Weekly Photo Challenge: Escape

As you can probably gather by now (especially if you follow me) photography itself is one of my escapes. The following photographs were taken one night when I looked out the window after the kids had just fallen asleep and I noticed that our yard was alight with the setting sun. I grabbed my camera and took a mini escape while the sun was making its escape to the other side of the world for the night. I have to say this had been such a beautiful spring day I did not want to let the sun go but it descended while I took in as much of its warmth as I possibly could.

I hope that you too can feel that warm golden, fiery sun, and make a mini escape into these photos.

You can join in the photo challenge here and stop by and see my photographs from previous weeks at the Weekly Photo Challenge Page up at the top.

Tryon Creek: Part 3 Trillium

At last I make it to the post with the Trillium. Trillium are a three petaled and three leafed flower that range in color from white to purple. They are beautiful and one of the first flowers to show during spring. They are also protected and dwindling. One great place to find them is at Tryon Creek although I have found them just south of my home at Round lake and Lacamas Lake as well. Every year there is a Trillium Festival and sale at Tryon Creek and it happened to be going on when I was there on the 7th of April.

It was raining for much of the morning the day I went to Tryon creek so although I hit a sunny patch while I was there the Trillium were very wet and many were damaged. They were still lovely.

You can visit the post Tryon Creek Part 1 and Tryon Creek Part 2 if you would like to see more from that hike.

Tryon Creek: Part 2

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This is part two of my walk in Tryon Creek on April 7. These mushrooms were actually what made me walk back to my car and get my camera. When I started out there were a lot of people there because it was the weekend that the friends of Tryon Creek have their trillium festival and plant sale, so I was not sure that I would want to take pictures with so many people around to watch me do the weird things I do when I take pictures, like lie on the ground. I saw these mushrooms with the light coming through the ridges and really wanted to try and take photos of them so I went back to the car and got my camera and then let people think I am weird. I mean really I probably am right? So why not let everyone know it.

Check back soon for the pictures of the trillium. To see part one click here.

Fields

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A while a go I went on a drive through the Oregon country and just loved the light and the dark clouds. I pulled over to take some pictures hoping I would like at least one. I didn’t find exactly what I was looking for when I started the drive but I think I am ok with what I happened upon.

I also went to the Woodburn Tulip Field in Oregon recently and tried to take a few pictures while my children were running around with me. I actually really liked the daffodils that were in bloom while we were there so I took pictures of them more that of the tulips.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Color

A few weeks ago my grandparents were visiting from the east coast and so we headed out to the coast on a wonderful sunny day. Probably as nice as it ever gets at the Oregon coast in fact. We also took a side trip to a little garden called the Connie Hansen Garden in Lincoln City and I took a few quick photos of the flowers. My son was getting rambunctious and so I invited him to take a few as well. We talked a bit about which lens he would like to use (did he want to get really really close to the things he took a picture of or be further away). He decided he wanted to be a further away.

Of course my daughter was also invited to take a turn with the camera and we talked about how to make sure she was pointing at the things she wanted in the picture and how to focus the camera. After my daughter finished I asked my mom to take a few pictures but I have to say she was distracted by my son the whole time because he was so anxious to start taking more pictures. So she only tried a few times and was using strange equipment (my camera not hers).

It was fun to see what each of us spotted and how we decided to use the lens that I had available. There was a lot of color as it is spring here so we mostly took pictures of the flowers but my Mom and son took pictures of people too.

We finally had time all together with a camera to do another inter-generational photography post.

I hope that you enjoy the different perspectives that were found between the youngest and the oldest. Enjoy the color that is beginning to get into full swing here on the west coast of the USA.

The first set of photos was taking by my son:

This second set was taking by my daughter:

The next set of photos were taking by my Mom:

Finally the photos I took. Next time I should let my Mom spring a session like this on me:)

Phoneography Challenge: My Neighborhood

Spring has been showing it’s face in my neighborhood in the form of flowers and sunshine. The break from grey and cloudy has been so nice and I have been lucky enough to get outside with my kiddos to enjoy as much as possible. These are all flowers from just around the corner from my house, but I have to admit that Salt and Straw Ice Cream is more loosely my neighborhood as it is in Portland proper and my home is most certainly not.

I still consider it a part of my area and it was a place I sought out on a sunny day with my daughter, because you know, we could and it is amazing.

Emilia

Check out this week’s photo challenge http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/03/08/my-neighborhood/

Weekly Photo Challenge: My 2012 in Pictures

Over the last year I have started a few projects including 2 blogs, this one focused on photography, and one that focuses on parenting, children, and projects to do with families (Blogging with Children). I have also continued to be a stay at home Mom to my two wonderful children. I have also joined the worlds of Instagram and Twitter (one which I utilize much more than the other, I will give you one guess as to which one that might be).

In starting up this blog I also offered to do photography for a local resource for parents called PDX Kids Calendar. I began going to events here and there and taking photographs of people at their photo booth and doing the crafts there. I got the chance to go on Halloween to the Oregon Zoo to help PDX Kids Calendar celebrate the two tigers birthday (they are sibling tigers). It was rainy and I had my 3 year old with me but it was a lot of fun and tigers are my favorite animal so it was fun to see them.

While I was actively trying to find subjects to photograph for this blog I was also taking snapshot type photos of my everyday life because, well honestly a lot of the time that is about all that my sometimes chaotic life can handle.

So here are some of the photos that I feel embody MY 2012 these are going to mostly be snap shot type photos.

She starts school!

Decorating the Christmas Tree, something Old. This is one of my favorite ornaments from my childhood.

Illuminatta Regatta, kayaking with the boats lit up.

Seeing the octopus at the new Portland Aquarium

Witnessing my son begin to ride with two wheels :)

The tigers birthday, October 31.

I started taking photos with PDX Kids Calendar.

Trip to the pumpkin patch. Two “pumpkins” :)

A train ride for the kids.

I love photographing flowers.

A walk in the empty lake on a very warm sunny fall day.

The third time I have walked in Discover Pink in honor of my best friend Margaret.

For my other blog…

Getting in close to a spider web in the early spring.

Apple tree blossom in spring

Awesome color in fall.

Pink Daisy in Fall

These flowers were outside my daughters preschool continuing to show beautifully. I could not resist taking pictures of them, luckily I had a little time after dropping my son off at school and before picking my daughter up from school.

Monotone

As flowers turned into skeletons of their former selves nearing the end of summer this year I caught this shot.

 

Although I am very drawn to intense colors sometimes simple monotones are brilliantly simple.

 

Pins and Needles

Last week I put up some pictures for the Weekly Photo Challenge that were for the theme merge. I had one that was from the same set of photos that didn’t quite fit with the theme. It looks more like a pin cushion to me. I still like the photo and so after thinking about it for a bit I decided I want to post it even though it is similar to ones posted last week.