Tag: Photo Challenge

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #367 – Everyone should see this

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We are happy to have Joanne of Joanne Mason Photography as our guest host this week. She writes: “This week’s challenge is to share some photographs of things/people/places that are inspiring and that you want to share. Tell us the circumstances of your photograph and why you want everyone to see it.”

When I first read Joanne’s challenge the first thing I thought of was the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The majesty of the Grand Canyon must be seen in person to appreciate. Photos can’t portray the feeling of awe when seeing this natural wonder.

According to the Grand Canyon National Park website: “Entirely within the state of Arizona, the park encompasses 278 miles (447 km) of the Colorado River and adjacent uplands. Located on the ancestral homelands of 11 present day Tribal Communities, Grand Canyon is one of the most spectacular examples of erosion anywhere in the world—a mile deep canyon unmatched in the incomparable vistas it offers visitors from both north and south rims.”

I was 8 years old the first time I saw the Grand Canyon. I saw it again in 1985 when we took our children on a trip from Georgia to see it when they were 10 and 14. Both trips were to the south rim of the canyon. I don’t remember my feelings when I was 8 but I remember the feeling of wonder I had when seeing it as an adult.

The third time I saw the Grand Canyon was in 2006 when we were on our first RV trip in our fifth wheel. We camped just outside the National Park on the North Rim of the canyon and drove to the park to walk along a trail along the rim. Again I had that feeling of wonder when looking at the vastness of the canyon. All of these canyon images were taken on the North Rim. The Colorado River can be seen at the bottom of the canyon in the featured image.

Leeanne included a beautiful gallery of orchids in her post. She didn’t include any ladyslippers because she didn’t have any photos of them in nature. She asked us to feel free to post photos of ladyslippers in nature if we had any. Leeanne, these ladyslippers from a trail in Itasca State Park in Minnesota are for you!

Thank you to everyone who responded to Tina’s City Mouse/Country Mouse challenge last week. Be sure to check back on Saturday, October 4 at noon Eastern Time when John will be our host.

I hope you will join in for this week’s challenge. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to Joanne’s post Lens-Artists #367 – Everyone should see this

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

Every Day is a Gift

Sunday Stills – Windows

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Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge is Windows. The featured image and the one below are windows from New York City.

Apartment building windows in New York City

Stained Glass Window at St. Giles Cathedral in Edinborough, Scotland.

Windows at historic Fordyce Bath House in Hot Springs, Arkansas

We took a flight seeing trip to see Mt. Denali in Alaska. This is how it looks through the airplane window.

When we traveled in our RV I liked to take pictures out the back window of our fifth wheel camper. This one from Teklanika campground in Denali National Park is one of my favorite views out the back window. There was nothing but wilderness all around us.

Many thanks to Terri for her Sunday Stills challenge Windows

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #366 – City Mouse/Country Mouse

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Tina’s challenge is City Mouse/Country Mouse. Her challenge is based on the “classic Aesop fable “City Mouse/Country Mouse”. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, its moral is that no matter how appealing someone else’s life may seem, there really is no place like home.”

Full disclosure: I am a country mouse. The closest I ever got to big city life was living in the Atlanta suburbs when I was first married in the early 1970’s. I rode the bus to work in downtown Atlanta. Even though the city wasn’t as big then as it is today I had my fill of big city living. I was thrilled when my husband’s job required a move to coastal Georgia.

Technically, where I live in coastal Georgia isn’t in the country. It’s not really even a suburb. I live in a small neighborhood with only two streets and friendly neighbors. I enjoy the peace and quiet that comes with being surrounded by nature. I also enjoy being a short ride from the Atlantic Ocean where I can see sunrises like the one in my featured image.

The nearest city is Savannah. Savannah was founded in 1733 and was Georgia’s first planned city. Today the population is around 148,000 and it has become a popular tourist destination. I enjoy an occasional trip to downtown Savannah to be a tourist for a day.

Talmadge Bridge
Lion Statue
Bonaventure Cemetary
River Street

My home is located about 30 minutes from downtown Savannah and a short drive to the Atlantic Ocean. When I am home I am surrounded by the beauty and quiet of the salt marsh and salt water creeks and rivers.

Early Morning Salt Marsh

Many of the trees in my neighborhood are covered with Spanish Moss

Georgia Salt Marsh

During our travels we have visited big cities like New York City, San Diego, Dublin, Glasgow and Edinborough. They were fun to see but my favorite places were all the small towns and rural areas. When we are on a road trip we go out of our way to avoid the traffic of the big cities. As much as I love travel, I am always happy when we cross the last bridge across the marsh on the way home. As Dorothy said in the Wizard of Oz, “There’s no place like home.”

Thank you to everyone who responded to Egidio’s wonderful Longing challenge last week. Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 27 at noon Eastern Time when Joanne of Joanne Mason Photography will be our guest host..

I hope you will join in for this week’s challenge. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to Tina’s post Lens-Artists #356 – City Mouse/Country Mouse

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

Every Day is a Gift

Sunday Stills – Fountains and Falls

Posted in Photography, WaterfallsTagged , , 15 Comments

Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge is fountains and falls. The featured image is the Forsyth Park Fountain in Savannah, Georgia. The rest of my images are waterfalls from around the United States.

I’ll start with three different Bridal Veil Falls

Bridal Veil Falls, Keystone Canyon, Valdez, Alaska
Bridal Veil Falls Nantahala National Forest, North Carolina
Bridal Veil Falls, Yosemite National Park, California

Here’s three from in and around Yellowstone National Park

Lower Yellowstone Falls in Yellowstone National Park
Waterfall along Yellowstone Lower Loop Road
Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho

There are beautiful waterfalls in the north Georgi mountains. Here are three of them.

L’Eau d’Or Falls in Tallulah Gorge
Ada-Hi Falls in Black Rock Mountain State Park
Amacalola Falls, Georgia

Many thanks to Terri for taking us on a trip around Yellowstone National Park with her Sunday Stills challenge Fountains and Falls

Every Day is a Gift

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #365 – Longing

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For this challenge Egidio introduces us to the Portuguese word saudade. Wikipedia defines saudade as “an emotional state of melancholic or profoundly nostalgic longing for a beloved yet absent someone or something. It is a recollection of feelings, experiences, places, or events, often elusive, that cause a sense of separation from the exciting, pleasant, or joyous sensations they once caused.“

The closest English word to describe saudade is longing. I had a hard time deciding how to approach this challenge. I finally came up with a few places that have special meaning for me.

Ireland will always be with me. Words can’t describe the beauty of the green landscapes, the friendly and kind people, and the feeling I had while there. I still think of Ireland often and long to return.

It’s been almost 20 years since we’ve been to Florida Keys. I long to return to those carefree days of boating, fishing, watching the sunset, and scuba diving although these days I wouldn’t be diving.

My father was in the United States Air Force. When I was 16 he was assigned to a small base in Italy. Whenever Dad had a few days off we would take trips to see the country. Dad always took his Minolta camera with him and took thousands of slides of our adventures. My younger brother spent many hours converting those slide to digital format (thank you Joe). The following gallery shows three of the many places we went – Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Coliseum in Rome, and Trulli houses in Alberobello. When I look at these photos all my happy memories of traveling with my family come rushing back. I long to return to Italy one day.

Thank you to all the beautiful quiet moments you shared for Ritva’s challenge last week. Be sure to check back on Saturday, September 20 Eastern Time when Tina will be hosting our next challenge.

Egidio, thank you for teaching me a new word. I hope you will join him for this week’s challenge Longing. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to his post Lens-Artists #365 – Longing

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

Every Day is a Gift