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TEXTURE TUESDAY-INDIAN SUMMER

We know that in September, we will wander through the warm winds of summer’s wreckage. We will welcome summer’s ghost.

Henry Rollins

As usual as soon as the school term begins we have a wonderful spell of warm dry weather. The mornings start with a bite, but before long out comes the sun. The wasps are gorging themselves on the fallen apples and the trees are beginning to turn.

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This is not going to be a good year for our apple tree. But luckily my neighbour has a glut so if I need any all I have to do is walk next door. Mark is relieved, less windfalls to pick before he can mow.

Kim Klassen {dot com}

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FRIDAY FINDS – DON’T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF (or how I learnt that not perfect is ok)

Sounds of sirens, of many languages. Bustling, running, pushing. This is London, vibrant and loud, flawed and thrilling. Could I live here ? No, but a place to visit and marvel at the beauty. The immense landscape, of modern and ancient, somehow it works. Joggers pant past tourists with maps and cameras, buskers play steel drums all a glorious mess. I love you London…..

We visited London for the day. What a shock, I hadn’t visited for a few years. It was an assault on the senses and I was so tired when I got home. When I loaded my images to say I was disappointed is an understatement. But, when I start looking again I realised that this is street photography, you don’t have time to stand around composing, you get pushed and shoved so it has to be snap snap. So if it’s not completely in focus does that really matter ?

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I have decided that I still love the whole Photoshop Artistry thing, and although I don’t process like this so much anymore,  when I do I love it.

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It is all about conveying a feeling and for memory keeping so important to maybe slip in some candid shots I have to learn that is OK.

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River Thames with Tower Bridge in the distance

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St Paul’s Cathedral from the South Bank.

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Under the arches.

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The wonderful Borough Market in Southwark see the website HERE

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So I am going to continue looking for the intimate, the personal.

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Have a great weekend keep looking for those special moments…

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FRIDAY FINDS – ROAD TRIP

Sounds, smells, whirling dancers. Girls with flowers in their hair, children running and laughing. A man in a stripy poncho with a leather hat. Hot chocolate , buzzing from music, words and thoughts run through my head.

 

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Continuing on from my Tuesday post,  we travelled from Somerset to Shropshire stopping off in Gloucester and Berrington Hall before visiting the Shrewsbury Folk Festival.

 

Find One – The delightful Gloucester Docks, industrial heritage for the modern age…

 

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Find Two – Berrington Hall in Shropshire. A Georgian delight with a  Pride and Prejudice costume exhibition  with THAT shirt.

 

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Find Three – The sights and sounds of a festival I’d forgotten what fun they were.

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Find Four – The joy of live music.

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Finally – To see the joy on the faces of performers who love what they do.

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Supplies by Anna Aspnes

Music listened to: The Dhol Foundation, John Jones, Molotov Jukebox, James Riley, Karine Polwart and Marin Simpson, and so much more….

 Roll on next year !

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HELLO FRIDAY – GLAD YOU ARE HERE…..

A selection of my photographs this week.  I’m continuing with my ‘heartwork’ and these five photographs really spoke to me..

One of my favourite places to visit Bristol Harbour

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A Sidmouth shot, the wonderful Airstream coffee spot.

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On my  daily walk .

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This week I met my dear friend Cathy who is visiting from Spain…

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A  simple shot. I was prompted to post this by my  blogging friend Cheryl who wrote a meaningful post this week that really spoke to me. You can find her post HERE.

“Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment I know this is the only moment.”

― Thích Nhất Hạnh, Being Peace

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Have a wonderful weekend…..

Kim Klassen dot Com

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TEXTURE TUESDAY – FROM THE ARCHIVES

This is from the archives  from August 2002. I was using my Fuji point and shoot. Thanks to the wonder of Photoshop and Lightroom I am able to play I really brought up the clarity and split toning and added kk_canvasbackmagic.

 

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And a photo from Jo who is now in Queenstown New Zealand. It’s ski season there and so so beautiful….. I used kk_canvasmagic this time….

 

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“Texture

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PHOTO – HEART CONNECTION- JUNE

 

 “Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing – absolutely nothing – half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”
― Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

 

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My idea of heaven is being by the water, the sea, river or lake. So my Photo – Heart Connection this month is a photo taken at Falmouth Marina in Cornwall on a late afternoon in June….THe boat was a perfect candidate for a shot.  Lost, broken and neglected it moved gently on it’s moorings . This short break in Cornwall will hold a special place in my heart, a spontaneous decision to take a few days and run away to Cornwall before schools broke up and those tiny lanes became choked with traffic. Warm mellow evenings and hot sunny days perfect….

Joining with Kat Sloma for her Photo – Heart Connection….

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WHAT TUESDAY ALREADY – THE WEEK HAS FLOWN BY EDITION

Black and white is the theme for this week’s Texture Tuesday
Lots of magic texture with some colour brushed back in….
And because I so love this cup and am on a bright colours kick at the moment here is a colour image (you might have to put some sunglasses on) BTW the orange was delicious !
Have a  bright and sunshiny Tuesday
Oh and for those lovely people who have supported me in my angst over Jo being over the other side of the world she is having a whale of a time…..
This is where she spent last Sunday Wailheke Island near Auckland.

“Texture

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TEXTURE TUESDAY IS ROUTINE A NECESSARY EVIL ?

As some of my blogging friends know my daughter Jo has left on her big adventure to New Zealand. For the month before her departure she gave up her flat and moved back in with us to save money.  This of course threw routines out of the window, another person to use the bathroom, meals to be cooked for 3 not 2 and so on. I loved having her with us but of course it made the parting worse as I miss her a lot.  My blogging and digital scrapping has suffered and I’m finding it quite difficult getting back in the swing, So new routines have to be made slowly but surely.

So to Texture Tuesday, the theme is yellow and I had a mini shoot with sunflowers taken from Jo’s thank you bouquet from her work colleagues. I had to let them decay slightly of course !!!!

Here is the original photo SOOC.
After processing in Lightroom.

The finished photograph.

 I added two layers of Kim’s Waterfront 18 one at soft light 78% and one at multiply 70 %.
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MORNING THOUGHTS FROM THE DESKTOP

As I sit here looking out of the window on an early Sunday morning, I see the birch swaying in the breeze, the filaments dance lightly then heavily as more wind catches the leaves. Sunlight flickers through the blinds, it peeps out and disappears as clouds race by.
  All is quiet in the house, only two of us now, the birds have flown, one in his own house,
the other far away on the other side of the world.
Jo, Theo and Tom.
Today I begin to see that’ small is important’… As Lao-Tzu writes “make much of little”.  Life goes on time to stop standing still and to take an active part, to stop sleepwalking.
‘Care’ will be a new mantra along with ‘explore’
Today I begin to care……