April 27, 2024 by Bridgette

Photography: Dillion Beach

Here are some of my favorite photos from my birthday trip to Dillion Beach. This trip was about connection and reflection. Cloud cover allowed for only one sunset and it was an odd one. The sun flattened to a bowl shape and was swallowed by the sea. I found it inspiring and somehow fitting for the place I am right now. Bring on weird!

Let me know if you have a favorite photo.

“I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.”—Franz Kafka

These photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

January 10, 2024 by Bridgette

Photography: Snowy Tahoe

“Be melting snow.
Wash yourself of yourself.”
—Rumi

Come with me as we explore Tahoe during a slight snowstorm. Which photo speaks to you?

*Photos taken with Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW

November 27, 2023 by Bridgette

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.

If you want to read the short story I wrote this time last year:
Week 47: Chalky Hands

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

November 2, 2023 by Bridgette

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!

If you want to read the short story I wrote this time last year:
Week 43: The Abandoned Church

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

August 7, 2023 by Bridgette

52 Photo Challenge: Week 31-Big Sky

“The empty blue sky of space says ‘All this comes back to me, then goes again, and comes back again, then goes again, and I don’t care, it still belongs to me.”
—Jack Kerouac

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to capture a big sky, not an easy task in the middle of a heat wave. Knowing the sky was devoid of clouds, I took a drive at sunset in search of vibrant color instead. The sky and sun did not disappoint. After dodging fireflies and mosquitoes, I then drove to my local park to get some city shots.

Not all these photos showcase the sky, but I wanted to give you some variety to look at. Let me know what you think and have a wonderful week.

#12
*The pond at night. I’m quite fond of the distorted reflections in this one.

Photos were taken with an 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

June 26, 2023 by Bridgette

52 Photo Challenge: Week 25-Contrast Color

“Put light against light-you have nothing. Put dark against dark-you have nothing. It’s the contrast of light and dark that each give the other one meaning.”-Bob Ross

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to capture contrasting colors. I was lucky enough to spend a night at Dillion’s Beach and these photos are from that brief trip. I edited them using a softer light and hope it gives the collection a cohesive feeling.

I’ll be posting a few more photos from the trip later this week. I’m amazed at how I can walk the same beach for years and always find new surprises. Let me know if you have a favorite photo and I hope you have a fantastic week.

Photos were taken with an 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

May 8, 2023 by Bridgette

52 Photo Challenge: Week 18-Water

“A lake is a landscape’s most beautiful and expressive feature. It is Earth’s eye; looking into which the beholder measures the depth of his own nature.”
—Henry David Thoreau

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to capture water. My daughter and I visited Folsom Lake at sunset on a chilly Thursday. We spent about three hours wandering, sitting on rocks, and taking in the healing nature of being near a large body of water. It had rained all day and we lucked out when a ray of sunlight burst through the clouds.

Let me know what photo you think I should submit this week for the challenge and if you have an overall favorite. Have a wonderful week!

Photos were taken with an 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

April 24, 2023 by Bridgette

52 Photo Challenge: Week 16-Flat Lay

“Hark, now hear the sailors cry,
Smell the sea, and feel the sky,
Let your soul & spirit fly, into the mystic.”
—Van Morrison

This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to create something with a flat-lay setup. It’s supposed to be an image where you lay objects out on a flat surface and photograph them from above. I wasn’t thrilled about this idea, especially since I was spending the weekend along the beautiful California coast. So, you will see the first few images are sort of my attempt at this (the sand is a flat surface, right?) #4 might be the closest I got and it’s not my favorite.

Instead, I offer you mostly shots from my weekend away. Let me know if you have a favorite and thanks for the birthday wishes. I’m feeling full of saltwater kisses and ocean breezes.

Photos were taken with an 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

August 29, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Sunset Drive

“Some roads aren’t meant to be traveled alone.”
-Chinese Proverb

My favorite thing to come out of quarantine was the tradition of evening drives with my daughter. We play loud music, talk about everything, and just drive. After spending the majority of last week apart from each other it felt good to get behind the wheel and see where the road took us. We found dragonflies, cows, our favorite parking lot, and a gorgeous sunset.

As we process our grief and plan a memorial to celebrate my mother-in-law, it felt extra special to have these moments of beauty to reflect on the blessings in our lives. Thank you to everyone who has reached out and supported our family. We feel the love.

Photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

What to see more?

August 1, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Little Whale Cove

She closed her eyes. She drew her shoulders back. She took a slow and steady breath.
There was tension in the air. A weight. A wait. There was no wind. She did not speak. The world grew and stretched tight.
-Patrick Rothfuss, The Slow Regard of Silent Things

There’s nothing quite like standing on the beach at sunset and watching the sky and water play together with a dance of reflection and light. On our recent trip to Oregon my daughter and I sat apart from each other in complete silence watching the sun slowly descend into a bank of clouds. It was slow and sudden—a beautiful, fleeting moment of peace.

Today’s photo selections are of the place my father lives in Oregon called Little Whale Cove. It’s a hidden and magical gem we feel incredibly grateful to visit each summer. I hope you enjoy them!