This week Patti at Pilotfishblog.com encourages us to “work the shot;” to present a subject in at least three ways to help reveal how best to show it. For my first response to this challenge, I selected photos taken while we were ‘staying in place’ during the spring months of 2020. The COVID pandemic brought things to a standstill just about everywhere, and I had Long Beach essentially to myself for close to three months.
Long Shadow
During a stormy high tide, this snag became lodged on the beach when the tide receded. Walking along on a bright early morning, I noticed how its shadow stretching toward the ocean imbued a graceful sense of dignity to the driftwood snag.
Roots in Surf
From this angle and in black and white, the snag appears somewhat awkward and ungainly, while the history of its origin as a clump of substantial tree roots becomes clear.
A good perch near surf’s edge is a welcome setting for Bald Eagles. From April into May 2020, this pair often kept an eye on me, while they surveyed the area for prey. As the days and weeks passed, they seemed to accept my being around and didn’t startle when I appeared.
San Diego Botanical Gardens – Steps to a View.
Tree on blue.
Tree on noir.
One photo, three ways; the whole scene, just the tree in natural light, and then with a noir filter. Each has an individual feel to it, wouldn’t you say?
Whatever angle you choose to view the world around you, please honor our earth, be kind and stay safe.🐾
Oh, boy! Tina is sending us on a treasure hunt! I’ve been combing through my photos, and found some that I haven’t posted before, and others that you may have seen in a previous post. Having more than one ‘treasure’ in the selected photo adds to the fun. So, I’ll start with the moon and its reflection.
From our deck at the Breakers we have a clear view of the Pacific Ocean. On this full moon night, I held my Panasonic steady on the rail and pressed the shutter. What a nice surprise to get this clear an image.
The fluffy clouds and forested shoreline reflecting on Odell Lake remains a favorite shot.
Always up for getting extra credit, here’s a photo of clouds with evidence of rain in the lovely rainbow wending it’s way across the marshes.
Another ‘double dip’ with a golden orange sunset and dramatic cloud formations over the Pacific Ocean.
On a warm October afternoon at the dog park – a person with an umbrella! Funny, we who live in the rainy Pacific Northwest often don’t bother with umbrellas or hats, so to see someone with an umbrella unfurled on a sunny day tickled my fancy!
Whenever a photo of a child is called for, I go back to shots I took on this wonderful day at the beach with my sister Lori, her daughter Molly, and my grandnephew Micah. It was a special time for all four of us – warms my heart ❤️
Above, Max and Daisy having fun chasing a squirrel up a tree at our favorite dog-park, and below seasonal colors of Chrysanthemums – the third year they have bloomed for me on the front porch.
I’ll finish with our family truck, a Nissan Frontier with Daisy in the driver’s seathauling her brother Max!
How many hills have I crested? How many trails have I trod and what have I learned on the journey? Many hills have beckoned me in my lifetime and I find each one to be an invitation to discover more of life.
Last week I was part of a group of supporters that was ferried across Willapa Bay to hike trails on Long Island. A fundraiser sponsored by the Friends of Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, I jumped at the chance to explore an area I couldn’t get to on my own.
On arriving at Long Island, the tide was not quite right for the flat-bottom ferry to land. We had options, take off our shoes and splash to shore or wait. Many of us opted to wade the few feet that remained! Soon after I had my socks and shoes back on, I started up the trail on my own. There were Forest Rangers and other volunteers to help guide the group – I just wanted to explore independently and take photos!
I had hoped to photograph birds on this hike, however being right at the height of fall migration, there wasn’t much new to see in that regard. The trail lead through old growth Douglas Fir forests to a grove of ancient Cedars – which were quite stunning.
It was a lovely day, the hike was just the right length for me, and being on my own, yet in an organized group was perfect. Another hill climbed, with a deep sense of fulfillment and some pretty good shots at the end of the day.
Thanks to Donna Holland of Wind Kisses for this challenge. It is an honor to be asked to host, and also a big responsibility to look at and respond to the many posts we followers send in! Your challenge was such a nice wide-open topic, and fit right into what was important to me this past week.
Whatever hills you climb, please honor our earth, be kind and stay safe.🐾
When I noticed Cee’s fun foto challenge for this week, I began to see curves and circles all around me! Here are some, all but the mushroom, from my walks this week.
Whether you’re going in circles or simply on a winding path, please honor our earth, be kind and stay safe.
This week Tina gives us carte blanche on what we feature, so long as our images portray opposites, not in the sense of opposing, more along the lines of contrasting. To open, I chose to feature a duckling and a drake. Both are Mallard ducks, however they are “opposites” in age and maturity.
My next pair of photos features the same subject – Lilac blossoms. The first one is of a bloom on a seasonally warm spring day while the second shows emerging buds covered in unseasonably cold snow!
A few years ago I “adopted” the benches along the two trails leading from the Breakers Condominium structures to the beach. Most were functioning and just needed a fresh coat of paint, except this one. Since all the parts were still there, I bought some zinc wood-screws, brought out my power screwdriver and put it back together. Now all the benches get a fresh coat of paint before I leave for the summer!
Meadow to marsh, marsh to meadow; the acreage between the buildings and the ocean berm is owned by the Breakers Condominium Association Long Beach. From early summer to early winter the land is a thriving meadow inhabited by songbirds and frequented by mule deer. As rainfall increases in autumn, the meadow transforms to a marsh that hosts many aquatic birds, like the Mallards in my first images.
Another contrast in the two images above is the light of bright afternoon sunshine, compared to the dark of early evening fog.
Max and Daisy have been part of our family for seven months now. They have become wonderful companions and serve to remind us of important life lessons. First; it is important (imperative!) to get out there and engage with life – get some exercise! Bark and enjoy! Second; it’s equally valuable to kick back, unwind and relax.
Wherever you find interesting subjects to compare and contrast, please honor our earth, be kind and stay safe.🐾
If we go by the definition that a town is “an urban area that has a name, defined boundaries, and local government”, my choice for this week’s challenge, Oysterville, once was an urban environment. In it’s heyday it was a prosperous fishing community. Now a tourist destination with a thriving Oyster fishery, Oysterville is on the National Registry of Historic Districts in the USA.
“For generations before the pioneer settlers arrived, Chinook Indians gathered oysters in this part of Willapa Bay and camped in the area that is now Oysterville. The first white settlers here were Robert Hamilton Espy and Isaac Alonzo Clark. Chief Klickeas showed them reef upon reef of tiny native oysters that grew on the shallow bay bottom. Espy and Clark marketed the bivalves in gold-rich, oyster-hungry San Francisco. In no time, Oysterville became a rowdy, lusty boomtown. By 1855 its population and importance were such that it became the seat of Pacific County, Washington Territory. The town had many firsts – a school, college, newspaper, and finally, in 1872, a church – First Methodist.” (Oysterville Restoration Foundation/ORF)
“The Oysterville Church (above) was construction in 1892. Hundreds of visitors from all over the world sign the guest book every year and the “poor box”, located in the church vestibule, has long been a reliable source of revenue, helping to pay for the historic structure’s ongoing maintenance.” (ORF)
Robert Hamilton Espy, co-founder of Oysterville, built his house (above) in 1871. Constructed of California redwood, the “Red House” has remained in the Espy family for six generations. (ORF)
Built in 1865 by Captain J.W. Munson, until 1875 the structure (above) was the site of Oysterville’s first Pacific County Courthouse. As you can see, when I visited 9/15/2022, the gardens were glorious!
The John Crellin House (above), built of redwood in 1867, was the site of the Heckes Inn from 1920 until WWII, which was listed in the Duncan Hines Travel Guides as an outstanding eating place. (ORF)
Top Left: The Oysterville Schoolhouse (1907) was the third and last school in Oysterville. Top Right: The Oysterville Post Office has operated in Oysterville since 1858 and is the oldest continuously run Post Office (under the same name) in the state of Washington, and has been located in the Oysterville Store since 1919. Bottom: The Northern Oyster Company, originally a cannery, is now the home of Oysterville Sea Farms, where the oysters are as fresh as they get. The Cannery building (1940) is the only structure remaining in Oysterville that gives testimony to the town’s original reason for being! (ORF)
A mound of oyster shells slowly being assimilated into the landscape.
Though a bit of a side step from the theme, I hope you enjoy this little journey through a small charming town in the wilds of Washington State, USA. Thanks to Sofia Alves of photographias for this weeks challenge!
Wherever you explore, in big cities or small towns, please honor our earth, be kind and stay safe.🐾
Walking With Eagles is a collection of original poems and photographs by Lindy Low Le Coq. A lifelong naturalist, amateur photographer and bird enthusiast, Lindy’s verse, composition and photographs open a window into the essence of her subjects. Her poems and photography reflect the rich natural wonders of the Pacific Northwest.
Bald Eagles mature over the course of five years. Walking With Eagles invites the reader to take a poetic and visual tour of this odyssey.
view ~ Walking With Eagles ~ in top menu bar for a preview, though the folio is much nicer!
Lindy Low LeCoq 