Hard Water

I came home this morning at about 4:45 am (don't ask where I was at that time in the morning) and was putting some things away in the freezer. I noticed that the ice maker was overflowing and there were large "icebergs" in the way, keeping the mechanism from working correctly. I took a couple of the large clumps of ice and put them in the sink to melt.

I came back after a few minutes and glanced into the sink and saw the cubes had taken on a nice sheen and were looking photo-worthy. I didn't have my regular camera, so I grabbed a little Olympus Camedia D-435 and snapped a couple of quick shots before the batteries died.

Not exactly what I was looking for, but it has given me some inspiration. I think I will be playing with some ice shots later. Hey...I have posted something 4 days in a row. New record for me. Let's see if February is more consistent with more than 8 days of photo's for the month.

Hehe...the alarm just went off...guess it's time for work.

Day Dreaming

My cat was watching the puppy while safely perched on top of the enter-tainment center. He was so intent on keeping tabs on the little nuisance that he didn't mind me sticking the camera in his face to do some macro work on his eyes.

I had taken a bunch of shots, but just couldn't get what I was looking for. I asked my oldest to stand over by the sliding glass doors to keep his attention and I finally got this shot.

The really cool thing is that when I loaded it into my computer and opened it in PS, I could see my daughter's silhouette in his eyes.

Baby Face

This little guy came home with my oldest the other day. As both of her part time jobs involve taking care of pets, it is inevitable that a few find their way into her heart. He has some beagle in him and some other combo of breeds. He is such a cutie and I had been trying to get a good shot of him all day, but I has having a hard time because he wouldn't slow down. Finally, he crashed between the chair and the sliding glass doors, in a pool of sunlight.

I brought this into PhotoShop and added my new favorite filter - Distort, diffuse Glow. Wow - I absolutely loved what it did with the side lighting from his sunny resting place.

The Eyes Have It

Another macro shot. This shot is of my youngest. Still getting the hang of things with this camera. I am going to do more with eyes, baby blues, blinders, eyeballs, headlights, lamps, oculars, oculus, optics, orbs, peepers, pies, winkers...the soul windows. More to come.

On The Rocks

I took my daughter out to a local "family fun" establishment, and while we waited for our food...and waited...and waited some more, I just started snapping pictures of anything interesting.

This shot was a macro of what was inside her drink cup. A little diet soda, on the rocks, with 4 straws for rapid consumption. = )

A little cropping in PhotoShop and viola...today's addition.

Although the go karts and bumper boats were great fun, I think we both enjoyed taking pictures of each other making faces and eating our food.

Freedom...

...the condition of being free of restraints.
I was finding that my normal "happy place" just wasn't doing it for me. I ventured out to the parking lot and saw a group of horses enjoying the day. This one in particular was so "free" and continued to do all he could to get the others to join him.
With this shot in PhotoShop, I added a couple of layers with the horse and a gaussian blur filter. I then added some smudging for affect.
I watched them for quite some time and found myself sufficiently refreshed. You can be free wherever you are in whatever your doing...sometimes we are our own restraint.
Be free!

First Born

My oldest child wanted to have some pictures to share with friends and so we set out to capture some shots. She liked two of these and so I proceeded to blend them togother.
I love working with PhotoShop and she was pleased with the results.

Dragon People

It is said that people born in the Year of the Dragon are healthy, energetic, excitable, short-tempered, and stubborn. They are also honest, sensitive, brave, and they inspire confidence and trust. Dragon people are the most eccentric of any in the eastern zodiac. They neither borrow money nor make flowery speeches, but they tend to be soft-hearted which sometimes gives others an advantage over them.
Being born in the year of the Dragon, I would say that much of who I am is covered in this description. I have a great interest in the culture and definitely love all things Japanese.
This closeup is of a piece that I have in my office, which is my oasis here at work. People often stop by to find a restful spot along their stressful path.

Getting started...

A good friend of mine from work, turned me on to this format. I am excited about doing the picture-a-day and look forwards to comments, advice of this community.