Winter Wonderland....

I'm not a cold weather lover, but I had to appreciate the glorious snow we saw over the weekend!  Everything was covered in the beautiful white stuff.......

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The cats weren't too fond of the snow, either, so of course we had to let them in!

Mamma Kitty in front of the heater.

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Caramel Kitty managed to get in several naps.

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And Fluff preferred looking out the window at the snow!

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So we have our White Christmas!

Here's wishing you a beautiful Christmas, too!

Sue (& Dave)

Big Buck - the one that got away......

I haven't had time to post here for a while, but I got some photos of a monster Buck in our back yard.....  in the city!  No wonder he is such a huge buck - - no one can hunt him!

I'm hoping to find his shed antlers after winter...  they will definitely look great on a table.

With two sets of drop tines, I can't even count the points on this buck.

 This would surely be in the Ohio Big Buck category.

The doe he was following was a huge doe, so that should tell you how big he is...

he was sitting about 12 feet behind her.

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Well, that's it for now.

If I don't get back here before the end of the year,

please have a Merry Christmas

and a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Remember....keep looking up at the sky

(Santa may be there!)

Sue

It's All About the Shapes.........

Over the weekend, I realized that when I take photographs, I often look for the shapes in my surroundings.   I walk around looking at things that most others don't:  The negative space working with a piece of architecture, the way items work with (or against) each other to make interesting composites.  Yes, I often miss the shopping experience because I'm outside with my camera, but it's what I enjoy.

So without further ado, here are some images from a joyous weekend that allowed me to enjoy both the company of my fabulous friends and the fun of creating my own style of art with my camera.........

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Until next time.....

Smile for my camera if you see me :)

Sue

Halloween's right around the corner.......

There's a chill in the air, the days are getting shorter and the leaves are quickly changing color.  Halloween is just around the corner, and these photos reflect the feeling of the season:

Baskets of squash at the open air market.

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Piles o' pumpkins.

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Beautiful, colorful leaves.

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More pretty maple leaves.

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Scary black cats.

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And something even scarier:

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My dentist appointment today!

I'm just teasing.  It was painless:)

That's it for tonight.  I'm really not ready for Halloween or the cold weather, but both are on the way whether I like it or not.  So time to get out the coats, gloves, and scarves and dig in for another Ohio winter :(

Oh well.  Think spring!!!!

Until next time.......

Don't forget to look up at the sky!

Sue

Some blogs that are featuring my photos.......

I found that my photos have been featured in two other blogs today:

Please click on this first blog: tapestry 316, then come right back. 

This is the blog of Etsy seller Kathy, who informed me on her blog that I had won an ACEO from the "Odd Angles Blog to Blog Treasure Hunt."  It was really fun to look at the participating blogs and....... I can't believe I won!  (In case you were wondering, an ACEO is defined as "Art Cards, Editions and Originals.")
Be sure and stop by Kathy's Etsy shop, too, by clicking here.

The photo featured in this blog can be found in my Etsy shop here.

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Now please click on this second blog: amala beauty, then come back here again.

This blog is featuring photos that reflect "beauty in nature, in the pure and simple, and in sharing that beauty with others."  I'm thrilled to be featured today on this blog as well.  Please visit the amala web site here to see their beauty products.

The photo featured in this blog can be found  in my Etsy shop here.

I also found out that I won two other ACEOs from two other Etsy shops:
Thank you to Carole of RSully shops: RSully2Photography  and ReadingSully2.   Visit her blog Art Plus here.
My other winning ACEO comes from Marlene at her Etsy shop: LazyHawk.  Visit her blog at Marlene's Musings here.

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Now please don't forget to stop by my Etsy shop at sknights.etsy.com.  It's time to start thinking about the gift-giving season, and my art photographs will make beautiful gifts at a reasonable price, and they are ready for you to frame!  Or you can order greeting cards using any photo in my entire shop here.  And for the month of October, the SHIPPING IS FREE to anywhere, worldwide!  So start browsing, and be sure and convo me on my Etsy site if you see a photo you would like in a larger or different size.

I'll be out trying to catch some sunshine, gorgeous skies and autumn leaves this next week, so be sure and smile if you see me :)

Until next time,
Sue

Etsy Front Page 10-1-09

Woo hoo!!!  My Iris photo made the Etsy Front Page today!!!

More Photoshop Fun.....

My dear friend Kay Saniga is a talented artiste in New York City.  She has been my mentor for my Photoshop introduction and has helped me so much in my learning process.  She's been talking me through the myriad steps, over the phone, to show me how to turn photographs into art.  (She is talented AND patient!)

So without further ado, here are some of my newest works:

This is the original photograph:

Here's a TTV (Through the Viewfinder) variation:

Next is one in black and white with a different TTV frame:

Here's another with red tones:

Here are three variations of the TTV style with different subjects:

A black squirrel in motion!

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A retired '58 Chevy Apache Truck

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...and a resting black and white cow.

I've already listed some new TTV work in my Etsy Shop here so be sure to check out those photos as well.

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Have a great evening.   Dave's cooking supper, so I better scoot :)

Cheers,
Sue

The Noble County Fair & The Ohio River Sternwheel Festival

Well, here we are, half-way through September.  Where did the summer go????

It's been a busy couple of weeks.  First I made a trip to Caldwell, Ohio to take as many colorful photos of the Noble County Fair as I could.

Here are some of my favorites:

The Paratrooper Ride in the Sky

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Frozen Fruit Cones Stand

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Inside the Tent - "Step Right Up and Win a Stuffed Fish"

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Mmmmmm...... Ice Cream!

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Rubber Duckies - with an Andy Warhol flair.

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This was a great day for me in Caldwell, Ohio, and a big "thank you" to all the vendors and operators at the Noble County Fair!

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Last week brought the Ohio River Sternwheel Festival to Marietta, Ohio.  I decided to drive down and take some photos of these fantastic riverboats:

The Ohio River Sternwheel Riverboats lined up

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Silhouettes against the Sky 

Two of the Riverboats

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The Historic Lafayette Hotel, Downtown Marietta, Ohio

"A Grand Riverboat Era Hotel"

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The "Betty Lou"  Sternwheeler

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The Maid of the Mist - 1957

This little boat in between two of the sternwheel riverboats was one of the many "Maid of the Mist" boats that took tourists under Niagara Falls back in the 1950s!

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Reflections and Cobblestones

This is one of the final photos taken on my visit to Marietta last week, and it is the scene of my unfortunate slip on the green moss on the cobblestones.  Yes, this is where I did a SPLIT, camera in one hand, balancing with my other arm in the air as my left foot slipped forward, my right foot stayed back, and I came within an inch of taking a dip in the Ohio River.  YIKES!  Just some bruises and scrapes on my right leg and foot, and for that I'll be getting a tetanus shot tomorrow!  Oh, joy :)  Actually, a small price to pay for over 200 great photos!

If you ever get an opportunity to visit Marietta, Ohio, it is such a beautiful city.  Marietta was the first permanent settlement of the United States of America in the territory North & West of the Ohio River.  It is one of my favorite towns in our fine country.

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So that's it for now.  Have a wonderful autumn, and if you're in a part of the country or the world that has the beautiful changing seasons such as in Ohio, be sure to drink in all the colors and enjoy the scenery!

Until next time.....

Sue

Fun with Sunflowers and Photoshop......

I'm still a rookie at my Adobe Photoshop Elements program, and I figured it was time I did some exploring:

Here's my original photo of a sunflower in my garden:

 

Next are some variations of this image:

 

  

  

  

  

WOW!!!   This is just amazing.  This has opened an entire new aspect to my artistic creativity.

Next is a variation of a different photo of an apple on a quilt.  First, look at the original:

Now take a look at a "liquified" version:

I can't wait to experiment more with Photoshop.  This was FUN!

Later,

Sue

A very busy month......

August has been a busy month for me!

First, I attended the most wonderful high school class reunion the first week of August! It was so great to reconnect with so many people who meant so much to me and helped form so many lasting memories.

Here’s one photo of some of the gang from my old homeroom class.....

You can see more photos from the class reunion on my Flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sknights/

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Second, my garden has produced a bounty of goodies…. and produced and produced produced! I’ve been canning (cold packing) for several weeks now: spaghetti sauce, whole tomatoes, hot pepper slices and pepper rings, and my favorite, bread ‘n butter zucchini & yellow squash pickles.

This is my first time canning anything other than homemade salsa, so although it’s been a lot of hot work, it has been very rewarding.

Next year, I’ll know what to do with the zucchini and yellow squash earlier in the growing season (love those pickles!)

I’ve also baked and frozen some tins of stuffed hot peppers in tomato sauce, some with a meatloaf-type stuffing, some with ricotta and mozzarella cheese stuffing, so now I can just pop them in the oven like Stouffer’s lasagna!

I’ve got Hungarian peppers and medium hot peppers to make into pickled peppers this weekend, and then I think the garden should be slowing down. I am waiting for one more thing: my Brussels sprouts are starting to develop, so I can’t wait to harvest them.

I forgot that I also canned some “Dilly Beans” last weekend, too. I’ll have to let you know how they taste, since I haven’t opened them yet. The pole beans were great this season.

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And third, I’ve also become my own “Geek Squad” tech as my mom is now the owner of a great new Toshiba laptop computer and she’s learning all the ins and outs of the World Wide Web! This is her first computer and once and a while, she needs a little help from me. But believe me, she is rockin’ it!

Way to go, Mom ;)

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Yikes, I almost forgot to mention the fourth thing for August... my husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary on Monday. How could I forget to write about that?!? Too much in one month for an old girl to remember. 
Love you, Honey!!!

Until next time…..

Don’t forget to look up at the sky!

Sue