CircleCount helps you better understand Google+

2013-06-17 13:06:21 (27 comments, 0 reshares, 57 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Refraction

Submitted to #monochromemonday curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +Dominique Hilbert +David Orr +Martin Heller and myself.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Monday! I have a busy day ahead of me, but I'm looking forward to it for certain! I'll be giving more +1's than comments today and tomorrow for MCM. But that doesn't mean I won't enjoy looking at your beautiful photos just as much!

2013-06-16 01:13:01 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 43 +1s)

Millennium Wheel, London #ukphotographycommunity   #ukpcphoto   #southeastuk   #londonuk  

2013-06-14 18:15:35 (44 comments, 0 reshares, 33 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Transparency

If you participated in my wordlessonwednesday post, you know that I took my family on a day trip to an amusement park. I didn't tell anyone that we were going in advance. Why? Security. I am also hesitant to tell people exactly when I am traveling away from the family on business.

This made me curious regarding how my G+ friends handle their "security" concerns. Aware you like Mr. Robert Scoble who is as transparent as you can get and seems to do well with that approach or are you "old school" like me? Transparency (or the lack there of) is a line we all must address.

I look forward to hearing how you find yours!!

Ps. I didn't tag Mr Scoble, because I respect his position and I know he is very busy too!!

2013-06-12 17:17:17 (25 comments, 0 reshares, 81 +1s)

#wordlesswednesday
#wordlessonwednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-06-10 13:55:08 (40 comments, 1 reshares, 49 +1s)

* Monochrome Monday - Alabaster Inner Glow *

This is a hand carved alabaster jar that I bought during my first trip to Cairo, Egypt in 2007. I put a small candle in it and shut off all the lights. Next, I set my smartphone camera to its macro setting and I turned off the flash (actually I took a photo which reminded me I hadn't turned off the flash yet :-) ) The photo was processed in Pixlr Express.

Submitted to #monochromemonday curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +David Orr +Dominique Hilbert +Martin Heller and myself!

Mondays make up 14.3% of our life, so it is my hope that we all will learn to enjoy them!! ;-)

2013-06-08 03:07:08 (19 comments, 0 reshares, 24 +1s)

Flashback Friday - The Flock - I Ran

Based on my post and the creepy selfie I posted today, I thought the song "I Ran" would be fitting. It seems that even my own wife wanted to run from my post!! :-)

Regarding the band. The Flock was one of my favorite bands to dance to! Have a great night everyone and a great weekend to all, including all my friends who are now sleeping. :-)

2013-06-07 14:56:16 (36 comments, 1 reshares, 46 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Watching You

I had noticed on several occasions over the past couple years on G+ that another G+er would seemingly comment on all the same posts I had just commented on. Meaning, I am commenting and +1'ing multiple posts from people in my various circles when someone would keep popping up in my notifications multiple times due to the fact that they had dropped a comment in the same posts as myself.

This got me thinking that there must be a way to "follow someone around" G+ and/or watch them as they engage this community. At first, I was rather freaked out by this. But then I started to think about it and realized that all of my comments were on public posts. Therefore, public means anyone can see it! After further consideration, I ended up being rather flattered by the fact that someone would want to watch my G+ activities and visit the same... more »

2013-06-06 21:37:00 (50 comments, 0 reshares, 69 +1s)

Got Your Back

I found these three rose buds hanging out behind a fellow rose that had already opened. The patterns in the backside of the rose that had bloomed looked rather interesting to me. Hope you like the patterns too! :-)

2013-06-06 19:02:06 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 47 +1s)

Ishikawa, Okinawa

First monster cloud of the summer season over Ishikawa City in Okinawa, Japan.

Have a great weekend my G+ Friends,

2013-06-05 16:06:32 (26 comments, 1 reshares, 67 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-06-04 15:30:15 (70 comments, 2 reshares, 85 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Salsa Dancers!

The leaves on this Japanese Maple are actually a drab dark reddish brown. But when I looked out the window a few days ago, the evening sunlight lit them on fire! I did my best to make our new neighbors wonder what type of man had moved into their neighborhood, by way of my circling this tree which sits in our front yard, with smartphone in hand as I looked for the right shot! Thankfully I eventually saw these two leaves which seemed to be dancing together! :-) Perhaps they're Flamenco dancers instead? I can never remember the difference between the two...

Hope your day is filled with color and THANKS to everyone who shared with the monochromemonday theme yesterday!!

And Oops! There I go again putting human characteristics on plants and trees +Kari Johnson ! ;-)

2013-06-04 13:10:20 (43 comments, 0 reshares, 87 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

This little flower makes me smile for some reason, so I post it with the hope that it will bring a smile to your face too! And on Monday, I think a smile is always something we can use. :-)

Submitted to #monochromemonday curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +David Orr +Dominique Hilbert +Martin Heller and myself!

2013-05-31 22:27:38 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 21 +1s)

Flashback Friday - The Commitments

My wife +Kari Johnson and I wore this CD out many, many moons ago as it was one of our favorites! The Commitments version of Mustang Sally is pretty darn good in my opinion! Hope you enjoy the tune.

I'm posting my Flashback Friday video a little early with the hopes that my friends on the east side of the big pond will catch it before they hit the hay or the town! ;-)

2013-05-31 17:24:47 (55 comments, 1 reshares, 60 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Giving is Sweeter than Receiving

One of the things that I really enjoy about G+ is the fact that you can have a very fulfilling experience by simply visiting other G+'ers streams and interacting with them on their posts. That is pretty much all I did for the first 6 - 9 months I was on this social platform and it was a wonderful time!

But I think this is a strange concept for a lot of new folks that are joining G+. I don't blame them for wanting people to interact with them on their posts, yet I fear that many will depart without ever realizing what a joy it can be to give comments to other people and then slowly watch as some of those people start to visit their posts more frequently, and then they will even find that eventually some deep and meaningful friendships are also within reach!

This giving vs receiving mindset can also protect... more »

2013-05-30 18:33:03 (38 comments, 0 reshares, 76 +1s)

I'm pleased with what my little smartphone was able to do with this azalea! Just wanted to share a little color with my G+ friends. Hope your Thursdays are going well!?

I'm off to clean the old house, because it's finally empty! Yippee! ;-)

2013-05-29 15:10:43 (17 comments, 0 reshares, 77 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-05-28 17:40:02 (48 comments, 3 reshares, 88 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Unveiled Beauty

I caught this tiny rose bud as it was just began its unveiling process. :-) Its two closest friends were still trying to decide if and when they should unveil their red and luxurious petals!

May your Tuesdays be pleasant and filled with photo opportunities, regardless of where you are!

2013-05-27 14:46:44 (42 comments, 0 reshares, 82 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Separate but Together

These Honeysuckle flowers portray the concept of being separate but together. For me, that's one of the beauties of G+ and Monochrome Monday! We are scattered all over the world, yet every Monday we come together to celebrate our common love of black and white photography! :-)

Submitted to: #monochromemonday curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +Dominique Hilbert +David Orr +Martin Heller and myself!

And I hope everyone, to whom it applies, has a fulfilling holiday!! ;-)

2013-05-24 14:39:37 (56 comments, 0 reshares, 82 +1s)

Social Media Friday - When Things Don't Work As Advertised

This week, mobile has been my only option for accessing G+. And... the app on my smartphone is giving me fits. The main issue is, every time I go into a post in my stream in any circle, after I exit that post I get bounced back to the beginning off that particular stream. This is very annoying, because I then have to scroll back down to where I was and I know that when I go into another post, the same thing will happen! grrrrrrr

What do you do when issues like mine occurs?

Do you notify the appropriate parties, rant about it publicly, steam with anger privately behind the scenes, or delete your account (kidding)!? ;-)

I usually try to stay positive, but I'm rather tired this week, so my G+ mobile challenge is really annoying me!!

2013-05-22 16:15:14 (24 comments, 1 reshares, 66 +1s)

Here's my son DJ's dslr shot of the Mammatus clouds from a couple nights ago!

Day three of The Move is underway! Have a great Wednesday everyone! ;-)

2013-05-22 15:02:41 (14 comments, 0 reshares, 46 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-05-21 19:43:57 (44 comments, 0 reshares, 68 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Day or Should I Say Night One at the New Place

Oklahoma weather is beautiful and terrifying. In Tulsa, we missed the devastation our fellow Oklahomans in the Oklahoma City area (Moore) experienced yesterday. Actually, we were deep in the throws of moving and didn't even know about the tragedy in Moore until we got in the moving van and checked the weather.

This is a quick (noisy) smartphone shot I captured from the driveway of our new place in Broken Arrow last night. These clouds were unbelievable. My son DJ took a few shots with his dslr and I hope to share one later this week!

Back to day two of our move. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Moore.

Ps. I want to thank everyone who reached out to us to make sure the Johnson clan was Ok. That meant A LOT. ;-)

2013-05-21 19:10:18 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 13 +1s)

CIRCLE | PLUS | COMMENT | SHARE
Discuss.

While many of us are taking a pause from uploading new photos (since Google is still busy fixing the album issues), I figured it was a good time for a discussion about how we manage our levels of community engagement...

CIRCLES
"Do you circle everyone who follows you?"
I routinely review new followers as they appear in my Inbox. However, more often than not, unless we share common interests, I'll usually bookmark their profile, and check back again in a week or so. I evaluate the content in their stream, and see if anything sticks out to me. Also, I regularly check for familiarity. Has this person engaged with me on any of my posts or those of my friends? Have I previously engaged on theirs? If the answer is NO, then usually they do not get added to my Circles, but I might come across them in other Communities... more »

2013-05-20 13:14:58 (56 comments, 1 reshares, 107 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Handle With Care

I'm submitting this "edgy" photo to the #monochromemonday theme which is curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +Dominique Hilbert +David Orr +Martin Heller and myself!

I hope your week gets off to a wonderful start today! I am moving the family to our new rental house over the next three days, so I will be popping in and out during rest breaks to say HI and to check out your MCM submissions! The kids are excited about the new house, and so am I, because I'll have my own office in a quiet location!! :-)

2013-05-18 02:28:14 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 20 +1s)

Flashback Friday - Jukebox Music

I was heading into my second year of employment at my first real/career job after college when this song came out.

My best memory of this Garth Brooks classic came at a work friend's wedding in central Wisconsin. I can still remember sitting in a bar in a small town with another work friend (after the wedding ended) trying to close the place down, when this song came up on the jukebox! I liked it sooo much I almost considered ditching alternative rock music at the time... Not really! ;-)

Have a great weekend everyone!

2013-05-17 14:53:02 (53 comments, 0 reshares, 77 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Are You a Scroller?

When the pace of life picks up, I reach for my mobile devices. And when I am sitting at a coffee shop waiting for the arrival of a potential customer and/or friend, I enjoy pulling up G+. In most cases, I probably have 10 or 15 minutes to peruse my stream and I want to maximize my precious G+ time by catching as many photos or posts as possible. This situation causes me to go into Scroll Mode! Meaning, I scroll down through a circle and check out the thumbnail versions of photos and I only read the snippets of text that can be viewed without clicking on the post.

For me, these situations are simply an opportunity to consume content and I am not trying to engage friends and fellow G+'ERS when the busy meter has moved into "crazy" mode!

I am not proud of this confession, but I am curious if anyone else on... more »

2013-05-16 19:15:54 (10 comments, 0 reshares, 11 +1s)

             Top 1000 most followed active
        photographers sharing content on G+
                  Circle One: A to J

This  is the first of two circles,  I'll share the second circle this weekend so that they're not so on top of each other.  The circles have been divided alphabetically to help give more exposure to people with fewer followers.

Please plus, comment and share.  This circle has no requirements for future participation but your support and encouragement is appreciated. 

It has been two weeks since I announced my intent to update my circle of the 500 most followed photographers on G+.  I decided to do things a bit differently this time and so I'll share the top 1000.   To build the circles and the list I enlisted the aid of +Bill Wood +GemmaCosta +Jen Baptist +Kat Scan and +Margaret Tompkins.  They built circles and vetted p... more »

2013-05-16 15:11:47 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 39 +1s)

Mesa Arch

We stopped by Canyonlands National Park yesterday afternoon, another stop on our three week driving trip. While not as big or as crowded as it's more well known neighbor, Arches National Park, it had plenty of beauty and a few arches to see as well.

Not your normal Window, but this is for #windowwednesday  +#Window Wednesday +Jules Falk Hunter +Simon Davis-Oakley +Jason Kowing +Cheryl Cooper +J.J. Bentley 
I missed #nationalparksmonday , but I have more images for future weeks. 

2013-05-15 14:53:19 (24 comments, 1 reshares, 82 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-05-14 13:23:29 (37 comments, 0 reshares, 46 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Red Rose

Red roses remain an elusive capture for me. It is so difficult to recreate their true color in my experience! And I pulled a few thorns into the bottom right corner of this image to remind us that exploring a rose's beauty can be a dangerous proposition. ;-)

2013-05-13 17:04:20 (32 comments, 0 reshares, 58 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Clover

I have developed a fondness for macro photography. Why? Well, for one, it forces me to explore the little things in life that I used to take for granted AND my smartphone also has a decent macro setting. :-) For example, I had never closely examined a cover flower before I took this photo. What a lovely pattern I discovered as I looked straight down at this small flower through the lens of my smartphone!

Submitted to: #monochromemonday which is curated by my friends +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +Dominique Hilbert +David Orr +Martin Heller as well as myself.

I do hope your Mondays are off to a rousing start! ;-)

PS +Dominique Hilbert I forgot to post my original share to Public! Oops!

PSS If I told you the noise in this photo was film grain... would you believe me? LoL

2013-05-10 22:41:06 (32 comments, 0 reshares, 23 +1s)

Flashback Friday - Depeche mode

I was smack dab in the middle of my college days when Depeche mode recorded this video in 1986. This band asked a lot of deep questions via there music which is proven out in this song's lyrics. I listened to this iconic group alot back I the late 80's and early 90's.

Enjoy the weekend everyone! :-)

The audio quality is not the best, but I like the live versions so we can see the styles of the day.

2013-05-10 18:23:07 (42 comments, 1 reshares, 47 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Name that Camera

I usually indicate somewhere in my post what type of camera I used to take a photo. Lately, I have been pondering why I do this. I've come up with a few reasons why I identify in my posts which camera I used to capture a photo (this field of windblown grass photo was captured with my smartphone), but I thought it would be interesting to hear your answer(s) first!

So... Do you name your camera in your posts? If you do, why? If you don't, why?

I look forward to hearing your input and have a fantastic weekend everyone! :-)

2013-05-08 15:03:05 (54 comments, 1 reshares, 91 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#silenceoveronthursday

2013-05-07 16:52:33 (61 comments, 0 reshares, 91 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Crystal Ball

After a lengthy rain a few days ago, I saw several raindrops captured on the small leaves of this hedge. As I approached the hedge for a closer look, with my smartphone camera in hand, this sphere grabbed hold of my eyes and demanded their attention! :-)

Hope you have a vibrant Tuesday everyone!!

2013-05-06 19:28:51 (48 comments, 0 reshares, 69 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - The Rock

I found several rocks in a shallow drainage ditch and this one grabbed my attention. I really liked its texture and creases.

Submitted to #monochromemonday curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +Dominique Hilbert +David Orr +Martin Heller and myself. :-)

Today has been a second consecutive manic vs monochrome Monday for yours truly! I look forward to reviewing a bunch of MCM submissions later this pm! See you then!

This was taken with my HTC One X+ and edited with Snapseed on my Nexus 10.

2013-05-04 01:03:42 (19 comments, 0 reshares, 19 +1s)

Flashback Friday - Pablo Cruz

This was my favorite song from an album I purchased before I had my drivers license which was a Looooong time ago!

Have a great weekend everyone! :-)

2013-05-03 16:33:06 (58 comments, 0 reshares, 46 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Who am I?

There was a period of time, long ago, when I posted on multiple topics of interest. Business, Technology, Social Media and Photography were all in the mix. But it seemed to me that this made it difficult for the people who follow me to know "who I am". Now I'm not talking about my core group of friends who I have interacted with for almost two years in some cases. I am referring to the men and women who are kind enough to follow me, because I posted a flower photo that they liked. If that is the case, then what happens when I post a business article the next day and a technology post the day after that? This could leave then wondering why the circled me, assuming they have no interest in business and/or technology.

It seems to me that picking a discipline or interest, like photography, and sticking with it is less confusing for... more »

2013-05-02 18:45:30 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 6 +1s)

This is my Gratitude Circle

If you received a Notification about this, then you are in it!

***********************

First of all, I'd like to thank +Jari Huomo from whom I borrowed this idea. He posted a similar Circle Share last June ( http://goo.gl/zWn2t ), and regrettably it has taken me far too long to finally put mine together.  Please allow me to apologize in advance if I accidentally left someone out who regularly engages here on my page.

This was a labor of love, as I tried not only to include those that I have regular conversations with here on my own page, but who also are all actively engaging their followers on their own pages.  This is also the first time ever that I curated a circle myself.

Many of these people you probably already have in your Circles, and might recognize from some of the following activities:
... more »

2013-05-02 12:41:14 (66 comments, 0 reshares, 51 +1s)

*Smartphone Thursday - My Favorite Flower *

The lighting wasn't perfect for this shot and the smartphone also took away the DOF control I desired. But the magnificent azalea flowers still shined through my composition challenges and helped me retain a fond memory of my favorite flower! I hope you like it and I hope you have a fantastic day!

BTW - I think I regularly pay too much attention to my camera and not enough attention to the object I am trying to capture. If that makes sense, does this ever happen to you?

2013-05-01 16:41:46 (42 comments, 1 reshares, 60 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#tortureonwednesday

2013-04-30 15:20:52 (23 comments, 0 reshares, 43 +1s)

Colorful Tuesday - Okie Skies on Canvas

Our Oklahoma skies often look like they have been painted due to their vibrant red, pink, or orange coloring. With that truth in mind, I decided to use Pixlr Express to place this Oklahoma evening sky on a canvas background.

Have a great day everyone! This week is looking to be a hectic one which is not to imply that it is a bad one at all. I am in G+ plus one vs comment interaction mode this week for the most part. :-)

2013-04-29 19:55:53 (31 comments, 0 reshares, 71 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Holdout

With the help of the wind, this dandelion has sent forth its seed to spread its yellow glow to fields afar. But one seed refuses to let go...

Taken with my HTC One X+ and edited in Snapseed and Perfectly Clear on my Nexus 10.

Submitted to: #monochromemonday
Curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Dominique Hilbert +Steve Barge +David Orr +Martin Heller and myself!

I've been fairly busy with a professional challenge I'm attempting to solve for a customer and I apologize for my slim presence here on G+ today! I hope to spend some precious MCM time later this pm and tomorrow am! :-)

2013-04-26 23:00:18 (31 comments, 0 reshares, 24 +1s)

*Flashback Friday - Open Arms *

This song reached number 2 on the national charts in America during the month of February in 1982. I turned 18 on February 9th of 1982 and was rather fond of this power ballad at the time!

Have a great weekend everyone! :-)

2013-04-26 03:03:12 (70 comments, 0 reshares, 83 +1s)

Smartphone Thursday - Looking Up... Coming Down...

This was a crazy busy day for me, but it was a great day too!

This is a shot I captured while on a photowalk with my children. My #1 and #3 sons are descending from a street overpass on one of those corkscrew pathways. I edited this using the Snapseed and Perfectly Clear Apps on my Nexus 10.

2013-04-24 15:23:10 (28 comments, 0 reshares, 83 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday
#tortureonwednesday

2013-04-22 16:19:15 (63 comments, 0 reshares, 99 +1s)

Monochrome Monday - Light Reveals Beauty

Sunlight provides a flower with form, texture and beauty. I know it also provides color, but that is a topic for another day! :-)

BTW - This flower blossom was white, so I didn't have to rob it of its color for my offering to this week's addition of the #monochromemonday theme which is curated by: +Hans Berendsen +Steve Barge +David Orr +Martin Heller +Dominique Hilbert and myself.

I hope everyone had a delightful weekend!!

2013-04-26 03:04:15 (49 comments, 1 reshares, 73 +1s)

Social Media Friday - Saturation... Friend or Foe?

Almost every social media network today has a prominent photography component. And statistically speaking, color photography is what people love to share with one another.

With the above in mind, how do you decide how much saturation is enough saturation when composing a photo? I struggle with this, as I want to honor the colors I saw in the flower, yet it is true that if you see them in poor light, bumping up the saturation only seems like the fair thing to do! :-) Perhaps I am overanalyzing things??

l look forward to hearing your thoughts on this colorful topic and have a splendid weekend everyone!!

2013-04-18 18:33:22 (35 comments, 0 reshares, 56 +1s)

Smartphone Thursday - Rose Leaves vs Flowers

I was trying to snap a close up photo of this lovely cluster of rose leaves, but the wind was blowing so hard, the camera could not focus or adjust its exposure because of it. I confess I was frustrated at the time. When I first looked at all my shots, I found that none of them had turned out. They are fuzzy!! Then it hit me that the photos had a slightly painted look to them which seemed like a rather neat, serendipitous effect!

Edited in Snapseed. Taken with my HTC One X+.

2013-04-17 16:13:14 (37 comments, 2 reshares, 89 +1s)

#wordlessonwednesday
#wordlesswednesday