dndement

Self-Assignment Challenge: Gather from the yard use the vintage Roseville vase.

I have been working hard on refinishing a vintage cabinet that my grandmother had in her pantry for her summer harvest canning. It has been 2 months of painting, stripping paint, cussing, sanding and repainting, in the cooler mornings, before the day heats up or I had to go to my favorite class in the pool. I will save that story for another time when I can look at the photographs and not cringe with frustration. My vision for that cabinet was to store my growing collection of vases and vintage canning jars, that I like to use in my photographs. Yesterday the vases and jars went into the cabinet and I was free to think about photographing some of the flowers growing in my yard.

I have been reading a couple of books by a floral designer named Ariella Chezar, she suggested walking in nature and collecting for your flower arrangements. I have frequently done that with some of the dried barley heads, poppy seed pods and gnarly sticks from the local juniper trees. But I never thought of using the greenery with the juniper berries. As I went on my morning wandering in the yard, I noticed some plants that had heart shaped seeds. I usually pull those plants because they are weeds but, working on the cabinet meant that somethings got to grow. My win.
So my photo Challenge was to take a Roseville vase I bought last fall in a thrift store combine the juniper clippings, the seed heads, with some of the oriental and tiger lilies that have been blooming. The first photograph was the result of that challenge. I like it. But is that it ??? Well No… I had also collected yarrow, bee balm, daises and I had been photographing for a little over 3 hours with all of the different flowers and various containers. The challenge was saved for last and when I got the shot I envisioned, I then started adding the other flowers to the mix. I really don’t know how Mylo the fluffy cow, got into the photo

He does seem to like flowers though

Happy Birthday United States of America

I celebrate the birthday of our Great Nation. It is a bittersweet celebration.
My family has lived in this country since the 1600s, and I hope will live here many generations more. In my family search I found that members of my family fought in the Revolutionary war… I also found that some of the members of my family worked on the declaration and the writing of the constitution.

But now these documents are under fire by people who do not respect our history. A person who wants to be King, whose parents were not born in the United States but came here from Germany for a better life. People who believe that only White people should live in this country and all others should be deported. People who bought their way into positions of power. A congress that is so corrupt that they have sold their souls to the devil to win what they want at the detriment of the people they were elected to represent. A South African billionaire who came to this country on a student visa, never went to school here but stayed, bought his citizenship and bought a presidential election.

Through it all, this nation will survive…It will be because of the people of this Great Nation. It will be the families who have lived in this country longer than my family. It will be the families that have emigrated to this nation and have legally become citizens of this country. It will be because of people born in this country as first-generation citizens. It will be because of those people who have come to this nation and worked hard hoping to seek citizenship one day.

It will be because of these documents our forefathers wrote and voted on. It is because of the many people who fought to update those documents when our country changed, and injustice became intolerable. It is because our forefathers fought to keep this nation free.
We have the right to Vote. We have the right to Free Speach. We have the right to justice in our legal system.
We the People of these United States need to take a stand and remove those in office who seek to destroy our Nation for their profit and power.
We need to let our voices be heard with the mighty pen and paper on Election Day. We need to resist peacefully and let our voices be heard. We need to make the United States of America, Great Again.
Deanne Dement

Having Fun with my Photography

Meet my inspirations for photography fun

Both of these collages were made for a photo challenge that I have participated in the last 4+ years. These were the end of the 52 week challenge for the years 2023 and 2024.

It all started with this shot of a troll with pink hair that soon became known in the challenge as Pinx. It wasn’t long before my avatar in the challenge included Pinx.

Then I added a brother named Aqua and their dad known as Poppa T. Then several toy dinosaurs that the troll family call Lizards.

So now… Every trip to the thrift store or estate sale, I look at things that I can add to my troll family collection.
Meet Mylo the Fluffy Cow

Another of my thrift store finds… he is a bit chipped and too heavy to carry around on the trail but he sure added another level of fun in my photographs

After I was done having fun, I took the flowers and photographed them in a couple of vintage vases.

Because inspiration always involves a lot of FUN

The old deck updated with a new lease on life

The old deck has a new lease on life…. Here is hoping that it gets another 45- 50 years, like the old one did.

It is definitely germy approved, and I plan on giving it the use it deserves…. I see morning coffee….

looking out over the mountain view, watching the hummingbirds access the honeysuckle flowers.

Enjoying looking over my back yard. Waiting and watching for the thunderstorms that come up from the south.

Sitting on the wide steps enjoying the morning shade while listening to the chickadees

and maybe a little nap or two

But first I need to get the curtains back up on the southwest end, because the temp on the deck right now is 100 degrees. Then I will concentrate on getting a few other items back on the new old deck.
No rush because I am enjoying it as it is right now…

Good Morning. Deck Contemplations

Good Morning Deck…. I know you are not finished but I so want to enjoy your morning sunlight.

Until this week I didn’t realize how much I really enjoyed your morning peace. I know you are not finished, there is much more work to be done.

But… There is just something so special about being able to step out the door with a cup of coffee. To be able to enjoy the mountain view

and the view of your yard

Watching one of the local Doe’s casually walk by munching on the neighbors yard. Listening to the morning birds, watching the lizards running along the rocks, planning what project needs to be started. Practicing your calm mindfulness… Until….

The German Shepherds decide you need to be supervised….

Good Bye old deck

Good Bye old deck you have served me well for the last 28 years. Though I know you were built in the 70’s and are far older than I have lived here, the amount of joy you have given me over the years knows no bounds.

I sit here on these boards for one last time I reflect on endless summer days spent sitting on the deck, enjoying the shade provided by the roof. Looking over my shoulder to the view of North Sister mountain.

and looking forward over the yard and the neighbors yards

Making endless plans on what I want my gardens to look like.

Enjoying a morning cup of coffee on the steps. Reading a good book. Working on hand stitching Christmas presents for my family. Sleeping on the deck on hot summer nights, even hauling my old TV onto the deck to watch DVDs. Setting up a photo studio, for that perfect light, dreaming about the perfect photo. And one summer recuperating from a broken wrist, working on my physical therapy in the morning coolness. Winters filled with firewood, so I didn’t have to go out to the wood pile every time I wanted to start the woodstove. You have served me well.
But Now….

It is time for an upgrade. New support posts and new deck flooring, and maybe new paint on the wall…. Something in a clean white for bringing in the sunlight

Looking forward to many more Summers with the new you

Patience has finally paid off

and just because I like to have fun

the Troll family and a couple of their pet lizards are celebrating

Patience

I have NONE…
Bloom…. NOW!!!

Behind the photograph scenes Challenge for 3 years

My early spring flowers.
This shot was made last week for the 52 wk challenge Behind the scenes. The theory behind this challenge is to show what actually goes on during a photo shoot. Ideally you might include the photographer in the scene shooting the shot and then include the shot. But lately I have been just showing my inspiration for the shot. So while this was the shot I was going for

This was the shot that was posted on the challenge. It shows the main photograph which was the idea. The small inset photograph on the right, are the dandelions in my front yard flowerbeds the inset on the left is my garage photo studio and several of the containers I thought might look good with the dandelions.
Last year for this challenge I had a much harder time getting inspired. I had my photo area set up on my back deck which is protected in the winter.

My inspiration for the 2024 was simply what can trigger an inspired idea. I decided to photograph what had been set onto the photo table, where I kept my photo props and the lights I had purchased to make lighting the scenes easier. In the center photo you can see my feet propped up on a footstool to show that I was sitting in my favorite chair trying to come up with an idea for that years challenge.
My most favorite year was 2023 I had so many ideas

2023 was much chillier most of my flowering plants were way behind schedule. We were still dealing with COVID limitations, I think it was my most creative year and many of the other photographers in the challenge that year were inspiring me.
This shot I had pulled out my bracelets that I had worn for work before I retired. What better way to show them off than to put them on some of the natural rock features in my lower yard. I even used the rock that the bracelets are sitting on as the background for the collage. The shot with me in it was taken using my tripod and self timer while I held one of my other camera bodies…. Did I mention that I have worn out 3 cameras during the 4+ years of this challenge.

2023 was also the year I had given myself a secondary challenge, for each challenge I did one submission in Black and White and the others in my usual color. This was my B&W submission, again, on my back deck photo studio. The subject was an odd shaped vase some juniper sticks, and the few daffodils that had just started blooming, but my idea was to photograph the chair that had so many uses behind the scenes.
The day I shot the B&W collage I also shot the color photos and made them into a collage for the challenge too.

In this collage I used the same daffodils, juniper sticks, stems of dried Flax seed heads, various vases and some toile inside a diffusing light box. All of these were with natural light. I also used Pinx as my photo assistant. I put the different photos on a background that was a piece of sample glass I had photographed to use for collages.

I find I enjoy playing with this type of challenge and hope to continue to play with my camera my ideas and the ideas of my friends.
And the first shot? with the dandelions…. Well that wasn’t my favorite shot it was this shot. I needed one more flower, went out to pick another dandelion and came back with this tulip instead.

Inspiration on my phone screen

I like taking photos of things that inspire me. Then I like to place those photos where I see them every day. I picked up the glass beads in a store because I thought they would make a good gift for one of my nieces but it would be months before I would give them away and so I put them in a place I would not lose them, on the pedestal of the large screen for my computer. It is several years later, and they are still there, because I decided I really liked them for myself. I also really like feathers and am always picking them up on my hikes or just walking down my driveway. The Peacock Feathers I bought at a craft store since I don’t have a good source for them. I love Feathers… I was on my first year of taking Nicolesy’s 52 week challenge and inspiration for each challenge was everywhere or nowhere depending on my mood or the challenge. I had just gotten a new phone and needed a new photo for the screen. I was feeling the need to create and probably needed something for the Green Challenge or the Flat Lay challenge. Sitting on my back deck and looking at the deck floorboards I decided to play with the feathers and the different colored glass beads using the deck boards as the backdrop for the photo. This was the final result, I used this shot for whatever challenge I decided to put it in and then photographed it with my phone and placed it as a screen saver. I see it everyday and it is still inspirational.