Another close call…

Whew! Just under the wire, but that doesn’t come as a big surprise based upon recent experiences, eh? But in fairness to myself the delay this month had far less to do with my general malaise and lack of focus (pun completely intended) and more to do with being non-stop busy during the first 2.5 weeks of the month thanks to my little home job coming to a close along with the small, but steady stream of income it provided.

Shit.

But hey… this isn’t about the trials and tribulations that are my life, but about pictures! So on with the show!

The ever so handsome Proton was a most cooperative boy as I tried to put together this shot. For a switch this wasn’t a fluke shot taken on the fly (“Oh look! That might work within this month’s group theme thingy.”), but I had a vision and I worked it through. I knew his eyes would make for a great colour, especially when left in colour while the rest of the image was turned to monochrome. But I needed the right setting to make his eyes pop and leave the rest of him as just background. Success I think.

But then there is the other side of this project…. the “it just happened” moment.

Like I mentioned on the Flickr site, this hydrant sits on our property and I see it daily without really “seeing” it, as we humans tend to do with things that are a part of our everyday lives. But that wasn’t the case the day I saw the hydrant after our first big snow. Suddenly it was there. In my face. Screaming out in all its yellow glory. To be photographed. For the group project and so it was done. And it’s damn near SOOC. There was no need to pump up the yellow as it just yells out anyway.

Tabula Rasa

When I announced the theme for this month, I thought it somewhat appropriate considering the new year and what not but I must have been a little psychic,  because in the last couple of weeks it has taken on a more personal significance, the details of which I won’t go into here, don’t want to depress you with the crap that is my life.

 

tabula rasa by tam

I know, fairly predictable, huh?

perhaps more will follow.

Tam’s Minimal

You all know I love working with natural light.

This shot posed a bit of a challenge as we’ve had more overcast, rainy and snowy days lately. Thankfully, today’s weather was perfect…bright blue, clear sky and radiant sunshine.

Patiently I waited.

Around 1:30 pm local time, the sun sank low enough in the sky to cast a beautiful beam of light through our bedroom window. My model was ready, as was I.

Perplexed.

 

Um Yeah, er which end do I shoot with again?

Ramblings of a Deranged Mind

Texture

Through the Eyes of a Stranger

This month’s topic provided for some interesting contemplation upon my part. Being the rather literal fellow that I am, my first thought was to actually let other folks take pictures of me using my camera. This would allow you, my fellow project mates, to see me through the eyes of a complete stranger.

However, as I contemplated this idea I wasn’t certain how comfortable I felt handing over my camera to a complete strangers and asking them to snap my picture. While this may be suitable while on vacation, I wasn’t certain it was the correct direction for this particular moment in time.

As the month progressed I modified my idea into a different, but related direction. My intent was to head to someplace with a good subject for photography, decide how I best wished to capture the subject, do so and then catch a passer-by and ask them to consider the subject and then, using my camera, snap their own photo of said subject. I would then have uploaded the two images side-by-side (as a single image…using the collage feature in Elements) and you, my dear project-mates, could see my vision of the subject, but through the eyes of a stranger.

One day earlier this month I made my way to a particular spot, which I thought would yield a most excellent subject matter, and gave this idea a chance to bear fruit. In the end it was a major disappointment. Most folks eschewed my advances and the few who were cooperative did not seem to get into the spirit of the opportunity. Instead of contemplating the subject (a piece of outdoor sculpture) and then taking the picture they typically just put the camera up to their face, snapped a picture and handed the camera back to me.

I know….my expectations were probably a bit high, but I know that if such an opportunity were presented to me I would jump all over it! But maybe I’m just more cooperative and gregarious than the average American. So I found myself back to square one and one day late last week I was gob-smacked with a new plan and saints be praised it turned out to be a bit of luck for me as well.

Say hello to some feral felines

I have been helping feed, water and watch over a small colony of feral cats (and now kittens) in a small wood not ten minutes from my home. None of these cats, even after my being round for six or seven months now, has really warmed to my presence. I bring food, water and pleasant conversation three days each week and while they have made the connection between me and the delivery of food, they haven’t yet made that leap of trust. And it’s likely they never will, which is fine by me. They look at me, every time I arrive, as if I were a complete stranger. Or maybe not a complete stranger, but certainly stranger enough such that trust cannot be bestowed upon me.

I cannot hold it against them and in some ways I’m happier that they continue to look upon me as if I were a complete stranger. I figure this lack of trust for someone who has been round as much as I should help keep them safe from those who may wish harm upon them. One look in their eyes is enough to convince me that I remain a stranger in their eyes.

Through the eyes of a stranger

With this theme, I had a clear idea of what I wanted to do but disaster struck, my Pentax came down with swine flu and is currently in intensive care getting the treatment it needs to get better, so I had to go back to using my point and shoot which, to be honest isn’t up to the task, much to my dismay.
Panic sets in, falls on my knees hands in the air shouting why!(think there may have been a slomo involved, no explosion tho).
And so after much deliberation and I must confess a little help from Mike( he’d already done his so thats ok innit?) here it is my new theme photo and it reflects my mindset at the moment.

No Words Needed