Tag Archives: #black and white photography

Small Subjects

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Cee’s Black and White Challenge’s topic for this week is: small subjects.

Here’s the kind of thing she’s looking for…

  • Black and white photography
  • Sepia tones (browns)
  • Selective color with the majority of the photo being in black and white
  • Desaturated – very little color tone left in your photo

So, here’s my entry…

I was up in Galveston a while ago. Wandering around town with a friend after dropping off some of my paintings at the From the Heart Gallery where I’ve been trying to sell some of my art. We were enjoying looking at all the historical buildings, taking lots of photos, and window shopping. I took these photos in one of the antique shops around the Strand. Just a bunch of little china statues of cute little buildings.

CB&W: Fences

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I have a few good shots for Cee’s Black & White Challenge this week. I’m a little late cause I’ve been traveling (to New Orleans) and haven’t gotten around to working on my photos (or blogging) yet.

The challenge this week is to come up with a post about ‘fences and gates’ (in black and white). I just did one on gates, so this one’s on fences. 🙂

I was in New Orleans for the Workboat Show. I skipped out on Friday due to a ‘hot tip’ on a possible job at HOS. I took a chance, rented a car and drove over to Covington. I got lucky and was able to talk to someone. After the interview was over, I decided to have a picnic lunch on the lake. Fontainebleau State Park has a nice beach and this pier right on Lake Pontchartrain. It was a gorgeous day and perfect for a picnic!

Does this count as a fence? Or is it a railing? I’m gonna say it’ll count as both. 😉

After lunch, I wandered around a little and checked out some of the other sites of interest. They had some nature trails, a boardwalk, a playground for the kids, camp sites, and a pond with alligators (I didn’t see any). Here are a couple of shots of the old sugar mill. The whole place used to be a sugar plantation- 2800 acres!

It was getting late, so I headed back to New Orleans in order to miss the traffic. I’m sorry not to have made the short detour into Mandeville (founded by the same guy who built the sugar mill). I really would’ve liked to see their Maritime Museum. Next time!

CB&W: Gates

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I have a few good shots for Cee’s Black & White Challenge this week. I’m a little late cause I’ve been traveling (to New Orleans) and haven’t gotten around to working on my photos (or blogging) yet.

The challenge this week is to come up with a post about ‘fences and gates’ (in black and white). I’m going to do this post on gates and another on fences. 🙂

Here goes…

Gate of Salutation, Topkapi Palace, Istanbul

Gate of Felicity, Topkapi Palace, Istanbul

I took these photos last November. My last major trip, when I traveled around Turkey and then went on safari in Tanzania. I really loved both countries. So much to see and do in both places, but totally different. 🙂

Topkapi Palace was beautiful. It was a large compound and the interesting exhibits were spread out. The black and white photos don’t really do it justice. The amazing tile work was so colorful and full of intricate designs. The view over the Bosphorus was incredible. I could’ve sat there all day watching the ships pass by below. 🙂

Gate at the entrance to the Grand Bazaar, Istanbul

The Grand Bazaar was another incredibly colorful and unforgettable place to experience. A person could easily get lost in the acres of passageways full of shops. You’re assaulted with all kinds of exotic sights, smells and sounds. The shopkeepers are friendly and helpful and will happily tell you all about their wares. It’s too easy to spend all your time (and money) wandering around in there!

 

CB&W- Things Found in a Kitchen

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Thanksgiving is a good day to post about ‘things found in a kitchen’. Good thing Cee came up with this perfect challenge for today. Here are some photos I took in New Orleans at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

I love New Orleans! It’s full of interesting things to do and see. This museum is just one example (here’s a post about another).

The Southern Food & Beverage Museum is a nonprofit living history organization dedicated to the discovery, understanding and celebration of the food, drink and the related culture of the South. While based in New Orleans, the Museum examines and celebrates all the cultures that have come together through the centuries to create the South’s unique culinary heritage. SoFAB also hosts special exhibits, demonstrations, lectures and tastings that showcase the food and drink of the South.

You can learn about all the different foods each state is famous for. You can learn about the history of the cocktail and how to make them. You can take a cooking class. You can try the specialty cocktails at the bar, or enjoy a hearty meal. It’s easy to get to on the streetcar, and the nearby bars and restaurants look worth a try too. 🙂

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Buildings

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Cee always has some interesting challenges going on. She posts some gorgeous photos and the people who join in put some really good one up there too. Everyone is welcome to join in.

I don’t usually work in B&W, nor do I do much fiddling around with my photos. I may crop them a little, or straighten the horizon, but that’s about it. I can see where it can be a lot of fun playing around with the editing software. Here’s what I came up with…

Galveston has some really cool architecture. I was up there a few weeks ago, trying to schmooze my way into some of the art galleries up there (I actually succeeded and have some of my stuff up at From the Heart Gallery now). 🙂

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Rocks

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Cee always has great photos for her photo challenges. I try to join in when I can find the time. This weeks challenge is ‘rocks’.

I have not edited these photos, they’re already pretty much black and white. I like them the way they are. I took all of them at the Houston Museum of Natural Science (at various times).

This is a sandstone concretion- formed when extremely hot water flowed through the fine quartz sand and cemented it together, about 20 million years ago). 

This is gypsum.

This is mesolite and fluoropophylite.

These are quartz crystals.

Aren’t they all just gorgeous?! So much of the natural world is so beautiful, from the macro to the micro. I love taking pictures to remind me of it all.

Check out Cee’s challenge and join in the fun. 🙂

Sculptures, Statues, Carvings: Ganesh

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Cee’s Black & White Photography Challenge this week is: Sculptures, Statues, Carvings. I have a few really nice ones, but most look so much better in color! I originally took these in color and I think they look better that way. The bright red hibiscus flowers and bright green leaves of the ivy really set off the statue.

Ganesh

Ganesh

offerings to Ganesh

offerings to Ganesh

I took these a few years ago in Bali, Indonesia. I love this little statue of Ganesh, (the Hindu god of wisdom and learning). It was right outside my hotel. I love Bali! Notice the offerings, the Balinese people make these offerings every day. Notice the details. They place great importance on beauty and making things better every day.

They have entire villages of wood carvers, stone carvers, painters, silver smiths, etc. I love how they pay so much attention to the arts all over the island. It is a beautiful place naturally, but the people choose to make it even MORE beautiful! 🙂

Sculptures, Statues, Carvings

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Cee’s Black & White Photography Challenge this week is: Sculptures, Statues, Carvings. I have a few really nice ones, but most look so much better in color!

Here’s one that looks just as good in B&W as in color. I took it at the Houston Musuem of Fine Arts a few months ago. It’s a cool place to spend the day. 🙂

Intricate

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Here’s a picture for the Daily Posts’ Photo Challenge.

This is a photo of the underside of a starfish (I took it at the aquarium). Their little ‘feet’ are very intricate. 🙂

Photo 101: Architecture

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I thought I’d try to do this Photography 101 project again, since I wasn’t able to spend much time on it last time and missed a few assignments. Here is my post from last time.

I thought I would have more time this go ’round.

It doesn’t look like I will, but while I’m home, I’ll try to participate. Here’s my entry for the ‘architecture’ challenge. I’m trying to find some good ones I can make black and white.

Here are a couple of shots I took a few years ago when I was in Argentina for vacation. I really loved it there. I wish I could have spent months there instead of only couple of weeks. These photos are both from Buenos Aires. The first one is looking down the neat old spiral staircase I found at my first B&B. The bottom one is looking up into the skylight of a market

I think they both show some great ‘bones’. I have some other good photos of architecture from that trip, but most of them look better in color. I don’t usually think in black and white.

Do you think that might help to get better photos?

PS- the ‘featured image’ is also from Buenos Aires. I took it while I was wandering around down near the river one day. I don’t have any idea what the building is.