Simple Pleasure

American Robins kick off our regular morning with their cheering and rich voice ever since spring was here. Every now and then, I heard the crispy chirps from house finches and gold finches right by the bedroom window. They may all come a bit too early for me, but I would rather be called by them than the alarm clock.

I have been spending most of my time handling camera and working on photos in front of computer. My desk pile is heaping high and my house is getting cluttered.  I started feeling guilty and the words of addiction, indulgence and procrastination were pounding on me. I finally dropped everything photography-related, and spent a good whole day to clean my house.  Oh, mine. Nothing is more relaxing than sipping an iced lemonade in a room with shining floor and fresh smell.

It was a glorious day. We took an hour bike ride at a wooded area early in the morning. I did not touch a bike for 16 years. When I finally got on my bike again,  I  fell  from it  the next year and injured my left shoulder, but that did not stop me. I  am on my  bike again and feel better than ever.  
It is also fun to snap a few panning shots of other bikers  on the trail.   

Eugene  has  great  bike  trails  along the  river and into the woods.  It  is  always  invigorating 
to see people on the bike than behind the car wheel. This natural path of exercise is appealing.

Energized by the bike ride, we worked hard to re-organize the shrubs and flower plants in our yards.  New arrangement is based on 'less is more' theory. So glad to get rid of overgrowth and stringy mess.  I feel great when all are trimmed and looking tidy and tight.

There was no single bird come by this spring till early May. I planted three hummingbird loving plants in April, but they did not show up till about four weeks ago.  There are two regular hummingbird visitors, but I can never be ready enough to get a good shot. I could have aimed at one spot by the feeder and nail just that perfect shot, but that is not what I want. I prefer to photograph hummingbird sucking nectar from a flower and I thought they will be on the three targets that I had planned. But no, they have been flying all over the place and tasting everything. I am chasing after these two little guys without much success. I love to see both of them around, but then they would fight each other off and I ended up with no one.

little guy with sharp eye

This image was taken in a late evening under low light condition. Not super sharp because I had to bump up my ISO, but the little guy was ready to taste Verbena and was in motion that I really like.  A plant behind Verbena happened to provide a nice background from the angle I was shooting. It is quite colorful as a whole, so 

I painted the flowers and added the texture. 

I found out that I really like painting though I have not been able to do a lot. It is a new adventure for me and experimenting process is exciting.

It seems to me that not all photos make good 'digital' paintings and not all work I tested turns out to my expectations. Some turned out to be disastrous and some, so unexpected that therefore, so interesting to me. It is not a snap, edit and finalize process. It is more an artistic journey that I have no clue what I am getting into it till I really got there. Without any formal schooling in arts, I used my instinct and heart to paint. The process is slow and lengthy, but I truly enjoyed it. It is a good training for my patience, my sense to colors and further understanding in the making of an art.  

I took a few corn flower pictures. The flower is pretty, but I feel my shots look homely. I did not like the fact that the colors are all so bright and overpowering, but they are the true colors that I did not want them to be deceived by the texturing. Instead, by painting, I got to keep all real colors and shapes. Most of the time I like the image to look dream-like, but this time, more realistic and only slight brush touches.

Corn Flower

Besides Humminbird, Nuthatch is one of my most favorite backyard birds. They just showed up couple weeks ago. I like their curvy gesture and unique personality. They came, grabbed a bite and left. Quick and sleek. They are  also not too afraid of people. They must have figured that they can get away fast enough and they know, I like them so much that I won't never hurt them. 

Nuthatches are creepers. They like to hang on tree trunk, in many cases, hanging themselves upside down.  It is entertaining to watch them. Their eyes and body are very coordinated. When they are staring at people, their bodies signal, too.  I like this shot for the way how IT grabbed on the bark and curved its beak looking up. Except that its bluish gray body seemed to disappear among the multi brown background. So I added filter. With the blur effect on top and bottom, it looks that the nuthatch has just landed...

curious nuthatch

My eyes have been on hummingbirds. One day I saw one hummingbird stopping on one corn flower and sucking nectar from the other. It was such a rare scene, but I was not ready to capture the shot. So I waited and waited, but I have not seen that again since.

Though corn flower blooms seem to last, but the color is fading. I hate to see them go without keeping myself some memories. So I brought them into the house and place them in my favorite vase.

live and yet peace

Still shots are growing in me and I particularly like the feel of softness and subtlety.  I am not big in home decors, but I have a special liking for white flower vases. Intentionally I used a beige color backdrop for the sculptured shape vaguely shown.

And, instead of showing a perfect full bloom, I chose to focus on a smaller portion. Slight texture was intended to cover up the blemish on the fabric and it unexpectedly added the ambiance to the frame.

Action, color, excitement and fun would eventually come down and be replaced by peace and quietness when dusk comes and silence embraces the night.

A cheerful morning call, a relaxing bike ride, a squeaky clean house, a few visits from my favorite birds and a few attempts to paint my flowers have made up a wonderful week for me.  Simple and easily satisfying.

Calming by Flowers

Oregon is photographer’s heaven. There are so many places to go for landscape photos and I have only touched a small portion of them.  I love to shoot birds and flowers. Birds and flowers can be occasionally included in a landscape photography shot, but then I have to carry more than one lens and my bird and flower shots will be mostly occasional snap shots that I have been trying to avoid. I really want to get good at certain areas and not to swim among too many possibilities. I want to be focused. I love to learn, but I restrict myself to learn only what will benefit my favorite categories of photography.

I also consider to classify my categories, such as Oregon Life (what Oregonians do for leisure), Love for Birds, Flower Frenzy, Nature in Oregon, Travel Journals (all categories included) and something that I have been wanting to try more, Still Shots around the house. And, the last, certainly not the least, family portrait and event shots. One more, I am growing to like street photography but I would only do it whenever I am traveling, near or far. 

Not a competitive person, I have not thought about entering a contest. I guess winners of the contest will obtain a fame tag to their names. I think I am a bit too far from that level of achievement. What I can do for myself is to come up some projects to challenge myself.  In that case, I would call it Self-Projects.  If my weekly post fits in none of the categories, I will then can call it, Out of My mind, or something like that. Talking focus, but I seem not be able to narrow down my categories. But. I am trying...

Weather has been gorgeous. I have hard time to go out without my camera. I took a walk yesterday without my camera due to a serious back pain, but I regret almost immediately when I saw a pink patch of wheat grass wiggling in the wind.  This passion for photography seems to become an addiction or even a drug that I cannot live without.

I am so dependent on my Android to keep track of my to-do and shopping list, my tasks, my schedules, my small and big ideas and the most important, for emergency need. The moment when my phone is out of sight, I look for it and I don't leave home without it. I was a little desperate this morning because I could not find my phone. I heard Find My Phone app is one source for hackers, so I am not using it.  I need my husband to call me, but he was not answering my email.

Pondering on my retirement life, I realized that I am pursuing an artistic function while still struggling to ease away from the habit that have deeply rooted in me from my years of career life. It will be a working progress for me to bring words like breath, calm, peace, relax back to my daily dictionary. I need them and I want to begin my experiment to reach this goal. I gave myself a photo project: still shots with calm and soothing effect using the materials available at home.

Yellow roses from my garden, a book given by a precious friend that I love, a pink peony, a cushion pillow and my coffee mug. Meanwhile, I control myself to use only one lens, my 50mm. 

I don't have a green thumb, but I happened to grow this yellow rose successfully.  I might not have a single piece of yellow apparel, but this yellow color will take your breath away. I sing Johnny Horton's 'Yellow Rose of Texas' in my mind whenever I see my yellow roses. I love this song. In order to cut a few stems from the plant, I am often scratched and sometimes to bleed by its thick and nasty thorns, but temptation is big that I still go for it.  

I bought 4 peony plants from hardware store two years ago from sales rack and no tag was attached. This year they all bloomed nicely but three of them are the same color pink. I like the hint of its subtle fragrance. The soft pink petals touch your skin and melt your heart.  I however have not been able to take any images that I like. So used to close-up shots that I am always looking for details. Peony has dense layers and beautiful curves on the petals but no intricate details.
However this gives me an opportunity to try something different. I blurred the background and softened the overall tone. Hope you can also take a nice inhale and breathe in its fragrance. Feeling rejuvenated and peaceful.

A cup of aromatic coffee in the morning is a treat, essential for me. Luxury is to enjoy breakfast at an European boutique hotel. Sitting by the window and looking out a manicured but natural garden. English bone china coffee cup/saucer with a dainty silver stir on tidy and classy tablecloth. German pastry or Italian croissant with tasty jam from the small jars. And, I like to crack the boiled egg with my silver spoon and enjoy it on egg holder, small bit at a time.

Things are quite different at home. In order to get my husband out of the door for work, I make breakfast, coffee, smoothies and his lunch box. A sandwich or healthy veggie burritos are fast food in my eyes being an Asian. Though I used mostly leftovers from dinner, I make sure that there is new item of something else and cover all essential nutritions. If there is salad, I make it fresh in the morning. Believe or not, I actually enjoyed to make the lunchbox looking nice and yummy. A bit work for me to joggle between breakfast and lunch, so instead of sipping from a fancy ceramic cup, I gobble down coffee from a mug, fast. I am usually drinking coffee while I am either frying an egg or toasting the bread. My mug is in motion. It is a 20+ year old mug that I brought from California, the only survivor from a set of 3. I cherished it and wrapped it in peony petals.

It is sunny outside, but my house is mostly in the shade except couple of skylights in the kitchen and living area. These skylights set in the vaulted ceiling. By the time when the light hits my subjects, it has been diluted and can only give a little wash to my images. My windows are mostly hidden behind the grown shrubs. I like to see the green and colors through the windows, so I leave it that way.  I placed this rose by the window with a bit of simmering bokeh behind. I toned down colors and shades when I was in the mood to seek calmness and tranquility. Really, I could even hear the fountain in our backyard...

I have to admit that I am getting a bit lazy recently to shoot flowers because there are 'too' (listen to that) many choices that I am a bit overwhelmed. I am also constantly (now you know why I need to stay more focused) to shoot something else other than flowers . I intended to head out to shoot other subjects, but my misplaced phone kept me home and it eventually kept me calm and content. The purpose of this blog will be done if you can also feel the peace and serenity.