Baby Blue

I titled this Baby Blue for two reasons, the first is because the color is like a baby blue and the second is because the flower is baby sized. The color is a mixture between a light blue and purple. There is not a definitive color nonetheless it is an interesting color. The flower is also very small. Maybe I just found small bees and flowers but it's interesting how both of these pictures are of baby-sized objects.

Mini Bee

While taking pictures of flowers, I noticed this miniature bee. It was like other bees in the sense of color and shape but the size of the bee was confusing. I'm not sure if it there is a completely different type of bee in North Carolina or this is just a baby bee, but I am finding this picture very interesting and confusing.

Colored Tips

This plant is not a flower, but it still has the bright colors a flower has. I like the red tips on the ends of the yellow leaves. There are the different leaves sticking out everywhere which draws your eye around and around the picture. The ends of the leaves come to a point, turn red, then stop. It is like a good ending to an even better plant.

Symmetry

Of all the flowers I have taken pictures of in Texas and just these few that I took in North Carolina, I like the flowers from North Carolina better. They are more colorful, have more to see at a macro level, and are different. This flower, for example, is bright pink and white with a yellow center. These colors are bright and stand out against the dark green background.

Shapes

This flower is one that has not yet bloomed. I thought it was interesting because of the shapes on the flower. There are the octagonal black and green shapes on the bottom, then the cylindrical-looking shapes at the top. The part that makes the picture the best is the black and green octagonal petals. They provide an interesting contrast because it is not often the color black is seen in flowers. Most flowers are bright colors like red, yellow, or orange but this was a darker color black.

Ribbons

Unlike the white tiny flowers, these also tiny flowers were very tightly bunched together. There was a flower, after flower, after flower. I chose to title it Ribbon because the inside of the flower looks like ribbons. The yellow rectangle-like shapes almost look man-made. In addition, the yellow adds contrast in color to all of the red petals. There is an abundance of red then you see the yellow centers'.

Yellow

I didn't notice this when I was taking the picture, but there is some white object in the center of the flower. I actually like it because it gives the yellow flower another color. It almost looks like snow except that I know it is not snow. I also like the background of this picture because you are able to see the outline of the flower.  You know what it is, you just don't see the actual background because it's not in focus.

Rolling Clouds

Up above the woods were some very interesting clouds. I found these clouds interesting because they are not the same color. Some are more white and others are grayer. I wanted to have the tree in focus so that there were also elements of the woods in the picture. The picture would have been better if the trees had more color in them instead of being all green, but it still is a very nice picture.

Tiny Whites

I found these flowers in a different area of moss. I did use my macro lens but I didn't want to be directly on the flowers. I took a step back and captured the entire group of flowers. I like how they are sprinkled around the moss and all in one spot. They all mimic each other with the four leaves and tiny green stem. It is like they are all different but also all the same.

Trees

I took this picture deep in the forest. All around me were hundreds of feet tall trees. I wasn't trying to take a picture like this but I really like it. The center tree is in focus and everything else is blurred. It is almost like the blur is leading your eye toward the center tree. I also like all of the trees surrounding the main tree. I don't take too many pictures of woods full of trees so I thought it was something new and interesting.

Moss

These woods were very, very dense. This means that moisture became trapped very easily in the woods. All the moisture and additional rainfall created this moss. It isn't much but I thought it was interesting to see all of the obstructions on the moss, there are leaves and bark from trees.

Into the Woods

Near the place where I was staying was this trail into the woods. There are woods in Texas but these were a completely different type of woods. I walked in then after 2 minutes of walking there was no more trail. I used my phone's GPS to try to walk further toward a lake. I ended up in a US Wildlife Protective area so I had to head back. Not only was there no path, but I also found 2 tombstones from the 1850s. I could only read one of them, and that person was William Barbee born in 1777 and died 1857 (yes it's a real thing, search it up!)

Football

On the trip, I took many pictures that even with my wide-angle lens were too wide. To solve the problem I took multiple pictures then using photoshop I merged them together. This picture is of the University of North Carolina's football stadium It was hard to create this panoramic picture because the pictures didn't line up correctly. I had to stretch the last two but it came out relatively good.

Pine Trees

I took this picture as we walked from the bell tower to the football stadium (picture coming tomorrow). It's nothing too special but I like the way the trees look. The trees are different than the ones in Texas. These trees are pine trees, rather the oak trees in Texas. It's hard to tell the difference with the trees on the left, but you can clearly see they are pine trees from

Bell Tower

This is the Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower on the University of North Carolina campus. It is 172 feet tall, has 14 bells, and rings every 15 minutes. It was difficult to take a picture of it because of the sun. I wasn't facing the sun, but since there were little clouds I could not place the tower in front of a grey background. I had to use a fast shutter speed to compensate which made the tower darker.

Red

Near the tiny white flowers was this bunch of flowers. I took pictures of it because of the number of flowers. There usually are a few flowers near each other on a bush but this bush was full of flowers. In addition to the number of flowers, I also like the brightness on the picture. The sunlight is coming from the center of the bunch and as you look outwards either left or right, the picture becomes darker.

Tiny Flower

This picture is of a flower but it is very simple. I used my regular wide-angle lens but stepped in closer and zoomed in. I didn't use the macro lens because I wanted to show how small the flower is. The yellow parts within the flower stick out to me. There is a green background, then white flower, but the object that I notice the most is yellow. It is like an unexpected surprise from the flower.

Summer Blues

During the entire trip, I was taking pictures of different flowers. I thought this one was interesting because of its colors. All of the colors are light and bright. There is light blue and green but in the background of the picture and deep into the petals the blues and greens become darker. I also like the shape of the flower. It looks like it should be a flower that stands directly up, but this one doesn't. This flower in hanging down.

Sunny Walk

Near the gazebo was the covered walkway. Vines covered it but not completely. I found it interesting how the lines of the pathway and poles lining the walkway all led to the end of the tunnel. I then had people walk in front of me to show the walkway. If I could change one thing, it would be that this picture was a long exposure. I wish I could capture the movement of the people walking, but regarding that, I still enjoy the picture.

Orange and Yellow

This flower reminded me very much of a sunset. The oranges and yellow colors were bright and reflected the harsh sunlight. I also enjoy the flowers' composure. It has no flowers on top, some non-blossomed in the middle, and bright yellow flowers at the bottom. When I first was taking the picture, I was just standing straight at it. The background was out of focus like this, but it wasn't a nice green background I like. I adjusted my camera position to change the background which allowed me to capture this picture.

Gazebo

Over the past weekend (including Friday), I went to North Carolina. While there, I visited North Carolina and Duke Colleges and Raleigh. This first picture is of a gazebo on the North Carolina campus. It is one of the many structures on the campus but it also caught my eye. I like how it's bright green and white stand out against the dark green leaves. Even though it is an old structure it is clean and still looks new

Face

This picture is the closest I have to a bee. I positioned my camera very close to the bee. I just let the bee do whatever it was doing and I took pictures when I could. I have found bees normally aren't very aggressive when I am taking these up close pictures of them. There are a few times when I bee will circle around me but by then I normally am done taking pictures.

Buzzing Around

My next pictures are from the Dallas Arboretum Botanical Garden. I was taking pictures of flowers when I heard the familiar buzzing sound. I looked around and found some bees hovering over then landing on these blue flowers. I chose to post this picture because I like the reflection from the wings. This is one of the few pictures where you are able to see the wings.

Central Flower

For this picture, I used my macro lens again. The goal of the picture was to capture the central part of the flower. I used a low aperture to have the only focus be on the middle. I also used it to blur out the back of the flower. I like how the pink is blurred but also visible.

Green and Purple

This picture is simple, the colors contrast each other well, and I like the lines in the picture. The picture is just of a plant in front of a house. The green and purple don't overpower each other. I like how the purple is the same color all the way around, but the green has different colors. Towards the top, the green is lighter and on the bottom, the green is slightly darker. Lastly, the lines are very simple. The lines are either straight or curved.

Classic

I reverted back to my classic, original picture style. A macro picture of an object with an interesting yet simple background. If you remember from a few days ago I talked about an increased aperture. I kept that increased aperture for this picture too. I wanted to have the front bluebonnet in focus but also have the other bluebonnets visible.

BEEautiful 

This picture is one of my favorites from this series and also one of my all-time favorites. I spent almost half an hour trying to take pictures of bees on bluebonnets. Sometime during that half hour, I was able to take this picture, a bee collecting nectar from a bluebonnet. Everything is perfect for this picture. There is the yellow bee standing out in the center, dark blue flowers, and green grass background. One could even say it is BEEautiful. :)

Little Butterfly

In addition to finding different types of flowers, I was also able to find different types of animals. There were bees and two types of butterflies. This butterfly was gray which I like. I took other pictures of a white butterfly but the white stood out too much. I like the gray because it blends in with the picture but not enough that it isn't recognized.

Mini Flowers

One of the other flowers in the bluebonnet patch was this tiny white flower. I took pictures of it because I liked the smallness and symmetry. It feels like for every bunch of flowers there was another on the other side. I also tried to not have the focus be so harsh. To change the focus, I increased the aperture to f10. I normally have it at f3.1 for close-up macro photography but at f10 there is a longer depth of field.

Blue

For this picture, I positioned my camera closer to the ground. I used the lower angle to capture more of the sky. I wanted to highlight the bluebonnets and weeds near the bluebonnets but I also wanted to include the bright blue sky. It provides a subtle background that fits with the picture. The sky complements the bluebonnets and acts as a neutral color to the grass.

Bluebonnets and Bees

As we return to Texas and spring, I thought what is unique to Texas and vastly different than the Colorado series. I settled on the Texas state flower, bluebonnets. While I was taking pictures of the bluebonnets, I heard the familiar sound of buzzing bees. Using my macro lens, I was able to take very close-up pictures of the bees. With this picture, I did not have the shutter speed at the highest I can set it (1/4000). This is why the wings are blurry. The bees wings were moving so fast that my camera at that shutter speed was not able to capture them in focus.

White Snow and Blue Skies

The last pictures I am going to upload are panoramic ones from the tops of mountains and a timelapse of a sunrise that I shot. I really enjoy the panoramic pictures. I like to see how all the individual pictures come together to create a big one. I specifically like this picture because it appears that the mountains go on forever.

Rolling Clouds

While the sunset was not as interesting as some of the ones in Texas, these rolling clouds helped to make it interesting. I divided this picture into thirds both from the top to bottom and left to right. Starting from the bottom, it goes snow, the mountain, then the sunset. The snow and sunset are brightly colored then there is the dark but visible mountain. From the left to right, it goes the clouds, sunset, and mountain, then the tree. This is opposite of the top to bottom. From left to right it goes dark, light, dark.

Snowy Sunset

As the Colorado snow series is coming to an end, the pictures will soon return back to Texas. There are many flowers on trees and plants and now that summer is approaching, there is actually leaves on trees. I also have been experimenting with long exposure photography. In addition to the plants and trees, there might a picture or two that is a long exposure.

Sunset Tree

I spent my last day in Colorado outside in the snow then when the sun started to set, I took pictures of it. I wanted to capture the sunset but I also wanted to capture the snow from the mountain. I put the tree into a silhouette but I didn't increase my exposure too much which. If I did, I would have not been able to capture the snow, making it like some of my over sunset pictures.

Base Village 

Similar to the last picture the clouds were on my side. They appear to part and open up the view to Aspen Base Village. Looking back at the picture, I am noticing many lines throughout it. There are lines from the gondola, the poles holding up the gondola, and the lines from the streets.

High Above

I took this picture high above the ski runs and mountain tops. Below me was Aspen Mountain and the race area on the mountain. Looking out and past Aspen Mountain were other mountains I do not know the names of. I was lucky with the clouds for this picture. Clearly, there are many of them in the sky but for this picture, they seemed to part just for me.

Gondola

After the pictures from the top of the mountain, I rode the gondola down. I was able to capture some incredible pictures. Unfortunately, there was water from melted snow on the windows of the gondola. This created some blurry spots, but otherwise, the views were clear. There were also some clouds that blocked me from seeing all the way down to the base but there were a few windows when I was able to see through them.

Snowstorm

This picture is similar to the last one except I zoomed in for this picture. By the time I took this, snow had already begun to fall. You can actually see the snowflakes in the clouds. I also like how the clouds have different densities on different parts of the picture. In the middle, the clouds are almost solid but in the bottom right, the clouds start to thin out.

Clouds

I captured this picture after the third and final snow storm. I took my camera to the top of the mountain and took pictures. There is this huge drop off that leads to rows and rows of trees. Most days (especially in the summer) you can see forever. But the day I took this picture there were clouds from the earlier snow storm. I have a few more pictures from the same spot after this one but by the end of this week, I believe that these are my last snow pictures.

Dark Skies

This picture is one of my favorites of the series. It is so simple how the colors are only dark grey, green, white, and black. There is snow all over the branches and trees but the only branch is this small one that is in focus. But if you look in the background there are the green trees which you presume is where the branch is coming from. It is very simple, clean, and the colors are very nice.

Powder

I enjoy this picture because of all the different textures of snow and the tree. There is the softness from the snow. It almost looks like clouds it is so soft. There is also the sharpness from the pine needles whose color helps to balance out the white snow.

Looking Up 

The heavy snow also accumulated on the walls of buildings. One of those buildings was this uneven brick wall. Only on the bricks that stick out is the snow on. I like this picture for the definition on the snow and brick that is next to it and because of the contrast between the snow and brick. I like how you can see every small detail on the snow. Also, the contrast from the light snow and dark brick are very nice to my eyes. The picture is mostly dark but there small spots with white snow.

Mountain Side View

Most of the times when I was on the mountain, I took about ten pictures in a row with each picture facing a different direction but from the same point. Using Photoshop, I was able to create this image of eight imagines. I wanted to create a panoramic picture. Using the eight images and the crop tool in Photoshop, I was able to make a panoramic picture. While there is not as much definition as the last pictures, I like this one because you can see everything on the ski run.

Spring

Spring skiing typically brings blue skies, higher temperatures (above freezing), and slushy snow. This spring there were several storms that dropped feet of snow. I enjoy seeing everything covered in white snow but there are some parts that stick out and are not white. All over the picture, you can see brown or green spots, these are trees. They stand out against the white background which makes the mountains look very interesting.

Blue Skies

The day after the snowstorm was blue skies and white snow. It was some of the best skiing that I have experienced. I took this picture from the middle of a ski run which is why it looks as if this trail could continue all the way to the base of the mountain. I like how there are the skiers in the middle of the run. This makes the snow not seem like 'dead space.' Without the skiers, the entire bottom half of the picture would be white snow, that wouldn't be as interesting.

Light

The trees at the base of the skiing mountain where covered in lights. I enjoy them because they stand out against the white snow. I wish the lights covered all of the branches and limbs on the tree, but I can't control that. It would have been very interesting if there were just lights scattered around the picture on the branches.

Winter's Colors

Near the clocktower was this branch with dead leaves covered in snow. I really like this picture because of the contrast between the white snow, dark-colored branches, and brown leaves. Each object is popping out in front of the grey background which I like. The snow on the branches and leaves adds a nice bright color and softness to the picture.

Icicles

I like this picture because of the contrast between the branches and the icicles/snow. The branches are a dark brown and possibly black color while the snow/ice is a bright white. The branches almost look like black icicles. They are small twigs just hanging onto the tree. The branches are collecting snow and ice which is why I'm calling them icicles.

Clocktower

Last year I took a picture of the same clocktower with snow falling around it. Between last year and this year, I managed to delete those pictures. This year I was able to make up the picture, but as with any picture you take twice, the first picture is always the best. I had to change something to at least make this picture interesting. So I created this image. I took a picture of the clocktower with snow falling. I didn't like it as much so I photoshopped a picture of mine with heavy snow falling in the background. I like it, but once again the first picture is always better than the second.