En Pointe

Find links to great bird photos at Bird Photography Weekly.

That's My World Tuesday...Nov 30, 2010

This red tail has been frequenting our back yard over the last few days. I think he's stalking the squirrels that stalk my birdfeeders.




Check out what's up in in other parts of the world. OR, share what's up in yours. The linking list is here.

Scenic Sunday #124 - View of Hohenschwangau

Last Sunday, I posted a photo of the fantasy Neuschwanstein Castle which sits high above the neighboring village.



Today's photo was taken from a window in Neuschwanstein, of the beautiful valley below. Nestled in the Alps we see nearby, 19th century Hohenschwangau palace, the childhood summer home of King Ludwig II of Bavaria. After the death of his father King Maximillian II, Ludwig resided in Hohenschwangau while overseeing the construction of Castle Neuschwanstein.

Be sure to visit the Scenic Sunday #124 linking list for your weekly trip around the world.

That's My World Tuesday...

I've been doing a lot of sewing this week. I did a long overdue cleanup of my work area, then promptly messed it all up again.




What's everyone else up to? Check out their photos from the linking list here:
That's My World Tuesday

Round Robin Challenge - Colorblind

This week's Round Robin photo challenge is just for fun. The description was:

Take a photo of something, change the color...make it interesting!


Creating crazy colored images are sort of like playing in a sandbox. I think what's enjoyable about it is the element of surprise. I never know what the next click is going to produce. Who knows if it's good or not...but it is entertaining.


This is an old photo of mine that I chose for an original




I played with the color, but I also used a texture layer (of a piece of stone) and a posterized to give it something more.



Yep...that's crazy.

There are a few more kids in the sandbox. Visit the linking list to their creations here.

Scenic Sunday #123 - Neuschwanstein Castle

The day we visited there was heavy drizzle and a blanket of fog.

Neuschwanstein Castle was built by Mad King Ludwig II above the village of Hohenschwangau in Bavaria, Germany.



Photography is not permitted inside the castle. As many as 6000 visitors/day tour the castle during the summer holiday months. If we were all to be able to take our time for interior photographs, no one would ever get through the entire tour. There's just too much to see and take in. However, I found some interior photos on Wikipedia here.

It is quite an experience to see the castle looming up on the hill above the village. Does it remind you of Disney's Sleeping Beauty castle? It was modeled after Neuschwanstein..

You'll find the linking list to other participants and beautiful scenery around the world at Scenic Sunday here.

Photo Friday - Vivid

Here's an image that is a little different for my blog...

This week's Photo Friday challenge is VIVID.

I took this picture a few months ago on a evening that we were in Manhattan. I didn't really know how it would turn out as the signs are constantly changing and I was hand holding the camera. I was expecting a blur. I'm pleased, and it's a fun photo to have in the archive.




For more colorful images, visit the linking list at Photo Friday.

Bird Photography Weekly #116

The winter birds are arriving on Long Island.



Northern Shoveler

If you love birds, find links to other bird enthusiast photos in the comment section here

Watery Wednesday - Krimmler Wasserfalle

Krimmler Wasserfalle

The tallest waterfall in Austria at 1248 feet. It's a three tiered waterfall and we hiked the the top of the second tier (approximately 750 feet change in elevation).



I won't lie, it was a strenuous hike of tight switchbacks. But, the view was amazing and the path provided repeated overlooks of the falls. We were treated to many a waterfall rainbow that day.




Many more photos can be found though the participant linking list for Watery Wednesday.

My World Tuesday - Long Island Sound

Living on the north shore of Long Island, I am just minutes from the Long Island Sound. The island has very little relief with the exception of the bluffs that overlook the sound. It's completely different just forty miles away on the south shore. There on the Altantic, it's essentially flat as a pancake.

I'm a "high altitude" girl, I love to overlook. I was deliriously happy up in the Alps....I could have stayed there forever. For Long Island, this is a relatively high perch.

I spend a lot of time alone since we moved here. As I look at this image it occurs to me that it seems to represent the state of my spirit at this point in my life.



For more photos from EVERYWHERE...visit the linking list to other photographers who participate in That's My World Tuesday.

Scenic Sunday #122 - Innsbrook Austria

In the Alps...above Innsbrook Austria.



The links to other Scenic Sunday photographs is right here.

Bird Photography Weekly #115

I found a new photo meme that's PERFECT for me!!



I've often said that the best thing about living on Long Island is the birds, and I rarely come back from a photo outing without a slew of new images.

This picture was taken at Belmont Lake near Babylon, NY just last week. Flat light gives the image a painterly feeling but I was thrilled with the contrast of the heron against the fall foliage.



If you love bird photography, check out the links here.

Watery Wednesday

This is my first time for participating in the Watery Wednesday photo meme. In thinking about an image to share, it occurred to me that I haven't posted ONE SINGLE picture from our trip to Germany and Austria this summer. It's been a big job going through them, picking which images to keep and then to do the touch up work. I get started, then distracted....blah, blah, blah...and haven't really gotten to it. I have so many, I could do one a day for....well, awhile.
:)

Driving through Austria is both a photographers dream and nightmare. The scenery is breathtaking beyond words and everywhere you look you see a photo, but you can't stop everywhere. But this was one stop we made as we were driving through the Zillertal Valley.

More Fall Photos

I keep thinking that we're at the end of the season, that the color is done. But, you travel a little further south or just to the west, and find little pockets of fall are still hanging on. I'm enjoying autumn as long as it lasts.

Low Tide at Stony Brook Harbor

In a continued attempt to get back to regular blogging....or at least photoblogging, I'm turning to memes as a way to motivate more frequent posts. This is a much photographed local landmark in our little village of Stony Brook, NY. I thought it was particularly pretty as the marsh grass takes on its autumn color.

Check out other Scenic Sunday posts here.

Round Robin Challenge - Outside Looking In

The current Round Robin Photo Challenge is to share a picture from the outside of a window looking in. I miss the old days where department stores did fabulous windows along the main street of town. Faceless models wearing the best of what the store had to offer, completely surrounded by fascinating props that made the whole thing pop. Each was more engaging than the last. Today's mall stores don't get the job done at the same caliber.

I was jumping in my car at a strip mall one night recently, when this window caught my eye. I think the fact that it was dark made the whole look really work. Even with a dress as spectacular as this...I question if I would have noticed it, much less photographed it in the daylight.




Be sure to visit the other challenge participants. You'll find the complete linking list to the other Robins here.

Pure Luck

I got a nice surprise yesterday...a case of pure photographic luck.

I was out with a friend taking pictures at a lake. Just for the heck of it, I took this photo of three mergansers swimming in a line. They were just a tad far away but I take these shots anyway just in hopes that maybe I can pull one bird out of the bunch for a nice image.

I took a series of these photos within seconds. So I have a bunch of them that look just the same. As you can see, this is a NOTHING special shot...totally uninteresting...should go right to trash bin.




But when I magnified the shot and looked at each bird individually, I saw that the leader had a fish!



My series shows this bird working to gulp down the fish...here's one. What LUCK!