Weekly Challenge

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Vista

/ Leya / 31 kommentarer

Dear Frank, of My most breathtaking vista, I have no photographs. Machu Pichu was a childhood dream, and I went to Peru in the 1980’s to see it. No camera. When we finally reached the top of the mountain, the Urubamba river down below and the surrounding rainforest oozing thin dew drops along the mountain side…I could hardly breathe. For me, Nothing beats that vista.

So, I will have to give you another one. The Great Wall, the first time I saw it and walked it. Early morning light. Not a sound. That special feeling maybe fades a bit every time you visit, but it is still an impressive sight the fifth time you visit.

Many years later, we traveled on the highest elevated railway in the world – built on permafrost – from Beijing to Lhasa. The plateau on which Lhasa and Tibet is situated, offers stunning vistas every time you look out the window. They have to use extra oxygen in the train because of the height, but feeling ”high” on this journey had nothing to do with the extra oxygen…

These photos are all taken with a simple point and shoot – but highly treasured by me.

Lens-Artists Weekly Photo Challenge #46 – Delicate

/ Leya / 183 kommentarer

We have buried so much of the delicate magic of life  – D.H. Lawrence

On my walks in the forest, I love everything fresh, fragile and delicate that spring brings to nature – the feeling of looking at the world for the first time. Rebirth. Renewal. The importance of a living planet Earth for our children and grandchildren to be a part of, echoes with every step.

This week, the challenge must be Delicate. To me, Spring itself reveals something of the very essence of the word – Delicate. I hope you will enjoy walking with me, meeting some spring flowers from my ramblings!

Naturally, Delicate is used in several meanings, not only concerning flowers…:

Pleasantly soft or light – like the scent of a rose…; having a thin, attractive shape – delicate hands for example…; fragile or easily damaged – like fine china…; pleasant but not easily noticed – like a delicate floral pattern on the walls…

And being ”a delicate matter” is of course another, more difficult,  possibility…

So, what is Delicate to you? We are looking forward to seeing your interpretations – Let us bring back some of ”the delicate magic of life”!

When you see how fragile and delicate life can be, all else fades into the background

– Jenna Morasca

The delicacy of flowers takes different shapes – they might be tall and stately…

…or as tiny as these moss flowers, not higher than your thumb nail…

Some live in the shade on the forest floor, and some thrive in the bright sunshine…

Sometimes delicacy stands out most beautifully when placed in rough company – oh, the joy of forest apple blossoms!

As humans we are indeed, in many ways, just like flowers. So, I would like to end with a reflection from Henry David Thoreau – together with a hope that we will be more delicate in how we treat Mother Earth as well:

The finest qualities of our nature, like the bloom on fruits, can be preserved only by the most delicate handling. Yet we do not treat ourselves nor one another thus tenderly.

 

Thank you again, Patti, for a marvelous Street Art Challenge!

 

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Night

/ Leya / 12 kommentarer

For Frank this week – Nights in Copenhagen and Madrid. Miss them…The header from Madrid is one of my absolute favorite night shots. Maybe because of the lovely memories with my students there, the Flamenco dancers in Villa Rosa, and the glass of fruity red wine while watching the electric flamenco.

 

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #45 – Street Art

/ Leya / 31 kommentarer

Patti’s challenge this week is all about Street Art – something I believe people in general  have a special relation to. She shows us some remarkable examples of fine Street Art and asks us to send some more…so, here we go. Greetings from Poland, Sweden and Ireland.

In the header – This happy party I found in a small alley in Lodz, Poland.

Light Move Festival – Lodz

Poster – Canadian artists from famous Cirque du Soleil visiting Sweden

Mural – Blending in nicely in Lodz

Installation – Poland

Graffiti: Peace Wall – Ireland

Welcome to join in!

  • Create a new post on this week’s theme.
  • Link your post to Patti’s post ”Street Art”.
  • Tag your post with Lens-Artists to help us find you in the Reader.   We’ve had some trouble with pingbacks, so tagging will help us find your post.
  • If you need more detailed instructions, click here.

Next week…

…I will be your host! Ann-Christine, Challenge #46.  Wishing you an inspirational week and hope to see you then!

 

 

 

Friendly Friday Photo Challenge- Alleys

/ Leya / 21 kommentarer

This photo challenge is alternately hosted each Friday by the bloggers:
Something to Ponder About  and The Snow Melts Somewhere

Amanda’s prompt for this Friday is: Alleys

 

I have chosen some colourful favorites from Poland, Spain and Morocko.

We dined in here somewhere…

Just walked through, enjoying the softly coloured, calm atmosphere…

I remember this very hot day and the sweltering walk between these clay walls – No sane people out in this heat…

 

 

 

Lens-Artists Challenge # 44 – Harmony

/ Leya / 38 kommentarer

Tina challenges us this week to think Harmony – and in her splendid post, she encourages us to show our favorite harmonies. In short, Colour Harmonies are colors that look good together. If you have ever taken classes in painting, you should be familiar with the colour wheel. There are many different systems to create a color harmony. You will find a useful, free tool, for colour harmony here.

I guess colours are always a part of what makes up our inner concept of ”Harmony”, but there are also other types of harmonies. These are some of my favorites.

Art is a harmony parallel with nature – Paul Cezanne

Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece Sagrada Família.

Organic architecture is a philosophy of architecture which promotes harmony between human habitation and the natural world. The term ”organic architecture” was coined by Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959), and Wright’s ”Fallingwater” is a very good example – but the concept can also be illustrated with an old Nordic cottage like this one.

 

He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the Universe

– Marcus Aurelius

A life in harmony with nature, the love of truth and virtue, will purge the eyes to understanding her text –  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony – Mahatma Gandhi

Harmony is pure love, for love is a concerto ~ Lope de Vega

Even if some will always be playing out of tune…

…it still is a Concerto.

With love from the vast tulip fields in The Netherlands.

So, How do you reach colour harmony in your picture if it isn’t there from the start?

A simple and effective way to change its mood is to shift the white balance either towards the warmer or colder temperatures. This can often also push the image towards a colour harmony. One of the simplest yet also most effective ways to further tune your colour harmony is to use the Hue, Saturation, and Luminosity (HSL) panel in Lightroom.

Or, if you were a certain fashion icon: Women think of all colors except the absence of color. I have said that black has it all. White too. Their beauty is absolute. It is the perfect harmony.

― Coco Chanel

 

Thank you to Amy for last week’s lovely ”Less is More” and we’d love you to join in with Tina’s ”Harmony”!

Friendly Friday: Posing

/ Leya / 31 kommentarer

For Friendly Friday I would like to present the country of Herons – The Netherlands. It seems every garden has its own heron… But Holland is a country claimed from the sea, and sea birds are everywhere in the canals and on the fields.

Herons have got, in every position, style and poise – a certain dignity.

And, they easily let themselves be photographed – as they stand completely still when focusing on their prey. Or study you and your camera.