National Camera Day

How could I not celebrate #NationalCameraDay? These images are a few I shot with my handy Nikon Cool Pix P510. I like it because it’s small enough to throw into my purse and just go. No camera bag to lug around. It also has a 42x built-in zoom, plus wide angle.

I also like it because it came highly recommended from a fellow blogger. She’s an amazing photographer and brilliant author. Check out her blog: http://awindowintothewoods.com Much love, Miss Z!!!

That’s all for me today. Gotta run, but have an amazing weekend.

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

What’s Missing from the Movie, The Secret

WHAT THEY DIDN’T TELL YOU IN THE SECRET MOVIE

Did you ever read the book or watch the movie, The Secret? If you’ve tried the Law of Attraction techniques that were spoken of and nothing has happened for you, just know that you’re not alone. Below are some concepts that might help:

• You have to “act as if” through work – that means to take the steps, even if small, toward what you want every day. Example: if you want to be an author, write something every day, even if it’s just a paragraph or a page. You’ve got to put yourself out there. Make a list of five things you can do every day to get you closer to your dreams. The Universe won’t level up unless you show up!
• Subconscious reprogramming – your thoughts become things, right? 95% of your life is subconscious. It’s a habitual pattern that plays itself out in reality. There’s an actual art and science to reprogramming your subconscious mind. In order to do that, you need to retrain your subconscious into believing that you will get what you want. How do you do that, you may be asking. Read on.
• A lot of people use self-hypnosis, meaning they brainwash themselves, rather than letting the outside world do it. Most use some form of audible or subliminal positive affirmations that play in a loop. Some say that 17 minutes twice a day will do the trick. I use one that takes 36 minutes; well worth it in my opinion.

There’s really nothing you have to do but listen, even if you’re doing something else at the same time. Your subconscious mind hears everything. Whether you want more money, better health, fulfilling relationships, etc., there’s lots of self-hypnosis audios available.

I happen to use one from Jake Ducey. Just because I like who he is and what he says resonates with me. If you’d like to check it out, he has a wonderful YouTube channel and offers a free self-hypnosis download, which he tells you how to get at the end of each video. Yes, you’ll have to put in your name and email address, and yes, you’ll get emails from him, but hey, he’s offering some really good stuff.

(I do not receive any remuneration for recommending him. Just thought it could be helpful for a place to start. And I happen to think he’s a great guy).

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

Day Seven of Seven

Day Seven of Seven Days of Black and White

For the last day of this project, I chose this image of Metal Man, aka Photog, aka my muse. I shot “Photog” in Tucson, where I found him standing there with his camera pointed. He’s a life-sized sculpture created from sheet metal. He and I spent many hours together. I talked; he listened. Ha! I photographed him from every angle possible, short of me lying on the hot concrete to get him from the bottom up.

I added the text to his lens because of the origin of the word IMAGINE …

mid-14c., “to form a mental image of,” from Old French imaginer “sculpt, carve, paint; decorate, embellish” (13c.), from Latin imaginari “to form a mental picture, picture to oneself, imagine” (also, in Late Latin imaginare “to form an image of, represent”), from imago “an image, a likeness,” from stem of imitari “to copy, imitate” (from PIE root *aim- “to copy”). Sense of “suppose, assume” is first recorded late 14c. Related: Imagined; imagining.

After all, isn’t that where any image comes from? The imagine-ation?

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

 

 

Day Six of Seven

Day Six of Seven Days of Black and White

This has been such a fun project! Only one more day to go, but that doesn’t mean I’ll stop blogging. Photography and writing feed my soul.

This particular image was taken when I was with my BFF, Patricia, when we were on one of our adventures, this time in southern CA at Venice Beach. As I look at this, I’m aware once again of the power of the ocean to make me feel humble, peaceful and serene. And the value of friendship.

Don’t you just love looking at a photograph and being instantly transported back to that time and place?

Go to the beach!

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

 

Day Five of Seven

Day Five of Seven Days of Black and White

I have to say I’m very grateful to my uncle for this image. He’s the one who taught me how to use a bounce flash (and bought me my first one). This was taken with my Olympus DSLR, which is what I used the most before I purchased my Nikon. I guess you could call it my first love.

For this image, I isolated two flowers from a bouquet I bought at the store. Yes, I know you’re shaking your head, knowing that no flowers come into my home without being photographed. They make the best subjects because they don’t blink when the flash goes off. LOL.

Next, I put these up against a white backdrop, arranged them the way I wanted, used the manual mode on the camera, and positioned the bounce at different angles until I got what I wanted.  I did this on the patio, where the ceiling was lower. I found that high ceilings don’t work very well for getting this kind of effect. The light from the flash has to travel too far.

Have a great weekend, dear ones. Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

 

Day Four of Seven

Day Four of Seven Days in Black and White

This is one of my favorite images that’s in my archives. It’s especially sentimental because my Mom gave it to me, and it has an honored place in our garden. She gave it to me several years before she died, and it has moved with me over the years, always adorning the yard.

She said, when she gave it to me, that it reminded her of me as a child. I’ve always loved to read and she would find me curled up in the sofa reading to my stuffed elephant.

I remember doing that. Some memories never fade. Now when I go out to the garden and see this statue, I smile, thinking of Mom and my stuffed elephant. She gave me that, too. I love you, Mom!

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

Day Three of Seven

Day Three’s image is a Harris Hawk, spied one morning as I was watching the sunrise with our beloved dogs, Daisy and Foxy.

I zoomed out as far as I could so that I didn’t scare it off with movement. Fortunately for me, I had my camera handy. You’re not surprised, are you? Haha!

Was he looking at me while I was looking at him? Maybe. Eyes like a hawk …

 

Day Two of Seven [Video]

Day two of my week long series of images in black and white.

This particular image is of a Peruvian Cereus, which only blooms at night. You can see it happen in real time during this 2-min. video. Enjoy!

When we first moved to the “cactus ranch,” I thought this was just another variety of cactus. I had no idea what this plant would do until I saw the pods forming and, wow, do they grow fast! I was up early in the morning to catch images before they closed up.

This particular morning, I got up a little late but managed to capture it before it closed and was gone for good. I have to say that I truly loved the natural wonder of this cactus. It had (I counted) 27 blooms of beauty. I miss it!

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

 

Day One of Seven

I decided to take the challenge of seven days of black and white images. I figured this would be easy after doing the 365 challenge in 2012. Ha! Yeah!!!!

This first image is of Daisy as she was just drifting off to dreamland. And where was she? Up on the bed, of course. She no longer sleeps there as she’s getting older and it’s hard for her to jump up now. So she has a comfy, cozy spot on the floor at the foot of my bed.

Do you ever wonder what dogs dream of? In her case, I think it’s a safe bet that she’s herding sheep.

Be good to yourself and each other. Namaste’

Teach Them to Fail!

I couldn’t agree more. It seems these days everyone wants to be PC. Not me. I’m tired of it and I agree with Chad!