Abstract and Impressionistic Images from Camper Nature Photography

Last August I did some nature photograph activities with summer campers (posted about it here). Now I am looking back at some of the images that did not quite work as traditional nature photographs and getting ideas for some experiments of my own.

Sometimes the camper moved while taking a picture. It takes on an abstract look – sometimes you get a gist of the scene (maybe makes it impressionistic instead of abstract).

Other times there is a soft focus that clearly leans toward impressionistic.

Some cameras have special settings that can be used in unintended ways. It is worth some experimenting.

And then there are reflections – where the water is not still or there is too much under the water.

The summer campers were very creative – sometimes on purpose and sometimes completely by accident. They’ve given me some ideas for experiments with my own camera!

A New Laptop

I got a new Dell laptop last week. At first there was significant trauma. My plan had been to immediately upgrade it to Windows 10 (it came with Windows 8.1). The install proceeded so slowly that I decided it was hung and let the recovery process take it back to Windows 8.1. After trying to make the upgrade again with a slightly different process – and stalling again – I looked at the Dell support site and discovered others were having the same problem. I initiated a chat with Dell Support and they scheduled a technician to replace the SSD with one from another vendor. That happen about 48 hours later. And things began to get a lot better.

As soon as Windows 10 was working, I got Office 365 working on the machine (my husband already had the account set up). Then I installed Firefox, Fitbit, and Photoshop Elements. I transitioned from Chrome to Firefox as my default browser and was surprised that the transition was so easy. Fitbit was more challenging – probably because I didn’t read the instructions for installing Fitbit Connect carefully enough. The one that took the most finesse was Photoshop Elements because its catalog and the location of photos has to be kept in sync. It was a relief when everything was working by the end of the week.

A new external monitor was delivered on Saturday and I set it up on Sunday. I quickly decided that I would use the USB ports on the monitor rather than the hub I had been using (the new laptop only has 2 USB ports). I was surprised at how much that change reduced the cable clutter around the laptop!

I’m always excited when I get a new machine. This one is the most noticeable performance delta ever: the SSD improves the speed of everything and the machine is very quiet.

One discovery from this past week: all the Zentangles and mediation don’t help me overcome the frustration of tech not working as I expect. There were times when I had to stop doing anything with the laptop…calm down…and come back to work on it again! I am thrilled with the machine at this point but it took be about a week to make it so.

The main part of office is on a corner table (set up now with old laptop, new monitor, and new laptop in view and a printer taking up the extra space in the corner which used to be needed for the monitor before flat screens became the norm). And just behind and to the right of the new laptop is a great view of the forest leading down to the Middle Patuxent River.

3 Free eBooks – September 2015

A feast for the eyes – the natural world and the world of houses that are homes – that is the abstract of the 3 Free eBooks I’ve picked this month.

Porter, Eliot. Intimate Landscapes. New York: E.P. Dutton. 1979. Available from the Internet Archive here. This book gave me a lot of ideas about some different types of photography…still nature photography but with the idea of smaller settings that wide open landscapes, but more than macro images of flowers. Porter was interested in the nexus of nature photography and art in all his books but this one seemed more focused on that in-between perspective on the natural world. I had seen several of his books in physical form; this is the only one I have found available electronically.

Yagi, Koji with photography by Rho Hata. Japanese Touch for Your Home. Kodansha International. 1982. Available on the Internet Archive here. I like the lack of clutter in Japanese homes. I was also intrigued by the window coverings (some examples show in the clipped image from the book.

Baker, William T. New Classicists. The Images Publishing Group. 2004. Available from the Internet Archive here. Some beautiful, classical looking houses from Atlanta, GA. This is a book full of inspiration if you are remodeling…or looking for a new house…even if most of us can only afford smaller versions of these high end homes.

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 19, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

tado° Smart Air-Conditioner Control Reaches Major US Retailers – Smart thermostats are getting smarter!

World on Path to Miss 2C Target – Depressing. The emission reduction plans submitted by 29 governments as of September 1^st are not enough to change the temperature rise of our planet…we are looking at warming by more than 2 degrees C. The trend is for the earth to be 2.9-3.1 degrees warmer by 2100.

Cave Towers - Mule Canyon – We vacationed in this area a few years ago….the whole area is full of interesting hikes. This post makes me want to visit there again.

Sierra Nevada snowpack lowest in five centuries – Just another indicator of how bad the drought in California really is.

First Detailed Public Map of U.S. Internet Backbone Could Make It Stronger – The fiber optic cables that carry Internet data across the Continental US...considering them as critical public infrastructure.

Lost Weather Balloon GoPro Found Two Years Later with Astounding Shots of Earth from Space – The 4 minute video near the end of the post is worth watching too.

51 Favorite Photos from Astronaut Scott Kelly's First Six Months in Space - Further from earth than the weather balloon and GoPro....from the International Space Station.

Lessons Learned: Aquaponics in Baltimore – I had learned a little about this project in a Food System course from Johns Hopkins (via Coursera). It would good to get an update.

The Recycling Rates of Smartphone Metals – Recycling tech (smartphones and other tech) has got to improve since the tech refresh cycle is relatively short.

What Restaurants Can Teach Us about Reducing Food Waste – And some of the things these restaurants are doing can be done at home too!

Zooming – September 2015

The zoomed images included in these collages reflect my travels in late August and early September…and I’ve uploaded them in a way that you can see an enlarged version by clicking on the image.

Can you find zoomed images of

• Sunflowers (hint: they are not open all the way)
• Queen Anne’s lace (hint: from underneath)
• Maple leaves (hint: already changing color)
• Jewel weed (hint: it’s yellow rather than orange)
• Thistle pod
• Morning glory
• Zinnias (hint: one red, one pink…the hummingbirds checked them out frequently as they prepared for their migration from Maryland)
• Chipmunk
• Crow (really it was a boat tail grackle but the tail does not show in the picture!)
• Onion flowers

Enjoy!

 

 

 

The zoomed images included in these collages reflect my travels in late August and early September…and I’ve uploaded them in a way that you can see an enlarged version by clicking on the image.

Can you find zoomed images of

·         Sunflowers (hint: they are not open all the way)

·         Queen Anne’s lace (hint: from underneath)

·         Maple leaves (hint: already changing color)

·         Jewel weed (hint: it’s yellow rather than orange)

·         Thistle pod

·         Morning glory

·         Zinnias (hint: one red, one pink…the hummingbirds checked them out frequently as they prepared for their migration from Maryland)

·         Chipmunk

·         Crow (really it was a boat tail grackle but the tail does not show in the picture!)

·         Onion flowers

Enjoy!

CSA Week 16

I have most of the chard and eggplant left from last week. I can use both in stir fries over the next week along with peppers and potatoes (I have potatoes left from the last several weeks…but they’ll last until the winter so I am not in a hurry to use them). I also got a ‘sweet dumpling’ squash this week (which didn’t make it into the picture) which I’ll bake for me the next time my husband is baking a russet potato. I traded the eggplant in the share this week for extra snack peppers.

I decided to keep the hot peppers because I’ve discovered that they freeze well and I can blend them up with tomatoes to make sauces (tacos or chili).

And look at all the greens: lettuce and pac choi (I gave up the choices of collards and kale this week since I could only have 2 of 4). The chives will be good additions to salads.

The tomatoes are winding down. There were only 2 pounds this week vs the 3+ pounds in previous weeks. I got a carton of sun gold cherry tomatoes from the overage table.

There is lots of color in this September CSA share!

Personal Metrics - September 2015

Back in January 2012, I wrote a series of posts about personal rhythms (daily, weekly, monthly). They were not specifically about personal metrics…but enough that I am looking back at them today and realizing what has changed - and what has not - during my first few post-career years.

What has changed:

• I no longer use an alarm clock (unless I need to wake up for a very early plane) so I am rarely jarred from sleep before I am ready to wake up.
• I am more consistently in the ‘normal’ weight range for my height (I was still slightly overweight when I retired). Weight is something I check every day.
• I pay more attention to exercise - specifically to my level of activity during the day and strive to have at least 30 ‘active’ minutes (measured by Fitbit).
• I went through a period where I closely monitored the nutritional content of my diet and stopped taking some supplements so that I would not get ‘too much.’ I eat more whole foods - particular produce now. This has been helped along by joining a CSA (5 months of the year). I have dramatically reduced the artificial sweetener and caffeine in my diet.
• My reading/book browsing goal for the month has increased slightly (to 100 per month). The Internet Archive and eBooks from the library are so easily available that there is no excuse!
• The volunteer naturalist gigs are a significant part of my interactions with people outside of my family…in some ways similar of interactions during my career but different because of the wider range of ages and backgrounds of the people…and being outdoors.
• A Zentangle a day.

What has not changed:

• I still sleep between 7 and 8 hours a night…going to bed about 10 and getting up between 5 and 6 most days.
• My exercise goal is still 12,000 steps per day and I reach it unless I am travelling for a large portion of the day.
• I still do household chores are a weekly cycle…although I sometimes realize that some cleaning chores have been ignored for too long.

Fallen Leaves - Old and New

Back in August there were already hints of fall in the New York State Parks we visited….a few freshly fallen colorful leaves. I noticed instances where a newer leaf as meshed with older ones and thought about how quickly most leaves begin to decompose once they are on the ground - particularly in wet environments.

Notice the tip of the maple leaf (below) that has already cracked off the main body of the leave and how faded the color seems to be.

Leaves that are actually in water probably don’t last long at all.

Fresh leaves on old leaf mulch and wet rock stand out because of their contrasting color.

 A fresher looking leave under the brown leaves…how did that happen?

Sometimes green leaves fall. Was there a storm or did this leave simply fall from the tree in the same way leaves do this time of year?

I’m primed for the big show where the majority of leaves on the deciduous trees turn from their summer green - hang on to the tree for a little while - then swirl away. Fall is never long enough to be boring! 

Beautiful Food - September 2015

I decided to do a monthly post on ‘beautiful food’ and am finding that it easy to select foods that are luscious looking and tasting to me. I thrive on variety! Our CSA prompts some of the variety; in September the tomatoes were still abundant and we had sweet potato leaves one week. Somehow eggs were prevalent in my diet than usual this month. So here’s the top 4 ‘beautiful foods’ for September:

This month I enjoyed toasted pita wedges with homemade orange/lemon marmalade (recipe here),

Egg salad (hard boiled eggs and hummus in a food processor until ‘spreadable’) wrapped in sweet potato leaves (only available for a short time, just before the sweet potatoes are harvested at our CSA),

The jewels of small tomatoes,

And eggs in a nest (recipe here). I went a little overboard on the ‘nest’ so this was a hearty dinner!

Photogenic Chipmunk

When I was growing up, I knew about chipmunks first from books. Then I saw them when I went on vacations in Colorado - away from Texas where it was probably to dry and treeless for them to survive.

When I moved to the east coast, we saw them more frequently and I went to a lecture at the Smithsonian by Lawrence Wishner just after he’d published his book about Eastern Chipmunks. He’s the one that point out that the animals have Oreo markings on both sides.

In our current house, we have chipmunks that appear on the front porch - enjoying acorns from the oak further out in the yard. The cats are entertained by the view; they are hyper alert behind the glass of the narrow windows on either side of the front door. In the back of the house, the chipmunks come up onto the deck to clean up the seeds the birds spill from the feeder overhead. They also nibble on seeds from some of the flowers. The cats watch them from the screened part of the deck.

The photographs I’ve included in this post are of a very photogenic chipmunk at Stony Brook State Park in New York (taken on our recent road trip). The little rodent must have been used to people being around because it was near the playground area enjoying its meal…surveying the scene. It was early enough in the morning that nobody else was around except for me and my camera.

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 12, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Gene leads to nearsightedness when kids read - The incidence of myopia is increasing around the world. In the US 44% of adults are nearsighted, up from 25% 30 years ago. And in some parts of Asia, 80% of young adults are now myopic. There is a lot of research re cause and possible preventions. This is just one.

The lost tunnels buried deep beneath the UK - There are tunnels below Liverpool! They are 200 years old and filled in when people complained of the smell (as they were used as underground landfills. Now they are being excavated.

Midday naps associated with reduced blood pressure and fewer medications - Yet another reason that midday naps are not a bad thing.

Standing on their own four feet: Why cats are more independent than dogs - We are a cat household…ours certainly have an independent nature! This research points out that ‘cats are much more autonomous when it comes to coping with unusual situations.’

Biodiversity belowground is just as important as aboveground - We know that the biodiversity above ground is in peril in much of the world…but the belowground organisms are not as well known or studied.

Intense Aurora Display over Sweden - I don’t live far enough north to see aurora….so videos like this are an opportunity to see the phenomenon and marvel at how finely tuned our planet is.

Check Out Life Spans around the World — and Likely Years of Ill Health - I like the idea of looking at life expectancy and unhealthy years together rather than life expectancy along.

Stunning Macro Photos of Delicate Butterfly Wings Look like Shimmering Petals - I tied to do some macro shots of a butterfly wing (best image is to the left)…frustrating experience. This post motivates me to try again and get rid of the pesky bubbles!

Recovery: Rare Turtle Gets a Second Chance - It’s always good to hear a story about recovery rather than extinction….but we have to do something about people releasing non-native red-eared sliders and hurting the indigenous native turtles.

3-D Printing Breaks the Glass Barrier - I watched the full video from the MIT Media Lab; it’s only about 4.5 minutes. I like glass!  

Carry In - Carry Out in State Parks

The state parks I’ve visited in recent months in Maryland and New York have a carry in - carry out policy for trash; they don’t have trash cans anywhere. Many states are trying to save money on operational costs for state parks and trash collection is one way they doing it.

I was sad to discover how much trash is left in the parks rather than being carried out by the people that carried it in.

In the Patapsco Valley State Park in Maryland there were beer bottle caps, a hub cap, socks, empty water bottles, a broken grill, pieces of plastic (some looked like pieces of plastic ware…some I couldn’t tell what it had been), and broken glass. Wading in the Patapsco River we found broken glass and pieces of pottery. The patterns on the pottery looked old; the age of the glass was indeterminate; either way I was glad I had on water shoes.

At Stony Brook State Park it was much the same although the trash was right at the water’s edge; the next rain would wash it downstream; the trash included crushed aluminum cans, a baby’s soiled diaper, empty water bottles, empty and full soft drink bottles, and beer bottles.

In both places there was a lot of trash - too much to rationalize as accidents. It was apparent that some people were carrying in….but not carrying out anything at all. It is probably the minority of people….but it is a messy (and potentially toxic) behavior.

Do the parks remind people as they enter the park (the person in the kiosk looking the driver in the eye) that they need to carry their trash out with them? Not in any of the parks we visited. It seems like that would be a minimal thing that should happen. Maybe people are not fully away of Carry In - Carry Out since it has not always been like that.

I saw one stand that had plastic bags for people to take to gather their trash to ‘carry out’ but I wonder how many people miss the display just as they ignore signs.

Or maybe the people that leave trash in State Parks are simply slobs and no amount of signage or verbal reminders will make a difference. Depressing - if true.

CSA Week 15

I’ve put another gallon ziplock of tomatoes in the freezer; this week we only got 3 more pounds of sauce tomatoes…the beautiful small ones are done for the year. I did pick up an heirloom tomato from the overage box to savor with a little salt and fresh oregano.

New in the crisper this week are chard and scallions. I have eggplant to make into balls - a big batch. The garlic supply is replenished. There were 3 kinds of peppers (bell, snack and hot; I traded the hot ones for more chard).

There were also 2 more pounds of potatoes. Fortunately they last without refrigeration since the other items were bulky.

Overall - the bag for this share was seemed heavier that previous shares (except for the ones that included a watermelon).

My crispers are full and there are bins in the other part of the refrigerator. It is all good eating - but almost too abundant. More than tomatoes may need to be processed into the freezer. 

Growing In/On Rocks

I photographed a lot of organisms growing on the rocks when we made our tour of state parks in southern New York (Stony Brook, Robert H. Treman, Taughannock, and Letchworth). Most of the gorges are crumbling shale - small and large slabs. Since we are focused on waterfalls - some of the plants were cling to wet or damp rocks.

There were mosses and ferns that see to require very little soil

Others that grew in a bit more soil in the cracks…or lichen that grows on the surface of rock, breaking away small bits of the stone over long periods of time.

Any structure built of stones seemed to have colonized by something from algae to lichen to liverworts to mosses to ferns to higher plants. I enjoyed taking pictures of the small landscapes on the rock walls of the gorges and the walls/bridges that had been constructed for the trail. Enjoy my picks for the slideshow below!

Black Swallowtail Caterpillar

Several of the celery plants that I sprouted last spring (by putting the cut off base of a head of celery in water…then planting in dirt at soon as roots formed) stayed green and grew new stems and leaves during this past summer. In August - before I went off to Texas - I discovered a caterpillar on them. It was a black swallowtail caterpillar. It was a great end to the celery experiment. I don’t know where the caterpillar went after it ate most of the celery…but hope it should be becoming a butterfly soon.

I was surprised at how much the front appendages looked like they had point black ‘fingernails’!

Learning Log - September 2015

I’ve pasted monthly about the classes I was enjoying on Coursera for the past year or so.Last month I expanded to ‘online classes’ since I enjoyed a Creative Live photography class. This month I’m expanding beyond that to the idea of a ‘learning log’ post each month as a way to document my learning paths; it’s an acknowledgement that my learning paths are evolving all the time both in content and learning strategies.

Learning by doing. I am endeavoring to take/make opportunities to apply what I am learning. The best example over the past month was the nature photography activity I did with summer campers. Teaching someone else is a great milestone for learning. I’m in the process of writing out the activity notes…and lessons learned….so that I can do it again next summer - even more effectively. The interaction also prompted several photographic projects for my continued development.

Coursera courses are still something that will appear in my learning log almost every month….I’m not planning to have more than a couple in progress at any particular time. I finished the Geodesign course in August. It was a nice follow on to the Geospatial Revolution course I took earlier in the year and I’ve noticed more articles about communities apply Geodesign ideas since taking the course.

I’ve started a Mediation course from the University of Virginia. It is the first in a series which will extend at least through the end of the year. Right now it is almost overwhelming but interesting enough that I am making the effort.

Later this month, a Forest and Humans course will start. I’m looking forward to the lectures and references during the fall in Maryland (lots of colorful leaves from the forest behind my house).

My husband purchased The Art of Flower Photography from Creative Live so we are beginning to watch in at hour at a time. As usual….I am interested in composition more than anything else although strategies for dealing with full sunlight (which often it too bright for good flower photography) may also be part of the course.

Photo Week 2015 on Creative Live happens in September too. My husband has already signed up for watching it live (and free). The three segments I am most interested in are:

• Photography Tips for Everybody (9/21 10:45 AM, 1.5 hours)
• Landscapes and Light (9/21 3 PM, 1.5 hours
• Beyond Macro Photography: Into the Microscopic World (9/24 10:45 AM, 1.5 hours)

Stony Brook State Park - August 2015

The first and last park we visited in our trek to state parks in New York back in August was Stony Brook State Park. The first time we were in the park was a hot Monday afternoon - and there were lots of people in the water. It was hard to get pristine pictures of anything. We returned during a damp and cool morning a few days later; the only other people in the park were park personnel!

There is a lot of moving water in the park: large falls and little trickles. The gray day made it easier to photograph.

My favorite of the images is a low falls - a little dark with the greens  and mists of late summer framing the water.

I liked the stone bridges

And wooden bridges.

Both had lichen and moss growing on their stone abutments.

There were some leaves that looked worn from summer…getting ready for fall.

There were berries ripening too.

There were a few cairns but not as many as we saw at Robert H. Treman State Park.

Last but not least - there was a spider waiting patiently in a web suspended from hemlock branches full of water droplets.

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 02, 2015

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

New blood test for colon cancer improves colonoscopy screening results - It would be great to have a blood test for initial screening rather than a colonoscopy. Eventually it might happen. I have another 6 years before my next one is due….and hoping the blood test becomes the recommendation before then!

Dos and Don’ts to preserve your brainpower - No surprises in the article…suggestion like “Don’t feast on junk food” are common sense but hard to follow 100% of the time in the modern world. That probably says something about cultural aspects that are wearing down the brainpower of the overall population.

The alien within: Fetal cells influence maternal health during pregnancy (and long after) - The interaction between fetus and mother is two way…and complex. Research is just beginning to explain the mechanisms.

How to choose a Black-eye Susan - It’s the state flower of Maryland and grows well in my garden. I’m going to have more of it next year both in pots and in the front flower beds!

Mexico City’s Ambitious Elevated Park - Creating green space in the middle of a city is a challenge. This example is in the planning stages but it references successful projects in other cities around the world that have tried a similar approach….elevation over traffic or canals.

A Guide to Different Types of Fat - A good review of the nomenclature of fats.

DIY: Compost Bin - You don’t have to be an expert to make your own compost bin!

The Stunning Ways Driftwood Builds Landscapes - From National Geographic.

Take a Virtual Tour of Mount Vernon - I’ve been to Mount Vernon many times - still enjoyed the virtual tour!

The metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a monarch butterfly - A short video showing how the Monarch caterpillar forms its chrysalis…and emerges a butterfly.

Robert H. Treman State Park - August 2015

Another New York State Park that we visited in August was Robert H. Treman State Park near Ithaca. We have hiked it before - in the fall of 2012 (blog post here). There was more water this time. My husband was do experiments photographing the waterfalls which gave be time to look at other things along the Gorge Trail…

The stone brides and walls of the trail through the narrow gorge

The view of the sky from the bottom of the gorge….the trees precariously balanced on crumbling sheets of shale.

Water droplets splattering on a ledge. It must be consistent enough to support the film of brilliantly green algae…or it is lichen.

Some wildflowers.

Cairns left the falls. They are evidence that people wade just about everywhere in the water on some days…but no on the day we were there.

Some imprints of plants long gone left in the shale.

The erosion of rock by smaller streams of water. Or maybe this falls is much larger when it rains.

And finally ---- waterfalls.

CSA Week 14

When I returned home….the whole week 13 share was waiting. My husband had not even cut the watermelon! I managed to eat a few tomatoes, some peppers and half the watermelon before I picked up week 14! I was glad that I still had room in the freezer for the larger tomatoes.

I celebrated that sweet potato leaves were included in this share. I like the so much I traded the okra for a second bundle….and there was lettuce too. There will be lots of good salads this next week. I made tomato soup for the first meal after I picked up the week 14 share…using some of the tomatoes, peppers, sweet potato leaves, and oregano.

Another celebration in this share: honey. It was well timed to sooth my linger sore throat (along with lemon in hot tea).