9.10.2008


A late summer evening in Pt. Defiance park brought this chubby bumble bee to a perfectly shaped pink dahlia.
As i took this photo another parkgoer asked derek for permission to shoot a couple images of Kaya... i'd like to see those photos, too : )

8.21.2008

Tacoma Art Museum


Vacilating between Tacoma's art museum and glass museum, i chose the earlier because i didn't really feel like looking at piles of chihuly glass. Funny thing, there's an instalment of his works at the center of the museum, so here it is.
The St. John's Bible exhibit is pretty amazing. Not particularly animal-friendly (written on calf-skin vellum using hand-plucked feather pens), but otherwise impressive and beautiful. The exhibit also included some very old works, including 15th century books that i enjoyed the opportunity to view.

8.11.2008

In Times of War


We visited the museum at Ft. Lewis Army Base this weekend. Among the artifacts and bits of history related to American conflicts and wars were the sword in hand and bust of Saddam Hussein from the statue that formerly stood in Firdos Square in Baghdad, Iraq.

Within the open air exhibits was this tank. There was no plaque to explain its history, but it resonated for a different reason: those initiating war tend to quickly loose sight of the daily effects of war on the people involved. Though this image does nothing to capture the struggles and suffering of the soldiers or civilians affected each moment of every day that confilct continues, it does take a closer look at a tiny detail of a universal image of war.

7.21.2008

To the Market


A recent trip to Pike Place Market yielded many photos i'm pleased with. Unfortunately, my camera has revolted and there seems to be light leaking in, as there are irritating white lines through most of the photos.

7.14.2008

Seashore

The grey and white pattern is the remnants of former barnicle residents, current inhabitants continue to reside along the edges.
Deception Pass on Whidbey Island, Washington, July 2008.


Also, i'm switching to weekly photos. I'm hoping to take a new photo each week.

7.06.2008


Since we were camping along the ocean, we spent a bit of time at the beach. I made a rock circle, with a white stripe connecting the stones comprising the circle. It seemed incomplete, though... too empty in the center and hence it became a peace symbol. The image felt complete with the ocean and islands in the background.

7.04.2008

Fourth o' July

I chose this photo for today's image because i think it captures what the a little bit of what one might call the "American spirit"...
Beautiful geography and seemingly boundless nature, including Mt. Baker in the background and the wetlands and woods in midground... An appreciation of nature and independence (and humankind's best friend!), inferred from the trail marker... and the American Dream: a sturdy homestead, built over a century ago by a family starting with nearly nothing, with the work of their hands and mastery of the land (use of native materials, cultivation of untouched land into agriculture/horticulture). And one can't miss the colours featured: good ol' red, white and blue!
Hovander Homestead on Tennant Lake, WA, June 2006

7.03.2008

Mmmmmm


I am drawn to the rustic, simple quality of the handmade bread and serated ridges in the slices of cheese. I like the contrast between the sandwich and the background, offered by the angle and a narrow depth of field. I am also pleased with the colours: the wall, baseboard and floor colours are all shared by the different parts of the sandwhich.

7.02.2008

"It's Electric!"

Like my first photo of electricity? I do : )

I witnessed my first emergency weather announcement today, after coming inside from an hour of standing in awe (and with finger poised on the shutter release) at the second amazing lightening storm this week.

Little did i know that meanwhile the national weather service recommended that residents of my and several surrounding counties "move inside immediately." I hear there's nickel-sized hail in areas of the county. Yeesh -- at least i got some satisfying photos out of it!

7.01.2008

I'd Rather Be...


... hiking.
But i've hurt my ankle and i'm stuck hobbling around instead of wandering along a trail. Alas.
So instead, i'm daydreaming about hiking, and the tiny bit of time we spent in Yellowstone in 2005 came to mind, with miles and miles of land and all that flora and fauna to explore.
The intense colour and clarity of the water deep into the (53' deep) hotspring is what attracted me to this image of the Abyss Pool.
...And thus i return to my dusty footpath reverie...

6.30.2008

Lily Love


This gorgeous little lily resided along a trail on Orcas Island, in the San Juan island cluster in Washington, 2007. I couldn't choose just one angle on the little petals, so here are two : ). It's a tiny little flower on a short stem (maybe 13 cm?), so i got a bit muddy in the process.
(Possibly a white fawn lily, Erythronium oregonium.)

6.29.2008

Giant and the Sky

The refreshing blue skies and lovely wispy white clouds framing the yak and temple created a photographically irresistible image in Wat Phra Kaew at Bangkok's Grand Palace, 2008.

6.28.2008

A brief visit from Jack Frost



In honor of the 90*+ temperatures forecasted today, here is an icy scene.

The first big frost of Fall 2007 was Thanksgiving morning. I took a walk to enjoy the chilly sunshine and found this: an alley mud puddle that had frozen over, with swirls of ice and mud and bubble and pockets of air. It is so serene to me, especially for its muddy, mundane subject.

6.27.2008

“'Keep your temper,' said the Caterpillar”




{Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland}

This hornet and its caterpillar meal comprise one of my favorite photos. It was taken in Cambodia, in the Angkor Wat complex on my August 2007 visit.

That nearly all things there were unfamiliar, combined with the super cool bugs made me feel like a real adventurer, of the National Geographic sort : ) Ok, not really. But watching the hornet manuever the sizable caterpillar into its lair was quite the sight.

Perhaps future photos will have somehow relate to my day. This first one, though, is just one i like.

Welcome!

As most of my days include at least a few moments with one of my cameras and an even larger portion of my temporal pie is devoted to sharing/storing/organizing/viewing/editing/talking about photos (combined with my urge to write, with no theme to knit together my thoughts between posts), i've created this arena that i am hopeful will be lovely to view, intriguing to ponder and entertaining/useful/interesting/etc to read.

Enjoy, comment and share your photographic muses!