Beaches Art Fest!

On Saturday, October 3, I will be setting up my tent for an art festival in Jacksonville Beach. This is the Beaches Art Fest, and it is the second year for this show.  It is a wonderful one day show, with about 70 artists participating!  The organizer of the show, Jolyn Johnson, is a pro!  My tent will be directly in front of the Beaches History Museum -- so hope you will be able to come out and say Hello!

Spring Into Summer!

I hope you all have a wonderful summer!

Jacksonville Arboretum and Gardens

In October 2012, I went to my first meeting of the Beaches Photography Club.  It was very nice to be with others who like photography!  It didn't take me long to figure out that there were many professionals in that group - and also, many who just liked taking photos!  I have been able to go on two outings, so far, with the members of this group.  It has been great fun, and at the same time, a learning experience.  Last month, I wrote about a visit to the Guana River Preserve, which is a place I had never before visited, although it is close to home.  This next outing was to another place I had never been to, also close to home, but in a different direction.  Jacksonville Arboretum and Gardens was a wonderful place to visit!  We wandered around the trails and the lake.  We saw some flowering cherry trees, some ferns that were uncurling, and a plant that certainly looked like a dandelion variety!  I used my macro Nikkor lens for the first time in quite awhile.  I found that, in some cases, I was trying to get too close to the flowers and plants that I wanted to photograph.  This lens also works very well for some of the woodlands scenery.  I'm glad that I was practicing with this lens again.  I went back a couple of days later and took some more shots.  It was interesting that some of my favorite "tiny" things had changed in the course of two days and there were new "tiny" things to see - nature is always changing!

Flowers

I have always loved flowers.  I love to look at them.  I love to photograph them.  Unfortunately, I can't seem to grow them.  Well, living in a shady area means that I can grow a few types of flowers - such as impatiens plants, but not many other types of flowers.

So, I am always on the lookout for gardens - and other places where I can stop and look, enjoy, and then photograph and photograph and photograph!

If I have planned ahead and brought my Micro-Nikkor 60 mm lens, I can also take some close-ups of flowers - and perhaps some butterflies, as well!

rain...rooftops...and roses....

I've been thinking about all the rain we have had here recently.  Every day we have had an afternoon deluge.  I have been caught in it several times and that reminds me how quickly this area, so close to the ocean, gets very saturated.  When I was in Paris, not too long ago, there was a lot of rain, as well.  I always love to take photos of rooftops when I am visiting cities.  The view is so different than the view I have at home.  Even in the rain, the rooftops are very interesting.

And there is always the surprise of pretty flowers that can be seen at windows and window boxes that give a hint of brightness on a dreary day.

Here at home, I have one struggling rosebush trying its best to brighten a corner of my yard.

Cool breezes and beautiful scenery in the mountains of North Carolina

Signs of Spring in Aix-en-Provence

Hearts and Flowers

Flowers of France

Here are some photos from a recent shoot in the south of France.

The poppies and roses in the gardens in Aix-en-Provence were magnificent!

The Butterfly Garden at the Minnesota Zoo

WOW! The butterflies and flowers were spectacular!