CircleCount helps you better understand Google+

2013-05-18 20:48:00 (2 comments, 1 reshares, 16 +1s)

Want to Know How to Share a Feature Image in an Album in the New Google+?

I am hoping that this will help some to see how the new album functionality can be used to share the image you want, which is in an album. This instructional series of images assumes that the images are already in the album. If they are not, upload the image(s) and DO NOT share at that point. From there, follow the directions given in this set of images. I hope it helps.

The instructions are in the Image titles, but will also be in the first comment for each one, as if you are on mobile you will not be able to read the image titles, I don't think.
#googleplustips   #googleplusphotos   #newgoogleplus   #googleplushelp  

+Google+ Help +Google+ +Google+ Helper 

2013-05-17 16:13:02 (20 comments, 0 reshares, 59 +1s)

Flowering Copper Beech Tree

I have lived here through 15 Springs and seen the copper beech tree growing and coming into leaf each year without, incredibly, ever noticing the absolutely beautiful flowers that it produces. The young red leaves frame them perfectly, too.

Enjoy your Friday everyone! 

Forest Friday  curated by  +Rudolf Vlček #ForestFriday +Forest Friday
FloralFriday  curated by  +Tamara Pruessner +Beth Akerman +Eustace James +Kiki Nelson #floralfriday +FloralFriday
FLOWER POWER  curated by  +Edith Kukla #flowerpower +FLOWER POWER
FlowerFriday  curated by  +Angie Davila +FlowerFriday

2013-05-17 15:11:08 (12 comments, 0 reshares, 40 +1s)

Framed

New kitchen windows at last! Framed is the theme for this week's Project 52 B&W. Not an earth shattering image by most estimations, but certainly makes a big change for us.

Project 52 B&W
Week 20: Framed 
#P52BW13 | +Project 52 B&W 
Curated by +Tisha Craw, +Susan Porter, & +Lauri Novak 

2013-05-17 15:17:05 (5 comments, 1 reshares, 12 +1s)

"Soley Soley" - Rays of Kindness Through the Gloom

It's been a rough week. Sometimes the things that get to us, such as illness, seem to be relentless. It's been that way for me this week. On top of that everywhere there have been constant attacks and complaints aimed at a couple of large corporations. Negativity drains us - certainly it drains me - and is counterproductive. It dulls creativity.

Through all the pain and gloom and misery has come some bright rays of kindness and love. Someone on G+ who knows who he is (Hugo), knowing that I was not well sent me a song that he says always helps him feel better when he needs it. And it did the trick, made me nostalgic (song is from 1971) and brought a smile to my face. And check out the great boots and the hotpants in this video! . So if you want a lift on your Friday, I present Soley Soley - Middle of the Road.... more »

2013-05-16 18:19:04 (9 comments, 2 reshares, 24 +1s)

Saucy Chocolate Pudding

Another chocolate cakey recipe following on my posting of last night. This is actually the dessert I made last night, although I posted about the 5 minute chocolate cake. So to make it right I wanted to post this recipe. I got it from a book I have had for 20 or 30 years so I have had to adapt it - the microwaves are far more powerful now than they were then. The chocolate sauce in mine also started to overspill the edges of the dish so I cooked it less long than directed and it also turned out fine.

So enjoy!

Ingredients
100 gm (4oz) plain flour
75 ml (5 level tablespoons) cocoa
10 ml (2 level teaspoons) baking powder
pinch of salt
275 gm (10 oz) soft brown sugar (I reduce the sugar by a couple of ounces as I am not a fan of very sweet desserts)
175 ml (6 fl oz) milk - I used Soy milk
30 ml (2... more »

2013-05-16 00:13:52 (8 comments, 4 reshares, 12 +1s)

5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

My first posting in the new interface!

Shared for those needing an instant fix. Needs a bit of cream or maybe for the health freaks, yogourt. I like to add a bit of orange marmalade or something to it. Or some orange juice.

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk (I use Soy, you could use almond or rice milk instead of dairy)
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
a small splash of vanilla extract
a bit of something yummy in the way of liquid (tipple or fruit juice)
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to your largest mug and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using), vanilla extract and a drop or two of your favourite tipple, then mix again.more »

2013-05-15 12:14:06 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 10 +1s)

Birdforum.net Kowa Photography Competition

Just out of interest for the bird photographers I follow I thought you might like to see this Kowa competition if you don't know about it already. The prizes are exciting looking. Check the competition rules to see if you are happy with the conditions, of course. It would be wonderful if one of you won!

+Sumit Sen - and I have notified my bird photography circle - forgive the notification if it is not welcome. I do not do this except under unusual circumstances.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=250784

2013-05-15 00:43:06 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 9 +1s)

An amazing display of self awareness that you don't often see in successful people.

2013-05-13 17:48:29 (12 comments, 1 reshares, 28 +1s)

Break in the Clouds

Yesterday evening when we were on our way into town, the light suddenly broke through the clouds over the red barn and fields of this farm. The week's theme is Sky and Clouds, both of which we have had in abundance, lately, but not often both together (either deep blue sky with no clouds, or flat grey clouds with no sky). So here we have the lovely greens of Spring again, the red prepared earth, with a promise of a brighter day ahead (promise fulfilled, by the way) today. The yellow 'crop' you see is a bright field filled with dandelions. Farm crops need rain in the right amount, specially at this time of year, to germinate the crops. So clouds are a welcome sight.

I have missed a couple of weeks for this project, so hope this makes up for it. A rural #novascotialandscape    #canadianlandscape  in +Canada 

#WeeklyPhotoProject2013+We... more »

2013-05-13 00:06:14 (6 comments, 0 reshares, 6 +1s)

With deference to the genius of David Bowie, here's Space Oddity, recorded on Station. A last glimpse of the World. Space Oddity

2013-05-12 12:25:34 (1 comments, 1 reshares, 6 +1s)

Add Most Full Photoshop Functionality to Elements

For Windows users it sounds as if this might be a useful plugin (currently $40 for early adopters) to give a great feature set to Elements previously only found in the full PS version, at a fraction of the price.

If you need CMYK work, or 3D, or 16 bit editing, (which I do), then this is not for you... but otherwise it might bear looking at,

I have not tried this plugin and don't own Elements, but found out about it from +Cary Enoch Reinstein 's posting elsewhere. He references this article: https://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2013/04/02/elementsxxl-plug-in-promises-photoshop-features-without-the-pricetag

2013-05-11 20:39:56 (4 comments, 2 reshares, 16 +1s)

Free Photography Editing Software Choices

For those wanting to explore the free alternatives for working with their photographs, here are some choices.

I have to say that I don't use any of them, so read the information do your own research. I use Lightroom and Photoshop myself. But these seem like a lot of good alternatives.

#software   #softwarelibre  

2013-05-11 15:39:42 (11 comments, 2 reshares, 41 +1s)

Always on the Watch

Checking to make sure that Joni is not in sight, this squirrel is always on the lookout. It never pays to relax her guard. She has no way of knowing that Joni has never in her life come near to catching a squirrel. I think, though, they both enjoy the thrill of the chase.

In celebration of Squirrel Saturday  curated by  +Beth Blackwell +Skippy Sheeskin #SquirrelSaturday +Squirrel Saturday

2013-05-11 10:29:15 (14 comments, 2 reshares, 36 +1s)

Spring Greens

Our Springs happen quickly. They are filled with an intense spurt of growth that happens all at once, as our growing season is short and the plants have to make early headway. What I love most about the Spring is the beautiful soft array of different greens. Set off by the red soil they really are the most wonderful sight. Once summer comes they become much darker and more uniform, with far less variation in the tones and shades.

 I posted a photograph of a tractor preparing the field in the foreground for our Farm Friday theme yesterday. Here you see it all prepared. This was taken on another walk to the mailbox. 

For #RuralSaturday  curated by  +*** #RuralSaturday +#RuralSaturday
Landscape Photography  curated by  +Margaret Tompkins +Carra Riley +paul t beard +David Heath Williams +Bill Wood +Jim Warthman +Ben T #LandscapePhotography+Lands... more »

2013-05-10 20:31:40 (16 comments, 4 reshares, 42 +1s)

Preparing the Fields

My neighbour was doing his spring ploughing, as I walked by to go to the mailboxes. I thought it was about time that I posted a farm related photograph for our own theme, of #farmfriday  +Farm Friday curated by myself, +Ellie Kennard and +Steven Kennard 

#novascotia   #novascotialandscape  

2013-05-10 15:18:43 (19 comments, 2 reshares, 43 +1s)

Magnolia Tentacles Pulled in a Pollinator

Right in the middle of these sea anemone-like tentacles is this little fly that I only saw when processing the photograph. It seems as if everything in the plant world needs insects. We might hate them at times but they are responsible for so much that we see around us, as well as what nourishes us.

I had processed this in B&W (theme being food as it is food for bees, or food for thought....) but posted a different image for that theme. This seemed to be more effective processed in monochrome anyway so I left it this way. #P52BW13   #P52BW13reject  

+In Praise of Polllinators  curated by  +Dusty Gedge #inpraiseofpollinators ++In Praise of Polllinators
FloralFriday  curated by  +Tamara Pruessner +Beth Akerman +Eustace James +Kiki Nelson #floralfriday +FloralFriday
FLOWER POWER  curated by  +Edith Kukla#flower... more »

2013-05-10 15:02:07 (34 comments, 2 reshares, 37 +1s)

Rhubarb Rhubarb Rhubarb

The theme this week is "Food" and although we don't eat the leaves, rhubarb is one of our favourite early fruits. This plant in the field next to us (our rhubarb, not our field) is just starting to grow. As I saw it this morning I thought of an amusing story from many years ago:

My brother was getting married, back in the 70's, in a Buddhist temple in London. Part of the ceremonies included a simple meal for the Tibetan monks and all the guests were asked to bring a food dish as a gift. The monks ate in a separate room to the rest of the guests. At one point, one of them came out and asked a question. The monks wanted to know what the delicious red cooked fruit was. "Rhubarb" was the answer. The messenger went back in and relayed this information. All was quiet for a moment, while this was processed. Then we all heard a general... more »

2013-05-10 10:59:09 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Nova Scotia Artists - Get Your Sharing the View Submissions in Now

We have some wonderful artists in Nova Scotia and now is the time for them to get in their submissions for this great project. Thinking of +Poppy Balser +Alan Bateman +Holly Carr +Ron Hayes  without going very far....

2013-05-09 20:14:20 (26 comments, 2 reshares, 49 +1s)

Sometimes Your Own Drive is the Most Inviting in the World

I was walking up my drive yesterday and saw this lovely splash of colour - pinks and whites in the magnolia tree, flanked with the bright yellow of the forsythia bushes against the backdrop of the soft green of the new maple leaves and deep blue of the sky. The scene was just so welcoming, especially so framed by the dark green of the evergreens.  Welcome to my home.



#close2home +Close2Home by +Brett Sivits +David Pond +Rebecca Johnson +Pia Raben  +Shaun Stewart +José Juan Escudero +Howard Weitzel +john adams
Landscape Photography ~   #landscapephotography  
Curator(s): +Margaret Tompkins +Carra Riley +paul t beard +David Heath Williams +Bill Wood +Jim Warthman 
G+ Page: +Landscape Photography 
#landscapephotography +Landscape Photography by +Margaret Tompkins +Carra Riley +paul tbeard ... more »

2013-05-08 18:42:13 (31 comments, 5 reshares, 68 +1s)

Magnolia Bloom

They last such a short time, these large waxy blooms edged with pink and they fill the air with an intoxicating fragrance which is almost overwhelming. The petals close protectively over the precious centres in the night and they take the punishment inflicted by frost and wind, preventing damage to the future seeds. On a warm sunny day they open generously to allow us to see these fronds, like anemone tentacles.

As soon as we get a good rain and a wind, the beauty of the flowers is blemished and we have to wait until next year to see the magnificence of these blooms again. 

Posting something I was inspired to photograph is more important to me than posting something to a theme that I don't feel. I couldn't fit this into symmetry and see no reason to, so apologies to the  #weeklyphotoproject2013  followers.

#pinkcircle +PinkCirc... more »

2013-05-06 19:44:52 (1 comments, 9 reshares, 14 +1s)

Is Your 'Other' Photo Site Creating Orphan Files of Your Work?

So check this out again and see how everyone stands up as far as preserving embedded metadata is concerned. Flickr is a surprise, at least to me. I should take ours down.
http://www.embeddedmetadata.org/social-media-test-results.php

And the reason you should be concerned is here, in case some have not seen it.
http://www.naturalexposures.com/corkboard/uk-gov-passes-instagram-act-all-your-pics-belong-to-everyone-now/

2013-05-04 10:59:46 (16 comments, 1 reshares, 54 +1s)

A Quiet Moment of Contemplation - the World Looks Pretty Good From Here

Time for a brief moment of rest between dog (and photog) chases. 

Happy Squirrel Saturday everyone!

So glad to share this with Squirrel Saturday curated by  +Beth Blackwell +Skippy Sheeskin #SquirrelSaturday +Squirrel Saturday

2013-05-03 19:18:59 (25 comments, 3 reshares, 61 +1s)

Old Tyme Trucking

Speed? Looks good, but speed is not of the essence for this particular vehicle. A friend has lovingly 'restored' this old truck and was visiting us the other day. Took this speedy shot for today's theme, which is 'Speed'. 

Project 52 B&W
Week 18: Speed
#P52BW13 | +Project 52 B&W 
Curated by +Tisha Craw, +Susan Porter, & +Lauri Novak

2013-05-02 15:51:17 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 21 +1s)

The Storytelling Landscape Photography mentorship is ready for sign-ups!

Ever gone on a trip somewhere and witnessed a spectacular scene unfold before your eyes. You reach for the camera, trying to capture that moment, preserve it for all time to come. When you come back home, you realize that picture you created doesn't remind you of the place you were at. Where has all that magic gone? Where is that story you thought you got? Look no further. This is a special program for tackling those very questions that boggle the brightest of minds. 

In addition to that, we'll also look at building compelling landscape imagery from the ground up, starting from the basics and adding layer by layer to create a masterpiece in the end ;)

 This program is brought to you through the +G+ Mentorship Program for Photographers. I will be taking on a handful of people for a<... more »

2013-05-01 00:34:20 (15 comments, 4 reshares, 20 +1s)

Not Raw (but not cooked) Chocolate Hazelnut non Cheesecake Recipe - Vegan Friendly

Can't wait to try this out, it looks (and sounds, by all accounts) absolutely delicious. I am not bothered, but if you are wanting all raw ingredients the maple syrup is not raw. As I say, I am not a raw foodie, so that is no big deal for me.

Sounds absolutely decadent.

2013-04-29 17:54:24 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 15 +1s)

The S.L.P Mentorship A New Horizon, Teaching

"Always Pass On What You've Learnt"
~ Master Yoda

I started photography in 2011. It was about a few months after I got my DSLR in the middle of 2010. In the first months of 2011, I used to use the DSLR as a Point and Shoot. Stay in Auto mode and fire away. While I liked what I saw, it was never quite what I wished to do. Somewhere in the middle of 2011, I pushed myself to learn photography properly, and got myself an account on Flickr and started posting images. I came across so many Pros there and I was floored by their images. 

I used to wonder how they got their images to look so good, how they got it looking like that out of the camera. Believe me, I didn't even know that you had to "process" your images then. I even sent some mails out to them asking them for guidance, but I got... more »

2013-04-29 16:13:41 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 5 +1s)

What Does the Cloud Hold For Photographers?

If you have wondered about this, make sure to tune in Wednesday and find out!

+Scott Kelby is meeting up with +Tom Hogarty from Adobe to enlighten us all. Don't miss it.

2013-04-27 16:32:28 (18 comments, 3 reshares, 37 +1s)

Bluebell Wood

My daily walk to the mailbox takes me past this little bit of a wood that has been carpeted with bluebells. They look so cheerful, in wind, sun or rain. Not dramatic flowers, just wild and domestic at the same time. A promise of warmer weather and a profusion of more flowers to follow soon.

****************************************
Landscape Photos  curated by  +Robert SKREINER +Landscape Photos 
#landscapephotography +Landscape Photography +Margaret Tompkins +Carra Riley +paul t beard +David Heath Williams +Bill Wood +Jim Warthman +Ben T +jeff beddow +Tom Hierl  +Vishal Kumar  +Michael Blyde  +Carolyn Lim  +Steve Gould  +Jay Gould
NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY +NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY

2013-04-26 18:11:27 (26 comments, 0 reshares, 61 +1s)

Night Light

This week's black and white project theme is Night Lights. The smoke behind the candle was a little touch that I wanted but required an assistant to provide, so thanks to Steven for blowing out the other candle(s) and ultimately for coming up with the idea of the joss stick. Smelled nice too, I forgot we even had them.

Project 52 B&W
Week 17: Night Lights
#P52BW13 | +Project 52 B&W 
Curated by +Tisha Craw, +Susan Porter, & +Lauri Novak 

2013-04-23 20:08:49 (22 comments, 5 reshares, 48 +1s)

Bees Need Water Too

The trouble is that often they fall in and can't get out, especially if the edge is smooth, as it is on this ceramic bird bath. This little piece of rough quartz in the drinker helps the bees to either drink safely without falling in or to get out of the water and dry off if they got wet.

He must have been cold today, but it won't be long before he is warmed by higher temperatures.

+SpringFeverTuesday curated by  +Vesna Krnjic  #SpringFeverTuesday
++In Praise of Polllinators curated by  +Dusty Gedge  #inpraiseofpollinators

2013-04-23 19:30:57 (11 comments, 0 reshares, 13 +1s)

Rocket Rees

Rocket belongs to friends of ours. What to say about Rocket? Keen, attentive, friendly, enthusiastic, with boundless energy. Beautiful. He was at my feet and his mistress spoke to him and he turned only his eyes to her.

**********************************
Dog Days  curated by  +Nancy Claeys +Dog Days
Dog Lovers Worldwide - DLW  curated by  +Robert SKREINER +Michael Boeckels #dogloversworldwide +Dog Lovers Worldwide - DLW
The G+ DogPark  curated by  +su ann lim +J.C. Kendall #G+DogPark +The G+ DogPark
Woof Wednesday  curated by  +Kana Yamashita #WoofWednesday +Woof Wednesday

2013-04-22 23:50:59 (7 comments, 0 reshares, 14 +1s)

"Everytime You Go Away" - Great 80's Memories

Sitting and musically nostalging with Steven. Such great songs. Whatever happened to Paul Young?
#paulyoung   #musicmonday   #musiceveryday  

2013-04-22 20:19:49 (17 comments, 2 reshares, 53 +1s)

Water Wiggler

This week's theme is 'technology' (see below). Yesterday was a day of brilliant sunshine and work in the garden (for Steven if not for me). I did get out our bird drinker and set up this technology. It is a solar powered device with paddles that keeps the water moving (to attract the birds and discourage mosquitoes). What you see is the blue drinker with the little paddles whizzing around and the metal legs that hold the solar powered battery in a case safely above the water. The birds love it.

#WeeklyPhotoProject2013 curated by 
+Andrew Willard , +Iain Harley and  +Tiina Niskanen +Weekly Photo Project 2013
Week 16: Technology

2013-05-08 00:54:46 (12 comments, 4 reshares, 10 +1s)

What?
Please join us for the Google+ Two-Year Anniversary Photowalk!

When?
Saturday, June 29th, meeting up at 2 PM.

Where?
At the moment we have it set to start in Kentville, but if another town (Wolfville for example) is identified as being more suitable for the attendees, it can be chosen. Kentville has the Miner`s Marsh area, which is a great place to go.

Why?
This will be a great occasion to meet other photographers in our area, (whether they are on Google+ yet or not) see and photograph some of the sights around us and most of all, HAVE FUN!!!  This is a FREE event, just for the fun of it. And there could be some exciting prizes. Stay tuned!

Who?
Everyone is welcome to participate. Photographers of all skill levels, from beginner to pro.  What if you only have a cell-phone camera?  YES! You, too! T... more »

2013-04-20 20:13:44 (6 comments, 0 reshares, 20 +1s)

Make Your Pets Happy - Don't Leave Them Alone All Day

Or they might start talking!

2013-04-18 20:32:36 (36 comments, 6 reshares, 85 +1s)

Crocus Blooms - Fade to Black

Yes, even we in Nova Scotia have a little bit of Spring, so it is more flowers in my B&W share this week. These crocus blooms are on my lawn, white with orange/yellow stamens. In B&W they looked good faded to black. And the theme is Fade this week.

I have had to post early for this theme, as I am out in the city all day tomorrow, so I figured 'better early than late'. 

Project 52 B&W
Week 16: Fade
#P52BW13 | +Project 52 B&W 
Curated by +Tisha Craw, +Susan Porter, & +Lauri Novak 


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

Also, as I have not much chance to post to themes these days, I am posting for:
FloralFriday curated by  +Tamara Pruessner #floralfriday +FloralFriday
and
FLOWER POWER  curated by  +EdithKukla... more »

2013-04-17 01:18:05 (2 comments, 2 reshares, 11 +1s)

Dr. Ellsworth Wareham is a 98-year-old cardiothoracic surgeon, who retired from his profession just three years ago. Dr. Wareham, who adopted a plant-based diet in his 50s, shares his insights on healthy living in this inspiring 13-minute video. Please watch...

2013-04-15 22:43:03 (7 comments, 3 reshares, 13 +1s)

It's out and it's Great

I am loving the new features, so any questions? Ask away!
Useful review: http://www.dpreview.com/articles/1304150010/lightroom-5-public-beta-whats-new
#lightroom5   #lr5  

2013-04-15 12:27:22 (4 comments, 5 reshares, 7 +1s)

Absolutely Beautiful - This Will Set You Up For The Day

2013-04-14 19:00:09 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 13 +1s)

Does Photographic Metadata Matter?

This is one of the points under discussion in this article and, while I am preparing this for inclusion as material for a different project, I thought the article was far too important not to post it here.

Google+ does, for the moment at least, retain this vital metadata in photographic  uploads. This is a powerful reason for encouraging Google to maintain this responsible behaviour and to encourage those social media sites who are less so, to reconsider their cavalier attitude to such information. We need to know who did what and when. Now and for the future.

2013-04-12 17:14:35 (57 comments, 6 reshares, 90 +1s)

Orchids in Flight

These orchids looked to me as if they were about to take off with their petals lifted at these angles.  These were photographed earlier in the week in a garden centre before we bought the two orchids yesterday! Now I have two captive subjects for other (more colourful) projects.

Project 52 B&W
Week 15: Flower(s)
#P52BW13 | +Project 52 B&W 
Curated by +Tisha Craw & +Susan Porter
#floralfriday  

2013-04-11 00:52:58 (6 comments, 3 reshares, 14 +1s)

No Freedom - Dido

Lovely song, lovely singer. 

2013-04-10 12:43:28 (2 comments, 1 reshares, 13 +1s)

Such an exciting discovery

2013-04-20 22:29:07 (5 comments, 3 reshares, 31 +1s)

Atlantic Kingfisher - St. John's Harbour at Night

Week 14: Night
#WeeklyPhotoProject2013 curated by +Andrew Willard , +Iain Harley and  +Tiina Niskanen
+Weekly Photo Project 2013

#moonmondays by +Stephen Krieg +SyLvAiN RoUx
and #moonrisemonday by +Stephen Krieg

2013-04-09 19:54:44 (14 comments, 2 reshares, 37 +1s)

St. John's Water Street

Week 14: Night

Today's (tonight's?) theme is Night. We don't get out much at night around here and when we do it is good to have clear skies, which we have not had recently.

So this is a photograph I took in Newfoundland of the great view of Water St. at night. I loved the lights there. 

#WeeklyPhotoProject2013 curated by +Andrew Willard , +Iain Harley and  +Tiina Niskanen
+Weekly Photo Project 2013

2013-04-11 18:00:58 (22 comments, 1 reshares, 53 +1s)

Ride 'n Run

Project 52 B&W - Week 14: Transportation 

A story for Friday

I first sat on a horse when I was 3 or 4. My uncle Al, a wonderful man who was a dairy farmer (of Jerseys) in the beautiful Eastern Townships of Quebec, swung me high up on the back of one of his huge Percheron draft horses in the small dark stable attached to the side of the farm house. I grabbed the tuft of mane in front of me, my legs almost doing the splits across that broad warm back, smelled the sweet smell of hay, horse manure and harness and decided I never wanted to get down.

From that point on the only thing I ever asked for as a gift was a horse. Every year, completely ignoring the fact that we lived in the city, I hoped to find one in my back yard, a surprise, ready for me to  jump on. I pestered visiting artists to paint them for me and when theydi... more »

2013-04-04 20:09:22 (38 comments, 6 reshares, 88 +1s)

Old Cape Spear Lighthouse, Newfoundland and Labrador

So many lighthouses saved so many lives along these rocky coasts. This venerable building is no longer working but still seems to stand guard against the rough seas and treacherous waters below. This lighthouse is at Cape Spear, Newfoundland,and Labrador, at the farthest East point in North America.

No doubt there are tales of heartache and of relief relating to this area that are related by this great storytelling people of this rugged and rocky island. I am partly  bred of this stock and like to think that my own love of stories and writing is due, at least in some measure to this creative heritage, as well as an an inheritance from my mother, who was a writer herself. Certainly looking at this gorgeous old building in this landscape would make even the least creative person's imagination start to work overtime! This... more »

2013-04-01 23:35:22 (21 comments, 3 reshares, 53 +1s)

Boats in the Snowy Fog

I really loved having a room that overlooked the busy St. John's Harbour, especially as the view changed so often. The different coloured ships came and went, dawn broke, sun shone, rain lashed or snow fell, softening the outlines. This afternoon the fog rolled in while it was snowing and the lights on the boats glowed like beacons. 

The evening before we were to leave St. John's for home, the boats all gathered up their crews, their cargos and their lines and departed, like members of the cast in a play, moving on to a different theatre in a different port in a different town. I was just so glad that so many of them had been there during our stay.

#WeeklyPhotoProject2013 curated by 
+Andrew Willard , +Iain Harley and  +Tiina Niskanen +Weekly Photo Project 2013
Week 13: Playing with Light

#mistymonday +MistyMo... more »

2013-03-30 11:59:19 (9 comments, 0 reshares, 10 +1s)

OK.....here's a new composition...written and recorded this morning. A little melancholy piece....pretty peaceful and with a little Celtic influence. Seemed appropriate to set it to some photos that I took on the Devonshire coastal path one rainy morning a couple of weeks ago. Hope that you like it. Please feel free to share it if you do.....and let me know if you recognise the beach! 

2013-03-29 21:09:12 (6 comments, 0 reshares, 5 +1s)

Announcing the Most Relevant Photographers in the #LandscapePhotography theme!!

These are the fine people who share their own great landscapes to the theme, and also interact with others by commenting on and plusing their posts.  Are you here?  Do you want to be here?

Share and Enjoy this great group of engaging landscape photographers!!  They are the TOP CONTRIBUTORS!!  Get to know these awesome engaging people!!  When you comment on their posts, they are likely to comment on yours!  Let’s get the conversation started!!

Brought to you by the great moderators of +Landscape Photography +Landscape Photography Show  ! +Margaret Tompkins +Carra Riley +paul t beard +David Heath Williams +Bill Wood +Jim Warthman +Ben T +jeff beddow +Tom Hierl  +Vishal Kumar  +Michael Blyde  +Carolyn Lim  +Steve Gould  +Jay Gould

#Sharedcircles   #Circleshare   ... more »