FIREWORKS!!
I took this photograph on the 4^th of July using the “fireworks” mode on my camera. It obviously doesn’t shoot fast enough to catch the individual flickers of light, but I like the elapsed time effect feel it gives to the images.  The city of Fort Collins puts on a big fireworks display every year at City Park.  Many residents also get into the spirit, though they are not supposed to, and shoot off their own… I guess living so close to the Wyoming border where they sell lots of really fun fireworks is just too tempting.

This photo finishes up my assignment for English Composition. I want to thank everyone who participated by voting – you were a great help! 
I hope you enjoyed the photos!

When I took this photograph, I had not had my camera for very long. I was still learning how to use some of the special modes on it, so it was part of the early experimental stage. I will share the secret when I post the original.

This image has some very fun memories that go along with it.  It was taken during a family and friends social event where there was plenty of food and fun involved. Another hint was that it was taken at night.  Once again, I hope that you play along and take a guess.  Thanks!

If you guessed pineapple, you chose correctly! This is a baby pineapple – it still has a ways to go before it will be ready to harvest.

This photo was taken at the Dole Plantation in Wahiawa Town, Hawaii on the island of Oahu. Dole Plantation started out as a fruit stand in the 1950’s, but opened to the public in 1989 as Hawaii’s “Pineapple Experience.”  Although pineapples are native to South America, Hawaii has the perfect environment to cultivate them. There is an extensive garden that gives tourists the opportunity to view and learn about the many varieties.

As with all tourist spots, they also have a very large gift shop…  My favorite part of the shop was the pineapple ice cream :)  

I can’t tell you where I was when I took this picture because it will give it away; however, I will give you the hint that I was not in Colorado. This was taken while I was on a vacation where I was able to see a lot of things I had never seen before and visit some very memorable historic sites. I also had the opportunity to learn about things I hadn’t given much thought to in the past – like the subject of this photo.  Maybe you have seen one of these before, but didn’t know what you were looking at, so let’s see how close your guess can come. 

Stacked Sombreros! This photo was taken in Puerto Aventura on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. We were sitting in this little restaurant that we have visited several times in the past. It is owned by a lady that moved to Puerto Aventura from Kansas about twenty years ago. She’s very nice and my parents really enjoy her restaurant and her company, plus her ice cream and pies are to die for! The sombreros were stacked in a store just on the opposite side of the street from where we were sitting. I love all the colors and textures I see when I am in Mexico – especially the flowers!  

Welcome back after Spring Break! I hope everyone had a relaxing and safe vacation if you were able to go. Digital cameras are so convenient – I can take lots more pictures to record my travel memories. Although this is not a shot from this year’s Spring Break, I’m still going to count it. During this trip, we were in a resort town enjoying ice cream and pie when I noticed these among the many shops, or should I say, tourist traps. That’s the only hint I’m going to give you J As usual, take a good look and make your guess. Thanks for playing along!    

I used this photograph to represent N for nose. This cute little nose belongs to my doggy, Daisy, and she is treated like the spoiled baby in our family. She is a six-year-old Maltese and weighs in at 7 pounds. Maltese are usually very tiny; she is actually a little large for her breed. In dog shows, Maltese are part of the Toy Group and are normally shown with long, flowing white hair. Because they have hair instead of fur, many people with allergies can have a Maltese. We keep hers short so it doesn’t get tangled and matted.

Thanks for participating.  I’ll post a new photo soon.   

Thanks for participating in the last game! Here is the third image. 
We had a very small class – just five of us – so the teacher was able to tailor the assignments to fit our interests and abilities. This particular assignment was a class project. We were each given five letters of the alphabet (she left out X) and told to photograph items that represented each letter. I had B, C, N, S and Z. This photo could represent any one of those except Z (since she said I couldn’t do zippers, 

I ended up taking photos of zebra-striped duct tape). 

Please have fun with this poll!
 I’ll post the answering photo after Spring Break

The hailstorms of Summer 2011 were very destructive in our area and 

I cannot think of a single house in our southeastern neighborhood of Fort Collins that did not have to have their entire roof re-shingled, or at least, repaired. Our home was no exception and, along with a new roof, the windows had to have new screens, the fence and the deck had to be re-stained, and some exterior painting was needed. 

Before the new screens were put in,
I was able to shoot this photo of the frosted shingles
on our roof by hanging out of my bedroom window.  This was not very safe, but I really like the photo!

I hope you had a good time with the first image! If you did, here’s another one to take a guess at. This photograph was taken solely for the fun of the game and was not part of any of my class assignments. I think my photography teacher would have liked this image due to the textures, lines, and contrasts.  I used a digital camera with natural light sources only. Other than zooming and cropping, no other special techniques or color alterations were made.

The hint for this photograph is that it was taken outside.  The poll-time for this is shorter than last time, so get your guess in early.

Although I thought this was a wine glass, my mom said it is technically called a cordial or sipping glass and this one is part of an antique decanter set.  The typical use of a cordial is to serve after dinner liqueurs or other sweet, non-alcoholic beverages at parties, receptions and elegant gatherings.  The size of the glass is kept small and is often more ornamental or delicately shaped than your average tumbler or wine glass.

This photograph was taken using the cordial as the glass element, a bike headlamp for the light element and colored tissue paper placed over the light for the paper element.    

 

I have taken a year and a half's worth of photography classes and am very excited to take my skills further. Next year, I will be taking an AP Art/Photography class.  

This photograph was taken during my Fall 2011 Creative Photography class using a digital camera. The assignment was to use the basic elements of light, glass and paper. Just because it sounds easy, doesn't mean it was. I had to get very creative, but was able to find everything I needed for the assignment around my house.  

Now it's your turn. Place your guess on the poll and I will let you know the answer on my next post.