Saturation/Desaturation

Let me start with a disclaimer that I do not, generally speaking, endorse this kind of photography. In certain instances, I find it veers recklessly towards sentimentalism. But, if done right, it has definite merits and can be pleasantly startling. (The little girl holding the red balloon at the end of the movie Schindler's List uses it without being gratuitous, I think.)

So, for the current contest at Midwest Photo Exchange, I tried my hand at it. Go see the entries here and tell me what you think! What are the most successful examples you can see?

Pink Orange Red - Cocteau Twins

A special video to celebrate Orange August month. Enjoy, and have a delightful weekend!

Gentle Orange

My friend Leann (whom I never tire of talking about because she is so inspired and inspiring) brought me this guy last night. In spite of the fact that I seem to buy cashmere for the sole purpose of feeding moths, I should like to have seen him alive. (Really, I should just hang a cashmere sweater in the back yard the way some people hang bird feeders. I digress.)

I'm no pro at moth identification, but he appears to belong to the Polyphemus family (Antheraea polyphemus). Would you agree?

If you want to see more of him, go here. Flickr has just upgraded photostreams with bigger images, and improved geotags to make sharing images a richer experience.

More Orange for August

You know those Sprint commercials (or is it Verizon?) in which people walk through their days surrounded by metaphors in the landscape of the number of bars they have with their cellular service? I love those images, any images with things lined up nicely. Throw orange in, and it's even better.

What do you have that is orange?

August is Orange

It isn't news to anyone that different colors have different meanings from culture to culture. But orange seems to have a consensus of sorts. It's bold without the aggression of red. It's defiantly happy. It seems to stimulate appetites, creativity and sociability across nationalities. Native Americans credit orange with kinship, while China and Japan see in it love. I just like it.

HDR Fantasy

I've been working on an assignment for "fantasy" HDR photography, and to be honest, if you look at it for too long, you begin to suffer from what the Victorians might have called 'nervous exhaustion.' It's a bit like living in a Disney movie, which no one can do for long stretches at a time. Not me, at least. That being said, these are two treatments of the same scene of one of the Piatt Castles. Which do you think achieves 'fantasy' better?

Adele - Make You Feel My Love

I'm just enjoying the gritty textures of Adele's voice. She doesn't rush through the song, and seems to let the lyrics blossom. Isn't her voice lovely?

Pairing Pictures: Lines

I've got this thing for lines lately; straight lines, curvy lines, willowy lines, broken lines ...

Piatt Castles

My husband and I went on a little adventure this weekend to visit the Piatt Castles. It's not that far from town, but it is elsewhere, which is all I require from time to time. I took pictures outside; of sprawling lawns and great stone towers. I wasn't allowed to bring my tripod inside, which is understandable. I took a lot of pictures, hundreds even, This one is underexposed and a little too centered for my taste, but it is my favorite. It's the master bedroom for Donn and Ella Piatt and gives us a glimpse of the intimate lives of a couple that influenced the hearts and minds of many with their tastes, habits and opinions in both their personal and public lives. You get a quiet sense of their lives in the 1880's, don't you?

To see my other pictures from Piatt castles, please visit my photostream.