A lovely adventure – but tough taking pictures from the train. I had my camera ready for landscapes, but around one of the first bends – I saw a blackbear roaming the colourful grasses! We who were sitting on the right (right!) side of the train had a brief glimpse, but my camera was not ready for this. So, the black blob over there…is a bear. Believe it or not.
I enjoyed the wilderness and the colours, the fog and the random glimpses of blue sky.
The rivers and small pools of water brightened the views and so did the mountains with newly fallen snow.
Now and then beautiful gorges opened up – you had to have your camera well prepared…
And the old train picked up hikers along the trail too. A great service!
Luckily we were not supposed to cross this one…
…but it made for a couple of nice photos.
So, we arrived back in Skagway in one piece. The guide told us she had never seen a bear on this railroad trip before – so she was just as happy as her passengers were.
An amazingly beautiful and colourful trip, and an insight into the hardships of those times – the old path from the goldrush was still visible in some places.
Thank you for coming along on the train! So grateful for that black bear … it was the only Alaskan bear saw.
”Tina asks us to choose 5 images or fewer,” should have been 10 or fewer… I was on the road/ship for some weeks, and now, having seen so many glorious posts from you, I feel I should also post some oldies and goodies – I did not realize I could do that. (Risking you would tire of them, because I have posted them several times before.) So, here are some old, true favourites for you!
I went to an art exhibition some years ago – and this window, with vines growing outside, ended up being my favourite work of art that day. Ethereal, glowing and living lace. The grid makes it even more special. I still remember the amazing feeling seeing the window from inside the building. A favourite ever since.
A lovely winter morning many years ago, at the local lake. The graceful swans floated by in the morning fog, standing out in the thin, cold rays of sun. It makes for an almost otherworldly feeling.
Iceland – I could have chosen so many of my images from this paradise. But, a late winter evening on the beach, brought this golden shine with diamond crested waves. There were diamonds in the black sand as well. (We had snow, but who could imagine that?) The combination made the very special feeling.
One of my all time favourites, maybe the greatest? The Fluela Pass in Switzerland. We drove there two times that day. In the morning, it was nothing, just an ordinary pass – but returning to our hotel that evening, the reflections were stunning. Also the people in the image makes for understanding the shere size of it, giving it perspective.
Finally – at home, a road often travelled with my dog. One warm summer evening, many years ago, the light was soft and yellow, there was no wind and the gravel road looked like a dream. The stretch of the road, curves and structures were enhanced by the light and shadows. I have never seen the road like this since then.
Thank you again, Tina, for a wonderful challenge – hopefully it is OK to do another post!
Mr Philo of Philosophy Through Photography is our most welcome guest host this week, and he calls for Simplicity:
”I considered selecting simplicity since the modern world is so stressful and chaotic that we are losing the fundamental clarity and simplicity that allow us to concentrate on what is really important.” Please visit his site for more inspiration!
Hopefully this post will tell you why I too believe we need more simplicity.
As I grew older, I realized that it was much better to insist on the genuine forms of nature, for simplicity is the greatest adornment of art.
— Albrecht Durer
Simplicity can be reflected in so many ways…here are a few:
I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.
— Lao Tzu
Nature is pleased with simplicity.
— Isaac Newton
Enjoy the little things,
– for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.
— Robert Brault
Beauty of style and harmony and grace and good rhythm depend on simplicity.
– Plato
Everything is both simpler than we can imagine, and more complicated that we can conceive.
– Goethe
Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.
– Confucius
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
— Leonardo da Vinci
We are looking forward to seeing your Simplicity posts, and remember to link to Philo’s original post and use the Lens-Artists tag.
Sincere thanks to Ritva Sillanmäki for hosting last week’s Inspiration Found In The Kitchen, a challenge with immensely creative answers! Thank you for sharing your talent and passion with us.
Next week, Dawn Miller of The Day After will be hosting LAPC # – 258 Fences. And, if you would like to participate weekly in our Lens-Artists challenge, click here for more information.
Thursday again, time flies, and faster in the warmer seasons. There is much to do in my garden, but forest baths are essential. I try to take good care of the best season here up north. Life is short, I try not to waste it – but it is difficult to live in the moment…I wonder how many of us succeed in really doing that.
Spring colours in Skane. So longed for and so needed. But a cold spring and early summer. Everything is late. There are few insects and pollinators as the cold and windy days have taken their toll. Still – I hope you will enjoy a piece of our late spring too!
A forest bath is never wrong. Healing and uplifting…if I could I would fly out over the treetops, savouring everything green. I know you would fly with me.
What makes photography a strange invention is that its primary raw materials are time and light.
— John Berger
Backlighting is dramatic. It often creates silhouettes, yellow halos around the subject, and/or a brilliantly bright background.
Therefore, backlighting is great if you want to create stunning, eye-catching effects. Here are a handful of specific images you can make with backlighting: Street and portrait silhouettes, bird-in-flight silhouettes, portraits and macros with beautiful background bokeh, landscape silhouettes and sunset/sunrise landscapes.
One of my favourite subjects for backlit photography is flowers. Then I rely on the sun as the light source.
Essentially what photography is is life lit up. — Sam Abell
However, the sun is not always shining…and some plants bloom only when it is dark, so this night blooming cactus was lit up from behind with a soft lamp.
Another favourite is autumn leaves and autumn scenery. Some years we have very little sun and/or little colours in the leaves, but when everything comes together – the results can be stunning.
Winter offers different possibilities when there is snow and ice. Light and shadow can show off for example fur, uneven ground and a shining layer of frost or snow on top.
If we look at things where backlighting is a must, we will find for example aquariums, various screens (phone, TV, computer, camera, etc…). Stained glass windows are perfect examples of how backlight always have been used. And they are still, today, eye-catching beauties.
The camera is much more than a recording apparatus, it is a medium via which messages reach us from another world. — Orson Welles
Backlight is a versatile instrument in making pictures really come alive, even if they are only silhouettes or very dark. For landscapes it can be magical.
I am not interested in shooting new things – I am interested to see things new. — Ernst Haas
My home and my garden are always in my lens – and often in backlight. If you photograph the same things every year, you must vary your approach!
Photography is a love affair with life. — Burk Uzzle
Finally, I was presented with some lovely roses from my husband last week – I could not leave you without them! The sun is shining in through my windows, and on top of that, I made a double exposure.
Many thanks to Patti for having us try Still Life last week – a really challenging subject, but we all rose to the occation! So many interesting and unusual answers!
Now I hope to have given you a taste of backlit photography, and we are looking forward to seeing your images and posts. Tag with Lens-Artists and link to my original post. Hope to see you soon, but until then, please be as kind as ever to others – and to yourself.
Next week it is Sofia who is hosting on the theme Mood. Places, photography styles, situations or portraits where moods are recognisable.
This week Sofia invites us to show what Spring means to us. As winter refuses to let go of its grip this year, I will give you my feeling of ”vårvinter” or ”spring winter”. These are our days between winter and spring, and they belong to March in Sweden and Finland. Sometimes it is called ”the fifth season”.
The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.
– Henry Van Dyke
This means that ice is melting during the day, but the cold night brings it back again. Mist often occurs.
The first cranes arrive – not many yet, only about 1000 at Hornborgasjön this week. And faraway they were from the view point…but I managed to find some of them.
More birds arriving to the lake, and in a couple of weeks there will be around 20000 cranes and thousands of other birds.
Spring winter brings a very special, magical light – a light filled with promise.
There is a faint chiming in the air, and bird calls, soft ones and strong ones. When all cranes have arrived, you cannot even hear your own thoughts…
But until then, the stillness over the landscape rules, peaceful, powerful.
Back home again, spring is even more in the air. Soon, soon the anemonies, the daffodils and all colours will arrive and once again we will be swept away by the miracle of spring.
New beginnings, Nature reborn or a new chance to go and enjoy the outdoors? For me, spring means all of this. We look forward to seeing what spring images you will come up with, so remember to link back to Sofia’s original post and to tag Lens-Artists.
Last week John took us on a journey through most often travelled roads, where our photography is most comfortable. It was fascinating to see the differences, but also how they all lead to the same destination. Next week it is Anne’s turn to host so please visit her beautiful site and join us if you can. Until then, take care and be kind.
For more information on the Lens-Artists Challenge, please click here.
Alone time means time spent by an individual or a couple apart from others. It is often used to ground oneself, or to do something creative.
In the northern countries we are known for this need of alone time – but I strongly believe we all need it. We just have to watch for the signs… even if they are not always easily recognized. You might for example need some time away from other people when you are feeling short-tempered or getting easily irritated by minor things; feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated; having trouble concentrating or getting anxious about spending time with other people.
My own reasons for needing alone time originates from being an only child, and growing up close to the forests and fields – Nature holds all the beauty I need in life, and I have been given the gift to see and to listen, and to rejoice in it. I am very grateful.
Grounding yourself is when you stay connected to the present. Instead of getting lost in anxiety and reviewing a made-up version of reality in your head, grounding allows you to experience the moment you are in. It requires being connected to yourself and provides stability and calm even in challenging situations.
Nature is an unequalled source to pour from – turn off social media, open your windows and let your eyes and mind wander with you on the path you choose. Personally, my favourite path is the one with grass in the middle…just like my childhood paths.
I feel better when I am surrounded, not by humans, but by trees.
― Michael Bassey Johnson
For many of us books and reading fill this alone time well. Reading gives us the possibility to wander into other worlds, while sitting comfortably in our own chair.
For me, photography, writing and sketching works well too, and so does painting.
I know that I need serious alone time to be able to function. For this purpose, I finally realised an old dream – A Room of My Own.
We need solitude, because when we’re alone, we’re free from obligations, we don’t need to put on a show, and we can hear our own thoughts.
― Tamim Ansary
Finding time to be alone can have a number of key benefits. Some of these include personal exploration, creativity and social energy. If you are not used to spend time alone, plan that time into your schedule and make sure that other people know that they shouldn’t interrupt you during that time. It might be helpful too if you plan out what you want to do –
This week in February, every year, I want my husband to travel for some days, so that I can replant my houseplants, alone. I can plan it as I want to, I can emerge myself in facts on the different species…
…and end up with revived plants and cuttings en masse – cheers to new life!
This year I also bought some airplants – they need no soil, just a piece of bark, some Spanish moss, and some sprinkling of water. At the same time I get the joy of creating interesting new arrangements.
New projects are always around the corner, but, I also try hard to just BE. Do nothing. Exist here and now. This is difficult. I wonder – do you manage it? Some good advice would be much appreciated.
Blessed are those who do not fear solitude, who are not afraid of their own company, who are not always desperately looking for something to do, something to amuse themselves with, something to judge.
~ Paulo Coelho
When I am completely by myself, entirely alone or during the night when I cannot sleep, it is on such occasions that my ideas flow best and most abundantly. Whence and how these ideas come I know not nor can I force them.
~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
A Special thank you to Bren for her soft and magical challenge last week! We learned new things and new experiences make us grow. Now we are looking forward to seeing your Alone Time posts. What are your thoughts, and what do you use your alone time for? Be sure to tag Lens-Artists and link to my original post.
I have been made aware of pingbacks not working, so please, send your link in the comment section! It seems the reason it’s not working might originate in the change to JetPack on my phone.
Next week, Tina will be hosting, and her theme will be – Finding Peace. Please visit her beautiful site for inspiration.
There is something special with old country roads…Every autumn we walk some kilometers along this country road, and I guess you might recognize parts of it, even if it changes over the years. But, that is one of the reasons why I like to photographs this walk every year.
This part of our neighbouring village was always an agricultural area with many small farms.
Today farming is mostly a business for big farms with much land and large machines to work it.
This house is a typical old farmstead, but I am not sure anyone lives here anymore. It looks abandoned – even though you can see furniture and lamps if you look in the windows. There are even withered house plants in some of them, and a sign with the owner’s name. It looks like the owners just walked out the door left it that way.
Old wagons and tractors are left at the road side or in an abandoned garden.
I feel sad looking at it, because farmers work hard every day, every hour on their land – but as they grow old, they reach a point where they cannot manage it any longer. Being a farmer is a lifestyle, and that must be hard to give up.
There must be a few farmers still working though, because there is cattle in the small fields and meadows.
Aren’t they beautiful, making bypassers feel the harmony and the beauty of the landscape! I wonder what their story is…
Leya 
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