~ Lens-Artists Challenge #340: Portraits ~

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

This week, Ritva invites us to “capture the essence and personality of our subjects,” using portrait photographs. Lucky for me, she has graciously suggested the portraits can be of humans or other living creatures! Ritva guides us saying, “The goal is to connect with another person or subject and tell their story through your image.”

My next door neighbors in Vancouver take care of their Grandson Remy, once or twice a week. On sunny days Dee-Anne and Remy sometimes wander into my garden, which has an arbor connecting our two properties. Remy isn’t sure about me, though it’s clear he loves Max!

Of the many photos I took at my friend Joellene’s wedding, I especially like this one. Taking a tip from Ritva, I decided to try it in Black & White and found that without the distraction of color, the focus stays right on the faces of the happy couple.

A guest at their wedding wore this beautiful outfit and graciously agreed when I asked to photograph her. In addition to stunning fashion, she has a lovely smile!

Micah, who is now 10, had just turned 4 when I took this photo of him sitting in his mom, Molly’s lap while she read to him. The intimacy, trust and love between them shines through, as he appears to be about to drift off to sleep.

I’ll close with these portraits of an adult Killdeer and a Cottontail Rabbit. It’s always fun to catch a clear photo of wildlife subjects in their natural habitat!

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, photography, portraits | Tagged , , , , , | 15 Comments

~Lens-Artists Challenge #339: Life’s Changes ~

Posted on March 13, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

This week Anne Sandler of Slow Shutter Speed asks us to “share a passion, hobby or life experience that helped direct your life’s passion.” When Covid 19 was declared a global pandemic five years ago this week, life changed. As it happened, my husband Creighton and I were at our condominium in Long Beach with beloved beagle Jello, when Washington State’s governor Jay Inslee, issued a stay in place directive on March 17th, 2020. We had a day or so to decide whether to stay at the beach, or head back to our home in Vancouver, WA. After checking the infection and death rate data from both Clark and Pacific counties we chose to stay right where we were, in Pacific County.

Human activity on Long Beach was steady. Visitors walked and bicycled, made sculptures out of beach materials, vehicles drove at 25 mph along the beach which is a legal highway, families enjoyed clamming and recreating, and younger folks partied into the night. All of that came to an end on March 17, 2020. Vehicles were prohibited from driving the beach, hospitality businesses closed their doors, and Long Beach was like a ghost town.

Every day Jello and I would take morning and afternoon walks to the now deserted beach. The absence of vehicles was a pleasant change, and though I would see people now and then, they were few and far between. The other life change I began to notice was a significant increase in Bald Eagle activity. From mid-March through the end of May, I was in the company of several Bald Eagles; individuals and pairs. Wind and tide had washed two big snags onto the beach and they were favorite Eagle perches.

After a while, an adult pair became accustomed to seeing Jello and me on our rambles, and did not startle when we were about.

Bald Eagles in different stages of maturity showed up, hung around and departed.

By the end of May, 2020 a vaccine had been developed for Covid 19, the beach was re-opened to vehicles and residents and visitors returned. To my dismay, within a day or two, both Eagle perches had been chain-sawed into firewood, and the stumps were all that was left.

Soon after, the Bald Eagles wisely retreated to more protected places, and our time of peaceful co-existence ended. To this day, I feel privileged and blessed to have had those few weeks to walk among them.

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in Birding, birds, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 23 Comments

~ Lens-Artists Challenge #338: Pick-A-Word ~

Posted on March 4, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

On the last day of February, the weather was mild and welcoming, so I gave myself the joy of grubbing around in my gardens to see what might be coming up. As a consequence, I’ve selected “emergence” for John’s Pick-a-word challenge. Emergence is “the process of coming into view or becoming exposed after being concealed.”

Perennial plants hibernate through the winter months and after sunlight shifts toward spring, they emerge as buds from the ground. This Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) lived happily in a shady, damp patch of my garden for three years.

King Swallowtail (Papilo Thoas)

One of the more dramatic examples of emergence is the issuing of a tender butterfly from pupation. Here it clings, barely out of its chrysalis, bathed in still air and warm light.

On Orcas Island, WA at Point Doughty, the headland is battered by ocean and buffeted by wind. This is where beach sand we love to play in begins; as pebbles and rocks emerging from sedimentary deposits.

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness.

https://photobyjohnbo.com/2025/03/01/lens-artists-challenge-338-pick-a-word/

Posted in butterflies, Gardening, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, plants | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

~ Lens-Artists Challenge #337: BOLD ~

Posted on February 27, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

This week, Sofia invites us to think BOLD. “Being bold is a statement, translated in ideas, views, colour combinations, designs. A break from the norm.”

This playground feature at the Spokane Riverfront Park is BOLD in its conspicuous and prominent size. Children of all ages are captivated by it!

So many scenes in nature are BOLD, like the sunset sky at Crescent Creek, OR reflecting a striking orange-red on the water. Flowers are designed to be showy so that they attract pollinators. Both the Parrot Tulip and orange Calla lily are eye-catching examples.

Dowitchers probe the shoreline of Long Beach, WA. There are two kinds of Dowitchers; Long-billed and Short-billed. I have tried to determine which these are and every time I do the research I realize “it’s difficult to say for sure”! In any event they are BOLD looking birds with their impressive beaks and imposing posture.

Chihuly Garden Glass art is indeed BOLD and beautiful. Individual works, like the large bowl, are spectacular in size and color. Installments like marshland “birds” and red spires set behind a bank of evergreen shrubs are arresting.

Boldly this young woman paddle-boards through President’s Channel between Orcas Island, WA and Waldron Island. The scene is both stunning and gorgeous. On this peaceful note I conclude my visual exploration of BOLD in which I’ve used most of the synonyms of the word without repeating them!

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in Art, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, travel, weekly photo challenge | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

~ Lens-Artists Challenge #336 ~ Only One Picture ~

Posted on February 21, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

This week Ann-Christine asks us to select one photograph that we “find important, meaningful and perhaps sends a message.” Though I usually attempt to remain upbeat no matter what is going on in the world around me, the political actions of the current US President leaves me too edgy to pretend everything is okay. It’s not, and I am extremely distressed. One slice of my dismay is the reversal of investment in and support for climate change mitigation. So, for this challenge I have selected this dramatic cloudy sunset photo to pair with one of my poems titled, Mayflies in March.

every day
planet earth
recomposes
balances

elements
mix and swirl
transform

the survival
of homo sapiens
is not her concern

she will spin
around her sun
circled by her moon
regardless of our fate.

2018/2025©Lindy Low Le Coq

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in climate change, clouds, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, Poetry, Report from the Edge of a Continent, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

~ WOW~ Words of Wisdom ~ Y25 #1 ~

Posted on February 15, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

“Trust is a precious commodity — useful and valuable — like time and water.” 2025©Lindy Low Le Coq

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, photography, Waterfalls, WOW - Words of Wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

~ Lens-Artists Challenge #335: Exploring Color vs Black & White ~

Posted on February 13, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

This week Patti challenges us to select three photos and present them in both color and black & white. She asks us to compare the differences in each one, and share our thoughts about how color vs B&W process impacts them. This was a great learning experience for me, and I was lucky that Creighton helped me get the possible pairings whittled down to three.

This knife sharpener attached to a fish-cleaning station drew me in. I love old pieces of iron work. In the color shot the grass and trees of the landscape draw my eyes away from it. Although I love lush backgrounds and its rusty surface shows better in color, I prefer the black and white because it keeps the grinder as the main focus.

What is this odd thing on the ground? A skull? A castaway piece of rubber? Maybe a Chihuly bowl?

Actually, this is a large toadstool that has shed its spores and is beginning to fold in on itself. I almost always favor color in photos of flowers, plants and natural landscapes. Big toadstools have something akin to an architectural structure though, so I like them both ways.

The Astoria-Megler Bridge is a masterpiece of engineering, which I have featured in previous posts. In black and white the photo becomes a study of geometrical shapes and strong shadows. In the color version the texture and color of the Columbia River adds a sense of space and depth to the photo. Both work, though I prefer the color shot.

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in architecture, Black and White Photos, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, mycology/mushrooms/fungi, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, photography, weekly photo challenge | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

~ Wordless Wednesday ~ B&W au naturel ~

Posted on February 12, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Posted in nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, Wordless Wednesday | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

~ Lens-Artists Challenge #334: Cats and Dogs ~

Posted on February 6, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq

Tina offers a bit of furry treasure this week (here), a theme I am most happy to embrace. Our life with Beagles began in 1986, when my husband’s work had him on the road much of the time. At the end of my workday I’d come home to an empty house and wish for companionship. I decided we needed a dog. My parents gifted us our first beagle, Scooter that year and we have had at least one or more Beagles in our home ever since.

Creighton and I adopted Jello in 2015 when she was six. A blue-tick Beagle, she is the only one of seven Beagles that have lived with us who could be trusted in open areas off-leash. Smart, playful and loving, we still miss her.

When Jello passed, I immediately began searching for another Beagle, adding my name to shelter websites. We were open to either sex, younger to middle age. After a couple weeks, I saw Daisy and Max who were being fostered in Texas. When we learned they were brother and sister, both available and that they had been together all their six years, Creighton and I agreed to adopt them both. They were transported by van, along with other rescues, to Portland. It’s been three years this weekend since they arrived, and we all are doing well and enjoying our lives together.

Rain or shine or snow, we go on our walks when we’re at the beach, or to the dog park when we’re at home in Vancouver. True to their breed, Max and Daisy generally have their noses to the ground and their white flag tails high in the air.

Max is happiest when he is sitting on or with someone, playing or teasing someone and when he can just plain lollygag around! He’s the bigger of the two and has freckles on his nose.

Daisy is adventurous and curious. Prior to living with us, she’d been a mama most of her years, so it took her a while to trust us and come into her own as a free-spirited Beagle, which clearly has happened!

On your walk with life, please honor our earth, encourage dignity and share kindness. 🐾

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Cats & Dogs

Posted in Beagles, dogs, jello, Lens-Artists, Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, travel, weekly photo challenge | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

~ Wordless Wednesday ~ Snow! ~

Posted on February 5, 2025 by Lindy Le Coq
Posted in clouds, nature, nature photography, outdoors, pacific northwest, pacific ocean, photography, Report from the Edge of a Continent, travel, Wordless Wednesday | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments