Every Day is a Gift!
In honor of the January 25 birthday of Scottish poet Robert Burns my first two images include checked tartans.
Striped lighthouses and Striped American Flags.
Stripes and Checks in Nature
Many thanks to Ann-Christine for this week’s Lens Artists photo challenge: Striped and checked.
When I saw Terri’s Monthly Color Photo Challenge was for the color Glacier Blue, I took the challenge literally and browsed through my archives searching for the blue in my glacier images from our 2013 Alaska RV trip.
I was amazed each time we saw one of these ancient, gigantic bodies of ice. We saw a few from the road, many from nature cruises, and even some from an airplane. Each one took my breath away. We could feel the cold each time we approached one for a closer look. Seeing all these images again brought back many happy memories.
The captain of our cruise from Seward took us close to the Aialik Glacier and shut off the engines so we could see and hear the glacier calving. There’s more about that amazing experience at Glaciers and Wildlife in Seward
Probably the most memorable day of our Alaska journey was the day we took a flight seeing trip from Talkeetna. We not only saw glaciers from the air, but our plane landed on one.
On a nature cruise from Valdez our boat navigated through the ice and in Juneau we saw Mendenhall Glacier up close.
While these images make me cold as I look at them they also make me happy. I feel so grateful we were able to make the trip when we did.
Many thanks to Patti for this week’s Lens Artists photo challenge Emotions.
This week’s guest host Ann Gee has challenged us to walk around our yard or home and take close-up or macro shots or choose close-up shots from our archives.
Ann explained the difference between a macro and close-up. A macro is taken with a dedicated macro lens. A close-up is zooming in on a subject. All of my photos are close-ups since I don’t have a dedicated macro lens.
I often take close-ups in my garden. The image at the top of the page and the next two are interesting critters from last year’s garden.
I experimented with some new subjects as I walked around my yard this week.
Many thanks to guest host Ann Gee at Slow Shutter Speed for this weeks Lens-Artists Photo Challenge # 130: It’s a Small World
Here’s a look back at 2020 with a few of my favorite photos from the year.
Before Covid-19 shut down world, the first two and a half months of 2020 were pretty normal for me. Henry and I explored the beach close to home, enjoyed a fun getaway to nearby Savannah to attend a Willie Nelson concert and be tourists for two days, I puttered in the garden and planted Camellias, and I had fun going on outings with friends.
After the shutdown began in mid March my photography options were limited to things and places close to home. The weather was perfect for working in the garden, watching the birds and butterflies, and walking in the neighborhood or at the beach.
In July we ventured away from home to celebrate our 50th anniversary. Our original plan was to go on our first ever cruise. When all the cruises were cancelled, our plan B was to spend a few nights at the Jekyll Island Club. It turned out to be a perfect place for us to celebrate.
Birds and butterflies continued to keep me entertained during the hot, dry August. We were safe as tropical storm Isaias passed us by.
Fall arrived with cooler weather, clear blue skies, a walk in the park and more birds.
Our holidays were quiet with no family visiting from out of town and no neighborhood parties. Phone calls and Facetime kept us in touch with all of our loved ones. The Christmas lights in our neighborhood made me smile and there were some beautiful days for being outside.
Many thanks to Tina, Patti, Amy, Ann-Christine and the guest hosts for these wonderful Lens-Artists challenges. Thank you for giving me an incentive to keep taking photos and keep this blog going.
Many thanks to Tina for this weeks Lens-Artists Photo Challenge # 129 – Favorite Images of 2020
For many years we filled our home with decorations and my Snow Village shown above took up a lot of our living room. This year all we did was decorate our tree and display a few outside lights. I’ve made cookies and other treats and shared them with our friends. Presents were mailed with some arriving in time and some not making it in time for Christmas.
Even though we weren’t able to celebrate in the usual way with parties and caroling and most of our family will not be here we will still enjoy a holiday filled with love and joy.
Wishing you Joy and Happiness
Merry Christmas!
and a Happy 2021!
Henry and Beth
Many thanks to Ann-Christine for this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #128: And Here comes the Holiday Season
Wandering Dawgs 