Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: silhouette

(+2 insets!) (you won't be disappointed at the full-size version!) (please scroll down to "Today's Pictures" for information about the insets) Updates from the Home Front I am still trying to thaw out from my morning tromp up and down the driveway--it was a mere 26.5°F / -3°C when I stepped out this morning…YIKES! But I couldn't ask for a more beautiful start to the day. A bright and sunny day with cloudless sky, sparkles greeted me everywhere I turned and as I walked, it was like a spangled parade of twinkling brilliance accenting every step. My feet crunched solidly on the frozen ground and I was amused that the pile of rocks I used to keep track of my laps was frozen solid to the larger rock slab they sat on. Carefully stepping on the stones loosened some of them but alas, a couple refused to budge from their bond and I was forced to use a couple of substitutes to take their place. Heh… Trailer Updates It's been too cold for Steve to do a lot of work on the trailer but he's done what he can if ever the temperature cooperates. Our shop is not heated or insulated very well, and is intolerable to work in if it's too cold. I don't blame him! Even though the trailer is comfortable, much of Steve's work involves use of the shop's many essential tools so there's just no getting around this roadblock. However, he was able to finish an important step a couple of days ago and both of us are ecstatic! The Problematic Entertainment Center One of the things we wanted to address was the "entertainment center" that came with the trailer when we purchased it. This standard feature, found in most trailers, included a nook with a stereo and flat-screen television attached to the wall. Below all of this was a faux fireplace behind glass that actually uses a heater to simulate warmth coming from the artificial wood and graphical fire. Our Artificial Fireplace…is Actually AWESOME! We first thought the fireplace was the ultimate in cheesy, artificial stupidity. But slowly we came to realize that it was not only ok--it was actually wonderful! True, the fireplace is the pinnacle of fakery--you can even change the color of the "fire" and "glowing embers" to a variety of choices--OH BROTHER! But then something wonderful happened: we gave the dumb thing a chance and of all things, had to admit that it was pretty awesome. Changing the color of the flames from gold to purple or blue or green…that was so much fun! (I found this video in on YouTube which shows something vaguely similar to ours (click) We also recognized that the heat that came from the "fire" was wonderful and surprisingly accurate--intensely hot like a real fire if you were too close, cozy and warm if you sat back on the lovely entertainment lounge chairs that sat opposite to the entertainment center. We love our cheesy fireplace now and it reminds us of fun things we had years ago like lava lamps and plasma nebula globes. That TV Has To Go…We Need the Space for Something USEFUL! However, the television aspect of this center was a big, huge NOPE! At first Steve tried to convince himself that it was nice and that we'd use it a lot, but I wouldn't leave him alone about it. I kept reminding him, "DUDE...we'll NEVER EVER use it. We don't WATCH tv except for an hour at night to camp Chicken* before bed, and that's in the bedroom!" Finally he admitted that it was a horrible waste of space. What's more, there was no place to put our espresso machine and grinder, nor did we have enough room for our electronic charging area. The obvious choice would be to pull out the tv and turn it into a coffee bar with a cabinet above for the charging stuff and electronic gadget storage. *"Camping Chicken" is a nightly ritual where I climb into bed and put the sheets over my legs to make a cave. Our parrot, Pumpkin, goes into this cozy space to clean her feathers and settle down while we watch a tv show or part of a movie. After the show we coax her out from where she's snuggled down next to her "pet foot" and after kisses, we put her into her night cage's sleeping tent. Creating the Coffee Bar After a bunch of issues along the way--we tried putting in tiles, only to discover that they lifted and the grout cracked horribly. It then occurred to us, er…duh?...we never considered the fact that an RV in motion is like a nonstop earthquake...tiles would have NEVER worked. We would need a one-piece solution..but what? As a lucky find, Steve was wandering around a home-improvement store one day and discovered a one-piece, 4ft counter kit that would PERFECTLY slide into that spot! The color scheme also went exactly right with the coach! And so with all ducks in a row, Steve installed and siliconed the counter into place and finally, with peacock tail at full and glorious display, ushered me over to take a peekie at his workmanship. It was absolutely marvelous! The counter is better than the tile could have ever been and actually looks as if it were an original installation--how cool is that?! And without the tv in place, there's a wealth of extra room. In fact, during our first plan to put tiles in place, we ended up gaining 1.5 feet of extra space! The removal of the tv and the mechanism that held the tv was nearly a foot of valuable depth that we recovered. Then, upon further investigation, we discovered that the wall behind the tv, when removed, revealed another half-foot of unused space! Every inch of room in a trailer is at a premium and having this newfound, spacious area was a total windfall for us! We now have a gorgeous, spacious area for our beloved espresso machine, the coffee grinder, and all of the implements that go with it. The surface is perfect and just right for the daily mess which happens when making coffee. And, now that the counter is finished, Steve will be able to get started on the electronics cabinet above the coffee bar…hooray! :) Today's Pictures Our sunset walk out along the water at Parksville's Surfside RV Park was almost too wonderful for words. I ended up with so many great pictures that I couldn't bear the thought of lumping them all together in one gaudy presentation without giving at least a couple of them a "main shot" position. So today's star is a panorama which shows some of the amazing driftwood found along the shores here, accented by the setting sun and beautiful fading light. The insets show two other sunset pictures, each of which I thought merited a look. I hope you like them too! What an evening for memories it was!! :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAM!!! I hope you have a super day!! Pam, I know that you are moved by sunsets/rises just as much as I am, so I went to remind myself of some of your lovely pictures. Wow, wow, wow. Yeah, no two are ever the same and all of them are so special in their own colorful way! What a joy to behold your fine imagery and also, the graphical creativity that you let loose on some of your pictures. Outstanding and breathtaking. Thank you for the show! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* Explored on 2/10/20; highest placement #2.

(+7 insets!) (you can see the edgelit clouds better in full size!) :) Trip Talk: Up the Coast from Nanaimo to Parksville! After our too-short stay at our Nanaimo-based campground, we pulled up stakes and made the 40-minute drive to our next destination, Surfside RV Resort in Parksville. We were really happy to arrive at our next campsite so soon and since it was such an easy drive, we were able to go out and explore after getting our RV set up! Goats on the Roof and Country Store We decided that a drive around the area would be fun so we set off to go see a very popular country store with an unusual claim to fame. The store was set back on a hillside and had a grass-covered roof. On that roof were a group of goats! People come from near and far to see the goats up there, and we wanted to see as well! As it turned out, the blatant tourist trap of it all really turned us off, though we should have known better to begin with. The goats are actually kept on the roof. People milling around taking pictures of them made us feel like we were part of a crowd of mindless sight-seers and though I took my own shots, I felt a bit duped by the experience. The store was definitely overpriced but it was actually worth seeing. Vast selections of anything you could think of, mostly in the gourmet-food sector, it was really neat to see so many interesting varieties they had to offer. In fact, we ended up going home with a lovely marbled Porter cheddar cheese that wasn't expensive and turned out to be delicious and beautiful too! (If you'd like to see the sort of cheese we got, here's an article which shows pictures o f "alcohol-marbled cheeses" ) Wandering around outside the store, we found an enormous area filled with statuary for sale. They were fun to look at and I took some pictures, one of which you'll see as an inset. We also went around behind the store and saw a really cool old log cabin which I'm sharing a picture of too. Ultimately though, we were very underwhelmed with our experience at this tourist trap and just as well because it was time to head back for dinner. What a surprise we had in store…Mother Nature was about to make up for that bland experience! A Sunset to Remember After we'd had a lovely dinner, Steve and I decided to take a walk along the park's beautifully manicured path that went along the coastline. There was plenty of time to watch the sun go down and as the moments ticked by, the views got prettier and prettier. Adding to the drama, there were folks out on the bay enjoying themselves in kayaks and paddleboards. Steve and I enjoyed the challenge of trying to get pictures of them fully-silhouetted in the beam of sunshine in the water. It was such a lovely evening and we got piles of pictures! In fact, I was at a loss of how to properly share the images I got because there were so many that turned out very nicely. So, my solution is to present four sets of pictures so I can give a proper show that isn't too repetitive, I hope! :) Today's Pictures Today's main picture is a favorite for its light and wonderful mood. It really gives a feeling of what it was like to be out there that evening…the experience was amazing and so breathtaking! The insets show my best silhouetted person in the sunbeam, followed by a friendly fellow paddling into the sunbeam, droplets of water edge-lit in the glowing light. Finally, a silhouetted view of a paddleboarder looking back to see her friends in kayaks nearby. What a lovely way to experience that wonderful evening. A glorious occasion which we will never forget. Pam, have you ever played the "people in the sunbeam" game like we did? It's a grand bit of fun, especially because they were always paddling around, we were on the move, and everything was always changing up. I haven't tried it on a beach but it would be the same thing to sit in the sand and capture people silhouetted against the waves with the sun beaming past them…fun stuff. I hope you are having a nice day! :) *BIG HUGS* from southern Oregon! Explored on 2/06/20; highest placement #4.

Hi everyone!! Steve and I are finally back in the world that actually contains an internet connection! We don't know how long it will last but I'm posting this picture while I can. Our last stop was 6 days/5 nights at a wonderful state park called The Cove Palisades, located in north-central Oregon on beautiful Lake Billy Chinook. We'd never visited terrain described as "high desert" before, and were unprepared for the incredible beauty of this place. The canyon walls reminded us of places we'd seen in Arizona, Utah or New Mexico. Incredible. We are now at our next stop, close to the north-western edge of Oregon. The park is L.L. Stub Stewart park, and sits in lovely forest and grassy meadows. We arrived late yesterday so wre're still settling in for this 4-day stay. I'll try to update as I can! Explored on 6/19/19; highest placement, #1.

Oh my, it's so late!! Not my fault! The sun made me stay out until it set!! :D What a day, what an incredible, amazing day!! Steve and I woke to a SUNNY MORNING here in Coos Bay! HOORAY! Our plans for a hike was set, we just needed to decide which way to go...along the beach or up along the cliffs and into the forest? I thought the cliff-forest hike might give us prettier views and Steve agreed. We grabbed our stuff and headed out on a hike that turned out to be absolutely amazing! Views of boulder-strewn shorelines, verdant forest filled with glowing greenery and lots of flowers. It was exactly what we hoped for. We couldn't be happier, it was such a perfect day! At about 4pm we sat down at a gorgeous spot overlooking the ocean and enjoyed watching the waves crashing over the rocks. Mesmerizing. I knew we'd be hungry so I packed a late afternoon snacky-lunch of lots of yummy things like cheese and sausage, nuts and potato salad, carrots and chips! It was perfect! We got back at about 6:30pm with about 8 miles of hiking behind us for the day, totally satisfied and happy. After making early evening creamy espressos, we soon had ribs cooking on our barbecue for dinner along with veggies. YUM!! Steve and I talked about doing a sunset shoot but I figured we'd wait until tomorrow evening because we were BEAT from our day's adventures. However, Steve suggested we go out to the beach just to see where the sun had set. Before we left, he also found out that it was supposed to rain tomorrow afternoon and into the evening. Noooo!!! We headed out to the beach and to our surprise, the sun hadn't set yet. Even better, we had at least 20 minutes before it went down--plenty of time to get back to the RV and return with our cameras! As you can see, we got our sunset pictures!! It was such fun. Steve had the 5D Mark III on a tripod and took lots of different types of pictures. As for me, I had my Sony and had a great time with silhouette images and pictures of Steve taking pictures too. :) Unfortunately I don't have time for extra pictures tonight, heh...it's 9:30, eek! :D Pam, Steve and I were sure thinking about you a lot on our hike today. The views were something out of this world. We wished you could have been here. We have a video of the waves crashing on the rocks that I hope to post when I can, I think you'll enjoy it! I sure do hope your day was an ok one, you are very much cared about by us and in our warmest thoughts! :) *BIG HUGS* Explored on 5/19/19; highest placement #4.

(+11 insets!) (Please view large, you won't regret it!) Today we're all stirred up! Steve's sister is coming to stay with us for the next few days so we've been cleaning up and getting ready. It's been a while since I've seen her so it will be nice to catch up. The weather isn't going to be super but we'll get to take her to the Pear Blossom Festival and Parade this weekend which should be fun! I don't know how busy I'll be so my commenting is likely going to be spotty at best...my apologies in advance! Today is also the day when I post my Happy Fence Friday picture! Lately it's actually turned into my own Happy FRENCH Fence Friday! Along with a fence picture, it's been a perfect opportunity to share another set of pictures from our trip to Provence, France last year! If you've been following along with my trip so far, you may be amused that I've only shared pictures from our very first stop--Nice! We arrived late one night, spent a full day and left the next morning. However, in that time I got so many useable pictures that so far I've posted 41 and today I'll be posting another 11! I'm not quite finished processing the last of them but I have about 25 more ready to go--which will be two more sets at this point…I expect there will be another set at least, if you can believe it! As I've mentioned before, it's been really fun exploring my France photography because it's such a different style than I'm used to. I'd like to say thanks for all of your enthusiasm--I know it's not my usual type of photography but the positive response I've gotten leaves me glowing and so appreciative! :) Ok, let's go to Nice, shall we?! My main picture today was captured along Nice' famous Promenade des Anglais, a busy avenue and wide walkway that hugs the coastline of Nice. This particular spot featured a sweeping turn and heavy-duty guard rail, along with a pair of fellows who sat conveniently on one end! The picture cried out to be a very wide panorama in strong silhouette--I hope you like how it turned out! :) The insets cover a lot of the time that we spent walking along the waterfront but includes a couple of others as well. Here are details about the insets! :) PiP #1: Near where I took the guard rail picture there is a pull-out and this enormous sign to promote Nice. Kids were attracted like bees to honey and crawled all over it incessantly! The fellow in the bicycle taxi tried very hard to solicit our business long before we arrived at this spot to find him here, watching the kitlings play on the sign. He was listening to very loud music but it was really fun and it added to the enjoyment we were having this late afternoon. :) PiP #2: There was a rocky beach which ran along below the road and Steve and I enjoyed looking down to see the various clusters seated here and there or walking at the water's edge. This group was having a wonderful conversation and I got several pictures of them laughing and having fun. PiP #3: At the bend there was also a nice view in both directions. This picture shows Old Town Nice as it reaches out to the edge of the sea. PiP #4: As luck would have it, we arrived as the sun was beginning to set and we got some very dramatic images of the sun sinking below the far hills. What a view! :) PiP #5: We also saw lots of fishermen along the way, and many of them set up their poles on this point. Great people-watching here with folks looking at things on the ground and chumming around with one another. Good times! PiP #6 : Walking along the popular Promenade, this picture is an artistic, blurry impression of the people enjoying an early evening stroll--or run--with colorful lights beginning to show themselves in the background. I think the runners on the left might have noticed me…do you think?! :D PiP #7: I found this old man, down on his luck, snoozing on his bike to keep it safe from thieves. You can't deny his great style with his bright red sarape and sombrero hat. Entering the frame from the right is a pigeon who I distinctly heard say, "OLE!" :D PiP #8: Everywhere you go in Nice you will find inviting restaurants with plenty of outdoor seating. This nicely-furnished business had just opened up for the evening…pizza anyone?! PiP #9: Nearby a very busy café vibrated with great energy as friends and family enjoyed delicious food and drink a-plenty. I took this picture without even noticing the star of the show. When I took a closer look on my computer I burst out laughing…would you just LOOK at that dog?! Its master is clueless and deep in a conversation with his friend (who thinks I'm taking a picture of him, lol) but his dog is at the leash limit and in seventh heaven from two-scoops of love from a pair of joyful ladies who love this darling pooch! PiP #10: A close-up of the belly-up pup, showing her delirious state of happiness…"DON'T STOP!!!" :D PiP #11: And finally, as the evening grew darker, a beautiful cobbled alley, bedecked in pretty light prompted my eager attention. What a cool sight! Pam, I expect you've seen plenty of places similar to this in your caravan days, no? I have been so surprised to discover the wonderful seaside scenery in England. Of course I shouldn't be surprised but for some reason I didn't think England would have pretty views, isn't that odd? Ipernity has certainly opened my eyes to the splendor of England. As well, seeing all of the amazing pictures you shared in the book version of your 2011 Snowdrops Anglo-Saxon Chronicles I especially loved the sunset at the Valley of the Rocks at Lynton , what a gorgeous picture! :) Here's hoping you're doing well today! MANY HUGS from southern Oregon! Explored on 4/12/19, highest placement, #1.

(+3 insets!) It's really and truly snowing outside this morning! I checked during the night but only rain greeted me and I wondered what I would see upon arising. Peeking out first thing...nothing but a wet world. Boo. Still, it was going to be extremely cold today and there were storm clouds overhead. The perfect recipe for snow. At a freezing 27 degrees, I decided that I'd only do my minimum walk of 3 laps (15 minutes) today. I'm tired of returning to the house with frozen fingers and toes no matter how hard I work to keep warm. There are days that I feel cold for hours unless I take a long, hot shower or sit in front of the heater for ages to warm up again. It's no fun to feel so uncomfortable. I do love those showers though--except for the part where I have to get out at some point! If you can believe it, frogs were singing their hearts out down at the pond! Perhaps they didn't get the memo...IT'S FREEZING OUT HERE! The fact of the matter is that they are on an evolutionary timer and they know it. Our pond dries up at the beginning of June so they must find mates and produce eggs as early as possible. Those eggs must then hatch, the tadpoles must grow up and transform into froglets before the pond evaporates. Frogs who sing the earliest have the best chance of finding mates sooner, and thus, the best chance that their babies will grow up and produce the next generation. Survival of the fittest is a real thing and out here in the "sticks", we see the reality of living and dying based on tactics like these. Still, I must say it's pretty incredible to hear frogs singing when it's snowing! By the end of my 15 minutes there were itty bitty flakes falling and I was happy to get inside because I was already getting very cold despite marching up our hill three times. After another fifteen minutes the snow was coming down in bigger flakes and managed to cover the ground somewhat. I enjoyed looking at the contrast on the tree branches of white against dark brown. The snow continued for maybe half an hour and then petered out. The sun tried to break through the clouds and though it failed, the warmer temperatures melted all of the snow and now I look out and wonder...did it really snow or did I just imagine it? I didn't get any snowy pictures today except from my phone and they aren't worth posting. So I decided to dig around in my archives and process a few images I'd taken a while back...I have so much photography which deserves my attention. It's just incredible the piles of pictures that I don't have time to process! My main image is a snow and droplet-covered rose cane in heavy silhouette. I also found a picture of a day we had heavy snowfall a few years back. And I couldn't resist posting an adorable picture of our dear Basset Hound, Moosie, when he was just over a year old. How we miss that sweet boy. A picture of Zoey is here too, our adorable Boxer who we think of every day...our home feels so empty without them. :( Pam, has it been snowing much your way? Hopefully the weather isn't too bad. We're expecting more snow in the next few days but it won't be much. I did a search on your stream for "snow" and found a picture I loved of your beloved Flicka on his birthday. Maybe our dogs have met over the Rainbow Bridge. Our sweet pups…how we miss them. Sending *hugggggggggs* your way! Explored on 2/6/19, highest placement, #4.

A few years ago, Steve and I joined our local photography club. One of the first monthly assignments was doing night photography, and I was really excited to try this out on my husband's 5D Mark I. My husband helped me set things up and I had lots of fun playing around with long-exposure images of the night sky. Here is an image of the Big Dipper withe the partial moon looking on.

This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

One of the amazing things about this eucalyptus forest is all of the ivy which climbs up the trees. It will climb up and completely cover entire trees! This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

This image was taken on the MeetUp hike around one edge of Howard Prairie Lake on August 7, 2011.

This image was taken on the 4th of July Fireworks MeetUp Hike to the top of Lower Table Rock, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

[best appreciated at full size against black] Last night I helped Steve with a light-painting image he was working on out in our meadow, and the pictures he got were really amazing...at one point he stopped to take a picture of the rising moon and when he put his pictures up, I howled because his images both include the constellation of Orion! I've always wanted to take some night sky images so I was pretty envious to see these shots. www.flickr.com/photos/steves-visions/with/6834019113/ He offered to go out and help me take some of my own, and this is one of them! I hope you like it!! (two others follow this picture!) Today also marks a special anniversary for Steve and I. A year ago today, we stopped playing World of Warcraft forever. (we were total addicts for about 5 years) My, how things have changed!! I've uploaded two other images today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) NOTE! I have finally updated my profile and I hope you'll take a look to find out a little more about me and how important all of you are to my experience here on Flickr! www.flickr.com/people/sfhipchick/ This image was taken on February 6, 2012.

[best appreciated at full size against black] This group of teasels appear to be looking up in awe at the constellation of Orion in the beautiful night sky. This image was taken on February 6, 2012.

[best appreciated at full size against black] Before going out with Steve to take sky images, I went out to see if I could get any intereting shots of the moon through the trees. I found an opening in a twig-filled tree and thought it might look cool...I did not expect to find a "twig web" when I looked at the image on my computer! :D This image was taken on February 6, 2012.

[best appreciated at full size against black] We have a world-famous cheesery about 30 minutes from our house, so every so often we stop by to pick up some amazing varieties, including their specialty, blue cheese. We were greeted with this amazing sunset when we came out of the shop, shown here through the branches of an oak tree. If you would like a virtual visit, this is the URL: www.roguecreamery.com/pilot.asp I have two more image suploaded today, I hope you will take a look at them too! :) Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) This image was taken in December, 2011.