Weekly Photo Challenge: From Lines to Patterns (part II)

Here is part 2: Photos grouped for their hard lines and coldness. See part 1 for the curvy & patterned photos. 😉

Weekly Photo Challenge: In the Background

2 totally different expressions of “In the Background”. The top is a nice sky photo (again my apologies for not taking the time to erase all the crap in the shot, will do soon, I promise) with the skyline of downtown Columbus, Ohio at the bottom. I took this the other day from atop the parking garage at the airport. Cheap thrills for a few bucks. Watching planes take off and land, lots of birds, and miles of sky!

The other photo is of some sea gulls looking for food up at Alum Creek. The guy in the foreground had a really unique look to him, albeit a bit worn. I liked him, and did not try to take this shot with his friend looking like he is riding on his back. Ha ha, too cute.

Footnote: As I previewed this post the two photos almost look merged. And even weirder accident perfect for In the Background! Funny.

 

Weekly photo challenge: Geometry

My lack of blog presence this past week is no indication of my attention to it. I love this week’s challenge! I would love nothing than to peruse the town finding cool places to shoot and use as my geometry lesson. But, alas, life marches on. Halloween is a blast but a LOT of work. My little teaching gig is a ton of work despite the minuscule paycheck. (Hats off to ALL teachers out there). I am actively trying to de-clutter, organize, & clean my house. I was going to reward myself with blogging when I accomplished that to a certain undetermined amount. But it is slow going and I am using the phrase, “How do you climb a mountain? One step at a time.” to help me stay motivated. I hope you like my Geometry photos. I think I can do better, but this is what I have for now. Now, back to my mountain…

Windows, The dilemma of

I have issues with windows. I love them! I could live in a house made entirely of glass. (I know people who have their windows covered and lights on during a bright beautiful day, wha??  And no, they don’t have light sensitivity. But there are inherent problems that come with windows. And until I live on my mountain of solitude, I must deal with the fact that my neighbors can see in my house. I have tried blinds and curtains, and prefer nothing. So I have had nothing for a long time and just run fast if I am in my underwear or less. Curtains are just too bed-roomy, too fussy, too curtain-y.  Blinds are nice, but dark. The sheer ones are too sheer and people can still see in, so there is no point in those. I like to see outside. I like to see out during the day and the night. I don’t like the feeling that I am visible by anyway who may want to look in, and maybe some who don’t. So I was thinking of those window clings like you see on cars or trucks where you can see out but not in. Those cost a lot of money, and I have wasted enough money on window treatments already. I could design some really cool images but for my 3 front windows, it would cost $605.00 before shipping. So I looked online for other ideas. I found a cool blog (http://7thhouseontheleft.com/) who made beautiful window treatments with clear contact paper! I made a variation of my own. I used pre-made wall art stickers and clear contact paper, all purchased at Target. For all three windows it was under $50. Had I just used contact paper and a paint pen, like the blog 7thhouseontheleft.com did, it would have made it under $20. WOW! It is bright, I can see out due to my open design, and I like it. I did learn to spray a soapy water spray down before application, then apply the contact paper, then smooth with a squeegee. Otherwise it is a sticky, crooked, bubbly mess. I still have some uneven-ness but I think it makes it more painterly. I have no idea how the 7thhouseontheleft people got theirs so freaking’ perfect. Either way, I like my new treatments. Now I just have to spackle and paint all the leftover holes from former hardware. 

Gimme a P

This is a photo of the PPG Building in Downtown Pittsburgh. I just learned it was finished only a year before I started college there. It is a unique and great building to photograph. I also love it, because they let the design do the talking. I have never forgotten what that building was. I wish more buildings were as exciting. I also wish skyscraper people didn’t feel it necessary to put big, dumb names on them. It ruins the artistic flow.

Here is a shot from afar (notice the dumb bank name on the building next to it):

It’s all Fun and Games (until you have to pay the bill)

I went to Pittsburgh last weekend with 2 awesome friends and it was a photo taking marathon! We each had our SLRs snapping away at everything in sight, and there was so much to see! It was really fun and really beautiful; I can’t wait to go back! I went to school in Pittsburgh, learned a lot, enjoyed a great city. It’s been too long (22 years) so it was great to be back. They have really fixed up a lot of things. We only got to do about 1/10th of what we wanted, but that is fine, it gives me an excuse to go back soon. Too bad boarding (only some) of my pets costs so darn much. Oh well, I get to have that problem, right? If you hover over the photos, there is a description. Good friends, good food, good wine, good art, good sight-seeing= lots of fun and 703 photos taken! Ha ha! I won’t say how many dollars spent, but they were worth it. Yea! And for a really cool finale: Here are some fireworks that we got to enjoy as we drank wine at a restaurant atop Mt. Washington overlooking the Monongahela. They shot them off after the Pirates game from a barge in the Allegheny. Very cool indeed!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Urban

At first I thought I wouldn’t post for this Challenge, as I normally take nature photos. But then, I thought about it, and duh, not only do I have a cool shot to play with (The Wexner Center shot on last Mother’s day May 2012), but I love to shoot the Alum Creek Dam as well. The top photo is a view along the east side of the Wexner Art Museum. It is a really cool modern museum, both inside and out. I am glad we have it here in Columbus. Funny story: A few years ago we went to see a show that I loved! It was called Solitaire, and as we walked the long rising hallway to the main show, the docent told me I might not want to take my kids back there as there was nudity. Without even thinking, I announced proudly, “It’s ok, I’m an artist” and off we trotted to see some magnificent paintings. To me, the uptight attitude most Americans have regarding the human form only breeds problems. I could go on for a while about the fear and loathing of the human body, but I won’t. Anyway, the Wexner photo has been manipulated via Photoshop CS4, and I like it. The second is a shot of the Alum Creek Dam at night, slightly enhanced, and the 3rd is a shot of the tops of building also at the dam, where it looks like a control tower of sorts, controlling the dam, I assume.

So, Yea! for the Weekly Challenges, they are FUN!