Our Daily Challenge: Hollow

Our Daily Challenge: Hollow, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

No turtle soup for dinner as the occupant of this shell is long gone.  But where has it gone? I don't think I have ever seen a turtle shedding its shell, so I guess we'll have to blame a critter or two.  We obtained this shell sometime ago for our display case at school.  Almost passed it by as I was trying to locate things that were hollow.  Makes a perfect shot for the assignment if I do say so myself.  Couldn't quite figure out a good shot for the shell, especially since I wanted to capture the "hollow-ness" from front to back.  Went over to Lake Katherine after work, thinking I could place the shell in the reeds along the stream. Unfortunately the workers there are on the ball and all of the foliage had been trimmed back. Not one stinkin' reed, bush, or shrub anywhere!!!  Decided to just plop myself on the ground and shoot from front to back, taking in whatever I could.  Unfortunately the shell reflects the light and looks shinier than it really is.  And the water is not as blue as I'd like it to be.  But I'm doing my best, people, so no complaints from the peanut gallery please.

December Holidays/My Family’s Tradition

December Holidays/My Family’s Tradition, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Really don't have many traditions that we do in our family. Growing up, the holidays were never celebrated with much fanfare and much to my dismay, I realized as I have grown older I have little to pass on to my children. I acquired these musicians many years ago and they remind me of my carefree days. For whatever reason, my mother inherited them from one of her sisters, and one day, as she was cleaning house she gave them to me.  They were made in Germany and have a Hedo stamp on the bottom; I assume they now are collector items.  Can't find anything on the internet though, although Hedo made quite a few wooden figurines.  But as I begin to pare down I notice I put fewer and fewer things out during Christmas; thankfully, I hung onto these.

Our Daily Challenge: It's Alive....I think.

Our Daily Challenge: It's Alive....I think., a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Now that I've posted this picture it sounds kind of mean, even though I often have to monitor his chest to see if he's even breathing.  I often find him sitting on his lazy-boy, dozing, and as he gets older and has more health concerns it is a worry.  I captured this picture after he had gone to bed- and that's how he looks every night!  Not too romantic but then again, I've never been one to cuddle in bed.  So I guess he gets his warmth any way that he can find it.

ODC: radiating lines

ODC: radiating lines, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Not quite sure if this photo accurately shows radiating lines. I know that radiating lines come from the center but do they have to be straight?  I tried doing some research about the lines but really couldn't find the answer that I was looking for.  Then I looked at several examples of photographs showing radiating lines and even they differed.  Maybe photographers have a little bit of poetic license when shooting a photo.  I think this would be considered radiating although the lines aren't straight- and because there really isn't a center that the lines emanate from, does that then negate this photo as being radiating?  I'm sure someone will comment on my photo if I'm wrong in my thinking.  They usually do.  I've had this dream catcher for several years.  I think my sister-in-law made it for my youngest to chase away his nightmares.  Wonder how it catches dreams with those big holes between the strings- doesn't look like it could contain the bogey man if he was chasing you in your dream.

ODC: light

ODC: light, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Bath and Body wall flowers are my new favorite thing.  I never knew they existed even though I may have seen a display or two when walking through their store.  I'm more into the soaps and creams if I buy any of their products.  But recently, I walked into a co-workers room and was filled with this terrific aroma- something akin to cookies baking.  When I discovered they had a wall flower I flew over to Bath and Body at the end of the day to purchase whatever I thought would smell good in the library.  Of course, I couldn't settle for one fragrance.  I had to buy half a dozen x 2 because I wanted the smell to come from different areas of the library.  The first one was a pleasant surprise- the smell of cinnamon filled the library for many days.  It was almost as good as eating a cinnamon roll albeit without the calories.  When the wall flower was empty I rushed back to purchase more, only to discover that they rotate their products according to the season.  I don't remember what this wall flower was called but they no longer carried it. :(  The next one I thought would smell just as good- I think it was called Oatmeal Raisin.  Unfortunately, the smell was too sweet for me and I had to quickly replace it.  So it continues to be a challenge trying to find a suitable fragrance- sometimes I'm lucky, sometimes I'm not.  But I really like the end result of this photo- looks kind of eerie as though the light is giving off smoke.

Today's Posting: Orange

Today's Posting: Orange, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Have another group that I've joined on flickr which deals mostly with macro shots. I recently obtained a lens that is used for closeup shots and I absolutely love it. A little more on the expensive side and heavier, but the detail and color is outstanding. What I've learned from this shot is that any little camera shake will negate a super sharp shot. I took this without using a tripod and as I reviewed it today I saw that it's not as clear as I thought. In fact it stinks and it's one I will definitely have to try again, this time using a tripod. I do have an older camera that I think I'll use primarily for closeups. This lens can also be used for portraits- but it's really a lens that I have to practice with as there's a lot of focusing and lens depth that I don't know much about. I don't give myself much credit when I do manual focusing as I don't think my eyes are as good as the autofocusing on a camera. But with this macro lens there's an awful lot of lens noise as it tries to focus in the auto selection- that or I am too close or too far away.  I did learn something new today- there's an orange crayon called "macaroni and cheese."  Who knew?

Our Daily Challenge: Bricks

Our Daily Challenge: Bricks, a photo by scookster on Flickr.

Been waiting for a chance to use this picture.  I pass it every day on the way to work and it fit today's assignment of "bricks" perfectly.  I don't know who painted the tiger on the high school wall but it's been there for several years.  As I was shooting this photo I realized that I get such amazing color with this camera- both the bricks and tiger are orange but the detail of the tiger really is apparent.  I guess I should have looked closer at the wall for perhaps the artist initialed his name somewhere.  It's a wonder no one has defaced the painting- I guess the kids that go to the school are rather proud of this masterpiece.