Tomatoes, fresh from the garden, and a bit of salty bacon, on toasted rye bread. Ahhh….love this time of year.
White…
Happy World Photography Day!
“More than ‘just’ a picture and more than ‘just’ art. A photograph is a memory frozen in time, emotions and all.” – Korske Ara
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Looking down…
Deep grief sometimes is almost like a specific location, a coordinate on a map of time. When you are standing in that forest of sorrow, you cannot imagine that you could ever find your way to a better place. But if someone can assure you that they themselves have stood in that same place, and now have moved on, sometimes this will bring hope.
Elizabeth Gilbert
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Weekly Photo Challenge: Carefree
The world is alive, blinking and clicking, winking at us slyly, inviting us to get up and dance to the music that’s been playing since the beginning of time, if you bend all the way down and put your ear to the ground to listen for it.
Shauna Niequist
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Books…
For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you.
Ann Lamott
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Still…
Open Doors, Mexico City by Tina Modotti from the Getty Collection that has now been made open for use.
Still…
I love this word and the way it contains paradoxical meanings. It inspired the name of my blog, Still and All.
This wonderful still was made by Tina Modotti, a photographer working in the 1920s. It is part of the Getty Collection that is now open to public use. (In this program, the Getty makes available, without charge, all available digital images to which the Getty holds the rights or that are in the public domain to be used for any purpose. No permission is required. Go have a look at the photography collection!)
Tina Modotti is considered to follow the tradition of contemplative photographers, which has captured my attention and curiosity. Being interested in photography has led me to an interest in photographers, particularly female ones.
Tina Modotti was a fascinating character who had a varied and full life, having been an actress, model, activist, photographer’s assistant and then photographer. She apprenticed with Edward Weston and was a contemporary of Frida Khalo. She documented many of Diego Rivera’s works, and in addition to still lifes, she focused her lens on the country people of Mexico.
Kim Manley Ort has written a piece on Tina Modotti for her blog that you may want to have a look at.
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Faraway…
Faraway in time, not space…
I love this old polaroid of me sitting under our crabapple tree (planted in 1967 to celebrate Canada’s Centennial) with my little sister on the left and a friend from down the street on the right. My Dad took it, I’m sure, maybe he was trying out his Polaroid camera.
These were the summers of playing outside all day, every day, making forts in the fields, leaving notes for each other in “the old gutter” and only coming in when we had to for supper. TV watching was rare and of course there were no personal computers. We were always living in the moment.
We left the moment — as you need to sometimes — to dream and imagine different worlds by reading books at night, sometimes getting so involved we didn’t want to stop so we read under the covers with flashlights.
Everything seemed possible, then…but everything we did and dreamed then is still with me now…
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A whole town comes out to play…
What does it look like when a whole town comes out to play, and invites people from all over to join us?
It looks something like what you see above — the annual two-day international puppet festival held in Almonte, Ontario, which has a population of 5,000 and is a half-hour drive from Canada’s capital, Ottawa.
We dropped by earlier today to join in the festivities of this remarkable event — now in its ninth year — and revel in the art of play and fun.
Over the festival weekend, some 10 puppet troupes offer 60 separate puppet performances in five venues — some in tented theatres and others in the historic buildings of downtown Almonte. Most of the shows are geared to the younger set but there is even an adult-oriented puppet show in the evening! And the festival welcomes performers from across Canada, the United States and this year Hungary.
Shopkeepers and vendors also set up little tents along Mill street where you can buy refreshments and all manner of puppet-related and fun items. You can have your face painted and play dress up in a special area.
The amount of volunteer work donated by local townsfolk to make this weekend possible is incalculable. But the festival is a real source of pride for Almonte residents. And I think it’s particularly great that the two things that Almonte is mainly known for — basketball and puppets — are both all about fun and play!
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Philosopher in red…
The scene here is the Philosopher’s Walk in Toronto, a scenic footpath not far from the famous intersection of Yonge and Bloor (where I used to work many years ago).
This hidden byway runs in the north-south direction. On one side is the Royal Ontario Museum and on the other is the Royal Conservatory of Music. As you walk (or bicycle) you are surrounded by beautiful Old Victorian buildings and stately old trees. Sometimes you will hear musicians rehearsing in the courtyards. This is the heart of the University of Toronto campus. If you head south from Bloor, you reach the trendy Annex neighbourhood. It’s a handy shortcut for many.
I was surprised to learn that the path follows a ravine landscape created by Taddle Creek, which was once a natural waterway and is now flowing underground. People from all over of all ages come here to people watch and enjoy the verdant loveliness right in the heart of the city. And perhaps to philosophize.
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Weekly photo challenge: One shot, two ways
Potrait, landscape
Portrait, portrait
When shooting portraits, I sometimes find that I prefer the landscape version to the classic portrait version. Of course, it depends on many factors, so there are no hard and fast rules. Maybe I like it because the landscape version can allow for more of an environmental portrait, showing the individual and the environs. The vertical shot singles out the subject more, and often that’s what you’re aiming for.
But, no matter which one you like best, we can probably agree that it’s almost always a good idea to experiment and try different ways of shooting the same thing! And in this case, it’s a very handsome — and considerate — young man!
Sherrygaley.com 