Forest

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Photography: #100DayProject—Almost There

As you may remember, I’m doing photography for the #100DayProject. This means, every single day for 100 days I’m out taking photos, editing them, and sharing them with my friends. In addition, I’ve started doing photography sessions for people I know. I’ve done three senior sessions, a family shoot, and several portraits.

I’m loving this! It feels like I’m understanding my camera more and more. I’m still battling with computer storage and editing, but those are getting easier too. I’m having fun experimenting with different lenses, playing around with color, and dabbling in street photography. I still have an editing class to take, but each session I’m learning something new. The project ends June 2, which means there’s still lots of images to take and skills to learn.

Here’s a ton of my best photos from the last few weeks. Let me know if you have a favorite (and I totally understand if viewing 40 photos is a bit much!) These appear in order of photos taken, not favorites. I thought you might like to see how each grouping was edited differently. Among these was my first photograph of lightening, some crazy macro bug shots from my yard, and some really cute animals.

Oh, and if you were curious if the egret’s had their babies…I think so? I was able to capture what looks like heron babies being fed in the nest (#33), but they are pretty large. A quick google search says they grow super fast, so maybe?

One more thing, at the last minute I added some photos I took yesterday (the ones I mentioned to you, Michael!)

Thanks!

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  • These were taken with my Olympus E-M1 MarkII, using various lenses and edited with Lightroom Classic.
  • To follow Anna’s progress in the 100 Days. visit Little Bits of Thread
  • See what my friend Angelica’s doing for her 100 Days, visit Journal of a Wayward Writer
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Photography: Troll Hunting

Part of our summer trip included searching for Thomas Dambo’s giant wooden trolls. Let me tell you, these incredible sculptures do not disappoint. Not only are they breathtakingly beautiful, but they are enormous!

Thomas Dambo has crafted over 170 creations all over the world. If your curious if one is near you, here’s a wonderful Trollmap. We only visited two trolls this trip, but we will try again soon.

Now, come with me into the forest to meet Bruun Idun and Pia the Peacekeeper.

From Thomas Dambo:

“In the night, there was a storm, there at the beach where she was born
And Idun felt a feeling wrong, and so she walked there in the dawn
And in a flute, the magic horn, a tune so passionate and strong
She played for them an orca song to ask them where they all had gone“

Brunn Idun stands on the shoreline playing her flute to the Orca’s to ask them why they have all left the Pugeut Sound. Her flute was made by artist, John Halliday Aka Coyote from the Muckleshoot Tribe. On August 25th, the Mayor of Seattle, Bruce A. Harrel, declared it “Brunn Idun Day”. This special recognition celebrates Bruun Idun’s and the Trolls’ contributions to our collective stewardship environmental management, water protection, repairing habitat restoration, preservation and conservation. Every August 25th is Bruun Idun Day.

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From Thomas Dambo:

“Pretty pretty please, let’s keep the peace beneath the trees
Hold you in my hand I will remind you with a squeeze
Quiet little people cause your criers make me tired
Pia likes to play with people, people they keep quiet“

Pia likes to play with the people beneath the trees, and she likes it when it’s not too noisy.

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  • These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.
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Poetry: Ghost Flowers

Midnight whispers wake us, voices we know
Call, calling out from generations long ago
Begging us to climb vine-covered walls
Where shadows hide and moonlight falls
To secret gardens where nightmares grow

Hands clasped together—our protective shield
Quick, quickly we cross the vast muddy field
Through scrawny, tawny bramble copse
Where starlight magic jumps and chops
Past broken mushrooms laying half-healed

There we hear the night’s beating heart
Thump, thumping loudly as if tearing apart
Stumble, trip through twisty almost-road
Past two-headed raven and three-footed toad
Where ghost flowers’ bold eyes flit and dart

Luckily these sickly pink flowers can’t shout
Roar, roaring for backup from monsters about
Instead slowly blinking they don’t look away
Following our movements with nothing to say
Until dark gloomy clouds turn the light out

Panicked we run despite no guiding star
Trip, tripping on half-rotted logs where they are
Fingers slip, paths divide—until it’s only me
Standing beneath an unwavering willow tree
Hoping nothing near has the power to mar

The drowsy pink sun eventually rises all sad
Cry, crying for you—my sweet-hearted lad
Lost in the wood where the early bird sings
Days, weeks, and months we look for your things
Until winter wipes clear all the traces we had

  • This week’s poem follows the format of Robert Frost’s “Ghost House” using the same rhyming structure and ending words. The painting was found at Goodwill and my teenage daughter added the eyes and other pen details.