers, the whole earth,
the entire array of phenomena are all oneself.
If you can absorb the essence of this message,
there are no activities outside of meditation:
you dress in meditation & eat in meditation;
you walk, stand, sit and lie down in meditation;
you preserve and think in meditation;
you experience joy, anger, sadness,
and happiness in meditation."
Muso (1275-1351, (Japen)

This goes way beyond what I think of as meditation but, perhaps, if we're in-tune with ourselves, we are always meditating to some extent.  I don't know.  What do you think?

Alone in the Woods

"Deep in the woods I sat for a long time with the trees.
Feeling their roots reach deep in the ground,
watching their leaves stretch toward heaven,
basking in the joy of being present
with their beauty."  Author Unknown

This picture was taken in Montana a couple of years ago.   I added a little lens flare in PhotoShop to create a more dramatic effect.  Isn't it strange how we try to avoid lens flare "in camera" and then sometimes add it in PhotoShop?    LOL!

I hope you enjoy the quote and the picture.  Have a wonderful day.  :-)

The Negative and the Score

"The negative is comparable to the composer’s score and the print to its performance."  Ansel Adams.

It seems like Ansel Adams is trying to tell us that if we take pictures, but don't share them, so others can enjoy their beauty, it's like having beautiful music that never gets played.   So, don't just leave those wonderful photos on your hard drive, share them with others, so they can enjoy the beauty that you saw when you took the picture. 

Enjoy your day!

The Magic of Light

Sometimes it's difficult to believe how much difference a little light makes.  When I was photographing these geese, there was just a fraction of a second when they were in the magic glow of the sun.  As you

can see, the two geese on top had not reached that point yet.  A fraction of a second later the other geese were black too.   Just in case you're wondering, this picture was not altered using PhotoShop or any other photo software.  It's just the way it was.  Mother Nature did it all by herself.   :-)

Swans in the Fog

3

2

1

You can do all kinds of things with the help of PhotoShop or other editting software programs.   This picture was taken on a very foggy morning.  There was so much fog, in fact, that you could barely see the trees.  I love foggy pictures, so I just started shooting, knowing that I could make the necessary adjustments when I got home.

Picture #1 is a copy of the original file, with some minor adjustments done in Camera Raw, such as bringing up the brightness, fill light, clarity and adjusting the blacks just a little. 

Picture #2 was altered in PhotoShop using curves & levels to brighten the overall scene and to bring out the whiteness of the swans.

Picture #3  is Picture #2 with the NIK graduated fog filter applied to it.  I softened the effect to the point where I liked it and then saved the photo.

My oldest grandson likes picture #3 best, because he likes the soft, graduated effect of the fog.  I think I agree with him.  Which do you like best?

Beauty For The Soul

"Mere color, unspoiled by meaning and unallied with definite form. can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways." Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), England

I think this is so true.  Many things in nature can speak to us with their colors, their form, their simplicity and their beauty.  All we have to do is to take time to enjoy them.

Foggy Morning in Yellowstone

"To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle.  Every cubic inch of space is a miracle."  Walt Whitman (1819-1892), USA

As you have probably figured out by now, I love fog pictures, especially when the fog is above a river.  To me, it creates a magical scene which transcends me to a peaceful place, a place where I can relax and be one with nature.   I hope this image gives you a peaceful feeling and adds joy to your day.

Harmony With Nature

"All things are parts of one single system, which is called Nature; the individual life is good when it is in harmony with Nature."  Zeno of Citium (300-260 BCE) Cyprus

This vegetation was growing in one of the hot pools in Yellowstone.  You'd think that would be impossible but, apparently, it's in harmony with Nature and, therefore, able to live in this environment which, to us, would appear to be hostile.

With all of today's conveniences and gadgets, it can be difficult to be in harmony with Nature.  In past generations, I think it came easily; today we have to work at it.