Art Wolfe

One of my favorite photographers is Art Wolfe. I "discovered" him on Public Television through his series called Travels to the Edge with Art Wolfe. There were 2 seasons, but unfortunately there are none in production now. You can, however, order the DVDs from his web site. Each show was a perfect blend of exotic location, conservation information, beautiful videography and photography with a mini artistic lesson from Art. My dream is to join Art for a workshop. Sigh....

Known for his passionate advocacy of the environment, Art Wolfe also created a conservation-themed photo contest in 1997 as “an event for the advancement of photography as a unique medium capable of bringing awareness and preservation to our environment through art.”

The 2012 International Conservation Photography Awards is a continuation of Art Wolfe's vision and has become a biennial international event. Sponsored by The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Washington, in Seattle, the winning entries will be on display for 5 months.

You have until February 29, 2012 to get your entries in!

Living with Cats...

Cats are beautiful, amusing, frustrating, playful, mean, smart, clever and always in charge. The 2 cats that live with my husband, me and the standard black poodle really belong to my daughter (if a cat can belong to anyone). But her living arrangements don't allow for cats so we lucked out. I find them interesting subjects. This cat is the dominant one; can you tell?

Wild Blueberries for Breakfast!

"Wanna be an extra?" When Mike Collins told me the assignment was to eat breakfast at the Pomegranate Inn, I eagerly signed on to the Wild Blueberry Association project!

My husband and I joined the creative team from The Food and Wellness Group for an interesting afternoon. Being photographers, part of the intrigue is seeing what others are doing in the photographic realm. No big video camera this time; Geoffrey Leighton was using a Canon DSLR and a very simple set up. The final production will be featured on the Wild Blueberry web site. I can't wait to see the result!

Our location, the Pomegranate Inn "is a sophisticated pied-à-terre in the heart of Portland’s architecturally distinct" West End. Our hosts, Dana Moos and her husband Greg, offer their guests "classic accommodations with a touch of panache." Having recently published a cookbook, The Art of Breakfast, Dana will be featured in the video preparing and serving yummy dishes starring, you guessed it, Wild Blueberries!

The recipe for Cheese Blintz Souffle with Wild Blueberries (our breakfast treat) is on page 44. I should book a room just so I can have another breakfast with Dana and Greg!

Jessica Delaney's Dish

Our friend, Jess, is a photographer, living in Boston. She specializes in portraiture of small children and babies. Here is a link to her blog.

Delaney Dish 

Have you tried Snapseed?

Very interesting processing software for iPhone and iPad2 (Snapseed) from NIK Software. I recently installed Snapseed on my iPad. 

Yesterday I did a quick processing on an image I took several years ago. I like the results, but my husband likes the original better! You be the judge. 


After Snapseed:

Before Snapseed:

Paradise

This was an unscheduled trip out to Oahu. My dear friend, Elaine, died very unexpectedly of a massive heart attack. Did she have a premonition of her death when she said to me last summer, "You know, we might not see each other again. I'm getting older." OK, she was 74, but her parents lived into their 90s. So Knapp and I went out to Honolulu for her memorial service, which was well attended by her family and friends.

We stayed longer of course to enjoy Oahu and took some pictures. Not only am I using my "real" camera, but I now have a smart phone which I have enjoyed using for quick shots. 

Diamond Head

View of Oahu from Round Top

Jurassic Park was shot here

Plate lunch, spicy shrimp

Macky's for the shrimp

Dessert!

More gorgeous scenery in paradise

Aloha and Mahalo!

Time for a Comeback!

It's been 2 years since I've blogged. It's not that nothing was happening; it's that I found the process tedious. Since my last attempt at blogging, I have joined Facebook (which is like a giant, random blog), gotten a smart phone which makes posting photos to Facebook a breeze, and discovered the pleasures of uploading photos "on the go" and annoying my husband some in the process! So can I find a way to make blogging more like Facebook? Stay tuned...