Shadow and Hope. Time Machine.

In late summer, I start to dream of Autumn.

Then I look forward to the holidays.

Here in our part of the South, if we get any snow at all, it is likely to be in late January or February.

When we do it is pretty for a few days.

By this point in the winter, the snow is gone, my bones are cold, and I am looking forward to spring. 

Are you?

If so, grab a cup of something warm to drink (I have a lovely cup of PG Tips tea with milk), and step into my time machine.

 Antebellum with Azaleas

These are my favorite photos of Spring here at home.

All were taken in March but over several springs (2008 to 2013)

Bumble Bee in the Azaleas

 The warm colors are making me happy already.

 Spring time Fluff

Dandelions are one of the first flowers to pop up. I don't pull them Mother Nature seems to do a good job of keeping them in check. They always make me think of Fairy wands.

 Early Dogwood Blossoms

We have a dogwood tree in the front yard, it is beautiful year round.

When it is bare, it is graceful. The early blossoms with soft fuzzy leaf buds pop up, and then,,,,

Dogwood Blossoms and Gargoyles

The brick path leads to our door.  When I see it, I know I am home safe and loved (My Sweet Family put it in our first summer in the house).

 Elm with buds and Antebellum

Our back yard. You can also see the smoke house (closest to the house) and the summer kitchen (I always get them mixed up and labeled the smoke house incorrectly last week). This was taken with my back to the barn. Here the time machine really works, you can't see the power lines or street lamp. It looks much as it might have looked at any time in the last 180 or so years since it was built.

Forsythia and Summer Kitchen 

Is it possible to feel cold when you look at this one?

Forsythia Close-up 

Iris in Lavender

Two of my favorite flowers together. They were not planted that way, they both spread. My usual method of gardening involves planting things, then mostly leaving them alone. That works well in this climate.  

Iris Blossoms

The Iris and Daffodils were here before us. There are patches of both growing wild in the woods. Makes you wonder how many years ago they escaped. 

Mary in the Camellias

She looks much more comfortable here than in the last post.

Miniature Roses?

The blossoms are tiny, but profuse. 

Narcissus and Daffodils

There is a very short time when both are in bloom, some years they miss each other completely. Lucky for us, our time machine has paused at just the right moment. 

Narcissus

A lovely way to harvest sunshine to bring inside. 

Old Barn and Well-house

 I would love to walk outside to all this green! 

Vinca

Lovely little purple wildflower. 

Sedum Patch

Yellow Narcissus

Sunshine on a stem. 

Pink Blossoms in our woods 

 Elm Buds and Smokehouse 

Tiny Yellow Wildflower

I love the little heart shaped petals. 

Oak and Ivey

These have lived together a long time. They stand proudly in our front yard. 

Waiting

Anticipation! It really won't be long. According to that silly ground hog, only five more weeks (ground hogs day was 1 week ago, of course, he saw his shadow). 

Wild Bunny

I almost wish I had a lovely soft fur coat like hers while we wait for spring. 

My Mother used to tell me to enjoy NOW. When you wish for time to go by swiftly, you wish your life away. 

So I will confine myself to peaking out the door of the time machine, without actually leaving the time where I am. I do feel warmer, how about you?

Cheers, 

Kat

I must admit, if that silly groundhog lived near me, I would build a permanent shade over his home, so he would not see his shadow.

Obsession Reborn

You may want to refresh your memory before reading this post. It is an update from

Obsession May 2009

Now you know the first part of the story, enjoy the next chapter.

Fuji FinePix Z5

The Fuji mentioned in the original post is shown above. It was not shown, but it took the portraits of all the camera's who were. It was a life changer for me. I had forgotten how much art there is in a good photograph and how much I loved photography.  It was light and no bigger than a pack of cards. It fit easily in my purse and soon went everywhere with me.

Finepix F5 control panel

This camera explored North and South Carolina, parts of Florida, (see Space Cadet ), together we took walks in the woods, saw our Corolla reach 100,000 miles, visited Yellowstone National Park and  my family in Utah, saw New Orleans and took hundreds of pictures of cars (another obsession).

When I earned my Bachelors (Bachelor of Science in Nursing), My Sweet Husband thought I deserved an upgrade. My graduation present from him was the lovely pink Fuji Finepix Z70 shown above. The Z5 posed with it in front of an old photo of my Mother-in-Law (one of the sweetest human beings ever).  We took this camera to Rome and later, China, as well as our usual haunts closer to home. I have used it to document restoration on the house and the extreme cuteness of Spontaneous. 

Finepix Z70 control panel and screen

Both finepix cameras have a good selection of "scenes" you can use for settings. Things like "sunset" or "Snow" or "portrait", I personally think I was able to get some great shots with these cameras, but somewhere in the back of my mind, the question sits; was it my skill, or the camera? Unfortunately a few months ago, the latch for the door to the battery and memory card compartment broke......

I was able to tape it shut. Not really an optimal situation, but it worked.

Canon Power Shot S120

My Sweet Husband strikes again. Look what he got me for Christmas! My new S120 is posed here in front of a photo I took with the Petri for one of my photography classes. (Taken with the Finepix F5 it still works great) I won't say exactly how many years ago those classes were (hint, big hair ) but it was long ago and far, far away. This camera is very flexible. I can set it on Automatic then all I have to do is push the shutter button (and try to hold it still of course), I can use one of the many "Scenes" as settings, or I can take complete control. 

The Z70 and S120 posed together for comparison.

The S120 is almost as small as the Z70. It weighs less than half a pound. It has a lot more camera packed into it's small package. I can transfer photos from the camera to the computer without removing the memory card or carrying around another cable (had problems after I removed a memory card during our trip to Boston). 

Now I have some playing to do. As shown above depth of field can make a big difference to even a recipe shot, do I want to emphasize that delicious looking crust, or do I want to show the ingredients as well? See how much difference it makes even in the colors? The lighting was the same for both pictures. I have a little bit of studying to do. Lucky for me the subject is fascinating. 

  

Vintage Battery Operated Truck

In the mean time, here is one of my favorite pictures so far.  This cute little guy was my Dad's. It sits under my Christmas tree each year. I took the photo while I was playing with the settings on my Canon S120.  The camera is great, but the photographic skill is mine. 

What are you obsessed with?

Cheers

Kat 

Awesome Autumn

Wow, not long ago we drove up to the mountains to see the leaves changing. Now all I have to do is step outside. This is by far the most spectacular year so far. I must confess, I would rather be outside taking photos than anything else right now.
The first photo may be a familiar setting. This is my barn with the autumn trees around it. It looks a little different because we had a tree that was endagering it removed. I love my trees, but in this case, the barn was there first. This lovely old structure is just not replaceable. I do not know how old it is, the house was built in 1825.

What nails are visible are the old handmade type with square heads and you can see where tree trunks were used in part of the construction. At one point we had an owl nesting out there. Anyway, all the seasons look good around it.
A couple of days ago, my sweet hubby and I took a drive in the local area. Some of these photos were taken then. None are more than 15 minutes drive from our house. My sweet heart has been incredibly patient with my cries of "Stop for a minute," or "back up a little please" while we drove through the country side. Good thing these are not busy roads.
The first set of photos were still on the camera when we went for our walk today. We went early for the light. I took a whole bunch more. The colors are so clear and the sky is so blue. The temperature is just right today. I know the cold is just around the corner. I can't wait for more fireplace mornings and snuggling in. Don't get me wrong here, I do not like to be cold.
Spring and Fall are my favorite seasons here in the south. It is not too hot or too cold, but as "Baby Bear" would say "Just right". Days like today are good for the soul.
I may post more pictures later, but I have to get some homework done.