June Squares – Some Ornate Roofs!

Here are my final entries for Becky’s June Squares; the roofs at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC and the Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah. Coincidentally we are currently looking at bids on a new roof for our house but I don’t think it will end up looking anything like these.  For more on Becky’s June Squares go to An official residence

 

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Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge – The Path Taken

This week, Cee has given us plenty of scope for the Black & White Photo Challenge with the topic Ground: Sand, Dirt, Grass and Paths. I was particularly drawn to the last on the list so here are a few paths that I have taken. The first two, more formal paths, can be found at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

 

The paths at Arches National Park in Utah were a little less structured.

And the ones at Alta in Utah were downright rugged!

For more on Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge go to Ground: sand, dirt, grass, paths

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Dome

This week, Cee is looking for four-letter words starting with D for her Fun Foto Challenge.  While I have plenty of duck, deer and door images, I decided, after sifting through the photo files, to go with dome.  These may not, in the grand scheme of things, be quite as elaborate as some of the world-famous domes I could mention, except for the first one and I’m not even sure if that could technically be considered a dome, but I work with what I’ve got.

The Baha’i House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois.

The dome of the State Capitol building in Springfield, Illinois.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, Missouri.

The dome of the Old Courthouse in St. Louis, Missouri.

The State Capitol building in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The State Capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin.

The dome of the State Capitol building in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

For more on Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge go to Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Letter D – 4 letters words that start with D

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge – Couples

This week, Cee has us looking for two of anything for her Black & White Photo Challenge. Going through the photo files it wasn’t too difficult to find pairs both in nature and everyday items.

Pairs of shoes at the Stephenson County Historical Museum in Freeport, Illinois.

Two horses waiting to pull a hay wagon at Willow Springs Garden in Wausau, Wisconsin.

Two ducks enjoying a sunny day at Historical Wheeler Farm in Salt Lake City, Utah.

A pair of warriors at the Chinese Lantern Festival in the Missouri Botanical Garden, St Louis.

Two of the elk in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.

For more on Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge go to Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Couples, Twins, Two of Anything

 

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge – Lights

Lights! Camera! Action! This week, Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge puts lights in the spotlight. I hadn’t realized how many pictures of lights I had until I went through the photo files looking for suitable images.  Here are just a few.

Light stands in Maggie Daley Park in downtown Chicago.

Still in downtown Chicago. Kids enjoying some summer fun at the Crown Fountain in Millennium Park.

A chandelier at the Chicago History Museum.

Traveling north to Door Country in Wisconsin, a close-up of the lighthouse on Cana Island.

Two set pieces including lamps at Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina and Glensheen Mansion in Duluth, Iowa.

Lights on a vintage car at the Joliet Historical Museum in Illinois.

Lights on a terrace at the State Capitol Building in Salt Lake City, Utah.

For more on Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge go to Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Lights

 

Weekly Photo Challenge – Focus

This week we’re getting in or out of focus, however the fancy takes us, for the Photo Challenge set by David at The Daily Post.  I have a multitude of images that are unintentionally out of focus. I’ve even tried using them for competitions, claiming artistic license, although the judges just weren’t buying it.  I do have  a number of pictures that, all things considered, are quite sharp. And then there are those that, by some miracle, just seem to have the right balance.  It’s sheer luck when this happens as I’m not one to fiddle around making adjustments to the camera when I’m out shooting. Even if I spent time reading the manual that comes with the camera, I’d probably never remember all the technicalities.

 

I like this shot of a swan at the Chicago Botanic Garden for a couple of reasons. The flowers in the foreground add some color to the picture but also, being slightly out of focus, give the impression that we are hiding behind them watching as the swan goes gliding by.  A similar effect can be seen in this image of a moose taking it easy at Snowbird Resort near Salt Lake City in Utah, although who was hiding from whom I’m not sure.

I think the following images benefit from having the background out of focus, allowing us to concentrate more fully on the subject: flowers at the Green Bay Botanical Garden, a young man playing the part of a soldier at the Fort on Mackinac Island and a goldfinch enjoying some sunflower seeds in our garden.

For more on The Weekly Photo Challenge at The Daily Post go to Focus

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Looking Up At Things

Things are looking up! At least they are for Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge this week.  Once I got started on this one, I couldn’t stop, so I’ve tried to limit myself to just a few of the images that I found in the photo files. We’ll be traveling around quite a bit for this challenge, starting with downtown Chicago.

Looking up at ‘the beehive’ atop the Metropolitan Tower on Michigan Avenue and ‘The Spearman’, one of two bronze statues standing as gatekeeper on Congress Plaza.

Looking up at a chandelier in the State Capitol Building in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Looking up at a rather fierce-looking statue of an eagle, looking down at us at the Lee Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin.

Looking up at the trumpeter atop the Mormon Temple in Temple Square, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Looking up at George Washington on Mount Rushmore, South Dakota.

Looking up at a giant lantern at the Chinese Lantern Festival in the Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, Missouri.

And lastly, looking up at the trees on the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.

For more on Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge go to https://ceenphotography.com/2017/02/28/cees-fun-foto-challenge-looking-up-at-things/