Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year.....

Well, another year is pretty much done, and for most of us, there have been a few changes, some positive, some not so much. It is what it is, or was what it was, and there is no going back. Like it or not, we are all caught up in the prevailing circumstantial machinations of life that we have had little control over, so it is time to take stock, and stop beating ourselves up over would've, should've stuff. This image is of a little frosted glass reindeer that is usually on our coffee table every Christmas time, and while I was foolin' around with my camera between periods of the hockey game, I grabbed an existing light shot of it. It is back lit by the light from the TV about 6 feet away, and front lit by a little table lamp about 4 feet away. Nothing too earth shattering there. Anyway, when I loaded the files onto the computer, and got to playing with it a bit, this is the result, thanks to Photoshop and Corel softwares. It was a fun little piece to play with, and the wishes go out to everyone that I know, and those I don't, who bother to check in on my little blog. May all the best of the season be yours, and be good to yourselves, you deserve it....Cheers folks! See you in the New Year.....

Bygone Days Abstract.....

Just lately, I have been learning to play a piece of music which was written by Tommy Fleming, and played on the violin by Eileen Ivers. The translation to the button accordion went better than I had expected, but it still needs a bit of work before I'll feel satisfied. At any rate, it is a totally beautiful piece of music, and anyone can look it up on U-tube. It is entitled Bygone Days. It brings to mind when we lost my Father-in-Law, and before he passed, he gave me his fiddle, that he played during many a good session playing old time music together. If there is anything on this planet that is sacred to me, it is that old fiddle. So tonight, in homage to him, the fiddle, and this lovely piece of music, I tried to illustrate that with this little image.....hope you enjoy it....Cheers!

P.S. This image was awarded an Honourable Mention for Open Coloured Prints Category in Windsor Camera Clubs 2020 Salon event.

Guardians of the Garden.....

After a very hot Summer, Autumn is well on its way to slipping into Winter now. The heavy snowfall we had a week ago, that required breaking out the snow blower has all melted, and tonight it is pouring rain. So I decided to spend the evening doing a little still life of the garden gnome Padraic, and his pet turtle, Declan, who have done a splendid job guarding the garden this year. They were surrounded by all the fallen leaves from the bushes near by, so I decided to include them for a bit of texture also. It's nothing special, but it was a fun way to spend a rainy evening. Hope some of you enjoy also.....

The "Land Dory".....

It started out as just a crazy idea that flitted through my mind one day this past Summer. My Snow Bear utility trailer was sitting in my driveway, half filled with debris for the landfill, and it occurred to me that I could use it for another purpose than to collect junk and garbage. That wears a little thin after a while, and does nothing for curb appeal as well. So, I started the project on Labour Day, and got it completed on the outside by Thanksgiving Day, approximately 6 weeks later. The part that sits down in the bed of the trailer, is pressure treated plywood, and the upper cladding is Western Red Cedar. Both materials stand up to the elements extremely well. The cedar boards were put through my table saw, and turned into Ship Lap siding. It has 2 coats of Spar Urethane, to help protect it from the elements. Since I had always wanted to build a boat, but for whatever reason it never happened, I decided that an appropriate name for the camper would be my "Land Dory", being that it was built with a trip to Newfoundland in mind. However, before that extended trip, it will likely be doing a few trips up to Marten River Provincial Park, and Restoule Prov. Park, and also likely Findlayson Point Prov. Park in Temagami, Ont.. So stay tuned Mike in North Bay, we will see you in the Summer.....Cheers!....

P.S. Since Western Red Cedar is so light compared to other wood materials, I am able to single handed move it about the driveway with not much effort. Also, it is a "slide in" unit, and has 8 wheels built into the under framing, which enables me to roll it off the trailer should I need to haul gravel, or some other objects. The folks at Services Ontario informed me that it requires no registration as it is considered to be "cargo" or load. I checked on that before starting the build..... however the lighting will all conform to Federal Trailer specs, and is next on my to do list to hook up.

Through Glaucoma Eyes.....

This image reminds me of how most of the world appeared about 4 years ago, before I had cataracts removed from my eyes. The eye doctor informed me that I had Glaucoma, and would need the procedure done. I had noticed that things appeared somewhat soft, and especially while driving at night, the lights had a soft glow around them, and as other vehicles passed by, they would appear to leave streaks or trails of light. However, it strangely enough had a couple of advantages. When I looked at a lovely bouquet, or sometimes even elderly folk, the softness was somewhat enjoyable at times...depending on what my gaze was fixed on....not an unpleasant aspect. Maybe we should leave the rest to your imagination..... Cheers!

Camera: SONY a65
Lens: Minolta 100mm Soft Focus Portrait Lens

First Snowfall

This morning while I was pouring my morning beverage, I looked out the back window, and this is the sight that greeted me.....the first snowfall on the roses. For a little while, I ignored it, and sat for my morning chat and drink. But the image of the snow on the roses stuck in my mind, so I had to grab my camera and go take a few shots. This little image is the first one I chose to play with. Hope you enjoy it as well. Winter is on its way in Windsor, Ont....

Camera: SONY a77Mk2
Lens: SONY 75 ~ 300mm zoom

Terra Cotta Abstract.....

We are all caught up in different circumstances. Some of us are free to roam the world and take wonderful photos, and some of us are destined to be closer to home. You could say that I fall into the latter category. As such, a lot, or most of my images are of items that are close by. This one in particular, is just a bunch of terra cotta pots dangling by some twine from a nail over head on our back deck. They were so simple and ordinary just hanging there, and for some reason, I felt that they deserved their moment in the sun. Hence this little abstract image that was a lot of fun in the making. My in house imaging judge thinks I am stuck in a crazy rut, and maybe she has a point there.....'tis all good. Cheers!

Camera: SONY a77Mk2
Lens: SONY 18 ~ 135mm zoom

Golden Stamens & Pistil.....

This little image started out as just a close up of a lily. However, when I printed it out, for some reason, my eye kept wanting to slide out of the top left hand corner, and I had intended the yellow stamens to be the main attraction. What to do.....so I decided to try something that I had never done before. I added another horizontal graphic element to the image, to help hold my eye down where it should be. For whatever reason, it seems to work for me, but maybe others would have different opinions. That is fine by me, but experimenting with an image is all part of the process. Hope you enjoy.

Mandolin Abstract....

Well, here we go again.....after about a 3 month absence, I decided to give blogging another go. It is somewhat disconcerting when you browse other sites, and find some of your images being used to enhance other bloggers sites.....definitely not cool. Then when others overstep the boundaries of personal space on your blog, it is time to take a hiatus, and log off for a while. At any rate, I decided to return with a new blog title, and hopefully the images on here will strike a chord (pun intended) with some of you. If I aimed to please everyone, then my images would be very mediocre at best...but then again, maybe they are anyway. I have no ego concerning my images, and only request a bit of respect.
This image was photographed on a recent visit to a relative's home. He plays the guitar, and mandolin, and this started out as a simple grab shot, with the camera tilted a few degrees to make things a little less static. I applied a couple of filters in Corel and decided to go with this rendition of it. He said it was somewhat surreal, when I sent him the file.....I can live with that. Hope some of you can find some enjoyment in it also....there ya go!