Valfal's photos

Macro Mondays2.0: Frozen Pareidolia (/pærɪˈdoʊliə/ parr-i-DOH-lee-ə) is a psychological phenomenon in which the mind responds to a stimulus, usually an image or a sound, by perceiving a familiar pattern where none exists. It was one of those rare times when conditions are just right for a challenge I am doing. It had snowed yesterday and this morning was bright and sunny. So I took photos of my half buried garden and tire tracks in my driveway. I had taken several interesting images, so it was hard to decide which one would be my main submission. I decided to go with the unusual and post this image of a face I saw in a tire track. Two other images I took of my garden and driveway are posted in the comments section.

A lavender branch peeks out of the snow in my garden. H.A.N.W.E. Everyone! A special greeting to Pam!

A bit of melting snow on my driveway.

Saturday Self-Challenge: Abstract image in Red This week was fun and challenging in a good way. It encouraged me to think creatively and play around with settings until I achieved my goal. The subject of the photo is a red vintage plastic Christmas ball bathing in sunlight. In the comment section below, I posted alternative shots considered for the challenge. That doesn't happen too much; usually I'm lucky to come up with one choice, lol! Have a wonderful week, my friends!

Saturday Self-Challenge: take a photo that represents your "New Year's Resolution". Even though I always make resolutions, I never seem to keep them. Well, it's going to change this year! Here are a few resolutions I've made for 2019: 1. To enjoy more time with my family 2. To exercise more (how many times have I made THAT resolution!) 3. To improve my photography skills, and... 4. To be more creative! Happy First Weekend, Everyone!

Saturday Self-Challenge: Create a "Starburst" image. Any light source will work for example, street lights, sun, moon, Christmas lights, candles etc. The past week was tough due to time constraints and opportunity for the right circumstances. However this morning presented itself with the first real opportunity all week to do something. The clouds looked so unusual and with the sun in direct line with them I got inspired. Getting a photo of full sunlight was another challenge: how to get it without blinding me! For safety reasons I used the screen instead of viewfinder. This image is the result. The composition balance could be better, but I think I conveyed the message of the title well enough. Have a great week, everyone!

Saturday Self-Challenge: Create an image that highlights your favorite aspect of the holiday season. My favorite nativity and vintage Santas in one place. I love to decorate for the season and this is one display of several in my living room. MAY YOU ALL HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND BLESSED NEW YEAR!

Saturday Self-Challenge: Holiday Still Life A few of my vintage Christmas decorations hanging from the Christmas tree. As a child these old colorful balls fascinated me! A very Merry Christmas holiday to you all! Hope you are feeling better each day, Pam!

Saturday Self-Challenge: Pictures taken from a cat's eyes perspective Both my cats love to be brushed, so I thought this is probably their favorite view (besides their food!). Since cats are supposed to be rather nearsighted and not able to see colors as vibrantly as humans, I amplified the shallow DoF while de-saturating the image to simulate how a cat sees this scene.

Saturday Self-Challenge:Take a photo through a hole or opening This week, the challenge itself was fairly easy, but execution was difficult. In other words, I was short on time, long on frustrating hurdles. This week was another busy one for me, since it is holiday season in the store I work for. As such, I was either not available to roam with my camera, or I was too tired to do so. This morning I once more attempted to photograph, but my camera's battery died with no time to recharge. So I went to the last resort and grabbed my phone camera, thinking I would never get the shot I wanted because of limited manual focus capability. Well, I was proven wrong, and was actually able to get the shot I wanted!

Another image in the series of shots I took of leaves on my driveway. Wishing you a blessed week, Pam!!

Macro Mondays 2.0: Shoes A close up of my favorite pair of Doctor Martin's boots. Another photo in the note. ~Have a great week everyone!~

Saturday Self-Challenge: Fire Engine Well, this week turned out to be one of the most challenging of the year! It didn't help that I had to work in a big box retail store during the Thanksgiving/Black Friday week. Since I couldn't get out in time to photograph a real fire engine, I had to make due with a toy. I checked out the toy section at work during my lunch hour to see if I could find a fire truck or two. Believe it or not, the only thing I found appealing enough to photograph was this junior Lego set, so I bought it for the challenge. Putting together this little firetruck was the least of my challenges! The next challenge was how to photograph this scene. Being short on time, I could not set this scene up the way I wanted to. All I could think to do was set things up on a table in a darkened room with a spotlight lamp over the scene. I tried to use the Nikon, but I didn't like the results because lighting could be better and I didn't have enough time to properly set manual. So, I cheated and went for the phone camera, which does a much better job in these conditions with less time. Hope you all have a great weekend! ~Best viewed enlarged on black~

Saturday Self Challenge: Take a photo of an odd number of any subject or object (3,5,7 etc.) and arrange it so that it's pleasing to the eye. Nine colorful leaves I found on my wet driveway. Have a nice weekend, everyone! :-))

A late autumn view of the Shenandoah valley from famous Skyline Drive located in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. Have a great mid-week everyone! ~Best viewed enlarged on black~

Macro Mondays 2.0: Fruit The only fruit left in the house...I need to go food shopping!

Saturday Self-Challenge: Negative Space I had an opportunity to visit Shenandoah National Park this week while away on vacation. Skyline Drive is famous for its scenic views of the Appalachian mountains. One thing we saw were many long-dead trees still standing. The American Chestnut was nearly wiped out by a fungus blight brought over on trees from Asia. The remains of one of these trees can be seen above silhouetted against the blue sky. ~Best viewed enlarged on black~