Quiet

‘The quieter you become, the more you can hear.’ – Ram Das

 

I enjoy quiet.  

Some of my favorite quiet times are; walking hand in hand with my husband, reading side by side with my daughter, or enjoying a good sunset.  Times when no words are necessary, just being together makes the moment complete.  

Another time I like quiet is when I am taking pictures, my mind is quiet and I concentrate on what I see.  When I take pictures of flowers, I like to set my focus as close as the lens allows, then move my camera in and out slightly to see what is there.  The shapes, lines and color become something new, almost foreign.  A quiet time I thoroughly enjoy.

Today I am joining Kim Klassen’s Texture Tuesday, the theme is quiet.  My images today were taken with my Nikon and textured with Kim Klassen’s texture ‘simple’ using blending mode ‘soft light’ in Photoshop Elements.

 

Spring is late to it’s party here in Ohio.  We have some cold weather this week along with the east coast.  I have enjoyed looking at blogs with wonderful spring flower pictures, it really does help bring hope that spring will come soon.  Spring is coming this year, isn’t it?

Thank you so much for stopping by.  I really appreciate all of your comments and warm words you take time out of your day to write.  Thank you.  Have a great week!!

Michelle


 

Self Portrait

I took this photo with my iphone and used the apps: Camera+, FocalLab and Mextures.

‘The human body is the best work of art.’  – Jess C. Scott

‘Your are imperfect, permanently and inevitably flawed.  And you are beautiful.’ – Amy Bloom

‘Everybody has a part of her body that she doesn’t like, but I’ve stopped complaining about mine because I don’t want to critique nature’s handiwork… My job is simply to allow the light to shine out of the masterpiece.’ – Alfre Woodard

 

I always cringed whenever an art teacher expected a self portrait.  Why in the world would I want to make a portrait of myself?  Why would I want to document my big slightly crooked nose, uneven skin, pimples, little eyes, uneven smile, knobby knees, cellulite dimples, and wrinkles? 

Despite all that, I signed up for Susan Tuttle’s online workshop The Art Of iPhoneoraphy Self-Portraiture.   I wanted to learn about the apps she uses.  I thought the information would be good for landscapes and flowers, I had no intention of taking a self-portrait.

Well that changed.  

I took this photo with my iphone and use the apps: Camera+, FocalLab and Mextures.  I then felt it needed a little softening and I knew the Kim Klassen texture sybil would be perfect.  I used the app Image Blender to add the texture.  

I wanted to try out some of the apps and techniques that Susan teaches in her workshop on a person.  My daughter wasn’t a willing model, so I bought a tripod adapter for my iphone.  I set the timer, took a few pictures and began creating on my iphone.   I became hooked. 

Not only is it a new creative endeavor, it is also a lesson for me in self acceptance.  I close my critical eye and open my photographer’s eye.  I look at Me with the same awe and amazement I give a butterfly’s nose or a flower’s pollen.  I don’t compare one butterfly’s nose to another, or say this flower is better because it has more pollen.  I appreciate their uniqueness, different colors, shapes and sizes, one not better than the other, but each individually a beautiful creation.  At that moment, I accept me as a unique individual too, exactly how I am. 

I encourage you to take a self portrait and celebrate your unique beauty too.  You Are Beautiful! 

Today I am joining Kim Klassen’s Friday Finds.  

Thank you for stopping by!!

Have a great weekend!

Michelle