{ 040 } :: 325

Remember that bottle brush bloom I shared a few days ago?

This is another take on it.

It rained a lot today and during a moment of cease-fire I went out to my beloved bush to get some deliciously pink bokeh! 

I call this one Cotton Candy.

...fairly appropriate, no?

{PS - It's also in my Etsy shop! Just click on the photo or title above to go there.}

Chair Lines

Scavenger Hunt - Back at Last!

It has been a looong time since I've participated in Scavenger Hunt Sunday!
...it's nice to be back at it...




Macro/Close-Up
I wanted to get a kind of Casablanca feel with this shot
...but I've never seen the movie, so I'm really just guessing here...
{I also used this image as an example in my Hi, ISO post...just in case you missed it.}

Found Texture 

Home
My home consists not of brick and mortar or framing and drywall, but of these two plus my husband.
Wherever they are is my home!

Cover
Perhaps this is a stretch but peels are kind of a cover, right?!

The Tree
This is another image you may have already seen on the blog.
I used it earlier in the week for my Scripture & a Snapshot post but decided to use it for this as well because that bokeh is way too scrumptious to share only once!

Vegas, Blogoversary, & Abstractions

Happy Monday my friends!

Seth and I are getting ready for our vacation to Las Vegas!

Who cares about gambling!? I'm excited for all the photos I'll get to take.

{if you have any suggestions on great photographic spots...aside from the strip...please do share}

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm planning a super fun 1-year blogoversary giveaway September 12th-16th.

If you have an Etsy shop and are interested in sponsoring a giveaway let me know.

It's a great time to promote your business....Christmas is right around the corner!

Remember that red abstract photo I shared yesterday?
It's one of those red sirens from a really old police car.
{or something similar...it was in a junk pile, so I'm guessing here.}

Here's another abstract shot from the Casting Crowns concert two weeks ago.
{love that purple. Go Cats!}

And finally, since I'll be sunning it up in Vegas I'm going to also take this time as a blogging break.
Scripture & a Snapshot will still post at it's regular time {8pm cst Saturday} and I'll be back on Monday!
I hope you all have a wonderful week!!!
:)

Scavenger Hunt - Iowa Edition

My 1-year blogoversary is coming up next month and I am hoping to celebrate with a really fun and special week of goodies!
I'm looking for five sponsors during the week of September 12th.
If you are interested in sponsoring, please email me for details {katiellloyd@yahoo.com} and we'll get the ball rolling!


***

Ok, I think these are the last shots from Iowa...
maybe.

1. Geometry
This is the stairway to a doppler radar tower. This particular one was build a few thousand feet from my grandparents' home. During a recent storm the big ball of this radar tower flew off, over their grain bins and landed in their front yard, missing their new porch by mere feet. But that's not all...some other giant metal part also flew off and landed about 20 feet from their car!
Talk about a miracle! I think God was watching over them that night.



2. Brushstrokes
Just for kicks, who can guess what this is?



3. Hanging by a Thread
If living next to a doppler radar tower wasn't bad enough, my grandparents also live under two extremely large radio (?) towers, which are supported by a ton of large cables.
{if they ever sell their home, that realtor has their work cut out for them!!!}



4. Collage
These were all edited using Nelly Nero's Autumn Vintage.
{love this free action!}
And of course the collage template is by Alicia.
{love her massive amounts of inspirational talent!}



5. On the Dotted Line
Pretty self explanatory.

Friday Abstractions & A Planner Download

Last week I told you that I'd have a handy little download available today.
And here it is!
I debated on the format in which to offer it, but ultimately decided that everyone would be able to use it in a simple .jpg format.

Print it out. Fill it out. Done.

I personally put mine in a 3-ring binder.
But you can scale it to fit your needs.

Go HERE to download this Weekly Photo Challenge Planner.




*****

Yesterday I finally got around to taking some oil and water shots.
Our session did not last long as the best light was outside and it was approximately 200 degrees in the sun.
{umm...some of these oil spots could very well be sweat spots}
But as short a time as I spent on it, I still ended up with a few favorites...



I am really loving oil and how it can create a dividing line as well as such clearly defined orbs.
I'm also totally diggin' the texture towards the top....and the bokeh to the right.

   





The left half of this shot seriously reminds me of the movie "Look Who's Talking"...or at least the very beginning with the sperm and egg. And the right side reminds me of "Finding Nemo"...or at least the very beginning with all the eggs.


     





That streak right through the shot was completely unexpected, but I love it.
In fact, I think it makes the shot.

{PS. go HERE for an easy tut on how to get water and oil shots}

 

Miscellaneous Monday #2

I have a feeling this week is going to be almost as busy as last and I deeply apologize in advance for not returning comments.
Rowan's toe has healed, but she now has strep throat. And an awful rash, which we initially thought was a reaction to penicillin, to go with it.
Oye.

Here are just a couple of shots from last week...

Miscellaneous Monday

So many photos, so few memes.
{...wait...that's not right.}


But I do have a handful of extra shots from last week that never made it into the rotation.
Most are from Thursday's trip to the farmstead.



This little guy was sooooo cute!!!
{if someone had told me I could take them all home, I'd have done so in a heartbeat!}





...one if by land, two if by sea...
This was one of several lanterns in the dairy barn.
and I liked it, so I took a picture.





They also have these gorgeously green well-style hand pumps with cobalt blue basins beneath as their wash station near the goats.
{beauty is in the details...except you can't really see them here.}




and who could ignore the giant red barn?!
{well, no one, because that's where you enter. ;)}
Check out that weather vane, too!




And this one....there's a story here...

My husband and I had gone out to stake up our tomato plants in our backyard one evening when we caught two bunnies nibbling away at the new growth.
{stinkin' bunnies}
But instead of running away as fast as they could, they ran a little bit and stopped.
So I ran to get my camera!
When I came back I apparently made "ridiculous clopping noises" with my flip flops {so says my husband} and scared them away. They ran under our wooden gate and I had to go see if they stopped again.
Which they did! One was about 6 feet from me, so I carefully crouched to the ground to get some shots.
I managed to take a few super blurry ones and then the bunny started hopping toward me!
Closer and closer...
{why oh why did I grab my 70-300 when the 50 is what I needed?!?}
And then as if that wasn't crazy enough, this gutsy bunny starts running at me!

What do I do?
I flinch.
A bunny made me flinch.
And he ran away for real this time.

Not long after all this, his buddy figured out that his friend was gone and came out for the shot above.

PS - If you have an interest in handmade items, then Celeste at French Onion Finds has you covered! At her brand spankin' new blog she showcases beautiful items from Etsy. And it just so happens that her first post includes one of my photographs. ;)

Scavenger Hunt - Here, There, Everywhere

1. Long Exposure
This is from the archives. There. I said it.
I was hoping to get out and shoot the night sky, but that just didn't happen in time, so instead I'm sharing light-writing!

In case you're wondering, here's how I did this:
I went to our super dark basement (or any room at night will do!) put my camera on a shelf, set my shutter speed at around 10 seconds or so, then used a flashlight to write my word....I wrote mine out normally, so it ended up being backwards in my camera, but I just flipped to around when editing. I also added the pink hue to my edited version! :)

2. Shapes
I found these terra cotta whatever-they-ares piled back by the bean field at my grandparents' home.

3. Green

This shot is of the leaves from the clematis in our backyard. I did a purple abstract shot for my Scripture & a Snapshot meme. And shared some macros on Saturday.

4. Fruit
Fresh strawberries. 'Nuf said.

5. Childhood Memory
These are just a small sampling of the children's books at my grandparents' house. I wish that I could share with you the musty-sweet aroma that rolls out of the cabinet when opened. That aged book smell makes me smile with fond memories every time!

A Sea of Blue

Monday, I think it was, I promised you some shots of clay pots.
Not exactly exciting stuff to hear about, but hopefully you'll find these as beautiful as I do!

There were aisles and aisles of glazed planters!
All colors of the rainbow, all sizes and shapes and textures.
Oh my!




A few years ago, shortly after my son was born, I took a pottery class. It was mainly to get out of the house and have some "sanity time", but also as a creative outlet.
And when I look at these pots - especially the bird bath below - I am craving that 'get-your-hands-dirty' kind of creating! Now, mind you, there is NO possible way that I'd be able to jump in and make a gorgeous bird bath! In my class I managed to make a bowl, a votive candle holder that was supposed to be a bowl, and a plate...perhaps I should do a shoot with those???




And of course, I can not resist cranking that lens out of focus!
This one may actually be my favorite.
I can see it now - blown up to a large scale and hanging in a crisp white cottage over the fireplace.
POW!