Tag: Lens-Artists

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #415: Move Your Body

Posted in Nature, PhotographyTagged , , , , , 38 Comments

Our host Anne is asking us to move our body up, down, forward and back to get the shot we want.

I chose galleries of three famous United State Landmarks to illustrate how I had to move my body around and look up in order to capture the subject from different angles.

The first gallery is of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri. Because of it’s size, it is difficult to capture it all in one shot. I walked around the base of the arch and I had to lean way back when I looked up at the arch.

We had seen Mount Rushmore from the road as we approached the entrance to the National Monument. The first image is a view of the monument from the paved path at the entrance to the park. We walked along the path towards the monument for a closer look. We then walked along a trail beneath the monument where we had to look up to see the faces.

The last gallery shows three different views I captured of the Devil’s Tower as we walked along a trail at the base of the Tower.

Last week Ann-Christine asked us to feature images that showed Harmony. Your responses were amazing. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.

Many thanks to our host Anne for this week’s fun challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #415: Move your Body.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, October 3 at noon eastern time when Ritva will be hosting the challenge.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #414: Looking back to #44 Harmony

Posted in Nature, PhotographyTagged , , 47 Comments

Ann-Christine is looking back to Tina’s Lens Artists Challenge #44 – Harmony. She describes Harmony like this: “Harmony is the combination of separate but related parts in a way that uses their similarities to bring unity to a painting, drawing, or other art object.”

I find many examples of harmony in nature. These images focus on harmony between animals of different species. Some share the same spaces to hunt for food, some share a log together for who knows what reason, and sometimes they are together to help each other out.

Egrets and Roseate Spoonbills sharing a pond to search for food

An alligator and turtles share a log

Cattle egrets and cows are often seen together in nature. The cattle egret helps the cow by eating the fleas and ticks off of the cow.

It was my pleasure to host the Bridge challenge last week. Your incredible images included many kinds of bridges from all around the world. I enjoyed all of them. Thank you to everyone who responded to the challenge.

Many thanks to our host Ann-Christine for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #414: Harmony.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 26 at noon eastern time when Anne will have another great challenge for us.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #413 – Bridges

Posted in Bridges, PhotographyTagged , , , , , , , 78 Comments

I am excited to be your host this week. The challenge is for you to show us your favorite bridge images. You can feature any kind of bridge: natural bridges, foot bridges, swinging bridges, highway bridges, stone bridges, railroad bridges, or any other kind of bridge you can think of.

I live in an area where there are many bridges. I have to cross a bridge over a creek just to leave my neighborhood. I have seen many kinds of bridges during my travels and enjoy photographing them. I hope the following bridges from our travels will give you a few ideas. I can’t wait to see your responses.

Natural Bridge, Virginia

Ha’Penny Bridge across the River Liffey, Dublin, Ireland

Left to Right: Ha’Penny Bridge foot bridge across the River Liffey, Dublin, Ireland, Stone Bridge, Winterset, Iowa.

Mackinac Bridge, Michigan

Columbia River Bridge between Washington and Oregon

Horace Wilkinson Bridge on I-10, Louisiana

Left to Right: Bridge over River Laude at Killorglin, County Kerry, Ireland; Bridge on Otter Crest Drive, Oregon.

Covered Bridge, Bath, New Hampshire

London Bridge, Lake Havasu City, Nevada

The Atlantic Bridge on the Panama Canal

Alaska Railroad Bridge

Last week John challenged us to show Places Shaped by Water. Your responses were amazing. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.

I’m looking forward to seeing your bridges. Please limit your responses to no more than 10 images and be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to this post.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 19 at noon eastern time when Ann-Christine will be our host.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #412 – Places shaped by Water

Posted in Georgia, Nature, PhotographyTagged , , , , , , 60 Comments

John is our host this week. His challenge: “Share up to six waterscapes—images where water shapes the scene. Choose your favorite places, your favorite photos, or a single location that inspires you. Natural or man‑made, peaceful or wild—if water helps tell the story, it’s fair game”

When I first read John’s challenge I thought it would easy. Oceans, rivers, creeks, lakes, swamps, bayous, and salt marshes are a few of my favorite places shaped by water. However, for this challenge I decided to focus on a place near and dear to my heart, the Okefenokee Swamp in my home state of Georgia. The Okefenokee Swamp is first site in the United States to be added as a World Heritage Site in over 30 years and is the only site in Georgia to receive the designation.

The Okefenokee Swamp is North America’s largest blackwater wetland and one of Georgia’s Seven Natural Wonders. It was designated as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1937 and on July 25, 2026, the Okefenokee Swamp was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You can read more about the Okefenokee at Okefenokee World Heritage Site.

One of our favorite state park campgrounds was once named Stephen C. Foster State Park located in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Fargo, Georgia. The state of Georgia renamed the park Okefenokee State Park on September 1, 2026. We camped there many times during the years. Our favorite thing to do was to take a boat ride into the swamp. Sometimes we went on a Ranger led boat tour, sometimes we rented a canoe to paddle through the swamp, and sometimes we rented a small motor boat. As we rode through the swamp through Spanish Moss Covered Cypress trees we always saw plenty of wildlife including alligators and birds.

Here are a few of my favorite images of the Okefenokee.

Into the Okefenokee
Okefenokee World Heritage Site

Alligator in the lily pads, Okefenokee Swamp

Cormorant in Okefenokee Swamp

Okefenokee Swamp

Okefenokee World Heritage Site

Last week Sofia’s fun challenge of What is it? had us guessing what was depicted in a photo. You had some really great photos that made me think “I have no idea”. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.

Many thanks to our host John for this week’s fun challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to his post Lens-Artists #412: Places shaped by water.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 12 at noon eastern time when I will be your host for the challenge.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #411 – What is It?

Posted in PhotographyTagged , , 40 Comments

Sofia introduces her challenge like this: “Imagine this week’s challenge is a quiz. You’ll all be the quiz master setting the images and we’ll have to guess what is depicted.”

I hope you have some fun trying to guess what is depicted in these images. The answers are at the end of the post.

1. What is it?

2. What is it?

3. What is it?

4. What is it?

5. What is it?

And the answers are:

  1. Crab Legs
  2. Jellyfish
  3. Fish in a fish hatchery
  4. Rope Swing
  5. Rusty boat anchor chain

Many thanks to Ritva for hosting last week’s challenge One Photo Edited. I enjoyed seeing all of your creative edits. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge.

Many thanks to our host Sofia for this week’s fun challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #411: What is it?.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 5 at noon eastern time when John will be hosting the challenge.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift