Sunday, December 31, 2006

Coloured Sky

As promised, I am sending three photos that show the colours in the clouds on December 28. I was in the shade of a hill looking towards the sun when I took these photos. I suspect it has something to do with sunlight refracting through water drops or ice crystals in the clouds and that it is similar to a rainbow.

Happy New Year to everyone on this list. My wish for all is that all your prayers and wishes be answered throughout 2007.



Saturday, December 30, 2006

Winter Scenes

Today I am sending two photos from a recent hike to the hills behind my house. The first shows my view of the lake as I exited the trail that took me from my house to Main Beach Pond. I liked the early morning light reflecting off the thin layer of ice that covered the lake and the delicate light reflecting off the trees. A very peaceful scene.

The second photo shows an interesting view of trees and multi-coloured clouds. I have other photos that show the coloured clouds. They will be the subject of tomorrow's Photo of the Day.


Friday, December 29, 2006

Winter Hills

Yesterday I hiked to the hills behind my house. I took quite a few photos including the two I am sending today.

There are coyote tracks around the area and I saw them everywhere I went. I could almost imagine a coyote running across the hills in today's photos.



Thursday, December 28, 2006

Southern Harbour and Nativity

Taken in Southern Harbour one late evening last August, today's photo shows a couple of fishing stages with boats tied to the wharf. Southern Harbour is a photogenic community located in Placentia Bay.


The Nativity Scene was actually a fairly large painting hanging in the exhibit at the Basilica Museum. This is the last Nativity Scene for this year. Many people have been enjoying all the Nativity Scenes according to the positive feedback I have received.



I have a new photo product, U-Pic Slide Shows, and you can order slide shows of the Nativity Scenes, or any other theme that I have available. Feel free to view the samplers I have posted on YouTube -
http://www.lanephotography.com/uPIC/index.htm.

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Lily and Nativity


The three flower photos this morning are all from the same image which was made inside without a flash and with very little natural light. I used ISO 1600 and no tripod. The first image shows the result - fairly dull and little contrast.


The second image was the result when I used the Auto-Equalize tool in Corel PhotoPaint. It increased the brightness and contrast improving the image. (There should be a similar tool in most photo manipulation programs.)


For the third photo, I converted the second one to B & W, which I really liked and am now using on my desktop. It took longer to write these comments than to create the 3 photos - once I had the idea to alter the original.

The Nativity Scene was made in the USA and is called Wildflower Nativity. It looks like it is made from ceramic, but it was behind glass so it was hard to tell for sure. It is difficult to see in the reduced photo, but there is great detail painted on the figurines in this scene.

Tuesday, December 26, 2006

Christmas and Nativity

Merry Christmas

The miniature village in the first photo today was taken a few years back. I created a black background and removed the wires to make it more "Christmassy".

The Nativity Scene was made in Fogo, Newfoundland and Labrador. For those people who are not aware, Newfoundland and Labrador has its very own tartan which you will see on the bottom pf today's image.

____________________________________________________________
Photo of the Day - The gift that keeps on giving.

If you know friends and family that may enjoy receiving my Photo of the Day, please send them a copy of today's Photo of the Day and tell them to click the link below.

Photographer, K. Bruce Lane, sends a free Photo of the Day to over 750 people around the world. Photographic subjects vary but most are taken in Newfoundland and Labrador.

To join the Photo of the Day list, click the link below and SEND.
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Visit my photo galleries on line.


Sunday, December 24, 2006

Merry Christmas

The house with snow was taken on New Year's Eve in 2001. I believe that may have been the last Christmas that I remember photographing Christmas scenes with snow.
The Nativity scene today is a triptych (see definition below).


(A triptych (pronounced "trip-tick," from the
Greek tri- "three" + ptychē "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) which is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged together. The central panel is the most important one, and this is flanked on either side by two lesser but related paintings. The whole is intended to be greater than the sum of the parts. Wikipedia.)

I am also including a Christmas "Card", one of several I created yesterday that I will send to you over the next few days. The first card is an abstract image of a Nativity scene in my house. As I took this photo I moved the camera while taking the photo. I really liked the result - a couple of figures in focus (pure luck) and other figures in the background and appearing to be more transparent ...
____________________________________________________________

Photo of the Day - The gift that keeps on giving.

If you know friends and family that may enjoy receiving my Photo of the Day, please send them a copy of today's Photo of the Day and tell them to click the link below.

Photographer, K. Bruce Lane, sends a free Photo of the Day to over 750 people around the world. Photographic subjects vary but most are taken in Newfoundland and Labrador.

To join the Photo of the Day list, click the link below and SEND.
I accept your invitation to join the Photo of the Day List





Saturday, December 23, 2006

Sunrise and Nativity

I took a few photos as the sun rose this morning. The colours and clouds were dramatic and marked the first day after the Winter Solstice. From today to June 21 the days will continue to get longer each day. : )

Last evening we had a few snow flurries that has made the ground white. It probably won't last since we are supposed to have rain and 8°C (46°F) on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

The fairly traditional Nativity scene today is made of stained glass and has figures of Mary, Joseph, Baby, wise men, animals and Star of the East. This scene was tough to photograph because it was contained in a glass case and is made of glass. There were a lot of reflections so I moved as close as possible to the glass to try and get rid of as many as I could.



Friday, December 22, 2006

The Dungeon and Nativity

Near Cape Bonavista is a natural structure called the "Dungeon" by local people. The ocean has broken through the rock cliffs and has created a steep cliff that looks down on the ocean crashing through two caves or arches. I have attached two photos of the Dungeon for you to view.

The Nativity scene today is from Peru and is made of paper and clay. The long necks on the figurines, including the baby, is of interest in this scene.




Thursday, December 21, 2006

Cape Bonavista and Nativity

My cable modem was out from Saturday to Wednesday - my apologies for not sending a Photo of the Day during that time.

The steep cliffs at Cape Bonavista are sedimentary rocks which have been exposed to the elements of Nature for millions of years.

The Nativity scene today is from Kenya and is made of banana leaves. Because of the outage, I am behind on the Nativity scenes that I had chosen to send you this year. During the Christmas Season, I'll probably send a few extra.



Thursday, December 14, 2006

Clothesline + Nativity 12

I have numerous photographs of clotheslines, but only a few taken in winter. Today's photo was taken in Dunfield, Trinity Bay on a cold winter morning. I can only imagine how cold it was for the person hanging out the clothes, because I was freezing while taking the photo.

Like yesterday's photo, today's Nativity scene from New Mexico was enclosed in a glass case that created many reflections. If you look closely you can see a reflection of me.


Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Storm-petrels + Nativity 11

In early September we had quite a wind storm that brought hundreds of small seabirds to the beach and shoreline around Holyrood. The storm- petrels live their lives at sea and don't do well on land. I photographed several dead birds that were hit by cars or just died because they couldn't get back to the sea. The two photos this morning show one of these birds skimming the water. They almost seemed to be walking on the water as they fed.

If you are interested in seabirds, feel free to check out my Birds Galleries - http://www.lanephotography.com/birds/birds_main_01.htm

The ceramic Nativity today is more traditional than most I've sent so far this year. Photographing this one was a challenge because it was enclosed in a glass case that created many reflections which I tried to avoind by kneeling. The tag (just behind my name) is about 1 inch high, so you can see that the figures are fairly large. Because of the angle I shot this scene, the figures in front look larger than those in back.




Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Sunrise _ Nativity 10

Today, I decided to send a couple of photos of another sunrise that I photographed from my backyard. The peace that I feel during the early morning while photographing a sunrise is real; beautiful and still. Maybe you can get a sense of it from my photos today.

The Nativity today is a small ceramic lamp similar to the one I sent yesterday. The light adds a peaceful feeling to this scene as well. The colour of light in this scene reminds me of the colour of light in the sunrise.




Monday, December 11, 2006

Little Harbour East + Nativity 10

Little Harbour East is a photogenic little village located in Placentia Bay. I passed the sign on the Trans Canada Highway for nearly 40 years before I took a chance on driving down the road. To my surprise it was only a 4 km drive and I was treated to a great photo op.

There are a few more photos of this community on my web site.http://www.lanephotography.com/little_harbour/little_harbour.htm
The Nativity today is a small ceramic lamp. The light adds a peaceful feeling to the scene.




Sunday, December 10, 2006

Snow Scenes and Nativity 8

Rain on Friday took the snow away in this area of the province, but I went back through my files to find a couple of snow scenes to share with you. The first was taken in Holyrood one winter morning a couple of years ago. It was snowing and the sun was trying to break through the clouds. As I drove by, I noticed the tall tree and red barn with the bright light of the sun in the background so I stopped to photograph the scene.

I was driving home from work one afternoon and took the time to stop and photograph the snow drifting across the highway. I work in St. John's so I drive in and out this highway twice a day (except weekends) in all types of weather.

The Nativity today is a more traditional looking scene with manger, Mary, Joseph, Baby and angels. There is another, much smaller figure, in the scene as well. I have seen other nativity scenes with a child, but I am not certain if this figure represents a child or not. It is sculpted from wood, but since there was no tag near this one, I am not sure where it is from.

My Nativity Scenes video has had 20 views this week. I've also uploaded a video about nutcrackers. Here is the link to all my videos - http://www.lanephotography.com/uPIC/index.htm




Saturday, December 09, 2006

Trinity + Nativity 7

The town of Trinity has marketed itself as a centre of culture on the Bonavista Peninsula. Thousands of visitors a week visit the area to view plays, attend dinner theatres and pageants, visit museums and historical premises. People in the town have great pride in their properties and every time I visit, I photograph as many as possible.

This morning I am sending a photo taken last August as I walked around the town. I thought that the gravestones in someone's backyard was very interesting.

The Nativity today is a miniature scene from Peru. Once again, you should notice that the Nativity scenes definitely reflect the culture of the artists. I really like the figures in this scene and am sending closer views.






Friday, December 08, 2006

Sunrise and Nativity 6

The dramatic red sky was taken in my backyard early one morning. This time of the year, I see the sunrise every day that it isn't too cloudy, but usually I am driving to work as it happens. I stop sometimes, but the traffic is fairly brisk and I am in a hurry, so I don't get an opportunity to photograph them all. It is too bad because they are all so beautiful, and peaceful.

The Nativity today is a miniature scene from Mexico. The tallest figures in this scene are no more than an inch or two. There are at least 14 figures in this scene that reflect the culture of the artist.



Thursday, December 07, 2006

House and Nativity 5

The first photo this morning is a combination of two photos: a snow scene and a gingerbread house. I photographed the gingerbread house at school a few days ago and removed the background and added to the snow ... I thought it would be a nice Christmas image.

The Nativity Scene today is a little different because it shows Mary and Joseph standing with the Baby rather than kneeling. The figures were fairly big - probably 10-12 inches tall.



Tulips

Tulips Tulips are a sign of spring, but my tulip gardens are under a foot or two of snow. It will be a while before we see the beauty of the...