This week’s Lens-Artists challenge is to explore and try out different blog challenges. I always enjoy a good blog challenge to connect with other bloggers, go through old photos that are in my hard drive and make its way to my blog, and exercise my creative muscles. I always love a good mix of writing and photography. Here are some blog challenges I participated in:
Continue reading Lens-Artists Challenge #181 – Double DippingTag: Lens-Artists Photo Challenge
Welcomed by warm light
I was hanging out in downtown LA with one of my friends who was visiting from the Bay Area. We were trying out different food at Grand Central Market and we decided to walk it off around the area. Without even trying to look for the Bradbury building, we opened the door and there was the iconic atrium recognizable in films such as Blade Runner (1982), The Artist, and (500) Days of Summer.
Unfortunately, we did not get to explore beyond the foyer.
Continue reading Welcomed by warm light
High sand dune, low lagoon
Huacachina, Peru is a pretty cool place to take photos, though it’s very touristy. I did not ride the sandbuggy nor sandboarding, my husband and I walked (or crawled) to to the top of the sand dune. We were stepping away from the tourist-heavy parts to admire these waves of sand.
Catching the light
For this week’s Lens-Artists photo challenge, It’s All About the Light, I immediately thought about Reykjavik and its two main landmarks: the Hallgrimskirkja church and the Harpa Concert Hall. I love the way those buildings capture light.
Hallgrimskirkja church – at eight in the morning…on a November day.
Harpa Concert Hall early in the morning.
Harpa Concert Hall later in the day when the sun was high. Looking at the above photo, there’s this cool transition where on the right side, it almost looks like a pencil drawing. Quite a cool effect. There’s no filter needed.
See you next time, Iceland.
Postcard pastime
Here is my postcard collection. This is only a fraction of it. I get postcards from friends when they go on their vacations and I return the favor. Plus, when I travel I sent postcards to myself. It’s my little souvenir.
I also do this thing called Postcrossing where I would send a postcard to someone in the world and I would get a postcard back. I did this in my early 20s when the thought of travelling somewhere was just a dream. At the time, I was working an entry level job so I was not making a lot of money — just enough to pay for rent, food, gas, student loans, some fun, other debts, and some savings. Receiving postcards kept my dream of travelling somewhere alive — a reason to go on vacation. I guess I did a lot Postcrossing in my early 20s because I felt like I was in a funk.
Continue reading Postcard pastime
A trip to the aquarium
This week’s photo challenge is so much fun. I have not processed photos in such a long time. I love how the black and white effect transformed my photos from my trip at the Long Beach Aquarium. I have to confess the original photos were not that great and I blame the barrier picking up the reflection of my phone and well…other phones. Thank you for hosting such a fun challenge, Anne!
Update: for reference, here are the original photos:
Here are some black and white photos around the blogosphere:
- Bends Branches – a beautiful landscape of the hills dotted with buffalo.
- A New Day – The black and white effect on this house in the middle of nowhere looks incredibly clean!
- A Meditative Journey with Saldage – A wonderful collection of black and white photos. They transformed seemingly ordinary objects into something more abstract.
- Tish Farrell – The B&W effect on harvest machines almost looks like like a silhouettes.
- One Woman’s Quest II – Birds in B & W. Wonderful close-up shots.
Water play
Playing with water, wet. Playing with fire, burned.
Indonesian Proverb
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #155 – On the Water. Host: Journeys with Johnbo.
A few “On the Water” posts around the blogosphere:
- Oh, the Places We See – Featuring one of my bucketlist destinations: Lake Como!
- Stupidity Hole – Another bucket list destination: The Sydney Opera House.
- 100 Country Trek – Enjoy the shoreline of New Brunswick.
- Murtagh’s Meadow – For a peaceful lake view.
- Al Batz’s Travel Adventures – Check out these incredibly STUNNING boats! There is a rooster boat, a peacock boat, and a dragon boat.
Two ducks, two views (PPAC #2)
I’ll be doing two prompt in one post. One is the Lens-Artist Photo Challenge and the theme is One Duck Photo, Two Views hosted by Tina. The second prompt is the Photographing Public Art Challenge hosted by Cee Neuner.
The Rubber Duck photos return! In the first photo the focus is on mama Rubber Duck and baby Rubber Duck. Step back, the focus is on the fans stopping by to meet the 40-foot world explorer.
Update: 7/3/21
A few public art posts around the blogosphere:
- Bend Branches -Lovely collection of artwork in Tin Pan Alley.
- Travel with Me – Manholes as a canvas? I don’t recall seeing these in Japan. But then again I was there about 15 years ago.
- My Camera and I – Statues carved out of tree trunks.
- One Million Photographs – A gorgeous wooden wolf howling.
- Marsha Ingrao – Always Write – Have fun figuring out these petroglyphs!
A few posts around the theme: One Photo, Two Views
- John’s Space – Though it seemed like he was joking, flipping the photo did make it look like an alternate universe.
- Slow Shutter Speed – The field of sunflowers is instant happiness.
- Oh the Places We See – Shares some photo tips on how a few things as simple as weather or changing the filter can transform a subject.
Shade and shadow
“I thought the most beautiful thing in the world must be shadow.”
― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
This week is appropriately named since it’s been so hot the last few days in Los Angeles. At some point during the week, we’ve been experiencing temperature high s 106 degrees and it’s not officially summer time! Whenever it gets this hot time I daydream about hanging out somewhere coastal…or anywhere near water really…
Lens-Artists Challenge #152 – Shades and Shadows
Some shades and shadows around the blogosphere:
- WordsVisual – a lovely collection of shade and shadows
- Murtagh’s Meadow – How my dog looks on hot days.
- Albatz’s Travel Adventure – A gorgeous sculpture producing the loveliest shadow.
- Photography in Pearls – These birds have the right idea.
- Tish Farrell – Shadows sculpted by sand…
- Tranature – Such a peaceful collection…
Large to small
This is an interesting challenge. It reminds me of those cardboard children’s books where each page there is a small cutout of a color and it leads you another object to the next page and on to the next page. If this was a children’s book, it would a color feature and the first page would start off as a large object going down to a small object with that color.
I decided for this challenge to play with the color yellow because it’s warm, inviting, and fun. Plus, I wanted some excuse to share a photo of the gigantic Rubber Duck sculpture. I remembered when the duck arrived to San Pedro many years ago, I dragged my boyfriend (now husband) to go check it out after work. I think if it were to make a children’s board book around the color yellow, these photos could pull it off…
Mama duck and baby duck in San Pedro 
Sunflowers in Parque de la Reserva (Lima, Peru) 
“Owl Eyes” on a butterfly (Costa Rica)
Here are some colors from large and small across the blogosphere!
- Photographias – Red
- Anvica’s Gallery – Orange
- Philosophy Through Photography – Blue
- Solaner – Violet
- Scilla Grace – White
…plus other fellow yellows!
Lens-Artist Challenge: Large to Small
CMMC – June Color – Yellow
Go Wild in Los Angeles
Yup, another hiking post. When I first started this blog, it was focused on hiking trails around Los Angeles. But knowing myself, this blog eventually became a place where I wanted to write about things I like aside from hiking. I just could not stick with a niche for too long Anyways, this is one of my favorite trails and it’s located in Encino which is less than 15 minutes from my home. For those not from the area, it’s right off the infamous 101 and 405 freeway.
I am standing on a trail enjoying the wild rolling green hills on one side.
Look the other way and you get a view of this polished golf course and some large homes. Plus there’s the 405 freeway, Brentwood, the Getty Center, and Bel Air.
Lens-Artists Photography Challenge #150: Let’s Get Wild (host: Dianne)
Here are some wild photos I came across the blogosphere:
- jazziBeeblog – A lovely collection of Scottish wildlife!
- Space Stories by Gift – A 110,000 year old lake in Hokkaido, Japan. It’s like their Lake Tahoe there.
- Slow Shutter Speed – Experience the Totality Solar Eclipse without those special sunglasses.
- scillagrace – A wonderful collection of American wilderness. It takes me back to my teen years when my family and I would roadtrip every summer.
- Travels and Trifles – Features a lovely photo of Patagonia which is on my travel bucket list.
- Travel with Me – Torres del Paine National Park — more of Patagonia.
- TBL – A lovely floor of swamp marigolds found on the trail. They’re such lovely ground cover I’d consider getting some of my front yard.
Finding blues and greens in the city
The most underrated feature of LA would have to be the nature and finding it is a lot closer than you think. I enjoy going to any green space to clear my mind after a long hard week at work. I know my husband fantasizes about living in the countryside, but to be honest I think he’d be tired of it very fast. If we lived in the countryside, would we seek solace (or fun) in the city if country life got monotonous? For me, I like to think finding a piece of nature in the city is a treat.
Lens-Artist Photo Challenge: Cool Colors – Blue and Green (host: Tina)
Some green and blues I came across the blogosphere:
John’s Space – featuring the most gorgeous lilacs!
Slow Shutter Speed – A beautiful ocean drive from San Jose to Pacific Grove.
Leya – A beautiful collection of greens and blues.
My Camera and I – Another beautiful collection featuring this lake.
Bulldog travels – shares photos from the Golden Gate Park Botanical Gardens. I haven’t been to that place in years. I loved how that city is so bikeable and walkable — although incredibly expensive!
P.A. Moed – Check out that mural! It’s stunning! Very Narnia like!
The Showers of Blessings – A very interesting history of peacocks in the San Gabriel area. Since I live in LA it explains some of the street names.
Bend Branches – beautiful sky shots!
Eat, Play, Live 