Category Archives: Nature

Snow Drift Abstract Art

Last week, New England was hit with a big snow storm.  Some areas were hit worse than others and a lot of people lost power, roads were closed, etc.  But fortunately, my area escaped relatively unscathed.  We only received about a foot of snow (if that) and heavy winds.

 

The wind around my house is a bit strange.  Instead of the usual one directional wind, we get winds that circle us.  One second you’re walking into the wind, the next it comes at you from behind and hits you like a ninja.  This kind of wind tends to make rather large snow drifts in my yard and driveway.  I decided shortly after the storm passed (and when the winds were quiet) that I would take a little walk around my house and see what the snow drifts were like.  As usual, I had my camera with me and took quite a few images of random shapes and lines left in the snow by the wind.

 

Huzzah!  Natural abstract art!

 

Snow Drift Abstract Art

 

Now, am I the only one that thinks this looks kind of like a face?  [o_O]  Hmm..

 

Until next time…

 

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~A.M.

Valentine’s Day Is Near

I’ve said before that I’m not a big fan of Valentine’s Day.  Mainly because I loathe the color pink and because of all the cheesy commercialism surrounding the holiday.  Plus, I’ve always thought that if you love someone, you should be able to show them every day, instead of waiting for a holiday and settle for tossing a card, a rose, and a box of chocolates at them.

 

I’ve always been the type to give handmade gifts to my friends and family on birthdays and holidays, and Valentine‘s is no exception.  I do this half because I find it much more personal and meaningful than something store bought, and half because I’m too poor to purchase things for people anyway.  [^_^]

 

Over the past few years, my mother and I (I got my mother into photography when I gave her my old Sony HX1) have been taking photographs of things in nature that look like hearts during our various hiking excursions.  We’ve discovered rocks that are shaped like hearts, moss shaped like hearts, even tree limbs that when viewed from the right angle, look like hearts.

 

Heart Rock

 

Why am I telling you folks this?  So glad you asked!  Why buy a cheesy Valentine’s Day card for your significant other, friend, or family member when you can put more thought and effort into it by picking up your camera, looking for a heart shaped something-or-other in nature, and making a card by hand?  Trust me, they’ll appreciate it!

 

Until next time…

 

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~A.M.

Random Awesomeness

My sincere apologies to you, my dear readers.  I haven’t been on the ball lately when it comes to taking awesome images or putting together engaging posts to share with you.  My bad.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a new, recently shot image to share with you this week either.  It’s been bitterly cold in my neck of the woods the past week and that made it a little difficult for me to get outside and take some photos in the wilderness as I like to do.  But, that’s not to say that I don’t have anything to share with you at all.

A few weeks ago (last year actually), I had mentioned to everyone that I had found a new network of trails not far from my favorite place, Quoddy Head State Park.  The trails I found were in a little land preserve called Pike Lands.  While exploring these trails, I came across a random yet incredibly interestingly shaped tree.  All the branches were curling around the tree.  It was odd, yet awesome.

Curly Tree

Until next time…

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~A.M.

First Shot of 2013

Happy New Year, folks!   Yes, it’s me, your friendly photographer from Maine, back for another year of photographic awesomeness (and hopefully some humor to boot).  I’m going to try and keep up the same pattern as last year and turn out a new blog post every Monday morning.  That’s my resolution for the year, or one of them at least.

That being said, I figured I would share my first photograph of the year with you ladies and gents.  This was taken from my kitchen window on January 1st at six AM while I was waiting for my cats to finish their breakfast.  It was a nice way to commemorate not only the first sunrise of 2013 but the fact that the world didn’t end on 12/21/12!!  Huzzah!!!

First Sunrise of 2013

I wish you all luck in keeping any resolutions you made!

Until next time…

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~A.M.

Finding Tolkien In Nature…

 

*WARNING*  This post contains serious geek content.  [^_^]

I’m a massive fan of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.  I’m a massive fan of Peter Jackson’s film adaptation of LOTR and I’m sure, when I get the chance to see The Hobbit, I’ll be a massive fan of that as well.

As such a huge Tolkien fan, and a huge fan of the fantasy genre of books and film in general, I find myself often imagining that I’m wandering through different worlds when I’m out hiking.  That may sound kind of juvenile, but I like to think of it more as my creative mind running free.

Let me give you an example.  Last month, I went hiking at one of my favorite places, Quoddy Head State Park.  I’m sure many of you who follow my little ramblings have heard of this place and my affection for it.  Well, on this most recent visit, while I was watching a squirrel run up and down a tree in what I think was an attempt to intimidate me, I noticed a little knoll in the moss at the base of some trees nearby.  The first thing that popped into my head when I saw this little knoll and the shape of it, was…Hobbit house!!!

Hobbit House!

I’m pretty sure most people would look at this and just see a little bump in the moss, but not my fantastical brain!  I can see all the little Hobbits plodding along, heading home for second breakfast, elevensies, and afternoon tea!

Keep your eyes, and your minds open, folks.  And let your imagination run wild as often as you can!

Until next time…

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~A.M.