Textures

Sunday I went on an outing with a photography club out of Blue Ridge, GA. It was a fun day and we saw some beautiful sights!

I took two of the shots (not necessarily the best ones... just random) and played around with textures in Photoshop.

Here's the original photo of the road leading to Bald River Falls (I kept them really big so you can see the textures):



And here it is with the pencil texture added to it:



This one has the watercolor feature:



And this one is sponge:


Do you have a favorite?


This is the original photo of Tellico River (near the falls):


And here it is with the watercolor feature added:


For this shot, watercolor is the only one I played with.

What do you think... do we like textures?

Then and Now

Well...


Then as in "last August" and


now as in "last week."



Check it out...



Remember this?



It was taken last August when my girl came for a visit.



Here's that same overlook taken last week. I wish my punkin' were standing there rubbing her baby bump.

And there was this.

I was shocked that the leaves were starting to turn in August!

Here's that same row of trees... at the same overlook, taken last week.

Yes, the red really is that red. I did not photoshop enhance these!

And just because I mentioned The Bump... here's an update on that as well!

28 weeks.

Ta-da! Happy Day.

Seven for Sunday

... even though it's Monday.

I took a long drive yesterday after lunch along winding country roads dotted with little white churches. The sun shown intermittently through the trees while the breeze blew spent, though colorful, leaves from the trees. It was kinda dreamy.

Here's some of what I encountered...


We still have a way to go before we reach peak color...



These four horses were happily grazing, though all were interested in what I was up to.



A bit of sunshine and blue sky could have made this a "Wow" shot, in my opinion.



I ended up all the way to Monroe County, TN, traveling the Cherohala Skyway. I believe this is the Tellico River.



This is Bald River Falls. A 100 foot drop.



The bridge where the peepers are located is from where you view the waterfall.



And this is 10-week old Marley with his human, Lucas.
"Aw." I said. "Named after the dog in Marley and Me?"
His response, "No, named after Bob Marley." Oh.

It was a nice day... and now we're back to rain, rain, rain!

Beautiful Skies

I'm drawn to them. I love them. I have dozens... hundreds of pictures of them.

Misty, muted morning skies... bright blue daytime skies... colorful, vivid evening skies...



This is a sunrise from my balcony.



Another sunrise from the same balcony a few weeks later.




Was on a hike and the bright puff of white cloud caught my eye.




A sunset from Lot 51 at Wilderness Creek Falls.




Another sunset from Wilderness Creek Falls... this one is Lot 53.




Driving home from Blue Ridge, GA, this sight kept capturing my attention in the rearview mirror. Finally, I had to just pull over a get a shot of it!

Happy Friday!

Should I Be Afraid?

I'm not the kind of girl that squeals and flails and flees in terror at the sight of a bug. But then, I've posted enough bug photos on here that you probably already knew that.

I'm wondering, however, just how much respect I should give to these furry creatures...


For the last two weeks, I've seen them all over my house... OUTSIDE, thankfully.



It must be furry spider season! They're in the corners of my doorways; their webs cross and block my stairway leading down to the office (and I gently remove it with a long stick so I can pass, while the spider panics and crawls furiously to the rhododendron bush); the other morning, there were even two webs (and two fat spiders in the center of them) on my car - bumper to rear windshield!



Okay, so I don't squeal, flail and flee... but I do shiver a little at the sight of them. Icky - Eeeew.

Any insights on what kind of spider this is? ... and should I be afraid?

Sweet Baby

She's my homeless friend. She resides, so to speak, at one of the local beer joints and is there every day, rain or shine.

I pass by every Sunday on my way to church and have taken to stopping and giving her some lovin'. She likes it! She nuzzles my legs with her head and talks to me if I stop!



She has the potential to be a beauty, but is in desperate need of a makeover... or just a bath would do wonders!

She looks like a golden to me... you think?




Would you look at that face? When I pet her, I can only touch the white fur on her face because she is smelly! Oh, but she loves it so much!




If only I had room for one more. Then again, what's one more when you already have seven?! But then I'd see another one and say what's one more when you already have eight... and on it would go.

She seems content, actually, living at the beer store. By the looks of her, she gets plenty to eat. The merchants and patrons must be feeding her... if it weren't satisfying her needs, she wouldn't stay there, right?




"Wait. Where you goin'? You'll be back next Sunday, right?"

"Yes, Sweet Baby. I'll be back next Sunday ...and I'll bring treats."