Community Photo Challenge-GREETING CARD!

With the Holidays approaching I thought it would be fun to create our own greeting cards.
It could be Christmas theme, Festival of Lights or any religion holiday you celebrate, or.....New Years, birthdays, anniversaries.........Landscapes, Still lifes, portraits....any type image can be used. You can do more than one.
This should be a good challenge for everyone. So please find the time to join in, I know that will be hard this time of the year.
You can add text to it. If you don't have any software to edit it, you can add your text in the post.
ANYTHING goes on this one. Be creative & have fun!

Post it on your blog, come back here & leave your link in the comment area. I posted late, but it should have started on the 15th & will end on the 15 of January.

Community Photo Challenge-Leading Lines!

example;

Marie 2009

Our new challenge, LEADING LINES, starts today & ends on Dec. 15th . There are many lines to look for when shooting your images....Vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curves & "S" curve....even converging lines.
Some examples can be found here;
http://www.brighthub.com/multimedia/photography/articles/959.aspx

example;

Marie 2006

The use of Leading Lines in your photographs can have a very powerful effect.
• They can create depth and perspective to an image.
• They can convey distance and provide a relationship between the foreground and background of the image.
• They draw the eyes into a picture, leading them through a scene or directing them to an area in the image that the viewer would otherwise not have noticed.
[above taken from http://blog.fotonomy.com/tips/creative-composition-leading-lines/]

example;

Marie 2007

You have a month to post your image on your blog, come back to this entry & leave your link/URL in the comment section. Remember to mention the challenge in your blog, makes it easy for others to find your image. Try to leave a direct link to the post.

Make sure you visit all the entries in the last challenge. We really had some beautiful autumn color this year & everyone had success in showing off their autumn!

DSLR Tips & Picks

DSLR Tips: Using polarizing filters

I wanted to share a few websites and books with you.
I think video tutorials really help me to understand photography.
Whether I am looking for a tutorial on Photoshop or understanding studio lighting, I usually check out Youtube.com & do a search.

I found using a polarizing filter really intensifies my landscape photography. If you haven't purchased one yet, here is a video you should watch, using polarizing filters.
Also check out dslrtips.com for more interesting tips.
Gordon Laing, Editor of http://www.dslrtips.com
& cameralab.com makes it easy to understand anything in photography.

Here's the "simple to understand" video on polarizing filters.
Click here for VIDEO or copy & paste
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vvz_d6APXk

I also want to suggest few books that I have read. These make great holiday gifts for any photographer. I am presently reading Matthew Bamberg's "Quick and Easy Secrets for Using Your DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHS" I find this to be one of the most helpful books I ever got. It shares websites for photo storage, portfolio sites, family tree sites.....to start..Ü
I am still reading this one, but will do a review once I finish it.

I also have Matthew's "101 Quick and Easy Secrets to Create Winning Photographs"
This new book is for anyone that wants to improve their images.
MY REVIEW


I read Volumes 1 and 2(2 out of 3) "The Digital Photography Book by Scott Kelby.
Amazon is selling a boxed set. You need to read the first one, before you purchase the second. He is a clever business man, but he is annoying..;)
He now offers the set of 3 for a reasonable price, just in time for Christmas!

OK, thats about it for now. If you haven't posted your Autumn photo yet, you still have time before we start the next challenge. Remember all challenges are announced on the 15th of each month. So you still have time to post some autumn color.

Welcome Back!

Welcome back, Photo Challengers!!!

We hope you're all well-rested and ready for another great year of shooting. Once again, we're going to make some changes in how we manage things here in the Challenge. Here's the scoop:

--Challenges will be posted once a month (on the 15th)
--Shoot for the challenge, post your photo(s) on your blog and link to the challenge entry via comments on our blog
--Others will use the links you post to view and comment on your photos
--There will not be a vote--we're all in this for the fun and for having an 'assignment' to shoot for AND to share our visions
--The next challenge will then be posted (again, on the 15th)

In addition to challenges, we will post some photography tips a couple of times a month. If you have any suggestions or requests, drop a line to Marie or Vicki and we'll try to include your ideas into our lessons and tips.

As you can see, our first challenge has been posted. Remember...fall colors don't ALWAYS mean oranges, reds and yellows...what does fall color look like in your area?

The Colors Of Autumn

Our challenge this month is "The Colors of Autumn"
Be creative if you do not have the typical autumn that New Yorkers have. We will be giving you a FULL month to find some AUTUMN images. Have fun. Post your photos on your blog, come back here & leave your link.

The Challenge starts today & ends on Nov. 15th. The each challenge will be posted on the 15th of every month.

We will be posting some changes in the challenge. So watch for the post. BUT for now, lets get out & find some beautiful scenes.

Rule Of Thirds-Winner

Vicki 's Secret Garden is our winner. Non of the team members were involved with this contest. That is why I had everyone send me their images & votes. Thank you all who participated & voted!
We will still post helpful photography tips, so you may still get alerts from the challenge blog.

Check out our future topics on the sidebar.

Enjoy your summer & take plenty of pics.

Congratulations Vicki!

Here is a helpful link on Composition.
http://www.johnharveyphoto.com/LearnComposition/

RULE Of THIRDS -VOTE!

This contest is The Rule Of Thirds. Above is an example of a photo applying The Rule of Thirds. Below are the images that we are voting on. Remember to not only keep in mind the challenge theme, but also the quality, composition & impact.
E-mail your vote to me @ Mariebm56@aol.com from now to Sunday June 14, 9PM EST
In the subject of the e-mail type- VOTE
in the email type-the number of the image.
Example:
Subject-VOTE
In e-mail-#5 (just an example, there is no #5)

RULE Of THIRDS Challenge -REMINDER

Just a reminder, today & tomorrow starts the "Rule Of Thirds" challenge.
Go to the original POST & read requirements before sending your image.
Thanks~

Future Challenges

These will be future subjects, so keep these in mind for the next few months. May was our last month of challenges. June, July & August we will take a break. I want to use this time to get out & shoot. I am not sure where I will be this summer & what access I will have to the internet, but in September we will resume challenges.
Here are our lists of future challenges.

Night Photography
Motion
water
Leading Lines
Texture
Framing
Colors
Windows
Golden or Magic Hour
Transportation-Cars,trucks, trains..planes,
Trees
Plain & Simple
Empty chairs

If you never did "night photography"....or do not know what the "rule of thirds" is, this is a great way to learn. Google the subject or search on Youtube.com for info on whatever you want to know.

Alphabet Challenge is still open & will remain open till the end of the November.
So if you have not done your name or want to try the whole Alphabet, you have about 6 months to find your letters. The entry is on the side of our Challenge blog, just scroll down, click on the image & add your link to the comment when you are completed.

Summer Photo Contest

The subject can be of anything, but you must follow the "Rule of Thirds" You should know what this is. Google it, if you don't.

There are a few added guidelines.

1. All images will be a certain size 72 DPI 4X6(432 pixels X 288 Pixels)Try to get as close as you can, no larger.

2. No watermarks, signatures or copyrights symbols on photos.

3. To submit,you must send a copy of your image to me @ Mariebm56@aol.com & I will add all photos to a post. Please label the subject area - Challenge Contest. Days to submit photos JUNE 10 & 11th only. We should have the voting on the 13 & 14th.

4. Our team members/judges will decide which best follow the challenge & also include good photographic qualities.(sharpness, contrast, color or B&W)
Once our team makes the final selection, we will leave it up to our community to vote on the winner.

After the contest, anyone who would like a critique on their image, let us know, Rob has volunteered to help anyone who is interested. It will be a private email sent to you.

FLOWERS Challenge

We had a nice selection of flowers for this challenge. To visit all those who submitted flowers, please go to the original post for links to their blog.
Thanks to everyone who participated!

Community Photo Challenge- FLOWERS!

Flowers is the last challenge. We will resume in September. So go find some flowers....or anything to do with flowers for the challenge. Post anytime from now till Thursday, June 4th 9PM EST.
Remember to follow the Guidelines.

Community Photo Challenge-Our Photo Stories!

I hope everyone got to visit all our photographers' blogs to view their Photo Stories. If not, here are the links to all our Photo Stories.
GINA, CONNIE, VICKI, MARIA, JEANNETTE, rROSE, DONNA, NANCY, MARTHA, KAT, MARIE & CAPTNANCY

HOPE YOU HAD A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY WEEKEND~
Marie

Community Photo Challenge-A Photo Story

Our Photo Story Challenge starts today & ends on Thursday May, 21st. You have a week to post on your blog a 3-5 image Photo Story. Come back here & add your link in the comment section of this post.. Please follow Guidelines.
The post below shows an example & 2 links to show more samples of a Photo Story.

If you do not have a photo software editing program & cannot display them on one document, you can post them all in one entry. They can be anywhere from 3 to 5 images for your Photo Story.
Add some information &/or location of your photo story.

Community Photo Challenge-A Photo Story INTRO

We will be doing Photo Story Challenge next. It is a small group of 3-5 images that either tell a story or relate to each other.
Examples-
1. A newborn baby, a shot of him or her arriving home, a few close ups like baby booties..bottles...
2. Vacation trip- could be any shots that relate to each other.
3. Wedding-bride & groom, closeup of flowers with rings, a church/alter shot


Here is an example of one.

We posted early so you can see more examples. CLICK HERE
Photographs & Memories and here, Gina's Space.




This was taken last year on my visit to the Cameo Factory in Italy.

If you do not have a photo software editing program & cannot display them on one document, you can post them all in one post. They can be anywhere from 3 images to 5 for your Photo Story. This will take time so I am posting this early so you can work on it.

To enter your Photo Story you will have to wait till Thursday to post. As usual, you will have a week to post. I plan on posting another entry for this challenge. So PLEASE wait till Thursday to post.

Community Photo Challenge- Tranquility

Even though we did not have many images for this challenge, we did have some beautiful images. I want to thank everyone who contributed to our challenge & even those who visited our blogs & left comments. They ARE appreciated!

As a reminder, we only have 2 more challenges left till the summer break. So if your thinking of joining in, do it within this month. We will resume in September.
If you missed our entry "Changes in the Winds" click & read it.

I will be explaining the next challenge this weekend. I will also show some samples.
So watch out for it.

Finding Something New....

Someone mentioned to me that they were going to Buffalo, then heading to Niagara Falls to take photos, but said it was hard to get a shot that no one else has done.

This is what I do...Ü

Let say we are going for waterfalls...

1. I would get as many shots as I can even if they were very common shots
2. I walk around & try different positions & angles.
3. Try wide angle & closeups
4. The time of day is also a major factor. So consider early morning,or evening shots.
5. Night shots with interesting lighting(Niagara Falls)
6. Adding something in the foreground like ...people, bridges, grass or rocks. Try EVERYTHING!
   

Here are some examples of a small local waterfall found on walking trails near the Bronx River Parkway, in Scarsdale NY.




This one is my favorite. I used the texture & pattern in the rock in the foreground to pull your eye inward towards the waterfall.

On The "Technical" Side...

I attended about a half a dozen classroom sessions at the Foto Festival. There were so many choices, but as I made my selections I had one primary goal in mind. I wanted to learn more about achieving good exposure. I'm happy to say that I came away with a better understanding and a lot to practice with.

As a photographer, you have a concept of what you want to convey or capture in an image. But without an understanding of exposure, it becomes an issue of luck. I definitely have a problem with nailing my exposure more often than not. But I intend to put these points into regular practice and hopefully with time, they will all become second nature.

The number one tip I learned (which I already do) is to put your camera in manual. As long as you're shooting in aperture or shutter priority, you are not in complete control of your exposure. Your camera can make a very good estimation of what you're going for, but it is programmed to make white gray. If you want to stay in one of these priority modes, learn about EV and how to use it to compensate.

A stop is a halving or doubling of light. If you shut down one stop, you have halved the light that will hit your sensor. If you move up a stop, you double it. One click of your shutter speed, aperture, or ISO is not necessarily one stop. In my camera, it is set that each click is 1/3 of a stop. So, I need to make 3 clicks in a single direction to adjust my exposure one stop. The stop adjustment can be made using a combination of ISO setting, shutter speed and aperture depending on what the photographer is trying to achieve with the image. (Stop action, bokkah, etc)

Expose for highlights! If your highlights are blown out, they are gone and that often blows the image. In bird photography, you cannot blow out white highlights and capture feather detail in the white end of the spectrum. I had a lot of trouble with this, I was not as sensitive to the location of the hottest highlights as I needed to be. This is where the histogram becomes invaluable.

The histogram is a wonderful tool. I would check my histogram on many of my images, but until now I didn't take advantage of some of the valuable information it provides. Your histogram shows you the distribution of tone in your image. If it is pushed to the right, you are going to have a light image. If there is a spike on the far right, you are going to have blown highlights and you need to stop down. I can see that even a small spike on the right indicates that something is overexposed in the frame. It might be just the top of a bird's head, or a peak of light between leaves. In that case I might want to stop down a fraction of a stop to correct that.

Stop down = increase shutter speed, increase aperture, or decrease ISO. Any of these actions will reduce the amount of light reaching your sensor.

If your histogram is pushed way to the left, your image will be very dark or underexposed. This is preferable to overexposed as the details may well exists in the shadows and can be revealed in the editing process. However, they may be a lot of noise in the shadows as well.

A histogram shaped like a wide U means that your tones are concentrated in both highlight and shadow. This is a tough exposure situation. I would probably shut down to accommodate the highlights (hoping to retrieve detail in the shadow), change my angle or composition to attempt to remove hot highlights from the scene, or wait for the light to change.

A histogram that has a skinny spike in one area is not a bad exposure (unless it's all the way to the right or to the left). I believed that a good exposure was indicated only by a nice bell curve, and a spike was bad. This is not the case. It means that all the tones in the scene are concentrated in one range. This is the type of histogram that would often occur photographing a bird on the beach or in the sky. Most of the tones in the scene are the same (the spike) with the tones of the bird being spread throughout the rest of the histogram.

Learning to get the right exposure is a real challenge. The beauty of digital is that we can review an image instantly and the camera provides us with a histogram for exposure evaluation. We're not taking home a roll of film and crossing our fingers while we wait for processing. We're all destined to miss the mark again and again, but with practice, we can develop an eye for proper exposure. I believe it's part of learning to see with a photographer's eye. I intend to go out and shoot a lot in less than perfect conditions, the challenge being learning to see the exposure that will make the best image.

I want to take it to heart that a day of shooting, with no great shots is not necessarily a bad thing. Yeah, those days are disappointing, but I have to look at them as an opportunity to learn. I'd like to share a wonderful post I read recently by Marc Graf on Embracing Failure. After reading this essay, I will never look at a "bad" day of shooting the same way again.

Florida Birding & Foto Festival - One Week Later...

Well, I had the best of intentions of blogging from the festival with my latest pictures. I should have known that the time I was participating in the events, my driving time, and the time involved in reviewing/editing pictures would prohibit much of anything else. I didn't want to waste a moment of my field time, and the number of images I came back with is staggering. Finally, I have a days worth ready to share.

My second day of the festival was primarily in the field. I started with a morning long visit to the Jacksonville Zoo, featuring their wood stork rookery. What an amazing place for a bird fan. It was fascinating to watch them nesting and caring for the babies. I could have stayed there all day. If I lived in Jacksonville, this would be one of my regular haunts, at least during nesting season.







The woodstorks weren't the only birds to be seen there, of course. These are a few others that I came across that day.







After four hours at the zoo, I drove the hour (plus) down south of St. Augustine for a workshop on some tips for bird photography. The speaker talked about all kinds of gear and how to approach the birds to get a great shot. PATIENCE is the key....it's that simple. I learned that the truly great wildlife photographers are either the most patient people on the planet, or they know all kinds of tricks to stage a shot. Personally, I'm disappointed to think that some of the photos that have wowed me in the past were not a spontaneous capture, but a well thought out staging. I was naive, I guess. One speaker talked about going out into the wild where he knew there were eagles and throwing fish into the lake in front of his camera. They would swoop down and grab the fish right where he wanted them...and that's how he got the shot. It kind of bursts your bubble, doesn't it.

I wrapped up Tuesday with a four hour field shoot at the beach. They drove us out in pickup trucks and when we spotted interesting birds, we'd all pile out and start shooting. I got some decent images, but I felt like a rank amateur. There were at least a dozen guys with HUGE lenses on their cameras. They had them mounted on a dish type support that held the camera low to the ground and could be pushed through the sand. This would allow them to belly crawl slowly toward the birds like GI Joe. It looked kind of hysterical really, and I didn't mind that I wasn't prepared to crawl through the sand. I did fine kneeling behind my tripod with the other less experienced avian paparazzi. It was a beautiful night and we were out until we could see that the tide was about to render the beach impassible. I returned to my sister's that day with three 4 gig cards FULL...and a lot of work to do.






Aren't these terns a riot?!? I think they look like they're both wearing a bad toupee!





I'll be posting more images on my blog 'In My Dreams I Can Fly...,' tonight if I have the time. If not, they'll be there sometime tomorrow.

Community Photo Challenge- Tranquility

This week's Challenge-Tranquility. Find something that represents tranquility to you. For me it is the beach & water, what is yours??
Starts today & ends May 7th. All are welcome to join in.
Please follow the Guidelines posted on the right side of this blog.

The Great Outdoors Challenge

Here are our Great Outdoor Challenge Photos for this week.
I decided to post all, even though we had quite a few. Like I have said in the past, I will not be able to do this each challenge, I haven't figured out how to select a few to highlight.
Check out all images & blogs by CLICKING HERE to bring you to (the comment section) links to all blogs that joined in this challenge.

Florida Birding & Foto Festival - Day1

I began the festival with a relatively light day....and I'm glad that I did. It turns out that the anchor location, is over an hour away from my sister's house. That's going to make the days extra long, but I know every minute will be worth it.

Busy and I drove down to the Whitney Marine Labs for my 8:30 class on raw processing. So far, everything I know about photo editing has been self taught. It's a big undertaking to learn this sophisticated software and I've learned it piecemeal....as needed. The instructor doled out a LOT of information on how to use Adobe Camera Raw and it was unbelievable what he was able to do with a few clicks of a mouse. Of course, he has the latest version (and I'm one behind) and some of the coolest tricks were done with the latest tools. Now, I have to start considering an upgrade.

I had four hours before my second lecture, so Busy and I found a very cute little restaurant and had brunch, then walked across the street to Flagler Beach for a nice stroll. It was an incredible day in Florida and the beach was beautiful! The water was so blue and there were very few people on the beach. We walked and talked and picked up shells and I took pictures. I didn't have any actual photo sessions scheduled, so I was glad to get a chance to take a few shorebird photos.

My afternoon session was called "Light Illuminates/Shadow Defines" and was taught by Chaz Glatzer. Frankly, I found his talk a little confusing, and I know others did too based on the questions that were asked. I don't know if anyone walked out of there confident they could put his information immediately to work, but I think with some practice...I can figure it out and benefit from what he had to say. He suggests that (when shooting in manual), you start from a baseline setting he called the "sunny 16", and teach yourself to be sensitive to relative quantities of light on the subject and adjust accordingly. You must also take into account the effect you wish to achieve (stop action, bokkah, etc) It was obviously second nature to him and he rattled off a lot of numbers (shutter speed, ISO, F/stop) and that's where the confusion set in. I'm going to start to try and put it into practice today at my field shoots. He is an award winning and extensively published photographer and the wildlife shots he brought along were breathtaking. He does use shadow and light to bring out every feather on a bird as well as every hair on a bear.

I'll be leaving shortly for my field shoot. I'm doing a before hours trip to the wood crane rookery at the Jacksonville Zoo. I'll have a four hour pass to the zoo and I'm looking forward to taking tons of pictures there. This evening, I'm going on an evening photoshoot at the beach. So lots of time with my camera when the light is magic.

Here are a couple of quick pics from yesterday at the beach. I was especially intrigued by the Caspian Terns. They are such funny looking birds. I'm still working on trying to specifically identify the sandpiper. If I can't put a name to it until I get back to NY....oh well.
:)

Adventures In Photography - Florida Birding & Foto Festival

We all catch the bug the same way. We pick up a camera, snap a few photos and low and behold...they're not that bad! I started developing my skill by studying images that appealed to me and trying to emulate what I saw that I liked. It got me a long way, but I've always felt that my technical understanding could use some honing. And like all photography fans, I welcome exploring somewhere new.

Last year, I visited my sister in Florida in mid April, and picked up some materials on the Florida Birding & Foto Festival. I'd missed it by a week....but I made a mental note that THIS was something I wanted to take advantage of. It's been a long year of waiting, but finally...tomorrow...I will get on a plane and head down for a week of family, and long weekend of workshops that will (hopefully) make me a better photographer.

The Festival is anchored in St. Augustine and takes advantage of the birding opportunities in the area. It is sponsored by both Audubon and Outdoor Photographer Magazine. There are four days of workshops and field trips led by some well known names in nature photography. I was able to schedule a nice mix of classroom sessions focusing on technical knowledge along with some field outings that I hope will provide outstanding photo opportunities.

I'm very excited to spend a few days with accomplished photographers and to get some insight into how they create their phenomenal images. It would be very tempting to fill the time with field outings as they are many and varied. But, I know I will benefit from attempting to expand my technical understanding. I joke that I "use the Force" to find my settings. It often works. However, when I consider what I have paid to put the latest high tech equipment in my hands, it seems foolish not to try and learn to use it to its full potential.

I'll be starting my adventure bright and early Thursday morning in a class on "The Power of Raw." I often shoot in raw, but I don't know how to make the very most of those humongous files. I'm looking forward to discovering what can be done with all that data. I'll be following that up with a 2 hour workshop entitled "Light Illuminates, Shadow Defines."

On Friday morning, I'll attend my first field outing. I'll be going to a "before hours" visit to the wood stork rookery at the Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens. I expect to see a wide range of birds at this location and it concerns me that I'll end up with more files than I'll be able to manage. I guess that's the one downside of digital....that you can take more photos than you can look at in a lifetime.
:)

I'll be posting a synopsis of my adventures, along with photos both here and at my own photoblog "In My Dreams I Can Fly..." I look forward to sharing my experiences along with some tips and tidbits that I pick up along the way. In preperation for my trip, I've been spending a lot of time here on Long Island seeking out and photographing birds. I've been concentrating specifically on birds in flight and I've got some practice shots up on my journal. I hope you'll stop by...and please leave me a comment to let me know you've been there.

Now, I've got to finish packing!

A Little Help...

Hi, Kat, and everyone...I mentioned in the comments on Kat's entry that my normal method of reducing color cast didn't work on this photo. I'm sure it was because it's lighting that caused it...and after posting that, I went back into Photoshop to try something different. Here's the result of that attempt:

This is by no means perfect, but at least the wood of the guitar neck looks more natural. The biggest problem is that there's so much digital noise in the photo because of either high ISO or just plain darkness. All I did to this was apply a Filter...the Photo Filter. I applied the Cooling Filter (82) at about 50% density. It looks a bit magenta, but I think a bit more work would take that away. Kat...does this help at all???

Help Wanted....

As mentioned in the previous post, I am going to a photography workshop that I'm very excited about. I'll write a bit more about that next.

Before I go and generate countless new files, I'm trying to get through some overdue editing I'd like to get done.

I LOVE concert photography and take every opportunity I can get to photograph musicians. But, the ever changing light and color makes concert venues especially challenging. I usually try to find the most accommodating settings for the conditions to capture the maximum number of images. But, there are invariably images that need a lot of work with color cast and extreme shadows and highlights, and I'll admit...many are not salvagable.

The photo I'm posting is an example of the type of image I'm trying to rescue. I was wondering if anyone out there with some photoshop expertise could advise me on how to improve this type of photo. I'm not looking for all the concert ambiance to be eliminated, but I would like to bring out a little of the natural color in the skin tone and for the resulting image to be less monochromatic.

Knowledge of photo editing software is part and parcel of high quality digital imaging. Yes, ideally we'd all like the perfect image to come right out of the camera. But, we have the tools, I'd like to better know how to use them.

Changes in the Winds

Hi, Photo Challengers...

After a lot of discussion among the Photo Challenge team, we've decided that there will be some changes here in the Challenge Blog.

--We're taking a sabbatical from June through August. There won't be any challenges for those three months but we'll post our ideas for future challenges so you can keep them in mind while you're enjoying the summer--out and about with your cameras.

--Voting will be discontinued for our regular challenges. There may be an occasional contest challenge for those who would like to participate, but our regular challenge won't be judged or have polls.

--There will also be some feature articles about photo experiences and photography in general posted by our team members. We want to continue with the goals of this blog--sharing our passion for photography...learning...challenging ourselves. The team: Kat, Gina,Rob, Vicki and I will share our photographic journey. Others are invited to join in--just let Vicki or me know what ideas you have. Kat has a few wonderful ideas that we are considering, including: 1. Adventures in Photography and 2. Look What I Found! The first experience Kat will share is a bird Photography event in Florida that she'll be attending soon. We're really looking forward to 'seeing' the event through her eyes and learning new things.

--One thing we'd really like to request is that all our readers and participants make every effort to visit each blog and view the submissions. While there, leave a comment. We all know how good it feels when someone has visited our blogs. It's an easy thing to do--I do it for every challenge--and is such a wonderful way to show others that you enjoy the results of their efforts! This challenge is about sharing and supporting each other--and this is how we do it.

Please let us know what you think about these improvements and any ideas you have to make things even better!

~Marie

Community Photo Challenge- THE GREAT OUTDOORS

This weeks challenge is "The Great Outdoors".
Anything goes as long as it is taken outdoors. Starts today & ends Thursday April 23th at 9 PM EST. Remember to follow the GUIDELINES
All are welcome to join it.

Spring Time!

Here are our submissions for Spring. Thank you everyone for showing us your Spring!





EmmaRose's Spring













Krissy's Spring
















Guido's Spring














Far Side of Fifty's Spring















EaglesBrother's Spring
















Elisabeth's Spring















Shari's Spring










Marie's Spring

Apologies to Shari, her image was overlooked b/c of copying problems.
Thank you for informing me...;)
If I left anyone else out, please let me know.
Thanks~

All images are included in our GALLERY.