Photography

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Photography: Dillon Beach

“I am a tiny seashell
that has secretly drifted ashore
and carries the sound of the ocean
surging through its body.”
—Edward Hirsch

Sometimes a place can be familiar to you but still hold secrets. People are like this too. I look for what is true. What is real. That’s where magic lives.

On this beach trip, the ocean was angry. It pounded the shore and never receded enough to reveal the tide pools. The beauty took my breath away. Come with me.

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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
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Photography: Tomales Catholic Cemetery

“The cemetery is an open space among the ruins, covered in winter with violets and daisies. It might make one in love with death, to think that one should be buried in so sweet a place.”—Percy Bysshe Shelley, Adonais

I’ve passed the Tomales Catholic cemetery for years and always wanted to stop. On Thanksgiving, I finally did. Wandering the grounds taking pictures of the beautiful statues, some dating back to the 1800s, my mind wandered to my own lineage. I have no sacred grounds to honor my ancestors and so I choose to think of them.

Hawks circled above me and the sun shone far too bright in the early afternoon sky. I felt a variety of feelings from unease to joy. I wondered about the women who came before me and the roads they walked. Gratitude flooded my body. My camera is a time machine. A lens to see more than I can.

Walk with me.

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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
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52 Photo Challenge: Week 47-Sunrise/Sunset

“Eternal sunrise, eternal sunset, eternal dawn and gloaming, on sea and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls.”
—John Muir

This week’s assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to take photos of the sunrise/sunset. This aligned perfectly with a very rare week of double travel for me. Not only did I visit Tahoe for a few days, but it was swiftly followed by a quick trip to Dillion Beach. I feel so lucky!

Both trips provided such incredible views to photograph. My selection of images includes both locations at sunrise and sunset. Let me know if you have a favorite and have a wonderful week.

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My friend Heidi took this shot of me in Tahoe.
  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay
Week 42: Details
Week 43: Season
Week 44: Fog & Steam
Week 45: Nighttime
Week 46: Analog

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 46-Analog

“People think dreams aren’t real just because they aren’t made of matter, of particles. Dreams are real. But they are made of viewpoints, of images, of memories and puns and lost hopes.”—Neil Gaiman

This week’s assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to take an analog photograph. You could either use a film camera or you could edit your photos to look as if you did. Not wanting to worry about finding film and having it developed, I opted for the editing option.

These photos are special to me because they were taken during a writing retreat in Tahoe last weekend. It was three days of deep connection, fireside chats, and being seen. I’m grateful for my writing community and for the power of vulnerability.

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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay
Week 42: Details
Week 43: Season
Week 44: Fog & Steam
Week 45: Nighttime

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 45-Nighttime

“Fire spirit, fire sprite
Share with us your golden light
Come for us our candle light!”
—Waldorf verse

This week’s assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to photograph something at night. As the days get darker faster, I find myself burning more candles. I wanted my photos to capture the warmth and comfort of flickering candlelight.

“This little light of mine
I’m gonna let it shine”

My lovely daughter agreed to be my model and we ended up with these Victorian-inspired photos. I think they capture a bit of the danger of the darkness too and I’m in love with them. Please let me know if you have a favorite and have a wonderful week.

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She’s unharmed as you can see! Thank you Lola for being a fantastic model and a wonderful daughter. You make me proud every single day.

  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay
Week 42: Details
Week 43: Season
Week 44: Fog & Steam

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 44-Fog & Steam

“I can bench press steam, but not fog. I just have to wait until the fog lifts itself.”
—Jarod Kintz

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to photograph fog or steam. It’s almost the end of the week and the only morning we had fog I was in the emergency room with my son (he’s fine). Sigh.

Last night, however, I went for a drive near our local casino and noticed a factory spewing steam into the air. I ran home and got my camera and these photos are the result. These are technically not great but I like them. There’s something in the imperfect almost abstract way they came together which speaks to where I am right now.

I hope you enjoy them and if you have a favorite I’d love to know. Have a wonderful weekend.

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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay
Week 42: Details
Week 43: Season

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 43-Season

“Way out in the country tonight he could smell the pumpkins ripening toward the knife and the triangle eye and the singeing candle.”—Ray Bradbury

October was a blur of busyness and I’m behind in everything—laundry, dishes, yard work, and blogging. Life is like that sometimes.

My month included poetry night. Housesitting. A music festival. Helping my sister-in-law after emergency surgery. Becoming a godmother. Dungeons & Dragons. Five pumpkin patches with my nephew. Halloween traditions. Movies. Haunted houses. Lots of treats.

My photo assignment, which I’m posting four days late, was to capture the fall season. I took these photos at our annual family outing to Rickey Ranch last week. Not my best work, but who doesn’t love cute animals and a beautiful sky.

To everyone starting NaNoWriMo—happy writing! I’m not participating this year but I’ll root you on. Bring on November!

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Here are some bonus photos:

  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com


52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay
Week 42: Details

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 42-Details

“Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.”—Ernest Hemingway

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was details. We were asked to take two photos of each subject—near and far. The idea is to show the context of the details.

As October is a time many honor those who have passed, I decided to visit the Sacramento Historic City Cemetery this morning for this assignment. Let me know which pair of images you like best and have a wonderful week.

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Here are some creatures around the cemetery and one bonus photo:

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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait
Week 41: Texture Overlay

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 41-Texture Overlay

“….he said it was interesting. He used the word ‘textured’. He said ‘smooth’ is boring but ‘textured’ was interesting, and the scar meant that I was stronger than whatever had tried to hurt me.” —Jeannette Walls

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to create images using a texture overlay. For those unfamiliar, it means after taking the image you add an overlay in the post-processing to give the photo a different texture.

I’ve never played with this feature before and had fun trying out different effects. Some of these I blended until they almost disappeared but others I made more obvious. Let me know if you have a favorite and what you think of this type of editing. Not sure I’ll use it often but it’s a great tool to add to my growing photography skills.

  • If you are in the mood for some reading, here’s a short ghost story I wrote this time last year. I’m proud of this one. Week 41: The Cornfield
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  • Photos were taken with Olympus OM-D  and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom
Week 40: Environmental Portrait

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52 Photo Challenge: Week 40-Environmental Portrait

“As long as there are kids who are pissed off and have no real way in venting out that anger, heavy metal will live on.”—Ozzy Osbourne

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to create an environmental portrait. Ideally, the image would be of a person in their surroundings and it would tell a story.

I didn’t quite follow the instructions. Instead of featuring a singular subject in an environment, I redefined it as featuring the environment itself. The place I focused on was Aftershock. It’s a four-day festival featuring 90 bands with more than 160,000 people in attendance.

As I wasn’t allowed to bring in my camera, all these photos are from my iPhone 13. I added a “gritty” look during editing which fits the mood of the audience and the music. Some of the bands featured on the day I attended were Avatar, Baby Metal, 311, and Korn. The temperature was hot. The crowds were wild. It was a lot of fun. I’m still tired.

  • If you are in the mood for some reading, here’s a short story I wrote this time last year. It’s one of my favorites. Week 40: Room 313
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#10—the crowd walking out at the end of the night looking like a zombie movie.

  • Photos were taken with an iPhone 13 and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
  • If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com

52 Photo Challenge
Week 1: Bokeh
Week 2: Silhouette
Week 3: Black and White
Week 4: Motion Blur
Week 5: Texture
Week 6: Framing
Week 7: Leading Lines
Week 8: Negative Space
Week 9: Patterns
Week 10: Symmetry
Week 11: Green
Week 12: Sidelight
Week 13: Sense of Scale
Week 14: One Lens
Week 15: Series
Week 16: Flat Lay
Week 17: Behind the Scenes
Week 18: Water
Week 19: Blurry Foreground
Week 20: Unique Perspective
Week 21: Shadow
Week 22: Food
Week 23: Abstract
Week 24: Reflection
Week 25: Contrast Color
Week 26: Think in Threes
Week 27: Starburst
Week 28: Low Perspective
Week 29: Macro
Week 30: Backlight
Week 31: Big Sky
Week 32: Dominant Color
Week 33: Fill the Frame
Week 34: Spot Metering
Week 35: Handheld Long Exposure
Week 36: S Curve
Week 37: Shoot Through
Week 38: Faces
Week 39: Blossom