a walk

You never know what you might find on a walk through the woods...

butterflies and us

Apparently we have something in common with butterflies. I think they like summer days with highs in the seventies. There were so many more butterflies in the mountains than I see around home. Can you believe I captured four in one shot?

They really like this weed that was growing in the meadow. They were always hanging out around it.

I am loving all my new textures from the bundles Kim offered this week.  On this image I used corrugated crack at soft light with 50% opacity and grunge (a new favorite) at soft light with 100% opacity.

This pretty purple wildflower was another popular hangout.

I have flowers in my yard that they're supposed to like, but I still only see maybe one or two a week. I hope a few more will find their way to Louisiana when it starts cooling off.

need help with keeping up?

Photography challenges are a lot of fun and great for ideas when a little motivation is needed for getting out of those photography slumps.

It can be time consuming to keep up with all the different themes.

Since I already jot down my favorite photo challenge themes in my planner each week, I decided to start a page to make it easier for everyone else to keep up with the upcoming themes. You can find it here and in my menu bar.

I'll be updating the themes every Sunday morning. If you host a challenge that you'd like included, email me at debduty3 (at) gmail (dot) com.

Just trying to make it a little easier for everyone to join in. Hope this helps!

The flowers, jelly beans and party banner photo is my favorite August still life so I'm entering it in the still life standouts challenge. You still have until September 2nd to link up your favorite still life taken in the month of August.

14

Look how sweet this little fellow is at only three months old.

He's still just as sweet... only a lot taller. Happy 14th birthday, Mason!

project 365: week 34

1. dragonfly
2. crescent rolls
3. maisy
4. birthday party for hayden and mason
5. cereal
6. orange bug
7 crepe myrtle bloom on the patio

jumping off at elk river falls

Just a few days before we left for our North Carolina vacation, I came across this blog post from Jen at Jen's Ink Pen about her family's visit to the Elk River Falls. I knew it was something my boys would love.

The path to the falls brings you to the top. Alec and Mason just thought we were there just to look at a waterfall.

I pointed out a kid who was about to jump off the side of the rock wall just below the falls. They were all over it.

 Mason went first. There's a rope to hold on to as you climb up a very steep rock wall.

Here's a view of the scene...

Once you climb up the wall, there's a thin piece of twine to hold on to while you carefully make your way across. Looks kind of scary to me.

Alec started climbing next.

Mason made it to the jumping off spot and wasted no time.

I barely had time to focus and catch him jumping off.

Alec made it across and decided it best to analyze the situation before proceeding.

He let Gary go ahead of him.

After he completed his detailed analysis, he was ready to make the leap.

There's no way I would jump off that ledge. Way too scary. And I'd have to flat iron my hair.

But it was a really great experience for my guys.

I'm so glad I came across Jen's blog. Thanks, Jen!

sunset on the mountain

Remember this mountain? The one that has such a beautiful view? I made sure I was at the top again the next evening at just the right time to witness the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen.

Baton Rouge is flat with a lot of tall trees. There just aren't many spots that are good for viewing sunsets so this was an extra special treat.

I have very little experience photographing sunsets so I have a question for those of you who do. Was the sun supposed to be blown out in every photo? I'm thinking at least toward the end it should have been a big orange ball instead of a bright white one...if I had exposed properly.

Oh well, I love these images anyway... and I think I want to move to the North Carolina mountains.